Problems · by component
1998 Chevrolet Venture air bags problems
28 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 1998 Chevrolet Venture cite air bags, 7% of all 427 complaints for this model year.
Complaints
28
7% of all complaints
Crashes
16
Reported by owners
Fires
0
Reported by owners
Injuries
17
Reported by owners
What owners say about the air bags
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“VAN WAS TRAVELING AT APPROX 65 MPH..FORD QUAD CAB TRUCK PULLED OUT IN FRONT OF ME..I LOCKED THE BRAKES, SOME SKID MARKS DOWN THE HIGHWAY, AND COMPLETELY BROADSIDED THE TRUCK. DAMAGE TO TRUCK WAS ON DRIVER SIDE DOOR, AND FRONT CORNER PANEL. SEVERAL OF TRUCKS AIRBAGS DEPLOYED. IMPACT WAS AT A HIGH SPEED. INJURIES TO MYSELF AND PASSENGER, NECK, SHOULDER, KNEE, WRIST, ANKLE, NOT FATAL, THANK GOODNESS. PASSENGER OF TRUCK, INJURIES UNKNOWN. TRUCK WAS AT FAULT IN ACCIDENT.”
“TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 1998 CHEVROLET CAVALIER. AT 40 MPH THE VEHICLE STRUCK A DEER ON THE DRIVER'S SIDE. THE AIR BAG INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. HOWEVER, THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. THE DEALER PERFORMED A DIAGNOSTIC TEST AND DETERMINED THAT THERE WAS A DEFECT IN THE AIRBAG SYSTEM. THE VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 154000.*AK”
“DT*: THE CONTACT STATED AFTER PULLING INTO A PARKING SPACE AND STRAIGHTENING THE STEERING WHEEL, THE STEERING WHEEL RACK AND PINION FRACTURED WITHOUT WARNING. SOON AFTER, THE AIRBAG LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN INDEPENDENT REPAIR SHOP WHO CONFIRMED THE STEERING RACK AND PINION FRACTURE. THE REPAIR SHOP ALSO DETERMINED DUE TO THE UNIQUE FRACTURE OF THE RACK AND PINION AND THE ILLUMINATION OF THE AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT, THE AIRBAG SHOULD HAVE DEPLOYED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT ALERTED.”
“WHILE DRIVING AT 40 MPH VEHICLE WAS INVOVLED IN A FRONTAL COLLISION. UPON IMPACT, NONE OF THE FRONTAL AIR BAGS DEPLOYED. DRIVER AND PASSENGER SUSTAINED MINOR BUMPS AND BRUSIES. *AK”
“MY 1998 CHEVROLET METRO LSI WAS TOTALLED YESTERDAY IN AN ACCIDENT WITH A SCHOOL BUS. MY AIR BAGS DID NOT DEFLATE, AND JUDGING THE SERIOUSNESS OF THE ACCIDENT, I COULD HAVE BEEN KILLED OR MUTILATED. I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE SOMETHING DONE. *AK”
“AIRBAG LIGHT COMES ON INDICATING A PROBLEM WITH THE AIRBAG. CHEVY DIAGNOSED AND REPAIRED ON SIX SEPARATE OCCASIONS OVER THE NEXT FOUR YEARS, BUT IN EACH CASE THE PROBLEM RETURNED WITHIN A MONTH OR TWO. THE AIRBAG HAS NOT WORKED PROPERLY SINCE THIS DATE, ACCORDING TO THE INDICATOR LIGHT, EXCEPT FOR SHORT TIME PERIODS AFTER REPAIR. WE HAVE ASKED CHEVY TO FIND A PERMANENT SOLUTION WITH NO SUCCESS. *LA”
Showing 6 of 28 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 12, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.