IllustrationWINDSHIELD WIPERS STOP INTERMITTENTLY WITHOUT WARNING. LATEST INCIDENT WAS IN HEAVY SNOW AND VISIBILITY WAS LOST. THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION. THE 1996 S-10 AND SONOMA WERE RECALLED FOR THIS VERY SAME PROBLEM BUT NO RECALL ON THE 1997. THIS NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED BEFORE SOMEONE IS INJURED IN AN ACCIDENT. *JB
1997 GMC Sonoma
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1997 GMC Sonoma do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 57.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Sonoma 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: 27 of 111 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 35 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Visibility. Review the 30 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Air Bags. Review the 9 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
14 crash reports0 fire reports9 injury reports
Visibility complaints
30 reportsWHILE DRIVING AND IT STARTED TO RAIN THE VEHICLE WIPERS WILL NOT COME ON. CAUSE UNKNOWN. MR *TT
WHILE DRIVING IN A RAIN STORM, THE WINDSHIELD WIPERS FAILED TO OPERATE PROPERLY AFTER BEING TURNED ON. SOMETIMES THE WIPERS WOULD NOT COME ON BUT THE MOTOR WOULD STILL BE RUNNING. THE PROBLEM IS INTERMITTENT AND HAS BEEN TAKEN TO THE DEALERSHIP. THEY HAVE THEN BEEN INFORMED THAT THE PROBLEM IS NOT ON RECALL BUT THE PROBLEM WA…
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WHILE DRIVING IN A RAIN STORM, THE WINDSHIELD WIPERS FAILED TO OPERATE PROPERLY AFTER BEING TURNED ON. SOMETIMES THE WIPERS WOULD NOT COME ON BUT THE MOTOR WOULD STILL BE RUNNING. THE PROBLEM IS INTERMITTENT AND HAS BEEN TAKEN TO THE DEALERSHIP. THEY HAVE THEN BEEN INFORMED THAT THE PROBLEM IS NOT ON RECALL BUT THE PROBLEM WAS REPAIRABLE DUE TO A MODULE OF THE WIPER SYSTEM. PLEASE DESCRIBE DETAILS. MR
WINDSHIELD WIPER MOTOR FAILED, WIPERS STALLED IN HEAVY RAIN AND TRAFFIC--HAD TO BLINDLY MANEUVER TO CITY FREEWAY SHOULDER AND PROCEED TO NEXT EXIT.*AK
THE WINDSHIELD WIPERS MALFUNCTIONED. THE DEALER INDICATED THAT TAPPING THE MODULE WOULD MAKE THE WIPERS WORK AGAIN. *YH
WINDSHIELD WASHER/WIPERS RANDOMLY DO NOT WORK. DEARLER SAYS THEY CAN'T FIX A RANDOM PROBLEM. APPEARS TO BE THE SAME PROBLEM AS STATED IN THE 1996 RECALL #98V150001. *AK
CONSUMER STATES WAS UNABLE TO KEEP WINDSHIELD WIPERS WORKING, CONSUMER WAS ALSO NOTIFIED THERE WAS A RECALL, HOWEVER WAS INFORMED BY DEALER THERE WAS A RECALL, HOWEVER RECALL WAS NOT APPLICABLE TO CONSUMER BECAUSE OF THE VIN NUMBER MECHANIC STATED THE WINDSHIELD WIPERS WORK INTERMEDIATELY RESULTING IN THE MOTOR TO MALFUNCTION.*J…
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CONSUMER STATES WAS UNABLE TO KEEP WINDSHIELD WIPERS WORKING, CONSUMER WAS ALSO NOTIFIED THERE WAS A RECALL, HOWEVER WAS INFORMED BY DEALER THERE WAS A RECALL, HOWEVER RECALL WAS NOT APPLICABLE TO CONSUMER BECAUSE OF THE VIN NUMBER MECHANIC STATED THE WINDSHIELD WIPERS WORK INTERMEDIATELY RESULTING IN THE MOTOR TO MALFUNCTION.*JB *YH
WHILE DRIVING WINSHIELD WIPERS STOPPED WORKING. CONTACTED DEALER, THEY REFUSED TO DO ANYTHING. *AK
