1998 Chevrolet Silverado

Typical pattern

8.8% of complaints about the 1998 Chevrolet Silverado came in the first year, which is unremarkable for a 1998 vehicle — around the middle of the 180 model-years on record. The median complaint arrives at 4.8 yr in service. The most-reported system is service brakes, hydraulic (76 complaints), typically at 4.0 yr or about 68,000 miles.

Complaints: 261
Median age at failure: 4.8 yr
Median mileage: 75,000 n=87
Crash / fire / tow: 9.2% of reports
Safety recalls: 0

In owners’ own words

Tires mileage not reported 5 mo in service

RIGHT FRONT TIRE IS RUBBING AGAINST THE "A" FRAME WHEN TURNING TO THE LEFT. DEALER IS AWARE OF THE PROBLEM. THE PROBLEM HAS NOT BEEN CORRECTED. PLEASE DESCRIBE DETAILS. *AK

Tires mileage not reported 1.2 yr in service

REAR TIRES INCORRECTLY INSTALLED SO THAT THE TIRE VALVE STEM WAS ON THE INNER TIRE RATHER THAN THE OUTSIDE CAUSING FLAKING ON THE BRAKE DRUM. MJS

Tires mileage not reported 2.8 yr in service crash / fire / tow

CONSUMER WAS TRAVELING 40MPH AND WHILE GOING AROUND A CURVE A TIRE BLEW OUT, RESULTING IN A CRASH. UPON IMPACT, PASSENGER'S SIDE AIRBAG DIDN'T DEPLOY, NOR DID THE SEAT BELTS HELP TO SECURE THE PASSENGER & DRIVER AT THE TIME OF IMPACT. MANUFACTURER HAS BEEN CONTACTED 3 TIMES. *AK *ML

Steering mileage not reported 9 mo in service

THE DEFECTIVE BOLT ON THE STEERING PITMAN SYSTEM "STRIPPED" OFF, CAUSING THE STEERING WHEEL TO MOVE FREELY AND NOT MOVING THE TIRES, WHICH MAY CAUSE AN ACCIDENT. *AK

Other Silverado model years

How to read this

This is what owners reported, not a reliability rating. People file with NHTSA about alarming failures, not routine ones, and complaint volume tracks how many cars were sold.
Failure ages come from the incident date on each complaint, populated on about 83% of records. Mileage is shown where reported — NHTSA’s 2021 system change cut mileage capture to roughly 15%, so it thins out sharply after MY2020.
Every rank compares this vehicle only against others of the same model year. A 2025 car has not had time to accumulate five-year failures, so comparing early-failure share across years is meaningless.
Fourteen make-months distorted by media storms and mass recalls — Toyota in February 2010 ran 11× normal volume across 33 models — are excluded.
Recalls are manufacturer actions and authoritative; complaints are not. A recall listed here may already have been performed on any individual car. Check a specific VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

1998 Chevrolet Silverado

When each system is reported — middle 50% of complaints

In owners’ own words

Other Silverado model years

How to read this