The 2003 Oldsmobile Silhouette has 2 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 850,523 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 40 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the air bags. Last updated July 5, 2026.
ON CERTAIN MINIVANS EQUIPPED WITH SECOND-ROW BUCKET SEATS OR CAPTAIN'S CHAIRS AND A POWER SLIDING DOOR ON THE PASSENGER SIDE OF THE VEHICLE, A PASSENGER USING THE INTERIOR HANDLE TO OPEN THE POWER SLIDING DOOR COULD BE INJURED.
Consequence
IF A PASSENGER USES THE INTERIOR HANDLE TO OPEN THE POWER SLIDING DOOR AND HOLDS ONTO THE HANDLE WHILE IT IS BEING OPENED BY THE MOTOR, THE PASSENGER'S ARM MAY BE PUSHED INTO THE SEAT BACK OR ARMREST AND A WRIST OR LOWER ARM INJURY MAY RESULT.
Remedy
DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE POWER SLIDING DOOR INTERIOR HANDLE ON THE PASSENGER-SIDE. IF THE VEHICLE IS EQUIPPED WITH A POWER OR MANUAL SLIDING DOOR ON THE DRIVER-SIDE, THE INTERIOR HANDLE WILL ALSO BE REPLACED FOR APPEARANCE REASONS. NOTE: BEFORE THE VEHICLE IS SERVICED, GM ADVISES OWNERS TO NOT USE THE INTERIOR…
AIR BAGS02V2220002002-08-09133,221 affected
Defect
CERTAIN PASSENGER, MINI VANS, AND SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES HAVE AN AIR BAG INFLATOR ON THE DRIVER'S SIDE THAT COULD FRACTURE AT A WELD DURING A DEPLOYMENT.
Consequence
PIECES OF THE INFLATOR COULD STRIKE AND INJURE VEHICLE OCCUPANTS AND THE AIR BAG CUSHION WOULD NOT INFLATE FULLY, REDUCING THE CAPABILITY OF THE BAG TO PROTECT THE DRIVER.
Remedy
DEALERS WILL INSPECT, AND REPLACE, IF NECESSARY, THE AIR BAG MODULE ASSEMBLY ON THE DRIVER'S SIDE. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN AUGUST 15, 2002. OWNERS WHO TAKE THEIR VEHICLES TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER ON AN AGREED UPON SERVICE DATE AND DO NOT RECEIVE THE FREE REMEDY WITHIN A REASONABLE TIME SHOULD CONTACT BUICK AT…
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal
information removed.
“Tl*the contact owns a 2003 oldsmobile silhouette. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle suddenly stalled. The vehicle was restarted and operated as normal. The failure occurred on multiple occasions. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not…”
“I was eastbound on a two lane road, and an escalade ran the stop sign on the driver side , as I was continuing driving I t-boned the suv, my whole front end was completely ripped and damaged, and dashboard cracked and lifted, my daughter was on the passenger side, and either bags deployed. Know…”
“T-boned crossing a 4way due to view obstruction. Other person hit us at 60 miles per hr. Air bags deployed approx. 10 seconds after initial impact. *tr”
“Head lamps on this vehicle have started to haze. The haze has been getting progressively worse restricting the amount of light. I have found that it is getting increasingly difficult to see the road at 40mph or higher in the evening. The turn signals have a clear lens over them and do not appear…”
“Reference investigation pe 11-014. This issue is not limited to 2005-2007 gm suvs. On 2/26/11, my 2003 oldsmobile silhouette stalled on interstate I-75. I was able to coast to the shoulder, but it was a dangerous situation in the dark, with family & kids in the car, with icy, snowy roads. The fuel…”
“Most of the day may 8,2010 been doing some city but mostly highway driving totaling approximately 100 miles. Stopped for an hour after the first 50 then drove another 40 stopping again for about 15 minutes. Drove the last 10 home and left car idling to go into my house for approximately 8 minutes.…”
“On may 27, 2009 I hit a tree on the back side of the van and then hit another tree head on. The air bags in the front and on the side did not deploy. I was wearing my seatbelt and thankful there were no major injuries. *tr”
“Tl*the contact owns a 2003 oldsmobile silhouette. While driving approximately 25 mph on normal road conditions, the contact smelled a burning odor when the air conditioning control switch was activated. He then noticed smoke expelling from the air vents. Immediately, the air conditioning system…”
Defect investigations
InvestigationPE04064 Opened 2004-09-17 · closed 2004-12-22
POWER-SLIDING DOOR
SUBJECT VEHICLES ARE AVAILABLE WITH AN OPTIONAL POWER SLIDING DOOR.THE INTERIOR HANDLE IS ORIENTED IN THE VERTICAL POSITION IN THE DOOR PANEL AND LINES UP AT THE ELBOW LEVEL WHEN THE OCCUPANT IS SEATED IN THE 2ND-ROW OUTBOARD POSITION.IF THE OCCUPANT HOLDS THE INTERIOR HANDLE IN THE THUMB UP POSITION DURING…
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL,
FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 2003 Oldsmobile Silhouette as of
July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page
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