AutoUtility currently tracks 47 official NHTSA owner defect complaints for the 2016 GMC Sierra 1500. Brakes & Traction Control issues are the most frequently reported category, appearing in 11 complaints (23.4% of submitted records). Among these NHTSA complaint records, 3 filings cite a crash, 1 cites a fire, 2 report one or more injuries.
- • Total NHTSA Complaints: 47 reports
- • #1 Reported Problem Area: Brakes & Traction Control (11 reports • 23.4% of submitted complaints)
- • Secondary Problem Areas: Powertrain & Transmission (11), Steering System (6)
- • Crash-Citing Complaints: 3 filings
- • Fire-Citing Complaints: 1 filings
- • Complaints Reporting Injuries / Fatalities: 2 injury filings • 0 fatality filings
Most Reported Problems for 2016 GMC Sierra 1500
Top automotive subsystem defect categories ranked by unique owner complaint volume in federal records
Brakes & Traction Control
NHTSA records list 2 official safety recall campaigns for this model year involving the same broad component area:
- Campaign #19V761000 SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP:WHEEL SPEED SENSOR/TONE RING
- Campaign #19V645000 SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:POWER ASSIST:VACUUM
Powertrain & Transmission
Steering System
NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:
- Campaign #19V645000 SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:POWER ASSIST:VACUUM
Engine & Cooling
Body & Structure
NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:
- Campaign #19V761000 SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP:WHEEL SPEED SENSOR/TONE RING
Recent NHTSA Owner Reports for 2016 GMC Sierra 1500
Representative defect filings submitted by owners to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
"Paint is failing and delaminating from both rear doors around windows and also the truck bed."
"The vehicle stopped dead in traffic and would not restart. No warning lights. This is a huge safety hazard. Had to be towed to a dealership. The dealership and other diesel shops said the issue is a known catastrophic CP4 fuel pump failure. The fuel pump shreds and metal shavings are found..."
"My vehicle a 2016 GMC Sierra 1500 upon lower idle speeds loses vacuum pressure. As the vacuum level drops the brake assist decreases, increasing the braking effort, extending the distance required to stop the vehicle, which increases the risk of a crash. I have had a warning light come on advising..."
"Catastrophic engine failure while traveling 40 mph. Dealership diagnosed as cylinder walls being scorched and rods blown through. No warning signs existed - just had a loud thud before the check engine light started flashing and grinding sound started coming from engine."
"I noticed a "ticking" noise a few years ago, it wasn't that bad and while taking my truck to the dealer for an oil change I ask about it and the representative told me that in this models that was normal. Since it wasn't that bad and the truck didn't show any problems at that time, I just decide to..."
Complaint History for GMC Sierra 1500
Reported defect complaint volume across sibling model years (2015–2026)
| Model Year | NHTSA Complaints | Crash Reports | Safety Recalls | Detailed Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 GMC Sierra 1500 | 813 | 29 | 15 | View 2015 Problems → |
| 2016 GMC Sierra 1500 Current Page | 47 | 3 | 9 | Current |
| 2017 GMC Sierra 1500 | 426 | 20 | 5 | View 2017 Problems → |
| 2018 GMC Sierra 1500 | 297 | 10 | 7 | View 2018 Problems → |
| 2019 GMC Sierra 1500 | 626 | 12 | 10 | View 2019 Problems → |
| 2020 GMC Sierra 1500 | 454 | 12 | 12 | View 2020 Problems → |
| 2021 GMC Sierra 1500 | 539 | 5 | 7 | View 2021 Problems → |
| 2022 GMC Sierra 1500 | 557 | 10 | 6 | View 2022 Problems → |
| 2023 GMC Sierra 1500 | 443 | 5 | 3 | View 2023 Problems → |
| 2024 GMC Sierra 1500 | 335 | 5 | 1 | View 2024 Problems → |
| 2025 GMC Sierra 1500 | 103 | 3 | 1 | View 2025 Problems → |
| 2026 GMC Sierra 1500 | 0 | 0 | 2 | View 2026 Problems → |
Detailed NHTSA Component Breakdown for 2016 GMC Sierra 1500
Complete distribution of consumer defect reports across all 24 granular NHTSA system and subsystem classifications
| Vehicle Component / System | Total Complaints | Crash Reports | Fire Reports | Reported Injury Entries | Reported Fatality Entries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Service Brakes NHTSA category: SERVICE BRAKES | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Powertrain NHTSA category: POWER TRAIN | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Engine NHTSA category: ENGINE | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Steering NHTSA category: STEERING | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Structure & Body NHTSA category: STRUCTURE | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Electrical System NHTSA category: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VISIBILITY | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,SERVICE BRAKES | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tires NHTSA category: TIRES | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other / Uncategorized NHTSA category: UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Air Bags NHTSA category: AIR BAGS | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING,VISIBILITY | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC),SERVICE BRAKES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,WHEELS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Seats & Restraints NHTSA category: SEATS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,POWER TRAIN,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| STEERING,SEAT BELTS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STRUCTURE,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Suspension NHTSA category: SUSPENSION | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Visibility & Wipers NHTSA category: VISIBILITY/WIPER | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Wheels & Hubs NHTSA category: WHEELS | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Official NHTSA Defect Investigations (1)
Formal safety defect inquiries and engineering analyses opened by the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI)
Brake Vacuum Pump Failure
On November 20, 2018, the Office of Defects Investigations (ODI) opened PE18-012 to investigate instances of sudden onset of a hard brake pedal that could result in extended stopping distance due to an issue with the brake assist vacuum pump in model year (MY) 2014 through 2016 GMC Sierra 1500 and Chevrolet Silverado 1500 series pickup trucks and MY 2015 through 2016 Cadillac Escalade, Chevrolet Suburban, Chevrolet Tahoe, and GMC Yukon SUVs.If th...
The complaint records on this page are retrieved directly from the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) public database.
Local Production Store Compiled: August 2026 • Deterministic Audited Dataset • Zero Dynamic External API Runtime Latency.