GAUGE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER DEFECTIVE ON 2003 GMC SIERRA. SPEEDOMETER READING INCORRECT SPEED. CONSIDERED A SAFETY DEFECT. UNABLE TO ACCURATELY DETERMINE VEHICLE SPEED. GENERAL MOTORS DEALERSHIPS UNWILLING TO REPAIR DEFECTIVE PARTS. *TR
2003 GMC Sierra 2500
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
More warning signs than most Sierra 2500 years
Owner complaints for the 2003 GMC Sierra 2500 are substantially higher than the model-year median of 46.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Sierra 2500 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
142 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, Hydraulic. Review the 43 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 36 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes. Review the 28 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
What owners actually said
160 reportsSTARTED VEHICLE AND FUEL INJECTOR IS NOT WORKING. *TR
THE ELECTRICAL GAUGES ALL OF SUDDEN STOPPED WORKING. THE BATTERY GAUGE CAME ON FIRST , PULLED OVER AND BATTERY WAS FINE. THEN ALL GAUGES JUST COMPLETELY STOPPED WORKING. *TR
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 GMC SIERRA 2500 HD. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED TWO MONTHS AGO FOR THE FUEL FILTER HOUSING, WHICH CAUSED THE VEHICLE TO IMMEDIATELY STALL. SINCE JULY 3, 2009, THE FAILURE HAS BEEN RECURRING WHILE DRIVING 20 MPH. GM STATED THAT THEY DID NOT HAVE ANY PARTS AVAILABLE TO REPAIR THE …
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TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 GMC SIERRA 2500 HD. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED TWO MONTHS AGO FOR THE FUEL FILTER HOUSING, WHICH CAUSED THE VEHICLE TO IMMEDIATELY STALL. SINCE JULY 3, 2009, THE FAILURE HAS BEEN RECURRING WHILE DRIVING 20 MPH. GM STATED THAT THEY DID NOT HAVE ANY PARTS AVAILABLE TO REPAIR THE VEHICLE DUE TO SO MANY CONSUMERS WHO WERE EXPERIENCING THE SAME ISSUE. GM IS RESEARCHING AN ALTERNATIVE TO REPAIRING THE FUEL HOUSING FAILURE. THE CONTACT FEELS THAT THIS IS A SERIOUS SAFETY DEFECT. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 117,000. UPDATED 08/14/09. *LJ UPDATED 08/14/09.*JB
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 GMC SIERRA 2500. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE HEATER LIGHT FAILED FIRST FOLLOWED BY THE DRIVER'S SIDE INSTRUMENT PANEL LIGHTING. HE TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER AND THEY STATED THAT THE FAILURE WAS NOT COVERED. THE PASSENGER SIDE OF THE INSTRUMENT PANEL FAILED LATER AND THE ENTIRE PANEL WENT BLACK.…
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TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 GMC SIERRA 2500. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE HEATER LIGHT FAILED FIRST FOLLOWED BY THE DRIVER'S SIDE INSTRUMENT PANEL LIGHTING. HE TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER AND THEY STATED THAT THE FAILURE WAS NOT COVERED. THE PASSENGER SIDE OF THE INSTRUMENT PANEL FAILED LATER AND THE ENTIRE PANEL WENT BLACK. THE VEHICLE WILL BE REPAIRED AT THE CONTACT'S EXPENSE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 69,000 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS UNKNOWN.UPDATED 06/17/09. *LJ THE DASHBOARD LIGHTS AND GAUGES FAILED COMPLETELY. UPDATED 06/17/09.*JB
DURING AN EMERGENCY STOP ON HIGHWAY FROM APPROX. 45MPH, DUE A TRACTOR TRAILER SUDDENLY STOPPING, ABS BRAKE SYSTEM STARTED TO FLUCTUATE, BUT TRUCK DID NOT STOP NORMALLY. AVOIDED COLLISION BY VEERING TO SIDE OF ROAD. LEFT FRONT BRAKE LINE, AT CLIP NEAR WHEEL, LEAKED BRAKE FLUID THEREBY PREVENTING QUICK STOP. BRAKE PEDAL WENT TO FL…
