2020 Gmc Sierra 3500 problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Power Train (16) · Service Brakes (5) · Structure:body (4)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Gmc Sierra 3500 model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
Safety recalls (8)
Power Train:automatic Transmission:control Module:software 2026-02-12 · campaign 26V083000 · 1,055 vehicles
Defect: General Motors, LLC is recalling certain 2020 Chevrolet Silverado 2500, 3500, GMC Sierra 2500, 3500, and 2020-2022 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 vehicles that may have been repaired incorrectly under recall 24V797. The transmission control valve may fail and cause the rear wheels to lock up.
Risk: Rear wheel lock up increases the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will inspect the vehicles and update the transmission control software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 6, 2026. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N252516560. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on February 12, 2026.
Power Train:automatic Transmission:fluid/Lubricant:valves/Valve Body 2024-10-24 · campaign 24V797000 · 463,295 vehicles
Defect: 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.
Fix: 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.
Latches/Locks/Linkages:tailgate:latch 2024-02-01 · campaign 24V060000 · 570,434 vehicles
Defect: 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.
Fix: 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.
Seat Belts:critical Fasteners 2020-12-17 · campaign 20V792000 · 624,216 vehicles
Defect: 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.
Fix: 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.
Air Bags:side/Window:curtain:inflator 2020-07-30 · campaign 20V446000 · 769 vehicles
Defect: General Motors, LLC. (GM) is recalling certain 2020 Buick Enclave, Cadillac XT5 and XT6, Chevrolet Blazer, Silverado 1500, 2500 and 3500 and Traverse and GMC Acadia and Sierra 1500, 2500 and 3500 vehicles. The diffuser component of the Roof-Rail Air Bag (RRAB) inflator may not have been properly crimped to the inflator and could separate from the inflator during air bag deployment.
Risk: If the diffuser separates from the inflator during deployment, RRAB performance may be degraded, increasing the risk of injury in a crash.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the suspect RRAB modules, free of charge. The recall began September 3, 2020. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-630-2438, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-333-4223, or Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300. GM's number for this recall is N202305380.
Latches/Locks/Linkages:hood:latch 2020-06-04 · campaign 20V324000 · 272 vehicles
Defect: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 and 3500 and GMC Sierra 2500 and 3500 vehicles previously recalled under 20V-142. Some of the vehicles in 20V-324 were not part of Recall 20V-142 but received defect parts during another service (typically during collision repair). The hood-latch striker wires on replacement hoods installed for Safety Recall 20V-142 may not have been heat-treated properly, possibly causing them to fracture.
Risk: If a striker wire fractures, the hood may open unexpectedly while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the hood assembly, free of charge. For hoods sold over the counter, dealers will contact customers with instructions for hood replacement. The recall began July 7, 2020. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or GMC customer service at 1-888-988-7267. GM's number for this recall is N202306490.
Latches/Locks/Linkages:hood:latch 2020-03-12 · campaign 20V142000 · 1,909 vehicles
Defect: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 and 3500 and GMC Sierra 2500 and 3500 vehicles. The hood-latch striker wires may not have been heat-treated properly, possibly causing them to fracture.
Risk: If a striker wire fractures, the hood may open unexpectedly while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the hood assembly, free of charge. The recall began April 13, 2020. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or GMC customer service at 1-888-988-7267. GM's number for this recall is N192284960.
Seat Belts:pretensioner 2019-11-14 · campaign 19V814000 · 556,399 vehicles
Defect: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2019-2020 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500, and 2020 Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, Sierra 2500, and Sierra 3500 vehicles equipped with carpet floor covering. When the front seat belt pretensioners deploy, hot gas may vent through an opening in the pretensioner bracket, possibly igniting the carpet.
Risk: A vehicle fire could result if materials ignite inside the vehicle.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will close off the opening in the pretensioner bracket, free of charge. The recall began December 13, 2019. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or GMC customer service at 1-888-988-7267. GM's number for this recall is N192270600.
