IllustrationBOOSTER FAILED WHILE TRAVELING INTERSTATE. THIS WAS A CLASS 9 SYSTEMS FAILURE (LOSS OF POWER) WITHOUT WARNING. FAILURE WAS A RESULT OF A SPLIT DIAPHRAM.
1997 GMC Sierra
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
More warning signs than most Sierra years
Owner complaints for the 1997 GMC Sierra are substantially higher than the model-year median of 53.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Sierra 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: 49 of 238 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.
- Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 63 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Steering. Review the 63 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Power Train. Review the 28 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 reports5 fire reports4 injury reports
What owners actually said
238 reportsINTERMITTENT STRONG UNEXPECTED STEERING WHEEL MOVEMENT AT APPROX. 35 MILES PER HOUR AN ABOVE THIS WILL HAPPEN WHEN DRIVING STRAIGHT BUT IS MOST SEVERE WHEN TAKING A RIGHT HAND TURN IT FEELS LIKE THE STEERING WHEEL SLIPS APPROX 3 TO 4 INCHES INCREASING THE RATE OF TURN THE VEHICLE ALSO VIOLENTLY MOVES IN THAT DIRECTION.
WHILE DRIVING AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS WHEN CONSUMER IS TURNING STEERING WHEEL JERKS AND TWITCHES. VEHICLE IS DIFFICULT TO CONTROL WHEN THIS OCCURS. *AK
DRIVER SEAT, SEAT ADJUSTMENT.
POWER WINDOWS WOULD NOT WORK.
BRAKE PADS AND ROTORS WEARING TOO FAST; ONLY HAD TRUCK FOR ONE YEAR AND ALREADY HAVING TO REPLACE A SECOND TIME; IT IS ONLY DRIVEN 5 MILES TO AND FROM WORK EVERY DAY, AND REGULAR EVERYDAY USE; ALSO, TWO TIRES FAILED AT SAME TIME AND HAD TO BE REPLACED.( DOT NUMBER: )
STOPPED WHILE OUT OF THE CITY ON THE ROAD AND IT WOULD NOT START. HAD IT TOWED TO DEALERSHIP AND THEY REPLACED THE FUEL PUMP.
TRANS STARTED SHIFTING VERY HARD. ONCE IN HIGH GEAR OPERATED WELL. DEALER WOULD NOT LOOK AT IT UNDER WARRANTY EVEN THOUGH 1YR 10 MOS. OLD DUE TO OVER 36000 MILES BY LESS THAN 2000.
WHEN DRIVING AT ANY SPEED STEERING IS JUMPING AND JERKING. WHEN APPLYING THE BRAKES, IT FEELS LIKE PRESSURE IS WITHIN THE BRAKES UNTIL CONSUMER HITS A BUMP AND THE PRESSURE WILL GO AWAY. *AK
WHILE DRIVING AT 60 MPH DRIVER'S SEAT BOLT BROKE OFF. CAUSING THE CONSUMER TO FALL BACKWARDS. CONSUMER LOST TEMPORARY CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE, BUT WAS ABLE TO GET THE VEHICLE BACK UNDER CONTROL. *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.