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2016 Chevrolet Colorado problems, recalls and owner complaints
What the 2016 Chevrolet Colorado has been recalled for and what owners report, from official government data. Updated October 25, 2026.
- 4safety recalls
- 713owner complaints
- 14crash reports
- 1fire report
- 6injuries reported
The most complained-about Chevrolet Colorado year on file: 713 complaints, against an average of 134 for the other 12 model years.
Every Chevrolet Colorado model year with its number of owner complaints. Pick a year to compare.
What goes wrong with the 2016 Chevrolet Colorado?
The components named most often in the 713 owner complaints. One complaint can name several, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
What symptoms do 2016 Chevrolet Colorado owners describe?
Found by reading the text of all 713 owner complaints. Tap a symptom for the answer, a real owner quote and any related recall.
- Why does the power steering fail or feel heavy on my 2016 Chevrolet Colorado?156 owners · 21.9%
- Why does my 2016 Chevrolet Colorado stall, lose power or shut off while driving?119 owners · 16.7%
- Why are the ABS and stability control lights on in my 2016 Chevrolet Colorado?45 owners · 6.3%
- Why does my 2016 Chevrolet Colorado transmission jerk, shudder or shift hard?23 owners · 3.2%
Has the 2016 Chevrolet Colorado been recalled?
4 U.S. safety recalls. Repairs are free at a franchised dealer; some are done over the air.
Fuel System, Gasoline: Delivery: Fuel Pump General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015-2018 GMC Canyon, 2016-2017 Buick Envision, 2016-2018 Chevrolet Colorado and Malibu, 2017-2018 GMC Acadia, 2018 Buick LaCrosse, Cadillac ATS, Chevrolet Equinox, and GMC Terrain vehicles. The high pressure fuel pump may detach from its mounting flange, possibly resulting in the pump damaging the high pressure fuel line.
Risk: A damaged fuel line can create a fuel leak, increasing the risk of a fire.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the high pressure fuel pump, and high pressure fuel pipe, free of charge. The recall began July 2, 2018. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 18188.
Air Bags: Frontal General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015-2016 GMC Canyon and Chevrolet Colorado, and 2016 Chevrolet Volt vehicles. The driver's frontal air bag may improperly inflate during second-stage deployment in the event of a high speed crash.
Risk: An improperly inflated air bag increases the risk of injury in a crash.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver's frontal air bag module, free of charge. The recall began November 8, 2017. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 17387.
Air Bags: Frontal General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2016 Chevrolet Colorado vehicles manufactured January 19, 2016, to February 2, 2016, Chevrolet Malibu vehicles manufactured January 9, 2016, to January 26, 2016, and 2016 GMC Canyon vehicles manufactured January 21, 2016, to February 4, 2016. The driver frontal air bag may improperly inflate during second-stage deployment in the event of a high speed crash.
Risk: An improperly inflated air bag increases the risk of injury.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver side frontal air bag module, free of charge. The recall began on April 14, 2016. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 28030.
Latches/Locks/Linkages General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2016 Chevrolet Colorado trucks manufactured August 25, 2015 to September 24, 2015, and GMC Canyon trucks manufactured August 28, 2015 to September 24, 2015. The affected vehicles have a console compartment lid latch assembly that may fail to keep the compartment door closed in the event of a crash. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 201, "Occupant Protection in Interior Impact."
Risk: If the console compartment door does not remain closed in a crash, the contents stored in the console may strike the vehicle occupants, increasing their risk of injury.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the console compartment door latch assembly, free of charge. The recall began on January 5, 2016. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 16370.
What do 2016 Chevrolet Colorado owners report?
12 of the 713 complaints, the most recent for the most-reported components, as the owners wrote them. NHTSA removes names and VINs; long reports are trimmed. CarHooq has not verified individual claims.
While driving, the truck can suddenly lose power steering and traction control without warning. When this occurs, steering becomes extremely difficult and creates a significant safety risk, particularly at higher speeds or when turning. Restarting the vehicle will sometimes restore power steering, but the problem can persist after restarting. Because the failure is unpredictable and can occur at any time while driving, I am concerned that it could result in loss of vehicle control or a crash.
