IllustrationMY AIRBAGS DEPLOYED AS I SLID INTO A VEHICLE IN FRONT OF ME. I WAS IN NUMBER TO NUMBER TRAFFIC AND I TRIED CHANGING LANES. MY FRONT LEFT BUMPER TAPPED HIS REAR RIGHT BUMPER. THE OTHER VEHICLE WAS SCRATCHED.
2003 Chevrolet Avalanche 1500
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
More warning signs than most Avalanche 1500 years
Owner complaints for the 2003 Chevrolet Avalanche 1500 are substantially higher than the model-year median of 38.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Avalanche 1500 years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
70–25K
1525–50K
3650–75K
3775–100K
39100–150K
20150K+
154 reports with mileage · 28 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Electrical System. Review the 84 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes. Review the 28 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 24 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
5 crash reports3 fire reports2 injury reports
Air Bags complaints
12 reportsTHE DASHBOARD HAS DEVELOPED A CRACK IN THE PLASTIC ON THE PASSENGER SIDE RIGHT NEAR THE AIRBAG AREA.
I HAVE COMPLAINED BEFORE, WANT TO KNOW WHY THIS HAS NOT BEEN RECALLED. LIGHT CAME ON FOR NO REASON. WASN'T IN ANY KIND OF AN ACCIDENT. IT IS DEFECTIVE AND NO ONE WILL HELP GET IT FIXED. THERE ALREADY IS TSB FROM 2006. WE MOVED FROM PENNSYLVANIA TO FLORIDA AND AFTER A COUPLE OF MONTHS IT CAME ON AND STAYED ON.
"SERVICE AIRBAG SYSTEM" DISPLAY ON VEHICLE INFORMATION READOUT FIRST APPEARED AROUND TEN YEARS AGO. BROUGHT TO DEALER MULTIPLE TIMES FOR DIAGNOSTICS AND REPAIR (CODE B0026) BUT HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO CORRECT THIS SAFETY SYSTEM DEFECT. VEHICLE IS WAY OUT OF WARRANTY AND ATTEMPTING TO REPAIR ITEMS THAT HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO BE FI…
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"SERVICE AIRBAG SYSTEM" DISPLAY ON VEHICLE INFORMATION READOUT FIRST APPEARED AROUND TEN YEARS AGO. BROUGHT TO DEALER MULTIPLE TIMES FOR DIAGNOSTICS AND REPAIR (CODE B0026) BUT HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO CORRECT THIS SAFETY SYSTEM DEFECT. VEHICLE IS WAY OUT OF WARRANTY AND ATTEMPTING TO REPAIR ITEMS THAT HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO BE FIXED UNDER WARRANTY DOES NOT SEEM FINANCIALLY SOUND. AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT AND "SERVICE AIRBAG SYSTEM" DISPLAY HAVE BEEN CONSTANTLY ON SINCE 2008. *TR
KEY IGNITION SWITCH IS LOOSE AND CAR WILL SHUT OFF WHILE OPERATING, KEY CAN BE PULLED OUT OF IGNITION WHILE RUNNING. IF VEHICLE SHUTS OFF WHILE OPERATING THEN YOU LOOSE CONTROL OF BRAKES, STEERING, AND ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS. GM IS DENYING THERE IS A PROBLEM. MY VEHICLE IS PROOF THAT THE PROBLEM EXISTS AND THE CHEVY AVALANCHE 200…
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KEY IGNITION SWITCH IS LOOSE AND CAR WILL SHUT OFF WHILE OPERATING, KEY CAN BE PULLED OUT OF IGNITION WHILE RUNNING. IF VEHICLE SHUTS OFF WHILE OPERATING THEN YOU LOOSE CONTROL OF BRAKES, STEERING, AND ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS. GM IS DENYING THERE IS A PROBLEM. MY VEHICLE IS PROOF THAT THE PROBLEM EXISTS AND THE CHEVY AVALANCHE 2003 HAS A PROBLEM. *TR
FREQUENTLY WHILE IN DRIVE THE SERVICE AIR BAG COMES ON. WHEN THIS LIGHT/INDICATOR COMES ON THIS DEACTIVATES THE ENTIRE AIR BAG SYSTEM WHICH IS A SAFETY ISSUE/DEFECT. THIS NEEDS TO BE A RECALL BY GM/CHEVROLET TO HAVE THIS FIXED IMMEDIATELY. *TR
AIR BAG LIGHT IS ON. WHILE AIRBAG LIGHT IS ON, AIRBAGS DO NOT FUNCTION. THIS IS A KNOWN ISSUE BY CHEVROLET. HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE EXPERIENCE THE SAME PROBLEM. NEEDS A RECALL. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE AND SHOULD NOT COST THE CONSUMER TO REPAIR. *TR
ON OCCASION THE AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT WOULD COME ON, USUALLY WHILE DRIVING. ON SUBSEQUENT STARTS, NO LIGHT WAS DISPLAYED. EVENTUALLY THE LIGHT WOULD STAY ON FOR SEVERAL DAYS. I ASSUMED THIS WAS A MANUFACTURER INITIATED ALERT TO HAVE THE AIRBAGS CHECKED AFTER 100,000 MILES. WHEN I NEXT BROUGHT MY VEHICLE IN FOR AN OIL CHANGE S…