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DURING AN EMERGENCY STOP ON HIGHWAY FROM APPROX. 45MPH, DUE A TRACTOR TRAILER SUDDENLY STOPPING, ABS BRAKE SYSTEM STARTED TO FLUCTUATE, BUT TRUCK DID NOT STOP NORMALLY. AVOIDED COLLISION BY VEERING TO SIDE OF ROAD. LEFT FRONT BRAKE LINE, AT CLIP NEAR WHEEL, LEAKED BRAKE FLUID THEREBY PREVENTING QUICK STOP. BRAKE PEDAL WENT TO FLOOR AFTERWARDS, THERE WAS SEEMED TO BE NO SECONDARY HYDRAULIC SYSTEM PRESSURE FOR REAR BRAKES. EMERGENCY BRAKE WAS HARDLY EFFECTIVE.TURNS OUT ALL BRAKE LINES ARE SEVERELY CORRODED IN NEARLY ALL AREAS, EVEN UNDER HOOD. TRUCK HAS 50,000 MILES AND IS 6 YEARS OLD. HAVE ALSO PREVIOUSLY EXPERIENCED SUDDEN POWER STEERING FAILURE DUE TO POWER STEERING LINE CORROSION AND FLUID LOSS. POWER STEERING SYSTEM PROVIDES HYDRAULIC BOOST FOR BRAKES, THEREFORE BRAKES ARE IMPACTED ALSO. BRAKE AND POWER STEERING LINES SEEM TO BE MADE OF STEEL WITH INCORRECT OR POOR ALLOYS, THEREBY ACTING LIKE A SACRIFICIAL ANODE ON THE TRUCK, AS EVIDENCED BY THE RUST THROUGHOUT THE LINES, VS. LOCALIZED RUST. BRAKE LINES AND POWER STEERING LINES HAVE BEEN REPLACED. STILL HAVE SEVERAL RUSTY LINES FOR INSPECTION IF NEEDED. *TR
MY TRUCK ONLY HAS HALF OF IT'S BRAKING POWER. THE BRAKE PADS ARE RUSTED TO THE SLIDES & HAVE NOT MOVED FOR A VERY LONG TIME THE ROTORS ON ALL 4 WHEELS ARE COMPLETELY ENGULFED IN RUST. THESE ARE THE ORIGINAL BRAKES. I TOOK THE TRUCK TO GMC FOR SERVICE [OIL CHANGE] & THEY STATED THE REAR ROTORS WERE "VERY RUSTY". I ASKED THE SERV…
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MY TRUCK ONLY HAS HALF OF IT'S BRAKING POWER. THE BRAKE PADS ARE RUSTED TO THE SLIDES & HAVE NOT MOVED FOR A VERY LONG TIME THE ROTORS ON ALL 4 WHEELS ARE COMPLETELY ENGULFED IN RUST. THESE ARE THE ORIGINAL BRAKES. I TOOK THE TRUCK TO GMC FOR SERVICE [OIL CHANGE] & THEY STATED THE REAR ROTORS WERE "VERY RUSTY". I ASKED THE SERVICEMAN WHAT TO DO & HE SAID EITHER I NEEDED TO HAVE THE ROTORS TURNED OR THE BRAKES WOULD WEAR OUT PREMATURELY. IT IS OBVIOUS TO ME NOW [AFTER LOOKING AT THE BRAKES PERSONALLY] THAT THEY WERE NOT WORKING OR THE ROTORS WOULDN'T BE RUSTY AT ALL. THERE WAS NEVER ANYTHING SAID ABOUT THE BRAKES NOT WORKING OR THE EXTREME SAFETY ISSUE OF A 3/4 TON TRUCK GOING DOWN THE ROAD WITH ONLY HALF OF IT'S BRAKING POWER. I TALKED TO THE BBB AND THEY SAID WHEN I TOOK THE TRUCK IN IT HAD 48000 MILES ON IT & WAS OUT OF WARRANTY. I HAVE NO DOUBT THAT THIS SITUATION STARTED BEFORE THE WARRANTY EXPIRED BUT I WAS NOT AWARE OF IT. MY TRUCK IS A 2003 AND I TAKE VERY GOOD CARE OF IT [SERVICED REGULARLY AND GARAGE KEPT] AND THERE IS NO REASON THE BRAKES SHOULD HAVE RUSTED THIS WAY UNLESS INFERIOR PARTS OR WORKMANSHIP IS INVOLVED. I KNOW TWO OTHER PEOPLE WITH SIMILAR TRUCKS AND ONE OF THEM HAS EXACTLY THE SAME PROBLEM AS MINE. WE LOOKED AT HIS AFTER I DISCOVERED MY PROBLEM. HE, AS I, WERE UNAWARE OF THIS DANGEROUS PROBLEM. I THINK THERE ARE A LOT OF GENERAL MOTORS TRUCKS OUT THERE WITH THIS SAME PROBLEM THAT PEOPLE ARE UNAWARE OF. I BELIEVE THERE SHOULD BE A RECALL OR AT LEAST AN INDEPENDENT STUDY ON THIS POTENTIALLY DEADLY SITUATION BEFORE SOMEONE DIES IF THEY HAVEN'T ALREADY. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME, [XXX] *TR INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR
FAULTY SPEEDOMETER, READS120MPH MOST OF THE TIME. *TR
SPEEDOMETER , FUEL GAUGE ETC. WENT AT 93,000 MILES. GMC KNOWS OF THIS PROBLEM AND WILL ONLY FIX IT ON A LIMITED BASIS. NOT EVERY ONE WAS INFORMED OF THIS PROBLEM AND THEY WILL ONLY FIX IT IF YOU ARE UNDER 70K MILES. *TR
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 GMC SIERRA 2500. THE CONTACT HEARD A LOUD SQUEAKING NOISE COMING FROM THE WHEEL BEARINGS. HE TOOK THE VEHICLE TO A LOCAL DEALER AND THEY STATED THAT THE WHEEL BEARINGS FAILED. THE CONTACT IS IN THE PROCESS OF HAVING THE VEHICLE REPAIRED. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 62,000 AND CURR…
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TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 GMC SIERRA 2500. THE CONTACT HEARD A LOUD SQUEAKING NOISE COMING FROM THE WHEEL BEARINGS. HE TOOK THE VEHICLE TO A LOCAL DEALER AND THEY STATED THAT THE WHEEL BEARINGS FAILED. THE CONTACT IS IN THE PROCESS OF HAVING THE VEHICLE REPAIRED. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 62,000 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 67,149.
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
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
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.
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