Is the Ford F-150 Lightning more reliable than the Chevrolet Silverado?

No. The Silverado is more reliable by a large margin, and the Lightning's standing is mixed. Lightning owners file about 47 complaints per 10,000 trucks sold, while Silverado owners file about 3.8. Lightning problems also tend to appear earlier, including no-starts under 2,000 miles.

Which truck has more recalls, the Lightning or the Silverado?

The Silverado has more recalls in total, 91 across nine model years, against 28 across five for the Lightning. The Silverado has been on sale longer, so recalls have had more time to pile up. Lightning recalls include the rear hub bolts and the tailgate light bar.

What is the biggest problem with the Ford F-150 Lightning?

The most serious pattern is the truck lurching or accelerating at parking speeds while the driver brakes or shifts, with two reports ending in a wall or pylon strike. Other common issues are no-starts with a "Stop Safely Now" warning, water in the rear light bar, and fractured rear hub bolts.

What goes wrong with the Chevrolet Silverado?

Powertrain and engine problems lead the complaints. Lifters and camshafts collapse on both the 5.3L and 6.2L engines, often just after the warranty ends. Owners also report hard shifting, soft brake pedals with a "Brake System Failure" message, and power steering cutting out.

Which model years should I avoid for each truck?

On the Lightning, avoid 2022 and 2023, the weakest years. On the Silverado, avoid 2019 and 2021. The newest years of both trucks show fewer complaints partly because they have had less time on the road, so judge them on service history and open recalls.

Last updated: 2026-10-10

Chevrolet Silverado vs Ford F-150 Lightning: Reliability Compared

More Reliable

Chevrolet Silverado

Good

Ford F-150 Lightning

Mixed

Reliability favors the Chevrolet Silverado over the Ford F-150 Lightning by a wide margin, mostly because of complaint volume per truck sold. Lightning owners report early no-starts, broken hub bolts, and low-speed lurching. Silverado complaints center on engines and transmissions that fail later.

How Do the Chevrolet Silverado and Ford F-150 Lightning Generations Compare?

The Lightning has had one generation so far, covering 2022 through 2025, and no refresh is listed. Every year you are likely to consider is the same basic truck, and the early 2022 and 2023 years carry the most reported trouble. The Silverado's third generation ran through 2018. The fourth generation began in 2019 and received a refresh for 2022. Its weakest years, 2019 and 2021, were the first year and a pre-refresh year of that generation. If you shop the 2018 to 2023 range, you are choosing between those two generations and the refresh.

Verdict

The Chevrolet Silverado is more reliable than the Ford F-150 Lightning, scoring 73/100 vs 54/100.

Reliability favors the Silverado by a large margin. Its standing is good, while the Lightning's is mixed. What decides it is complaint volume against sales: Lightning owners file about 47 complaints per 10,000 trucks sold, against 3.8 for the Silverado. The Silverado has serious engine and transmission failures, but they tend to arrive after the warranty ends. The Lightning has problems early, including no-starts under 2,000 miles and rear hub bolts fracturing around 18,000 miles.

Key Differences

1Ford F-150 Lightning has 63 fewer total recalls
2Chevrolet Silverado has 43.2 fewer complaints per 10k sold
3Chevrolet Silverado scores 19 points higher in reliability

Category Scoreboard

2Chevrolet Silverado

—

1Ford F-150 Lightning

Reliability ScoreTotal RecallsComplaint RateSafety Rating

Chevrolet Silverado vs Ford F-150 Lightning: Which Is More Reliable?

Chevrolet Silverado vs Ford F-150 Lightning at-a-glance reliability comparison
Metric	Chevrolet Silverado	Ford F-150 Lightning
Reliability Score	73/100	54/100
Years Tracked	9	5
Total Recalls	91	28
Complaints per 10k Sold	3.8	47
Safety RatingNHTSA overall	2026 NHTSA	2026 NHTSA
Frontal
Side
Rollover
Year Wins	5	0

What Are the Common Problems With the Chevrolet Silverado and Ford F-150 Lightning?

Lightning complaints center on newer-technology faults that strike early. Trucks lurch at parking speeds, refuse to start with a "Stop Safely Now" warning, and take on water in the tailgate light bar. Rear hub bolts fracture, and recall parts were slow to arrive. Silverado complaints are older-style mechanical wear: collapsed lifters, scored camshafts, harsh shifting, and soft brake pedals. Both trucks have crash-linked brake reports. Only the Lightning lists crash-linked speed control, with surging at low speed and cruise control engaging at walking speed. Only the Silverado lists steering, where power assist cuts out, sometimes from a corroded ground strap.

