2021 Chevrolet Silverado Complaint Log

2021 Chevy Silverado RST 6.2 Crankshaft Failure – Trust bearing / Main Bearing – Verified by GM dealership. This incident occurred without any prior warning indicators. The check engine light illuminated only after the engine began to seize, and the engine abruptly stalled. At the time of the failure, the vehicle was traveling at 60 MPH on a busy highway. Upon the event, the vehicle came to an immediate stop and could not be restarted. The engine failed to turn over, rendering the vehicle inoperable and partially obstructing traffic. The vehicle was subsequently towed to a local General Motors dealership, where it was determined that the failure was due to a crankshaft thrust and main bearing issue. The vehicle has 27,000 miles on the odometer.

The upper ball joint on the passengers side failed or separated. This caused the truck to lose brake pressure and put the occupants lives in danger. The vehicle is currently at a GMC dealership in Killeen, TX being repaired. There were no warning signs or lamps.

I was driving down the highway when my tailgate open on its own. This has happened 4-5 times where items could have fallen from my truck bed and caused an accident. There is an active recall for this issue but according to my VIN my vehicle isn’t affected but it clearly is. Dealer has inspected and confirmed it’s the same issue as with other models.

The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated that while driving 10 MPH, the vehicle hesitated and shifted into another unknown gear independently. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the transmission torque converter and the valve body needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure when a case was opened and escalated the matter to a higher supervisor. The failure mileage was 61,200.

Valve body went out at 52,000 miles and was replaced under warranty. Went out again at 104,000 miles, has been at dealer for a month now waiting on part that is unavailable

The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Silverado. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the tailgate inadvertently opened on its own. As a result, the contacts tool box fell from the vehicle potentially becoming a dangerous road hazard. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA campaign 24V060000 (Latches/Locks/Linkages), but the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was referred to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 17,000.

Mechanics said that they see this on all new chevy trucks that the bracket causes the rubber brake line to rub on the bracket holding it in place also causing it to stretch and tear. Resulting in a over 500 dollar fix. The brakes failed on the interstate causing them to lock up. Almost killing me and my daughter but was able to gain control of the vehicle and save it.

MY Windshield wipers stop working on low and high and from time to time my vehicle will not go in reverse. when it does finally go in reverse it's a very hard jerk, also when I'm driving it gets a drag an acts like it wants to stop going. It happens frequently and it has been going on for months.

The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle became difficult to maneuver and the rear wheels were intermittently inoperable with the transmission experiencing hard downshifting. The failure occurred on several occasions. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken back to the residence. The contact researched and was made aware of an undisclosed NHTSA Campaign; however, the VIN was not included. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 30,000.

The transmission valves failed and torque converter clutch slipped causing the truck to have harsh shifting issues, acceleration issues, and wheel-lock up. I've had to replace my full transmission and receive a new torque converter clutch, reprogrammed.

The truck, while driving at highway speeds on the interstate, experienced catastrophic engine failure, seizing the motor while in driving. Luckily, I was able to pull the truck to the side of the road safely, without a crash occurring. Losing engine/braking power could have been a major concern but thankfully, traffic was light enough I had space to pull to the side of the road. The truck had to be towed to the nearest dealer, where it was discovered the motor had seized. 2021 Chevrolet Silverado Trail Boss 6.2L motor with 47k miles on the factory warranty/no modifications. Since taking the truck to the dealer, they warranty-swapped a remanufactured crate motor in the truck. Hearing of the major increase in issues with this truck, I traded it in on a different manufacturer and now have a different vehicle. Aside from this huge inconvenience and safety issue, GM's customer support line failed to cover the full cost for a rental truck while my vehicle was down for a new motor (late November 2024 until mid January 2025) and I still have yet to receive a refund for my tow bill. This experience that has now lasted almost 6 months (still with no resolution) has been horrible. I hope General Motors is held liable for this major issue.

We were driving 40 mph when all the sudden the rear tires locked up without warning. We almost got in an accident and thankfully were able to get off the road. Then, the check engine light came on and the truck went into limp mode and would not shift gears automatically and it was difficult to make it home. We had a mechanic come to our house to run a diagnostic and they informed us of the recall and confirmed it is what the truck was experiencing. We took it to the dealership and they confirmed the recall and that there was no available fix and nothing they could do for us. Meanwhile, ours is not safe to drive.

