2017 Gmc SIERRA 1500

Problems, Recalls & Reliability Report

Avoid This Year

Quick Summary

The 2017 Gmc SIERRA 1500 has 472 owner complaints filed with NHTSA — that's 5.9x the segment average of 80. The most common issue is transmission problems (25% of all complaints), specifically: heavy vibration between 1200 rpm and 1500 rpm anywhere below 45 mph and above 70 mph. ⚠️ 5 fire reports filed.

5 fire reports 17 crash reports 2 injuries

472

Total Complaints

Recalls Issued

—/5

Safety Stars

5.9x

vs Segment Avg

Known Problems

TRANSMISSION

117 complaints

25%

• HEAVY VIBRATION BETWEEN 1200 RPM AND 1500 RPM ANYWHERE BELOW 45 MPH AND ABOVE 70 MPH
• TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2017 GMC SIERRA 1500. WHILE DRIVING 30 MPH, THE TRANSMISSION FAILED AFTER A COMPLETE STOP. WHEN THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED, THE RPMS INCREASED. WHEN SHIFTING FROM SECOND TO FIRST GEAR, THE TRANSMISSION SHIFTED INTO FIRST GEAR WITH EXTREME FORCE AND CAUSED THE VEHICLE
• UNINTENDED ACCELERATION WHEN SLOWING DOWN TO COME TO A STOP THE VEHICLE WILL OCCASIONALLY ENGAGE A LOWER GEAR VERY SUDDENLY AND LURCH FORWARD. THE RESULTING FORCE IS ENOUGH TO OVERPOWER THE BRAKING EFFORT BEING PROVIDED BY THE DRIVER AND THE VEHICLE WILL MOVE FORWARD SEVERAL FEET BEFORE THE DRIVER

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 4 crashes

“HEAVY VIBRATION BETWEEN 1200 RPM AND 1500 RPM ANYWHERE BELOW 45 MPH AND ABOVE 70 MPH”

— NHTSA complaint filing

BRAKES

107 complaints

23%

• WAS STOPPED AT STOP LIGHT,WITH FOOT ON THE BRAKE. STARTED ROLLING FORWARD AND HAD TO PRESS HARDER ON THE BRAKE. WHEN HOLDING FOOT ON BRAKE PEDAL AND IN GEAR PEDAL SLOWLY MOVES DOWN TO THE FLOOR. TOOK VEHICLE TO DEALER WHO WAS LUCKILY CLOSE BY. THEY TESTED TRUCK BRAKE'S AND FOUND THE SAME THING. THEY
• VEHICLE HAS HARD SHIFT AT 5-6 MPH. DEALER STATED COULD NOT FIND ISSUE, AND REFLASHED TCM.APPROX MONTH LATER, AT 10K MILES, TRUCK HARD SHIFTED FROM RED LIGHT ON HIGHWAY, ONCE UP TO 45 MPH, SHUTDOWN. STEERING WHEEL LOCKED UP, NO BRAKES, NO CONTROL OF VEHICLE AT 45-50 MPH.DEALER KEPT FOR ONE WEEK, STA
• VACUUM PUMP ISSUE WITH GMC SIERRA - I NOTICED A PROBLEM BRAKING MY PICKUP, SPONGY BRAKES, HARD STOPPING. I TOOK IT TO MY LOCAL CHEVY DEALER (PORTSMOUTH CHEVROLET, PORTSMOUTH, NH). THEY DIAGNOSED IT AS A PROBLEM WITH THE VACUUM PUMP AND REPLACED THE PUMP UNDER WARRANTY. I WANTED TO ALERT YOU BECAU

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 10 crashes

“WAS STOPPED AT STOP LIGHT,WITH FOOT ON THE BRAKE. STARTED ROLLING FORWARD AND HAD TO PRESS HARDER ON THE BRAKE. WHEN HOLDING FOOT ON BRAKE PEDAL AND IN GEAR PEDAL SLOWLY MOVES DOWN TO THE FLOOR. TOOK VEHICLE TO DEALER WHO WAS LUCKILY CLOSE BY. THEY TESTED TRUCK BRAKE'S AND FOUND THE SAME THING. THEY”

