ChevroletP201978Overview/chevrolet/p20/1978/base/

1978 Chevrolet P20

Factory specifications, fluid capacities, torque values, EPA fuel economy and the federal safety record for the 1978 P20.

The 1978 Chevrolet P20 represents a specific model year within Chevrolet's medium-duty truck platform, a vehicle category that has served commercial and industrial applications for decades; while detailed specifications for this particular model year remain limited in available records, its historical significance lies in its positioning within the model's production timeline. Reliability data for the 1978 model year indicates just one total owner complaint on record, with the top complaint area categorized as unknown or other, suggesting no dominant failure pattern emerged from available owner feedback. Additionally, this model year carries one recall on its history, a common occurrence for vehicles of this era that reflects the regulatory and quality standards of the period. For researchers examining this vehicle, the low complaint frequency relative to the model's production volume positions the 1978 P20 as a relatively unremarkable entry in terms of documented reliability concerns, though the limited sample of complaints warrants careful interpretation of any aggregate conclusions.

Model year198919881987198619841982198119801978

Reliability & federal safety record

Owner-reported issues, recalls, investigations and service bulletins on record with NHTSA — an unfiltered look at what owners actually experience.

Owner complaints about the 1978 Chevrolet P20 dominate in one area — the unknown or other, 1 of 1 reports (100%), well ahead of the next concern. None of this vehicle's 1 recall campaigns target the unknown or other, so those reports read as owner-reported wear-and-tear rather than an acknowledged defect. 0 of the reports describe a crash and 0 a fire — a small share of the total, but worth weighing against the unknown or other pattern above. These are tallies of what owners actually reported to the federal government, not an editorial score — and higher-selling models naturally rack up more reports.

1
Open recalls
NHTSA campaigns
0
Service bulletins
Manufacturer communications
1
ODI investigations
Office of Defects Investigation
1
Owner complaints
0 involved a crash · 0 a fire

Owner complaints filed with NHTSA, by component

All 1 complaints on record, top 1 components.

Unknown Or Other1

Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation complaint database.

Recalls NHTSA · verified

Showing 1 of 1 campaigns on record for this vehicle.

07E088000EquipmentReported 24/10/2007

CERTAIN HONEYWELL FRAM RACING BRAND HP4 AND HP8 OIL FILTERS THAT WERE MANUFACTURED FROM MAY 25, 2006, THROUGH SEPTEMBER 14, 2007, AND SOLD FOR USE AS REPLACEMENT EQUIPMENT FOR VEHICLES LIST ABOVE. THE AFFECTED FILTERS… Remedy: HONEYWELL WILL REPLACE THE AFFECTED OIL FILTERS FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN DURING NOVEMBER 2007. OWNERS CAN CONTACT FRAM CUSTOMER SERVICE TOLL-FREE AT 1-800-890-2075.

Common OBD-II trouble codes

The most common OBD-II codes for this vehicle's emissions system. These are standardized SAE J2012 definitions, not vehicle-specific fault reports.

P0420
Catalyst system efficiency below threshold — Bank 1
P0300
Random / multiple cylinder misfire detected
P0171
System too lean — Bank 1
P0455
Evaporative emission system leak detected — large leak
P0128
Coolant thermostat below regulating temperature
P0442
Evaporative emission system leak detected — small leak

VIN tools

Decode factory build data for a specific vehicle by VIN.

VIN
Decode a VIN to confirm the transmission and build data for a specific P20. OEM
Build data
Plant, GVWR class, engine and body data for any 17-character VIN.
Recalls
Check open recall campaigns against a specific vehicle by VIN.

Reference guides

Cross-vehicle references for the kinds of data on this page.

Frequently asked

Does the 1978 P20 have open recalls?

NHTSA lists 1 recall campaign(s) for this model year. Check your specific vehicle by VIN.