This is in regards to my 2025 Chevy Tahoe High Country with 12,300 miles. I was driving on the parkway during rush hour and when I took the exit ramp I head a loud ticking. I immediately pulled over as the noise was loud and became louder and faster upon acceleration. I had the car towed to my hometown dealership approximately 36 miles away. The dealership concluded that the engine was damaged beyond repair and I was getting a new engine. When I inquired to why and what was the damage, they told me that the only way to figure out the root cause of the engine damage was to do a total engine breakdown which requires 15 man hours to do. No warning lights came on and the car showed no issues before this incident.
2025 Chevrolet Tahoe: engine knocking or ticking
6 of the 53 complaints about the 2025 Chevrolet Tahoe describe engine knocking or ticking.
- owner complaints
- 6
- of this car's complaints
- 11%
- recalls
- 0
Engine knocking or ticking by model year
What owners say
While driving on the highway, the engine started making a knocking noise and the vehicle shut down causing us to have to pull over on the side of the road in the middle of highway traffic. The engine light came on and the vehicle would no longer drive leaving my family stranded on the side of the highway. The vehicle had to be towed 200 miles back home.
My 2025 Chevrolet Tahoe RST Performance Edition equipped with the 6.2-liter V8 experienced a catastrophic engine failure at approximately 28,400 miles. The Tahoe was towed to an authorized Chevrolet dealership. The dealer confirmed an internal engine failure requiring complete engine replacement. The vehicle and failed engine are currently at the dealership in Lawrence, Kansas, and should be available for inspection upon request. The precise internal cause has not yet been provided to me in writing. I was advised that obtaining and installing the replacement engine is expected to take approximately 60 to 90 days or longer. The scheduled 30,000-mile maintenance was performed by the Chevrolet dealership on June 29, 2026, when the odometer read 27,607 miles. The engine failed less than two weeks later, after approximately 800 additional miles. Two days before the failure, I noticed a knocking or ticking sound from the engine. Immediately before the failure, I heard loud squeaking or screeching followed by a severe metallic clanking sound, as though loose metal components were being thrown around inside the engine. The engine then shut off and the vehicle became immobilized in Park at an intersection. I was the first vehicle in a left-turn lane and could not shift the Tahoe into Neutral to push or coast it out of the roadway. Heavy traffic turning toward the highway was forced to maneuver around the disabled vehicle, creating a significant risk of a collision. The outside temperature was approximately 95 degrees, with a heat index of approximately 109 degrees. My dog was with me, and it took more than an hour to arrange transportation for him to a safe location before I could return to the disabled vehicle and continue waiting for the tow truck.
***SAFETY/DANGER*** On April 12th at around 5:30 p.m. my family of five, to include three minor children were returning home from visiting family which live about an hour and a half away and as we're traveling on the freeway at highway speeds, in traffic, our new Tahoe unexpectedly and without warning went into reduced power mode and cut speed down to approximately 35 MPH in active traffic, which out my family and every other car around me in danger and in jeopardy of causing a collision and even worse, a multiple car pile-up as I dodged full speed traffic in front and behind me while traveling at approximately half their speed. I managed to exit the freeway and heard a loud knocking noise from the engine and saw the reduced power mode indicator, all of which had not happened before but again, the Tahoe is relatively new and was just over 5 months and at 8,889 miles at failure. I proceeded to contact GM roadside assistance. They sent a tow truck and I had to make arrangements for my family to return home, an hour away. I made it to the dealership with the tow truck driver after 9 p.m. ***CATASTROPHIC DAMAGE**" After the dealership inspected close to a week later they did determine that the entire engine and turbocharger had to be replaced, which they did in a little over a month, the dealership did their part but confidence is lost. Now I am hesitant to drive the Tahoe as it's the family vehicle but really put my kids, wife, myself and everyone around us on the road in danger as it, out of nowhere, cut speed drastically in active highway traffic.
I was driving up to a border check point and slowed down at the guard shack. Once cleared I released the brake and tried to accelerate. The vehicle shut down completely. I tried to restart it and the check transmission warning came on. The vehicle would not restart. I was blocking the lane at the border check. After a few minutes I was able to start the vehicle and limp over to the shoulder of the freeway. There was no power and loud knocking and squealing from the engine compartment. Engine light came on and several other warning lights that I don't recall. I was in the desert with 3 dogs in an unsafe area for 7 hours until I could get help. Vehicle was towed to the dealership and is currently under diagnosis but so far code P0016 and metal pieces in the oil.
The vehicle is making a loud ticking noise which leads me to suspect this car has similar, if not the same issue as the 21-24 recalled L87 6.2 engines. I took it in the first time, they couldn’t reproduce the noise but I already have video documented footage over a few days with the sound of knocking/ticking from the motor. After they did an early oil change at the same mileage I brought the vehicle in for diagnosis, the sound completely went away. A few hundred miles later the sound has come back and the engine is knocking at idle. I have another inspection/ appointment this coming week for the vehicle. Additionally, the vehicle makes loud noises from the steering column after it has been turned off. It also seems to wander when driving the vehicle and the steering wheel assists cause the wandering within lane. It is very unsafe to drive this vehicle due to these two issues.
Service bulletins that may apply
- This technical bulletin provides a procedure to replace the camshaft actuator magnet to correct customer...
- This service bulletin provides information on replacing the intake manifold when the engine is replaced...
- This bulletin advises the tech to inspect deeper into what may be to main
- The service bulletin advises the tech of a normal transmission shift condition and the delay in throttle...
- This service bulletin provides information to dealership personnel for new vehicles with less than 1,000...
- This warranty administration bulletin provides policy information on vehicles outside of a California...
- This bulletin provides a procedure to install an exhaust donut if found the
- This bulletin provides information of possible fuel injector harness electrical connector terminal having...
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the 2025 Chevrolet Tahoe knocking
Is engine knocking or ticking a common problem on the 2025 Chevrolet Tahoe?
6 of 53 owner complaints about the 2025 Chevrolet Tahoe (11%) mention engine knocking or ticking. The model year with the most reports is 2021.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2025 Chevrolet Tahoe?
There are 0 recalls and 24 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
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