1997 Chevrolet Corvette problems
Owners have filed 196 complaints about the 1997 Chevrolet Corvette with NHTSA. Steering accounts for 52.6% of them — far more than any other system, ahead of engine and engine cooling at 7.7%.
Complaints196
Crashes4
Fires0
Injuries2
Deaths0
What owners report breaking
Steering 52.6% · 103
Engine and engine cooling 7.7% · 15
Electrical system 6.6% · 13
Seats 5.1% · 10
Seat belts 4.1% · 8
Service brakes, hydraulic 3.6% · 7
Fuel system, gasoline 3.6% · 7
Structure 2.0% · 4
Severity
Of those complaints, 4 describe a crash and 2 report an injury.
Reading the numbers
Across the 16 model years of the Chevrolet Corvette in this data, 1997 sits 11th by complaint volume. 2005 draws the most.
Filing volume has held steady, 7 in the last three years against 8 in the three before.
The median odometer reading at the time of complaint was 41,053 miles.
In owners' own words
The steering wheel locked while driving the car !! I beleive that this manufacturer defect may have caused a crash, injury to my wife or other motorists. Gm does not want to fix the problem, this car is very low mileage and I believe that this is a manufacturer probelm and a nation wide recall shoudl occur to assure that no one gets their steering wheel locked while driving their vehicle.*Ak ref. In ea02-031 *cjs Steering
The contact owns a 1997 Chevrolet Corvette. While driving in reverse at 2 mph, the steering wheel failed to turn and the steering column service warning light illuminated. The vehicle was not inspected by a dealer, however, it was repaired under nhtsa campaign id number 04v060000 (steering:column locking:anti-theft device) two years ago. The vin was unknown. The current and failure mileages were 29,191. Steering · reported at 29,191 miles
The contact owns a 1997 Chevrolet Corvette. While attempting to drive in reverse, the engine stalled and the steering warning indicator illuminated. The failure occurred on multiple occasions. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer stated that the vehicle was previously serviced according to nhtsa campaign number: 04v060000 (steering). The approximate failure mileage was 86,000. Steering · reported at 86,000 miles
Verbatim from NHTSA filings. Complaints are unverified owner reports.
Safety recalls
Checking NHTSA for open recalls…