Owner-reported complaints naming the suspension system, filed with NHTSA
Data refreshed
Reports naming suspension components — springs, struts, shocks, control arms and related hardware. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 2013 GMC Sierra 1500 submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 10 reports on file name it.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Shown in the owner’s own words, exactly as filed
Failure of frame on left side of vehicle between frame rail and fuel tank. For a approx 10 year old vehicle that is garaged and does not drive in inclement weather this SHOULD NOT be happening.
I hit a bump and both rear shock mounts blew off the rear cross member because the frame is rusted out despite having rust protection. It is available for inspection. The truck then began bouncing wildly. Meanwhile the underside of the bed isn't rusted at all, not one speck. It just seems weird to me, reminds me of the Toyota frame problems from a while back. It has not been inspected by a mechanic or insurance, my insurance company didn't seem to care in the slightest. I have had traction control and abs warnings on for a while but my mechanic said that was a faulty tire sensor.
Rear half of Frame Crossmembers rotted away between the Frame rails. Took vehicle in for routine safety inspection, and the mechanic determined that the cross members to which the rear shocks and the Gas tank were attached had both broken free from the frame rails due to rust. The entire back end of the vehicle is suspended from the frame with only the leaf spring mounts. This rust is excessive and far exceeds the rust on other points on the frame and undercarriage of the vehicle.
I have been told by an independent Maine state inspection company that my left front frame rail has perforating corrosion and will not pass inspection. I have not had GMC inspect this yet but I do not think they will repair it. This truck is 10 years old and only has 59,000 miles on it. It looks like new (except for some rear bumper damage) It is unusable now and I'm afraid the left front suspension will collapse. This is completely unacceptable. Please help, Thank you.
The contact owns a 2013 GMC Sierra 1500. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact was alerted by another motorist that the spare tire had lowered underneath the vehicle. After stopping to inspect the vehicle, it was discovered that the rear cross members had corroded, causing the spare tire to become unsecured underneath the vehicle. Additionally, while driving over bumps in the roadway, the vehicle became unstable due to the corroded rear suspension. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic who diagnosed that the rear sub frame needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer and local dealer were not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.
Passenger side leaf spring "failed"- the middle "stiffener" rear section broke off/ fell to the road (see picture below with leaf spring removed). Fortunately, I was turning into side street doing about 15mph negating any safety issues- things could have been much different if at highway speeds. The truck had some significant miles (125k) but they were 95% highway miles though I do considerable highway miles with "treated" roads over Washington state passes. Vehicle was repaired by Haselwood GMC/Chev Dealership in Bremerton, Wa. on 5/25/22. Maintenance/Repair supervisor chalked it up to routine wear and tear.
I WAS UNDERNEATH MY TRUCK FOR A MINOR SENSOR REPAIR AROUND THE END OF MARCH. I FOUND A SIGNIFICANT HOLE RUSTED THROUGH THE LEFT FRAME RAIL. I MADE CONTACT WITH GENERAL MOTORS ABOUT THE SEVERITY OF RUST IN AND ON MY FRAME. THEY HAD A LOCAL DEALERSHIP EVALUATE THE FRAME. AFTER SEVERAL PEOPLE AND MANY WEEKS. THE BEST GM IS WILLING TO DO IS OFFER A $100.00 SERVICE VOUCHER. THIS A A TRUCK ,THAT HAULS ,TOWS AND CARRIES LOADS AND FAMILY. I DO NOT BELIEVE IN 6 YEARS AND 100800 MILES THE FRAME SHOULD HAVE TO BE WELDED. GM SAYS THAT MY PERFORATION WARRANTY EXPIRED IN NOVEMBER OR 100400 MILE. THIS IS A MAJOR SAFTEY ISSUE. TOYOTA ADDRESSED THERE FRAME ISSUE WHY IS GENERAL MOTORS ANY DIFFERENT? I WOULD APPRECIATE AN INVESTIGATION INTO THIS !!@
ON 3/4/2018 I TOOK MY TRUCK IN FOR A BROKEN LEAF SPRING. WHEN THE MECHANIC WAS REPLACING THE SPRINGS, HE NOTES HOLES RUSTING IN THE TRUCKS FRAME. I DID BUY THE TRUCK USED FROM A CHEVROLET DEALER ON 3/12 2016 WITH @49,000 MILES ON IT. WITH IN 6-8 MONTHS OF OWNING THE TRUCK, IT STARTED TO RUST ON THE FENDER WELLS, AND HAD SOME RUST ON THE FRAME. WHEN I TALKED TO THE DEALER THEY SAID THERE IS NOTHING THEY CAN DO FOR ME BECAUSE THE 6 YEAR OR 100,000 MILE WARRANTY RAN OUT ON 10/1/2018. I CALLED GMC CUSTOMER CARE ABOUT THIS AND THEY DID OPEN A SERVICE REQUEST [XXX]. ON 4/8/2019 SERVICE MANAGER FOR THE DEALER TOLD ME THE GME WILL DO NOTHING FOR ME BECAUSE IT WILL COST $12,000.00 TO REPLACE FRAME BET MAY OFER ME A CERTIFICATE FOR $1000.00 TOWARDS A NEW TRUCKS. I FELL THIS IS UNEXCEPTIONABLE TO ME BECAUSE THE SAFETY OF ME AND MY FAMILY WHEN WE ARE IN THE TRUCK. WE BROUGHT THE TRUCK BECAUSE IN HAS A GOOD SAFETY RATING BE WITH HOLES RUSTING IN THE FRAME I FELL MY SAFETY IS COMPROMISED EVERY TIME I DRIVE IT. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TT
I WENT UNDERNEATH MY SIERRA TODAY AND FOUND THE ENTIRE FRAME IS EXTREMELY RUSTED. UPON CLOSER EXAMINATION I FOUND A 3 INCH BY 3/4 INCH HOLE RUSTED THROUGH. THIS TRUCK JUST TURNED 6 YEARS OLD AND HAS 100000 MILES . THIS IS A SAFTEY ISSUE BECAUSE WITH THE TRUCK BEING ABLE TO TOW HEAVY LOADS.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 GMC SIERRA 1500. WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS BEING INSPECTED AT AN UNKNOWN DEALER IN APPOMATTOX, VA, THE TECHNICIAN INFORMED THE CONTACT THAT THE IDLER ARM, TIE ROD END, AND THE PITMAN ARMS NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE TECHNICIAN STATED THAT THE PARTS WERE NOT LUBRICATED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE AND INFORMED THE CONTACT TO CALL NHTSA. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 127,000.
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Categories with enough reports to have a page of their own
Data on this page last refreshed .