GMC SIERRA DENALI · model year

2017 GMC SIERRA DENALI

13 NHTSA complaints, 2 crash reports for this specific cohort.

NHTSA overall rating

Not crash-tested

New Car Assessment Program

The 2017GMCSIERRA DENALI carries 13 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 2 crashes, 0 fires, 2 injuries, and 0 fatalities. No NCAP 5-star crash-test rating is available for this model year in the federal database.

Component-level analysis is where model-year complaints become actionable: the top complaint category for the 2017 SIERRA DENALI is unknown or other with 3 filings, followed by power train (2) and engine (1). Concentration in one or two component groups is the classic signature of a systemic defect; a flat distribution usually reflects normal aging, warranty complaints, or isolated build-plant variability.

NHTSA currently has 2 investigation files overlapping the 2017 SIERRA DENALI. Owners comparing this cohort against neighboring years should pair the counters above with the complaint-by-year trend on the parent model page — a spike in a single year often tracks to a platform refresh, a new transmission supplier, or an updated ECU calibration. Use the related-complaint feed below to read raw owner narratives before deciding whether any pattern here affects your specific use case.

13
Complaints
2
Crashes
0
Fires
2
Injuries
0
Deaths

Total Complaints

13 filings

Crashes Reported

2 reports

Source

NHTSA ODI

Federal complaints database

Complaints vs. fleet median (215)

At or below the fleet median complaint volume.

Complaints by Component

ComponentCount
UNKNOWN OR OTHER3
POWER TRAIN2
ENGINE1
WHEELS1
SUSPENSION1
EXTERIOR LIGHTING:TAIL LIGHTS1
EQUIPMENT1
AIR BAGS1
SEAT BELTS1
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING1

Recent Complaints

20251110ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING

The contact owns a 2017 GMC Sierra Denali. The contact stated that while driving approximately 40 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle was shuddering and vibrating. The contact pulled over and opened the hood with the engine running. The contact stated that there was an abnormal ticking sound coming from the engine. The vehicle was driven to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the fuel injectors needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the vehicle was still running rough. The contact was advised by the mechanic that the fuel injectors needed to be reprogrammed, and the vehicle was taken to a dealer. The dealer reprogrammed the fuel injectors, but the vehicle was still running rough. The dealer had not opened the engine up to diagnose the failure; however, the dealer thought that there might be a failure with connecting rods. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact researched online and

Mileage: 105,000

20240229CrashAIR BAGS

The contact owned a 2017 GMC Sierra Denali. The contact stated that while driving at 65 MPH, he briefly fell asleep. As a result, the vehicle left the roadway and collided with the exit median, coming to a complete stop after careening into a side ditch. The air bags did not deploy, and the seat belt failed to properly retrain, resulting in head and neck injuries. No warning lights were illuminated. A police report was filed, and injuries were reported. The contact was transported to an area hospital by EMT and treated for various lacerations to his head and arms and an unstable fracture of the C7 in his lower neck, later requiring surgery. The vehicle was towed to a tow yard and deemed a total loss by the contact's insurance provider due to a bent chassis. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and they inspected the vehicle, concluding that the impact was not sufficient to trigger air bag deployment, estimating that the vehicle was traveling between 1 and 4 MPH and that the ai

Mileage: 32,000

20240229CrashSEAT BELTS

The contact owned a 2017 GMC Sierra Denali. The contact stated that while driving at 65 MPH, he briefly fell asleep. As a result, the vehicle left the roadway and collided with the exit median, coming to a complete stop after careening into a side ditch. The air bags did not deploy, and the seat belt failed to properly retrain, resulting in head and neck injuries. No warning lights were illuminated. A police report was filed, and injuries were reported. The contact was transported to an area hospital by EMT and treated for various lacerations to his head and arms and an unstable fracture of the C7 in his lower neck, later requiring surgery. The vehicle was towed to a tow yard and deemed a total loss by the contact's insurance provider due to a bent chassis. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and they inspected the vehicle, concluding that the impact was not sufficient to trigger air bag deployment, estimating that the vehicle was traveling between 1 and 4 MPH and that the ai

Mileage: 32,000

20220309EQUIPMENT

The contact owns a 2017 GMC Sierra Denali. The contact was notified by her state inspection office that her vehicle was included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V496000 (Equipment). The dealer was notified about the recall and informed her that parts for the recall repair were not yet available. The manufacturer had been notified of the recall and contacted several dealers in her area; however, the dealers also did not have part available for the recall. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the repair. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

