1998 CHEVROLET BLAZER — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 705 complaints · 3 recalls
Most-reported system: VISIBILITY (228 complaints · 32.3%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 46
  • Fires 15
  • Injuries 39
  • Deaths 13
Compare with 1997 →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Component Problem Distribution

Share of owner complaints filed for each vehicle system (unaffected by sales volume)

Component Problem Distribution VISIBILITY appears in 228 of 705 owner complaints (32.3%) in this vehicle snapshot. VISIBILITY: 228 complaints, 32.3% of reports VISIBILITY 228 · 32.3% POWER TRAIN: 56 complaints, 7.9% of reports POWER TRAIN 56 · 7.9% · 2 crash reports 1 fire reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 42 complaints, 6.0% of reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 42 · 6.0% · 8 fire reports ENGINE: 42 complaints, 6.0% of reports ENGINE 42 · 6.0% · 1 crash reports 3 fire reports SERVICE BRAKES: 39 complaints, 5.5% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 39 · 5.5% · 5 crash reports SUSPENSION: 36 complaints, 5.1% of reports SUSPENSION 36 · 5.1% · 2 crash reports AIR BAGS: 34 complaints, 4.8% of reports AIR BAGS 34 · 4.8% · 25 crash reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING: 24 complaints, 3.4% of reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING 24 · 3.4% VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL: 23 complaints, 3.3% of reports VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 23 · 3.3% · 2 crash reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 524 complaints, 74.3% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 524 · 74.3% · 34 crash reports 11 fire reports 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

UNKNOWN OR OTHER is an NHTSA classification artifact and is always listed last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
VISIBILITY 228 32.3% 0 crashes · 0 fires
POWER TRAIN 56 7.9% 2 crashes · 1 fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 42 6.0% 0 crashes · 8 fires
ENGINE 42 6.0% 1 crashes · 3 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 39 5.5% 5 crashes · 0 fires
SUSPENSION 36 5.1% 2 crashes · 0 fires
AIR BAGS 34 4.8% 25 crashes · 0 fires
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 24 3.4% 0 crashes · 0 fires
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 23 3.3% 2 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 524 74.3% 34 crashes · 11 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Problem & Recall Timeline

