Complaint volume
767 consumer-submitted complaints are matched to this model year. Treat the count as a research signal, then read the actual summaries for repeated symptoms.
Complaint records
2021 Chevrolet Silverado Complaints
767 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2021 Chevrolet Silverado, grouped by component category.
767 Total complaints
18 Crash reports
11 Fire reports
12 Injury reports
Complaint data reflects consumer-submitted reports. A complaint is not proof
of a defect, recall, or manufacturer fault. Enriched severity fields come
from official bulk records when the complaint can be matched by ODI number.
Buyer interpretation
How to use these complaints before buying
Complaint records are most useful when they turn into inspection points, seller questions, and comparison checks against nearby model years.
Pattern to inspect
The most common categories are engine, power train, engine and engine cooling. Use those categories as a test-drive checklist instead of judging the vehicle from the total count alone.
Severity flags
Enriched records include 18 crash reports, 11 fire reports, 12 injury reports, and 0 fatality reports. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 162 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 55,888 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Questions to ask the seller
- Have you had any problems related to engine, power train, engine and engine cooling?
- Can I see recent maintenance and repair records?
- Has the vehicle ever been towed, involved in a crash, or repaired for the same issue twice?
- Can we also check the recall record for this 2021 Chevrolet Silverado?
Used-car checklist
Use these complaints before the test drive.
Build a buyer checklist to turn these issues into questions and inspection points.
2021 Chevrolet Silverado
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2021 Chevrolet Silverado complaints?
18 Crash
11 Fire
12 Injury
0 Fatality
64 Towed
8 Medical attention
What are the most common 2021 Chevrolet Silverado complaint categories?
ENGINE 226
POWER TRAIN 130
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING 43
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 40
POWER TRAIN,ENGINE 39
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 24
STRUCTURE 19
STEERING 18
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES 14
SERVICE BRAKES 14
767 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2025 | POWER TRAIN | While coming to a stop at the end of the exit ramp my vehicle bucked when trying to go from a stop into 1st gear. Eventually the truck continued in a forward motion. Then came to a stop light and once again from a stopped position by truck bucked and eventually went into gear and continued forward motion. Parked the car where it sat for 1.5 hours then went to drive the vehicle and it bucked again into 1st gear. Drove to a parking lot were we parked to get lunch. Came out started the vehicle backed out of the parking spot and drove forward to the exit of the parking lot. When trying to exit the vehicle failed to move forward. The car acted as if it was in neutral and only revving to high RPM's. Removing the fuse for the Transmission Control Ignition allowed the vehicle to move forward but only in gears 1,2,3. I brought the vehicle to GMC dealership and they recommended a fluid service to determine if metal chips are in the fluid. That service was performed and issue remained. The Dealer has recommended a complete transmission replacement. My vehicle never displayed a warning lamp or shown symptoms prior to this failure. My vehicle has a 8 speed transmission which is known to be a failing part with Chevrolet and GMC. A new transmission is costing me $7900 plus tax on a 2021 with low wear and highway use. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2025 | ENGINE | Engine misfire, likely engine will need to be replaced | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2025 | POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | No check engine light, and my transmission didn't engage gear. I left vehicle off for the night, started it and it worked perfectly fine. Still, no check engine light was on. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2025 | ENGINE | Around [XXX] on [XXX] the vehicle shut down with no codes showing or any warning. The weather was approximately 13* f. After many failed attempts to restart, and the electrical systems would not power down as if the vehicle thought it was still running. The only way to get the system to shut down was to disconnect the battery. i had to physically push the vehicle to a safe location. The next morning I attempted to diagnose the issue with no success. I had the vehicle hauled to the dealership from which it was purchased in Idaho to have it inspected. Tuesday morning I received word from the dealership that the engine suffered major failure. This will be the 3rd engine in the vehicle. I am uneasy about the dependability of the vehicle as I have recently discovered that this particular engine is having massive failures all over the country. So much so that the NHTSA has opened an investigation for the purposes of safety. I purchased the vehicle for the main purpose of pulling a snowmobile trailer with snowmobile to the mountains and also to tow my boat and trailer. Both of these activities require a vehicle in which I can depend on. While I am waiting for a back order engine the dealership and manufacturer refuse to lend a like vehicle, leaving destitute. I am hoping that this agency can offer some assistance, and I believe it's important that you are made aware of the hazard that this particular engine possesses. As I previously mentioned this the 3rd engine and As far as I can see this will occur again putting myself and others potentially in harms way because of a known issue. This does not make me feel confident of the safety of the vehicle. Be aware where i live there grades in every direction and extreme weather conditions from season to season. