439 of the
4,956 complaints filed about the Chevrolet Colorado
are about the braking system —
100% of everything owners reported.
The worst model year for it is 2005.
Intermittent total loss of power steering assistance while driving at speed, accompanied by the immediate illumination of the Traction Control and StabiliTrak warning indicators on the dashboard. The loss of power steering creates a sudden and severe handling hazard. This safety issue has occurred more than 15 times since this vehicle was purchase used in December of 2025. A diagnostic scan reveals specific diagnostic trouble codes: C0545-00 (Steering Wheel Torque Sensor Hardware Failure), C0460-5A (Steering Wheel Angle Sensor Plausibility), U0420-42 (Invalid Data Received from PSCM), and C0280-00. The power steering also intermittently returns to normal functionality after the vehicle sits completely powered off, indicating a thermal or electronic hardware failure within the internal torque sensor of the steering gear assembly. This specific failure occurred most recently at 76,143 miles on VIN 1GCGTCE38G1146466 (Manufacture Date: 10/1/2015; Original Sales Date: 4/1/2016). This is the exact component failure and safety hazard described in GM Recall #15595 (NHTSA Campaign #16V054) for the 2015 model year. Furthermore, despite this vehicle falling well within the mileage limits of GM Special Coverage N182182190, this specific VIN is excluded (per a VIH request to Mac Haik Chevrolet Service Desk with my VIN) from the coverage program for an identical hardware failure, posing an unresolved and dangerous safety risk on 2016 models.
NHTSA complaint #11764177 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Brake assist suddenly went out. No warning lights what so ever. Happened thankfully when pulling into my driveway at slow speed. Had to stand on the brake pedal to get stopped. If this would have occurred at interstate speeds. It would have been bad.
NHTSA complaint #11764035 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Both rear calipers have become frozen or stuck, causing the brakes to seize and not work correctly. This happened around 53,000 miles. There was a burning rubber smell as well as the tire/brake temp was 5 times the normal. This created a severe driving hazard.
NHTSA complaint #11763826 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS:DISC:CALIPER
The contact owns a 2023 Chevrolet Colorado. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, there was smoke coming from the front tires, and the tires were extremely hot. No warning lights were illuminated. The contact became aware of the burning tire odor coming from the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic after a tire rotation. The contact was informed that the calipers and brakes had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was scheduled for the necessary repairs. The mechanic contacted the dealer about the failure. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 42,400.
NHTSA complaint #11762838 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
On September 4, 2026, I experienced an extremely serious and frightening braking failure while driving my 2020 Chevrolet Colorado 2.5L. I was driving my granddaughter to school and was pulling into the school's carpool/drop-off area at approximately 20 mph. This was an especially dangerous location because children, parents, vehicles, and school personnel were in the immediate area. As I attempted to slow and stop the vehicle, the brake pedal suddenly became extremely hard and the vehicle would not stop normally. The dashboard displayed “Service Brake Assist,” and the check-engine light illuminated. I pressed the brake pedal, but the vehicle continued moving. Realizing that the normal brakes were not stopping the truck, I engaged the emergency/parking brake. The emergency brake slowed the vehicle somewhat, but even then the vehicle did not come to a complete stop. I ultimately had to place the vehicle in PARK to get it stopped. Fortunately, I was traveling at a low speed and was able to prevent the vehicle from striking a child, pedestrian, another vehicle, or other property. My granddaughter was also inside the vehicle at the time. This was an extremely frightening situation that could very easily have resulted in catastrophic injuries or death. The fact that this occurred in a school carpool/drop-off area surrounded by children makes the seriousness of this failure especially concerning. There was no reasonable warning that I was about to lose normal braking assistance. I am reporting this incident because I believe this vehicle may have experienced a serious safety-related defect involving the braking/brake-assist system. I am requesting that this incident be documented and that NHTSA investigate whether other owners of 2020 Chevrolet Colorado vehicles, particularly those equipped with the 2.5L four-cylinder engine, have experienced similar sudden losses of brake assist or braking ability.
NHTSA complaint #11762094 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Brake boost vacuum pump failure. While approaching a traffic light that was red, I applied the brakes. The pedal was very hard to press and required me using both feet to bring the vehicle to a stop. Stopping distance was much longer than normal. I removed the vacuum pump and found it had seized and broke apart.
