I was driving in Minneapolis Sunday afternoon, maybe 30 miles per hour, and the car ahead of me stopped quick because the one ahead of it stopped quick to make a turn. I stepped on the brake really quick and hard, but nothing happened. Th brake would not go peddle down, like there was a block under it. My car did not slow down one bit, so I hit the car in front of me. There definitely had to be a problem with the brakes.
Let us know what the body shop/mechanic discover what caused you brake failure.
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Sounds like your ABS actuated and you were on slick pavement. The car is under warranty, I’d have the dealer check that out after the body shop gets done.
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They’ll connect Event Data Recorder software to the vehicle and find out what happened.
Tester
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A 30 MPH collision is significant, likely enough damage to total the vehicle. That solves the brake problem, you won’t get the vehicle back.
If there is serious injury or death involved, law enforcement may check the passive restraint collision data but otherwise no one will care.
Outside of a slick surface stopping the ABS from slowing the car, the usual cause for this is having your feft foot under the brake pedal and a data recorder will not discover that.
What did the police say? They will make a cursory check of the brakes after an accident like that
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Guy that rear ended me, no followup, maybe because he said he passed out after giving plasma. Nice guy I am gave him a ride home as he would have been stuck for hours, then went to the er. ER was a waste of time, but ok for now, as accident was 2 years ago.
I did not have my left foot under the brake pedal. It seems everyone is
trying to tell me I didn’t brake right. There was definitely something
wrong with the braking system. Nobody wants to accept that.
OK, I believe you, now what to do? Glad I was not in your situation, I would be bitching at the dealership myself!
It would be very difficult to place your entire foot under the brake pedal, I don’t see that as a “usual cause”. Your toes maybe but there is at least 6" of travel and space under the pedal so that would not interfere with braking.
sorry to here that happened to you. if your car is repairable and the autobody cant find the problem with your brakes bring it to the dealer. it still covered under the warranty.
food for thought… I lent my truck to my son for work. he must of thrown a bottle of water on the back seat and forgot about it. the next day when I was driving the truck I noticed a bottle roll between my legs. I was lucky I caught it in time before it rolled under the brake pedal when I needed to stop.
something like that could of happened to you. you would not notice it after the accident because things get thrown around. just a thought.
As mentioned, they should be able to pull some info and discover what actually happened.
About 10 or so years ago there was a crash involving an SUV full of teens and an oil tanker truck. The truck was on a winding, hilly 45 MPH 2 lane road making a legal left turn. The SUV swerved and hit a tree; killing one and injuring the rest.
There was a lot of media hand wringing and blaming the tanker driver by a fair number of people.
After roughly 6 months of random follow-ups the data recorder revealed what really happened. Those teens were doing 98 MPH when they left the roadway. They simply came over a rise and there was the tanker turning…
I’ve ridden that road on a bike a few times and the 45 MPH limit is to be heeded.
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When the brake power assist fails, the result is a “hard” pedal that requires a lot more effort to depress it. Based on the recall (admittedly on other GM vehicles) posted by Barkydog, it is entirely possible that your Chevy had a similar failure.
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Another thought… the OP never said if conditions were slick causing the ABS to come on.
If it wasn’t slick it is possible the problem is in the brake system. A very quick brake apply… a spike apply on the pedal… can cause a rock hard pedal with no pedal movement and no brakes. This is caused by the instantaneous rush of brake fluid not being able to reach the calipers. The pressure rise prevents the brakes working right away. It is caused by too small brake lines. I have experienced this in a few cars and trucks.
Did the engine shut off when you hit the brakes hard? It shouldn’t, but sometimes they do. With no engine vacuum, the power assist for the brakes doesn’t work, so it takes a lot more pressure on the pedal than we are used to.
The engine did not shut off. Its just that the brake pedal
would not go down.
When the anti-lock brake system engages you may feel more pressure, a harder pedal, this is normal system operation.
I have caught myself stepping too far to the left and trying to depress the foot rest rather than the brake. I wonder if that is what the OP did.
I have experinced ABS malfunctions on GM vehicles where the Abs cycled rapidly on ond off on dry roads at low speeds and prevented the brakes from applying but it as always on GM fill size vans, pickups or Suburbans or Blazer/Tahoes and I thought they had solved that problem years ago. When it happened, the sound and pulsation of the ABS was unmistakable.
I have size14 feet and need a high toe box. If I get my toes under the pedal, it ids not going to apply the brake.