9.2
really awful- Typical Repair Cost:
- $530
- Average Mileage:
- 2,550 miles
- Total Complaints:
- 16 complaints
Most common solutions:
- not sure (9 reports)
- replaced projectors with hid bulb (3 reports)
- go back to the headlights on previous year trucks (2 reports)
- replace projectors with reflectors (1 reports)
- upgrade available (1 reports)
This problem may be covered under warranty. Ask your GMC dealer.
Headlights are so poor in rural areas and poorly lit areas that you are guessing where you are when making turns on side roads driveways etc., there is no lateral vision. Extremely dangerous to all in the truck. Surface Dept. where the truck was purchased new claims they are not aware of ant fix for the lights. Recently leased a new Chevy Silverado 1500 and the difference in the performance as compared to the 2015 is night and day due to the lighting of my 2500HD GMC it is an accident waiting to happen.
- David F., Campbellsport, US
I am number #1 under NTHSA with projector headlamps. Replaced them with aftermarket HID bulb kit using the existing projector headlamp assembly. Use Morimoto 35W HID Sierra kit. Night and day difference. These are the headlight that should have come from the factory. I believe the 2016's changed to HID's to address this issue.
- RAYMOND A., Lynnwood, WA, United States
I am amazed that my $55,000 truck has headlights that resemble a flashlight in effectiveness.
I certainly hope GMC steps up to the plate on this one !!!
- Glenn A., Kent, OH, US
Headlights project straight ahead, you cannot see someone on the sidewalk. You cannot see left or right to make a turn until you make the turn,
- James E., Auburn, WA, US
My 2015 GMC Sierra Denali HD 2500 does not light up the side roads making it very dangerous to drive with at night. I have taken the truck in for service and they told me it meets the safety standards. I say otherwise, this is an accident waiting to happen. GMC needs to recall this issue before someone gets fatally wounded.
- Richard R., Snohomish, WA, US
Can easily over drive the headlights. With the high beams on on coming traffic doesn't even notice they're on. They suck outloud
- Peter R., Portland, ME, US
GMC put headlights in that look nice in daylight but you could not see to drive safely in the dark.
I know of many others that have the same problem. The 2016 trucks have a new headlight system
so I am guessing that GM figured that what they had done for the 2015 trucks did not work.
I would say that those of us that have the 15s are screwed!
- tpbsurveyor, Marion Center, PA, US
click to see larger images
I see that the '16 1500's have gone to LED headlights and that the ’16 2500-3500 now have a proper bulb "HID" for the projector setup which should have been in there from the beginning.
It’s odd that GM made a drastic improvement "mid-model†if the lights were satisfactory as I have been led to believe. Buyers of the new body trucks are told that they satisfied the applicable standards.
I read that many people have updated theirs on their own dime but I'm a believer in a company standing behind a product. Why should I go out and potentially void my warranty for a repair that will cost a minimum of a $500-$700 dollars out of pocket!
This truck is about 6 months old and the lights have been unsatisfactory since day one, even after the fix, where I uncovered a bad assembly that was missed. Not long after buying my truck and complaining about the lights I was told that I wasn't used to these types of lights which is irritating because I've owned Xenon based halogens with self-aiming features. I’ve owned a lot of trucks including a run of 8 Fords of which none gave me any problems.
I ended up doing my own aiming by the factory bulletin in a multi-million dollar aircraft hanger in total darkeness. The dealerships usually want to use an aiming machine even though the instructions are very clear. Believe it or not this is where the bad assembly was uncovered. I took photos of the test and presented to the dealership. Faced with this new evidence I got a new light but again, it's still less than should be expected.
When I have cars that are almost 10 years old with better lights this is disappointing because otherwise it’s been a very nice vehicle.
- Thomas B., Richmond, VA, US
These headlight are the worst in the world, need to get rid of the line in the road on low beam. This problem is very bad when it is raining. GMC needs to fix his before someone dies. Need to drive with the high beams on all the time, the line in the road is gone but GMC could do a lot better for a 60k Denali 2500hd Durmax, Very disappointed. This just plain sucks for a loyal GMC customer for 26 years!