NHTSA complaint #11761541 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
While driving my 2020 Chevrolet Colorado through [XXX], the truck began having difficulty accelerating. As I exited the highway and turned into a gas station, the truck suddenly lost power. The steering became extremely difficult, and I lost normal brake assist. The brake pedal became extremely hard, and I had to apply extreme force to stop the truck and avoid crashing into a wall at the gas station. Fortunately, no collision occurred. The truck was towed to Ed Corley Ford in [XXX] because I was stranded in a remote area with very limited options. They diagnosed a failed/broken vacuum pump and told me replacing it should make the truck operable so I could drive it home to [XXX]. I authorized the repair. After replacing the vacuum pump, they told me they started the truck and heard an abnormal sound. They shut it off, and when they tried to restart it, the truck would not start. They wanted to perform additional diagnosis, but I declined and had the truck transported back to [XXX] for evaluation by a Chevrolet dealership. Huffines Chevrolet Lewisville inspected the truck. Their technician removed the camshaft position sensor and used a borescope to inspect the camshaft. They documented that the camshaft is damaged at the end where it connects to the vacuum pump and stated the actuator pin was most likely bent due to the vacuum-pump failure, damaging the camshaft and causing it to be slightly out of time. I have also been informed of engine damage. The truck remains inoperable and is currently available for inspection. I am concerned this is a safety defect because the vacuum-pump failure resulted in a sudden loss of normal brake assist while I was driving and was followed by camshaft/engine damage. I am asking NHTSA to investigate this failure and similar Chevrolet Colorado complaints. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
NHTSA complaint #11761467 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
While driving home multiple lights,messages and sounds came on the dashboard. I stepped on the brake and there were no brakes. I put vehicle in neutral and pumped brakes a few times. I was not traveling that fast so the vehicle stopped before I hit the person in front of me. I drove 10 mpg with my hazards on to the nearest gas station. I called Chevy service and they sent a tow truck N/C to bring to the dealer.
NHTSA complaint #11760580 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Was on a trip and on the highway home the service break lights came on. By the time we got home(less than 200 miles) the breaks where scraping the calipers. Truck only had 25,586 miles on it when they picked it up to take to the shop. Dealership had to replace the break pads, calipers and rotor on the front driver side.
NHTSA complaint #11759461 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Complete loss of electronic power steering capability while new teenage driver was traveling at high rate of speed. Loss of power steering and stabilitrak traction control warning indicators on dash. Issue that invoke a safety recall in previous year model vehicle (GM Recall #15595 & GM Special Coverage N182182190) but is being ignored by manufacturer for my 2016 model. ODB2 fault codes confirms U0420-42 and C0545 indicating exact same issues still occurring in 2016 vehicles despite recall due to this safety issue in 2015 models.
NHTSA complaint #11758971 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
I purchased this truck new in March of 2024, in May I was at a Starbucks drive-thru and lost all brakes. While slowing down at the window the pedal went to the floor and my dash light up like a Christmas tree. I pulled into a parking spot and shut the truck off for about 5 minutes. When I turned the truck back on the lights were gone and the truck seemed fine, so I drove home. The next day I was picking up my kids from school when in the pickup line the same issue happened. I lost my brakes, the dash lit up, and the truck started rolling forward in the pickup line. I had to push on the brake pedal as hard as I could to make the truck stop. I called the dealer and had the truck taken there. The truck was there for several days and I was told the master cylinder and brake control module were replaced. I’m reporting this now, because I saw that this is part of a larger issue being reported and I wanted my experience memorialized to help others.
NHTSA complaint #11759152 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Iba sobre el freeway a 60 millas y de la nada el freno se puso duro no respondían me pasé a los carril de la orilla y fui metiendo freno de mano poco a poco bendito Dios me puse a salvo! La agencia me dijo que fue el booster ahora tienen que verificar que no halla fragmentos de metal en el motor!
NHTSA complaint #11758604 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
While driving on the freeway, I experienced a sudden issue with the vehicle’s braking system. The brake pedal became extremely stiff and difficult to press, and the brake assist stopped functioning. I was still able to apply the brakes, but it required significantly more force than normal to slow and stop the vehicle. Prior to this incident, I had also noticed an issue where the engine did not shut off normally after removing the key. The engine continued running briefly before shutting off with a noticeable rumble/shudder. I do not know whether the two issues are related, but I am including this information because it occurred before the brake-assist failure and may be relevant to diagnosing the vehicle.
NHTSA complaint #11757218 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Colorado. The contact stated that while driving approximately 75 MPH, the engine revved without the accelerator pedal being depressed. The contact stated that while turning onto an exit ramp, the brake pedal was depressed to slow the vehicle; however, there was resistance to the brake pedal, and an excessive amount of pressure was needed to depress brake pedal to stop the vehicle. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to be diagnosed or repaired. The dealer was informed of the failure. The dealer informed the contact that failure might cause the complete engine failure. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 106,000.