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ON OCCASION THE AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT WOULD COME ON, USUALLY WHILE DRIVING. ON SUBSEQUENT STARTS, NO LIGHT WAS DISPLAYED. EVENTUALLY THE LIGHT WOULD STAY ON FOR SEVERAL DAYS. I ASSUMED THIS WAS A MANUFACTURER INITIATED ALERT TO HAVE THE AIRBAGS CHECKED AFTER 100,000 MILES. WHEN I NEXT BROUGHT MY VEHICLE IN FOR AN OIL CHANGE SERVICE, I ASKED THE ADVISER TO HAVE THE AIRBAGS CHECKED BECAUSE OF THE WARNING LIGHT. HE TOLD ME THAT WHEN THE LIGHT WAS ON THE AIRBAGS WERE INOPERATIVE! I TOLD HIM TO GET IT CORRECTED. AFTER 90 MINUTES MY CAR WAS RETURNED WITH THE NOTICE THAT A PRELIMINARY CHECK DID NOT UNCOVER THE CAUSE, AND I WOULD HAVE TO RETURN THE VEHICLE AT ANOTHER TIME AND EXPECT TO INCUR SEVERAL HOURS OF TROUBLE SHOOTING TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE. SINCE MY TRUCK WAS OUT OF WARRANTY, I WOULD BE RESPONSIBLE TO PARTS AND LABOR. I CANNOT UNDERSTAND WHY AN INOPERATIVE AIRBAG SYSTEM IS NOT A SAFETY RECALL ISSUE. PERHAPS IF GOVERNMENT MOTORS WAS PRIVATELY HELD, THE ACTUAL GOVERNMENT WOULD FORCE THE MANUFACTURER TO REPAIR ALL SUCH SAFETY RELATED ISSUES. *TR
"SERVICE ABS LIGHT COMES ON INTERMITTENTLY...DISABLING AIR BAGS! *TR
I OWN A 2003 CHEVROLET AVALANCHE, MY SPEEDOMETER IS STUCK AT 50 MPH, I CANNOT ACCURATELY GAUGE MY SPEED, I ALSO HAVE A SERVICE AIR BAG LIGHT THAT WILL NOT GO OFF. THESE ARE SOME SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUES AND A RECALL SHOULD BE ISSUED. *TR
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
1EA11001 · Brake Line Corrosion Failure
Opened Jan 5, 2011 · Closed Apr 8, 2015
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Service Brakes, Hydraulic; Service Brakes, Hydraulic:foundation Components:hoses, Lines/piping, And Fittings
On January 11, 2011, ODI opened EA11-001 to investigate allegations of premature brake line corrosion failure in model year (MY) 1999 through 2003 General Motors (GM) full-size pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles sold or registered in the following region of the United States that NHTSA has viewed as salt states for investigations of corrosion related issues:Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia and Wisconsin.The subject vehicles represent the first five MY's of GM's GMT800 platform production, of which approximately 2,038,504 vehicles were sold in salt states (the subject vehicles).The GMT800 platform includes the following vehicles:1999-2007 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra 1500, 2500 and 3500 series pick-up trucks; 2000-2006 Chevrolet Suburban, Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon sport utility vehicles; and 2002-2006 Cadillac Escalade and Chevrolet Avalanche sport-utility vehicles.General Motors produced a total of approximately 10,427,062 GMT800 vehicles for sales in the United States, including almost 5 million that were sold in salt states.Although there are over 60 different brake pipe routing configuration used in GMT800 vehicles, with the exception of the rear crossover pipes in MY 200x-2007 vehicles that changed from rear disc to drum brakes, all of the vehicles use brake pipes from the same supplier with a common double-wall, brazed steel pipe design with a combination of hot dip Zinc-Aluminum corrosion protection coating and Aluminum paint outer layer known in the industry as AlGal (ASTM-B750). ODI analysis of field data regarding GMT800 vehicles identified a total of 3,645 complaints of brake pipe corrosion failures, including 107 alleging crashes, and 40 injuries.Though only 20% of total GMT800 production, due to age and region the subject vehicles account for a disproportionate share of the failure experience; with 2,702 of the complaints (75%), 88 of the crashes (82%) and 20 of the injuries (50%) reported in those vehicles.Analysis of the complaints showed strong correlations to vehicle age and region.For vehicles with less than 8 years of service, the complaint rates were minimal for all regions.In the salt states the failure rates begin to climb as the vehicles advance in