Electrical System Problems of GMC Sierra 1500 - part 1

Truck was started using auto start and I drove roughly a mile down the road smelt burning and looked in the back seat, I saw smoke and promptly pulled to the side of the road shut the vehicle off then I heard a loud pop and saw the back drivers side window shattered.

See all problems of the 2017 GMC Sierra 1500 🔎.

Digital dash cluster lost all communication and only has backlight, no speed, fuel gauges, anything what so ever. Can become extremely dangerous if driving down the road without the knowing of speed and other levels such as oil pressure and fuel.

See all problems of the 2023 GMC Sierra 1500 🔎.

First occurrence was 02/27/2026 - onstar detecated a critical issue, the check esc, check tsc words came on in the center dash, then the orange lights came on and my truck went into limp mode at a stop light. I had to limp mode a mile to the nearest dealer. Where nothing was repaired just reset. Second occurrence - exhaust flap valve failed creating chirping noise resulting in a muffler replacement on 04/28/2026 - picked the vehicle up on 04/30/2026 third occurrence - 05/01/2026 came out after a wedding to start my truck which it immediately repeated the first occurrence, check esc, check tsc with the orange lights and chugging. Recorded on camera now the trucks been at the dealership awaiting updates.

See all problems of the 2025 GMC Sierra 1500 🔎.

The contact owns a 2023 GMC Sierra 1500. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed on several occasions, the pedestrian warning alert unexpectedly illuminated. The contact stated that during the failure, the braking system became inoperable and then the brakes locked up, causing the contact and a passenger to suffer whiplash. The contact stated that there were no pedestrians near the vehicle when the failure had occurred. Additionally, the contact stated that while attempting to reverse, the pedestrian detection system failed to display a warning when a pedestrian was near the vehicle, almost causing the vehicle to strike the pedestrian. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the contact was informed that the failure was related to an electrical anomaly and a hardware failure. The contact was advised that an over-the-air update might be issued to address the issue. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 12,000.

Got in started truck and there is no sound anywhere. . . None for blinkers, radio, warning lights if there to be any. Zero sounds. This has been investigated by hertrich service--showed video of no sounds coming from truck speakers at all. This is safety hazard with no audio warnings or blinkers, flasher sounds at all.

Driving down road and had total loss of power steering and yes it is available for inspection. Almost drove it off the road due to loss of steering yes, it happened to be a failed main grounding strap that created the issue. The dealership made the repair. No, it was inspected and repaired by the dealership yes, started with loss of power steering, then truck died and these codes popped low fuel code, but tank was full; trailer brake system code; side detection code and esc traction control code.

See all problems of the 2021 GMC Sierra 1500 🔎.

I brought this truck brand new. Had issues the first couple days of purchase that was a quick fix, but as time went on things got worse. Truck always stalling out, engine has been replaced once already due to a recall and months after the first replacement, it stalled out on me again in the middle of the freeway and I just got a call from the dealership that it needs another new engine! how is this right! how is this safe! I could've lost my life on every occasion it has happened.

I stopped at a stoplight and my truck shut off, the doors unlocked and then immediately restarted and then came up with a bunch of errors telling me that my brake system failed and to get the traction control serviced. I then had no power braking. This is the second time my truck has shut off at a light and restarted, but I don’t lose my brakes the first time.

Electronic truck tail gate opened while driving after washing vehicle. The tailgate button on the fob or inside the cabin were not pressed.

See all problems of the 2022 GMC Sierra 1500 🔎.

Infotainment screen is flashing different colors and doesn’t work anymore.

See all problems of the 2020 GMC Sierra 1500 🔎.

