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2012 Chevrolet Silverado 3500Problems, recalls & complaints

NHTSA has logged 23 owner complaints about the 2012 Chevrolet Silverado 3500, most often about the tires. It is covered by 4 safety recalls, and for recall 18V-267 the manufacturer reports only 14% of affected cars repaired.

2012 Chevrolet Silverado 3500
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CarFlaw IndexNot enough dataHigher is better (0–100)
Safety recalls4Lowest repair rate 14%Owner complaints231 with a crash, fire or injuryTypical failure mileage43kTires, median miles

Source: NHTSA complaints, recalls, investigations and manufacturer recall reports, through December 12, 2025. Updated daily. Photo: order_242 from Chile, CC BY-SA 2.0.

Complaints by system

Where the 2012 Chevrolet Silverado 3500 has problems

23 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
Tires60
Fuel/propulsion system40
Engine40
Air bags41
Steering30
Fuel system, diesel20
Electrical system20
Wheels10
Electronic stability control (ESC)10
3 other systems30

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

4 recalls

2012 Chevrolet Silverado 3500 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.

39%repaired · 2023 Q2

Passenger side: inflator module

Recall 21V-051 · Feb 5, 2021 · 284,645 vehicles · 111,728 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 →

14%repaired · 2019 Q3

Equipment

Recall 18V-267 · Apr 26, 2018 · 6,154 vehicles · 844 repaired

Risk. In the event of a fire, if the fire extinguisher does not function properly, it can increase the risk of injury.

Problem, fix and repair progress →

53%repaired · 2019 Q2

Storage: auxillary tank

Recall 17V-664 · Oct 19, 2017 · 35,292 vehicles · 18,701 repaired

Risk. If the front tank overfills, the excess pressure may cause the front tank to expand and contact the driveshaft, possibly resulting in a hole in the tank.

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.

Best & worst years

2012 vs. every other Silverado 3500 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 3500 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

2012 Chevrolet Silverado 3500 safety ratings

2012 Chevrolet Silverado 3500 PU/CC 4WD in NHTSA's New Car Assessment Program. Photos are from NHTSA's crash tests.

  • Stability control: Standard
  • Forward collision warning: No
  • Lane departure warning: No
1 investigation

NHTSA defect investigations

Federal investigations that included the 2012 Chevrolet Silverado 3500, and the recalls they led to.

  1. Desiccated Air Bag Inflator RuptureEA21002 · still open
    Open
In owners' words

What Silverado 3500 owners report

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

Tire - 265/70 r18 Cooper Could have been a very bad accident. Tire blew out. The tire was inspected by Goodyear PCA-Visual only -recvd below response after several requests. All Internal Goodyear visual Inspection procedures & methodologies are confidential and/or proprietary information of The…
Complaint 11704782 · Dec 12, 2025
TIRE - 265/70 R18 Failure: Tire caused vehicle damage - Tire is at Goodyear Tire - Akron, Ohio Pulled off the road to change tire - was helped by someone that saw incident and lived close. Yes - Filed a claim with insurance -see attached-and Property Damage Claim Team - Goodyear Tire- PDCT re -…
Complaint 11691934 · Oct 7, 2025
Cooper Discoverer HT3 265/70R18 Tread and sidewall separation. became very dangerous to drive. ALL 4 tires became defective.
Complaint 11528860 · Jun 26, 2023

Own a 2012 Silverado 3500?

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