This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
On 10/21/2025 as I was traveling on the highway in Kansas at 60 mph, the vehicle lost power and the engine went into limp mode immediately reducing the speed dramatically. Multiple warning lights flashed on the screen. I was able to get the truck to the side of the highway. The vehicle never started again. I was informed by the dealer that the vehicle would need a new engine.
I was driving on the freeway and my gmc Sierra at4 received a notification that I could could no longer accelerate. I pulled off to the side as safely as I could in a slanted hill in a major freeway with no shoulder. I sat on the side of the road for 45 min and then ran out of diesel gas waiting for the tow truck. We took into gmc and they said nothing was wrong, we were out of gas. But I ran out of gas waiting for the tow truck. The truck never shut off and ac still going, I just couldn-??t accelerate. We-??ve had the truck in the shop every single month for the past year for sensor issues and replacements and have all the documentation of the last few years of similar issues. No extensions of warranty-??s nothing. Well we started to smell something burning this week and now we were told today we have a faulty fuel pump that will cost us $1,000 to fix and is not covered under our warranty. The truck is still under warranty, so why is something in relation to the power train not covered" There is a current t recall on other gmc models of this year for this fuel pump issue and the safety recall is EXACTLY what happened to us on the freeway and the issue we have now. Why has this not been extended to other GMCs????" My entire family could have died on the side of the freeway!!
My wife was driving at highway speeds with all are kids when the trucks motor suddenly loss all power all check engine lights illuminated and what I'm assuming had major engine failure causing rod knock.
This was the first time I had ever experienced the rear differential locking up at highway speeds in my truck. It was probably the day after I bought the truck. I was going down route one southbound going probably around 60 miles an hour and the wheels locked up and the vehicle felt like it was gonna come to a screeching hole. It felt like I hit something And then the wheels unlocked and it allowed me to keep driving. I thought that I might have hit the cruise control button on the steering wheel by accident and chopped it up to operator error which now I know is one of the most dangerous recall issues I-??ve ever had to experience or indoor. Thank goodness my family was not with me at the time. But these issues continued on for months-??
I was driving at highway speeds probably doing 55 and another vehicle pulled out in front of me forcing me to slow down rapidly. That-??s when my wheels locked up and my vehicles wheels locked up in the middle of the highway. Screeching tires, almost like the vehicle went into park for a second. After about two seconds, I was able to continue driving a highway speed no check engine lights no error codes. It felt like I just hit something nearly gave me a heart attack. My family was in the car. It felt like we all almost died. It was terrifying. This transmission issue recall situation has happened to me more times than I can count. Now it-??s almost a guarantee that if you have to shift too hard too fast it locks up the differential and it is terrifying. Every time.
- Yardley, PA, USA
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I just took my 2021 GMC Sierra 1503.0 Duramax diesel into Faulkner Nissan, today 10/18/2025 m, to have that recall fixed. I picked it up from the dealership and drove about 10 miles before it went into limp mode and reduced power mode while I was driving and started to shift very roughly and I-??ve never had any issue like this before they supposedly fix this recall, I think the software patch made it worse in my case. Now my vehicle is throwing a bunch of different transmission error codes, that it has never produced, and it is going into reduced power mode, as I-??m driving and going into limp mode as I-??m driving, which you never has done before And it feels like it-??s stuttering in early gears now and the idle was really rough it didn-??t idle at a specific spot it went from 800 to 1300 back down to 800 when it should-??ve just been idle at 800. I don-??t know what to do. It seems like this recall made the problem worse for me and my truck in this case, I don-??t know what to do and I don-??t know where to go. I hope you guys can help us. Please make GMC take responsibility Before somebody gets killed. If they haven-??t already this issue is extremely DANGEROUS AND I-??M SURE IS DESTROYING THE TRANSMISSION. I don-??t feel comfortable driving my family in my vehicle anymore because of this issue it is terrifying-??.
