13 of the
440 complaints about the 2008 GMC Sierra 1500 are about the
seat belts — 3% of everything
reported for this model year.
Half of the failures with a mileage on record happened before
79,921 miles.
The contact owns a 2008 GMC Sierra 1500. The contact stated that while driving 5 MPH with her husband and grandson inside the vehicle and entering the driveway at the residence, there was an abnormally loud explosion coming from inside the vehicle and the driver’s side seat belt tightened unexpectedly. The contact was able to park the vehicle. The contact sustained bruising to the chest. The contact looked at her husband and became aware that the passenger’s side seat belt had tightened and there was blood dripping on the left side of the face, and her grandson had a bruise on the inner thigh. The contact took her husband to the Emergency Room for several fractured ribs. The contact’s grandson smelled an abnormal burning odor and became aware that the front passenger’s side seat belt was smoking. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer to a dealer to be diagnosed. The vehicle was diagnosed with a seat belt pre-tensioner failure. The contact was informed that the seat belt pre-tensioner needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and opened a case. The failure mileage was 208,809.
NHTSA complaint #11757393 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Hutchinson, KS
SEAT BELTS
I was driving down the highway at 70 mph, when there was a loud bang followed by a gun powder smell. My seatbelts went tight...hazard lights automatically came on...radio went dead...and the Airbag light came on. The pretensioners in both driver and passenger seats had deployed. I pulled over and shut the truck off, to get out and inspect it. There was no warning, and luckily I was composed enough to not wreck into anyone or anything. I see there have been a few similar incidents, so I'm glad this isn't just a solitary incident.
NHTSA complaint #11726399 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Princeton, NJ
SEAT BELTS
I was driving in a parking structure at low speed when a loud bang went off inside the cab. The hazard lights went off, there was an acrid electrical smell, and fine dust was coming from the steering wheel area. I stopped the truck and got out to look for a collision, but there was none. When I restarted the truck, the air bag light came on and I noticed that the seatbelts were retracted and no longer functional. I was not injured, but I believe that if this had happened in traffic or on the highway, I and my passenger could have been seriously hurt. The vehicle was towed to the GMC dealership, where they identified an error with the module that sends a signal to the airbags and seatbelts to deploy. Prior to this occurrence, I had no indication that the airbag/seatbelt system was faulty or in need of service.
NHTSA complaint #11633611 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Fort Payne, AL
SEAT BELTS
Cranked my truck yesterday and put it in drive. Slowly drove about 300 feet and the pretensioner’s discharged in my seatbelts. I fortunately did not have it on yet, but the seatbelts are now unusable.
NHTSA complaint #11503720 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
North St Paul, MN
SEAT BELTS
UNKNOWN. Front side passenger safety belt won't buckle, the latch appears to be blocking the buckle when in the open, unlatched position.
NHTSA complaint #11498238 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Dadeville, AL
SEAT BELTS:PRETENSIONER
I started my 2008 GMC Sierra, crew cab and began to pull my drivers side seat belt across my body to latch it. I was about 1/2 way when I heard a loud bang that sounded like a gun going off to my right, the seat belt that I had in my hand pulled back tight pulling my hand with it. There was smoke and the smell of gun powder coming from the bottom of the passenger seat by the seat belt. With my heart pounding in my chest I got out of my truck as quickly as I could (my driver's side door was still open). Both the driver's side and passenger side seat belts were pulled tight and I was unable to get either to release. The truck is now sitting, unable to be driven safely with the seat belt on. The dealership said it would be just under $1,000 to fix plus towing and has no idea how or why it happened. This truck has never been in an accident and currently has about 140,000 mostly highway miles on it and I am the original owner. Searching online I found that there are other people on blogs who have had similar problems with exploding seat belt modules with a range of 40,000 miles to over 150,000 miles.
NHTSA complaint #11449143 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
at 75,842 milesPascagoula, MS
SEAT BELTS
I WAS SLOWLY GOING ACROSS A PARKING LOT WHEN A LOUD BANG LIKE A GUN SHOT HAPPENED AND THE DRIVER SIDE SEAT BELT PULLED ME TIGHT AGAINST THE SEAT. THERE WAS A SMELL OF A CHEMICAL GAS IN THE CAB AND THE EMERGENCY FLASHERS CAME ON. I AM SURELY GLAD I WAS ONLY GOING A FEW MILES AN HOUR. NOW THE SEAT BELTS (BOTH SIDES) ARE LOCKED TIGHT. I UNDERSTAND THIS MIGHT NOT BE THAT RARE OF A PROBLEM BUT IT'S THE FIRST I'VE EVER HEARD OF IT.
