1998 Chevrolet Lumina: Reliability Data

276
Total Complaints
96,781mi
Median Mileage
Steering
Top Issue
12
Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

60,900 25th Percentile
96,781 Median Mileage
125,000 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

Steering
20
Rack And Pinion
20
Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip
13
Gasoline
11
Automatic Transmission
11
Engine
10
Air Bags
10
Vehicle Speed Control
9
Engine
9
Hydraulic Power Assist System
6

Severity Assessment

12
Crashes
6
Fires
17
Injuries
0
Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"WHEN DRIVING AT ANY SPEED THE DASH LIGHTS ARE ILLUMINATED, THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COMES ON , AND THE VEHICLE CUTS OFF WITHOUT NO PRIOR WARNING. CONSUMER HAS CONTACTED THE DEALER. *AK"
"WHEN DRIVING AT ANY SPEED THE DASH LIGHTS ARE ILLUMINATED, THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COMES ON , AND THE VEHICLE CUTS OFF WITHOUT NO PRIOR WARNING. CONSUMER HAS CONTACTED THE DEALER. *AK"
"UPON IMPACT THE DRIVER'S AIRBAG EXPLODED AND A CHEMICAL SMOKE CAME OUT FROM IT. THE PASSENGER'S AIRBAG DEPLOYED AND BUSTED THE WINDSHIELD. DEALER NOTIFIED. *AK"

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

When Were Complaints Filed?

Number of complaints by the year the issue occurred.

When Does Each Component Fail?

Median mileage at complaint for top components.

Steering 20 complaints
25th: 52,000 mi Median: 63,455 mi 75th: 86,000 mi
Rack And Pinion 20 complaints
25th: 74,638 mi Median: 111,000 mi 75th: 122,691 mi

Where Are Complaints Coming From?

Top states by complaint count.

PA: 22 FL: 19 TX: 19 OH: 18 CA: 17 MA: 16 NY: 15 CT: 13 KY: 10 LA: 10

Who Files Complaints?

33%
Original Owners
67%
Second+ Owners

Chevrolet Lumina — Other Years

See how this model compares across different model years.

YearComplaintsCrashes
199061538
199148225
199248320
199334422
19941898
199567066
199631234
199743845
199913112
2000351
2001250

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28