10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
2 / 5
Injuries / Deaths:
3 / 0
Average Mileage:
6,500 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.

Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2020 Chevrolet Silverado 1500:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

Get free help with your lemon!
close ad
problem #67

Mar 052025

Silverado 1500

  • 124,000 miles
The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated while driving at approximately 15-20 MPH, the message -??Engine Power Reduced-?? was displayed on the instrument panel, and the vehicle started shaking and decelerating. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed that the engine wiring harness needed to be replaced. The dealer informed the contact that another part needed to be replaced; however, the contact was unable to recall the exact part. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and informed the contact of a possible number for assistance. The manufacturer had opened a case regarding the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 124,000.

- Cordova, TN, USA

problem #66

Feb 042025

Silverado 1500

  • miles
When I would put the truck in park and proceed to turn it off, the computer would tell me the truck was not in park. I was told at the dealership that the transmission was in park, though the computer wasn't communicating correctly. Not only does it pose a risk of draining the battery, it is a safety issue. If I were to park on a hill, the only confirmation that my truck is in park is what's said on my dash.

- Concord, NH, USA

problem #65

Feb 132025

Silverado 1500

  • miles
My break system failed twice in 2 weeks. On Feb 01, 2025 around 5:35 pm, I almost ran over a dog the first time because I lost access to breaks and emergency breaks and could not stop going through my neighborhood. Today on Feb 13, 2025, I had picked my son up from school, and the breaks went out after we left the school. This time I almost ran into a car but had to turn off to the right to avoid hitting it. My son and I could have injured the person driving in front of us and ourselves. I looked up the problem, and it seems that many others have faced the same problem. When I turned off the truck for 10 minutes, the system would reset itself and start working normally again. I took the truck to the shop, and it is currently there so they can run tests on it. I recorded what it looks like on the dash when I lose all braking.

- Montgomery, AL, USA

problem #64

Sep 082024

Silverado 1500

  • miles
Vehicle has been in and out of service for the past 5 months with multiple alerts including "Brake system failure 43mph top speed, " "service esc, " "service brake assist." On major interstate car would not accelerate past 43mph putting myself, infant, toddler, and wife in danger. Multiple attempts have been made to repair the vehicle and nothing has been successful. Lifters, CAM, torque converter, EBCM, master cylinder, calipers, and the list goes on. When this happens the brake is extremely hard to press making it difficult to stop the vehicle. Issue has been reproduced by dealer and attempts have been made under warranty to repair. Car only has 36k miles on it and the issue began prior to that. GM ongoing solution is to bleed the brakes, which clearly has not resolved the issue. Still hear ticking and noises from engine. Something needs to be done to remedy this issue. This is a safety hazard for myself, my family, and everyone driving around me.

- St Augustine, FL, USA

problem #63

Aug 042024

Silverado 1500

  • miles
While changing a blown fuse for the instrument cluster, my truck unexpectedly caught fire, endangering my safety and causing significant damage to the vehicle. The fire started behind the passengers side fuse box within the wiring harness (GM# 84717166). The dealership determined that the failure was due to wire harness chafing on the thread side of a tie bar bolt. Due to General Motors not responding to their request for repair information via the TAC, they concluded that the bolt needed to be shorten in order to reduce the chafing. There were no warning signs or indications that this was going to or could occur. The burnt harness is available for inspection but the vehicle has been traded in due to no longer trusting how it was manufactured.

- New Richmond, WI, USA

problem #62

Oct 092024

Silverado 1500

  • miles
My vehicle has an incomplete recall, I am not getting what I paid for, still under warranty, not living up to GM Chevrolet warranty. Doesn't feel safe to drive.

- Cortland , NY, USA

problem #61

Sep 212024

Silverado 1500

  • miles
On September 21, 2024 my Chevy 1500 series truck in the year was 2020. It was made caught on fire white driving it. We were returning from a trip pulling a trailer from Kentucky to Mansfield Ohio when we were on the highway. The transmission light/panel came across and said transmission need to engine idle. I drove it about 3 miles and pulled off on an exit at a gas station and did what it said after proximately 10 minutes. The message went off and cleared. we resume going home on our trip and we are 14 miles on the highway then we got off on our exit there-??s no lights or no problems with the vehicle. I dropped off the first passenger and Lexington, Ohio, and then the second passenger lived about a half mile away, this time kept unloading their equipment. From Lexington to my home in Mansfield, Ohio the other passenger I was talking about the light transmission was weird and might-??ve been just a sensor. As we pulled onto Home road all the panel lights started flashing and then a message came across and said engine is shutting down. I put in park off the engine, we exit the vehicle and smoke was coming out from underneath the truck. I reached into the center council to grab the cell phones and had faster call 911 and when I reached back into the truck were coming out from underneath the hood. I notified General Motors on September 23 and have been battling them to get an inspection done. after several months, they have finally agreed with insurance company on terms to investigate what caused the fire. That inspection is to Take Pl., December 4, 2024. I have recently just seen the recall article on GMC that came out on November 13. My truck is listed in the article as far as your make and model. This was a transmission problem that GM is trying to ignore and should be held accountable. Have video of when it caught on fire and how quickly it burned up.

- Mansfield, OH, USA

problem #60

Sep 212024

Silverado 1500

  • miles
The truck caught on fire while I was returning from a trip out of state and then it appears it came from underneath either the transmission the engine or electrical. While returning home a message came on the panel on the highway, saying transmission, hot idle run I pulled off and did this and after about 15 minutes, the message light went off and I pursued Coming home nothing was wrong with the truck. After I dropped off to the passengers, I was on the way home and turned on home road and the message came on that says truck powering down all the lights came on the dashboard. I put the truck in park and shut the engine off had a manly open the doors and got out and smoke was rolling from underneath the truck. I grabbed the cell phones and told my passenger to call 911. I went back into the center of the cab to grab something out of the center council and flames came from underneath the hood up the glass of the windshield right in the middle of the truck. Backed away I called 911 again. Troy fire department responded in about six minutes. The truck was engulfed and gone. Ohio state patrol give me a claim number of [XXX] the instant [XXX]. There has been no problem with the truck or vehicle during the time I owned it. It was regularly service. It had 109667 miles on it. The truck was a 2020 Silverado from Bill Harris Ashland. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

- Mansfield, OH, USA

problem #59

Aug 282024

Silverado 1500

  • miles
While driving 55+mph on a parkway the service parking brake, check engine light and the traction control light came on with a warning "Engine Power Reduced" which was dangerous because I could not accelerate and there was not a spot to pull over. This is frustrating due to the fact that I was having this same issue 6 months ago and Chevrolet said it was a wiring issue and it wasn't covered by the warranty because it had 42k miles. Chevrolet said it was a known issue but it was not at the level of a recall and it cost $1800 to fix.

- Smithtown, NY, USA

problem #58

Aug 042024

Silverado 1500

  • miles
Our 2020 Chevy 1500 Trail Boss was waiting for an ordered instrument cluster at service department. The surveillance camera, film the vehicle catch on fire after being parked for 2 days. The smoke started from the inside, and the vehicle engulfed in flames until the fire department came. After the fire was extinguished very little was left of the vehicle. Basically a frame and engine was the only thing left. The vehicle had a little over 70k miles.

- Grovetown, GA, USA

problem #57

May 252024

Silverado 1500

  • miles
I took my truck in for an oil change on 5/25 and 12 miles after words, my truck was thrown into reduced engine power mode, which dropped my speed unexpectedly as I was driving. Luckily, I was in a residential area so that did not affect my safety, but there is potential that someone could have this code come up on the highway and have their vehicle unexpectedly throttled in regards to speed. The reduced engine power mode was the result of a code related to an electrical issue that ended up being the coolant control valve for the engine. I took it to a Chevrolet dealership that did the oil change, and they inspected it and determined that that part was faulty And would need to be repaired. The problem comes intermittently because The dealership drove my truck some and the issue would occasionally go away. As the part needed is on a seven month back order, the vehicle is available for inspection if needed.

- Pantego, TX, USA

problem #56

Jun 032024

Silverado 1500

  • miles
While driving brakes failed and codes came on saying brake system failure 43 mph, this problem apparently is a programming issue that will cost over 600 dollars because -??reprogramming-?? isn-??t covered. Brake pads were over 50% life and it is a very dangerous error.

- Palm Beach Gardens , FL, USA

problem #55

May 032024

Silverado 1500

  • 67,699 miles
The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 70 MPH, the -??ESC Unavailable-??, 'ABS Failure', and -??Do Not drive over 62 MPH-??, -??Please Drive with Care-?? messages were displayed. The contact stated that when the brake pedal was depressed, the brake pedal remained on the floorboard. The contact stated that the braking distance was extended. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, but the failure was not duplicated. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 67,699.

- Fort Worth, TX, USA

problem #54

Mar 302024

Silverado 1500

  • miles
A/C blower motor over heated and caught the electrical wires on fire under the dash. I had just left my house for work about 1 mile from home and the dash started smoking then a fire started under the passenger side glovebox parked the car in the middle of the street and I was able to exit the vehicle and put the fire out with a half bottle of water I had in the car. I then called 911 and I believe it was EAST Pierce fire department. They shortly arrived and confirmed it was an electrical fire and that there was no more heat coming from it. The fire department then gave me A ride home. The vehicle has been towed to Sunset Chevrolet in Sumner Washington where the Vehicle was purchased New in 2020.

- Buckley , WA, USA

problem #53

Feb 092024

Silverado 1500

  • miles
The trucks installed trailer wiring can cause a traffic accident. The wiring harness is known to have electrical issues but is not being corrected under warranty. It is difficult to know of these issues until you hook up a trailer or camper. The trailer's brake light and turn signal are affected by the faulty wiring. The dealer narrowed the problem to being between the plug and fuse. Other people have voiced their concerns with the trailer wiring.

- Lebanon , OH, USA

problem #52

Feb 202024

Silverado 1500

  • miles
When you try and start the truck, the instrument panel lights up fully but when you push to start the instrument panel dims and acts like the battery is dead and won-??t crank. The engine light is on. After a few presses, it finally cranks and starts fully. Has happened repeatedly and randomly.

- Princeton, WV, USA

problem #51

Feb 152024

Silverado 1500

  • miles
Brake system failure reported on screen. Extremely hard to stop vehicle.

- Abilene , TX, USA

problem #50

Jan 212024

Silverado 1500

  • 19,000 miles
The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The contact stated while driving at undisclosed speeds, the instrument cluster became inoperable and failed to provide correct information. The contact stated that the alternator cable was loose and intermittently failed to operate as designed. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact called the local dealer and was informed there were no open recalls on the VIN. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline. The contact stated that the failure was related to the NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V888000 (Electrical System). The failure mileage was approximately 19,000.

- Kirksville, MO, USA

problem #49

Dec 202023

Silverado 1500

  • miles
Check engine light came on. Authorized Dealer Advisor stated "vehicle may shut-off or not start." Took to Authorized Dealer. Dealer found Evap System Error Code P0499. Dealer replaced Evap Valve Harness Connector. Approximately 48hrs Check Engine Light came on again. Will schedule service with Authorized Dealer.

- Kingsville , TX, USA

problem #48

Sep 142023

Silverado 1500

  • miles
Loss of power steering, on 2 occasions. Started the vehicle and got a caution notice saying drive with care power steering disabled. Sure enough no power steering. Stopped vehicle waited, re-started vehicle, problem persisted. Made other transportation arrangement plans, restarted vehicle after a bit a problem seem to be gone. Stored codes we're 121, 131, and 140. BCM Communication loss, Power brake communication Loss and Steering Control communication failure.

- Freeland, MD, USA

Read the next 20 complaints »