1998 Oldsmobile Silhouette problems & reliability
170 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 1998 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.
8 complaints report injuries (13 injured).
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 35 | 21% |
| Exterior Lighting | 32 | 19% |
| Structure | 16 | 9% |
| Latches/locks/linkages | 15 | 9% |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 15 | 9% |
| Steering | 14 | 8% |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 12 | 7% |
| Electrical System | 11 | 6% |
| Power Train | 10 | 6% |
| Seats | 10 | 6% |
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 80,000 miles (middle 50% between 55,750 and 100,150 miles), based on 52 complaints that included mileage.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“Tl* the contact owns a 1998 oldsmobile silhouette. The contact stated that while exiting a parking space, the steering wheel failed. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but offered no assistance. The contact was informed of nhtsa campaign id number: 02v286000 (steering:rack and pinion) but was advised that…”
Steering · filed Jul 19, 2012
“While driving van the temperature gauge showed hot and heater stopped blowing hot air few minutes later it cooled back down and started blowing warm air and it continued to do that over and over put a thermostat in it and it did not help it continued to do the same thing it is full of water still not blowing any warm…”
Engine and Engine Cooling · filed Jan 7, 2012
“Tl* the contact owns a 1998 oldsmobile silhouette. The contact stated that once the vehicle was stopped and shifted into park, the vehicle would not shift into drive. In addition, the vehicle would only remain in park if the emergency brake was engaged. The vehicle was towed to a local repair facility where it was…”
Latches/locks/linkages · filed Mar 1, 2011
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- POWER-SLIDING DOOR
Preliminary Evaluation PE04064 · opened Sep 17, 2004 · closed Dec 22, 2004 · led to recall 04V597000
- 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
- REAR AXLE TRAILING ARM FAILURE
Preliminary Evaluation PE02086 · opened Nov 18, 2002 · closed Apr 9, 2003
- SHOULDER HARNESS CLIP
Preliminary Evaluation PE02017 · opened Feb 11, 2002 · closed Aug 2, 2002
- AIR BAG TEAR DURING DEPLOYMENT
Preliminary Evaluation PE00045 · opened Nov 3, 2000 · closed Jan 11, 2001
- 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
89 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 1998 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 1998 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 1998 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.
- · Owners most often reported problems around 80,000 miles — budget accordingly if the car is approaching that mileage.