2003 Chevrolet Silverado 1500: problems, recalls and reliability

“I was driving in normal conditions around 45 mph with the air conditioner on high. Smoke starts pouring out from underneath the dash on the passenger side and once I get stopped the blower motor resistor had caught fire. I was able to put the fire out myself no incident report was filed. It caused damage to my dash but I was able to extinguish it rather quickly to avoid further damage. I just bought this pick up for my 17-year-old son and if he had of been driving things could've been a lot worse especially if his reaction time is any slower than mine.”Owner report · Electrical System · Jun 2021

“New optima red top keeps draining. Second new battery in a month. Dead over night. I've read there's a recall on other vins. Yet mine is doing the same battery drain thing. Left my wife at mcdonald's today high and dry! Wtf! Don't make me get a ford!”Owner report · Electrical System · Aug 2020

“As I was driving home from downtown suddenly my truck lost power and I had to limp home ,friend checked truck and found trouble code p2135 reduced engine power and also said for me to check if there was a recall for this throttle body problem .”Owner report · Vehicle Speed Control · Jul 2020

“Instrument cluster- the only thing that works is the speedometer if I hit a bump the speedometer stops working my truck sometimes dies on me going down the roads, I recently took it to a shop and they ran a diagnostic test and told me it's a electrical problem but since my instrument cluster wasnt working could not narrow it down.. Windshield- front makes a whistle sound when your going down the highway it's been like that since I have owned it.. Battery- bought a new battery about 8 months ago and something keeps draining it sometimes causing it to have hesitation and bogs out.”Owner report · Visibility/Wiper · Jan 2020

“Tl* the contact owns a 2003 chevrolet silverado 1500. When parking the vehicle, the brake pedal stuck to the floorboard. The contact was able to engage the emergency brake to stop the vehicle. The contact drove to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the brake lines were corroded. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer and dealer were not contacted. The failure mileage was 53,000.*dt*jb”Owner report · Service Brakes · Sep 2019

“The rear fuel tank strap holding the fuel tank to the frame of the vehicle has rusted/corroded and failed. The result was the tank strap separating from the portion near where the strap bolts to the frame. The vehicle was in motion on primary city roads during this issue. The separated fuel tank strap then rubbed against the rear portion of the drive shaft near the rear axle housing. This caused it to separate from the vehicle and enter the roadway. After the retaining strap failed, the rear portion of the fuel tank was then hanging dangerously low towards the roadway.”Owner report · Fuel/Propulsion System · May 2019

“Brakes failed without warning while the vehicle was at highway speed, the pedal went to the floor with no warning when attempting to slow down. I was able to run off the road to avoid a collision and stop the vehicle slowly using the emergency brake. After stopping the vehicle, I could see brake fluid pouring out of the brake lines under the drivers side door. There appeared to be significant corrosion on the brake lines where the fluid was now pouring out.”Owner report · Service Brakes · Oct 2018