2008 Chevrolet Silverado 1500: fire, smoke or burning smell

Filed Jun 28, 2025 · Engine · CA

While driving uphill in my 2008 Chevrolet Silverado 1500, I experienced a sudden and dangerous loss of power, accompanied by a flashing check engine light, ticking noise, and loss of oil pressure. The engine began to shake violently and I nearly rolled backward into another vehicle before I was able to shut it off. After restarting the truck, it began jerking and misfiring, making it completely undriveable. The issue occurred without warning and required a tow. Symptoms Observed: •Low oil pressure warning •Ticking/knocking noise from engine •Engine shaking and loss of power •Jerking and severe misfire when restarted •Flashing check engine light •Diagnosed failed/stuck AFM lifter in cylinder 6 •Engine misfire isolated to cylinder 6 (confirmed by unplugging ignition coil with no change) •Oil consumption and burning smell over prior months •Possible camshaft damage due to lifter failure Shops Involved: 1.Pep Boys (North Clairemont, San Diego) – Charged $400 and claimed to fix the issue, but symptoms returned immediately. 2.Rosecrans Automotive (San Diego) – Confirmed the issue is likely due to AFM system failure (collapsed lifter/cam damage). Estimated repair cost: $4,500+. Additional Impact: •Required towing after complete loss of drivability •Rental car for over a week (ongoing) •Potential lost income due to inability to commute to work •Total cost between diagnostics, failed repair, and upcoming repairs is significant Safety Concerns: •Sudden power loss occurred while climbing a steep hill—nearly caused a rear-end collision •Jerking, misfire, and engine instability made it unsafe to control •No prior warning; failure happened instantly Why I am reporting: This is clearly a systemic issue with GM’s Active Fuel Management system, especially in 5.3L V8 engines like mine. It poses not only a major safety risk to drivers and other vehicles, but also an enormous financial burden on consumers. Based on online forums an

Filed May 1, 2025 · Electrical, Engine · 70,000 miles · CA

The contact owns a 2008 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact noticed white smoke coming from the exhaust with several unknown warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic; however, the failure was not duplicated. The contact stated that the following day, while attempting to start the vehicle, the vehicle failed to start. Additionally, there was an abnormal ticking sound coming from the vehicle. The contact used a diagnostic machine and retrieved several codes indicating electrical failures. The vehicle was towed to another independent mechanic; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed. The contact stated that the engine had been replaced twice. The contact stated the last engine was replaced in 2021. The dealer was made aware of the failure. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 70,000.

Filed Feb 15, 2024 · Airbags · AR

The front passenger side air bag inflator ruptured sending particles and other debris throughout the passenger cabin while driving in city traffic, it is available for inspection, I feel like my safety and that of others was put at risk by the manufacturer not notifying me upon purchase, titling, and registration that this vehicle was the subject of a safety recall involving the air bags on this model, it posed a potentially life threatening risk to operate or be a passenger inside this vehicle and nothing has been inspected by anyone yet, it just happened a few hours ago, there was no warnings or messages prior to incident occuring unexpectedly. Something sounded as if it literally blew up inside the truck, thankfully I had no passengers at the time, it scared me badly, as I thought someone had hit me with their vehicle, after the explosion, the OnStar telephone symbol illuminated on the mirror and the radio silenced itself, and the emergency flashers turned on by themselves and there appeared to be smoke pouring from the passenger side of the cabin but turned out to be the air bags powder residue.

Filed Dec 22, 2020 · Body, Electrical · 122,000 miles · MI · fire · 1 injury

2008 chevy silverado 1500 fire on 11/20/20 I was driving 3 miles to my friends house and as soon as I pulled up, I smelt fire. I got out to find out that my passenger headlight and everything under the hood was on fire!! As I started to run for help, I tripped over a large size curb and landed on my face. My neck, shoulders and back have been difficult to move since this happened. I tried to lift the hood but that was too hot to do so, I ran into my friends house screaming for a fire extinguisher!! As I was running back to remove as much as I could out of the truck her husband came out with the fire extinguisher and she came with the hose. I now I can barely move my neck, my back is in severe pain, and my ribs hurt immensely. As I survived this life threatening ordeal, I started doing background checks on this type of vehicle and 124 deaths have occurred because of this gm problem. How is this not a class action law suit?!!

Filed Nov 26, 2020 · Body, Electrical · 200,002 miles · MI · fire · 1 injury

2008 chevy silverado 1500 fire on 11/20/20 I was driving 3 miles to my friends house and as soon as I pulled up, I smelt fire. I got out to find out that my passenger headlight and everything under the hood was on fire!! I tried to lift the hood but that was too hot to do so, and I ran into my girlfriends house screaming for a fire extinguisher!! As I was running back to remove as much as I could out of the truck her husband came out with the fire extinguisher and she came with the hose. I had my briefcase, purse, portable boom box and started running as fast as I could because I thought it was going to blow up, and tripped over the curb and landed face first in the dirt. Now I can barely move my neck, my back is in severe pain, and my ribs hurt immensely. As I survived this life threatening ordeal, I started doing background checks on this type of vehicle and 124 deaths have occurred because of this gm problem. How is this not a class action law suit?!!

