Chevrolet Silverado Reliability by Year
Based on 2M+ real complaints filed with the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
10,926 NHTSA complaints (1982–2017).Complaint rate: 16.2 per 10,000 vehicles sold in the US.
Compare Chevrolet Silverado vs:
Should I buy a Chevrolet Silverado?
Quick answer from 10,926 NHTSA complaints · 1982–2017
Most Chevrolet Silverado years show comparable, moderate complaint volumes. No specific year stands out as dramatically worse than its siblings. The most commonly reported issue is service brakes, hydraulic:antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip. Any year within the data range should perform similarly — focus inspection on the individual VIN history rather than avoiding a specific year.
- 2016 Chevrolet Silverado· 0.1/10K sold
- 2013 Chevrolet Silverado· 1.8/10K sold
- 2015 Chevrolet Silverado· 1.9/10K sold
Keep scrolling for year-by-year complaint trends, recall campaigns, and component breakdowns — or click any year above for a full report.
Chevrolet Silverado Generations
Manufacturer redesigns the car every few years (a “generation”). Each generation has different engineering and common issues. Click a generation to see year-by-year breakdown.
| Generation | Years | Code | Complaints | Crashes | US Sold | Volume | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gen 1 | 1999–2006 | GMT800 | 7,778 | 633 | 1,342,050 | Hide years | |||
| 1999 | 2,104 | 126 | — | View 1999View→ | |||||
| 2000 | 1,614 | 163 | — | View 2000View→ | |||||
| 2001 | 1,048 | 115 | — | View 2001View→ | |||||
| 2002 | 853 | 85 | — | View 2002View→ | |||||
| 2003 | 852 | 49 | — | View 2003View→ | |||||
| 2004 | 723 | 68 | — | View 2004View→ | |||||
| 2005 | 361 | 16 | 705,981 | View 2005View→ | |||||
| 2006 | 223 | 11 | 636,069 | View 2006View→ | |||||
| Gen 2 | 2007–2013 | GMT900 | 945 | 82 | 3,116,154 | Show years | |||
| Gen 3 | 2014–2018 | K2XX | 470 | 54 | 2,291,039 | Show years | |||
| Gen 4 | 2019–present | T1XX | 0 | 0 | — | Show years | |||
Which Years to Buy & Avoid
Years auto-clustered by complaint volume relative to this model's median.
Rankings based on raw NHTSA complaint counts. Sales volume data not yet available for this model.
Bottom line: Avoid the 1997–2005 Chevrolet Silverado (666 crash-related complaints). The 2016 models had significantly fewer reported issues. Most common issue across all years: Service Brakes, Hydraulic:antilock/traction Control/electronic Limited Slip.
Avoid These Years
Average
Better Years
A model's reputation is just the start.
Even within the “good” years, individual cars can have hidden accidents, title issues, or odometer rollbacks. Check the actual VIN before you buy — full history report for $4.99 (vs. Carfax $44.99).
Complaint Rate per 10,000 Vehicles Sold
Normalized by US annual sales volume — higher = more complaints relative to sales
Show raw complaint counts
Common Chevrolet Silverado Problems
Most reported component complaints to NHTSA. Bar length = volume; color = crash-involvement rate.
Show full table
| Component | Complaints | Crash % |
|---|---|---|
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic:Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip | 1,370 | 11.8% |
| Brakes | 708 | 7.6% |
| Electrical Faults | 370 | 2.4% |
| Hydraulic Brakes | 364 | 8.0% |
| Automatic Transmission | 327 | 3.1% |
| Visibility:Windshield Wiper/Washer:Motor | 286 | 0.3% |
| Airbags | 280 | 33.6% |
| Tire Defects | 247 | 5.3% |
| Unintended Acceleration | 223 | 12.1% |
| Steering Defects | 222 | 4.5% |
Year-by-Year Breakdown
NHTSA complaint count per model year — click any year for full problems & recalls breakdown.
