Total Complaints
20 filings
CHEVROLET CAMARO · model year
20 NHTSA complaints, 1 crash report. A VIN lookup is required to determine whether a specific vehicle has an unrepaired recall.
NHTSA overall rating
Not crash-tested
New Car Assessment Program
The 1988CHEVROLETCAMARO carries 20 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 1 crash, 0 fires, 0 injuries, and 0 fatalities. No NCAP 5-star crash-test rating is available for this model year in the federal database.
The most frequently selected component label in reports for the 1988 CAMARO is seat belts:front:retractor with 3 filings, followed by seat belts:front:buckle assembly (2) and service brakes, hydraulic:foundation components (2). Complaint categories reflect owner reports and intake categorization; they do not establish a defect pattern or cause.
NHTSA currently has 57 investigation files overlapping the 1988 CAMARO, and 2 remain open. Owners comparing this cohort against neighboring years should read the complaint-by-year trend as report volume, not a causal diagnosis. Use the related-complaint feed and the official recall lookup when researching a specific vehicle.
Total Complaints
20 filings
Crashes Reported
1 reports
Source
NHTSA ODI
Federal complaints database
At or below the fleet median complaint volume.
| Component | Count |
|---|---|
| SEAT BELTS:FRONT:RETRACTOR | 3 |
| SEAT BELTS:FRONT:BUCKLE ASSEMBLY | 2 |
| SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS | 2 |
| STEERING:COLUMN | 1 |
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:COOLING SYSTEM | 1 |
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE:BELTS AND ASSOCIATED PULLEYS | 1 |
| STEERING: STEERING WHEEL/HANDLE BAR | 1 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION:MODULE | 1 |
| FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE:TANK ASSEMBLY:FILLER PIPE AND CAP | 1 |
| LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:HOOD:LATCH | 1 |
| FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE:TANK ASSEMBLY | 1 |
| FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:FUEL INJECTION SYSTEM | 1 |
| SEAT BELTS | 1 |
| FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:HOSES, LINES/PIPING, AND FITTINGS | 1 |
| FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE | 1 |
WHILE DRIVING IN STOP AND GO TRAFFIC I WAS MOVING AT A SPEED BETWEEN 25 AND 30 MPH WITH A 3 TO 4 CAR GAP BETWEEN ME AND THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME WHEN THE LINE OF CARS IN FRONT OF ME SUDDENLY STOPPED QUICKLY. I SLAMMED ON MY BRAKES AS HARD AS I COULD AND IT FAILED TO STOP, IMPACTING THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME AT ABOUT 5 TO 10 MPH. THE PEDAL FINE AND NONE OF THE BRAKES/WHEELS LOCKED OR SKIDDED (THIS CAR DOESN'T HAVE ANTI-LOCKS). EVEN MY FULL SIZED PICK-UP TRUCK WOULD HAVE STOPPED SAFELY IN THIS SITUATION AND DISTANCE, YET YOU COULD FEEL THAT THIS CAMARO SHOULD HAVE STOPPED AND COULDN'T. THE BRAKES WORK FINE IN ALL CONDITIONS EXCEPT PANIC STOPS WHEN IT COUNTS. I'VE READ A LOT OF FORUMS AND POSTS ON THIRDGEN.COM AND IT SEEMS LIKE THESE 4-WHEEL DISC BRAKE CARS OF THAT ERROR... ALL HAVE HAD THE PROBLEM. I KNOW THAT EVEN WHEN NEW, THE REAR DISC BRAKES WILL BARELY STOP THE WHEELS WHEN THE CAR IS IDLING IN DRIVE AND ON JACK STANDS. IT SEEMS TO BE A KNOWN PROBLEM WITH ALL THE CAR ENTHUSIASTS
