It’s always a good idea to give your vehicle a thorough look over every now and then – but especially so if you’ll be towing a heavy load with it. While the brakes, tires, suspension and other important systems may feel fine under normal load, they can become easily overworked when towing, leading to potentially dangerous component failures. This crash involving a Chevy Silverado, which was caught on dashcam by a motorist in Paw Paw, Michigan back in 2019, serves as a great example as to why it’s important to keep your vehicle in tip-top shape before setting off with a heavy trailer.
The short 15-second clip starts just as the light at an intersection has turned green and a group of vehicles are preparing to pull away from the light. As they begin to accelerate, an out-of-control GMT 900-generation Chevy Silverado 1500 enters the frame, smashing into the cammer’s car before hitting a silver Nissan Rogue that was driving in front of it. The Silverado was carrying a large flatbed trailer with a ‘Wide Load’ sign on it, which was empty at the time of the crash. The cammer had this to say about the footage in the video description:
“Driving home after work to my wife and two kids. The guy in a truck with a wide load hit like 4 or 6 cars. One of the cars behind me was blasted into the back of me and then the truck with the wide load came down my side like a shredder. Lots of people went to the hospital including myself. One lady was badly hurt IDK if she made it. Guy said he had no breaks (sic).”
While we can’t say for sure, this trailer seems as though it could be a bit too heavy for an older light-duty Chevy Silverado 1500 such as this. The trailer wasn’t loaded at the time of the crash, but it’s reasonable to assume that this truck had been driving around with this trailer while it was loaded up at some point, which could have put additional stress on the braking system and eventually led to the failure seen in this clip. If the decal on the side of the truck is any indication, the vehicle belongs to or was being operated by Jim Arends Farm in Conklin, Michigan at the time of the accident.
Check out the clip embedded below.
Be sure to subscribe to GM Authority for more Chevrolet news, Chevrolet Silverado news and around-the-clock GM news coverage.
Comments
Strange that the driver did not turn towards the guardrail when he had brake issues? I have lost the connection on my electric trailer brakes before, it’s scary when the trailer just pushes the truck, but you have to look for a soft spot to crash, not other cars.
Most people don’t always have the sense to plan ahead with what they would do if it all goes wrong.
You have to have that sense of thinking as a natural process.
People tend to just Lock brakes and freeze.
I often at lights and traffic watch my mirror just for something like this. One time it paid off. I was on the interstate and a guy with a Dodge Dakota and a boat much too large for the truck could not slow it down. I saw the truck bucking and so I pulled down into the median. Good thing too as he did not stop till near the rear number that originally was on the car ahead of me.
You can do all sorts of things to these vehicles and people will still be the weak link.
Actually in this case we can’t see what is going on. He may not be able to steer much or had the space. He at least hit the cars glancing and not a direct hit.
Shame on “you” Sam, and your continuous cancel culture efforts of throwing dirt at GM. Did you even do any forensics on the video or did you just take the video poster’s ASSumed knowledge of facts on this one?
Try this!
07-13 Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD (if not a 3500HD) Z71 4X4 DURAMAX DIESEL, with up to a 10,000GVWR
Y’all’ll just have to copy/past/enter into address bar due to link moderations.
https
://dygtyjqp7pi0m.cloudfront
.net/i/39008/34334016_4.jpg?v=8D73D3179E6B870
Look familiar, 8 Lug wheels (big brakes) Duramax trim on back edge of hood and accompanying large tail pipe!
As far as the trailer goes, it’s not a 5th wheel so it’s carrying capacity and therefore the weight of it wouldn’t be high. It would more then likely have a braking system and could have been a small contributing factor here if it were faulty being that it was empty.
I call driver error on this one!
Nice one Sam.
Tough to stop when you don’t have a front left wheel.
The lack of a front left wheel is the result, not the cause.
“WIDE LOAD” — really says it all.
On new Truck Safety braking warning and Pedestrans braking it is an $$$$ option. Some exotic cars even cheap one , compare to a Truck, has it standard and not as dommageble as a Truck in accident. Find where is the mistake. Life is it important?
Looks like a Ford badge to me ?
Just my two cents if you’re a hot shot driver a proper pre-trip should always be done as for how I would find it very hard if not impossible to believe the driver didn’t have a trailer brake controller you release the tow vehicle brakes and engage the trailer brakes if the tow vehicle pulls the trailer it’s a fail lastly anytime I’m approaching a light red or green I’m always slowing rushing only leads to failure
Would say biggest problem is the FOOL at the wheel!!
For me, what fueled the tone of this thread is the author if the article. He has speculated and assumed that this is the fault of the guy driving the truck, How about a real brake failure – duh. Come on guys, even if he had been trailering heavy loads, brakes do not just totally fail all of the sudden because of that. Maybe the driver of the truck WAS asleep at the switch, but saying this was the result of having towed the loaded trailer is sensationalist journalism at its worst – but that seems to be the norm in all media nowadays.
