2018 GMC Sierra 1500: jerking or lurching

Filed Sep 6, 2026 · Engine, Transmission · KY

I own a 2018 GMC Sierra 1500 V8 5.3 liter which is at 46, 433 miles. Over the past few weeks I have noticed the transmission having difficulty shifting in first gear and lurching, and making shuddering noises, and as well making a constant ticking noise. After an experienced mechanic had put a diagnostic system onto my truck, his system diagnosed a Transmission Lifter Failure, specifically 2 out of the 8 lifters. A few days later (9-04-26) I took my truck to a certified GMC servicing business (Patriot Chevrolet of Hopkinsville KY 270‑886‑1207) and had a transmission servicing done. I had told the Customer Service representative Amanda Williams about the ticking and that I thought 2 lifters going bad in the transmission were the source of it. 3 hours later the servicing was done which cost $ 474.43. She did not know if the ticking had stopped or not. I started my engine to head home and the ticking was still happening. Nothing had changed. I got home, parked and have not started the engine since to minimize any further damage. I have become aware that this year, make and model has become infamous for the engine/transmission design and parts failure which has been at the center of thousands of class action lawsuits. I have owned this vehicle since inheriting it from my late father for 2 months before he developed dementia and suffered a broken hip. I have religiously had the oil changed every three months regardless of the mileage, and this is a sealed transmission which cannot be worked on by someone but a certified GMC mechanic, which wasn't a worry because the truck's manual says doesn't need to be worked on unless there seem to be problems. Which is what I did on 9-4-26, hoping that a servicing would fix the issue. During the 5 years that I have owned this truck, I never received ANY sort of notice from GMC that might've hinted at possible Transmission Failures, though GMC has been totally aware of. Sudden power loss dangerous and unfairly expensive to drivers.

Filed Feb 20, 2026 · Transmission · 130,000 miles · LA

The contact owns a 2018 GMC Sierra 1500. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle jerked abnormally hard. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with transmission failure. The contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure reoccurred. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the transmission was failing. The contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact was informed that the repair was not covered under warranty. The transmission was replaced two years ago. In addition, the contact stated that the original transmission had failed at 130,000 miles. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage of the second transmission was approximately 40,000.

Filed Nov 18, 2025 · Engine, Transmission · CA

2018 GMC Sierra started having shuddering/jerking/jumping problems at around 60k miles. This problem occurs while driving on straight aways, going uphill and while in drive at a stop sign/light. When the gas is accelerated the truck then hesitates and jerks/jumps. We have taken it to the GMC dealership and paid for the diagnostics and were informed “the problem wasn’t severe enough”. The truck has only been serviced by GMC dealership. So after failed attempts with GMC service department we have taken it to a local small auto shop and they automatically said it was the Drive Train and needed to be taken to a transmission shop. We have been GM owners for decades and are so disappointed in the service received from them.

Filed Jul 19, 2025 · Engine, Fuel system · TN

I own a $35,000 2018 gmc Sierra 1500 6.2l V8 4x4 Denali, which is currently down due to engine failure while I was driving down the road.. never had a check engine light on the dash. Haven't had the truck a year before it quit. Rods knocking, crankshaft bearings, loss of power, high rpm with little acceleration. I could have the peddle down to the floor and would barely get to 20 mph.. the motor would jump so bad, you would think it's going to jump out the truck. I have replaced several parts on the truck, including oil pump, filter, solenoid valve sensor, fuel pump, injectors, and sensors, battery, starter a couple times. Did all that replacing for it to get worse and finally quit while driving.. I was stranded in the middle of the road.. IV reported it to the Recall people, but nothing helped. I have taken my vehicle to Express Chevrolet and they did a diagnostic test, which I provided the list they gave me below. When I took it to them, I was using Endurance Warranty, but they denied my claim due to the issues and they didn't cover them. At the time, the motor was still jumping, but smoke was coming out the tailpipe extremely bad, the truck was jerking and jumping. After replacing everything I listed, the truck got worse, started screeching and knocking loudly, loss of engine power, little acceleration. The day the motor quit on me while driving, I got the mph up to about 55-60 and it just quit, and hasn't started back since.

Filed Jun 12, 2025 · Engine, Fuel system · 133,742 miles · TN

The contact owns a 2018 GMC Sierra 1500. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. The message "Reduced Power" was displayed, and the RPMs increased. Additionally, the vehicle jerked, and the contact noticed that there was smoke coming out of the exhaust pipe. The vehicle was driven to the contact's residence. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the starter, the battery, the fuel pump, the oil pump, the oil pump sensors, and the fuel injectors had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure reoccurred. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was able to restart; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was driven to the contact's residence. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 133,742.

