1998 Chevrolet Z71 problems & reliability
45 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 1998 Chevrolet Z71. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
3 complaints report injuries (4 injured).
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Steering → | 10 | 22% |
| Visibility | 9 | 20% |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 8 | 18% |
| Tires | 5 | 11% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 4 | 9% |
| Air Bags | 3 | 7% |
| Electrical System | 2 | 4% |
| Power Train | 2 | 4% |
| Service Brakes, Air | 2 | 4% |
| Exterior Lighting | 1 | 2% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
All 15 reported components →Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“Started over heating really bad no coolant leak,no water in oil, very small lose of water. Several different noises not normal. Before I knew what was happening my truck made a loud bang and truck died hard. Wouldn't restart. Got it home and pulled engine out and found big holes on both sides of oil pan where number 4…”
Engine and Engine Cooling · filed Mar 29, 2011
“On several occasions I experienced a loss of steering control. It was not speed related - it happened from low to high speeds. The vehicle would suddenly jerk to one side. No instance lasted longer than one second. My mechanic diagnosed the problem as a faulty evo sensor. No sensors are available for replacement, but…”
Steering · filed Jun 30, 2008
“I am the new owner of a 1998 chevy k1500 z71. My girlfriend and I were going to a football game and she tried to clean the windshield and the windshield wipers would not work. Two days later I was coming home when a rain storm started I turned on the wipers and they did not work. After getting out of vehicle and…”
Visibility · filed Oct 15, 2006
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Safety recalls
No NHTSA recall campaigns name the 1998 Chevrolet Z71 in our current data. Recalls may apply only to certain VIN ranges — always confirm with a VIN check.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 1998 Chevrolet Z71?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.