IllustrationDRIVER'S SIDE DOOR HANDLE BROKE OFF AT 35,000 MILES. THESE HANDLES ARE MADE OF POT METAL, AS THE PARTS DEPARTMENT CONFIRMED CASUALLY, AND WOULD COST ABOUT $180. FOR THE DEALER TO REPLACE - ALSO STATED WITHOUT A BLINK. *AK
1997 Chevrolet C/K Pickups
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1997 Chevrolet C/K Pickups do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 23.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all C/k Pickups years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
20–25K
725–50K
1450–75K
1375–100K
10100–150K
2150K+
48 reports with mileage · 24 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Visibility. Review the 30 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Steering. Review the 19 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 6 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
1 crash reports0 fire reports1 injury reports
Latches/locks/linkages complaints
3 reportsWE DRIVE TWO CHEVROLET PICK-UP TRUCKS IN OUR DEPARTMENT. ONE 1997 K2500, AND ONE 1998 K3500 MODEL. BOTH OF THESE TRUCKS HAVE HAD SEVERAL REPLACEMENT INTERIOR DOOR HANDLES INSTALLED OVER THE YEARS. A FEW WERE COVERED BY WARRANTY AND MORE WERE REPLACED IN OUR SHOP, AT A COST OF ROUGHLY $25.00 ON EACH OCCASION. ANOTHER HANDLE …
Read full complaint
WE DRIVE TWO CHEVROLET PICK-UP TRUCKS IN OUR DEPARTMENT. ONE 1997 K2500, AND ONE 1998 K3500 MODEL. BOTH OF THESE TRUCKS HAVE HAD SEVERAL REPLACEMENT INTERIOR DOOR HANDLES INSTALLED OVER THE YEARS. A FEW WERE COVERED BY WARRANTY AND MORE WERE REPLACED IN OUR SHOP, AT A COST OF ROUGHLY $25.00 ON EACH OCCASION. ANOTHER HANDLE BROKE YESTERDAY. THESE HANDLES ARE MADE OF A WHITE METAL AND BREAK IN THE SAME SPOT EACH TIME. WE ARE THINKING THAT THIS MIGHT BE A DEFECT THAT THE MANUFACTURER KNOWS ABOUT AS THE DEALERS ALWAYS SEEM TO HAVE REPLACEMENTS IN STOCK. ALL BUT ONE OF THE HANDLES BROKEN HAVE BEEN THE DRIVERS DOOR HANDLE. WE HAVE TO ROLL DOWN THE WINDOW AND UNLATCH THE DOOR FROM OUTSIDE UNTIL THE REPAIR IS MADE. I NOTICED ONE COMPLAINT HAS BEEN LOGGED ON YOUR SITE. I IMAGINE MANY OTHERS HAVE NOT YET BEEN REPORTED. WE HAVE A DRAWER FULL OF THE DEFECTIVE HANDLES IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO INSPECT THEM. *LA
DOOR LATCH ASSEMBLY CRACKED. *JB
Official recalls
103V159000 · Visibility:windshield Wiper/washer
Apr 28, 2003
ON CERTAIN MINIVANS, PICKUP TRUCKS, AND SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES WITH CERTAIN MODEL-ENGINE COMBINATIONS, THE WINDSHIELD WIPER MOTOR MAY FAIL DUE TO CRACKED SOLDER JOINTS ON THE CONTROLLER CIRCUIT BOARD. THE WINDSHIELD WIPERS COULD WORK INTERMITTENTLY OR NOT AT ALL.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: IF THIS WERE TO OCCUR DURING BAD WEATHER, DRIVER VISIBILITY WOULD BE REDUCED, WHICH COULD RESULT IN A CRASH.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE WIPER MOTOR CIRCUIT BOARD AND COVER. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN ON JUNE 19, 2003. OWNERS WHO TAKE THEIR VEHICLES TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER ON AN AGREED UPON SERVICE DATE AND DO NOT RECEIVE THE FREE REMEDY WITHIN A REASONABLE TIME SHOULD CONTACT CHEVROLET AT 1-800-222-1020, GMC AT 1-800-462-8782, OR OLDSMOBILE AT 1-800-442-6537.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
2EA02006 · Windshield Wiper Failure
Opened May 31, 2002 · Closed Jul 23, 2003
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Visibility:windshield Wiper/washer:motor
AS A RESULT OF THIS, AND THE PRECEDINGINVESTIGATION, RQ99-003, GM HAS EXPANDED THE POPULATION OF SAFETY RECALL 98V-150 (REPLACEMENT OF THE WINDSHIELD WIPER CONTROL MODULE) TO INCLUDE AN ADDITIONAL 1.77 MILLION VEHICLES.INCLUDED ARE VARIOUS 1994-1997 MY M/L VANS, S/T TRUCKS AND SUVS, & C/K TRUCKS AND SUVS.SEE ATTACHED TECHNICAL REPORT FOR DETAILS.
Additional source detail variants (2)
Visibility:windshield Wiper/washer:motor
AS A RESULT OF THIS, AND THE PRECEDINGINVESTIGATION, RQ99-003, GM HAS EXPANDED THE POPULATION OF SAFETY RECALL 98V-150 (REPLACEMENT OF THE WINDSHIELD WIPER CONTROL MODULE) TO INCLUDE AN ADDITIONAL 1.77 MILLION VEHICLES.INCLUDED ARE VARIOUS 1994-1997 MY M/L VANS, S/T TRUCKS AND SUVS, & C/K TRUCKS AND SUVS.SEE ATTACHED TECHNICAL REPORT FOR DETAILS.
Visibility:windshield Wiper/washer:motor
AS A RESULT OF THIS, AND THE PRECEDINGINVESTIGATION, RQ99-003, GM HAS EXPANDED THE POPULATION OF SAFETY RECALL 98V-150 (REPLACEMENT OF THE WINDSHIELD WIPER CONTROL MODULE) TO INCLUDE AN ADDITIONAL 1.77 MILLION VEHICLES.INCLUDED ARE VARIOUS 1994-1997 MY M/L VANS, S/T TRUCKS AND SUVS, & C/K TRUCKS AND SUVS.SEE ATTACHED TECHNICAL REPORT FOR DETAILS.
PE01001 · Vacuum Brake Booster
Opened Jan 8, 2001 · Closed May 22, 2001
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Service Brakes, Hydraulic
ALLEGED THAT THE VACUUM BRAKE BOOSTER CAN FAIL RESULTING IN LOSS OF BRAKE EFFECTIVENESS AND EXTENDED STOPPING DISTANCES.