Owners have filed 12,777 complaints on the Chevrolet Silverado, covering 1999–2008. The system named most often is Air Bags (1,360 reports). Worst years by volume: 2003, 2000, 2004; cleanest: 2006, 2007, 2005. 847 reports describe a crash, 206 a fire, 29 a death. On average the car was 6.2 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Chevrolet Silverado
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 12,777 Silverado complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Air Bags 1,360 Read
Air bags failed to deploy from frontal impact during motor vehicle accident
Takata recall. The contact owns a 2008 chevrolet silverado 1500. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 16v3810000 (air bags), however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The vehicle was taken to ron craft chevrolet service & repair department (4114 I-10, baytown, tx 77521, (855)…
Swerved to miss a deer and hit an embankment and a cement culvert on a highway at night, was by myself. Neither of my airbags deployed and I hit my chest extremely hard on the steering wheel and I am in severe pain from my ribs. Have severe hematoma and bruising
Service Brakes 867 Read
Subject: complaint: (ABS product failure -- anti-locked brake system) on 2001 chevy suburban - purchased on may, 2003, [xxx] e-mailed to: [email protected] my husband and I purchased a 2001 chevy suburban from smith chevrolet about eight months (may 22, 2003). I am also aware that the brake booster were worked…
The contact owns a 2000 chevrolet silverado 1500. While driving approximately 15 mph, the contact depressed the brake pedal, but the vehicle continued to accelerate. He was able to stop the vehicle after 20 seconds of applying pressure to the brakes. While attempting to park the vehicle in the driveway, it…
Emergency brake failed three times. The consumer contacted the manufacturer. *nm while driving consumer tried to down shift and the vehicle would not go into gear. The brakes locked up and the anti-lock braking system did not work. The emergency brakes also failed to work causing the driver to hit a tree. The driver…
Electrical System 521 Read
The Keyless Entry Receiver(GM) Radio Module in my 2007 Chevy Silverado is retaining moisture. It caused my Tire Pressure Monitoring System to fail eventually causing a blow out on the highway. I believe moisture from the third headlight above rear window is allowing moisture to drip into the Keyless Entry Receiver.…
This is the second of three fatal collisions investigated this year by my office involving chevrolet pickups that caught fire after being involved in frontal collisions. This was an off set head on, passenger side to passenger side. Passenger in pickup was pinned in vehicle due to crush and consumed by fire
The contact owned a 2002 chevrolet silverado 1500. The contact stated that the ignition switch was loose. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that while her daughter was driving approximately 65 mph, she ran off the road and crashed into a tree. The vehicle caught fire. The driver sustained…
Power Train 184 Read
The contact owns a 2008 chevrolet silverado. The contact stated that while driving 55 mph, the vehicle would start to jerk and hesitate to accelerate. Also, the contact mentioned that the vehicle emitted extreme amount of smoke trough the exhaust every time the vehicle was started. The manufacturer or dealer was not…
On [XXX], at or around midnight, I was traveling [XXX] at approximately 60 mph. The traffic was very light, with few vehicles on the road. It was raining, and I was in the number 1 lane. Two additional lanes were to my left, reserved for toll road traffic. I did not see any other vehicles on [XXX], nor did I see any…
The contact owns a 2006 chevrolet silverado 1500. The contact was experiencing a failure with the air conditioning and heating system in her vehicle. Neither were working properly and no air would go through the vents. The contact also smelled something burning in her vehicle and immediately took it to the dealer. She…
Steering 158 Read
Driving around curve on residential street in my 2008 chevrolet silverado I came upon an illegally parked car. I attempted to steer away from car when steering locked up and I could not avoid hitting car then curb then garage. Steering made a strange clicking noise during my attempt to avoid the car. I had the power…
Pulling out of a parking lot I started to accelerate, to get into traffic I heard a horn and looked over, only to run straight into a light pole. It was a pretty strong impact. My airbag did not deploy and my face and head hit the steering wheel
The contact owns a 2007 chevrolet silverado. While driving 45 mph, the contact lost control of the vehicle. The vehicle began to steer itself and the brakes failed. The vehicle then crashed into a telephone pole and was towed to the repair shop. The driver side front steering knuckle failed. The contact has the part…
Structure 112 Read
I was driving on a state highway and experienced a blowout from one of my hankook tires model dynapro as tires. Severe body damage all along the left side of my truck was the result of this accident, as I was pulled into a concrete median barrier
Parked truck at outside stall and went indoors. After about 20 minutes I heard noises and went outside. Found the whole truck was engulfed in flames. By the time the fire department arrived 6 minutes later the fire spread to two additional vehicles. The heat melted and consumed everything except the frame. The fire…
Driving home down two lane road at 35 mph. Came to curve and slow traffic ahead. Went to apply brakes like normally, they failed. Pedal traveled all the way to floor with little to no stopping effects on vehicle. Vehicle is a 5 spd standard. I was able to down shift and apply park brake to slow vehicle. I was unable…
Suspension 104 Read
The contact owns a 2008 chevrolet silverado 1500. While driving approximately 30 to 35 mph, the contact stated that the rear of the vehicle felt as if it had locked up and failed to move. As a result, the vehicle crashed into a fence. The air bags deployed. A police report was filed and the contact was diagnosed with…
While driving I experienced ball joint failure on the right front tire. This caused me to lose control of the vehicle ending up in a dtich. The entire right front suspension is damaged and must be replaced
The contact 2008 owns a chevrolet silverado. The contact stated that the main leaf springs in the back of the truck broke off of the vehicle. The contact was traveling 40 mph when the springs broke off. The contact lost control of the vehicle and had a single vehicle crash. The right wheel locked up after the springs…
Engine And Engine Cooling 96 Read
Tranny, ABS, cooling system, tailgate, etc. I bought the truck 2003 didn't exchange title until later recall when I first bought it under 50,000 mile warranty. I file an complain recall repair still having same problem. Sad thing my father is an retired employee in dallas location. Researched the recalls from…
30 minutes after ignition turned off and parked after driving in 4-wheel down a 1/2 mile snowy driveway, my 2007 silverado duramax 2500hd pick-up truck was totally engulfed in flames and burned to a crisp. Forensic fire inspector said it started in front right engine compartment; no arson. Fire department put it out;…
The contact owns a 2007 chevrolet silverado 1500. The contact stated that flames erupted from the engine compartment approximately six hours after he parked the vehicle. As a result, the fire destroyed the vehicle. The insurance investigator was unable to determine the cause of the fire. As of february 11, 2008, the…
Silverado years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Air Bags | 39 | 12 | |
| 2007 | Air Bags | 26 | 22 | |
| 2006 | Air Bags | 42 | 25 | |
| 2005 | Air Bags | 45 | 44 | |
| 2004 | Air Bags | 99 | 26 | |
| 2003 | Air Bags | 76 | 27 | |
| 2002 | Air Bags | 124 | 12 | |
| 2001 | Air Bags | 129 | 13 | |
| 2000 | Air Bags | 184 | 19 | |
| 1999 | Air Bags | 83 | 6 |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 4,198 |
| Average complaints per series | 3 |
| Worst single series | 36 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 6.2 years |
A model average of 3 hides a worst series at 36. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
- The original window sticker and factory options
- Full research report as a PDF for the pre-purchase inspection
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- No ads, no tracking — and much more
How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the Silverado?
By complaint volume, 2003, 2000, 2004 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which Silverado years are the cleanest?
2006, 2007, 2005 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Chevrolet Silverado have?
12,777 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 1999–2008. Of those, 847 describe a crash and 206 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.