Chevrolet · Silverado 1500 · 2018
2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500: problems & reliability
NHTSA has logged 522 owner complaints and 7 safety recalls for the 2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The most-reported problem area is the transmission & powertrain (33% of complaints), followed by electrical system and engine. Make sure every open recall has been fixed by a dealer before you buy.
Common 2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 problems
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Transmission & powertrain problems
170 owner complaints to NHTSA (33% of all complaints for this model year) involve the transmission & powertrain, including 1 crash, 2 injuries. One owner reported: “Motor vehicle accident 4/21/22. Vehicle stalled hit by 18 wheeler. Several times on several occasions after that on several days vehicle stalled in interstates with multiple 18 wheelers, trucks cars almost hitting me/my vehicle each time…”
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Electrical system problems
104 owner complaints to NHTSA (20% of all complaints for this model year) involve the electrical system, including 1 crash, 2 fires, 1 injury. One owner reported: “Been having voltage issues for a couple of days where my lights dim and volt gauge drops and raises while driving or stationary dealer said it's normal also hard down shifting while driving not letting off the gas assistant brakes have…”
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Engine problems
103 owner complaints to NHTSA (20% of all complaints for this model year) involve the engine, including 2 fires. One owner reported: “The contact owned a 2018 chevrolet silverado. While the vehicle was parked and unoccupied at the contact's resident, the vehicle spontaneously caught fire without warning or impact. A police report was filed. The fire department was called…”
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Brakes problems
96 owner complaints to NHTSA (18% of all complaints for this model year) involve the brakes, including 3 crashes, 1 fire, 1 injury. One owner reported: “In an accident where I was the at fault driver, I was approaching a stop light and did not notice the red light nor the car stopped until approximately three seconds before impact. Once I recognized what was happening, I immediately…”
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Steering problems
42 owner complaints to NHTSA (8% of all complaints for this model year) involve the steering, including 3 crashes. One owner reported: “While driving my truck on [XXX] , steering locks up, unable to turn the steering wheel. Crashes into guard rail going approximately 57mph, thankfully no other vehicle involved in this matter. I was not hurt, and had seatbelt buckled and…”
Owner complaints by area
| Area | Complaints | Share | Chart |
|---|---|---|---|
| Transmission & powertrain | 170 | 33% | |
| Electrical system | 104 | 20% | |
| Engine | 103 | 20% | |
| Brakes | 96 | 18% | |
| Steering | 42 | 8% | |
| Suspension | 32 | 6% | |
| Fuel system | 19 | 4% | |
| Speed control & acceleration | 19 | 4% |
522 complaints filed with NHTSA in total, reporting 10 crashes, 4 fires, 11 injuries, 1 death. A complaint can involve more than one area.
2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 recalls
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Air bags
Risk: A detached end cap or inflator rupture can allow compressed gas to escape and project the end cap or fragments of the inflator into the vehicle, increasing the risk of injury.
Remedy: Dealers will replace both RRAB modules, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 24, 2026. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-888-988-7267 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N262557310. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on May 21, 2026. This recall expands previous NHTSA recall number 26V166.
Full recall summary
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500, GMC Sierra 1500, 2019 Chevrolet Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, GMC Sierra 2500, and Sierra 3500 vehicles. The left-side or right-side roof rail air bag (RRAB) inflator end cap may detach from the inflator or the inflator sidewall may rupture.
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Air bags
Risk: A detached end cap or inflator rupture can allow compressed gas to escape and project the end cap or fragments of the inflator into the vehicle, increasing the risk of injury.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the left and right-side RRAB modules, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 16, 2026. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-888-988-7267 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N262549710. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on March 19, 2026.
Full recall summary
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500, GMC Sierra 1500, 2019 Chevrolet Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, GMC Sierra 2500, and Sierra 3500 Crew Cab vehicles. The left or right-side roof rail air bag (RRAB) inflator end cap may detach from the inflator or the inflator sidewall may rupture.