Filed Dec 23, 2024 · Transmission · 117,000 miles · MS

The contact owns a 2018 GMC Sierra 1500. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the engine temperature rose to 210 degrees and the vehicle started jerking. The contact stated that the failure also occurred while idling for a while, or while stopped at a traffic light while refueling, and before accelerating. The failure occurred once the engine temperature rose to 210 degrees. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a certified mechanic at a transmission shop who confirmed there was a failure with the transmission; however, the mechanic was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 117,000.

Filed Oct 2, 2024 · Engine, Transmission · NM

Engine AFM has failed. No engine light was present at the time. A loud ticking noise was noted from the engine bay. Was taken to get diagnosed, and the AFM was replaced. The problem was then resolved. Transmission has been jerking and hard shifting through the period of owning the vehicle. No diagnosis has been made

Filed Jul 9, 2024 · Driver assistance, Transmission · MO

Drive train:The truck suddenly lurches forward as I'm accelerating and after I've stopped. It's very scary to stop behind a vehicle and suddenly lurch forward. Thankfully, I don't stop too close to another vehicle. The truck also shudders and experiences significant delays in acceleration after coming to a stop and going again. Automatic Emergency Braking: the automatic emergency braking system spontaneously brakes as I'm driving when there is nothing in front of me. Thankfully, nobody has been following behind me when this happens yet. I had to turn the automatic braking system off in order to avoid being hit.

Filed Jun 25, 2024 · Transmission · NV

We purchased our 2018 GMC Sierra 1500 z71 brand new at Fairway Buick GMC in Las Vegas, NV. Pretty much off the lot we noticed some hard shifting, but over the last year/around 60,000 miles it has become progressively worse. Come to find out GM is aware of a known defect in the transmission used in this make/model and several others by GM which causes hard shifting and jerking while upshifting and down shifting primarily between 1st and 2nd gear. This malfunction has caused the vehicle to activate "limp mode" which doesn't allow the vehicle to move out of 1st gear, while driving on the road, putting the safety of the occupants and others on the road at risk. This first happened in January 2024 while we were moving and towing a 6' U-Haul trailer. Luckily we were within a few miles of our destination and made it there safely. Upon taking it to Autonation Buick GMC, we were told they had seen this issue before and the only solution would be to replace the transmission and would cost roughly $6,000-$8,000, and that's with the generous 20% discount they were willing to offer. We opted to have the transmission flushed instead and it seemed to fix the problem temporarily. Then on [XXX] while decelerating and coming to a stop light it hard shifted from 2nd to 1st then the check engine light came on and limp mode was activated. It was 110 degrees on this day in Las Vegas when my husband was driving home from work, and again by the grace of God, he was only 5 minutes from home and made it there safely. However, what if this had occurred with our two young children in the vehicle and we were no where near home? We would have been stranded in dangerous conditions potentially putting our safety as risk. This KNOWN defect in GM transmissions is 100% a safety risk and this needs to be investigated and recalled immediately. There is an ongoing class action lawsuit against GM regarding this issue and I will be looking to get involved as well. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(

Filed May 6, 2024 · Acceleration, Engine · FL

2018 gmc Seirra 1500 8 speed transmission. Making unsafe conditions while driving transmission tends to make hard shifts, jerks, hesitation when moved into gear, gets worse when stopping momentarily at stop lights and then trying to accelerate vehicle will not move. Makes hard shift and jerks then will accelerate in an unsafe manner.

Filed Apr 12, 2024 · Engine, Transmission · 30,000 miles · TX

The contact owns a 2018 GMC Sierra LD. The contact stated the vehicle experienced jerking and shaking. The contact also stated when the accelerator pedal was applied, the vehicle made a loud noise and lunged. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where a transmission flush and an alignment were performed. However, the contact stated the failure persisted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a complaint was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 30,000.

Filed Oct 29, 2023 · Electrical, Engine · FL

The electric power steering failed while accelerating into a turn from a stop at an intersection. The wheel was jerked from my hands, and the engine stalled, all electrical failed momentarily. Within a couple of seconds everything returned to normal. This has happened several times since I purchased this vehicle. Also the electrical power steering drops out quite often at low speeds, such as in parking lots. No warnings have ever been given. In May of 2021 the dealer replaced the steering rack, the problem has continued intermittently to this date. I have researched for recalls on this problem and found that GMC issued a recall for years 2014-2017, and am amazed that they could just declare the problem fixed, and leave such a dangerous problem unresolved!