IllustrationTRAVELING AT APPROXIMATELY 45 MPH BRAKES WERE APPLIED BUT VEHICLE WAS VERY HARD TO STOP. THERE WAS A HISSING SOUND FROM BRAKE PEDAL AREA. *AK
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
What owners actually said
555 reportsWINDSHIELD WIPERS ARE WORKING INTERMITTENTLY, AND SOMETIMES THE WINDSHIELD WIPERS DON'T WORK AT ALL. *AK
LUGS: NUTS ON ALL WHEELS HAVE BECOME LOOSE TO THE POINT WHERE THEY CANNOT BE TIGHTENED. *AK
VEHICLE EXPERIENCED ENGINE FIRE. (OHIO TRAFFIC CRASH REPORT) MJS.
DRIVETRAIN CLUNKING NOISES IN TWO OR FOUR WHEEL DRIVE. THERE IS A TSB ON CERTAIN VIN NUMBERS, BUT IT DOESN'T APPLY TO THIS VIN NUMBER. *AK
ENGINE COOLING HOSE BROKE, CAUSING LOSS OF PRESSURE/STEERING, AND OIL TO LEAK ALL OVER ENGINE BLOCK. DEALER HAS BEEN CONTACTED. *AK
THE HOSE FROM THE ENGINE TO THE ENGINE OIL COOLER SPRUNG A LEAK OR BURST, SPRAYING OIL ALL OVER UNDER THE HOOD AND UNDER THE PICK-UP. THIS IS THE 4TH TIME THAT THESE HOSES HAVE LEAKED OR BURST. THIS TIME IT RESULTED IN A SEIZED ENGINE WHICH REQUIRED A GREAT DEAL OF EFFORT TO TURN THE STEERING WHEEL AND REQUIRED A GREAT DEAL OF…
Read full complaint
THE HOSE FROM THE ENGINE TO THE ENGINE OIL COOLER SPRUNG A LEAK OR BURST, SPRAYING OIL ALL OVER UNDER THE HOOD AND UNDER THE PICK-UP. THIS IS THE 4TH TIME THAT THESE HOSES HAVE LEAKED OR BURST. THIS TIME IT RESULTED IN A SEIZED ENGINE WHICH REQUIRED A GREAT DEAL OF EFFORT TO TURN THE STEERING WHEEL AND REQUIRED A GREAT DEAL OF FORCE TO GET THE BRAKES TO WORK AT ALL. THESE HOSES WERE SUPPOSED TO HAVE BEEN BOTH REPLACED 2 MONTHS AGO. THEY THEN LEAKED AND BEFORE I COULD GET THE VEHICLE BACK TO THE DEALER, ONE HOSE BROKE, SPRAYING OIL ALL OVER. THE HOSE WAS SUPPOSED TO HAVE BEEN REPLACED AGAIN, BUT BROKE AGAIN RESULTING IN A FIRE HAZARD WITH THE AMOUNT OF ENGINE OIL THAT SPRAYED ALL OVER UNDER THE HOOD. THE HOSE WAS REPLACED AGAIN. I PICKED UP THE VEHICLE ON MAY 13 AND THE HOSE BROKE AGAIN ON MAY 20, RESULTING IN THE LOSS OF BRAKING AND STEERING AND CAUSING THE MOTOR TO SEIZE. ANOTHER PERSON WITH THE SAME TYPE OF VEHICLE IN A NEIGHBORING TOWN REPORTED THAT HIS CHEVROLET PICK-UP HAD THE SAME PROBLEM WITH THE HOSE BREAKING THE FIRST TIME AND THEN BREAKING AGAIN WHICH CAUSED THE MOTOR TO SEIZE. THE TOW TRUCK OPERATOR TOLD ME MINE WAS THE SECOND PICK-UP LIKE MINE THAT HE HAD TO HAUL FROM MY TOWN TO GET REPAIRED FOR THE SAME PROBLEM. HE SAID HE HAULED THAT PICK-UP TO THE SAME DEALER THAT I HAD MINE HAULED TO. WHEN MY PICK-UP WAS HAULED IN LAST WEEK, THE SHOP FOREMAN, TROY, POINTED OUT ANOTHER PICK-UP LIKE MINE AND SAID THAT ONE HAD THE SAME PROBLEM. *AK
REPEAT CONCERNS OF VEHICLE WANDERING. FEELS LOOSE AND CONSTANTLY PULLS TO THE RIGHT. GM HAS A TSB (76-30-01), ADDRESSING THIS CONCERN. BOTH DEALER AND CHEVROLET DIVISION REFUSED COVERAGE UNDER WARRANTY, REGARDLESS OF REVISED ALIGNMENT SPECS DETAILED IN TSB (CHEVROLET CASE # 990279369). *AK
AIR CONDITIONER BLOWS HOT AIR, HAS SUFFICENT FREON, SUSPECTS COMPRESSOR DEFECTIVE DUE TO GRINDING NOISE IT MAKES WHEN ENGAGED
STEERING AND BRAKING FAILURE
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.