20210414EXTERIOR LIGHTING:TAIL LIGHTS

2017 GMC DENALI. CONSUMER WRITES REGARDING AN INOPERATIVE PASSENGER TAIL LIGHT. *LD THE CONSUMER STATED THE AFTER REMOVING THE FIXTURE, HE DISCOVERED THERE WAS NO BULB. THE ONLY WAY TO REPAIR THE FAILURE WAS TO REMOVE THE ENTIRE FIXTURE. *JS

20210307UNKNOWN OR OTHER

MY AIR CONDITIONING STOPPED WORKING AT ONLY 51,800MI AND JUST OVER 3 YEARS OLD ON MY 2017 GMC SIERRA 1500 DENALI. MY MECHANIC SAID MY AC CONDENSER IS LEAKING AND NEEDS TO BE REPLACED. HE SAID IT IS A WIDELY KNOWN ISSUE BUT NOT A RECALL.

Mileage: 51,800

20210304SUSPENSION

FRONT STRUTS WITH ELECTRONIC CONTROL WENT OUT WHILE DRIVING.

Mileage: 84,000

20201127WHEELS

MY BRIDGESTONE TIRES HAVE DRY ROTTED ALL 4 TIRE MANUFACTURING DATE IS 2017 SAME AS MY TRUCK NEW I HAVE 28 THOUSAND MILES ON THE TRUCK TOOK IT TO THE DEALERSHIP THEY TOOK PICTURES OF ALL TIRES AND TOLD ME THEY WERE VERY BAD THE TIRES SHOW LITTLE WEAR ON THE TIRES ALL OF THE DRY ROT IN ON THE SIDEWALLS ONLY THE DEALERSHIP SAID THERE HAS BEEN PROBLEMS WITH THESE TIRES AND TOLD ME TO CALL GM AND SEE IF THEY WOULD DO SOMETHING AS THEY WOULD NOT I DID CALL GM AND ALL THEY WOULD OFFER UP WOULD BE $100 DEALERSHIP VOUCHER GREAT JASON DOYLE TOOK PICTURES OF THE TIRES HE WORKS AT BILL DODGE 2 SAUNDERS WAY WESTBROOK MAINE HIS PHONE 207-857-4944

20201013POWER TRAIN

WHILE DRIVING MY GMC SIERRA DENALI THE TRANSMISSION SHUDDERS REALLY BAD. I HAVE A 2017 WITH JUST 13,200 MILES ON IT. I WAS PULLING MY BASS BOAT AND THE SHURDDER WAS SO BAD MY DASH WAS SHAKING AND THE STEERING WHEEL WAS ALSO .I HAVE HAD THE FLUID CHANGED AT THE DEALERSHIP AND IT SHIFTED FINE AND DID NOT SHUDDER UNTIL IT REACHED AROUND 1000 MILES AFTER FLUID CHANGE AND IT IS DOING IT WORSE NOW THAN BEFORE. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER CLOSE TO ME AND THEY INFORMED ME TODAY THEY WERE GOING TO DO NOTHING AND THEY TOLD ME TO TAKE IT BACK TO THE DEALER I BOUGHT IT FROM! THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE! I UNDERSTAND FROM ALL I HAVE BEEN READING ABOUT THIS PROBLEM GM STILL IS BUILDING AND SELLING TRUCKS WITH THE 8 SPEED TRANS IN THEM AND STILL HAVING PROBLEMS. REALLY? I GUESS I WILL KEEP DRIVING MINE AND I HOPE THE TRANSMISSION JUST COMES APART THEN THEY WILL GIVE ME ANOTHER TRANSMISSION DOING THE SAME THING! JUST GREAT GM!

Mileage: 13,200

20200925UNKNOWN OR OTHER

AFTER BEING STOPPED LIKE AT A STOPLIGHT, THEN WHEN IT'S TIME TO ACCELERATE, THE TRUCK HAS A HARD JERK TO IT, AND IT DOESN'T WANT TO DOWN SHIFT. PLUS WHEN RIDING DOWN THE ROAD, THE TRUCK WILL LO JUST SUDDENLY JERK SO BAD THAT IT FEELS LIKE SOMEONE RAN INTO THE BACK OF THE TRUCK. THIS HAS BEEN GOING ON FOR A LONG TIME, AND I HAVE TAKEN IT TO THE DEALERSHIP 4 TIMES AND THEY SAID THEY COULDN'T FIX IT. I EVEN RODE WITH THEM, AND IT DID IT. THEY STILL DIDN'T WANT TO FIX IT.

20200701POWER TRAIN

HARSH DOWNSHIFT INTERMITTENT BETWEEN 20 AND 30 MPH. BINDING/CLUNKING AT LOW SPEEDS WHEN DOWNSHIFTING INTO FIRST OR UP SHIFTING INTO 2. TRANSMISSION SHUDDER WHEN ACCELERATING IN FIRST GEAR. VEHICLE LUNGES FORWARD INTERMITTENTLY AT LOW SPEEDS WHEN SHIFTING.

Mileage: 42,300

20200526UNKNOWN OR OTHER

ABOVE 35MPH I BEGIN TO GET AN EXTREME SHAKE AND VIBRATION. IT GETS MORE AND MORE PRONOUNCED AS I DRIVE. AT 65MPH IS NEARLY UNBEARABLE, AND SHAKES AND VIBRATES VIOLENTLY. IT GIVES ME HEADACHES, AND I CAN FEEL IT IN MY ARMS AS I DRIVE. I FIRST NOTICED IT ABOUT 100 MILES AFTER BUYING THE TRUCK. IT NOW HAPPENS DAILY. *TR

Mileage: 60,000

20170822ENGINE

NOTICED VIVID AND PERSISTENT ENGINE VIBRATION SHORTLY AFTER PURCHASE - WITH NO ASSOCIATED CHECK ENGINE CODE. VIBRATION HAPPENS AT ALL ENGINE AND AMBIENT TEMPERATURES (ESPECIALLY BELOW 50 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT), AT ALL ALTITUDES, REGARDLESS IF IN PARK, NEUTRAL, OR DRIVE. VIBRATION IS SO NOTICEABLE, YOU CAN WATCH THE WAVES VIBRATE THROUGH A CLASS OF WATER WHEN PLACED ON THE DASHBOARD. TAKEN TO TWO DIFFERENT DEALERSHIPS AND BOTH HAVE STATED THE VIBRATION EXPERIENCED IS PER NORMAL DESIGN FOR 6.2L ENGINE. HARD TO BELIEVE GM WOULD DESIGN A $65K+ VEHICLE THAT PURPOSELY VIBRATES/SHAKES. ESCALATED THROUGH GM CORPORATE (SR# 8-3108393XXX), TO WHICH THEY CONFIRMED TRUCK IS RUNNING AS DESIGNED. SINCE THE ENGINE WAS NOT THROWING A CODE, NO FURTHER INVESTMENT/RESOLUTION WAS NEEDED ON THEIR END. THEIR SOLUTION TO ME...SELL THE TRUCK IF NOT HAPPY. OF COURSE THEY DID NOT SAY THAT, BUT THAT'S THE WAY I INTERPRETED THEIR RESPONSE TO MEAN. BUYER BEWARE.

Mileage: 300

Compare 2017GMCSIERRA DENALI to Similar Vehicles

NHTSA Investigations

Frequently Asked Questions

How many complaints does the 2017 GMC SIERRA DENALI have?
The 2017 GMC SIERRA DENALI has 13 NHTSA complaints, 2 crashes, 0 fires, 2 injuries, and 0 deaths reported.
What are the most common problems with the 2017 GMC SIERRA DENALI?
The most-complained component for the 2017 GMC SIERRA DENALI is UNKNOWN OR OTHER with 3 complaints. Other frequently reported areas include POWER TRAIN and ENGINE.
Is the 2017 GMC SIERRA DENALI safe to buy?
Review the complaint history, crash and fire reports, safety ratings, and recall status on this page to make an informed decision. No NHTSA crash test rating is available for this model year. Compare with other model years using the links above.
Where does this data come from?
All complaint, recall, and safety rating data is sourced from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Complaints are filed by vehicle owners through NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation.

Vehicle Safety Guides

Data as of 2025. Sources: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) complaints database, NHTSA recall campaign API, NHTSA NCAP crash-test ratings, and NHTSA FARS for fatality cross-reference.