- airpowr, Hampden, ME, US
The lights on this new pickup are junk. There is no side shine at all. It is nearly impossible to turn into a dark drive way. I have been too two different deals and they both said there is nothing they can do about it. I will have to put some kind of lighting on it or I won't be able to drive it safely at night. The truck didn't come with fog lights so I'm screwed there. This is my first and last General Motors vehicle. If any one has any ideas on how to fix this problem please let me know. I will take a bath on this truck if I have to trade it in for a truck with real headlights.
Update from Sep 16, 2015: Here is the fix for those headlights. PIT5374 Headliht performance BCM calibration and bulbs dated Feb. 27 2015. Doc ID 4093100
They fixed mine and it a lot better, you still have the line in it, but it's better. To think some engineer gets paid big bucks to put junk lie that on anew truck. Hope this helps . There is another PIT that came out in June so dealer an find this.
- Scott G., Fredericksburg, VA, US
Thought I'd just share this with everyone, I have a 2015 GMC Sierra 2500HD & as anyone with one knows the headlights SUCK, I did some searching online & found there is a upgrade to this problem, so I went to the dealership to ask about this upgrade. The service dept brought my VIN # up & he said there was nothing there about the headlights, that he'd look into it & call over to the parts dept. I gave him my cell # to call me back, 20 minutes later he called and said there is a upgrade available and they're ordering the parts.
When I get this done I'll let everyone know what they did and if this is an improvement. Please note you have to go to your dealer & ask about this upgrade as there is no known recall, your truck has to be built before a certain build date I'm not a 100% sure of that but think it's before February of this year.
- 1mean1, Stratford, ON, canada
The headlights in this new truck is an accident waiting to happen. I can't see the road on either side of the truck at night. There is hardly any difference between low lights and the brights. I live in the country where the roads are not straight. The headlights do not illuminate the road. There are blind spots when the high beams are on. Low beams are so low you can't see 60 feet ahead of the road. I have even talked to the CHP about the problem and they are also struggling with their GMC trucks. This new truck, which I paid a lot of money for, is not safe to drive at night.
I also spoke to the GMC dealership and they said the new headlights were some idea from Europe. Bad idea. GMC, you are looking at a huge recall on these vehicles headlights. Lets hope they get replaced before lives are lost.
- Jack S., Garden Valley, CA, US
The headlights on this $65k truck are terrible. I bought the 2015 GMC truck new in May of 2014 and I still cannot get used to the weak headlights. I would love to hear what others have done to rectify the problem. The headlamps are working correctly but the output is just very weak in comparison to my 2004 Chevy Truck. Literately like night and day.
- jimddelaware, WILMINGTON, DE, US
This truck is very dangerous to drive after dark. I wish that I would have read the complaints about the 2014 trucks. My dealer seems to have no fix. Does any body have an answer? If you are thinking of a GMC... don't.
- Rodney M., Honor, MI, US
The stock projector headlights on my new $60,000 GMC Denali 2500HD really SUCK! Could not see a damn thing 100 feet in front. The stock halogen bulbs are dim yellow and project two narrow beams that can hardly be seen. Worse yet is that they do not overlap in the middle so you have a black hole down the middle of the road. The projectors have a shield that covers half the bulb in the low beam position and this blocks half of the usable light. When you switch to brights, the shields go up but you still cannot see the road, only reflection from street signs down the road. Very dangerous to drive in the rain. The fog lights suck a little less.
So I replaced the stock halogen with HIDs and got a little more light but not much better. Reflector lights are much better than projectors. In projectors you loose all the light radiating backwards from the bulb. Reflectors catch this light and send it forward giving you twice the light. Additionally, most reflectors have prisms cut into the glass or plastic which spread the light to the sides. Projectors do not light the sides of the road. What a horrible technology. Who invented this anyway?
My next step is to look for a set of full OEM reflector replacements and get rid of these projectors. What a waste of good money having to buy new headlights on a new 60K vehicle. Someone at GM should hit the road running who let this bit of useless technology onto the vehicle.
Update from Nov 7, 2014: Went to the dealer. There is no way to adjust the headlight beams horizontally to correct the hole in the middle. Only one adjustment, vertical up and down. Who would design headlights that cannot be adjusted horizontally. What if you have an accident. You can never get the metal exactly like from the factory. There always needs to be a way to adjust horizontal alignment.
Regards. Rpbert
- Robert R., Deerfield Beach, FL, US
The headlights on these trucks are the absolute worst I have ever experienced! I would not have purchased the truck knowing this prior to buying it!
- Eric J., Marshfield, US