Owner complaints, recalls, fuel economy and safety ratings from public NHTSA and EPA data, updated Oct 17, 2026.
Fuel economy
16–17 mpgcombined; city 14, highway 20–22; every version of this model year
Five years of fuel
$19,110–$25,150U.S. average; Ohio $17,070–$23,700 at local prices; every version of this model year; fuel only, not other costs of owning it; 15,000 miles a year, at EIA fuel prices for the week of Oct 12, 2026
NHTSA overall safety rating
Not ratedNHTSA has no overall rating for this year
Owners have filed 24 complaints with NHTSA about the 2016 SS. These are unverified owner reports, counted by the part of the car they name; one complaint can name several parts. Counts aren't adjusted for how many were sold, so they don't show how reliable a car is.
Complaints by part of the car
Part
Complaints
Crashes
Fires
Injuries
Steering
12
0
0
0
Seat belts
6
0
0
0
Electrical system
4
0
0
0
Lane departure
2
0
0
0
Unknown or other
2
0
0
0
Back over prevention
1
0
0
0
Engine
1
0
0
0
Power train
1
0
0
0
Complaints by model year
Newer years have had less time to collect complaints, and counts aren't adjusted for sales, so a shorter bar doesn't mean a more reliable year.
NHTSA lists 7 recall campaigns for the 2016 SS over its history. Campaigns are matched by model and year, so each one may apply to a given car, and its repair may already be done: check a VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup for the open recalls on that exact car.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2014-2016 Chevrolet SS and Caprice Police Pursuit Vehicles (PPV) that were previously repaired under NHTSA recall number 16V-518. The repair may not have been performed properly. The driver's seat belt tensioner cable may be repeatedly bent over the seat side shield as the driver enters and exits the vehicle causing the cable to fatigue and separate.
Risk: If the tensioner cable separates, the driver may not be properly restrained in the event of a crash, increasing their risk of injury.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the vehicles to determine whether the new seat trim was installed and replace the trim as necessary. Dealers will also inspect and replace the pretensioner cable assembly, as necessary. Repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began November 17, 2020. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N202312100
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015-2016 Chevrolet Caprice Police Pursuit vehicles (PPV) and SS vehicles. Corrosion of the connector between the electric power steering module and the torque sensor connector may cause a loss of electric power steering assist.
Risk: A greater steering effort would be needed to control the vehicle if power steering is lost, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering gear assembly, free of charge. The recall began May 26, 2020. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N192285350.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2014-2016 Chevrolet SS vehicles that previously received an inspect-only remedy under recall 17V-382. Corrosion of the connector between the electric power steering module and the torque sensor connector may cause a loss of electric power steering assist.
Risk: A greater steering effort would be needed to control the vehicle if power steering is lost, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering gear assembly, free of charge. The recall began December 27, 2019. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or GM customer service at 1-586-596-1733. GM's number for this recall is N192265980.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2014-2016 Buick Lacrosse and Chevrolet Spark EV, Caprice PPV and SS vehicles, 2014-2017 Buick Encore and Chevrolet Corvette, Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 vehicles, 2015-2016 Cadillac Escalade and Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Tahoe, Trax, Suburban and Silverado 2500 and 3500 and GMC Yukon and Yukon XL vehicles, and 2015-2017 GMC Sierra HD 2500 and 3500 vehicles. While being previously remedied for recall 16V-651, the affected vehicles may not have received the complete software update necessary to remedy the recall condition. Without the update, certain driving conditions may cause the air bag sensing and diagnostic module (SDM) software to activate a diagnostic test. During this test, deployment of the frontal air bags and the seat belt pretensioners would not occur in the event of a crash.
Risk: A failure of the front air bags or seat belt pretensioners to deploy in the event of a crash necessitating deployment increases the risk of injury to the driver and front passenger.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will reflash the SDM software. Vehicles that have had a previous air bag deployment will have the SDM replaced. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began on August 4, 2017. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 17287.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2014-2016 Chevrolet SS vehicles. Corrosion of the connector between the electric power steering module and the torque sensor connector may cause a loss of electric power steering assist.
Risk: A greater steering effort would be needed to control the vehicle if power steering is lost, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the steering gear assembly, replacing it as necessary, free of charge. The recall began August 2, 2017. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 17248.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2015-2017 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 HD, 3500 HD, Tahoe, Suburban, GMC Sierra 2500 HD and 3500 HD, GMC Yukon, GMC Yukon XL, Cadillac Escalade and Cadillac Escalade ESV vehicles and 2014-2017 Chevrolet Corvette, Silverado 1500, Trax, Caprice Police Pursuit Vehicle, GMC Sierra 1500, Buick Encore, and 2014-2016 Buick Lacrosse, Chevrolet Spark EV and SS vehicles. In the affected vehicles, certain driving conditions may cause the air bag sensing and diagnostic module (SDM) software to activate a diagnostic test. During this test, deployment of the frontal air bags and the seat belt pretensioners would not occur in the event of a crash.
Risk: A failure of the front air bags or seat belt pretensioners to deploy in the event of a crash necessitating deployment increases the risk of injury to the driver and front passenger.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will reflash the SDM software. Vehicles that have had a previous air bag deployment will have the SDM replaced. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began on October 13, 2016. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 16007.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2014-2016 Chevrolet Caprice Police Pursuit vehicles manufactured May 14, 2013 through June 14, 2016, and Chevrolet SS vehicles manufactured May 15, 2013 through April 27, 2016. The driver's seat belt tensioner cable may be repeatedly bent over the seat side shield as the driver enters and exits the vehicle causing the cable to fatigue and separate.
Risk: If the tensioner cable separates, the driver may not be properly restrained in the event of a crash, increasing their risk of injury.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the tensioner cable assembly, replacing any cable that is damaged. For vehicles that do not require a tensioner assembly replacement, a cable guide will be installed. All vehicles will receive new seat trim with a redesigned opening for the cable routing. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began on November 3, 2016. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 31340.
Carmakers sent NHTSA 1,040 service bulletins and notices that cover the 2016 SS, the latest on Sep 26, 2026. They tell dealers how to fix known issues.
The parts they mention most: equipment (440), electrical system (195), engine and engine cooling (106), power train (89), engine (86).
NHTSA hasn't opened a defect investigation that covers this model year.
Maintenance
Oil
The owner's manual gives the oil and how often to change it. We show oil facts only once we've checked them against the manual, and we haven't yet for the 2016 SS.
EPA class: large cars. EPA greenhouse gas score: 3 out of 10. Each version EPA tested:
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
Version
Engine
Transmission
Fuel
City / hwy / comb
SS Rear-Wheel Drive
6.2 L, 8 cyl
Manual 6-spd
Regular Gasoline
14 / 22 / 17
SS Rear-Wheel Drive
6.2 L, 8 cyl
Automatic (S6)
Premium Gasoline
14 / 20 / 16
Sources and dates
U.S. EPA fuel economy data, file of Sep 29, 2026
NHTSA owner complaints, file of Oct 17, 2026
NHTSA recalls, file of Oct 17, 2026
NHTSA manufacturer communications, file of Oct 17, 2026
NHTSA defect investigations, file of Oct 17, 2026
NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings, file of Aug 7, 2026
U.S. Energy Information Administration, file of Oct 12, 2026
Fuel cost: EPA mpg with fuel prices for the week of Oct 12, 2026 and electricity prices for Jul 2026. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (Oct 2026). Complaints are unverified reports owners filed with NHTSA. About the data