What breaks most · 1990 to 2003 model years
GMC GMC Truck problems by year
Owners have filed 92 safety complaints with NHTSA about the GMC GMC Truck across model years 1990 to 2003. Three years stand out: 2003 for powertrain and transmission complaints, 1999 for brakes (hydraulic) complaints and 2000 for tires complaints. The quietest years are 1990, 1991 and 1996.
- Years to check closely: 2003, 1999, 2000
- Fewest complaints: 1990, 1991, 1996
- Complaints on file
- 921990 to 2003, all trims
- Worst year
- 200318 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 32 fires · 2 injuries · 0 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 50kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 0Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | Powertrain and transmission (1) | |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | Brakes (hydraulic) (2) | |
| 9 | 0 | 0 | Seats (2) | |
| 7 | 1 | 0 | Brakes (hydraulic) (2) | |
| 8 | 0 | 0 | Steering (3) | |
| 10 | 0 | 0 | Powertrain and transmission (2) | |
| 13 | 0 | 0 | Brakes (hydraulic) (8) | |
| 13 | 1 | 0 | Tires (4) | |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | Steering (1) | |
| 9 | 1 | 0 | Brakes (hydraulic) (3) | |
| 18 | 0 | 0 | Powertrain and transmission (6) |
What fails on the 2003 GMC GMC Truck
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 33% |
6 | 0 | Shop all powertrain and transmission parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 17% |
3 | 0 | Shop all electrical system parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Engine and coolingRadiators, thermostats and cooling | 17% |
3 | 0 | Shop all engine and cooling parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Tires | 11% |
2 | 0 | — |
| Brakes (hydraulic)Brake pads, rotors and calipers | 11% |
2 | 0 | Shop all brakes (hydraulic) parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Body and structureDoors, latches and body hardware | 6% |
1 | 0 | Shop all body and structure parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| SteeringPower steering pumps, racks and hoses | 6% |
1 | 0 | Shop all steering parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Parking Brake | 6% |
1 | 0 | — |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
-
Missing and they seem not able to fix it some times it shifts hard other times it backfires it has been in the shop twice all they can say is the computer shows nothing and that how the engine runs and that is unacpectable to me for a new truck. *la
-
Dt: the contact stated there was NHTSA recall campaign id 05v379000 concerning the anti lock. Brakes. This vehicle manifested the same problems as indicated in the recall, but the state of alaska was not included in this recall. *ak
-
Upon pressing accelerator pedal, it sticks. Has to press down very hard to release it from sticking. *ak the sticking also transpires upon the start of vehicle. *jg
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 6, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which GMC GMC Truck years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2003, 1999, 2000 carry the most filings on the GMC GMC Truck. The 2003 alone has 18 complaints, led by powertrain and transmission.
What is the most common GMC GMC Truck problem?
On the 2003 model year, the most-reported component is powertrain and transmission with 6 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do GMC GMC Truck problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all GMC GMC Truck complaints that include mileage is about 50,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.