NHTSA Complaint #10255353 — 2002 GMC SIERRA

OUR 2002 SIERRA 3500 GMC PICKUP TRUCK IS EQUIPPED WITH AN 8.1L V8 ENGINE AND THE CRANKSHAFT POSITION SENSOR CAUSES THE TRUCK'S ENGINE TO OPERATE INTERMITTENTLY WHICH IN TURN CAUSES THE ENGINE TO FAIL COMPLETELY. WHEN THE ENGINE OPERATES INTERMITTENTLY, THE MESSAGE LIGHT ILLUMINATES 'REDUCED ENGINE POWER' AND THE VEHICLE RUNS ROUGH AND ULTIMATELY STALLS. THE ENGINE MAY RE-START IMMEDIATELY OR AFTER A PERIOD OF TIME. BECAUSE THIS SENSOR HAS FAILED ON THE EXPRESSWAY AT A HIGH RATE OF SPEED (70 MPH) ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS, WE WERE VERY FORTUNATE THAT WE (OR SOMEONE ELSE) WERE NOT SERIOUSLY INJURED. BECAUSE NHTSA RECALLED THE 2001 GMC SUVS/TRUCKS THAT HAD THIS DEFECTIVE CRANKSHAFT POSITION SENSOR AND BECAUSE THERE ARE NUMEROUS OTHER 2002 SUVS/TRUCKS THAT ARE ALSO HAVING THEIR ENGINES FAIL DUE TO THIS SAME DEFECT, THE NHTSA SHOULD IMMEDIATELY INVESTIGATE HAVING GMC RECALL THE 2002 MODELS AS WELL. THERE ARE SEVERAL COMPLAINTS LISTED ON NHTSA'S WEBSITE THAT DEAL WITH THIS SAME ISSUE (E.G., COMPLAINT NUMBERS 10038110, 10009727, 1009569, 10009556, 10001480, 10054217, 10069780, ETC.) THAT ARE IDENTIFIED UNDER VARIOUS 2002 GMC MODELS (I.E., SIERRA, GMC TRUCK, C SERIES). ADDITIONALLY, SINCE CONSUMERS FREQUENTLY PURCHASE GMC TRUCKS WITH THE 8.1L V8 ENGINE TO TOW LARGE TRAILERS, THIS SITUATION CAN CREATE A SERIOUS HAZARD ON THE HIGHWAYS THAT NHTSA MUST ADDRESS EXPEDITIOUSLY. THUS, SINCE WE ARE A CONSUMER THAT PURCHASED OUR TRUCK TO TOW A LARGE TRAILER AND OUR TRUCK HAS STALLED ON THE HIGHWAY ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS, WE HAD NO CHOICE BUT TO REPLACE THE CRANKSHAFT POSITION SENSOR OUT-OF-POCKET. *TR