Bought a 2004 Corvette last August (2006) with 21K miles. Recently took it on a six hundred mile road trip when I noticed that my brake lights were not coming on. Called the dealership where I bought the car and found out that I had 1 week left on the warranty. Took the car in and was told at first that the problem could not be duplicated. I then received another call from the advisor stating that as they were driving the car from the bay, the brakes locked and that after further examination the brake fluid was contaminated and that the seals were like water balloons as a result. Not being mechanically inclined, the only thing that I have done under the hood is check the oil and detail with a brush. The only other people under the hood has been the dealer when I took it in for its first oil change 3K ago. They are claiming that they did not top off the brake fluid at the time of oil change. They cannot tell me what the brake fluid is contaminated with or how long it has been contaminated. They are basically saying that I am stuck with replacing the entire brake system because the warranty will not cover it. I am thinking that when the car went in for the oil change, it was indeed topped off with the wrong brake fluid and after the 3,000 miles the symptoms have shown.

Any advise would be greatly appreciated. I have already talked to the management at the Chevrolet Dealer and they will not budge.

Thank you.

 

Where are you located? By the description from the dealer, it sounds like someone may have put power sterring or tranny stop leak in. The solvents in these cause the seals to expand and turn to "jelly". They cannot be used in a brake system. If this is the cause, all seals in the calipers need to be replaced, all flexable lines, the master cylender rebuilt, and there may be components in the ABS control that need replaced as well.

Good Luck!