John Fowler: You’re the only person (that I read) that brought common sense into this arrival. The original author seems to be clueless. Any vehicle hauling a load or trailer can fail. All machinery fails at some point. Speculation & judgement prove nothing. I had it happen myself. Brand new trailer from factory with improperly installed or checked electric brakes which failed due to wiring fault/failure. It happens.
You’re all wrong! I have a 2019 $50K+ yard ornaments setting in my yard right this very minute. There has been a class action law suit already filed over the entire braking system in that truck. GM hasn’t figured out what the problem is, therefore, they can’t fix them. Mine took me on the ride of my life. I was making a left turn, I had just barely touched the gas, the truck started to move then it deexcellerated for a couple of seconds then went into full excelleration. My truck started spinning uncontrollably, there was no controlling anything. There was total failure of all the braking system, I wasn’t towing anything…no traction control, no radio ABSOLUTELY NOTHING IN THE DASH WAS WORKING. I finally had to let go of the steering wheel and brace myself for an accident. The truck spun around almost an entire block. It was a great thing the oncoming light was red so that gave me room to take my trip without hurting anyone. I was lucky enough to miss a couple of parked cars before that wild thing came to a stop. I had to get my composure and get out of the middle of the road. Everything that was torn up was flashing on the truck screen. I was able to get a block to my son and he got the truck home for me. A couple of days later I got a diagnostic letter from Onstar…DO NOT DRIVE THIS TRUCK…GET IT TO YOUR NEAREST DEALERSHIP AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. That’s when I found out about the class action suit for the break loss problem. This man has had the same thing happen to his truck. The exception was he was going straight and pulling a trailer, he didn’t have any brakes at all including the towing brake. There is no way he could have stop or directed the truck in any direction except in the way it was already going.
I’m so sorry that people were hurt badly in this accident. This guy probably doesn’t even know what his problem was it’s being kept under wraps. GM has already had to take back a few trucks and will be taking back a lot more…mine for one…it only has 12,000 miles on it.
This is a double dunk for me. I had to buy a new truck because my 2014 caught on fire with me and 2 of my grandkids in it. We barely made it off the road and far away from the truck until things started blowing. I had just had it in to Morristown Chevrolet and they couldn’t find a thing wrong with it, like a lot of times it had been taken in before. That truck was bought new also, had problems from day one.
I hope the gentleman who had his accident sees this especially if he doesn’t know about the brake loss issue. Why should he or his insurance pay for something GM is responsible for.
I know how people feel about religion but I’ll tell you when I had to turn lose of that steering wheel I said, “Jesus take the wheel” and he did. I know there is a song about that but it didn’t enter my mind. I was really asking for help during that ride from hell!!
Take care and stay safe…
Given that this is in Michigan, and given the age of the truck I can’t help but wonder if it did in fact blow a rusted out brake line. Still no excuse for poor handling of the situation – but anyone who knows these generations of trucks know that they rust out lines in salt states.
That’s not what happened and this man isn’t guilty. GM has been buying defective chips for the Silverado for a couple of years now. The entire braking system goes out and there is no traction control. My Silverado took me on a ride from hell a little over a month ago. I started to make a left hand turn the gas deexcellerated for a few seconds then fully excellerated. There entire braking system was gone and the steering wheel was uncontrollable. That truck spun me around in circles like riding a tilt-a -whirl. I was lucky the traffic light was red so ther was nothing but a few parked cars. I don’t know how but I missed everyone of them. Yes the truck started telling me the braking g system was gone as well as traction control. My son was able to get the truck home for me. About 3 days later I got a letter from onstar that said, DO NOT DRIVE THAT TRUCK. GET IT TO YOUR NEAREST DEALERSHIP AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. Braking system problem. There has been a class action suit filed against GM over the problem. They are unable to fix the problem. Guess I’ll put my $50k+ yard ornament on a rollback and send it to the dealership. What’s so ironic…I had a 2014 Silverado before this one that had problems that could never be duplicated. The U.S. Attorney General was involved with these models. Took it in to get it fixed for I don’t know how many times…couldn’t be duplicated. About 4 weeks after picking it up the truck caught on fire with me and 2 of my grandsons in it. I barely got it off the interstate and to the side of the road. We jumped out, just as we barely cleared the truck it started exploding. Still haven’t settled that one, now I have one with 12,000 miles on it that can’t be driven…another headache. It’s still under warranty and they expect me to pay for a rental car…not my problem it’s theirs. Don’t blame this poor fellow from what I understand he told that he didn’t have brakes. Take it from someone who knows…he didn’t!!