2018 GMC Sierra 1500
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Power train is the leading concern among 304 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 11th highest complaint count among 26 Sierra 1500 model years with reports.
Of the 2018 reports, 10 involved a crash and 1 involved a fire. 5 people were injured.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Air bagsMay 21, 2026
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500, GMC Sierra 1500, 2019 Chevrolet Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, GMC Sierra 2500, and Sierra 3500 vehicles. The left-side or right-side roof rail air bag (RRAB) inflator end cap may detach from the inflator or the inflator sidewall may rupture.
A detached end cap or inflator rupture can allow compressed gas to escape and project the end cap or fragments of the inflator into the vehicle, increasing the risk of injury.
Dealers will replace both RRAB modules, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 24, 2026. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-888-988-7267 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N262557310. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on May 21, 2026. This recall expands previous NHTSA recall number 26V166.
Campaign 26V325000 on NHTSA.gov
Air bagsMar 19, 2026
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500, GMC Sierra 1500, 2019 Chevrolet Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, GMC Sierra 2500, and Sierra 3500 Crew Cab vehicles. The left or right-side roof rail air bag (RRAB) inflator end cap may detach from the inflator or the inflator sidewall may rupture.
A detached end cap or inflator rupture can allow compressed gas to escape and project the end cap or fragments of the inflator into the vehicle, increasing the risk of injury.
Dealers will replace the left and right-side RRAB modules, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 16, 2026. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-888-988-7267 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N262549710. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on March 19, 2026.
Campaign 26V166000 on NHTSA.gov
Air bagsJun 26, 2025
General Motors (GM) is recalling certain 2018 GMC Sierra 1500, 2019 Sierra 2500, 3500, Chevrolet Silverado 3500, and Chevrolet Silverado 2500 and 2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Crew Cab vehicles. The left or right-side roof-rail air bag (RRAB) inflator end cap may detach from the inflator or the inflator sidewall may rupture.
A detached end cap or inflator rupture can allow compressed gas to escape and project the end cap or fragments of the inflator into the vehicle, increases the risk of injury or crash.
Dealers will replace the left and right side RRAB modules, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 23, 2025. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-888-988-7267 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N252513060.
Campaign 25V432000 on NHTSA.gov
Air bags, side/window, curtain, inflatorOct 10, 2024
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500, GMC Sierra 1500, 2018-2019 Chevrolet Silverado 2500, 3500, and GMC Sierra 2500, 3500 Crew Cab trucks. The left or right-side roof-rail air bag (RRAB) inflator end cap may detach from the inflator or the inflator sidewall may rupture.
A separated inflator end cap or inflator rupture can allow compressed gas to escape, resulting in the end cap or other components being propelled into the vehicle, increasing the risk of injury or crash.
Dealers will replace the left and right side RRAB modules, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed November 8, 2024. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, and GMC Customer Service at 888-988-7267. GM's number for this recall is N242474500.
Campaign 24V756000 on NHTSA.gov
Service brakes, hydraulic, power assist, vacuumOct 1, 2020
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2018 Cadillac Escalade, Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500 and Yukon vehicles equipped with either a 5.3L or 6.2L V8 engine. The output of the mechanical vacuum pump can decrease over time, decreasing the amount of vacuum/power brake assist.
A decrease in brake assist can increase the brake pedal effort and distance required to stop the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
GM will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the Electronic Brake Control Module, free of charge. The recall began November 11, 2020. Owners may contact GM customer service at 1-866-522-9559, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-630-2438. GM's number for this recall is N202300860.
Campaign 20V603000 on NHTSA.gov
Service brakes, hydraulic, antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip, wheel speed sensor/tone ringOct 24, 2019
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015-2020 Chevrolet Suburban, Tahoe, and GMC Yukon, and 2014-2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 vehicles equipped with a 5.3-liter engine, a 3.08-ratio rear axle and four-wheel drive. If a wheel-speed sensor fails, while the vehicle is traveling between 41 and 60 mph in four-wheel or automatic mode, the Electronic-Brake Control Module (EBCM) software may activate the driveline-protection system.
Unintended activation of the driveline-protection system will cause unintended braking on the wheel on the opposite side of the failed sensor, causing the vehicle to pull to one side unexpectedly, increasing the risk of a crash.
GM will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the EBCM, free of charge. The recall began December 11, 2019. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-630-2438 or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N192261050.
Campaign 19V761000 on NHTSA.gov
Service brakes, hydraulic, power assist, vacuumSep 6, 2019
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015-2017 Cadillac Escalade, 2014-2018 Chevrolet Silverado, GMC Sierra, 2015-2018 Chevrolet Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Yukon vehicles. The amount of vacuum created by the vacuum pump may decrease over time.
As the vacuum level drops, the brake assist decreases, increasing braking effort, extending the distance required to stop the vehicle, thereby increasing the risk of a crash.
GM will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the Electronic Brake Control Module, free of charge. The recall began October 8, 2019. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-630-2438, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006 or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N192268490.
