1998 Chevrolet Blazer problems & reliability
716 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 1998 Chevrolet Blazer, alongside 1 safety recall campaign. 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.
31 complaints report injuries (39 injured, 13 deaths reported).
Federal crash records (FARS 2020–2023): 1998 Chevrolet Blazer vehicles were involved in 35 fatal crashes with 28 occupant deaths. Involvement counts are not adjusted for how many are on the road and do not imply fault or a vehicle defect.
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Visibility | 256 | 36% |
| Seats | 84 | 12% |
| Power Train | 74 | 10% |
| Electrical System | 71 | 10% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 64 | 9% |
| Suspension | 60 | 8% |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 59 | 8% |
| Exterior Lighting | 40 | 6% |
| Air Bags | 38 | 5% |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 33 | 5% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Common symptoms owners describe
Keyword analysis of complaint narratives; one complaint can describe several symptoms.
Mileage when problems occurred
Half of the failures with a reported odometer reading occurred by 70,097 miles (middle 50% between 52,000 and 95,000 miles), based on 266 complaints that included mileage.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“After using the cruise control the first time on the highway at 65mph , it stuck and would not shut off. The vehicle accelerates to a dangerous speed and the breaks barely helped. Even after turning the car off taking out the battery and putting it back, it did not reset. Cruise will not disengage.”
Vehicle Speed Control · filed Oct 25, 2020
“I had a wreck hit a deer on my driver side front bumper my air bag light came on and is still on its make a popping sound ever since that happen and it scares mey light stays on.”
Air Bags · filed Jul 18, 2019
“Tl* the contact owns a 1998 chevrolet blazer. While entering a parking lot at 20 mph, the accelerator pedal traveled all the way to the floorboard and the speed increased to 45 mph. The contact attempted to apply the brakes, but the vehicle did not stop. As a result, the vehicle crashed into the front of a building…”
Vehicle Speed Control · filed Jan 3, 2018
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- FRONT CONTROL ARM BALL JOINTS
Recall Query RQ02012 · opened Sep 10, 2002 · closed Mar 7, 2003 · led to recall 01V200000
Technical service bulletins
78 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 1998 Chevrolet Blazer. The 10 most recent:
This warranty administration bulletin provides information regarding the field action courtesy transportation policy.
17-NA-073 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 21, 2023
This Preliminary Information communicates to the dealer the process for downloading or updating operating software for the Tire Pressure Monitor, Active Fuel Injector tester, multi media tester, PICO Scope, GR8…
PIP4723F · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 14, 2022
This Preliminary Information communicates to the dealer the process for downloading or updating operating software for the Tire Pressure Monitor, Active Fuel Injector tester, multi media tester, PICO Scope, GR8…
PIP4723D · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 31, 2020
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician on how to unlock radios that are Delco TheftLock. Technician will use the radio to get the scrambled code. Technician will need to…
PIC4696E · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Nov 22, 2019
This warranty administration bulletin provides information regarding the field action courtesy transportation policy.
17NA073 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Sep 18, 2019
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician on how to unlock radios that are Delco TheftLock. Technician will use the radio to get the scrambled code. Technician will need to…
PIC4696D · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Sep 5, 2019
This warranty administration bulletin provides information regarding the field action courtesy transportation policy.
17NA073 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 15, 2019
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician on how to unlock radios that are Delco Theft Lock. Technician will use the radio to get the scrambled code. Technician will need to…
PIC4696C · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued May 31, 2018
This Preliminary Information communicates to the dealer the process for downloading or updating operating software for the Tire Pressure Monitor, Active Fuel Injector tester, multi media tester, PICO Scope, GR8…
PIP4723C · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Sep 20, 2017
This warranty administration bulletin provides policy information with the field action courtesy transportation policy.
17-NA-073 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 15, 2017
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
The 1998 Chevrolet Blazer has 1 NHTSA recall campaign — recall repairs are free at franchised dealers regardless of the vehicle’s age.
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 Blazer?
- · 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.
- · Owners most often reported problems around 70,097 miles — budget accordingly if the car is approaching that mileage.