IllustrationSEAT BELT WILL NOT RETRACT WHEN UNFASTENED AND DRIVER SIDE DOOR IS OPENED. WHEN DRIVER EXITS VEHICLE, SEAT BELT FLIES OUT OF CAR, HITTING THE OUTSIDE OF THE CAR. THE UNRETRACTED BELT ALSO PREVENTS CAR DOOR FROM SHUTTING UNTIL MANUALLY RETRACTED.
1998 Chevrolet Prizm
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1998 Chevrolet Prizm do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 21.5.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Prizm 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
Limited mileage data: 4 of 27 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.
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.
- Air Bags. Review the 6 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 3 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Seat Belts. Review the 3 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
6 crash reports0 fire reports2 injury reports
What owners actually said
27 reportsVEHICLE IS NOT EQUPPED WITH THE FRONT STABILIZER BAR, WHICH COULD CAUSE VEHICLE TO ROLL OVER WHEN MAKING A TURN. *AK *ML
CONSUMER HAS EXPERIENCED A PROBLEM WITH ACCELERATOR. ACCELERATOR MADE THE VEHICLE MOVE BY ITSELF, CAUSING THE CONSUMER TO BE INVOLVED IN A FRONTAL COLLISION. THE MANUFACTURER HAS NOT BEEN CONTACTED. *AK
WHILE DRIVING 70 MPH OR MORE THE STEERING SYSTEM MALFUNCTIONED, CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO SWAY FROM SIDE TO SIDE WHICH ALMOST RESULTED IN AN ACCIDENT. CAUSE UNKNOWN, DEALER CANNOT DETERMINE PROBLEM. *AK
SEAT BELT BUCKLE DAMAGES DOOR WHEN RELEASED DUE TO DESIGN.
VEHICLE DOES NOT HAVE A FRONT STABILIZER BAR.
DRIVING ON HIGHWAY, THE TIRES GROOVED IN THE ROAD, MAKING IT UNSTABLE TO CONTROL STEERING. ON FIVE OCCASIONS DRIVER LOST CONTROL, ATTEMPTING TO VEER FROM HITTING ANOTHER VEHICLE. RITCHEY FIPPS CHEVROLET IS AWARE OF ANOTHER VEHICLE HAVING SAME PROBLEM IN WHICH THEY CAN'T DETERMINE CAUSE. *AK
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
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
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.