age, particularly in the Northeast corner of the United States.The complaint rates in the salt states go from less than 0.1 incident per thousand vehicles (IPTV) at 7 years in service to over 1.0 IPTV after the 12th year of service for the subject pickup trucks and utility vehicles.Most of the failures reported to ODI occurred in vehicles with more than 10 years in service.ODI?s investigation did not identify any specific defect conditions that were causing or contributing to the brake pipe failures.Nor did the analysis isolate the problem to any subject vehicle sub-populations when analyzed by vehicle type or production range.The investigation found that vehicles experiencing brake pipe corrosion failures were likely to have general patterns of excessive corrosion on the majority of the brake pipe assembly and appear to be occurring due to expected wear out for the brake pipe coating material used in the subject vehicles and the environmental conditions in severe corrosion states.A safety-related defect has not been identified at this time.Accordingly, this investigation is closed.The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist.The agency will monitor t
Additional source detail variants (2)
Service Brakes, Hydraulic:foundation Components:hoses, Lines/piping, And Fittings
On January 11, 2011, ODI opened EA11-001 to investigate allegations of premature brake line corrosion failure in model year (MY) 1999 through 2003 General Motors (GM) full-size pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles sold or registered in the following region of the United States that NHTSA has viewed as salt states for investigations of corrosion related issues:Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia and Wisconsin.The subject vehicles represent the first five MY's of GM's GMT800 platform production, of which approximately 2,038,504 vehicles were sold in salt states (the subject vehicles).The GMT800 platform includes the following vehicles:1999-2007 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra 1500, 2500 and 3500 series pick-up trucks; 2000-2006 Chevrolet Suburban, Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon sport utility vehicles; and 2002-2006 Cadillac Escalade and Chevrolet Avalanche sport-utility vehicles.General Motors produced a total of approximately 10,427,062 GMT800 vehicles for sales in the United States, including almost 5 million that were sold in salt states.Although there are over 60 different brake pipe routing configuration used in GMT800 vehicles, with the exception of the rear crossover pipes in MY 200x-2007 vehicles that changed from rear disc to drum brakes, all of the vehicles use brake pipes from the same supplier with a common double-wall, brazed steel pipe design with a combination of hot dip Zinc-Aluminum corrosion protection coating and Aluminum paint outer layer known in the industry as AlGal (ASTM-B750). ODI analysis of field data regarding GMT800 vehicles identified a total of 3,645 complaints of brake pipe corrosion failures, including 107 alleging crashes, and 40 injuries.Though only 20% of total GMT800 production, due to age and region the subject vehicles account for a disproportionate share of the failure experience; with 2,702 of the complaints (75%), 88 of the crashes (82%) and 20 of the injuries (50%) reported in those vehicles.Analysis of the complaints showed strong correlations to vehicle age and region.For vehicles with less than 8 years of service, the complaint rates were minimal for all regions.In the salt states the failure rates begin to climb as the vehicles advance in age, particularly in the Northeast corner of the United States.The complaint rates in the salt states go from less than 0.1 incident per thousand vehicles (IPTV) at 7 years in service to over 1.0 IPTV after the 12th year of service for the subject pickup trucks and utility vehicles.Most of the failures reported to ODI occurred in vehicles with more than 10 years in service.ODI?s investigation did not identify any specific defect conditions that were causing or contributing to the brake pipe failures.Nor did the analysis isolate the problem to