My 2021 Silverado with only 80,655 miles had to have the engine replaced. On 11/20/24, my vehicle indicated a P0303 code for miss-fire in cylinder 3. I took my vehicle to for repair to a local Chevy Dealership and was informed of the following: 1) Needed programming changes to the fuel injection based on service bulletin N242450631. This repair was completed by the dealer. 2) Needed a “tear down” for further diagnostic. It was determined that the specific code could not be repaired and the entire engine needed to be replaced which was done at my cost. The details on service bulletin N242450631 are limited and do not describe issues that could be caused by the fuel injector problem. Relative to service bulletin N242450631 fuel injector issue, based on my experience with my vehicle, I believe this fuel injector programming bulletin issue caused the engine malfunction and subsequent need to replacement. Before the bulletin repair was completed, I know that my vehicle engine surged often. Looking back now, this constant surging had to be hard on the engine and likely caused the failure. Regardless, if it wasn’t the service bulletin that caused the issue, a vehicle engine should last more than 80,000 miles. I believe GM needs to take responsibility for the engine failure which I believe was caused by faulty workmanship, design, computer engine programming, or some combination of these issues.

After parking my vehicle overnight, I started it up in the morning and it immediately said "Service Power Steering, Please Drive With Care" and also said "Service ESC". I could not steer the vehicle when these messages were displayed. I was able to get the vehicle to work normally by turning it off, waiting a few minutes and turning it back on. This is extremely dangerous if the vehicle decides to do this during a drive.

The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the transmission shifted independently to a lower gear. The contact stated that the downshift of the transmission caused the rear wheels to lock up. The contact pulled over and turned off and restarted the vehicle, and was able to reset the transmission. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent, but whenever the failure occurred, the check engine warning light was illuminated before the vehicle shifted to a lower gear. The vehicle was taken to an Auto Parts Store, where a handheld scanner was used to clear the transmission fault code. The contact stated that after the code was cleared, the vehicle operated normally, but the failure eventually reoccurred. The contact had not taken the vehicle to a dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not properly diagnosed or repaired. The contact researched online and related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V797000 (Power Train); however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 72,000.

UNKNOWN - The truck began jerking/braking on its own while driving last week. I took it to a local transmission shop where it has sat for the past week as they said the transmission control module/tcm needs to be replaced but the part needed is on back order. This issue sounds similar to the recent transmission recall (N242454440) though our vin does not show there to be a recall on our exact vehicle. Our truck meets the specifications of the recall and having it inoperable has placed a hardship on my family. How can I get it fixed under this recall at a local GM dealer?

I have a 2021 Chevy Silverado 1500 Custom crew cab truck with an 8-speed transmission. I have had transmission issues for a few months. I am experiencing hard shifting from 2nd gear down to 1st gear, slipping while at cruising speed, shuddering between 20mph-50mph, transmission getting too hot. I was told by an automotive shop that they experienced the hard shifting and that they also heard a whining sound while driving. They told me that they a found a Service Bulletin that came out in December of 2024, that there could be a pinched line on top of the transmission that could be causing the overheating. I have read that the transmission control module needs to be reprogrammed, a fluid flush and refill, the Thermal Bypass Valve could be at fault. Basically everything that has been released about the transmissions on 2020- 2024 GM vehicles as being safety problems, I am experiencing. I have checked my VIN on the NHTSA website and also with a dealership, and both show that there is not a recall for my VIN. I do not tow anything, just normal ever day driving. I now have 90,000 miles on the truck and the issue first happened at around 87,000 miles. The issues with this truck are clearly manufacturer defaults and something should be done on their dime, not mine. The first time that I experienced the problems was at the end of November in traffic, which a hard shift into 1st gear, felt like I was hit from behind, but was not. Dash lights came on (traction control light, parking brake light, check engine light) and the truck went into "Limp Mode". I was able to exit the highway and get into a parking lot. I looked in the owners manual and found a quick solution and was able to regain power and all lights went off except for the check engine light. Got the code checked and it came up Transmission Control Module was potentially the issue. Code was cleared and didn't have the problem for a long time.

Unknown,don’t want to have an accident if my rear wheel lock up on me for my recall of my vehicle don’t want to put my family at risk

Open recall with no remedy. Called GM and they cannot give me any timeframe as far as when a fix will be available. GM has proposed changing the software to limit the truck to fifth gear if excessive wear of the valve is detected but that is not a fix for the issue and they cannot even give a timeframe for that or what they will do to remedy the issue when there is excessive wear. The issue can cause the rear wheels to lock up while driving and is a major safety issue compounded with winter driving conditions yet GM cannot provide any information. I cannot even replace the vehicle as the vehicle cannot be sold in my state of Missouri with an open recall.