The rear window on my 2017 GMC sierra shattered unexpectedly without any impact. The vehicle had been remote started in very cold weather and the rear window glass suddenly shattered while the truck was parked. There was no rock strike or external damage that would explain the failure. I later learned about gm customer satisfaction program n192265660 regarding rear window defroster thermal events affecting certain 2014–2019 GMC sierra and Chevrolet silverado trucks. Based on the sudden failure and the conditions at the time, this appears consistent with that issue. The auto rear defog feature in the vehicle settings was turned off, however the truck had been started using the remote start feature when the glass shattered. Photos of the shattered window are available. I am submitting this report because the rear window defroster system may cause the glass to overheat and shatter unexpectedly.

Electrical system…battery is completely dead after short in tailgate button. Yesterday afternoon I washed out the bed and tailgate. This is important to know as a result of my research. Several hours later I go out to the truck and the tailgate is open unexpectedly, thought I had left it opened. After going to dinner and shopping with family I tried to open tailgate with tailgate button and it would not work. After several attempts I then used my fob button, worked. The next morning I go out and the tailgate is opened not by me, I closed it. Got to my destination put truck in park and tailgate opened by itself. I closed it. Went inside grabbed what I needed 15 min later go back to truck and tailgate is open. . I close it. I go to start truck and battery is dead. Confirmed by battery plus in medford oregon. Did some research and see that a recall has been issued for this same reason: n232426400 tailgate may open unexpectedly. Yes the recall does not cover my vim however I believe this needs to be as a result of the cause and effect you have already confirmed. Today is Sunday. I will contact local GMC dealer though I wanted to start a formal process.

I had this truck as brand new for approximately 24 hours when it had a major failure. It had 450 miles on it at time of purchase, but was sold as new. While driving at 45mph it had a check engine light, service power steering message, lost power steering, lane departure system failure, and reduced power amongst several other lights on the dash. I limped the truck into a gas station parking lot. After turning the truck off, it would not restart. I unhooked the battery for a minute and hooked it back up. The truck did restart with no messages or check engine light. I was able to safely get it to the dealership. As a result of this issue, I forced the dealership to cancel the trade.

My GMC sierra with 40000 miles the check engine light turn on and was steady on when driving on the highway I loose a power on the vehicle for a few seconds and almost a semi truck behind me hit me because I don’t have any power on the vehicle, I stop on a safe place and try to start the vehicle again immediately call dealer for appointment an start drive to home. The lady on general motors say I can drive safe with my vehicle but I don’t feel safe because nothing on the onstar computer works the emergency button and gps it’s not working at all.

See all problems of the 2024 GMC Sierra 1500 🔎.

Vehicle battery dies and dealer cannot source issue. Voltmeter shows large fluctuations in voltage while vehicle is running and driving.

2022 GMC sierra the tailgate is electrical which cause safety awareness and concern due to the tailgate opening by itself. The tailgate seems to continuously electronically open and continue to release the latch causing the tail gate to open possibly loosing cargo from the bed or tailgate opening and hitting other vehicles that may park too close or cause damage on a hitch if available. It is a persisten issue and I have seen too many complaints. This should be looked at and recalled by manufacture or dealers it’s become a very common issues for GMC trucks and a lot of upset customers. I’m one of them.

The gauge cluster quit working, I have no way of knowing my speed or how much fuel is in the vehicle. Feel like this is a safety issue with not being able to see the speedometer.

On March 3rd 2026, I went to a doctors appointment. Halfway into the 50 minute drive, I noticed the on the infotainment screen that my gps was still showing me being at home. It was working normally a couple days prior to parking the truck. After my dr appointment, I did some online research and followed recommended procedure to do a hard reset of the infotainment/radio to try and refresh the signal. Didn't work so I checked the recommended fuse and it was good. Realized that the onstar and truck's cellular/data was also not working. After more research, I found that it's a very commonly reported issue on 2022-2024 trucks. Apparently the telematics module will freeze/glitch or fail. Took my truck down to american Chevrolet on April 13th for the data gateway module recall# n242435631 and asked their service advisor if he could find out what's going on. After the recall was performed, he verified that the telematics module is indeed dead but, because I'm at 39,000 miles, they could not fix it at no cost. The biggest reason why I've been driving this truck so frequently is because it's the safest truck we have and the automatic crash response & emergency gps gives my girlfriend some piece of mind when traveling with our two sons. She now refuses to travel with me in the truck. I'm also upset that the cellular data is paid up until I believe March of 2027 and now I can't use services paid for but, I'm more concerned about the safety features that are no longer working. For this part to completely fail or lock up at under 40k miles is absolutely absurd. I'm going to request a good faith repair through GMC but, I want this to be documented. Thank you for your review of this problem.

