2026 GMC Sierra 1500 Engine Problems
- Complaints
- 101about this part
- Share
- 69%of 147 total for the year
- Median mileage
- 5,509miles
- Trend
- Too newThis model year is less than 4 years old, so a trend is not meaningful yet.
NHTSA recorded 101 complaints about the engine of the 2026 GMC Sierra 1500, 69% of the 147 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 5,509 miles. 1 of these say a crash was involved, according to the filers.
Example complaints
Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
“While driving on the highway, the steering became much more stiff, and then I heard metallic clanging sounds for a few seconds. The dashboard said press start to start Vehicle. I pressed start while going 30 miles an hour and all lights and instrument clusters went black. I pulled into the grass median where the truck would not start or shift gears. Truck was towed to a GMC dealership”
NHTSA complaint #11740289, filed 2026-05“Driving approximately 30mph, the engine shut down. Vehicle shifted into neutral until stopped and shifted to park. Unable to place in neutral to pull off the road. Check engine stated transmission needed service. Dealership states seized engine. Engines are on back order. Vehicle has 2980 miles on the odometer. I'm active duty Navy and have a permanent change of station this summer and no vehicle to move in and I also haven't gotten a rental.”
NHTSA complaint #11729257, filed 2026-04“Driving on the PA turnpike at speed with traffic and the engine lost power and started squealing. No lights came on, I was able to get to the side of the road and the truck shut off. When I restarted it, it sounded terrible. Had it towed to dealer and dealer stated that the engine had a terminal failure with the crank bearings and needs replaced. I was fortunate at the time of the issue that I was able to get off the road since the truck lost all power.”
NHTSA complaint #11730473, filed 2026-04“Driving on the highway near Rockport, WA, when vehicle suddenly loss propulsion, engine light appeared, and vehicle went into transport mode enabled. Without causing an accident, I was able to pull to the side of the road. Once I put vehicle in park, it shut off and displayed, “Tranport Mode On. Vehicle would not start and was towed home. My son-in-law was able to disable transport mode, but vehicle still will not start. Will notify dealership on Monday.”
NHTSA complaint #11755698, filed 2026-08“I do not have an official communication from the dealer who is servicing my vehicle. However, they have had my vehicle for almost 3 weeks and they tell me that the engine has failed and needs complete replacement. They said the engine lost compression and quit running, it now cranks and does not start. Although the engine has not been disassembled we believe the point fo failure to be in the rotating assembly of the bottom end of the engine.”
NHTSA complaint #11693972, filed 2025-10Related service bulletins
- 11035676Aug 4, 2026Certain vehicles listed above may have a condition in which the oil filter was not adequately tightened. Dealers are to check and tighten the oil filter if found to be loose.
- 11020254May 7, 2025This service bulletin provides information to dealership personnel for new vehicles with less than 1,000 miles that may not pass California smog inspection or smog inspection in…
Engine: other model years
| Year | Complaints | Share of year |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 101 | 69% |
| 2025 | 59 | 48% |
| 2024 | 190 | 50% |
| 2023 | 212 | 42% |
| 2022 | 241 | 40% |
| 2021 | 322 | 54% |
| 2020 | 244 | 51% |
| 2019 | 313 | 48% |
| 2018 | 67 | 22% |
| 2017 | 58 | 16% |
| 2016 | 39 | 11% |
| 2015 | 84 | 12% |
| 2014 | 69 | 9% |
| 2013 | 8 | 7% |
| 2012 | 6 | 6% |
| 2011 | 16 | 6% |
| 2010 | 11 | 7% |
| 2009 | 13 | 6% |
| 2008 | 19 | 5% |
| 2007 | 19 | 7% |
| 2006 | 5 | 3% |
| 2005 | 6 | 3% |
| 2004 | 5 | 2% |
| 2003 | 3 | 2% |
| 2001 | 2 | 1% |
| 2000 | 1 | 1% |
| 1999 | 1 | 1% |
Other parts of the 2026 GMC Sierra 1500
35 complaintsElectrical system
20 complaintsFuel system
11 complaintsOther or unknown
11 complaintsForward collision avoidance
6 complaintsBrakes
5 complaintsSteering
4 complaintsVehicle speed control
4 complaintsBack-over prevention (rear camera)
3 complaintsLane departure
2 complaintsBody and structure
2 complaintsEquipment
1 complaints
← All problems reported for the 2026 GMC Sierra 1500
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 29, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.
To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology