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2003 GMC Sierra 1500

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2003 GMC Sierra 1500 do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 181.

About this comparison →
180Owner complaints

Model-year median: 181

1Recall campaigns

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0Investigations

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How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

Other model years Selected year
181
2000140
2001166
2002180
2003212
2004177
2005145
2006
Compare all Sierra 1500 years →

Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

Service Brakes
55Service Brakes, Hydraulic
50Electrical System
43Steering
15Air Bags
7
All reported categories
Power Train
6Fuel System, Gasoline
5Structure
4Visibility
4Engine
3Engine And Engine Cooling
3Exterior Lighting
2Fuel/propulsion System
2Parking Brake
2Seat Belts
2Suspension
2Unknown Or Other
2Tires
1Vehicle Speed Control
1

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

162 reports with mileage · 18 unknown

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Service Brakes. Review the 55 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 50 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 43 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

13 crash reports4 fire reports6 injury reports

Unknown Or Other complaints

2 reports
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Mileage unknown · Jun 11, 2023
Electrical SystemUnknown Or Other

An accident has not occurred yet, but it something I'm concerned deeply about. Awhile back there was a recall on the instrument cluster of the gmc Sierra 1500 (possibly othets on the list, im sure). I did wind up having the cluster replaced, there didn't seem to be any issues at the time. Now...the replacement cluster has gone h…

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An accident has not occurred yet, but it something I'm concerned deeply about. Awhile back there was a recall on the instrument cluster of the gmc Sierra 1500 (possibly othets on the list, im sure). I did wind up having the cluster replaced, there didn't seem to be any issues at the time. Now...the replacement cluster has gone haywire. I notice no issues with operations at this time. But the cluster doesn't register certain things or it fluctuates on and off, or doesn't read correctly at all. Is it possible that the replacement could have been bad as well?

NHTSA ODI #11526434

51,267 miles · Aug 11, 2006
Unknown Or Other

SPEEDOMETER ACTS ALL ERRATIC, SOMETIMES WILL SHOW I AM GOING 30 MPH MORE THEN I REALLY AM, MAY SOMETIMES SHOW THE NEEDLE BEING BURIED AND NOT GOING OVER 20 MPH ACTUALLY, SOMETIMES DOESN'T REGISTER AT ALL, NEEDLE IS JUMPY, AND AT OTHER TIMES IT WILL GO BACK TO NORMAL FOR A FEW DAYS WITHOUT ANY INCIDENTS. THIS ALL STARTED HAPPENI…

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SPEEDOMETER ACTS ALL ERRATIC, SOMETIMES WILL SHOW I AM GOING 30 MPH MORE THEN I REALLY AM, MAY SOMETIMES SHOW THE NEEDLE BEING BURIED AND NOT GOING OVER 20 MPH ACTUALLY, SOMETIMES DOESN'T REGISTER AT ALL, NEEDLE IS JUMPY, AND AT OTHER TIMES IT WILL GO BACK TO NORMAL FOR A FEW DAYS WITHOUT ANY INCIDENTS. THIS ALL STARTED HAPPENING ONCE MY VEHICLE HIT 51K MILES. THE DEALERSHIP STATED IT MAY BE THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER AND COULD COST UPWARDS OF $1300 TO REPLACE.

NHTSA ODI #10165278

Official recalls

1

04V562000 · Equipment Adaptive/mobility

Nov 26, 2004

ON CERTAIN VANS EQUIPPED WITH SURE-LOK WHEELCHAIR SECUREMENT SYSTEMS, THE SPROCKET TEETH OF THE RETRACTOR ASSEMBLY IS OUT OF ALIGNMENT.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: IN THE EVENT OF A VEHICLE CRASH, THE WHEELCHAIR MAY NOT BE ADEQUATELY SECURED POSSIBLY RESULTING IN INJURIES TO A WHEELCHAIR OCCUPANT.

Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSPECT AND REPLACE THE WHEELCHAIR SECUREMENT RETRACTORS AS NECESSARY. SURE-LOK WILL HANDLE THE REPAIRS FOR THIS CAMPAIGN. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT SURE-LOCK AT 1-908-231-1804 OR MOBILITYWORKS AT 1-800-769-8267.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.