1997 Oldsmobile Silhouette problems & reliability
104 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 1997 Oldsmobile Silhouette, alongside 4 safety recall campaigns. 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.
1 complaint report injuries (1 injured).
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Steering → | 20 | 19% |
| Exterior Lighting → | 18 | 17% |
| Structure → | 14 | 13% |
| Latches/locks/linkages → | 13 | 13% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling → | 11 | 11% |
| Visibility → | 10 | 10% |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 9 | 9% |
| Electrical System | 7 | 7% |
| Power Train | 7 | 7% |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 5 | 5% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“Dt*: the contact stated the sliding door on the right side of the vehicle was not working properly after the recall (01v264000, 04v597000 or 01v067000) repair was completed. The door opened without warning, while the vehicle was idling, but no longer worked. The door only operated properly on an intermittent basis…”
Latches/locks/linkages · filed Aug 29, 2006
“The intake manifold gasket in our 1997 silhouette went bad. After speaking with the repair facility and performing several searches across the internet, it was obvious that gm had a defective part. The original gaskets were made out of plastics, while now gm is constructing them of a more normal / acceptable material…”
Engine and Engine Cooling · filed Jul 8, 2006
“No floor heat in 1997 olds silhouette. Mechanic did not find cause of problem but did note that an un associated problem was occuring. The original plastic intake manifold gasket was failing. After investigating and researching I have found that both the lack of heat in the front of this vehicle and worse yet the…”
Engine and Engine Cooling · filed Dec 4, 2005
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- REAR AXLE TRAILING ARM FAILURE
Engineering Analysis EA03005 · opened Apr 23, 2003 · closed Jan 12, 2004
- SAFETY BELT ASSEMBLY FAILURE
Engineering Analysis EA02032 · opened Nov 18, 2002 · closed Nov 21, 2003
- POWER RACK AND PINION STEERING FAILURE
Engineering Analysis EA02003 · opened Apr 4, 2002 · closed Dec 10, 2002 · led to recall 02V286000
- SHOULDER HARNESS CLIP
Preliminary Evaluation PE02017 · opened Feb 11, 2002 · closed Aug 2, 2002
- STEERING RACK AND PINION
Preliminary Evaluation PE01038 · opened Nov 14, 2001 · closed Apr 4, 2002
- UNEXPECTED OPENING OF SLIDING DOOR
Investigation SQ00014 · opened Jul 25, 2000 · closed Oct 22, 2001 · led to recall 01V067000
- TRACTION CONTROL
Recall Query RQ00006 · opened Feb 16, 2000 · closed Apr 20, 2001 · led to recall 98V072000
Technical service bulletins
96 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 1997 Oldsmobile Silhouette. The 10 most recent:
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
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…
PIP4723B · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 22, 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 1997 Oldsmobile Silhouette has 4 NHTSA recall campaigns — 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 1997 Oldsmobile Silhouette?
- · 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.