The Lemon Index

All cars · GMC · GMC Sierra 2500HD/3500HD

2009 GMC Sierra 2500HD/3500HD problems, engines and recalls.

Owners filed 36 complaints with the government about the 2009 GMC Sierra 2500HD/3500HD, most often about electrical (22%).

Which engine is in it

33 of the 36 complaints have a VIN we could decode, which tells us the engine.

EngineShareComplaintsWhat they name most
6.6 Duramax LMM diesel58%19electrical 32%, brakes 21%, tires 11%
6.0 V8 gas42%14too few to split

Each diesel's page: Duramax LMM.

Nearby model years

2008: 88 complaints · 2010: 12 complaints · every year

What owners complain about

Electrical22%
Airbags17%
Brakes14%
Engine11%
Body structure11%
Tires8%
Transmission & drivetrain6%
Doors, locks & latches6%

Share of this year's complaints that name each area.

When problems show up

Half of the owners who gave a mileage reported the problem between 14,000 and 75,000 miles; the middle report was at 40,000 miles (32 complaints with a mileage).

How serious

CrashesFiresInjury reportsDeath reportsTowed
10000

As reported by owners to NHTSA, not verified.

In owners' words

I keep going back to get the recall done and they keep telling me they don't have parts .This has gone on for years

2009 GMC Sierra 2500HD/3500HD owner · NHTSA complaint 11746826

Local dealer is not repairing my recall. I keep getting told parts are not available and this has gone on for years.

2009 GMC Sierra 2500HD/3500HD owner · NHTSA complaint 11678524

When I am driving in town I have an indication message that comes up and says engine power reduced

2009 GMC Sierra 2500HD/3500HD owner · NHTSA complaint 11638925

Recalls 5

  • 21V053000 Feb 2021 Air Bags

    General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2013 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, and Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Silverado 2500/3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Sierra 2500/3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." Additionally, GM is recalling certain 2010 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, and Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Silverado 2500/3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Sierra

    Fix. GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on February 24, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed on May 11, 2021. Owners may contact Cadillac customer service at 1-800-45

  • 21V052000 Feb 2021 Air Bags

    General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2009 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Sierra 2500, Sierra 3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." Additionally, GM is recalling certain 2007-2008 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, and Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Su

    Fix. GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on February 23, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed on September 20, 2021. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-

  • 21V050000 Feb 2021 Air Bags

    General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2007-2011 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Yukon, Yukon XL, and 2009-2011 Chevrolet Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, GMC Sierra 2500 and Sierra 3500 vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." Additionally, GM is recalling certain 2007-2008 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Suburban, Taho

    Fix. GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on February 22, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed on March 1, 2021. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-2

  • 18V267000 Apr 2018 Equipment

    General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2009-2014 Chevrolet Silverado HD and GMC Sierra HD, 2009 GMC Topkick 5000, 6000, 7000 and 8000 Series and Isuzu F Series, and 2009-2018 Chevrolet Express, and GMC Savana vehicles, equipped with certain Plastic-Handle Fire Extinguishers or Push Button 'Pindicator' Fire Extinguishers. These extinguishers may become clogged, preventing the extinguisher from discharging as expected or requiring excessive force to activate the extinguisher. Additionally, in certain models, the nozzle may detach from the valve assembly with enough force that it could cause injury and also render the product inoperable. For a full list of the affected fire extinguishe

    Fix. GM will notify owners, instructing them to contact Kidde to get a replacement fire extinguisher, free of charge. The recall began June 11, 2018. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782, and Isuzu customer service at 1-866-441-9638. GM's number for this recall is 18146.

  • 14V407000 Jul 2014 Electrical System

    General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2007-2011 Chevrolet Silverado HD 2500/3500 trucks manufactured January 18, 2007, to June 22, 2011, and GMC Sierra HD 2500/3500 trucks manufactured January 22, 2007, to June 21, 2011, and equipped with an auxiliary battery. Owners may unknowingly draw too much current through the vehicle's trailer harness resulting in the melting of fusible link for the auxiliary battery.

    Fix. GM will notify owners and dealers will replace the jumper harness with one that includes a 40 amp inline fuse, and provide the owner with supplemental Owner Manual information, free of charge. The recall began on August 29, 2014. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 14260.

NHTSA recalls for this model year under every name these trucks are filed under. A recall that names an engine applies only to trucks with it. Free at any dealer: check the VIN.

Quick answers

Is the 2009 Sierra HD reliable?

We can't score it per truck (heavy-duty sales aren't reported apart from the half-ton). Owners filed 36 complaints about it, most often about electrical (22% of them). Compare the diesel generations on their engine pages.

What engine does the 2009 Sierra HD have?

By the VINs in owner complaints: 6.6 Duramax LMM diesel (58%), 6.0 V8 gas (42%).

How many recalls does the 2009 GMC Sierra 2500HD/3500HD have?

5. Recall repairs are free at any dealer; check the truck's VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

The whole-line score for 2009, mostly half-tons: 2009 GMC Sierra.

No Lemon Index score: automakers report heavy-duty pickup sales together with the half-ton (one F-Series, Ram or Silverado number), so there is no honest per-truck denominator. These are counts and shares of owner complaints, not failure rates. Complaints: NHTSA owner complaints filed under the truck's 2500/3500 (F-250/F-350) names, all years filed, one per complaint number. Engine: decoded from the complaint's VIN (position 8 is the engine code) with NHTSA's vPIC decoder. Complaints filed as just “Silverado” or “Sierra” are left out (they mix 1500s and HDs). Older trucks have had more years to collect complaints, and popular years draw more because more were sold.

Updated · Free to use with credit: Source: The Lemon Index (lemonindex.com). Get the data

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