Motor was replaced at 70000 miles it blew rear main on the technician. Now 30000 miles later saying it needs valve body its been in shop 5 weeks now and no eta on parts. Also the onstar module went out or never worked after engine replaced. The truck has locked up 4 times before the engine was replaced once at 11000 miles. Had hard shifting issues from new dealership kept saying it just needed an update or tuned everytime until 100000 miles warranty was up. On my truck all the extras were were installed when they arrived. Heated and cooled seats. Heated steering wheel, park assist and something else however the truck was already out of manufacturers warranty before the 1st item installed at 50000 miles over a year after I had purchased. Everytime something was put on something else failed. And the grille started peeling immediately after I purchased vehicle and is almost completely gone.

The rear vision safety camera failed. A red triangle with a camera icon appeared on the infotainment screen when the vehicle was put in reverse. After testing and diagnosing the issue, the dealership determined that the rear camera suffered an internal failure and had to be replaced. The part was replaced on 3/23/26 but the dealership did not give me the failed camera back. There was no advance notice or warning leading up to the failure.

The contact owns a 2022 GMC Sierra 1500. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the driver's side seat vibrated, and the automatic high beam feature disengaged, and the lane change indicator became inoperable. The message " crash sensor system inoperable" was displayed. The dealer was notified of the failure and advised the contact to temporarily disconnect the battery. The contact followed the instruction; however, the failure recurred a day later. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed, and determined that there was a glitch in the crash sensor system. The dealer determined that the system needed to be updated. The vehicle was repaired out-of-pocket. The manufacturer was contacted and informed the contact that the failure was a maintenance issue, and the repair was at the owner's expense. The failure mileage was approximately 51,000.

Rear tailgate on my 2021 sierra opens or drops when wet. This seems to only happen in a heavy rain or after a truck wash. This problem has been recognized by the manufacturer and the dealer. There is no warning other than the constant clicking of the electric switch allowing the tailgate to drop. This problem has been recalled on the 3/4 & 1 ton trucks but not the 1/2 ton. The tailgate and switches are the same on all 3. Because my VIN# does not show for this recall I had to pay for the replacement.

While the 2017 GMC sierra was warming up via remote start, I noticed a smell of smoke as I walked by the passenger side of the truck. Then I heard a loud bang as I was walking around the rear of the truck. As I entered the truck from the driver's door I saw the back window, passenger side, shattered. The vehicle was then turned off. According to our dealership the vehicle was looked at under recall n192265660 and deemed safe in may of 2020. A call was placed to gm who said the recall expired in 2022. An offer was made by for payment assistance by the gm representative but could not say how much until we pay the dealership for a diagnostic. This is a know issue by gm. The location of the shattered window is situated inches behind where my child's head would have been had she been in the vehicle. The smell of smoke is extremely concerning because where there's smoke there's fire.

The contact owns a 2019 GMC Sierra 1500. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle lost automotive power; however, the vehicle maintained electrical power. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a local service center, where it was diagnosed and determined that the battery needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure reoccurred. The vehicle was taken back to the same local dealer and remained for additional investigation. The contact attempted to restart the vehicle several times and shift into different gears; however, the failure reoccurred. The local dealer was contacted, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 103,000.

See all problems of the 2019 GMC Sierra 1500 🔎.

