2007 Pontiac Torrent #- Brakes locked

Maintenance/Repairs
1

I Also have a 2007 Pontiac Torrent. My SUV brakes had locked up, so I took it to the dealer. They did the diagnostics and said that the onboard computer board that controls the brake needs replacing. After this $2,000 repair I took the car on the road and guess what, the brakes locked again. Back to the dealer, they looked it and said I will need a ne master cylinder. When they took it out they noticed that there was an internal leak from the master to the booster, so The booster needs replacing as well. Another $14,000. It is frustrating, and I don’t know if all this will fix the problem. Also, I don’t understand why the electronics were replaced when the problem is hydraulic.

2

I sincerely hope you mean $1,400 and not $14,000. In any event, it’s possible both the board and master cylinder were bad but my non-mechanic gut agrees with yours. My uneducated guess is that the leaking master cylinder made it look like the board was bad and the tech who did the work didn’t bother to pull the master cylinder and do a visual inspection. I would certainly chafe at both the idea of spending another $1,400 and the idea of spending $3,400 on a 14 year old vehicle, and I’d be sure and let the Service Manager know.

3

I think it is time to find a independent mechanic you don’t need the high priced dealer for a 14 old car

1 Like
4

Thanks for the comments. Much appreciated. And yes, I meant $1,400.

5

My torrent has service ride control and abs light issues. But no driveability issues. So, maybe I’m lucky.

6

I expect the actual problem was the MC was leaking fluid into the brake booster. Not an uncommon problem. Did you notice the engine was missing, or white smoke out the tailpipe at times? If so, that’s all consistent. W/brake problems, esp w/ABS brakes, it can be difficult to pinpoint exactly what the problem is. About all you can do is make a guess, change it out, and see what the effect is. Similar to how the scientific method works. They had to start somewhere, so they decided to start with the brake electronics board. I presume this is the ABS controller. That turned out to an incorrect guess, but it eventually got you back on road, so no worries imo.

7

Definitely agree with taking the vehicle to a non-dealer repair shop.