GM launched a recall earlier this year for tailgates that could unlatch due to shorting electronic release switches.
After initially announcing a recall back in February for nearly 325,000 heavy-duty trucks, General Motors expanded its campaign this week to cover more than 132,000 additional trucks for an issue with their electronic tailgate release switches. Per documentation the automaker submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), this recall specifically impacts trucks with tailgates that have a power lock and release mechanism.
Similarly to the earlier recall, GM says there is a defect within power-unlatching tailgates on certain 2020-2024 heavy-duty trucks under both the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra 2500/3500 nameplates. The defect concerns the tailgate design and the electronic gate-release switch — water can make its way into the switch assembly, shorting it out and causing the tailgate latch to release unexpectedly.
Following the initial decision to recall impacted trucks and a notice to owners going out in May, a complaint involving a 2024 GMC Sierra 3500HD tailgate unexpectedly falling open and hitting a trailer reached the automaker. That particular truck was built after the first recall campaign, and GM opened a new investigation on August 20. To date, the manufacturer claims to the NHTSA that it knows of 237 field complaints alleging tailgates opened while driving.
Naturally, tailgates falling open while driving create an enormous safety hazard for the truck owner and other motorists, especially if there is cargo in the bed that can fall out if the tailgate where to suddenly unlatch.
GM says the tailgate switches likely were inundated with water and caused the tailgate to drop while trucks were in Park, and that the Body Control Module (BCM) would prevent the tailgate releasing while driving, even if it gets an errant release signal through the circuit board shorting out from water ingress.
However, earlier complaints made to the NHTSA refute that point, including:
- From April 24, 2024: A complaint says, “The contact [a 2024 GMC Sierra 2500 owner] stated while driving approximately 45-50 MPH, the tailgate opened unintendedly. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that cargo in the bed of the truck fell out onto the roadway. The contact stated the failure was like NHTSA campaign number 24V-060 [the February recall], however, the VIN was not included. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, but no assistance was provided.”
- This failure happened at 2,900 miles, according to the owner complaint published by the NHTSA.
- From May 22, 2024: Another 2024 GMC Sierra 2500 owner said, “The tailgate was automatically dropped while the trailer was connected. Destroyed my tailgate, this should never happen.” It’s unclear in the complaint whether the vehicle was moving at the time of the failure.
- From September 30, 2024: A complaint says, “The contact owns a 2022 Chevrolet Silverado 2500. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the tailgate opened unexpectedly. The contact stated that the tailgate slammed downward. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact called the local dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and informed there was no recall coverage.”
- The NHTSA does not have a VIN on file for this vehicle, but said the failure mileage for this truck was 21,000.
Other owners noted throughout early 2024 that dealers confirmed parts were not available to fix the problem when owners brought their trucks in. Those owners then lodged formal complaints with the NHTSA because “the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair.” In some cases, like that of a 2022 Chevy Silverado 2500 owner who filed a NHTSA complaint on July 25: “…the manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance [examples shown below].”
How many trucks are affected and what’s the timeline for repair?
Under this expanded recall campaign (NHTSA recall number 24V-894; GM recall number N242460160), GM now includes the following trucks, some of which may have been denied for repair earlier on in the year:
- 2024 Chevrolet Silverado HD (2500 and 3500): 66,669 units, built between August 1, 2023 and March 8, 2024.
- 2024 GMC Sierra HD (2500 and 3500): 65,368 units, built between August 1, 2023 and March 8, 2024.
- Total trucks under this new recall: 132,037 units
GM says switches with wires sealed in butyl tape were implemented in series production in its assembly plants on March 8, so newer trucks should not be affected. While it’s perfectly reasonable to be skeptical of that claim since the company’s first recall in February clearly did not fix the issue (the company changed the top housing material of the switch), this repair takes a different approach to the earlier recall. The earlier change seems to try and stop water ingress and contact with the wires in the first place, while this fix will (hopefully) stop an electrical short even if water does get into the switch assembly.
In its report to the NHTSA, GM determined the tailgate design in the subject vehicles are “susceptible to water intrusion in the location of the switch”. It stands to reason, then, that the updated switch is the best shot for owners to remediate the tailgate switch issue, short of the automaker actually redesigning the tailgate.
In addition to the newer trucks built after March 8 getting the latest switch incorporating fixes from both earlier recalls, owners who had their switches replaced under recall 24V-060 earlier in the year will not have the version using butyl tape to protect the wires from shorting caused by water ingress. In those cases, it’s unclear whether such owners would have to have the switches replaced again, though that should be the case now that both recalls are formally underway to try and repair the problem.
Owners who either waited to have the issue repaired on their trucks or couldn’t get the problem fixed due to lack of parts under the earlier recall may be in luck, as they should get the latest switch replacement with both improvements in place. In either case (both recall 24V-060 and 24V-894), GM says it will replace the switches free of charge and/or reimburse owners who already paid out-of-pocket to replace their damaged tailgate switch when the company refused to cover it under a recall campaign.
For this latest campaign, notifications should go out to owners no later than January 13, 2025, while dealers were notified of the expanded recall and the new remedy on November 26.
Another important recall if you own a diesel-powered Chevy Silverado or GMC Sierra HD truck:
If you do own one of the current-generation Chevy Silverado HD and GMC Sierra HD trucks, you’ll want to pay special attention to another critical recall. Back in early November, GM issued another recall (24V-797) covering diesel-powered trucks and full-size SUVs. Some of those vehicles could have a problem with the transmission control valve body, wherein a fluid leak could cause valves within the 10-speed automatic transmission to move unexpectedly, causing a rear-end lockup — potentially while under heavy load (like towing or hard acceleration). That lockup could cause the driver to lose control.
Again, owners complained to the NHTSA about the problem, and owners also reached out to us noting they experienced this exact issue. GM, for its part, says three minor injuries were reported, as well as two cases of property damage. However, it did not claim knowledge of any incidents where one of its trucks crashed into another vehicle as the result of a lockup caused by a faulty transmission control valve.
While the automaker is fixing the tailgate switch problem by physically replacing the switches, it is not taking that approach here. Instead, it is installing special software to “monitor valve performance”, so the vehicle can detect if there’s a problem within the transmission control valve assembly. If it does detect there’s an issue, it will put the truck into a sort of limp mode that will not allow it to shift above fifth gear to prevent a several-gear downshift (like 8th to 2nd, for instance) that would trigger an even more treacherous rear-wheel lockup. At this moment, it is not actively replacing transmission control valves within all affected transmissions on nearly half a million trucks. So, the underlying problem responsible for this software update still ostensibly exists, since the update itself is strictly there to watch for a problem before it escalates to a potential accident causing injury or worse.
In some specific cases where the transmission control valve body actually does fail, GM’s recourse looks to be replacing those damaged valve body assemblies under warranty. One case from October 15, 2024 involving a 2022 GMC Sierra 2500 owner claims the transmission overheated at approximately 65 MPH, displaying a message and triggering an audible alarm. While this complaint did not specifically mention a rear lockup, the manufacturer was notified of the failure that occurred at 18,334 miles, and replaced the valve body assembly under warranty.
On a side note: TFL did just purchase a new 2025 Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD Trail Boss. While it should not be subject to either of these two recalls since it was built outside the production period, we will monitor any issues during our long-term ownership experience and share them with you on the TFLtruck channel (our first test with the new truck, an MPG comparison against a light-duty 3.0-liter Duramax) is linked below.