THIS IS THE SECOND OF MY THREE 1997 GMC VEHICLES TO EXPERIENCE THIS PROBLEM. THE WIPER MODULE FAILED. THE FIRST TIME WAS ON A 1997 S10 EXT CAB 4WD; IT COST ME $175 TO GET THAT ONE REPAIRED BY DEALER REPLACEMENT OF THE MODULE. I HAVE NO YET TAKEN THIS ONE, A 1997 GMC SONOMA , TO THE DEALERSHIP. I HAVE CHECKED TO SEE IF THE PA…
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THIS IS THE SECOND OF MY THREE 1997 GMC VEHICLES TO EXPERIENCE THIS PROBLEM. THE WIPER MODULE FAILED. THE FIRST TIME WAS ON A 1997 S10 EXT CAB 4WD; IT COST ME $175 TO GET THAT ONE REPAIRED BY DEALER REPLACEMENT OF THE MODULE. I HAVE NO YET TAKEN THIS ONE, A 1997 GMC SONOMA , TO THE DEALERSHIP. I HAVE CHECKED TO SEE IF THE PART IS AVAILABLE AT OTHER THAN A DEALERSHIP. IT IS NOT. IF THERE IS NO RECALL THERE SHOULD BE. THERE HAS BEEN AMPLE INCIDENCES REPORTED TO CREATE AT LEAST SOME INVESTIGATION. I CHECKED ON RECALLS FOR THE S10 AND WAS TOLD NO.*AK
WINDSHIELD WIPER MOTOR FAILS TO OPERATE SOME TIMES WHEN I TURN IT ON. AND THEN AFTER A FEW MINUTES, ITS WORKING AGAIN. I CAN'T DEPEND ON THE WIPERS TO WORK WHEN I NEED THEM. FIRST INCIDENT OCCURRED AT ABOUT 75,000 MILES. MY LOCAL GM SERVICE CENTER TELLS ME THERE IS SOME ELECTRICAL MODULE CAUSING THE PROBLEM AND WANTS $150 TO FIX…
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WINDSHIELD WIPER MOTOR FAILS TO OPERATE SOME TIMES WHEN I TURN IT ON. AND THEN AFTER A FEW MINUTES, ITS WORKING AGAIN. I CAN'T DEPEND ON THE WIPERS TO WORK WHEN I NEED THEM. FIRST INCIDENT OCCURRED AT ABOUT 75,000 MILES. MY LOCAL GM SERVICE CENTER TELLS ME THERE IS SOME ELECTRICAL MODULE CAUSING THE PROBLEM AND WANTS $150 TO FIX.*AK
Official recalls
297V146001 · Service Brakes, Hydraulic:foundation Components:hoses, Lines/piping, And Fittings
Sep 11, 1997
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: LIGHT DUTY PASSENGER PICKUP TRUCKS EQUIPPED WITH 4.3L ENGINES. THE FRONT BRAKE LINE CAN CONTACT THE LEFT-HAND SIDE OF THE ENGINE OIL PAN CAUSING THE BRAKE LINE TO WEAR TO THE POINT OF BRAKE FLUID LOSS DURING BRAKE APPLICATION.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: BRAKE FLUID LOSS CAN REDUCE BRAKING EFFECTIVENESS AND INCREASE STOPPING DISTANCES RESULTING IN A VEHICLE CRASH WITHOUT PRIOR WARNING.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE CLEARANCE BETWEEN THE OIL PAN AND THE BRAKE LINE. IF THE CLEARANCE IS 6MM OR LESS, DEALERS WILL INSTALL AN ADDITIONAL BRAKE LINE CLIP AND IF THERE WAS CONTACT BETWEEN THE OIL PAN AND BRAKE LINE, THE FRONT BRAKE LINE WILL BE REPLACED.
97V096001 · Seat Belts
Jun 12, 1997
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: EXTENDED CAB PICKUP TRUCKS EQUIPPED WITH 60/40 FRONT BENCH SEATS AND EXTENDED CAB PICKUP TRUCKS AND 2-DOOR UTILITY VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH MANUAL LOCKING RECLINER BUCKET SEATS. THE OUTBOARD SAFETY BELT WEBBING ON THE DRIVER'S AND/OR PASSENGER'S SEAT CAN SEPARATE DURING A FRONTAL IMPACT.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: IF A SEPARATION OCCURRED AND THERE WERE SECONDARY CRASH EVENTS OR VEHICLE ROLLOVER, THERE WOULD BE NO BELT RESTRAINT OF THE OCCUPANT AND INCREASED INJURIES COULD OCCUR.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSTALL A PROTECTIVE COVER OVER THE RECLINER MECHANISM.
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
2RQ04002 · Driver's Seat Belt Buckle Assembly
Opened Feb 18, 2004 · Closed May 27, 2004
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Seat Belts:front; Seat Belts:front:webbing
ON FEBRUARY 18, 2004, ODI OPENED THIS RECALL QUERY (RQ) BASED ON TWO FATALITY REPORTS INVOLVING MY 1997 GM S-10 PICKUP TRUCKS.EACH REPORT ALLEGED THAT THE BELTED DRIVER OCCUPANT WAS EJECTED IN A MULTIPLE-ROTATION ROLLOVER CRASH.THE MY 1997 S/T SERIES PICKUPS USE AN ENERGY-ABSORBING LOOP IN THE DRIVER SEAT BELT THAT ALLOWS THE WEBBING TO ELONGATE UP TO 10 INCHES (TO MITIGATE DRIVER INJURY IN FRONTAL CRASHES).GM ALSO USED THIS ENERGY-ABSORBING LOOP SEAT BELT DESIGN IN MY1997 S/T SERIES UTILITY VEHICLES (CHEVROLET BLAZER, GMC JIMMY AND OLDSMOBILE BRAVADA).GM CONDUCTED A SAFETY RECALL CAMPAIGN (03V-117) TO REPLACE THE DRIVER SEAT BELT IN THESE UTILITY VEHILCES BASED ON A HIGHER FATALITY RATE OF EJECTED BELTED DRIVERS IN ROLLOVER CRASHES.BOTH FATAL CRASHES ARE SEVERE ROLLOVER CRASHES (MULTIPLE-ROTATION ROLLOVER) AND BOTH VEHICLES SUSTAINED DAMAGE TO THE ROOF STRUCTURE.ODI REVIEWED THE FIELD DATA PERFORMANCE OF THE SUBJECT VEHICLES AND COMPARED THEM TO PEER VEHICLES USING NHTSA'S FATALITY ANALYSIS REPORTING SYSTEM (FARS) DATABASE.THE FARS DATA DID NOT INDICATE A FIELD PERFORMANCE TREND FOR THE SUBJECT VEHICLE.A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT TREND HAS NOT BEEN IDENTIFIED AT THIS TIME AND FURTHER USE OF AGENCY RESOURCES DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE WARRANTED.ACCORDINGLY, THIS INVESTIGATION IS CLOSED.THE CLOSING OF THIS INVESTIGATION DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A FINDING BY NHTSA THAT A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT DOES NOT EXIST.THE AGENCY WILL MONITOR THIS ISSUE AND TAKE FURTHER ACTION IF WARRANTED BY THE CIRCUMSTANCES.
Additional source detail variants (2)
Seat Belts:front
ON FEBRUARY 18, 2004, ODI OPENED THIS RECALL QUERY (RQ) BASED ON TWO FATALITY REPORTS INVOLVING MY 1997 GM S-10 PICKUP TRUCKS.EACH REPORT ALLEGED THAT THE BELTED DRIVER OCCUPANT WAS EJECTED IN A MULTIPLE-ROTATION ROLLOVER CRASH.THE MY 1997 S/T SERIES PICKUPS USE AN ENERGY-ABSORBING LOOP IN THE DRIVER SEAT BELT THAT ALLOWS THE WEBBING TO ELONGATE UP TO 10 INCHES (TO MITIGATE DRIVER INJURY IN FRONTAL CRASHES).GM ALSO USED THIS ENERGY-ABSORBING LOOP SEAT BELT DESIGN IN MY1997 S/T SERIES UTILITY VEHICLES (CHEVROLET BLAZER, GMC JIMMY AND OLDSMOBILE BRAVADA).GM CONDUCTED A SAFETY RECALL CAMPAIGN (03V-117) TO REPLACE THE DRIVER SEAT BELT IN THESE UTILITY VEHILCES BASED ON A HIGHER FATALITY RATE OF EJECTED BELTED DRIVERS IN ROLLOVER CRASHES.BOTH FATAL CRASHES ARE SEVERE ROLLOVER CRASHES (MULTIPLE-ROTATION ROLLOVER) AND BOTH VEHICLES SUSTAINED DAMAGE TO THE ROOF STRUCTURE.ODI REVIEWED THE FIELD DATA PERFORMANCE OF THE SUBJECT VEHICLES AND COMPARED THEM TO PEER VEHICLES USING NHTSA'S FATALITY ANALYSIS REPORTING SYSTEM (FARS) DATABASE.THE FARS DATA DID NOT INDICATE A FIELD PERFORMANCE TREND FOR THE SUBJECT VEHICLE.A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT TREND HAS NOT BEEN IDENTIFIED AT THIS TIME AND FURTHER USE OF AGENCY RESOURCES DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE WARRANTED.ACCORDINGLY, THIS INVESTIGATION IS CLOSED.THE CLOSING OF THIS INVESTIGATION DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A FINDING BY NHTSA THAT A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT DOES NOT EXIST.THE AGENCY WILL MONITOR THIS ISSUE AND TAKE FURTHER ACTION IF WARRANTED BY THE CIRCUMSTANCES.
