IllustrationVEHICLE MAKES A CLUNKING NOISE WHEN SHIFTING TRANSMISSION FROM 2ND TO 3RD GEAR. REPLACED TRANSMISSION AND LOCKING DIFFERENTIAL. HOWEVER, NOISE CONTINUED. A NEW STEEL DRIVESHAFT WAS INSTALLED TO REPLACE THE COMPOSITE ONE. HOWEVER, NOISE CONTINUED. WAS ADVISED BY DEALER THAT THIS WAS A NORMAL CONDITION.
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 reportsWHILE MAKING EITHER RIGHT OR LEFT TURN, STEERING BOX LETS GO & THEN GRABS. SOMETIMES IT LOCKS UP. TOOK TO DEALER & MECHANIC SAID PROBLEM EXISTS & WAS CHANGED IN 25 OTHER VEHICLES. PROBLEM STILL EXISTS EVEN THOUGH GEAR BOX HAD BEEN REPLACED.*AK
OUTSIDE REAR VIEW MIRRORS VIBRATE, RESULTING IN LOSS OF VISIBILITY.
ABOUT 500 MILES THE POWER STEERING WILL ACTIVATE UNEXPECTEDLY, CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO SWAY FROM RIGHT TO LEFT, RESULTING IN A MINOR ACCIDENT. DEALER REPLACED SENSOR, BUT PROBLEM STILL OCCURRING. *AK
WHILE DRIVING TRIED TO MAKE A SUDDEN STOP BY DEPRESSING THE BRAKE PEDAL TO THE FLOORBOARD AND THE VEHICAL CONTINUED TO STILL TRAVEL. CONSUMER PRESSED THE BRAKES AGAIN AND THE VEHICLE STOPPED. DEALER HAS BEEN CONTACTED. *AK
WHILE DRIVING THE STEERING WHEEL DRIFTS FROM SIDE TO SIDE . THE DEALER HAS PUT IN A STEERING SOLENOID AND PROBLEM STILL EXISTS. OWNER STATES THAT THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN IN AND OUT OF THE DEALER FOR REPAIRS. THE PROBLEM IS GETTING WORSE. *AK
STEERING SENSOR CRACKED, CAUSING LOSS OF STEERING CONTROL.
ANTI-LOCK BRAKES FAILED CAUSING A VEHICLE COLLISION.
CANNOT TURN THE STEERING MORE THAN 2 INCHES EITHER LEFT OR RIGHT WHEN VEHICLE IS IN MOTION. *AK
ENGINE FIRE.
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.