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Air bags
Risk: A detached end cap or inflator rupture can allow compressed gas to escape and project the end cap or fragments of the inflator into the vehicle, increases the risk of injury or crash.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the left and right side RRAB modules, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 23, 2025. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-888-988-7267 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N252513060.
Full recall summary
General Motors (GM) is recalling certain 2018 GMC Sierra 1500, 2019 Sierra 2500, 3500, Chevrolet Silverado 3500, and Chevrolet Silverado 2500 and 2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Crew Cab vehicles. The left or right-side roof-rail air bag (RRAB) inflator end cap may detach from the inflator or the inflator sidewall may rupture.
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Air bags › Side/window › Curtain › Inflator
Risk: A separated inflator end cap or inflator rupture can allow compressed gas to escape, resulting in the end cap or other components being propelled into the vehicle, increasing the risk of injury or crash.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the left and right side RRAB modules, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed November 8, 2024. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, and GMC Customer Service at 888-988-7267. GM's number for this recall is N242474500.
Full recall summary
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500, GMC Sierra 1500, 2018-2019 Chevrolet Silverado 2500, 3500, and GMC Sierra 2500, 3500 Crew Cab trucks. The left or right-side roof-rail air bag (RRAB) inflator end cap may detach from the inflator or the inflator sidewall may rupture.
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Service brakes, hydraulic › Power assist › Vacuum
Risk: A decrease in brake assist can increase the brake pedal effort and distance required to stop the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the Electronic Brake Control Module, free of charge. The recall began November 11, 2020. Owners may contact GM customer service at 1-866-522-9559, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-630-2438. GM's number for this recall is N202300860.
Full recall summary
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2018 Cadillac Escalade, Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500 and Yukon vehicles equipped with either a 5.3L or 6.2L V8 engine. The output of the mechanical vacuum pump can decrease over time, decreasing the amount of vacuum/power brake assist.
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Service brakes, hydraulic › Antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip › Wheel speed sensor/tone ring
Risk: Unintended activation of the driveline-protection system will cause unintended braking on the wheel on the opposite side of the failed sensor, causing the vehicle to pull to one side unexpectedly, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the EBCM, free of charge. The recall began December 11, 2019. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-630-2438 or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N192261050.
Full recall summary
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015-2020 Chevrolet Suburban, Tahoe, and GMC Yukon, and 2014-2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 vehicles equipped with a 5.3-liter engine, a 3.08-ratio rear axle and four-wheel drive. If a wheel-speed sensor fails, while the vehicle is traveling between 41 and 60 mph in four-wheel or automatic mode, the Electronic-Brake Control Module (EBCM) software may activate the driveline-protection system.
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Service brakes, hydraulic › Power assist › Vacuum
Risk: As the vacuum level drops, the brake assist decreases, increasing braking effort, extending the distance required to stop the vehicle, thereby increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the Electronic Brake Control Module, free of charge. The recall began October 8, 2019. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-630-2438, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006 or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N192268490.
Full recall summary
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015-2017 Cadillac Escalade, 2014-2018 Chevrolet Silverado, GMC Sierra, 2015-2018 Chevrolet Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Yukon vehicles. The amount of vacuum created by the vacuum pump may decrease over time.
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. To check whether a specific car’s recalls have been repaired, enter its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 crash-test ratings
NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings for the 2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 PU/EC 4WD. Ratings can differ between body styles and drivetrains (7 versions tested or listed).
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Specifications
- Drivetrains
- 4WD, RWD
Other Chevrolet Silverado 1500 years
About this data
Problems, complaint counts, recalls and crash-test ratings come from the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) public databases, last checked 2026-11-03. Complaints are reports from owners and have not all been verified by NHTSA.
How we score reliability: every model year starts at 100. Points come off for the number of owner complaints (on a log scale, up to 40 points), for each safety recall (2 points each, up to 15) and for complaints involving crashes, fires, injuries or deaths (up to 15). Popular vehicles get more complaints simply because more are on the road, so compare scores between similar vehicles. More about our method.
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