Dtc code P1098 present related to faulty coolant control valve on 3.0 duramax diesel engiine. This is a known issue with this engine and is supposed to be covered under the 100K mile powertrain warranty. Previously took vehicle into dealership for repair involving replacement of the coolant control valve but was told reprogramming of the ECM was required first step per GM repair bulletin. Reprogramming cost me $195 and was told this was not covered under the 100K powertrain warranty. Now, a few months later, the same issue and dtc code P1098 happened again while driving on freeway at freeway speeds and caused vehicle computer to limit speed of the vehicle which caused hazardous situation in construction zone as was not able to maintain speed of traffic while towing trailer with boat. I also understand that GM has issued special extended warranty related to this coolant control valve in September 2025 which extends the warranty coverage up to 15 years and/or up to 150K miles but I was told at the dealership that my VIN# does not qualify for this extended coverage for some unknown reason?
Transmission on my vehicle has failed three times since I bought the vehicle in October of 2021. Vehicle currently has 39,000 miles. First transmission issue was resolved by the dealership by replacing the transmission valve body. This solved the problem for approximately 12,000 miles. In September of 2025 with 39,000 miles the transmission suffered a catastrophic breakdown which lead to complete transmission replacement. After being -??fix-?? the vehicle suffered another catastrophic transmission failure within 400 miles of the complete transmission replacement. This incident caused the vehicle to shut completely down and I was stuck in the traffic lane of the US Highway. Fortunately my vehicle and I were not struck while waiting 30 minutes for a tow truck. Presently the vehicle is back at the dealership awaiting repair. From my review of available on-line information it appears there are 10-??-??s of thousands of GMC Sierra pickups with major transmission issues. This needed to be addressed before someone is killed due to the poor quality of these GMC trucks.
The contact owns a 2021 GMC Sierra 1500. The contact stated that while driving 45-50 MPH, the engine revved and the transmission unintendedly downshifted, causing the vehicle to decelerate unexpectedly. The transmission then seized, and the vehicle skidded. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, who determined that the transmission had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 127,000.
The contact owns a 2021 GMC Sierra 1500. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign number: 24V797000 (POWER TRAIN), and the dealer performed an interim repair on the vehicle. In March 2025 the part was available, and the recall repair was completed. The contact stated that on one occasion, while driving at an undisclosed speed and then coming to a complete stop, the vehicle jerked and the transmission unexpectedly downshifted. The message -??Low Power Mode-?? was displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle then failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal. The contact drove to a parking lot and turned off the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to Don Moore Chevrolet GMC, where it was diagnosed with transmission control valve failure. The contact was informed it would be months before the repair could be performed. The vehicle was towed to another dealer, where the transmission control valve failure was confirmed, and the contact was informed there were metal shavings found inside the transmission. The vehicle remained at the dealer unrepaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 115,000.
Constant engine issues, cams, lifters. Transmission problems. These engines in these vehicles need to be RECALLED. I have bought 6 of these trucks and all of them have the same issues. SPENDING 14k on new engines one after another is ridiculous. These are classified as -??work-?? trucks and can-??t handle -??working-???
Transmission failure at a little over 120,000 miles while towing a side by side on the highway. This highway has a speed limit of 80 which is dangerous when the vehicle stops working properly for myself and any other drivers in itself. Earlier this year the transmission had been updated due to a recall and was deemed to work good by the dealership but didn-??t notice any difference. Had an engine light pop up a couple hours before but no messages or any other signs to inform me of the issue and was still working fine with no struggle until it gave out
Torque Converter failure confirmed by dealer: was driving at high way speeds when I noticed a slipping sensation from the transmission upon any sort of acceleration. No warning lights were illuminated or any symptoms leading up to the failure. This could have potentially caused me to lose any form of acceleration that would enable me to get off of the highway or away from a situation requiring sudden acceleration.
I have contacted local GMC repair facility (Frank Brown in Lubbock Tx.) about the safety recall on my 6.2 liter engine to attempt to schedule an inspection of my engine and cannot get them to inspect the engine which the recall notice said they would do. They continue to stall and say the inspection isn't approved by GM. I've tried 3 different times to address this isuue without satisfactory results. I recieved the GM safety recall N252494000 notice for my vehicle in May 2025
The contact owns a 2021 GMC Sierra 1500. The contact stated that while driving 15 MPH, the vehicle briefly jerked and jolted, prompting him to discontinue driving the vehicle. The vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed failures with the output shaft speed sensor and the transmission control module. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was 89,000.