NHTSA complaint #11754991 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Brake vacum pump experienced a catastrophic failure. I was unable to step on the break because the break pedal was hard. I ran thru a red light. I was told the brake vacume pump shattered & pieces of metal went into my engine
NHTSA complaint #11753572 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
I was driving went to stop brake petal went to the floor and the truck did not stop. So i put it in low gear and got the truck to stop. the truck is at the dealer they keep giving me the run around so i call gm and open a case there going to get back to me .Brake light,APS,Brake SystemFailure all lit up on dash and truck only had 134 mile.
NHTSA complaint #11753356 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
While driving downhill nearing a stop sign my wife went to apply the brakes to stop and all she had was an extremely hard brake pedal. She panicked that she “no brakes.” She was only going about 20 MPH, and was able to stop the vehicle but it took an extraordinary amount of effort to do so. Had she had to make a sudden stop for a child, another person, or something else, she would not have been able to stop without negative consequences including possible death. There were no warning signs, vehicle pulled out of driveway and brakes were normal. Less than 10 seconds later no more power brakes. The vehicle had the vacuum pump seize which eliminated the power boost and the pump is operated by the exhaust camshaft which also got damaged and needs replaced. Chevy dealership estimated the repair at $2,600. Upon researching the vacuum pump, this is a common failure on multiple GM vehicles resulting in sudden brake loss. The vacuum pump should have been designed with a shear pin, so that if it fails the camshaft does not get damaged. Had the vacuum pump been properly designed and it was the only failing part, the repair cost would be $500 versus $2,600. Also, there should have been a temporary backup system so you would not lose power boost.
NHTSA complaint #11749435 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
VIN: [XXX]. 2019 Chevy Colorado, ~115,000 mi. FAILED COMPONENT: Vacuum pump failed internally; debris damaged the exhaust camshaft. Pump is cam-driven with no shear pin, so seizure cuts brake assist AND sends metal debris into the engine. Truck/parts are at Chapman Chevrolet, Tempe AZ, available for inspection. SAFETY RISK: On XXX, brake pedal suddenly lost assist while my son merged onto XXX from [XXX]. Pedal effort/stopping distance increased with no warning - high risk of collision merging into highway traffic. CONFIRMED BY DEALER: Yes. Chapman Chevrolet confirmed vacuum pump failure and camshaft damage, consistent with GM TSB 21-NA-268 (drive-lug failure). OTHER INSPECTIONS: Dealer only so far; not yet by GM, police, or insurance. Available if needed. PRIOR SYMPTOMS: None. There were no warning lamps, messages, or other symptoms prior to the sudden brake assist failure on 7/1/26. This is a known failure mode on GM's cam-driven vacuum pump (TSB 21-NA-268; Special Coverage XXX covers 2014-2017 trucks/SUVs but not this 2019 Colorado despite same design). Requesting investigation into whether this is an unaddressed defect on 2018-2019+ Colorado/Canyon 2.5L trucks, and whether recall/extended coverage is warranted. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
NHTSA complaint #11748346 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
While driving on the parkway, the engine revved, and then the brakes became hard as a brick. The truck was unable to be stopped. There were no warning lamps or indications there was a problem, it happened suddenly and immediately. Other drivers' and my own safety was at risk because I could not stop the truck. Here is the diagnosis from the GM service center where it was towed to: "After the removal of the valve cover, the tech found the pump in pieces, and the end of the exhaust camshaft was damaged, as presented in the photos. The quote attached depicts all that is being replaced with this repair." The is a know and acknowledged GM defect that has affected well over 3 million vehicles to date. There was a recall issued for some models, but not the Chevrolet Colorado. There are many reports online of other Colorado owners having the exact brake vacuum pump failure, resulting in damage to the camshaft.There is also a class action lawsuit filed in Michigan in early 2026, involving the same brake vacuum pump failure, for some of the models that were not included in the recall. This is an extremely dangerous mechanical failure that GM is aware of.
NHTSA complaint #11748403 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Component that failed: brakes. I was pulling into a parking spot at low speed and the brake pedal was suddenly extremely difficult to depress, almost impossible. It felt as if a brick were under the pedal but there was no obstruction. I was able to stop only because I was already going so slow. Safety of myself and others was at risk because I was almost unable to stop the vehicle. If I had been going any faster I don't believe I would have been able to without crashing into an obstacle. Vehicle is currently at a service shop but issue has not been verified or repaired as of today. When restarting the vehicle, the engine stuttered and started making odd sounds, and wouldn't idle properly. There were no warning lamps, messages, or other symptoms at all prior to failure. When I entered the parking lot it was working normally and when I turned to enter a parking spot the brakes suddenly just failed.
NHTSA complaint #11748004 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.