— NHTSA complaint filing

ENGINE

58 complaints

12%

• THE VEHICLE WHICH HAS UNDER SEVEN HUNDRED MILES ON IT DOES THE FOLLOWING: WHEN I TRY TO ACCELERATE THE VEHICLE STARTS TO MISFIRE, STARTS TO CHUG AND JERK, IT STARTS TO HESITATE AND BECOMES ROUGH. WHEN I CALLED GMC SERVICE DEPARTMENT I WAS TOLD THERE WAS A CODE FOR THIS PROBLEM #PIP5457B BUT THAT CU
• 1. THE TRANSMISSION SHIFTS EXTREMELY ROUGH FROM 1ST TO 2ND GEAR IN PARKING LOTS AT A SLOW SPEED AND ON NORMAL HIGHWAY OR STREET DRIVING AND EXPERIENCES THE SAME THING WHILE SLOWING DOWN TO STOP 2. THE ENGINE HAS RECENTLY BEEN HAVING A AWKWARD SHAKE TO IT WHILE IN IDEAL AFTER IT HAS BEEN RUNNING AND
• THE VEHICLE WAS PURCHASED IN JANUARY 2017, SINCE THE PURCHASE OF THE VEHICLE, I HAVE HAD THE TRUCK IN THE SHOP ON 6 OCCASIONS. THE VEHICLE HAS HAD 5 INJECTORS REPLACED AND THE UPPER OIL PAN GASKET HAS BEEN REPLACED TWICE. GMC IS STALLING ME AND NOT WANTING TO PURCHASE THE VEHICLE BACK UNDER THE BU

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

“THE VEHICLE WHICH HAS UNDER SEVEN HUNDRED MILES ON IT DOES THE FOLLOWING: WHEN I TRY TO ACCELERATE THE VEHICLE STARTS TO MISFIRE, STARTS TO CHUG AND JERK, IT STARTS TO HESITATE AND BECOMES ROUGH. WHEN I CALLED GMC SERVICE DEPARTMENT I WAS TOLD THERE WAS A CODE FOR THIS PROBLEM #PIP5457B BUT THAT CU”

— NHTSA complaint filing

ELECTRICAL

54 complaints

11%

• TAKA RECALL WIRELESS CHARGER ON CONSOLE DOES NOT WORK WITH SMART PHONES ONLY ON A VERY SELECT FEW THAT ARE OUT OF DATE MY PHONE BEING THE GALAXY NOTE 9, AND MY FIANCEE'S PHONE IPHONE XR DO NOT CHARGE AND FRANKLY THE MONEY YOU PAY FOR THIS TRUCK TO HAVE AN ACCESSORY OPTION NOT WORK IS RIDICULOUS
• ON SCREEN DISPLAY FOR BACKUP CAMERA. WHEN PUTTING THE VEHICLE IN REVERSE, THE ON SCREEN DISPLAY IS SO BRIGHT THAT YOU CAN'T SEE OUT THE WINDOWS, THE REARVIEW MIRRORS OR THE SURROUNDING AREA. THIS DISPLAY DOES NOT DIM WITH THE REST OF THE LIGHTS. THIS CAUSES A SEVERE SAFETY HAZARD WHEN TRYING TO BAC
• DISPLAY SCREEN TO BRIGHT WHEN VEHICLE IS IN REVERSE. WHEN PUTTING VEHICLE IN REVERSE THE BACKUP CAMERA DISPLAY IS SO BRIGHT YOU CAN NOT SEE YOUR EXTERIOR MIRRORS OR OUT ANY OF THE WINDOWS TO SEE SURROUNDING AREA. THIS IS VERY UNSAFE CONDITION BECAUSE YOU ARE BLINDED WHILE BACKING UP. WHEN TOOK THE T