Service bulletins (906)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Unknown Or Other 2026-09-26 · PIT5698F · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this pi provides diagnostics tips on how the lin bus works and how to diagnosis it.
Unknown Or Other 2026-09-04 · PIP4902W · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information advises a dealer on how to email gds2 session logs into technical assistance.
Unknown Or Other 2026-08-27 · PIP6127A · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this document assists gm dealer technicians with diagnosing torque converter concerns to ensure torque converter replacement is necessary. the torque converter part number will be placed on order restriction, and the technician will be asked to follow 25-na-148 before requesting a part through pqc.
Unknown Or Other 2026-08-07 · PIT6031B · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information communicates an issue where an aftermarket autostop device or rear taillights is causing a dead battery.
Unknown Or Other 2026-07-23 · PIT5680B · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this pi provides information to repair the door water deflector which is not sealed properly allows water into the door jam/sill area.
Unknown Or Other 2026-07-21 · PIT5099J · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
pi to help diagnose a/c concern
Showing the 6 most recent of 906 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2026-03-20 · Power Train“my truck has been exhibiting hard downshifting at certain speeds, when the powertrain loads up such as a grade change, and requires a downshift. i have complained about this issue to the dealership as early as 2022, and 33,185 miles. the dealership made me pay for a transmission $388.90 flush which did not resolve the issue. the problem has beco…”
2026-01-21 · Unknown Or Other“diesel exhaust fluid tank heater malfunctioned and meted tank and connectors. …”
2025-10-16 · Structure:body“known defect with 2019 and now 2020 gmc sierra trucks. design was updated for 2021+ which has corrected the seal failure defect. gm has issued a service bulletin to dealers about how to repair the problem. back window is leaking water. defective seal noted by gm. gm is only covering the cost of repair if. vehicle is still under 3/36 warranty. if ou…”
2025-10-08 · Engine“the engine seized at 65mph. available for inspection. was left stranded in a limited access area with no cell service. there was no warning, the engine just stopped at highway speed and would not restart. the problem was confirmed by an independent service center. they couldnt identify which component had failed without a costly teardown. occurred …”
2025-07-09 · Power Train · 130,000 mi“the contact owns a 2020 gmc sierra 3500. the contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently went into limp mode. there was no warning light illuminated. the vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the transmission valve body sensor had failed and needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not r…”
2025-07-08 · Power Train · 108,000 mi · 💥 crash“the contact owns a 2020 gmc sierra 3500. the contact stated that while driving at 60 mph, the rear differential seized, in addition, the contact was hauling a median size tracker on top of a flat bed. the flat bed jackknifed and hit the left side of the contact's vehicle. the vehicle was able to come to a stop. the air bags did not deploy. there wa…”
2025-07-01 · Visibility · 50,000 mi“the contact owns a 2020 gmc sierra 3500. the contact stated that while driving 45 mph with passengers seated in the rear seats, the passengers became aware that water was entering the vehicle between the window and frame. there were no warning lights illuminated. the vehicle was taken to the local dealer, who informed the contact of technical servi…”
2025-06-30 · Tires“lt275/65r20 while driving westbound on i87/us64/us264 at the on ramp of us64 business at highway speeds, the driver’s side rear tire tread de-laminated from the belts of the tire. observed the entire tread airborne in rear view mirror. pulled over to shoulder and observed for damage to other vehicles, no vehicle was hit but drivers did have to mak…”
2025-05-21 · Unknown Or Other“engine started skipping, then service parking brake light came on, then service engine light came on and speed dropped to 44 mph.…”
2025-05-16 · Lane Departure: Warning“my intellibeam function stops working sometimes, i can still use the lights as normal but the intellibeam function stops every so often and starts working after about 2 to 10 mins. lane departure warning stops every so often and will start working after 1 to 10 mins, i have noticed that when it stops working at night time then the intellibeam func…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.