2012 Chevrolet Silverado 3500 problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Tires (5) · Air Bags (4) · Steering (3)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Chevrolet Silverado 3500 model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
Safety recalls (4)
Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module 2021-02-05 · campaign 21V051000 · 284,645 vehicles
Defect: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2012 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Silverado 2500/3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Sierra 2500/3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." These
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on February 22, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed on May 11, 2021. Owners may contact Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006; Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020; and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM
Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module 2021-02-05 · campaign 21V054000 · 1,778,128 vehicles
Defect: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2014 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 2500, Sierra 3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of AL, CA, FL, GA, HI, LA, MS, SC, TX, PR, AS, GU, the MP, and VI or "Zone A." Additionally GM is recalling certain 2011-2014 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 2500, Sierra
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on February 25, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed to 40 VIN owners on May 11, 2021. A second owner notification letter was mailed to all other owners on January 24, 2022. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-8
Equipment 2018-04-26 · campaign 18V267000 · 6,154 vehicles
Defect: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2009-2014 Chevrolet Silverado HD and GMC Sierra HD, 2009 GMC Topkick 5000, 6000, 7000 and 8000 Series and Isuzu F Series, and 2009-2018 Chevrolet Express, and GMC Savana vehicles, equipped with certain Plastic-Handle Fire Extinguishers or Push Button 'Pindicator' Fire Extinguishers. These extinguishers may become clogged, preventing the extinguisher from discharging as expected or requiring excessive force to activate the extinguisher. Additionally,
Risk: In the event of a fire, if the fire extinguisher does not function properly, it can increase the risk of injury.
Fix: GM will notify owners, instructing them to contact Kidde to get a replacement fire extinguisher, free of charge. The recall began June 11, 2018. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782, and Isuzu customer service at 1-866-441-9638. GM's number for this recall is 18146.
Fuel System, Gasoline:storage:auxillary Tank 2017-10-19 · campaign 17V664000 · 35,292 vehicles
Defect: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2011-2015 Chevrolet Silverado 3500 and GMC Sierra 3500 trucks equipped with dual fuel tanks. The low fuel level sensor for the front tank may stick causing the rear tank to overfill the front tank.
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. The hole will leak fuel, which in the presence of an ignition source, can increase the risk of a fire.
Fix: GM has notified owners, and dealers will replace the rear tank fuel pump or update the fuel-level sensor software, as well as inspect the front tank, replacing it as necessary, free of charge. The recall began December 11, 2017. Owners may contact GM customer service for Chevrolet 1-800-222-1020 or for GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 17399.
Service bulletins (743)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Unknown Or Other 2026-09-04 · PIP4902W · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information advises a dealer on how to email gds2 session logs into technical assistance.
Unknown Or Other 2026-04-01 · PIT3271Q · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information communicates information about how to determine if a wheel and tires size change is available.
Unknown Or Other 2026-03-09 · PIP6104 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information communicates the steps on how to save a gds2 session log and upload to a technical assistance case in cx connect.
Unknown Or Other 2026-03-09 · PIP4902V · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information advises a dealer on how to email gds2 session logs into technical assistance.
Unknown Or Other 2026-02-16 · PIT4506J · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information communication provides information to the technician that some owners of heavy duty trucks and utilities may ask if they can lower their tire pressures. tire pressures being set to the "tire and loading label" will ensure the safe handling and ride characteristics of the
Unknown Or Other 2026-01-16 · PIT6400A · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this pi communications information on an alternative product dealers can use to perform 19-na-255: wax coating on frame peeling, metal shows corrosion/rusting due to issue with getting product from current supplier listed in the bulletin.
Showing the 6 most recent of 743 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2025-12-12 · Tires“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 goodyear tire and rubber com…”
2025-10-07 · Tires“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 by. yes - filed a claim with insurance -see attached-and property damage claim team - goodyear tire- pdct re george_theodore@goodyear.com - claim # 000645055. cla…”
2024-09-04 · Fuel System, Diesel:delivery · 197,000 mi“the contact owns a 2012 chevrolet silverado 3500. the contact stated that the vehicle would be low or completely out of fuel quicker than expected. the contact stated that while attempting to refuel, the contact was unable to fill the rear tank due to the tank being full of fuel. the vehicle had been taken to an independent mechanic where it was di…”
2024-08-29 · Fuel System, Diesel · 68,000 mi“the contact owns a 2012 chevrolet silverado 3500. while the contact's sister was driving 65 mph, the vehicle began to jerk with the check engine warning light illuminated violently. the contact stated that the vehicle stalled in the middle of the highway. the contact called california highway patrol who assisted with getting the vehicle off the roa…”
2023-06-26 · Tires“cooper discoverer ht3 265/70r18 tread and sidewall separation. became very dangerous to drive. all 4 tires became defective. …”
2023-05-13 · Structure:interior Panels:dashboard“our dashboard is beyond cracked, repair cost $2100.00 plus. i was told that the dash needed to have a metal brace installed with repair. we used a sun reflector from day one. we have a little more than 25k miles on it and the vehicle is immaculate except for the 3rd brake light leaking which we have tried to repair over and over again another flaw…”
2022-07-10 · Fuel/Propulsion System“our diesel fuel pump failed unexpectedly and without any notice while pulling a fifth wheel camper on a state highway in ohio. the engine stopped completely (we were coasting within seconds). we were in a one-lane construction zone, and had it not been for a paved median, i would have been unable to pull off in this construction zone. fortunatel…”
2021-10-28 · Air Bags“it is amazing to me that a recall is issued in march 2021 and nothing has been done yet and they still are building vehicles probably with defective equipment if there isn't a fix for this recall. gm recall # n212328800…”
2021-09-20 · Air Bags“takata recall. the contact owns a 2012 chevrolet silverado 3500. the contact received a recall notice for nhtsa campaign number 21v051000 (air bags) however, upon contacting the dealer, he was informed that the repair might cause the dashboard to crack. the contact was then informed that he needed to sign a waiver to ensure that the dealer would no…”
2019-10-15 · Air Bags · 100,000 mi · 💥 crash“tl* the contact owned a 2012 chevrolet silverado 3500. while driving approximately 80 mph, the driver lost control of the vehicle and crashed into a guardrail. as a result, the vehicle rolled over several times before colliding into a tree. the vehicle was destroyed and towed from the scene. the air bags did not deploy and the driver was fatally in…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.