IllustrationTHERE WAS AND HAS BEEN NO ACCIDENT OR CRASH THE DRIVER'S SEAT IS LOOSE JUST FROM DAY TO DAY USE. WE BOUGHT THIS VEHICLE BRAND NEW AND ARE THE ONLY OWNERS IT HAS EVER HAD, AND WE NEED IT REPAIRED AS IT IS A SAFETY HAZARD TO DRIVE WITH THE LOOSE SEAT. *TR
1997 Chevrolet Silverado 1500
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1997 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 525.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Silverado 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
60–25K
1725–50K
2850–75K
3975–100K
35100–150K
22150K+
147 reports with mileage · 408 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.
- Steering. Review the 140 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 123 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Visibility. Review the 75 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
29 crash reports13 fire reports13 injury reports
Seats complaints
13 reportsON MY 1997 CHEVROLET C1500 TRUCK ,THE PASSENGER FRONT SEAT IS A SLIDER IN WHICH IT WILL SLIDE FORWARD TO ALLOW BACK SEAT ENTRY. MANY TIMES AFTER A SLIDE FORWARD IT DOESN'T RELATCH TO THE AFT LOCKED POSITION PROPERLY. SO DURING BRAKING THE SEAT FLYS FORWARD SENDING PASSENGER INTO DASHBOARD. THIS HAS HAPPENED MANY TIMES AND COULD …
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ON MY 1997 CHEVROLET C1500 TRUCK ,THE PASSENGER FRONT SEAT IS A SLIDER IN WHICH IT WILL SLIDE FORWARD TO ALLOW BACK SEAT ENTRY. MANY TIMES AFTER A SLIDE FORWARD IT DOESN'T RELATCH TO THE AFT LOCKED POSITION PROPERLY. SO DURING BRAKING THE SEAT FLYS FORWARD SENDING PASSENGER INTO DASHBOARD. THIS HAS HAPPENED MANY TIMES AND COULD POSSIBLY INJURE A PASSENGER. BOTH SEAT RAILS ON THAT SEAT HAVE BEEN REPLACED TWICE BY THE DEALER,BUT CONTINUES TO BE A PROBLEM? *LN
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 1997 CHEVROLET C1500. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE DRIVER'S SIDE SEAT RECLINER COMPONENT FAILED. THE DRIVER'S SEAT WOULD NOT LOCK INTO PLACE AND FLOPPED UP AND DOWN. THERE WERE NO RELATED RECALLS FOR THIS YEAR, MAKE, AND MODEL VEHICLE. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGES WERE 163,000.
THE BASE OF THE DRIVER'S SEAT SEPARATED WHERE THE BOLT SCREWS INTO THE SEAT FRAME, WHICH CAUSED THE LEFT FRONT CORNER OF THE SEAT TO BREAK FROM THE FRAME WHEN CUSTOMER SAT DOWN.*JB
THE THIRD DOOR ON THE VEHICLE DID NOT OPEN, THERE WAS A TEAR IN THE SEATS, AND THE TRANSMISSION WAS SHIFTING LATE AND HARD, THE TRANSMISSION WAS EVENTUALLY REPLACED AT 56,000, CONSUMER STATED THE TRANSMISSION FAILED ON THE SECOND VEHICLE AT 126,000 MILES.*JB
MY TRUCK HAS A 6 WAY POWER SEAT. WHEN I RECLINED IT WHILE PARKED, IT DIDN'T LOCK IN POSITION WHEN PUT BACK IN THE UPRIGHT POSITION. MY WIFE SAYS IT DID THE SAME THING ABOUT A YEAR AGO, BUT SHE FINALLY GOT IT TO LOCK; I COULD NOT. THE MECHANIC AT THE DEALERSHIP SAID HE HAD NEVER SEEN A FAILURE LIKE THIS UNTIL MY TRUCK, BUT THA…
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MY TRUCK HAS A 6 WAY POWER SEAT. WHEN I RECLINED IT WHILE PARKED, IT DIDN'T LOCK IN POSITION WHEN PUT BACK IN THE UPRIGHT POSITION. MY WIFE SAYS IT DID THE SAME THING ABOUT A YEAR AGO, BUT SHE FINALLY GOT IT TO LOCK; I COULD NOT. THE MECHANIC AT THE DEALERSHIP SAID HE HAD NEVER SEEN A FAILURE LIKE THIS UNTIL MY TRUCK, BUT THAT SAME DAY A 1997 GMC TWO WHEEL DRIVE EXTENDED CAB, MADE IN ARLINGTON TX AS WAS MY TRUCK, CAME IN WITH THE SAME FAILURE. I HAD TO PUT A WASH BASKET BETWEEN THE DRIVER'S SEAT BACK AND THE REAR SEAT OR THE SEAT BACK WOULD DROP ALL THE WAY BACK AGAINST THE REAR SEAT. NEEDLESS TO SAY, YOU CAN'T DRIVE A VEHICLE LIKE THAT. CHEVROLET REFUSED TO ACKNOWLEDGE A PROBLEM, BUT THE DEAL DID HELP BY PAYING HALF THE COST. THE REPAIR COST ME $59.25 WHICH IS NOT THE ISSUE; A SEAT BACK FAILURE SHOULD NEVER OCCUR DURING THE LIFETIME OF THE VEHICLE, AND ON THE DRIVER'S SIDE, IS A SAFETY ISSUE.*AK
MY SON [XXX] PURCHASE THIS VEHICLE NEW FROM [XXX] IN BRANDON MS IN 1997 AND I PURCHASED IT WHEN HE TRADED IT IN TO DANNY BERRY CHEV. THE RECLINING PART OF THE SEAT ON THE DRIVERS SIDE WILL NOT ADJUST PROPERLY. I WORK FOR A BODY SHOP IN HAZLEHURST MS AND WE HAVE REPAIRED AND REPLACED SEVERAL OF THESE ON CHEVROLET PICKUPS. SO I A…
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MY SON [XXX] PURCHASE THIS VEHICLE NEW FROM [XXX] IN BRANDON MS IN 1997 AND I PURCHASED IT WHEN HE TRADED IT IN TO DANNY BERRY CHEV. THE RECLINING PART OF THE SEAT ON THE DRIVERS SIDE WILL NOT ADJUST PROPERLY. I WORK FOR A BODY SHOP IN HAZLEHURST MS AND WE HAVE REPAIRED AND REPLACED SEVERAL OF THESE ON CHEVROLET PICKUPS. SO I ASSUME THERE SHOULD BE A RECALL ON THIS COMPONENT SINCE SO MANY ARE BREAKING. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR
RECLINING MECHANISM ON BOTH FRONT SEATS HAD SUDDENLY BROKE LOOSE AND RECLINED BACKWARDS. HAD LOST VISIBILITY AND CONTROL OF VEHICLE WHIEN DEALER REPAIRED THE SEATS UNDER WARRANTY RECALL 99V130000. *AK
THE REAR CAB SEAT DESIGN DOES NOT FIT MOST CAR SEATS ADEQUATELY. YH
BRAKE ROTORS WARPED AND PADS FAILED CAUSING VIBRATION AND PULLING WHEN APPLYING BRAKES.
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
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.