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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 →

How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

Compare all Sierra 1500 years →

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

What owners reported most

All reported categories

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

What owners actually said

180 reports
60,000 miles · Feb 13, 2008
Service Brakes, Hydraulic

MY ABS ACTIVATES TOO ON DRY PAVEMENT. HAVE NOT TAKEN TO THE DEALER YET. WAY TOO MANY PROBLEMS WITH THIS VEHICLE. ONLY 60,000 MILES ON IT. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10217986

110,000 miles · Feb 11, 2008
Electrical System

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 GMC SIERRA 1500. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE SPEEDOMETER STOPPED WORKING. HE TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER AND WAS INFORMED THAT HE WAS NO LONGER ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE A FREE REPAIR. THE QUALIFICATIONS FOR THE FREE REPAIR WERE SEVEN YEARS OR 70,000 MILES. THE CONTACT STATED THAT HE WAS NEVER NOTIFIE…

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TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 GMC SIERRA 1500. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE SPEEDOMETER STOPPED WORKING. HE TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER AND WAS INFORMED THAT HE WAS NO LONGER ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE A FREE REPAIR. THE QUALIFICATIONS FOR THE FREE REPAIR WERE SEVEN YEARS OR 70,000 MILES. THE CONTACT STATED THAT HE WAS NEVER NOTIFIED AND, WHEN HE BROUGHT HIS VEHICLE IN FOR REPAIR, IT WAS TOO LATE. THE MANUFACTURER STATED THAT THEY WOULD NOT COVER THE REPAIR, EVEN THOUGH THE VEHICLE IS ONLY FIVE YEARS OLD. THE CONTACT STATED THAT HE HAD BEEN TO THE DEALER ABOUT THE FAILURE BEFORE THE VEHICLE EXCEEDED THE MILEAGE, BUT THE FAILURE HAD NOT BEEN DIAGNOSED UNTIL FEBRUARY 11, 2008. THE VIN WAS INVALID. THE CURRENT AND FAILURE MILEAGES WERE 110,000.

NHTSA ODI #10217662

48,000 miles · Feb 5, 2008
Service Brakes, Hydraulic

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 GMC SIERRA 1500. WHILE APPROACHING A STOP AT APPROXIMATELY 5 MPH OR LESS, THE BRAKE PEDAL PULSATES. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER AND THEY DISCOVERED THAT THERE WERE TWO FAULTY ABS SENSORS. BOTH SENSORS WERE REPLACED. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 58,195 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 48,000.

NHTSA ODI #10217022

75,000 miles · Jan 26, 2008
Service Brakes, Hydraulic

2003 GMC SIERRA 1500 WITH 70K MILES. HAVE HAD PROBLEMS ON DIFFERENT OCCASIONS WITH THE ANTI-LOCK BRAKES AT LOW SPEEDS. HAD TO REPLACE SENSORS ON ALL 3 OCCASIONS. ALSO, BRAKE LINE BUSTED WHICH RESULTED IN A NEAR CRASH INTO A HOME. AFTER FURTHER INVESTIGATION, ALL BRAKE LINES LEADING IN THE ANTILOCK BRAKE COMPONENT WERE SEVERALLY…

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2003 GMC SIERRA 1500 WITH 70K MILES. HAVE HAD PROBLEMS ON DIFFERENT OCCASIONS WITH THE ANTI-LOCK BRAKES AT LOW SPEEDS. HAD TO REPLACE SENSORS ON ALL 3 OCCASIONS. ALSO, BRAKE LINE BUSTED WHICH RESULTED IN A NEAR CRASH INTO A HOME. AFTER FURTHER INVESTIGATION, ALL BRAKE LINES LEADING IN THE ANTILOCK BRAKE COMPONENT WERE SEVERALLY RUSTED. ALL BRAKE LINES NEEDED TO BE REPLACED AT A VERY HEFTY PRICE. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10216062

Mileage unknown · Jan 12, 2008
Service Brakes, Hydraulic

BRAKE PROBLEMS, AT SLOW SPEEDS, ON MY 2003 GMC SIERRA RESULT IN NEAR CRASHES EVEN THOUGH ALL BRAKE COMPONENTS WERE VERY RECENTLY REPLACED. VEHICLE ONLY HAS 20,000 MILES ON IT. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10214617

68,000 miles · Jan 4, 2008
Visibility

WINDSHEILD WIPERS WON'T TURN OFF...POSSIBLE WIPER PULSE MODULE. *CN

NHTSA ODI #10213668

50,000 miles · Dec 10, 2007
Service Brakes, Hydraulic

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 GMC SIERRA 1500. WHILE APPLYING PRESSURE TO THE BRAKE PEDAL TO STOP THE VEHICLE, THE ABS ENGAGED AUTOMATICALLY. THIS CAUSED THE VEHICLE TO JERK DRAMATICALLY INSTEAD OF STOPPING. THE DEALER STATED THAT HIS VEHICLE WAS NOT INCLUDED IN NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER 05V379000 (SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTI …

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TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 GMC SIERRA 1500. WHILE APPLYING PRESSURE TO THE BRAKE PEDAL TO STOP THE VEHICLE, THE ABS ENGAGED AUTOMATICALLY. THIS CAUSED THE VEHICLE TO JERK DRAMATICALLY INSTEAD OF STOPPING. THE DEALER STATED THAT HIS VEHICLE WAS NOT INCLUDED IN NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER 05V379000 (SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTI LOCK). THE VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN REPAIRED. HE FILED A FORMAL COMPLAINT WITH THE MANUFACTURER. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 53,000 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 50,000. UPDATED 01-11-08. *KB UPDATED 12/31/07. *JB

NHTSA ODI #10211369

45,000 miles · Nov 20, 2007
Electrical System

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 GMC SIERRA 1500. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 60 MPH, THE SPEEDOMETER AND OIL GAUGES STOPPED READING OIL PRESSURE, SPEED, AND TEMPERATURE GAUGE THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A MECHANIC AND THE SENSOR WAS REPLACED; HOWEVER, THIS DID NOT CORRECT THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER AND THEY STATED…

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TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 GMC SIERRA 1500. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 60 MPH, THE SPEEDOMETER AND OIL GAUGES STOPPED READING OIL PRESSURE, SPEED, AND TEMPERATURE GAUGE THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A MECHANIC AND THE SENSOR WAS REPLACED; HOWEVER, THIS DID NOT CORRECT THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER AND THEY STATED THAT THE REPAIR WOULD BE EXPENSIVE. AS A RESULT, THE CONTACT DID NOT HAVE THE REPAIR PERFORMED. THE CONTACT RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE IN AUGUST OF 2007, BUT THE VEHICLE EXCEEDED THE MILEAGE REQUIREMENT. THE RECALL NUMBER WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 76,000 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 45,000. UPDATED 01/03/08 . *LJ UPDATED 12/12/07

NHTSA ODI #10209570

Mileage unknown · Nov 11, 2007
Electrical System

SPEEDOMETER HAS FAILED AND THE TRUCK IS OUT OF WARRANTY. HOWEVER, I SEE THAT THIS IS A VERY BIG PROBLEM IN THESE VEHICLES AND GENERAL MOTORS IS AWARE OF IT. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10208643

60,000 miles · Nov 8, 2007
Electrical System

MY SPEEDOMETER ON MY 2003 GMC SPEEDOMETER HAS NOT WORKED PROPERLY FOR OVER A YEAR. I NOW HAVE 75,000 MILES ON MY TRUCK AND GMC SAYS IT WILL NOT COVER THE EXPENSE OF REPAIRING IT. THIS IS AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS SITUATION THAT IS OCCURRING ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND GENERAL MOTORS IS SCREWING ITS LOYAL CUSTOMERS. AFTER NUMEROUS CALLS …

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MY SPEEDOMETER ON MY 2003 GMC SPEEDOMETER HAS NOT WORKED PROPERLY FOR OVER A YEAR. I NOW HAVE 75,000 MILES ON MY TRUCK AND GMC SAYS IT WILL NOT COVER THE EXPENSE OF REPAIRING IT. THIS IS AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS SITUATION THAT IS OCCURRING ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND GENERAL MOTORS IS SCREWING ITS LOYAL CUSTOMERS. AFTER NUMEROUS CALLS TO CUSTOMER SERVICE I WAS TOLD THAT THE COMPANY EXTENDED ITS WARRANTY TO SEVEN YEARS OR 70000 MILES IN SEPT. AND ALL GM OWNERS WERE NOTIFIED. I THEN ASKED THEM WHEN THEY MAILED MY NOTIFICATION BECAUSE I HAVE NOT RECEIVED A LETTER FROM GM NOTIFYING ME OF THE EXTENDED COVERAGE AS OF NOV. 8 2007. THEY WERE NOT ABLE TO TELL ME WHEN THEY MAILED A NOTIFICATION TO ME. MY POINT IS THAT IF THE COMPANY HAD NOTIFIED ME IN SEPT. I WOULD NOT BE OVER THE 70000 LIMIT AND WOULD NOT HAVE TO PAY FOR THE REPAIRS. I FIND IT EXTREMELY HARD TO BELIEVE THAT A CORPORATION AS LARGE OS GM DOES NOT KEEP RECORDS OF WHEN THEY NOTIFY CUSTOMERS ABOUT POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS COMPONENTS ON THEIR VEHICLES. IT APPEARS AS THOUGH GM IS TRYING TO GET BY WITH OUT HAVING TO PAY FOR THEIR MISTAKES. I HAVE SEARCHED THE INTERNET AND FOUND MANY LAWSUITS OVER THIS MATTER AND I FULLY INTEND TO PURSUE MY LEGAL RIGHTS AS WELL. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10208238

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.