Campaign 19V645000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints: suspension
11 reports, newest first. Show all
Suspension, Power train, Sep 16, 2026
Unknown
Suspension, Power train, May 15, 2026
The transmission has always been rough. It has now gone out at 75,000 miles. This transmission issue really seemed to get worse about 50,000 miles. But when I called the dealer, they said they were backed up and couldn't get to it for 9-12 weeks (Covid excuses at that point). Then, it really had an issue going down a large grade into [XXX] . But the issues seemed fairly intermittent. I had an independent shop who said it was hard to tell if it was intermittent. They didn't find metal shavings at the time. ADDITIONALLY, it has also always been a little rough driving. A mechanic looking at it today told me there are no sway bar links at all. This truck has not been modified. This had to have come off the line faulty. Among all the other things. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Steering, Suspension, Electrical system, Mar 3, 2026
1. Electronic power steering modular issue. My 2018 GMC SEIRRA 1500 CREW CAB JUST LOST ALL POWER STEERING. THEN WHEN I PARK IT. Assist notifications come on, ABS notices, BRAKE light stays on, trailer/tow notifications, trailer assist, parking brake, etc SUDDENLY A LOUD thump & feels like the whole truck just drops like 5” inches, settling. I cannot afford an inspection (ID theft in 2025, compromised all accts & all credit cards) BUT. It IS available as long as cost is covered by YOU !! 2. Lucky it happened in a grocery store parking lot. However not expecting power steering to go out, almost hit a pedestrian. 3. No it has not Ben inspected yet I can’t afford the bill 4. No it has not been reported what for I didn’t hit anybody and the cops in this area they could give her rats ass they don’t make a report the question you like you’re like a criminal. 5. No warnings or anything until it happened that day leaving the grocery store. There is absolutely no notification it was gonna happen. It ran fine when I parked it to grocery shop Come back out & I could barely back out to leave. I can lift up my had fatboy if needed so I’m sure turning a steering wheel…. lol Thnx a lot If I could figure out what part needs to be changed out or you could cover the parts needed. I do work in cars or have in the past, I don’t like the new ones, but this seems simple enough if I knew exactly what part I needed to pull out change out or I see that there’s recalls on previous vehicles and GMC after2020- 24 but I don’t see 2018 didn’t happen so I like to say whoever created that electronic steering can take that module along with the harness and they know exactly where they can put it don’t they I’m just saying as a used to be not sure now a GMC supporter, but I’m starting to think twice now if I
Steering, Suspension, Jun 4, 2024, crash
I have a 2018 GMC Sierra 1500 that I bought new in Oct of 2018 and it now has 15,756 miles on it and was still like new at the time of failure. On May 23rd I was driving the truck when the driver suspension suddenly had an structural failure (mostly the ball joint coming out of the control arm) causing the front right side of the suspension to collapse while driving. This caused the truck to go left of center into on coming traffic resulting in a traffic accident.
Suspension, Apr 30, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 GMC Sierra 1500. The contact stated that while the vehicle was at an independent mechanic for an oil change, the independent mechanic performed a full inspection of the vehicle. The contact was informed that the CV axles were corroded, and the CV axles needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The contact was advised to report the failure to the dealer. The contact informed the dealer of the failure. The contact stated that the vehicle had been taken back to the dealer several times for repairs, including the transmission replacement, radiator replacement, and a full suspension replacement. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 93,555.
Steering, Suspension, Power train, Nov 11, 2023
The vehicle steering wheel shudders at speeds from 40-55mph. The steering wheel shudders at 2-second intervals and is constant between those speeds. At first, I thought it might be one of the safety systems. It is not. This is unsafe and GM should be held responsible.
Steering, Suspension, Wheels, Apr 10, 2023
Noticed a scraping noise after new, recommended tires installed on my stock truck. Checked the door label to ensure correct tires installed, they were, returned to the tire facility and they recommended I ask a repair facility to investigate. Found that the tires are rubbing the upper control arm when fully turned left or right (both sides affected). Went online to discover that this is a common issue with the 2018 and similar GMC Sierra and Chevy Silverado trucks. This is a safety issue caused by a design deficiency. Two things can happen. One, the tire can fail. Two, the upper control arm could fail, causing the vehicle to be uncontrollable. This could be fixed by restricting the extreme left and right travel in the steering system or redesigning and replacing the upper control arm so it doesn’t interfere with the tire. This is an unacceptable safety issue caused by a design deficiency and needs to be addressed by NTSB now.
Suspension, Power train, Tires, Nov 22, 2022
The contact owns a 2018 GMC Sierra 1500. The contact stated that while driving at an undetermined speed, the vehicle was shaking while shifting gears. The contact stated while shifting from four cylinders to eight cylinders, the rear-end was shaking violently. The hood latch warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the tires needed to be replaced. The tires were replaced three times however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 50,000.
Steering, Suspension, Sep 12, 2022
My truck has a severe vibration or shake extremely bad at 60mph and up.i have tried new tires, front end alignment, and several different shops have told me they don't know what it is drive shaft or axels
Suspension, Power train, Dec 15, 2021
VEHICLE VIOLENTLY SHAKES AT ALL SPEEDS. DEALER BLAMED TIRES, I HAD NEW TIRES INSTALLED, STILL SHAKING. DEALER SAYS "NO PROBLEM FOUND, OPERATING AS DESIGNED" TRUCK IS A NUISANCE TO DRIVE, SHAKING BADLY
Suspension, Jul 24, 2020
WHEN DRIVING THE TRUCK STARTS TO RATTLE AS IS I WAS DRIVING ON A BUMPY ROAD. IT IS NOT CONTINUOUSLY BUT ID HAPPENS OFTEN