Filed Jul 24, 2015 · Airbags, Driver assistance · 78,418 miles · FL

I was entering I-75 interstate ramp and moving along with traffic and about 70 MPH, the door locks started going up and down on there own, the instrument cluster needles started sporadically going up and down then they show no signs of anything, the airbag light came on along with the chime sound, the stability control light came on, the truck lost a little bit of power when trying to accelerate, I did smell a burnt wire odor. I have replaced the battery and alternator and still the problem exists. This has happen twice before this incident. The stability control light came on and the truck ran really rough. I took it to my local chevrolet dealership and they told me that the number 8 cylinder had oil leaking into it which I see no signs of blue smoke coming out of the tailpipe and have been driving it for 5 months now with no problems except what is going on now with the electrical system. I have been researching the electrical problems with this year truck and it seems to be a wide spread manufacture problem. I have also seen pictures of the same year truck with the same problems that are described above and this ladies truck burned from the dashboard all the way to the front seats. A total loss. General motors needs to address this problem immediately before someone dies. Recall recall recall!!! ....updated 11/13/15 *bf updated 1/4/2016

Filed Jan 7, 2014 · Electrical · 60,000 miles · CT · fire

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet silverado 1500. The contact stated that the fuse box caught on fire and melted the harness. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer for diagnosis or repairs. The manufacturer was made aware of the problem. The manufacturer informed the contact that the vehicle was not included in any recalls. The approximate failure mileage was 60,000.

Filed Sep 25, 2009 · Electrical, Locks · 16,200 miles · AK · fire

Prelude to this event, involving my 2008 chevrolet silverado 1500 (approx 16,200 miles), was the warranty replacement for the failure of all 4 power door lock actuators. The actuators failed one at a time and each time an actuator would fail, the vehicle would shock the driver when touching the metal door while exiting the vehicle. The last actuator was replaced by the dealership on september 18th, 2009. On september 19th, 2009, after engaging my vehicle into reverse gear, the dashboard electrical went dead. Gauges went dark and radio began to blink. Within 5-10 seconds, smell of burning electrical came into the cab of the vehicle. I popped the hood and my passenger immediately identified a fire near the transmission on the passenger side. The fire was extinguished before engulfing the vehicle. After inspection, we found a shorted out wire near the starter and a broken transmission cooling line. The cause of both anomalies is unknown at this point. Vehicle is at the dealership that the vehicle was purchased from. This occurred under "normal" conditions on an improved driving surface.

Filed Mar 12, 2009 · Seats · 9,000 miles · MA · fire

Tl*the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet silverado 1500. While driving between 50-60 MPH on normal road conditions, the contact was smoking a cigar and disposed the ashes out of the driver's side window. Suddenly, he smelled a burning odor. He observed that the hot ashes had fallen onto the bottom cushion of the driver's seat. The foam seat cushioning began to smolder, but no flames appeared. Immediately, the seat cushion was extinguished with liquid. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer, but they could not assist with the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the hazards of the seat cushion not being flame and smoldered-resistant. The soiled seat cushion has not been repaired. The failure mileage was 9,000 and current mileage was 11,300.

Filed Nov 6, 2008 · Electrical · 3,100 miles · MI · fire

Tl*the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet silverado 1500. While driving approximately 55 MPH on normal road conditions, the contact smelled a strong burning odor. He then noticed that the instrument panel was smoking. The failure occurred without warning. The contact pulled over to the side of the road to inspect the vehicle and observed smoke coming from the front end, followed by flames underneath the hood. The fire department was called to the scene and a report was filed. There were no injuries. The vehicle was towed to a collision center. The vehicle was completely destroyed. The contact was concerned of the safety risk involved. The failure and current mileages were 3,100. Updated 12/11/08. *lj updated 12/11/08.

Filed Feb 21, 2008 · Transmission · 31 miles · ME · fire

I purchased a new chevy silverado ext. Cab 4x4 ltz and drove approximately 30 miles from the dealership. After traveling through an intersection I noticed smoke coming from the engine compartment. I proceeded approximately another 50 yards in an effort to find a safe place to pull over to investigate the problem. Before I could pull over the smoke increased and the interior of the vehicle almost immediately became filled with heavy smoke. I stopped in heavy traffic and used onstar to call for assistance then exited the vehicle and opened the hood to investigate the problem. I saw heavy smoke and flashes of fire coming from the left side of the engine near the catalytic converter. The fire extinguished itself shortly after turning the engine off and the smoke cleared and/or stopped after about five minutes. After the police and fire department cleared the vehicle to be moved, I contacted the dealership and got towed back. After a brief investigation the dealership service department stated that "a component of the transmission was either improperly installed at the factory during assembly or immediately failed in the first 30 miles that the vehicle had been driven. This failure resulted in transmission fluid being sprayed directly onto the catalytic converter thereby causing the fire."