The truck suddenly losses power steering and traction control during trips rendering the vehicle with no power steering. Upon stopping and restarting the truck, the power steering can return to the vehicle or stay turned off. This is a concerning safety issue as the power steering can give out at any point during a trip.
While driving, the steering suddenly failed. I was physically unable to steer the vehicle, which made it impossible to continue driving safely. This has happened a few times and I have been able to turn the vehicle off and restart and the steering will work again.
During a three point turn, the power turned off the car completely for a brief few seconds on the screens and the steering wheel locked. Was able to straighten it and all power was back on immediately. Stabilitrak warning has come out on the dash a few times. There seems to be a sudden power loss till the wheel is straightened. Luckily no one was behind, but this has happened a few times when turning.
2016 chevy colorado z71 v6. Sept.17,2026 took to mechanic because of bad gas smell in cab when window down and huge puddle of gas under truck. This could have exploaded very easily. Shop said high pressure line / fuel leaking severely and do not drive. There was no warning lights or any indication of a issue. I called the dealer due to a current GM recall ( number 18188 ) and they say my truck does not qualify but no one can explain why. I called GM and they said the same thing. This is clearly the same issue and online it just says 2015 to 2018 colorado trucks . No details on dates trucks…
Intermittent total loss of power steering assistance while driving at speed, accompanied by the immediate illumination of the Traction Control and StabiliTrak warning indicators on the dashboard. The loss of power steering creates a sudden and severe handling hazard. This safety issue has occurred more than 15 times since this vehicle was purchase used in December of 2025. A diagnostic scan reveals specific diagnostic trouble codes: C0545-00 (Steering Wheel Torque Sensor Hardware Failure), C0460-5A (Steering Wheel Angle Sensor Plausibility), U0420-42 (Invalid Data Received from PSCM), and…
While sitting in idle the engine will just start to idle rough for no reason this happens all the time and clear out when accelerated. While driving the radio and Infotainment screen will go blank then come back on. I was driving on the freeway going straight and all of a sudden the power steering went out and I got this warning light on for the power steering being disabled along with this vehicle symbol and squiggly lines behind it on. I drove to a safe spot with the truck feeling really heavy. Turned it off and on then it cleared up. This power steering issue just happened.
While driving the vehicle, the power steering all of sudden goes out and I am unable to steer the vehicle properly. I know there was a recall for 2015 vehicles and wanted to know if the repair could be fixed on my vehicle as well. This is not safe for me to be driving with my children and grandchildren in the vehicle as it happens out of the blue and without warning, no matter what speed I could be going. This has occurred on multiple dates over the last month or so.
While driving my family home on a hot 90+ degree day. My 2016 Chevy Colorado suddenly has a power loss engine died and i went from 75 to parked in less than 30 seconds. Luckily I was able to pull off the freeway to the median. We were almost hit by two vehicles pulling a trailer and the other pulling a RV. I had to have someone pick my kids up due to the hazards of being stranded on the side of the freeway. We had to have the truck towed. The code we got was for a fuel pump control module. We replaced and had it programed. This did not fix the issue. After further diagnostics from a auto…
Vacuum pump busted as shown in photos. Once that busted it sent metal shrapnel into the engine which broke a piece of the cam shaft into bits. There were metal fragments that had to be meticulously cleaned out of my engine block. The loss of vacuum seal caused me to lose brakes while driving in stop and go traffic on the highway.
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Colorado. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel failed to steer in the intended direction. In addition, the “Service Stabili-trak” message was displayed, and the “Power Steering Failure” warning light was illuminated. The contact held the steering wheel tightly and pulled on the steering wheel, preventing the vehicle from crashing into a wall. The vehicle was driven to the intended destination. In addition, the contact stated that the vehicle was driven very slowly, and the contact used added force to steer the…
Power steering suddenly stops working while driving, making it difficult to steer. Fortunately when this happened today it was at low speeds and on a straight away. Warning light to check power steering went on followed by check Stabilitrak system. I called the dealer and am waiting for a response. The vehicle has not been inspected by manufacturer, police, insurance rep, or other. No warning lamp occurred prior to the power steering failure.