Seat Belts:front:webbing
ON FEBRUARY 18, 2004, ODI OPENED THIS RECALL QUERY (RQ) BASED ON TWO FATALITY REPORTS INVOLVING MY 1997 GM S-10 PICKUP TRUCKS.EACH REPORT ALLEGED THAT THE BELTED DRIVER OCCUPANT WAS EJECTED IN A MULTIPLE-ROTATION ROLLOVER CRASH.THE MY 1997 S/T SERIES PICKUPS USE AN ENERGY-ABSORBING LOOP IN THE DRIVER SEAT BELT THAT ALLOWS THE WEBBING TO ELONGATE UP TO 10 INCHES (TO MITIGATE DRIVER INJURY IN FRONTAL CRASHES).GM ALSO USED THIS ENERGY-ABSORBING LOOP SEAT BELT DESIGN IN MY1997 S/T SERIES UTILITY VEHICLES (CHEVROLET BLAZER, GMC JIMMY AND OLDSMOBILE BRAVADA).GM CONDUCTED A SAFETY RECALL CAMPAIGN (03V-117) TO REPLACE THE DRIVER SEAT BELT IN THESE UTILITY VEHILCES BASED ON A HIGHER FATALITY RATE OF EJECTED BELTED DRIVERS IN ROLLOVER CRASHES.BOTH FATAL CRASHES ARE SEVERE ROLLOVER CRASHES (MULTIPLE-ROTATION ROLLOVER) AND BOTH VEHICLES SUSTAINED DAMAGE TO THE ROOF STRUCTURE.ODI REVIEWED THE FIELD DATA PERFORMANCE OF THE SUBJECT VEHICLES AND COMPARED THEM TO PEER VEHICLES USING NHTSA'S FATALITY ANALYSIS REPORTING SYSTEM (FARS) DATABASE.THE FARS DATA DID NOT INDICATE A FIELD PERFORMANCE TREND FOR THE SUBJECT VEHICLE.A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT TREND HAS NOT BEEN IDENTIFIED AT THIS TIME AND FURTHER USE OF AGENCY RESOURCES DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE WARRANTED.ACCORDINGLY, THIS INVESTIGATION IS CLOSED.THE CLOSING OF THIS INVESTIGATION DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A FINDING BY NHTSA THAT A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT DOES NOT EXIST.THE AGENCY WILL MONITOR THIS ISSUE AND TAKE FURTHER ACTION IF WARRANTED BY THE CIRCUMSTANCES.
EA94038 · Abs Braking System
Opened Oct 31, 1994 · Closed Feb 28, 2000
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Service Brakes, Hydraulic
THIS INVESTIGATION RESULTED IN A SAFETY RECALL, 99V-193, AND A SERVICE CAMPAIGN, 99I-006.
Additional source detail variants (2)
Service Brakes, Hydraulic
THIS INVESTIGATION RESULTED IN A SAFETY RECALL, 99V-193, AND A SERVICE CAMPAIGN, 99I-006.
Service Brakes, Hydraulic
THIS INVESTIGATION RESULTED IN A SAFETY RECALL, 99V-193, AND A SERVICE CAMPAIGN, 99I-006.