Open safety recalls, the components owners report failing most often, crash-test results and running costs for the 2021 GMC Sierra 3500, assembled from NHTSA and EPA records.
Everything on this page applies to the model as a whole. Run its VIN to decode that exact car, its engine, trim, assembly plant and factory equipment, alongside these records.
Open a VIN recordRecalls and complaints are filed against a specific model year, so figures differ from one year to the next even within a single generation. See every GMC Sierra 3500 year.
No EPA fuel-economy match for this model. Naming may differ, or it predates EPA records.
NHTSA warns this vehicle can catch fire while parked and switched off (1 recall). Park outside and away from structures until it is repaired.
Recalls are issued per model. Confirm whether this specific car has already been repaired using its VIN, free, at any franchised dealer or on nhtsa.gov/recalls.
NHTSA lists 5 recalls for this make, model and year. Recalls apply to the model, so some may already be fixed on this specific car. A dealer can confirm from the VIN.
Issue: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2021-2022 Chevrolet Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, GMC Sierra 2500, and Sierra 3500 vehicles with electronic brake control modules (EBCM) replaced during vehicle assembly. The bolts that attach the brake pressure modulator valve (BPMV) assembly may not be properly tightened, which could fail to seal the two sub-assemblies and allow water intrusion.
Risk: Water in the BPMV may cause an electrical short circuit and increase the risk of fire.
Remedy: Owners are advised to park outside and away from other structures until the recall repair is completed. Dealers will replace the BPMV assembly, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on October 20, 2021. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N212349181.
Campaign 21V758000
Issue: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2019-2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500, 2021 Chevrolet Suburban and Tahoe and GMC Yukon XL and 2020-2021 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 and 3500 and GMC Sierra 2500 and 3500 vehicles. The seat belt brackets may not be secured to the seat frame in the front-row center seating position.
Risk: If a seat-belt bracket is not secured, the seat belt may not properly restrain an occupant in the front-row center seat position, increasing the risk of injury in a crash.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect left-side and right-side front-row center seat-belt bracket attachments and reassemble it correctly as necessary, free of charge. The recall began January 26, 2021. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N202314670.
Campaign 20V792000
Issue: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020 Chevrolet Bolt EV and 2021 GMC Canyon and Sierra 1500, 2500 and 3500, Yukon, Yukon XL, Cadillac Escalade and Escalade ESV and Chevrolet Blazer, Camaro, Colorado, Equinox, Silverado 1500, 2500 and 3500, Suburban and Tahoe vehicles. Incorrect bolts may have been used at one or more fastening locations to secure the seat belts to the vehicle. If an incorrect bolt was used, the seat belt may not be properly attached to the vehicle.
Risk: If a seat belt assembly is not properly attached to the vehicle, the seat belt may not properly restrain an occupant in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the suspect bolts, free of charge. The recall began January 29, 2021. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8785, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N202322230.
Campaign 20V811000
Issue: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020-2024 Chevrolet Silverado 2500, 3500, GMC Sierra 2500 and 3500 vehicles equipped with power-unlatching tailgates. The tailgate's electronic gate-release switch may short circuit due to water intrusion, which can result in the tailgate inadvertently unlatching while the vehicle is in park.
Risk: An unlatched tailgate may open while driving and result in a loss of unsecured cargo, creating a road hazard and increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Owners are advised to check that the tailgate is closed and latched before driving. Dealers will replace the exterior touchpad switch assemblies, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed May 17, 2024. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N232426400.
Campaign 24V060000
Issue: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Chevrolet Silverado 1500, 2500, 3500, GMC Sierra 1500, 2500, 3500, 2021 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Tahoe, Suburban, GMC Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles equipped with diesel engines. The transmission control valve may fail and cause the rear wheels to lock-up.
Risk: Rear wheel lock-up can increase the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Dealers will install new transmission control module software, free of charge. GM will provide a special coverage program to cover the repair of transmissions that are identified by the remedy software as containing a defective control valve. Owner notification letters were mailed December 12, 2024. Owners may contact GM customer service at 1-888-988-7267, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, GMC customer service at GMC 1-800-462-8782 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N242454440.
Campaign 24V797000
NHTSA has no NCAP crash-test rating for this model year, which is common for older, low-volume and heavy-duty vehicles.
The parts named most often across 20 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for this make, model and year.
Complaints are self-reported and skew toward problems people find alarming, so read this as where to look rather than as a defect rate.
The contact filed the complaint on behalf of the owner of a 2021 GMC Sierra 3500. The contact stated that while the vehicle owner was driving at an undisclosed speed, the driver noticed that the rear wheels were attempting to lockup. The contact stated that the failure was noticeable while driving forward and while reversing. No warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed with detached rear brake pads and detached rear emergency brake shoes. In addition, the rear brake caliber had seized. The vehicle owner was informed that the rear brake pads and the rear emergency brake shoes needed to be replaced, and the rear brake caliber needed to be repaired. The vehicle was repaired. The dealer was made aware of the failure. The contact was advised to contact the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 140,606.
During takeoff the transmission acted as if it was in neutral while I was crossing traffic luckily, the semi truck that was coming towards me was able to stop. I had the vehicle towed to a shop. After the vehicle was towed to the shop the transmission acted normal when the mechanic searched the VIN number. There was a service bulletin issued by General Motors for this exact problem. Had the semi not been able to stop. It could’ve very well killed me or my children. I suppose if it would’ve killed someone, maybe general motors would finally do a recall for this very disappointed in general motors and the NHTSA, the fact that this is an ongoing problem and has not been fixed and as a customer, I was not even notified that this problem existed is very alarming.