On Saturday at approximately 5:30 p. M. , while driving on a two-lane city street with vehicles around me, my GMC sierra began malfunctioning. The gauges flickered, warning lights appeared, and a transmission warning activated. As I attempted to safely pull over, the vehicle began stuttering and then completely stalled in the middle of traffic. Cars swerved and honked to avoid hitting me. Fortunately, no collision occurred, but the situation was extremely dangerous and frightening. Aaa towed the vehicle to the GMC dealership. When I informed them of the incident, I received a text asking whether an over-the-air update had been performed prior to the stall. I confirmed the vehicle had received an update within the past three months. I was then told there is a bulletin stating that after an over-the-air update, the vehicle may suddenly lose communication with multiple modules and stall. The foreman indicated this was likely the cause and that they were consulting technical assistance. I asked when it is considered safe to drive a GMC vehicle following an update, as I was never warned that the vehicle could suddenly lose power and stall without notice. I was told they were investigating further. Yesterday, I was informed that engineering directed them to replace the ecm (engine control module) and the fuel pump control module, with the ecm expected to arrive next Wednesday. I have not been given a confirmed timeline for completion. This appears to be a serious and known issue within GMC, yet there has been no recall and no warning provided to consumers. I was unknowingly driving a vehicle susceptible to sudden and complete power loss. This failure placed my life, my family, and the safety of others at significant risk.

I remote started my truck, and when I got to it there was smoke and a flame coming from the rear power window. The remote start activates the rear defrosters, which started the electrical issues. I shut off the engine, and a loud pop followed, which was the shattering of the driver side rear window. The flame went out, and could have easily ignited the tarp covering the truck bed. There were no warnings on the console for the issue, and no recalls available. I have seen similar recall, but in a different state and back in 2022. This leaves me with a shattered window in the back, which is unsafe for visibility, and a bill to pay due to manufacturing errors for a feature in the truck. The rear window is all melted, and the glass is chipping away.

See all problems of the 2015 GMC Sierra 1500 🔎.

Tailgate opens randomly on numerous occasions. Sometimes it won't open after pressing the button.

Truck broke down with a rear-wheel lockup and had the transmission replaced in June 2025. In December 2025 and February 2026, truck lost power two times and entered limp mode while on a major highway and major interstate. The problem was misdiagnosed in June 2025, diagnosed properly in December 2025, but not properly repaired, and diagnosed properly in February 2026. All three times the vehicle had this issue, two of the same exact dtcs were present. This is a safety defect, and I have lost all confidence that the vehicle is reliable enough and safe enough for myself and my family.

1. Electronic power steering modular issue. My 2018 GMC seirra 1500 crew cab just lost all power steering. Then when I park it. Assist notifications come on, abs notices, brake light stays on, trailer/tow notifications, trailer assist, parking brake, etc suddenly a loud thump & feels like the whole truck just drops like 5” inches, settling. I cannot afford an inspection (id theft in 2025, compromised all accts & all credit cards) but. It is available as long as cost is covered by you !! 2. Lucky it happened in a grocery store parking lot. However not expecting power steering to go out, almost hit a pedestrian. 3. No it has not ben inspected yet I can’t afford the bill 4. No it has not been reported what for I didn’t hit anybody and the cops in this area they could give her rats ass they don’t make a report the question you like you’re like a criminal. 5. No warnings or anything until it happened that day leaving the grocery store. There is absolutely no notification it was gonna happen. It ran fine when I parked it to grocery shop come back out & I could barely back out to leave. I can lift up my had fatboy if needed so I’m sure turning a steering wheel…. Lol thnx a lot if I could figure out what part needs to be changed out or you could cover the parts needed. I do work in cars or have in the past, I don’t like the new ones, but this seems simple enough if I knew exactly what part I needed to pull out change out or I see that there’s recalls on previous vehicles and GMC after2020- 24 but I don’t see 2018 didn’t happen so I like to say whoever created that electronic steering can take that module along with the harness and they know exactly where they can put it don’t they I’m just saying as a used to be not sure now a GMC supporter, but I’m starting to think twice now if I.

