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Chevrolet Colorado

Every model year 2016–2026: recalls, owner complaints, NHTSA crash ratings and EPA efficiency side by side, each value traced to the file it came from.

11 Model years 2016–2026

16 Recalls NHTSA campaigns, all years

1,789 Complaints owner reports, all years

A Newest grade 2026 Safety Signal

2020 Best on record cleanest filed year

The 2026 Colorado →Which years to avoid Compare it

Chevrolet Colorado — photograph via Wikimedia Commons — Chevrolet Colorado · Photo: MercurySable99 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Every Chevrolet Colorado model year

Source: NHTSA · EPA · one row per year

Year	Powertrains	Safety	Recalls	Complaints	Crash	Best efficiency
2026	Gas	A	1	18	★★★★☆	21 mpg
2025	Gas	A	1	27	★★★★☆	20 mpg
2024	Gas	C	3	124	★★★★☆	22 mpg
2023	Gas	C	3	137	★★★★☆	22 mpg
2022	Gas Diesel	A	1	56	★★★★☆	23 mpg
2021	Gas Diesel	A	1	79	★★★★☆	23 mpg
2020	Gas Diesel	A	0	86	★★★★☆	23 mpg
2019	Gas Diesel	A	0	150	★★★★☆	23 mpg
2018	Gas Diesel	A	1	183	★★★★☆	25 mpg
2017	Gas Diesel	A	1	216	★★★★☆	25 mpg
2016	Gas Diesel	C	4	713	★★★★☆	25 mpg

Which model year the record favours

Source: recalls and complaints per year on the road

Years to avoid, with the reasons →Best on the record 2020

On the filed record so far, the 2020 is the cleanest Colorado year we hold, and the 2023 the one to check hardest.

Both figures are divided by the number of years the car has been on sale, because otherwise the oldest year on the page loses every time simply for having been around longer. The current model year and any year under three on the road are left out: their records are not finished.

Year	Safety Signal	Recalls /yr	Complaints /yr
2020	A	0	14
2019	A	0	21
2017	A	0.1	24
2018	A	0.1	23
2021	A	0.2	16
2022	A	0.2	14
2016	C	0.4	71
2023	C	1	46

Which Chevrolet Colorado years reported which system early

Source: NHTSA complaints, odometer at report

Earliest on the record: 2019 power train complaints at 0.26× the mileage of same-age vehicles (median 7,000 miles). Latest: 2016 steering at 1.42× (68,000 miles).

Year	Power Train	Steering	Engine	Electrical System
2019	0.26×	—	—	—
2018	0.56×	—	0.62×	—
2017	0.53×	0.9×	0.53×	1.0×
2016	0.26×	1.42×	0.56×	0.78×

Each cell is that model year’s median odometer when owners reported the system, divided by the median for the same system across every make’s complaints on the same model year. under 0.67× reported early; 1.5× or more late; a dash means too few readings. When problems get reported, not how often — complaint counts are in the table above. Across the whole fleet: which systems go first.

What owners filed about the Chevrolet Colorado, by system

Source: NHTSA complaints, recalls, investigations and manufacturer communicationsEvery system, every year →

The systems the federal record is deep on for this nameplate: the complaints per model year, the mileage owners reported them at, and every recall, investigation and manufacturer bulletin filed under the heading — each one linked, none a failure rate.

transmission and drivetrain problems 424 complaints, every model year electrical problems 349 complaints, every model year engine problems 220 complaints, every model year automatic emergency braking problems 105 complaints, every model year

What changed year to year

Source: computed from the filed record

2026: best combined mpg 20 → 21
2025: best combined mpg 22 → 20; 7 → 5 EPA configurations
2024: 6 → 7 EPA configurations
2023: dropped diesel; best combined mpg 23 → 22; 8 → 6 EPA configurations
2020: 10 → 8 EPA configurations
2019: best combined mpg 25 → 23
2017: 8 → 10 EPA configurations

Compare

All Colorado head-to-heads →Which is better for you? →

Head-to-head	Verdict
2026 Colorado vs GMC Sierra · Large Pickup truck	Sierra +4
2026 Colorado vs Ram 1500 · Large Pickup truck	1500 +8.2
2026 Colorado vs Toyota Tundra · Large Pickup truck	Tundra +5.3
2026 Colorado vs Ford F-150 · Large Pickup truck	F-150 +4.1
2026 Colorado vs Ford Ranger · Large Pickup truck	Ranger +3.9
2025 Colorado vs Ford F-150 Lightning · Large Pickup truck	F-150 Lightning +47.7

In the studies

Source: computed from the same record, method on each page

Odometer at first complaint · rank 18 of 79 0.56× the mileage of same-age vehicles Chevrolet Colorado owners reported problems to NHTSA at a median 14,000 miles across 2018–2019 (fleet 23,512), earlier than vehicles of the same model year. 127 readings.Same trim, next model year · 2025 → 2026 +1.6% at the median across 5 matched trims The manufacturer’s announced MSRP for the 2026 Chevrolet Colorado against the same trim in 2025; the fleet moved +1.8% on 394 matched trims. Base trim $31,900 → $32,400. MSRP excludes destination; not a transaction price.

Common questions about the Chevrolet Colorado

Source: EPA, NHTSA and manufacturer press kits

Which Chevrolet Colorado year is the best used buy?

On the recall record, the 2020 Colorado comes out top of the years before the current one: Safety Signal grade A (100/100), 0 recalls and 86 owner complaints on file. That ranks paperwork, not condition — a specific car's history and service record still decide it.

What Chevrolet Colorado years should I avoid?

No Colorado model year carries a D or F Safety Signal or a standing advisory. The ranking page orders every year on recalls and complaints per year on the road, and says why.

How many recalls does the Chevrolet Colorado have?

Across model years 2016–2026, NHTSA has posted 16 recall campaigns for the Chevrolet Colorado. They are counted per model year in the table above, because a campaign almost never covers the whole run — it covers a build range.