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2025 | POWER TRAIN | Drove my truck home for lunch. Truck drove normal all morning with no warning lights or audible warnings. Went to leave and head back to work. Put my truck in reverse and it would not move. Still no warning lights or audible warnings. After looking online it said that this was common in the Chevrolet speed transmission. It also says the valve body was bad. They also stated that it could lock up the transmission and cause an accident. Luckily I was not driving down the road to find out. When talking with a Chevrolet dealership they told me that the parts to fix the transmission is on backorder. They also stated that the parts may not be available for months. Because the Chevrolet dealership had other Chevrolet vehicles in with the 10 speed transmission with the same issues and could not get parts because of the valve body being on backorder. They also said that the whole transmission being on backorder. This sounds like it's a common problem with Chevrolet 10 speed transmissions. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2025 | STEERING | I was driving and my electric steering locked up. I had it towed to a garage and they reset the computer. I'm afraid it's going to happen again. I'm going to the dealership on Tuesday and I don't feel that I should pay for this since it's a safety issue. I only have 50,000 miles on it.can someone please get back to me. Thanks | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2025 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | Tailgate, inadvertently opens. Causing, causing items in my truck bed to be exposed, although I haven’t lost anything while traveling. I have witnessed this occurrence while truck is locked sitting in my driveway, last incident was last night, 13 Feb 25. Also, noticed it when pulling out of a repair shop after getting brake pads put on vehicle. Wife had witnessed it a few months ago while driving back from town. I noticed a recall had been made about Chevrolet trucks and inadvertently opening tailgates. However my truck was not listed as a recall, when I checked VIN. Called Chevrolet garage to see if they could find my VIN on the recall list. Most of the recalls were on the 2500 and 3500 series but it also listed trucks with switch in cab for tailgate to open. I do have an appointment for the problem at Chevrolet garage in the 18th. To fix problem and prevent causing a hazard on the roads. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2025 | POWER TRAIN | 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. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2025 | STRUCTURE | The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated that while washing the vehicle, he noticed that water was entering the vehicle through a crack in the rear window seal. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to report the failure to the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 57,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 57,000 |
| Feb 2025 | AIR BAGS | The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated that while driving approximately 20 MPH, the vehicle crashed into a parked vehicle. During the crash, the front passenger side of the vehicle was severely damaged but the air bag did not deploy. The driver sustained an injured nose, mild concussion, bottom tooth damage, and back and neck pains. No medical treatment was needed. A police report was taken at the scene and the vehicle was later towed away. The cause of the failure was not determined. The manufacturer and local dealer were contacted but no assistance was offered. The manufacturer's air bag department declined assistance due to the air bag failure not being reported promptly. The failure mileage was 23,000. | Crash: Yes Fire: No Injuries: 1 Towed | 23,000 |
| Feb 2025 | POWER TRAIN | My 2021 Chevy jerks and jumps into gear when putting it into drive from park. This has resulted in the truck jetting off uncontrollably. This has happend several times going back to 2021 but Chevy will not do anything about it. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2025 | POWER TRAIN | While driving vehicle pulling out into an intersection lost power do to Transmission failure (valve control body). Truck was towed to a Chevy Dealer and was confirmed transmission failure. There was no warning or symptoms prior to this incident. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2025 | STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | I turned my truck on after grocery shopping and a notice to "Service Power Steering" popped up on my dashboard. I took it to a mechanic shop where they ran diagnostics. They discovered a TSB # 21-NA-149 and error code U0131. They believe there is an intermittent fault within the wiring causing the power steering to go out. My biggest fear is that this happens while I am negotiating a curve and lose power steering causing a crash or someone to get injured. There was also a "Service ESB" notice on the dashboard after the power steering notification. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2025 | POWER TRAIN | 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. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2025 | POWER TRAIN | 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. | Crash: No Fire: No | 41,000 |