Observed complaint volume and manufacturer recall actions over time

Problem & Recall Timeline Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Jan 1998; the first recall shown was reported in Nov 1997. 1998-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 1998-Q2: 7 owner reports 7 1998-Q3: 10 owner reports 10 1998-Q4: 7 owner reports 7 1999-Q1: 31 owner reports 31 1999-Q2: 10 owner reports 10 1999-Q3: 24 owner reports 24 1999-Q4: 14 owner reports 14 2000-Q1: 11 owner reports 11 2000-Q2: 6 owner reports 6 2000-Q3: 24 owner reports 24 2000-Q4: 23 owner reports 23 2001-Q1: 28 owner reports 28 2001-Q2: 23 owner reports 23 2001-Q3: 17 owner reports 17 2001-Q4: 14 owner reports 14 2002-Q1: 12 owner reports 12 2002-Q2: 18 owner reports 18 2002-Q3: 24 owner reports 24 2002-Q4: 14 owner reports 14 2003-Q1: 20 owner reports 20 2003-Q2: 45 owner reports 45 2003-Q3: 50 owner reports 50 2003-Q4: 51 owner reports 51 2004-Q1: 26 owner reports 26 2004-Q2: 18 owner reports 18 2004-Q3: 26 owner reports 26 2004-Q4: 23 owner reports 23 2005-Q1: 16 owner reports 16 2005-Q2: 15 owner reports 15 2005-Q3: 16 owner reports 16 2005-Q4: 9 owner reports 9 2006-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 2006-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2006-Q3: 7 owner reports 7 2007-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2007-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2007-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 2007-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2008-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2008-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 2008-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2009-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2009-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2009-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2010-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2011-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2012-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2012-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2013-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2014-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2014-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2015-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2015-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2015-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 2016-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2016-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2017-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2018-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2019-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2019-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2020-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 Owner reports Nov 1997 Oct 2020 Recall campaign 97V218000 ◆ Recall campaign 97V218000 Recall campaign 98V053000 ◆ Recall campaign 98V053000 Recall campaign 00V220000 ◆ Recall campaign 00V220000 Investigation RQ02012 ● Investigation RQ02012
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
1998-Q1 Owner reports 4
1998-Q2 Owner reports 7
1998-Q3 Owner reports 10
1998-Q4 Owner reports 7
1999-Q1 Owner reports 31
1999-Q2 Owner reports 10
1999-Q3 Owner reports 24
1999-Q4 Owner reports 14
2000-Q1 Owner reports 11
2000-Q2 Owner reports 6
2000-Q3 Owner reports 24
2000-Q4 Owner reports 23
2001-Q1 Owner reports 28
2001-Q2 Owner reports 23
2001-Q3 Owner reports 17
2001-Q4 Owner reports 14
2002-Q1 Owner reports 12
2002-Q2 Owner reports 18
2002-Q3 Owner reports 24
2002-Q4 Owner reports 14
2003-Q1 Owner reports 20
2003-Q2 Owner reports 45
2003-Q3 Owner reports 50
2003-Q4 Owner reports 51
2004-Q1 Owner reports 26
2004-Q2 Owner reports 18
2004-Q3 Owner reports 26
2004-Q4 Owner reports 23
2005-Q1 Owner reports 16
2005-Q2 Owner reports 15
2005-Q3 Owner reports 16
2005-Q4 Owner reports 9
2006-Q1 Owner reports 4
2006-Q2 Owner reports 3
2006-Q3 Owner reports 7
2007-Q1 Owner reports 2
2007-Q2 Owner reports 2
2007-Q3 Owner reports 5
2007-Q4 Owner reports 5
2008-Q2 Owner reports 2
2008-Q3 Owner reports 5
2008-Q4 Owner reports 4
2009-Q1 Owner reports 3
2009-Q2 Owner reports 2
2009-Q3 Owner reports 1
2010-Q3 Owner reports 2
2011-Q3 Owner reports 2
2012-Q1 Owner reports 1
2012-Q4 Owner reports 1
2013-Q2 Owner reports 1
2014-Q1 Owner reports 1
2014-Q3 Owner reports 4
2015-Q1 Owner reports 1
2015-Q2 Owner reports 1
2015-Q4 Owner reports 3
2016-Q1 Owner reports 1
2016-Q3 Owner reports 1
2017-Q1 Owner reports 1
2018-Q1 Owner reports 1
2019-Q3 Owner reports 1
2019-Q4 Owner reports 1
2020-Q4 Owner reports 1
Recall campaign 1 97V218000
Recall campaign 1 98V053000
Recall campaign 1 00V220000
Defect investigation 1 RQ02012
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (3)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

  1. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 00V220000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    THESE VEHICLES DO NOT COMPLY WITH REQUIREMENTS OF FMVSS NO. 108.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL INSTALL A REVISED WIRING HARNESS THAT CHANGES THE DRL'S FROM HIGH BEAM TO LOW BEAM DRL'S, AND INSTALL NEW LONG-LIFE LOW BEAM BULBS.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 97V218000

    Report date
    Component:
    SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
    Consequence:
    PARTIAL LOSS OF BRAKING AT A TIME WHEN MINIMUM STOPPING DISTANCE WAS REQUIRED COULD RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL INSPECT AND REPLACE THE BRAKE PIPE.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  3. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 98V053000

    Report date
    Component:
    SUSPENSION
    Consequence:
    THIS CONDITION CAN RESULT IN A LOSS OF VEHICLE CONTROL.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL INSPECT AND RETIGHTEN THE RIGHT-HAND LOWER CONTROL ARM NUTS TO THE PROPER TORQUE SPECIFICATION.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Complaint Narrative Explorer

Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-08-21
Safety incident filters
Showing 0 of 705 complaints · page 1 of 29

No complaints match the current filters.
EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

 Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Data sourced from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Snapshot date: 2026-08-21.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources