General Motors has issued a recall for its brand-new 2024 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra 1500, 2500, and 3500 pickup trucks due to mysteriously cracking roofs. Over 3000 models are affected by the recall, and GM has not issued an explanation for the roof concerns.
This issue is plaguing vehicles that have already been sold, and vehicles that are still on dealer lots, so dealers must inspect their entire inventory for cracks under the passenger-side roof panel joint molding, or the rain channel that prevents water from assaulting passengers when they open the door on a rainy day.
Since many of these vehicles are still on dealer lots, the cause of the crack must not be due to excessive use or roughness, pointing only to a very serious manufacturing defect. Dealers have been instructed to remove the molding on the roof to inspect for cracks, and if they find a crack, GM’s fix for the problem is to drill holes at each end of the crack to prevent it from spreading, then weld it up and send owners on their way. This feels like an unsettling repair for a brand-new truck. Motor1 reports,
An official document published by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) states that approximately 3,067 vehicles are being inspected as part of a field action covering half-ton trucks as well as 2500 and 3500 models. A message from GM to dealers dated November 20 states that vehicles involved in the field action were placed on a stop-delivery in October. The exact cause for the split isn’t mentioned, but the damage occurs on the passenger side at the roof panel joint underneath the molding.
In a statement that GM supplied to Motor1, GM confirmed that the trucks were built with the split roof panel. It is concerning that these trucks which are marketed as tough and durable, and yet potentially left the factory with cracked metal roofs bringing all quality control measures into question. Read the official NHTSA document here.