NHTSA complaint #11338419 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
at 187,000 milesSptbg, SC
SEAT BELTS
MY HUSBAND WAS STOPPED AT A LIGHT WHEN THE SIDE AIRBAGS DEPLOYED. WE CONTACTED GMC THEY SENT SOMEONE TO INVESTIGATE. THAT PERSON SAID DUE TO SOME WATER LEAKING IN ON THEM IS WHAT CAUSED IT. NOTHING WAS WET THOUGH. NOW THEY CANNOT DO ANYTHING TO HELP. SEEMS LIKE IF THEY KNOW THEY HAVE A DEFECT IN THE FRONT AIRBAGS IT IS A CHANCE THE SIDE ONES ARE ALSO BAD. THEY HANG LIKE CURTAINS. HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO DRIVE IT SINCE THE SEATBELTS LOCKED ALSO. THE COST TO REPAIR WOULD BE $6000. THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WAS NO FAULT OF OURS. THERE HAS BEEN SO MUCH TIME PUT INTO TRYING TO GET THIS RESOLVED. WE CANT E THE ONLY ONES THIS HAPPENED TO. SUGGESTION?
NHTSA complaint #11176570 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
at 181,000 milesWaddell, AZ
SEAT BELTS
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 GMC SIERRA 1500. WHILE DRIVING UNKNOWN SPEEDS, THE SEAT BELTS FAILED TO FASTEN. THERE WERE NO WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE CONTACT CALLED SANDS CHEVROLET (16991 W WADDELL RD, SURPRISE, AZ 85388, (623) 428-1865) AND WAS INFORMED TO SCHEDULE A DIAGNOSTIC APPOINTMENT. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED AND DID NOT ASSIST. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 181,000.
NHTSA complaint #11162553 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
at 50,000 milesHampden, MA
SEAT BELTS
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 GMC SIERRA 1500. WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS BEING CLEANED, THE PASSENGER SIDE AIR BAG DEPLOYED. PRIOR TO THE FAILURE, THE SEAT BELT AND AIR BAG WARNING LIGHTS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 50,000. THE VIN WAS UNAVAILABLE.
NHTSA complaint #10881208 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
at 64,000 milesHenderson, KY
SEAT BELTS
MY SERVICE MAN WAS PULLING OUT OF PARKING LOT AT STORE WHEN AIR BAGS EXPLODED AND SEAT BELTS LOCKED. HE DID NOT HIT ANYTHING AND WAS ONLY GOING ABOUT 10 MPH WHEN THIS HAPPENED. TOOK TO LOCAL DEALER TO SEE IF THEY COULD FIX IT. THEY SAID YES , BUT WE WOULD HAVE TO PAY FOR IT. WE COULD CONTACT THE MANUFACTURER IF NECESSARY. THE BILL WAS $1413.89. (PARTS $798.00--LABOR 562.59 TAX 48.19). WE HAD TO GET IT FIXED AS IT IS ILLEGAL TO BE ON THE ROAD WITHOUT SEAT BELTS (OR AIR BAGS). WE FEEL THESE ARE DEFECTIVE PARTS AN D WE SHOULD BE REIMBURSED BY THE MANUFACTURER.. THIS IS AN UNSAFE VEHICHLE!!!! THANKS
NHTSA complaint #10865216 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
at 46,000 milesAverill Park, NY
SEAT BELTS
DRIVERS SIDE SEAT BELT WILL NOT LOCK IN TO THE RECEIVER ON SIDE OF SEAT. DEALER SAID I MAY HAVE TO PAY FOR A DIAGNOSES AND REPLACEMENT PLUS PARTS. I SAY IT'S A SAFETY ISSUE AND SHOULD BE COVERED FOR FREE. WONDER IF OTHER PEOPLE HAVE HAD SAME PROBLEM.
NHTSA complaint #10692380 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
at 84,000 milesCataldo, ID
SEAT BELTS
DRIVER'S SEAT BELT WILL NOT RETRACT PASSENGER'S SEAT BELT WILL NOT DEPLOY WITHOUT A LOT OF EFFORT THE REAR SEAT BELT PASSENGER SIDE, MIDDLE SEAT - THE PLASTIC GUIDE BROKE OFF MAKING IT ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO HOOK BELT TO CHILD SEAT PARK ASSIST IS NOT OPERATIONAL CRUISE CONTROL WORKS ONLY PART OF THE TIME.
NHTSA complaint #10671586 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.