Engine stopped working while driving on major highway. Coasted to stop on shoulder. Truck was towed to nearest Chevy dealer, Parkway Chevy, Tomball, TX ([XXX]). Diagnosed bearings failed, camshaft froze and engine valve damaged. After rude treatment by service agent and service manager, towed truck to original dealer in Conroe, TX-- Buckalew Chev/Keating Chev (Nov. 25, 2024). They confirmed problem and truck has been sitting at their dealership since Nov. 25, 2024 waiting for re-mfgd engine. No timeline given for replacement. Bought another truck (Toyota Tundra -- [XXX]). INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

At start up check engine light, service esc, service parking brake. Code reader shows code P0304 misfire cylinder number 4.

I bought my 2021 chevy silverado 1500 Lt crewcab in march 2021 it had 5000 miles on it I had it for 2 weeks when it started shaking and the engine light was flashing. Took it in to auto nation cheverolet and they had it for a month. when I got it back and started the vehicle the engine light was still flashing. They had to change the lifters on Bank 1 because number 8 cylinder lifter was bad. why didn't they change all the lifters. 3 years later I am having the same issues getting a misfire on number 4 cylinder truck shaking and white smoke coming out of the exhaust. Also the dash lights up with service parking break and service esc when the engine light flashed. ofcourse my warranty is exceeded and GM knows about this problem with the 5.3 and 6.2 engines and won't issue a recall. it is a big saftey issue as your vehile looses power or shuts off. this shou;dn't be happening especially when your vehicle is fairly new. this is twice now this is happened in 3 years and now I have to pay out of pocket to get this fixed because gm won't issue a recall on this known problem that is happening to thousands of customers.

The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle jerked with the oil pressure gauge fluctuating. No warning light was illuminated. The contact pulled over and upon inspection, the contact discovered that the engine oil was extremely low. The contact added six quarts of oil to the engine. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but the cause of the failure could not be determined. The contact stated that the engine was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil, and that six quarts of oil was added every 5,000 miles. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 56,400.

Engine failure

Unwanted inadvertent tail gate opening. The tailgate is opening without human interaction causing a safety issue and potential loss of cargo. Damage to tailgate from striking objects due to inadvertent opening

2021 Chevrolet Silverado Trail Boss with transmission valve body problem. Truck nearly stalled while driving and towing my boat then a huge clunk in the transmission. The truck then rapidly accelerated, down shifted, brief wheel lock up and I was nearly sent in to the ditch with my trailer now swaying behind me. The entire situation felt extremely unsafe and dangerous to both me and oncoming traffic. The check engine light was then on and the truck went in to limp mode. The truck would also no longer go into reverse. I first brought the truck in in October. They finally diagnosied the problem on November 4th, 2024. It is now February 14, 2025 and GM can still not provide me and ETA for the part or for repair. I've opened a service ticket with GM and asked for a buyback as I do not feel safe driving this vehicle any longer. I still do not have resolution with GM or my local dealership.

While driving down the highway on 11/03/2024, the engine warning light started to flash, I heard a clicking & Clanging noise so I pulled over as soon as I could find a safe place. Turned the ignition off & on again & engine warning light did not come back on, but still heard noises coming from engine. When driving home, the engine warning light came on again. I stopped again & turned the ignition off. When I turned it on again, the warning light quit flashing. I drove to the local GM dealer the next day, and they said it was a lifter problem. I did some research and found there were many lifter problems for a 2021 Silverado that I owned. I was hoping the dealer would replace both sides of lifters as they told me there was an issue & they were reengineered. Service department employee said they could only replace one side as that was all GM would approve. I told the employee that I did some research & there was a bulletin that said if mileage was less than 16,000 miles, both sides should be replaced. The employee said you surely have more miles than that & I showed her my odometer reading of 14,528. Again the employee told me that was all that GM would approve. I believe this is a safety issue if there is not a safe place to pull over. Also there should be a recall to replace these lifters with the reengineered lifters or extended warranty so us consumers are not stuck with a huge bill in the future as GM is aware this is a chronic problem.

The paint is coming off of the roof of my 2021 Chevrolet Silverado pick up truck. This is a common problem with the white color vehicles from Chevrolet. This is a safety issue due to paint chips and paint pieces falling down on the windshield.