See all problems of the 2018 GMC Sierra 1500 🔎.

Vehicle stalled in busy intersection in mckinney texas , unable to start are shift into a neutral position on transmission to remove from extreme dangerous intersection, sheriff advised that road side assistance that was contacted is not going to be in time (90min)to keep from causing an ongoing traffic backup , sheriff dispatched their own towing service to resolve the situation from getting extremely dangerous . Vehicle and my wife was towed to mckinney Buick GMC dealership.

The park assist would go on when I was at a stop light and no one was in front of me and auto stop was off all the time. Two ground straps were corroded. There is a recall on them from 2019 to 2024. My truck did not have a recall on it. I just want to let you know and maybe if enough people complain, you will put all trucks on the recall.

The contact owns a 2024 GMC Sierra 1500. The contact stated that while driving at 67 mph, the transmission shifted to neutral(n) unexpectedly. In addition, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal. The contact attempted to drive the vehicle off the road. A passerby slowed down and allowed the contact to move over to the side of the road. The engine seized, and the vehicle stalled between the shoulder and the line of the left lane. The check engine warning light illuminated, and the messages "battery low" and "reducing features to save battery" were displayed on the instrument panel. The contact called a friend who towed the vehicle to the dealer. The dealer was informed that the engine had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle remained at the dealer unrepaired. The contact stated that due to the failure, the contact no longer felt safe while driving the vehicle. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 52,680.

I was driving the truck on the freeway and the engine completely shut off with no warning. I pulled to the side of the shoulder and I could smell a burning smell. The truck wouldn’t start back up or move in neutral. Towed it to a shop and they said it had a camshaft issue and a slight knocking noise when they got it to fire up only would run for a little then shut back off. Now I’m having to replace the whole engine due to being bad with the cam code and knocking.

This complaint involves a sudden failure of my vehicle’s anti-lock braking system (abs) and forward collision warning system, both of which are critical safety systems. While driving my [xxx] son to school, multiple warning lights suddenly appeared on the dashboard without any prior indication of a problem. The vehicle displayed a warning message instructing me not to exceed 36 miles per hour, and several system alerts activated simultaneously, my abs brake system failed and a transmission failure warning. These issues appeared suddenly while the vehicle was in normal operation. Prior to this incident, the vehicle had been functioning perfectly. The evening before, I had driven the vehicle to pick up my son from wrestling practice with no issues. The following morning, during a routine trip to school, these critical safety warnings appeared without warning. Because the warnings involved the braking system, I immediately took the vehicle to beach Buick GMC for inspection. The dealership diagnosed the issue as a software failure affecting the braking system and informed me that the vehicle required a software update and system download in order to restore proper operation of the brakes and related safety systems. I was required to pay over $300 for this repair because my vehicle is approximately 3,000 miles outside of the warranty period. However, I believe a failure involving the braking system and safety warnings should not occur suddenly in a properly functioning vehicle and should not be treated as a normal maintenance expense. I contacted **general motors customer service to ask why a failure involving a critical safety system would not be covered or investigated further. The only explanation provided was that the vehicle was outside of the warranty period. I requested a written explanation of their decision for my records, but I was told that providing written explanations is against company policy. I have more to say but I am out of characters. . . Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of informa.

The front forward-facing camera module has failed, causing cruise control and driver-assistance features to become inoperative. Dealer diagnosis indicates the front camera must be replaced and recalibrated in order to restore cruise control and safety systems. This failure disables cruise control and driver-assist features that were standard equipment on the vehicle at purchase, resulting in a sudden loss of functionality while driving. The dealer has provided a repair estimate of approximately $1,150, including parts, labor, and required calibration, at owner expense. Based on similar reports from other owners, this appears to be a recurring issue affecting this model year.