Freightliner Columbia vs Chevrolet C15

Both cars' complete complaint records, side by side.

Read the totals carefully. NHTSA publishes no sales figures, so the car that sold more collects more complaints regardless of quality. The rows worth weighing are the proportions — the share of complaints that involved harm, and which part dominates.

Measure	Freightliner Columbia	Chevrolet C15
Complaints on file	110	270
Model years covered	2000–2010	1984–1996
Worst model year	2005	1995
Best model year	2007	1996
Crashes reported	8	50
Fires reported	8	12
Injuries reported	22	36
Deaths reported	2	1
Most complained-about part	Engine & Cooling	Brakes
Share of complaints involving harm	36.4%	36.7%

Freightliner Columbia by year

1 4 2 12 14 44 16 12 1 3 1

00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Engine & Cooling 32 29.1%

Transmission & Drivetrain 27 24.5%

Body & Structure 7 6.4%

Brakes 6 5.5%

Electrical System 5 4.5%

Windows, Mirrors & Wipers 5 4.5%

Tires 5 4.5%

Wheels 4 3.6%

Chevrolet C15 by year

1 2 5 2 9 13 9 13 17 42 52 69 36

84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Brakes 60 22.2%

Seats 37 13.7%

Airbags 28 10.4%

Seat Belts 28 10.4%

Acceleration & Cruise Control 15 5.6%

Windows, Mirrors & Wipers 15 5.6%

Transmission & Drivetrain 14 5.2%

Electrical System 14 5.2%