The contact owns a 2021 GMC Sierra 3500. The contact stated that while his wife had the vehicle idling with the rear defroster activated, shortly afterwards, she observed smoke coming from the plastic on the rear sliding window. After a visual inspection, the contact's wife observed that the plastic was melting, prompting her to deactivate the rear defroster. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 26,000.
The contact owns a 2021 GMC Sierra 3500. The contact stated that while reversing, the back over prevention camera screen displayed an image of the ground. The contact stated that the image was approximately ten feet behind the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, the failure was not duplicated. The dealer replaced the back over prevention camera system, however, the failure reoccurred. The contact stated that the original back over prevention camera was installed in another vehicle, and the back over prevention camera system worked as designed. The contact was informed that the back over prevention camera was not the cause of the failure. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 70,000.
There is a known issue with these trucks with the infotainment screen blacking out, which renders the backup cameras inoperative. This is a huge safety risk and its astounding to me that this hasn't been recalled yet.
When carrying the electronic key in my pocket the vehicle will lock/unlock presumably due to the remote contacting other items in the pocket. I have owned well over a dozen GM vehicles and never had this issue. I believe the remote design has the lock/unlock buttons too proud of the surrounding surface
Vehicle is put into park after driving. Shift to Park warning comes on while vehicle is in park. Vehicle will not shut off due to this warning and must be left running unoccupied.
The contact's son owns a 2021 GMC Sierra 3500 Commercial Vehicle. The contact stated while her son was driving at an undisclosed speed uphill, the vehicle failed to shift to a gear higher than 5th gear. Additionally, the rear wheels locked up, causing the vehicle to come to a stop. The driver attempted to resume driving, but the vehicle failed to exceed 10 MPH. The contact was unsure whether a warning light had been illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the residence of the driver's girlfriend. The vehicle was then towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V797000 (Power Train); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. Additionally, the dealer informed the contact that the transmission needed to be replaced, but the part was not available. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 133,000. Parts distribution disconnect.
Transmission had to be replaced from the dealership. Hard shifting dealership said truck was 23 days out of warranty. I couldn’t get into the dealership that truck was purchased from for 3 weeks. Had to go to the Jeff Gordon dealership, which is Chevrolet. And I had to replace the transmission.
Multiple instances of diesel engine emissions system parts and software failure. While driving, towing or not, the DIC would randomly display a message that the DEF level is low and reduced speed will occur in x-amount of miles and that mileage would then begin a visible countdown on the DIC, sometimes much more quickly than the actual speed I was traveling. In other words, it might at first state 500 miles remaining, but then be counting down from 500 miles by one mile per second of time, or faster. Each instance, I would park and attempt to refill the DEF tank, only to discover that the tank is already full or near full. My truck’s DEF tank has now been replaced twice under warranty with the latest tank being installed at only 35,460 miles on the odometer. During the latest replacement, the technician also diagnosed and replaced the electrical wiring harness related to the DEF tank, stating that one of the connector pins was not reading the required voltage. There was also a faulty diesel particulate sensor that was replaced under warranty. This emissions system is problematic, and it is unsafe to due to the drive ability restrictions it imposes due to faulty software and equipment. I use my truck to tow, and it would make for a very unsafe condition to have my vehicle’s speed become limited as if the vehicle ran out of fuel. Mountain grades. Two-lane highways. Passing through bad neighborhoods. Driving in uninhabited areas, sometimes late at night. Family of 6 in the vehicle. Unacceptable. General Motors Corp. must create a permanent and fail-safe fix for this emissions system and implement the parts. The emissions system warranty should be extended from 80k miles to Lifetime to cover the vehicles affected.
While driving 55mph on a 2 lane road, pulling a 5th wheel camper, the truck transmission downshifted by itself to a low gear. This caused a scary and immediate deceleration from 55 to 25mph. The trailer wanted to push into the oncoming lane the deceleration was so fast. The truck is at a dealership and they acknowledge the issue but not a fix other than putting back in the failed part. There was no warning and my readings say many others are having same issue. The small dealership we left the truck with (yemm Chevrolet in Galesburg Il) said they had 3 trucks with the same issue. The truck has been with the dealership for 7 weeks now.
When starting the vehicle, I got a message to service the parking brake (this is the second time I’ve had this warning appear in the 21,000 miles I’ve owned it, first was approximately 5,000 miles ago). When this warning is active the parking brake does not engage, and can’t be used to stop the vehicle when the brakes fail as they did today. With 42,774 miles on the vehicle, and the onboard monitor for brake wear showing remaining brake life at 94% front and 96% rear, brake fluid reservoir between Max and Min the brake pedal went soft and the vehicle would not stop. I resorted to putting the vehicle in neutral and pumping the brakes until the pedal got hard. As soon as I let off the brake my vehicle began to roll backwards, stepped on the brake pedal again and the pedal again went to the floor without stopping or slowing the vehicle (pumping the brakes got it stopped again inches away from running into my house). The myGMC app notified me that I need to service the ABS system. I had the vehicle towed to the dealership for diagnostics and repair. Possibly related, this afternoon before the brakes stopped working I felt a mild vibration when traveling 20-35mph that resembled the vibration that occurs when a wheel bearing has begun to fail. Tow truck driver witnessed the vehicles inability to stop when putting it in neutral to load vehicle. It is unimaginable that a vehicle can be placed on the highway that has no backup system in the event of brake failure. Had a kid run out in front of me there would have been no way to avoid the accident (no other warnings appeared to indicate the vehicle was unsafe to drive. Brakes worked correctly and stopped appropriately until they didn’t).
Showing 12 of 20 complaints.