Have owned my 2021 GMC Sierra 1500 with the 3.0 Duramax for a year and the check engine light has come on multiple times for a "Coolant Control Valve" issue. The truck runs the fans at 100% and puts the truck into reduced power at least once a day. I have read that GM sometimes will not cover this repair under powertrain warranty even though it's an engine problem. Please fix this issue! To answer the previous questions, the coolant control valve is malfunctioning, and the truck is currently at the dealer being inspected. Yes the dealer has said this issue is common on these trucks (confirmed by National GMC in American Fork, Utah). Yes the check engine light has appeared multiple times. These issues started appearing in June 2025
This vehicle experienced catastrophic engine failure while I was on vacation 400 miles from home. I have researched this failure and there is a class action lawsuit against GMC. My truck has been at the dealer for 25 days and still waiting for authorization from Fidelity Warranty Services. Considering it-??s such a common problem I feel GMC should be paying for this. At the very least the warranty company is aware of this problem and purposely delaying the authorization to repair. I just bought a new camper which I cannot use. I am fisherman and cannot use my boat. My beach pass is also on the vehicle. So essentially my summer has been ruined by a company that produced a faulty vehicle and didn-??t discord this information to me.
What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request" The Coolant Control Valve has stopped working. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? While driving the truck can overheat very quickly which can lead to dangerous temperatures as well as cause me to make an emergency stop on the highway to allow the truck to cool down. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? Yes, I have discussed with a dealership in person and independent mechanic who have confirmed the issue and confirmed it is a very common issue. So common that the only replacement part for the problem is backordered. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? No, they confirmed the issue without inspecting the vehicle because of how common it happens. Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear" There were no warnings before the issue. The issue happened and then the check engine light turned on as well as a "reduced engine power" message.
I own a 2021 GMC Denali with a 6.2L V8 L87 engine and 45,500 miles. I have confirmed the presence of metal shavings in the oil and oil filter, indicating that the engine is beginning to fail. When I took the vehicle to my local dealership, I was informed that there is currently no fix for this issue and was advised to continue driving the vehicle. This poses a serious safety risk-?"not just to me and my family but also to others on the road. A sudden loss of power could lead to a dangerous accident, and I do not want to be responsible for something preventable that could harm innocent people. My concern is that GM is aware of this engine issue but has instructed me to keep driving the vehicle, despite the known defect. How can GM be allowed to avoid accountability for such a critical safety matter" If a fatal accident were to occur, would the responsibility fall on GM or the NHTSA for failing to act" It-??s also troubling that GM continues to profit by selling new vehicles, including the 2025 models, with similar issues, all while neglecting to provide solutions for affected customers like me. I purchased this $80,000 truck in good faith, but now no dealer wants to trade or buy these trucks without me taking a significant financial loss-?"something GM should be responsible for. As a taxpayer, I find it unacceptable that we bailed out GM in the mid-2000s, yet they continue to disregard accountability for their actions. I urge the NHTSA to take this issue seriously. A specific deadline should be set for GM to resolve this issue, and they should face daily penalties for every day they fail to provide a fix. If no resolution is possible, full refunds should be mandated. Please address this issue promptly, as it affects real people-??s safety and financial well-being every day.
At around 60,000 miles I had experienced shuttering and jerking in low gears and the vehicle shoots forward when coming to a complete stop. I was able to take the vehicle in a short time after and I was told by the dealership that it needed a transmission flush. I completed the flush and after a week or two it started doing it again. I took it to a transmission shop and they advised it is the transmission valve body that is bad. I believe this started happening before my warranty was out but due to me bringing it in after the mileage they would not honor the warranty. This could cause multiple hazards at stops and while driving. No warning lamps or message have ever appeared.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Lawrence, KS, USA