1986 Chevrolet Corvette Problems
Owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA, grouped by component
Data refreshed
What this page shows
Everything below is an owner-reported complaint submitted to NHTSA about the 1986 Chevrolet Corvette, grouped by the component NHTSA recorded on the report. These are not confirmed defects, and they are not recalls. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a category with more reports in it is not evidence that a part is defective.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Reports by component
Ranked by how many owner reports name each component category
- Brakes746.7%
- Seat belts746.7%
- Electrical16.7%
Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.
Each component in detail
What the reports in each category say, in the owners' own words
Brakes
Reports naming service brakes, the antilock braking system, brake hoses, master cylinders or the parking brake.
From owner reports, verbatim
BRAKES LOCK UP IN REAR FRONT KEEPS SPINING WAS TOLD MY ABS MODULE WAS BAD UNABLE TO EVEN FIND REPLACEMENT.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 1986 CHEVROLET CORVETTE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE MASTER CYLINDER WAS LEAKING ABNORMALLY. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED AND THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL ASSOCIATED WITH NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER: 86V120000 (SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS:MASTER CYLINDER). THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS UNKNOWN AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 50,000.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Seat belts
Reports naming seat belts, buckles, retractors and pretensioners.
From owner reports, verbatim
SEAT BELTS DON'T TIGHTEN UPON FAST BODY MOVEMENT OR FAST BRAKING. THEY DON'T WORK PROPERLY.I HAD THE BELTS REPLACE AT A CHEVROLET DEALER, BUT THEY STILL DON'T WORK PROPERLY.
REFERENCE NUMBERS: ?CHEVROLET RECALLS 91C25 AND 91C26 ISSUED NOVEMBER 1991 ?NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID #: 91V143000 ?CHEVROLET CLAIM# [XXX] (FROM RECENT CONVERSATIONS) ?VIN# [XXX]. OUR 1986 CORVETTE'S SEATBELTS INTERMITTENTLY LOCKUP AND DO NOT MOVE; THEN WHEN THEY DO EVENTUALLY RELEASE WE ARE CONCERNED THAT THEY DO NOT CONSISTENTLY GRAB WHEN NEEDED. AFTER ONE RECENT QUICK STOP THE PASSENGER BELT DID NOT RESTRAIN. THAT EXPERIENCE PROMPTED US TO SEARCH ONLINE FOR REPLACEMENT SEATBELTS. DURING THAT SEARCH WE FOUND A RECALL NOTICE, SO WE CHECKED OUR OWN RECORDS AND FOUND THE ORIGINAL RECALL NOTICE THAT CHEVROLET MAILED TO US IN 1991, AND AN APRIL 1991 NOTE THAT THEY REFUSED TO PERFORM THE SERVICE BECAUSE THEY COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM. WE HAVE ALL OF THE VEHICLE?S SERVICE RECORDS AND THERE IS NO RECORD, OR RECOLLECTION, THAT THE REPAIR WAS EVER PERFORMED. WE CALLED CHEVROLET?S CUSTOMER SERVICE AND LEARNED THAT ONE DATABASE SHOWS THAT OUR 1986 CORVETTE IS ELIGIBLE FOR THE REPAIR, BUT ANOTHER DATABASE (OPEN RECALL DATABASE?) DOES NOT SHOW OUR VIN# SO THEY WON?T PERFORM THE REPAIR. IN JUNE 2014 A LOCAL DEALER, WHO ALSO REFUSED TO PERFORM THE RECALL SERVICE, SURMISED THAT OUR VIN# DOES NOT APPEAR BECAUSE IN APRIL 1992, WHEN THE RECALL SERVICE WAS ORIGINALLY REFUSED, THE DEALER PROBABLY REMOVED IT FROM THE RECALL DATABASE (BUT WE WERE NOT INFORMED OF THIS NOR DOES CHEVROLET HAVE ANY RECORD OF IT.) OF COURSE THE MISSING VIN# MIGHT ALSO BE A DATA ACCURACY PROBLEM WITH CHEVROLET?S DATABASE. ARE YOU IN A POSITION TO ADVISE/ENCOURAGE CHEVROLET TO REPLACE THE DEFECTIVE SEAT BELTS? IF NOT, AT LEAST FILE THIS AS A SAFETY COMPLAINT AGAINST CHEVROLET. THANK YOU. PS: WE HAVE A LOG OF ALL CALLS TO GM AND PICTURES OF THE SEAT BELT SERIAL NUMBERS. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Electrical
Reports naming the electrical system — wiring, battery, charging, control modules, infotainment and electrical accessories.
From owner reports, verbatim
THERE IS AN INTERMITTENT ELECTRICAL SHORT SOMEWHERE IN THE VEHICLE THAT THE DEALER HAS BEEN UNABLE TO LOCATE. I HAVE BEEN TOLD THAT IT MAY BE RELATED TO THE MOVEMENT OF THE ADJUSTABLE STEERING WHEEL. WHEN USING THE TURN SIGNALS AND/OR THE BRAKES, THE FUSE OR FUSES BLOW, LEAVING THE CAR WITHOUT BRAKING LIGHTS AND/OR TURN INDICATORS. *SLC
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Elsewhere on this vehicle
Data sources
- NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation — owner-reported complaints and the components recorded on them
Data on this page last refreshed .