NHTSA Complaint #10576461 — 2001 GMC SIERRA

WHEN MY ISSUES STARTED, I WOULD FILL MY GAS TANK AND THE GAS GAUGE WOULD PLUMMET TO EMPTY. WHILE DRIVING, IT WOULD GO TO FULL, BACK TO EMPTY OR BE ANYWHERE IN BETWEEN. AT THAT TIME, THERE NO NO MECHANICAL ISSUES, JUST THE ANNOYING FACT THAT YOU HAD NO IDEA HOW MUCH FUEL YOU ACTUALLY HAD. THIS WENT ON UNTIL THIS SPRING, WHEN I HAD THE FIRST POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS INCIDENT. I WAS DRIVING DOWN A COUNTY HIGHWAY AT APPROXIMATELY THE SPEED LIMIT AND THE TRUCK'S ENGINE JUST SHUT OFF. NO POWER STEERING, NOTHING. IT HAPPENED JUST AS I WAS COMING TO A STOP SIGN THANKFULLY. I WAS ABOUT 50 MILES FROM HOME AND WAS ABLE TO CALL A FRIEND THAT MANAGES THE COLLISION CENTER OF A LOCAL CAR DEALERSHIP TO SEE ABOUT GETTING A TOW OR HIS OPINION AS TO WHAT WAS WRONG. AFTER ABOUT TEN MINUTES AND AFTER NUMEROUS ATTEMPTS, IT RESTARTED. I TALKED TO SEVERAL MECHANICS AND GOT THE SAME ANSWER FROM ALL OF THEM: THE FUEL PUMP AND SENDING UNIT FAIL IN GMC TRUCKS AROUND THE MILEAGE, 95,000 MILES, THAT I CURRENTLY HAVE ON THE TRUCK. THE GAS GAUGE IS STILL ERRATIC, I HAVE HAD TWO EPISODES OF THE VEHICLE STALLING AND NOW THE SERVICE ENGINE SOON LIGHT IS COMING ON AND WHEN IT IS PUT ON AN ANALYZER IT SAYS EMISSIONS, BUT THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE EMISSIONS SYSTEM. I HAVE ALSO TALKED TO OWNERS WHO HAVE HAD THEIRS REPLACED AND EVERYONE SAYS TO GET A FACTORY MADE PUMP BECAUSE THE CHEAP AFTERMARKETS BREAK DOWN EVEN QUICKER. I GOOGLED THE INFORMATION AND THE PROBLEM APPEARS TO BE WIDESPREAD. *TR