| Feb 2025 | POWER TRAIN,ENGINE | 2021 Silverado LT Trail Boss 6.2 (production date: 01/2021) was taken to the GM/Chevy dealer (Ed Morse Chevrolet) on 01/29/2024. It was confirmed by the GM mechanic that the engine had failed (75k miles) due to a shattered camshaft and metal in the engine and a complete engine replacement is needed. Had prior complaint at around 6k miles for engine noise along with hard shifts and a check engine light that had appeared then went away on its own (documented). I was told by a GM certified dealership, it was normal in the new trucks and no action was taken. Unsatisfied, I made another appointment for a second opinion and only regular maintenance service was suggested and performed several days after, at a GM certified dealership. All oil changes have been performed in a timely manner. No forewarning prior to engine failure to include check engine light or any system messages, although trucks performance from the initial complaint did not subside. To my knowledge, this vehicles engine is weighing heavy on consumers safety with engine failure and is a well documented issue, leaving many stranded. Thank you! | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2025 | POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE | The truck jerks when first driving and will jerk and lundge at various times and speeds. There is a almost grinding nosie. It often says "Reduced Engine Power" and the engine light comes one, the "Service ESC" notice comes on with the vehicle light, when this happens the truck will barely accelerate even if flooring the gas, continues to make a grinding noise. This happens frequently, but then lights go away, then come back on. Dealership pulled multiple codes (image attached). This is a huge safety risk due to failure of acceleration, and the jerking that causes the truck to jerk while in motion and slow. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2025 | FUEL SYSTEM, DIESEL | The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated that the oil was lowering several quarts at a fast rate, and the oil was burning at a fast rate. After lowering down 3 quarts of oil by 3 weeks. At the same time, driving at approximately 25 - 30 MPH when they noticed black smoke coming from underneath the front passenger side of the hood between the window and windshield. The contact pulled to the side of the road where the fire was extinguished with a fire extinguisher. The fire department was not called. A police report was not filed. There were no injuries and no medical attention was needed. The vehicle was towed to their home. The dealer was contacted however they confirmed they were unable to inspect the vehicle for another 5 weeks. The contact had ordered and replaced the intake and the fuel return lines. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure opened a case for the failure and offered a buyback option however the contact decided not to take the offer. The failure mileage was 32,000. | Crash: No Fire: Yes Towed | 32,000 |
| Feb 2025 | POWER TRAIN,ENGINE | With absolutely no warning, the 6.2 liter V-8 engine with 28,500 miles on it seized up solid and would not run. I was stranded in heavy Christmas traffic and completely blocked one lane. It was an unsafe situation. I had to summon a wrecker to come and tow the vehicle, and I called 911 for police presence to alert and direct traffic. The vehicle was at the Chevy dealer for a month while they installed a new engine. The dealer never fully confirmed what the cause was - I don't believe they really know - and I only have 10 months of warranty left. I am concerned about another failure and thought I should at least get the warranty on the new engine re-set to 60,00 or more miles. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2025 | STRUCTURE,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | There is a water leak from the rear roof leaking causing water to come inside by the rear window down the rear pillar by the airbag. May cause problems with the rear side airbag and mold. Dealer charged me a $273 diagnostics charge and will not repair under warranty or extended warranty even though there is a TSB on this affecting numerous other trucks | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2025 | POWER TRAIN | The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated while driving from a complete stop, the transmission was slipping between the third and fourth gears. The contact stated that the failure recurred while driving between the sixth and seventh gears. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the transmission had failed due to the TCM and torque converter failure; however, the parts were not available to repair the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 95,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 95,000 |
| Jan 2025 | ENGINE | The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated that while driving approximately 30 MPH following a school bus, there was an abnormal screeching sound coming from the vehicle. The contact stated that a message to pull over safely was displayed. The contact stated that the engine had seized. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the crankshaft bearings and connecting rod bearings had failed. After further diagnostic tests, the contact was informed that the vehicle was not repairable. The vehicle was repaired with a remanufactured engine. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 16,000. | Crash: No Fire: No Towed | 16,000 |
| Jan 2025 | ENGINE | The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed or while stopping the vehicle, the contact heard an abnormal sound coming from the top of the engine where the lifters were located. The contact stated that the spring in the engine had collapsed, causing the check engine message to be displayed. The contact stated that the dealer was contacted. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the lifters on the top of the engine were causing the DEF sensor to engage. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 90,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 90,000 |
| Jan 2025 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | I brought in vehicle for check engine light is on for p0300 / p0308 had misfire tech removed engine valve cover and determine no movement in valve train components tech determine valve train failure lifters possible camshaft we would need to remove the cylinder head and replace valve train lifters. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2025 | POWER TRAIN,ENGINE | At 4K miles, the lifters of the engine went bad. It was determined a rod was bent and had to be replaced. At 26K miles, another cylinder went bad and had to be replaced. At 40Kmiles, serpentine belt had to be replaced. At 41K miles, another cylinder went bad and had to be replaced. Now, at 55K miles, I am getting the same issues with loss of power, engines stuttering and misfiring and will be taking the truck to the dealer on 1/28/25. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |