THE CONSUMER HAD TO APPLY THE BRAKE SEVERAL TIMES BEFORE GETTING THE VEHICLE TO STOP. THE DEALER REPLACED THE DRUMS, ROTORS, PADS, MASTER CYLINDER AND THE BRAKE LINE. *JB
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
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.
What owners actually said
555 reportsI HAD A TORQUE CONVERTER PUT IN MY 97 CHEVY Z71. WHILE THE REPAIRES WERE DONE, THE REPAIR SHOP BROKE MY SHIFT CABLE AND I WAS CHARGED FOR THAT. A $70 CABLE COST ME $140.00. THEY BROKE IT, NOT ME. THEY SHOULD BE RESPONDSIBLE FOR THE COST OR AT LEAST SPLIT THE BILL ON THAT CABLE.*AK
97 CHEVROLET TRUCK 50000 MILES INTAKE GASKET FAILURE. *AK
POWER STEERING SENSOR CAUSING THE STEERING TO "OVER STEER" IN CURVES. IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING A SERVICE BULLETIN HAS BEEN ISSUED BY GM, HOWEVER NO RECALL, EVEN THOUGH THIS APPEARS TO CREATE A SAFETY CONCERN. *JB
1997 SILVERADO Z71 WINDSHIELD WIPERS WILL STOP & START ON OWN.*AK
WHEN DRIVING IN THE RAIN WINDSHIELD WIPERS FAILED, CAUSING THE DRIVER TO PULL OFF THE ROAD. *AK
I HAVE HAD A DANGEROUS SITUATION OCCUR WITH A FAILURE IN THE FUEL INJECTION SYSTEM, INVOLVING THE WIRING HARNESS AND VEHICLE CONTROL MODULE (VCM) OF MY 1997 CHEVROLET K1500. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED INTO A CHEVROLET DEALER, FOR SERVICE DUE TO A CRANK BUT NO-START ISSUE ON JANUARY 29, 2004. UPON DIAGNOSIS BY THE MECHANICS, THEY DET…
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I HAVE HAD A DANGEROUS SITUATION OCCUR WITH A FAILURE IN THE FUEL INJECTION SYSTEM, INVOLVING THE WIRING HARNESS AND VEHICLE CONTROL MODULE (VCM) OF MY 1997 CHEVROLET K1500. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED INTO A CHEVROLET DEALER, FOR SERVICE DUE TO A CRANK BUT NO-START ISSUE ON JANUARY 29, 2004. UPON DIAGNOSIS BY THE MECHANICS, THEY DETERMINED THAT THE FUEL INJECTION SYSTEM HAD SOMEHOW DEVELOPED A LEAK, WHICH CAUSED FUEL PRESSURE TO BUILD-UP WHERE THE WIRING-HARNESS ENTERED THE UNIT. THEN, FUEL WAS FORCED AT HIGH PRESSURE BETWEEN THE WIRES AND INSULATION UNTIL IT POOLED UP INSIDE THE VCM. THE DEALER'S MECHANIC, PER DIAGNOSTIC TESTING, STATED THAT THE INSTALLATION OF A NEW VCM, WIRING HARNESS, AND INJECTOR SYSTEM IS NECESSARY TO FIX THE PROBLEM. I CONSULTED WITH A DIFFERENT GM MECHANIC FROM ANOTHER DEALERSHIP ABOUT THIS PROBLEM AND HE SAID I WAS LUCKY IT DID NOT EXPLODE, AND RECOMMENDED THAT I CONTACT GM OWNERS ASSISTANCE ABOUT THIS MATTER, HOWEVER THEY WERE OF NO HELP AND WOULD NOT RECOGNIZE THE DANGER OF THIS SITUATION. THIS IS AN EXTREME SAFETY HAZARD THAT COULD HAVE CAUSED A DAMAGING ENGINE FIRE AND POSSIBLE INJURY OR WORSE. THEREFORE, I AM REQUESTING THAT A RECALL WOULD BE PLACED ON THIS PROBLEM TO PREVENT POSSIBLE INJURY TO OTHERS.*AK
THE POWER STEERING "GRABS", SORT OF LIKE IT OVER ASSISTS WHEN MAKING TURNS AND THEN "LETS GO" SUDDENLY CAUSING A PERSON TO OVER STEER TRYING TO CORRECT WHAT SEEMS LIKE THE VEHICLE IS GOING TO TURN TOO FAR. THIS HAPPENS WITH BOTH LEFT & RIGHT TURNS. THE TURNS CAN BE GRADUAL AND IF LONG, LIKE FREEWAY EXITS, IT DOES THIS PHENOMENON…
