2001 GMC Sonoma problems
NHTSA has received 108 complaints about the 2001 GMC Sonoma, and 24% of them involve body & structure. After that come brakes (17%) and drivetrain & axles (6%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 108 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Body & structure 24% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 9 and 1
- Injuries and deaths
- 6 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 53,000 miles 58 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 8 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 8 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 20 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 10 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 3 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 6 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 1 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 0 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 0 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 1 |
| 200k+ miles | 1 |
What the data shows
Among the 58 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 53,000 miles. For body & structure specifically, the median reported mileage is about 52,000 miles (20 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 9 complaints mention a crash; 1 complaint mentions a fire; 6 injuries reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2001 ranks 6th most-complained-about out of 13 model years of the GMC Sonoma with enough data (82 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 1 safety recall campaign.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
Hit a tree at 35 MPH, airbags deployed and then shorted out and burned vehicle to the ground. The consumer hit a patch of ice and the vehicle skidded and collided with a tree. As airbags deployed, sparks occured bursting into flames. The vehicle burned to the ground.
Our GMC sonoma was hit head on, both vehicles driving approximately 40-45 MPH. The sonoma had extensive front end damage, broken glass, the roof buckled (not a roll over) drivers side floor protruded into vehicle, console exploded into vehicle,impact great enough to shatter side windows and broken windshield ,front axle broken, frame showed 4-6" gap between cab & bed .......no airbags deployed. How many other families feel secure with knowing their vehicle has airbags?
Tailgate cables broke on my 2001 GMC sonoma. One person was sitting on tailgate, when second person sat down. Both cables broke and dumped them on the ground.
Dt*: the contact stated while sitting on the tailgate, the cable attachment fractured without warning. There were no injuries. The cable, although encased in plastic, retained moisture and resulted in a rusting of the cable material. The dealer replaced the cable. There is a NHTSA recall, # 06v066000, regarding the structure. The vehicle has the same problems as indicated in the recall; however it is not included in the recall due to the VIN.
I was driving my husbands 2001 GMC sonoma from ohio back to florida when the driveshaft snapped and punctured a hole in the fuel tank and muffler. This event LED to us having to replace the rear driveshaft, fuel tank, and he repaired the muffler. We researched GMC driveshaft failures on line and discovered that there were many complaints about the driveshaft breaking.