Hard shifting in most lower gears, slipping gears, shuddering in higher gears

My truck has less than 50,000 miles on it and the transmission feels has if it's shifting hard and shuttering during the cycles of first to third. I do not see that my truck has a recall, but if there is a problem with my trucks transmission, then I need to have it looked at before the 60, 000 or 5 year warranty expires. Can I just take it to a Chevy dealership and have this inspected at NO CHARGE to me?

Left and right cylinder heads failed. Left bank at 20,000 and right bank at 40,000 miles

Vehicle attempted to do an 'over the air' update to the infotainment system. This prompted an error message, stating the update failed and return to the dealership. Took vehicle to GM dealer, diagnostics were run, and dealer stated that an update was not available, and the module for the infotainment system was bad. Quoted me $1600 for replacement and install. Have read multiple reports with owners' having the same issue. Infotainment system attempts to do an update, and it fails. The owners are left paying out of pocket for something that was not their fault. This needs to be a recall. Not only are you paying a hefty amount for a repair that is not your fault, but the entire Infotainment system doesn't not work (stereo, cooling/heating info, back up camera etc)

I purchased this vehicle Oct 2024 from CARMAX Tallahassee FL. When I test drove the vehicle I noticed a pause when it was placed in drive. The after about 10 seconds it would engage and begion moving (49,000 miles). I told the dealer and the said it my be the torque and advised me to take it to the GM dealership. I did take it 4 times. The said they adjusted the transmission software , but the problem persisted. Now the manuafactures warranty has expired and the vehicle is much worse now. It atcually throws a check engine light. I went to auto zone for the plug in tester to fine out what the code was. P0700, P0746, P2714. The truck will completely lock and not move. This vehickle has not perfomred properly since my purhcase and I taken it to the dealer x4. Something need to be doner and it shoulod be included iin the recal to be repaire.

When I started my car there was an error message that said "Service Power Steering Drive with Care" and "Service ESC" when I went to back out of the driveway I had no power steering at all. I could barely move the wheel and had trouble pulling back into the driveway. I turned off the car and restarted a few times, but received the same error messages and had no power steering. When I started the car about an hour later all error messages went away and power steering was restored, but I am afraid to drive it.

The transmission is the problem. The truck shudders. I took it to a mechanic, David Gessel's Auto Service 863-401-2860. The mechanic serviced the transmission and informed me that the transmission will need to be replaced eventually and that the torque converter is coming apart. It seems like the same issues 2019 transmissions in Chevys were having. My transmission is an automatic 8speed. The service performed fixed the problem of shuddering but now the truck is doing it again.

The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated that when the driver's door was opened the tailgate opened inadvertently. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V060000 (Latches/Locks/Linkages). The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 29,364.

When I started my truck in the morning a group of warning lights came on. This included check engine, ECS control, Parking Brake service I took truck to dealer that said I had bad or broken lifter in cylinder # 6.

While driving my truck at approximately 50mph it suddenly lost power while in traffic. I was fortunate enough to pull over safely to avoid an accident. The motor was violently shaking and sounded like it was coming apart internally. Almost every warning light on the dashboard came on as I was pulling over. The truck had little power and did not sound normal. I immediately called for a tow truck and had it towed to the nearest Chevrolet dealership. After inspection they confirmed the lifters were bad. The truck had 38,000 original miles on it at the time of this incident. The dealership repaired the defective lifters. With the current GM recall on the 6.2 liter engine my truck does not qualify as it was built 1 month prior to the recall date. This truck needs to be included in the current 6.2 liter engine that GM is recalling. The motor is defective and is a major safety issue. If I was driving with my family on the highway while this abrupt incident happened it could have been catastrophic. There were no signs or warnings whatsoever prior to this incident.

The inner tailgate on my 21 Silverado is not functioning properly. The upper electronic button on the tailgate operates the inner tailgate and will release when opening the vehicle. It will continue to release by itself and can cause damage to the vehicle or to other vehicles while carrying a load.

Fuel pump module failure while driving causing vehicle to stop abruptly while driving at highway speeds.

While leaving work I started the truck like normal and the dash lit up like a Christmas tree. Saying service ESC, service power steering,and service brake system. The ESC light was on as well as the check engine light. There was no forewarning about this.

There is a current recall out there for the tailgates releasing on 20-24 Chevy Silverado 2500 and 3500. I own a 1500 and am having the same issue. Water is getting into the rear electronic switch and releasing the tailgate unbeknownst to me. I have lost items that were in the bed on the pickup on the road while traveling. Can the recall include the 1500 models also?

Vehicle began to lose power on the highway almost causing a collision due to the low speeds I had to travel. My vehicle was taken to a local Chevrolet Dealership and was told I had bad lifters and a bent rod. I was told this is a common issue with newer mold Chevrolet Silverado’s .

2021 Silverado 19,000 miles no indication of failure at a busy intersection about to go thru intersection and engines started knocking, multiple check engine lights on. Luckily got thru the intersection and to my place of residence which was very close by. Truck was towed to Chevy dealer. Dealer found 3 bent push rods, 3 bad valves. This engine had the lifters fail completely out of the blue. Oil changed at the dealer, meticulously maintained. Dealer only replaced the faulty bank of lifters due to mileage, seriously if it was under 16,000 they would replace all of them. This is unacceptable. This truck left me almost stranded in a busy intersection, lucky I knew well enough to keep going versus getting T-boned. I just think GM needs to do something about this. Now fast forward to 41K and I'm at the dealer same symptoms except this time my warranty is running up soon and being forced into an extended warranty. There are plenty of online claims, chat rooms, posts, etc to warrant this as a safety issue.

Push-button tailgate electrical failure. Tailgate opens on its own while driving and while truck is off. This is a known issue that has already been recalled by GM but my truck was not included in the recall, even though the problem and repair are exactly the same as the currently recalled vehicles. I had to pay a GM Dealership to make the repair as the vehicle was unsafe to drive due to potential for flying debris from the bed while driving.

The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated that while shifting into park(P), the vehicle failed to recognize that the vehicle was in park(P). The contact stated that the "Shift to Park" message was displayed on the instrument panel. The contact was forced to move the gear shifter back and forth between gears before the correct gear was recognized. The vehicle was initially taken to a dealer; however, the dealer failed to duplicate the failure. The failure persisted and the vehicle was taken back to the dealer, and it was discovered that the transmission control module had short circuited and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 41,000.

Repair & Breakdown Timeline – 2021 Chevy Silverado Owner: [XXX] and [XXX] VIN [XXX] Warranty: Extended vehicle warranty (active) Millenium ________________________________________ Repair History Summary Oct 2024 – Issue: Hard shifting; GM recall for purge pump – Action Taken: Purge pump replaced under recall – Status: Returned to owner Nov 19, 2024 – Issue: Continued shifting problems – Action Taken: Transmission replaced – Status: Vehicle kept until Feb 2025 Feb 12, 2025 – Issue: Vehicle returned to owner – Action Taken: GM reimbursed car payments during downtime – Status: Returned to owner April 2025 – Issue: Loss of power; wouldn’t shift past 15 mph – Action Taken: Generic transmission code cleared, no fix – Status: Returned with unresolved issue June 9, 2025 – Issue: Random downshifting; RPM/speedometer erratic – Action Taken: External TCM wire replaced – Status: Returned June 11 June 18, 2025 – Issue: Recurring downshifting issue – Action Taken: Internal TCM wire replaced – Status: Returned June 25 June 27, 2025 – Issue: Hard downshifting, braking sensation during acceleration – Action Taken: Returned to shop – Status: Ongoing •7 total repair visits, 4 of them since February 2025 transmission replacement •Symptoms continue despite following GM’s repair instructions •Dealership has followed GM repair guidance each time •Vehicle remains a safety risk, especially with children onboard •Similar Silverado models have recalls, but this VIN is not include I have two young children, and this vehicle has now placed us in extremely unsafe situations multiple times. We’ve been stranded in traffic, unable to accelerate, and fearful for our safety. Despite repair after repair, the problem continues. At this point, I do not believe this truck can be fixed, and I am unwilling to keep driving it—or trade it in knowing another family could end up in the same dangerous situation. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

The tailgate on my 2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 opens randomly. Initially, it was not often, but progressively happening. I had to pull over in rush hour traffic this morning to shut the tailgate after it opened randomly. The only reason I knew, was checking the rear camera.

Camshaft bearing failure. Catastrophic engine failure while accelerating at left turn. Required full engine replacement. Incident occured at 59,982 miles on odometer. Even though vehical was under manufacture warranty it took approx. 18 days for GM to assume responsability. I was required to produce all maintenance records and was left without a vehicle for this time. Company was not clear on what work and parts of this repair would be protected under further warranty. Company did not provide exact specifics on replacement engine year and place of origin.

Lifter failure of the right bank in 2021 at 19,000 miles. At the time of failure engine was 2.5 quarts low on oil. Ever since, this truck has been using oil excessively. I am currently involved with an oil consumption test. Of which over the last 5k miles I have had to have more oil added by the dealership.