2016 Chevrolet Colorado: questions owners ask
Is the 2016 Chevrolet Colorado reliable?
NHTSA data alone cannot rate reliability, but it shows what owners reported. Owners filed 713 complaints with NHTSA about the 2016 Chevrolet Colorado; the most common categories were steering (463, 64.9%), electrical system (119, 16.7%), power train (97, 13.6%). There are 4 safety recalls. 14 complaints mention a crash, 1 mentions a fire, 6 injuries were reported.
What are the most common problems with the 2016 Chevrolet Colorado?
Across 713 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, the categories mentioned most often are steering (64.9% of complaints), electrical system (16.7% of complaints), power train (13.6% of complaints), engine (6.7% of complaints), service brakes (5.8% of complaints). One complaint can name several components.
Does the 2016 Chevrolet Colorado have any recalls?
Yes. NHTSA lists 4 recalls for the 2016 Chevrolet Colorado; the most recent (campaign 18V358000, 2018-05-31) concerns Fuel System, Gasoline: Delivery: Fuel Pump. Recall repairs are free at a franchised dealer; check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Why does the power steering fail or feel heavy on my 2016 Chevrolet Colorado?
156 of the 713 owner complaints NHTSA has on file for the 2016 Chevrolet Colorado (21.9%) describe power steering failing, locking up or turning heavy. One owner wrote: "While sitting in idle the engine will just start to idle rough for no reason this happens all the time and clear out when accelerated. While driving the radio and Infotainment screen will go blank then come back on." (NHTSA complaint 11763341, September 2026). If it happens to your car, check your VIN for open recalls at nhtsa.gov/recalls and report the problem to NHTSA; complaints are what trigger investigations.
Why does my 2016 Chevrolet Colorado stall, lose power or shut off while driving?
119 of the 713 owner complaints NHTSA has on file for the 2016 Chevrolet Colorado (16.7%) describe the engine stalling, losing power or shutting off while driving. One owner wrote: "Complete loss of electronic power steering capability while new teenage driver was traveling at high rate of speed. Loss of power steering and stabilitrak traction control warning indicators on dash." (NHTSA complaint 11758971, August 2026). If it happens to your car, check your VIN for open recalls at nhtsa.gov/recalls and report the problem to NHTSA; complaints are what trigger investigations.
Why are the ABS and stability control lights on in my 2016 Chevrolet Colorado?
45 of the 713 owner complaints NHTSA has on file for the 2016 Chevrolet Colorado (6.3%) describe ABS, traction or stability control warnings or faults. One owner wrote: "While driving, the truck can suddenly lose power steering and traction control without warning. When this occurs, steering becomes extremely difficult and creates a significant safety risk, particularly at higher speeds or when turning." (NHTSA complaint 11772599, October 2026). If it happens to your car, check your VIN for open recalls at nhtsa.gov/recalls and report the problem to NHTSA; complaints are what trigger investigations.
Why does my 2016 Chevrolet Colorado transmission jerk, shudder or shift hard?
23 of the 713 owner complaints NHTSA has on file for the 2016 Chevrolet Colorado (3.2%) describe harsh, jerky or delayed transmission shifting or shuddering. One owner wrote: "Reference report #[XXX] The transmission in my 2016 Chevrolet Colorado Z71 Quad Cab short bed is hard shifting, shuddering and pausing. The transmission has been serviced two times by the dealer and two times by me. Servicing means fluid and filter changes." (NHTSA complaint 11567899, January 2024). If it happens to your car, check your VIN for open recalls at nhtsa.gov/recalls and report the problem to NHTSA; complaints are what trigger investigations.
Check your own Colorado
Counts are a starting point, not a verdict: popular models collect more complaints because more of them are on the road, and NHTSA does not verify individual reports. To see whether a recall is still open on your car, enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls (U.S.) or your registration at check-vehicle-recalls.service.gov.uk (UK). Had a safety problem? Report it to NHTSA; complaints are what trigger investigations and recalls.
Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation recall and complaint databases (public domain), retrieved October 25, 2026. Model year 2016 only.