Mileage: 215,392
FUEL FILL LINE LOOSE AT GAS TANK FUEL LEAKS OUT WHEN FULL AND UNDER CORNERING. *TR
Mileage: 27,500
CRACK AT FUEL FILL IN 1988 CAMARO, RECALL FOR 1989 BUT WHY NOT 1988 IT IS THE SAME PROBLEM. *JB
Mileage: 76,000
CONSUMER STATED DRIVER'S FRONT SEAT BELTS DIDN'T HOLD THE PASSENGER IN THE SEAT. NHTSA RECALL 90V105000 CONCERNING SEAT BELT FAILURE WAS ISSUED. *AK
THE CONSUMER WAS TRAVELING AT 34 MPH AND APPLIED BRAKES TO AVOID STRIKING ANOTHER VEHICLE, BUT THE BRAKES FAILED AND THE CONSUMERS VEHICLE WENT OUT OF CONTROL AND CRUSHED. THE CONSUMER SUFFERED MINOR INJURIES. (OHIO TRAFFIC CRASH REPORT 10-91-608) *YH
THE CONSUMER WAS TRAVELING AT 34 MPH AND APPLIED BRAKES TO AVOID STRIKING ANOTHER VEHICLE, BUT THE BRAKES FAILED AND THE CONSUMERS VEHICLE WENT OUT OF CONTROL AND CRUSHED. THE CONSUMER SUFFERED MINOR INJURIES. (OHIO TRAFFIC CRASH REPORT 10-91-608) *YH
WHILE DRIVING DOWN HIGHWAY CAR STUTTERED AS THOUGH BAD FUEL/CLOGGED EFI SYSTEM WAS TO BLAME,UPON DEPRESSING GAS PEDAL TO COUNTERACT THIS STUTTER, GASOLINE SPRAYED OUT OF THE A/C VENTS AND INTO THE CAB/INTERIOR OF VEHICLE AND ONTO THE DRIVER. *AK
THERE IS A CONSISTANT FUEL ODOR COMING FROM THE FUE TANK. IT SEEMS THERE ARE 2 LEAKS, ONE AT THE FILLER NECK ON THE FUEL TANK SIDE AND ANOTHER ON TOP SIDE OF THE FUEL TANK WHERE THE FUEL PUMP RESIDES. THE ODOR IS CONSISTANT AND VERY STRONG.
90V105000; SEAT BELT BUCKLES; VEHICLE TAKEN TO DEALER (ANTHONY ABRAHAM, 305-443-9000) FOR REPAIRS, THE DEALER REPPLACED RED BUTTONS, BUT DRIVERS SIDE POPS OUT WITH NO LATCHING, DEALER CANNOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM. *AK
SEAT BELT RETRACTOR FAILED.
WHEN DRIVING, DUE TO A FAULTY HOOD LATCH SPRIING, THE HOOD WILL OPEN. *AK
CONSUMER STATES THE FUEL FILLER NECK IS LOOSE, IN ADDITION THERE IS A STRONG ODOR IN THE VEHICLE.*AK THE CONSUMER DO NOT OWN THIS KIND OF VEHICLE.
VEHICLE IS SUBJECT TO STALLING W/NO WARNING AT ANYTIME DUE TO (ECM) COMPUTER CONSTANTLY FAILING. THE MODULE HAS BEEN REPLACED FIVE TIMES SINCE OWNING VEHICLE AND CONTINUES TO FAIL. PLEASE DESCRIBE DETAILS. *AK
SEAT BELT RETRACTOR INOPERATIVE. *SD
SEAT BELT WILL NOT RETRACT INTO COIL. BUCKLE WILL NOT STAY CLOSED. PLEASE DESCRIBE. TT
SEAT BELT WILL NOT RETRACT INTO COIL. BUCKLE WILL NOT STAY CLOSED. PLEASE DESCRIBE. TT
LOOSE STEERING COLUMN. *SKD
COOLANT LEAK RESULTED IN ENGINE CRACKING. *AW
SERPENTINE BELT REPLACED.
TILT STEERING WHEEL LOOSE, CAUSING DIFFICULTLY IN CONTROLING STEERING. TT
Loss of motive power due to engine failure
Loss of Motive Power due to the Battery Energy Control Module
Electric Vehicle Battery Fires
Outboard Front Seat Belt Anchor Cable Failure
Fuel Line Leak
Data vintage: August 2026. Sources: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) complaints database, NHTSA recall campaign API, NHTSA NCAP crash-test ratings, and NHTSA FARS for fatality cross-reference.
Every figure on PlainCars is rendered directly from NHTSA complaint and safety data, no number is typed in by an editor. This year-specific record is rendered from NHTSA ODI, recall, and NCAP rows for the 1988 CHEVROLET CAMARO; no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.