Chevrolet Silverado vs Ford F-150 Lightning common problem areas comparison
Component	Chevrolet Silverado	Ford F-150 Lightning
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM	0.5Very Low	14.8Above Avg
POWER TRAIN	1Very Low	11.7Above Avg
UNKNOWN OR OTHER	0.2Very Low	4.7Average
EXTERIOR LIGHTING	—None	4.8Average
SERVICE BRAKES	0.2Very Low	1.3Low
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL	—None	1.3Low
EQUIPMENT	—None	1Very Low
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE	—None	0.9Very Low
ENGINE	0.7Very Low	—None
STEERING	0.2Very Low	0.5Very Low
STRUCTURE	0.1Very Low	0.6Very Low
VISIBILITY/WIPER	—None	0.4Very Low
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING	0.1Very Low	0.2Very Low
WHEELS	—None	0.2Very Low
AIR BAGS	0.1Very Low	—None
SUSPENSION	—None	—None
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM	—None	—None
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES	—None	—None
SEAT BELTS	—None	—None
BACK OVER PREVENTION	—None	—None

Complaints per 10,000 units sold, aggregated across all tracked model years from NHTSA owner reports.

How Does Chevrolet Silverado vs Ford F-150 Lightning Reliability Compare by Year?

Chevrolet Silverado vs Ford F-150 Lightning year-by-year reliability scores
Year	Chevrolet Silverado	Ford F-150 Lightning	Edge
2026	88/1000R / 0C	66/1001R / 0C	Chevrolet Silverado
2025	85/1001R / 76C	60/1003R / 2C	Chevrolet Silverado
2024	73/1009R / 367C	61/1004R / 19C	Chevrolet Silverado
2023	75/1004R / 299C	45/10011R / 175C	Chevrolet Silverado
2022	70/1008R / 514C	39/1009R / 280C	Chevrolet Silverado

Best years to cross-shop: The 2023 Chevrolet Silverado scored 75/100 and the 2024 Ford F-150 Lightning scored 61/100 — the strongest shared model years that have been on the road for at least two years, where available.

Who Should Buy the Chevrolet Silverado vs the Ford F-150 Lightning?

Pick the Silverado if you want the lower risk of trouble and plan to keep the truck for years. Its worst problems, mainly lifter and camshaft failures, often land just after the warranty ends, so ask for service history and engine repair records on any higher-mileage truck. Avoid the 2019 and 2021 model years, which rank weakest. The 2025 model year ranks among the strongest, but newer years have had less time to collect complaints, so do not read that as proof. Pick the Lightning only if you specifically want an electric truck and accept more risk. Skip the 2022 and 2023 model years, which rank weakest, and look at 2024 first. Before you buy any Lightning, confirm that recall 23V896 on the rear hub bolts has been completed, since owners report parts shortages and trucks sitting at dealers for months. Check the tailgate light bar for water, because replacements have failed again. Ask the seller about no-start or lurching problems, since dealers often cannot reproduce them.

Chevrolet Silverado vs Ford F-150 Lightning: Common Questions

Is the Ford F-150 Lightning more reliable than the Chevrolet Silverado?: No. The Silverado is more reliable by a large margin, and the Lightning's standing is mixed. Lightning owners file about 47 complaints per 10,000 trucks sold, while Silverado owners file about 3.8. Lightning problems also tend to appear earlier, including no-starts under 2,000 miles.
Which truck has more recalls, the Lightning or the Silverado?: The Silverado has more recalls in total, 91 across nine model years, against 28 across five for the Lightning. The Silverado has been on sale longer, so recalls have had more time to pile up. Lightning recalls include the rear hub bolts and the tailgate light bar.
What is the biggest problem with the Ford F-150 Lightning?: The most serious pattern is the truck lurching or accelerating at parking speeds while the driver brakes or shifts, with two reports ending in a wall or pylon strike. Other common issues are no-starts with a "Stop Safely Now" warning, water in the rear light bar, and fractured rear hub bolts.
What goes wrong with the Chevrolet Silverado?: Powertrain and engine problems lead the complaints. Lifters and camshafts collapse on both the 5.3L and 6.2L engines, often just after the warranty ends. Owners also report hard shifting, soft brake pedals with a "Brake System Failure" message, and power steering cutting out.
Which model years should I avoid for each truck?: On the Lightning, avoid 2022 and 2023, the weakest years. On the Silverado, avoid 2019 and 2021. The newest years of both trucks show fewer complaints partly because they have had less time on the road, so judge them on service history and open recalls.

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How we score the Chevrolet Silverado and Ford F-150 Lightning

Scores weight complaint severity at 35%, repair costs at 30%, recall impact at 20%, and the spread of complaints across systems at 15%, with complaint counts adjusted for US sales. Read the full methodology.

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