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 3 fire reports💥 1 crashes

“TAKA RECALL WIRELESS CHARGER ON CONSOLE DOES NOT WORK WITH SMART PHONES ONLY ON A VERY SELECT FEW THAT ARE OUT OF DATE MY PHONE BEING THE GALAXY NOTE 9, AND MY FIANCEE'S PHONE IPHONE XR DO NOT CHARGE AND FRANKLY THE MONEY YOU PAY FOR THIS TRUCK TO HAVE AN ACCESSORY OPTION NOT WORK IS RIDICULOUS”

— NHTSA complaint filing

OTHER

35 complaints

• I WAS TOWING A TRAILER FOR APPROX: 5 MILES WHEN I NOTICE A STRANGE ODOR AND I PULLED OVER AND REALIZED THE TRUCK HAD CAUGHT ON FIRE BY IT SELF AND POLICE AND GOOD SAMARITIN TRIED TO PUT IT OUT BUT WAS NOT SUCCESSFUL . HENCE THE TRUCK AND TRAILER WERE A TOTAL LOSS ALONG WITH $ 750 WORTH HAND TOOLS.
• THE TRANSMISSION FROM 1-2 GEAR AND DOWN SHIFT FROM 2-1 GEAR. SHIFTS VERY HARD AT TIMES.
• VIBRATION AT SPEED OF 60MPH. SINCE DAY OF PURCHASE.

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 1 fire reports

“I WAS TOWING A TRAILER FOR APPROX: 5 MILES WHEN I NOTICE A STRANGE ODOR AND I PULLED OVER AND REALIZED THE TRUCK HAD CAUGHT ON FIRE BY IT SELF AND POLICE AND GOOD SAMARITIN TRIED TO PUT IT OUT BUT WAS NOT SUCCESSFUL . HENCE THE TRUCK AND TRAILER WERE A TOTAL LOSS ALONG WITH $ 750 WORTH HAND TOOLS.”

— NHTSA complaint filing

Estimated Repair Costs

TRANSMISSION(~50K mi)

$500

BRAKES(~50K mi)

$500

ENGINE(~50K mi)

$500

ELECTRICAL(~50K mi)

$500

OTHER(~50K mi)

$500

Estimates based on average reported repair costs. Actual costs vary by location, shop, and severity.

🔍 Pre-Purchase Inspection Checklist

Based on 472 owner complaints for this specific year, here's what to check or ask about:

☐
TRANSMISSION: HEAVY VIBRATION BETWEEN 1200 RPM AND 1500 RPM ANYWHERE BELOW 45 MPH AND ABOVE 70 MPH
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
BRAKES: WAS STOPPED AT STOP LIGHT,WITH FOOT ON THE BRAKE. STARTED ROLLING FORWARD AND HAD TO PRESS HARDER ON THE BRAKE. WHEN HOLDING FOOT ON BRAKE PEDAL AND IN GEAR PEDAL SLOWLY MOVES DOWN TO THE FLOOR. TOOK VEHICLE TO DEALER WHO WAS LUCKILY CLOSE BY. THEY TESTED TRUCK BRAKE'S AND FOUND THE SAME THING. THEY
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
ENGINE: THE VEHICLE WHICH HAS UNDER SEVEN HUNDRED MILES ON IT DOES THE FOLLOWING: WHEN I TRY TO ACCELERATE THE VEHICLE STARTS TO MISFIRE, STARTS TO CHUG AND JERK, IT STARTS TO HESITATE AND BECOMES ROUGH. WHEN I CALLED GMC SERVICE DEPARTMENT I WAS TOLD THERE WAS A CODE FOR THIS PROBLEM #PIP5457B BUT THAT CU
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
ELECTRICAL: TAKA RECALL WIRELESS CHARGER ON CONSOLE DOES NOT WORK WITH SMART PHONES ONLY ON A VERY SELECT FEW THAT ARE OUT OF DATE MY PHONE BEING THE GALAXY NOTE 9, AND MY FIANCEE'S PHONE IPHONE XR DO NOT CHARGE AND FRANKLY THE MONEY YOU PAY FOR THIS TRUCK TO HAVE AN ACCESSORY OPTION NOT WORK IS RIDICULOUS
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
General: Get a pre-purchase inspection from an independent mechanic ($100-$200)