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THE POWER STEERING "GRABS", SORT OF LIKE IT OVER ASSISTS WHEN MAKING TURNS AND THEN "LETS GO" SUDDENLY CAUSING A PERSON TO OVER STEER TRYING TO CORRECT WHAT SEEMS LIKE THE VEHICLE IS GOING TO TURN TOO FAR. THIS HAPPENS WITH BOTH LEFT & RIGHT TURNS. THE TURNS CAN BE GRADUAL AND IF LONG, LIKE FREEWAY EXITS, IT DOES THIS PHENOMENON REPEATEDLY DURING THE TURN. IT HAS BEEN DOING THIS SINCE I BOUGHT IT USED IN AUG. 2000 AND I HEARD ON A LOCAL RADIO STATION THAT GM WAS GOING TO NOTIFY OWNERS IN FEB, 2004 OF THIS PROBLEM AND FIX IT FOR FREE. I HAVE NOT BEEN NOTIFIED AS YET.*AK
WHILE DRIVING UP AN INCLINE CONSUMER NOTICED THE ENGINE SKIPPING. VEHICLE WAS SERVICED, AND TECHNICIAN NOTICED A MISS FIRING CODE. DEALERSHIP HAD THE ENGINE HEADS REPAIRED FOR THE THIRD TIME. *AK
I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE THIS COMPLAINT VERY CLEAR AND TO THE POINT. I HAVE BEEN VIEWING THE COMPLAINTS LOCATED ON YOUR WEBSITE AND FEEL THAT THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT PUPOSE FOR RECALLING THESE VEHICLES. I PURCHASED A 1997 CHEVY K20 APPROX 1 1/2 YEARS AGO. EVERYTHING SEEMED TO WORK FINE UNTIL A FEW MONTHS LATER. I STARTED TO EXPER…
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I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE THIS COMPLAINT VERY CLEAR AND TO THE POINT. I HAVE BEEN VIEWING THE COMPLAINTS LOCATED ON YOUR WEBSITE AND FEEL THAT THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT PUPOSE FOR RECALLING THESE VEHICLES. I PURCHASED A 1997 CHEVY K20 APPROX 1 1/2 YEARS AGO. EVERYTHING SEEMED TO WORK FINE UNTIL A FEW MONTHS LATER. I STARTED TO EXPERIENCE SOME STEERING PROBLEMS. IT DOES NOT MATTER IF I AM DRIVING AROUND A CORNER OR STRAIGHT BUT THE STEERING WILL BECOME VERY LOOSE AND VEER INTO ONE DIRECTION ALL ON ITS OWN. THAT IS JUST ONE OF THE SIGNIFICANT PROBLEMS I HAVE EXPERIENCED WITH OWNING THIS VEHICLE. I NOW HAVE COME TO FIND THAT THERE IS EVEN A GREATER THREAT TO MY SAFETY AND THAT OF MY FAMILY BECAUSE I HAVE NOW BEEN INFORMED THAT MY FUEL GAUGE AND FUEL PUMP WIRES, INSIDE THE GAS TANK, MELTED INSULATION AND BURNT THE CONNECTOR. THIS COULD HAVE BEEN A DEADLY EXPERIENCE FOR MYSELF AND THAT OF ANYONE THAT COULD HAVE BEEN IN THE VEHICLE WITH ME IF IT WOULD HAVE CAUGHT FIRE PRIOR TO MY KNOWLEDGE OF THIS INFORMATION. I FEEL THAT THE FIRST SIGN OF THIS PROBLEM IS THAT THE GAS GAUGE WILL START TO MALFUNCTION, WHICH LEAVES YOU GUESSING AT THE AMOUNT OF GAS IN THE TANK. I FEEL THIS MATTER NEEDS IMMEDIATE ATTENTION DUE TO THE FACT THAT OWNERS/DRIVERS OF VEHICLES ARE REQUIRED TO CARRY AUTO INSURANCE, HOWEVER, THIS IS SOMETHING THAT NONE OF US HAS ANY CONTROLL OVER. IF WE WAIT UNTIL SOMEONE BECOMES INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT, THAT WOULD SEEM SENSELESS THAT POSSIBLY SOMEONES LIFE WOULD HAVE TO END BEFORE THIS SITUATION BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY. I HAVE TO DEMAND THAT SOME ACTION BE TAKEN BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE FOR SOMEONE. *AK
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.
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