MODELYEARINDEX

Which Chevrolet Silverado 1500 years to avoid

Across 12 scored model years, the 2014, 2015 and 2021 model years carry the highest severity-weighted complaint rates.

Ownership label · Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Full report
F
Grade 2010–2021
2014 vs model median 2.3×
Model median3× median
Steering 164
Electrical 124
Drivetrain 89
Avoid

2014 · 2015

Best

2010 · 2012

What the record shows

Written from this model’s own complaint and recall history.

Steering is the largest complaint group in the Silverado’s worst year, 2014, and it is the category that gives that year its grade. Sixty-three filings record a crash. The median odometer reading at complaint is about 35,000 miles.

2014 was the first model year of the K2XX platform, and GM recalled trucks from this period for a loss of electric power steering assist — the system could cut out and then return, sometimes suddenly. That is exactly the event the steering filings describe. Electrical complaints are the second group, covering the instrument cluster and body control modules that were also the subject of service actions in this period.

2015 remains flagged at a lower rate, and 2019 and 2021 — the first years of the following generation — are flagged again on a different mix. That first-year pattern recurs across every full-size truck in this dataset. The 2010 and 2012 Silverados, at the end of the previous platform, record the lowest complaint rates here.

Reviewed Claude, 10 August 2026, against the model's own record and NHTSA campaign filings

Year by year

Severity-weighted complaints filed in each model year’s first 60 months on the road, so every year is measured over an identical window.

Year Complaint volume vs median Reports Grade
2010
0.24× 103 B
2011
0.34× 126 B
2012
0.27× 111 B
2013
0.35× 162 B
2014
2.28× 968 F
2015
1.55× 715 D
2016
1.16× 526 C
2017
1.14× 524 C
2018
0.69× 337 C
2019
1.45× 739 D
2020
0.86× 436 C
2021
1.39× 700 D
2022 P
1.75× 825 F
2023 P
1.15× 516 C
2024 P
0.84× 389 C
2025 P
0.31× 135 A

P — provisional. These years have not completed 60 months on the road, so their totals are incomplete and they are excluded from the verdict.

What owners report

The component groups most often named, with one representative report. These are unverified — allegations, not findings.

2014 F 968 reports · median 35,000 mi

  1. Steering 164

    When driving at highway speeds on winding roads, the steering does not return to center when the turn is finished. The steering "sticks" and the wheel needs to be pushed back to center. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  2. Electrical 124

    I purchased the 2014 silverado 1500 while it was raining. Test drive was fine, but the sales person already had the vehicle running with the defroster and wipers on. Drove home (2 miles) and parked. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  3. Drivetrain 89

    Was in a turn lane following a vehicle going slightly uphill rolling up to an intersection to make a left. The vehicle in front of me made their turn and while I was still rolling I checked oncoming traffic. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

63 crash · 11 fire · 24 injuries

2015 D 715 reports · median 42,000 mi

  1. Brakes 219

    The contact owns a 2015 chevrolet silverado. While driving 25 MPH, the steering wheel shook violently and the brake pedal vibrated. The failure recurred numerous times. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  2. Steering 74

    When shifting the vehicle out of park, if the tilt steering wheel is in the full up position, and the shift lever is pulled fully rearward so as to shift out of park, then the shift lever will hit and be stopped from… owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  3. Electrical 57

    The contact rented a 2015 chevrolet silverado. While preceding into an intersection and making a right turn, the vehicle suddenly shut off. After restarting the engine, the vehicle operated as normal. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

64 crash · 7 fire · 35 injuries

The best year for the Silverado 1500

Ranked by overall score among years with a full 60 months on the road.

2012 is the best-scoring Silverado 1500 model year with a full 60 months on the road, at 84.9 out of 100 — a score that combines complaint rate, recall campaigns and open investigations. On complaint rate alone the lowest is 2010 at 0.24× this model’s median, against 0.27× for 2012.

Yearvs medianReportsGrade
2012 0.27× 111 B
2010 0.24× 103 B
2013 0.35× 162 B

Recalls

49 campaigns on record, 1 carrying a Park It or Park Outside warning.

Campaign Component Model years Units affected
16V651000 AIR BAGS:FRONTAL 2014–2017 3,640,162
19V645000 SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:POWER ASSIST:VACUUM 2014–2018 3,456,719
21V050000 AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:PASSENGER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE 2010, 2011 2,641,272
21V054000 AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:PASSENGER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE 2010–2013 1,778,128
18V586000 STEERING:ELECTRIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM 2015 1,015,918
22V903000 EXTERIOR LIGHTING:LIGHTING CONTROL MODULE:SOFTWARE 2022, 2023 740,108
21V053000 AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:PASSENGER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE 2010, 2013 692,526
17V414000 STEERING:ELECTRIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM 2014 690,685
19V761000 SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP:WHEEL SPEED SENSOR/TONE RING 2014–2018 652,967
20V792000 SEAT BELTS 2019–2021 624,216
25V274000 ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:HARD PARTS INTERNAL/MECHANICAL 2021–2024 597,571
19V814000 SEAT BELTS:PRETENSIONER 2019, 2020 556,399

+ 37 further campaigns

How long do they last?

Complaint records show when problems get reported, not how long a car survives. Where owners gave an odometer reading, faults on the 2014 were reported at a median of 35,000 miles. Treat that as the point problems start being noticed, not a lifespan.

Common questions

Answered directly from this model’s record.

Which Chevrolet Silverado 1500 years should you avoid?
2014, 2015, 2021 carry the highest severity-weighted complaint rates of any Chevrolet Silverado 1500 model year measured over an identical 60-month window.
What is the best year for the Chevrolet Silverado 1500?
2012 is the best-scoring Chevrolet Silverado 1500 model year with a full 60 months on the road, at 84.9 out of 100. The score combines complaint rate, recall campaigns and open investigations.
How many recalls does the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 have?
49 distinct recall campaigns are on record across all scored Chevrolet Silverado 1500 model years. A recall is a matter of record: the manufacturer filed a defect report with NHTSA.

How this was calculated

Every model year is scored over an identical window: complaints filed with NHTSA during the first 60 months after that model year went on sale. Without this, older cars look worse purely because they have had longer to accumulate reports.

Limitations. Complaints are unverified reports submitted voluntarily by owners; they are allegations, not findings, and reporting rates vary between models. Model years with fewer than 60 months on the road are marked provisional and excluded from verdicts. Cross-model comparison is withheld pending production-volume data.

Full methodology · Sources · Data vintage August 9, 2026

Working 2014 Silverado 1500
Complaints in window
968
Severity-weighted
1,532.5
Model median (weighted)
673
vs model median
2.28×
Recall campaigns (weighted)
6
Open investigations
1
Score 24.7 F