any subject vehicle sub-populations when analyzed by vehicle type or production range.The investigation found that vehicles experiencing brake pipe corrosion failures were likely to have general patterns of excessive corrosion on the majority of the brake pipe assembly and appear to be occurring due to expected wear out for the brake pipe coating material used in the subject vehicles and the environmental conditions in severe corrosion states.A safety-related defect has not been identified at this time.Accordingly, this investigation is closed.The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist.The agency will monitor t
Service Brakes, Hydraulic
On January 11, 2011, ODI opened EA11-001 to investigate allegations of premature brake line corrosion failure in model year (MY) 1999 through 2003 General Motors (GM) full-size pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles sold or registered in the following region of the United States that NHTSA has viewed as salt states for investigations of corrosion related issues:Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia and Wisconsin.The subject vehicles represent the first five MY's of GM's GMT800 platform production, of which approximately 2,038,504 vehicles were sold in salt states (the subject vehicles).The GMT800 platform includes the following vehicles:1999-2007 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra 1500, 2500 and 3500 series pick-up trucks; 2000-2006 Chevrolet Suburban, Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon sport utility vehicles; and 2002-2006 Cadillac Escalade and Chevrolet Avalanche sport-utility vehicles.General Motors produced a total of approximately 10,427,062 GMT800 vehicles for sales in the United States, including almost 5 million that were sold in salt states.Although there are over 60 different brake pipe routing configuration used in GMT800 vehicles, with the exception of the rear crossover pipes in MY 200x-2007 vehicles that changed from rear disc to drum brakes, all of the vehicles use brake pipes from the same supplier with a common double-wall, brazed steel pipe design with a combination of hot dip Zinc-Aluminum corrosion protection coating and Aluminum paint outer layer known in the industry as AlGal (ASTM-B750). ODI analysis of field data regarding GMT800 vehicles identified a total of 3,645 complaints of brake pipe corrosion failures, including 107 alleging crashes, and 40 injuries.Though only 20% of total GMT800 production, due to age and region the subject vehicles account for a disproportionate share of the failure experience; with 2,702 of the complaints (75%), 88 of the crashes (82%) and 20 of the injuries (50%) reported in those vehicles.Analysis of the complaints showed strong correlations to vehicle age and region.For vehicles with less than 8 years of service, the complaint rates were minimal for all regions.In the salt states the failure rates begin to climb as the vehicles advance in age, particularly in the Northeast corner of the United States.The complaint rates in the salt states go from less than 0.1 incident per thousand vehicles (IPTV) at 7 years in service to over 1.0 IPTV after the 12th year of service for the subject pickup trucks and utility vehicles.Most of the failures reported to ODI occurred in vehicles with more than 10 years in service.ODI?s investigation did not identify any specific defect conditions that were causing or contributing to the brake pipe failures.Nor did the analysis isolate the problem to any subject vehicle sub-populations when analyzed by vehicle type or production range.The investigation found that vehicles experiencing brake pipe corrosion failures were likely to have general patterns of excessive corrosion on the majority of the brake pipe assembly and appear to be occurring due to expected wear out for the brake pipe coating material used in the subject vehicles and the environmental conditions in severe corrosion states.A safety-related defect has not been identified at this time.Accordingly, this investigation is closed.The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist.The agency will monitor t