| Year | Generation | Complaints | Rate | US Sales | Crashes | Fires | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982NO DATA | — | 2 | — | — | 0 | — | View → |
| 1984NO DATA | — | 5 | — | — | 0 | — | View → |
| 1985NO DATA | — | 3 | — | — | 0 | — | View → |
| 1987NO DATA | — | 2 | — | — | 0 | — | View → |
| 1988NO DATA | — | 18 | — | — | 0 | 2 | View → |
| 1989NO DATA | — | 24 | — | — | 1 | 3 | View → |
| 1990NO DATA | — | 37 | — | — | 4 | — | View → |
| 1991NO DATA | — | 18 | — | — | 0 | — | View → |
| 1992NO DATA | — | 51 | — | — | 1 | 4 | View → |
| 1993NO DATA | — | 77 | — | — | 1 | — | View → |
| 1994NO DATA | — | 235 | — | — | 11 | 5 | View → |
| 1995NO DATA | — | 331 | — | — | 20 | — | View → |
| 1996NO DATA | — | 230 | — | — | 17 | 3 | View → |
| 1997NO DATA | — | 365 | — | — | 25 | 15 | View → |
| 1998NO DATA | — | 335 | — | — | 19 | 6 | View → |
| 1999NO DATA | Gen 1(GMT800) | 2,104 | — | — | 126 | 11 | View → |
| 2000NO DATA | Gen 1(GMT800) | 1,614 | — | — | 163 | 11 | View → |
| 2001NO DATA | Gen 1(GMT800) | 1,048 | — | — | 115 | 6 | View → |
| 2002NO DATA | Gen 1(GMT800) | 853 | — | — | 85 | 5 | View → |
| 2003NO DATA | Gen 1(GMT800) | 852 | — | — | 49 | 19 | View → |
| 2004NO DATA | Gen 1(GMT800) | 723 | — | — | 68 | 10 | View → |
| 2005AVOID | Gen 1(GMT800) | 361 | 5.1 | 705,981 | 16 | 8 | View → |
| 2006 | Gen 1(GMT800) | 223 | 3.5 | 636,069 | 11 | 10 | View → |
| 2007AVOID | Gen 2(GMT900) | 253 | 4.1 | 618,257 | 11 | 14 | View → |
| 2008AVOID | Gen 2(GMT900) | 221 | 4.8 | 465,065 | 18 | 6 | View → |
| 2009 | Gen 2(GMT900) | 103 | 3.3 | 316,544 | 9 | 5 | View → |
| 2010 | Gen 2(GMT900) | 91 | 2.5 | 370,135 | 2 | 2 | View → |
| 2011 | Gen 2(GMT900) | 99 | 2.4 | 415,130 | 15 | 4 | View → |
| 2012 | Gen 2(GMT900) | 91 | 2.0 | 450,609 | 13 | 7 | View → |
| 2013 | Gen 2(GMT900) | 87 | 1.8 | 480,414 | 14 | 3 | View → |
| 2014 | Gen 3(K2XX) | 195 | 3.7 | 529,755 | 29 | — | View → |
| 2015 | Gen 3(K2XX) | 111 | 1.9 | 600,544 | 9 | 2 | View → |
| 2016GOOD | Gen 3(K2XX) | 8 | 0.1 | 574,876 | 1 | — | View → |
| 2017 | Gen 3(K2XX) | 156 | 2.7 | 585,864 | 15 | 4 | View → |
Year-by-Year Breakdown
Tap any year for full problems & recalls breakdown.
Data Sources & Methodology
Complaints: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation consumer complaint database (10,926 records for this model). Public domain data, updated monthly.
Sales data: US annual vehicle sales from goodcarbadcar. Coverage: 38% of model years have sales data. Total US sales: 6,749,243.
Rate calculation: Complaints per 10,000 vehicles sold = (complaint count / US annual sales) x 10,000. This normalizes for sales volume so high-volume models like Civic or Camry aren't unfairly penalized.
Year classifications: AVOID = 1.5x+ the model's median complaint rate. GOOD = 0.6x or below. Years less than 3 years old are marked TOO NEW (insufficient data).
See also: Chevrolet Silveradoaccident & safety statistics from our vehicle history database.
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