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2011 Chevrolet Silverado 1500Problems, recalls & complaints

NHTSA has logged 565 owner complaints about the 2011 Chevrolet Silverado 1500, most often about the air bags. It is covered by 4 safety recalls, and for recall 21V-050 the manufacturer reports only 28% of affected cars repaired.

2011 Chevrolet Silverado 1500
57
CarFlaw IndexSolid year24% below the Silverado 1500 median · #21 of 28 years by complaints
Safety recalls4Lowest repair rate 28%Owner complaints56532 with a crash, fire or injuryTypical failure mileage70kAir bags, median miles

Source: NHTSA complaints, recalls, investigations and manufacturer recall reports, through October 27, 2026. Updated daily. Photo: SsmIntrigue, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Complaints by system

Where the 2011 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 has problems

565 complaints grouped by the system owners reported.

Box size = number of complaints naming that system. Darker = larger share. One complaint can name more than one system.
Complaints by system
SystemComplaintsCrash, fire or injury
Air bags30617
Structure723
Engine401
Electrical system272
Suspension182
Electronic stability control (ESC)180
Power train181
Service brakes132
Vehicle speed control113
17 other systems617

Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Complaints are submitted by the public and are not verified by NHTSA.

4 recalls

2011 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 recalls and how many were fixed

Each ring shows the share of affected cars repaired, from the manufacturer’s latest quarterly report to NHTSA. Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.

28%repaired · 2023 Q1

Passenger side: inflator module

Recall 21V-050 · Feb 5, 2021 · 2,641,272 vehicles · 734,119 repaired

Risk. An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.

Problem, fix and repair progress →

51%repaired · 2023 Q4

Passenger side: inflator module

Recall 21V-054 · Feb 5, 2021 · 1,778,128 vehicles · 900,275 repaired

Risk. An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.

Problem, fix and repair progress →

–no report yet

Axle: spindle

Recall 11V-007 · Jan 6, 2011 · 30,566 vehicles

Risk. THE DRIVER MAY NOT BE ABLE TO MAINTAIN DIRECTIONAL CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE AND A CRASH COULD OCCUR WITHOUT WARNING.

Problem, fix and repair progress →

–no report yet

Axle: spindle

Recall 10V-643 · Dec 17, 2010 · 1,262 vehicles

Risk. THE DRIVER MAY NOT BE ABLE TO MAINTAIN DIRECTIONAL CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE AND A CRASH COULD OCCUR WITHOUT WARNING.

Problem, fix and repair progress →

Recalls apply to specific cars. To see whether a recall is still open on yours, enter the 17-character VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls or with Chevrolet.

Mileage at failure

When do air bags problems start?

70kmiles, median

Based on the odometer reading in 96 air bags complaints. 70% were reported before 100,000 miles.

Only 47% of complaints for this model year include a mileage.

median0k50k100k150k200k+
14under 30k miles67under 100k miles29100k miles or more
Best & worst years

2011 vs. every other Silverado 1500 year

Bars show complaints per model year. Colors show the CarFlaw verdict: complaints weighted for crashes, fires and injuries, adjusted for years on the road and compared with the Silverado 1500 median. How we score

'97'98'99'00'01'02'03'04'05'06'07'08'09'10'11'12'13'14'15'16'17'18'19'20'21'22'23'24'25'26
  • Avoid
  • Caution
  • Solid
  • Best
  • Not rated
NHTSA crash tests

2011 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 safety ratings

2011 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 PU/RC 4WD in NHTSA's New Car Assessment Program. Photos are from NHTSA's crash tests.

★★★★★Overall rating
  • Rollover: 4 stars (18.5% risk)
  • Stability control: Standard
  • Forward collision warning: No
  • Lane departure warning: No
2 investigations

NHTSA defect investigations

Federal investigations that included the 2011 Chevrolet Silverado 1500, and the recalls they led to.

  1. Pedestrian alert soundsDP22005 · closed Aug 7, 2023
    Led to recall 22V-063
  2. Desiccated Air Bag Inflator RuptureEA21002 · still open
    Open
In owners' words

What Silverado 1500 owners report

Recent air bags complaints filed with NHTSA, shortened. Personal details are removed.

[XXX] WITH ONLY 88,500 MILES no wreck or other incident service airbag light came on and dealership wants 180.00 just to check it. what creates the issue is that my other vehicle a 2010 Tahoe with 285,000 miles came on within 3 days of this one. What am i supposed to do? INFORMATION REDACTED…
Complaint 11690080 · Sep 27, 2025
The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated while the vehicle was at the dealer for the recall repair of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V050000 (Air Bags); the contact was informed that the SDM module needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was made…
Complaint 11651160 · Mar 27, 2025 · 171,000 miles
The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, unoccupied, and turned off, the front passenger's side air bag deployed. Prior to the failure, the air bag warning light had intermittently illuminated. The contact stated that there was no…
Complaint 11649794 · Mar 21, 2025 · 115,000 miles

Own a 2011 Silverado 1500?

Decode your VIN to see the recalls for your exact car, then confirm open recalls with NHTSA.