The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has opened a formal investigation into why upper grille deflectors keep detaching from GMC Sierra 1500 pickups, sometimes while the truck is moving. The probe, logged as RQ26003, was opened on October 9, 2026 and covers an estimated 535,639 trucks from the 2022 through 2024 model years.
The trigger was 118 complaints describing the part separating during normal driving. Notably, 21 of those complaints involve trucks that had already been through recall 25V-060, the earlier repair campaign meant to fix exactly this problem.
The trucks under scrutiny carry chrome grille deflectors tied to the 2022 model-year mid-cycle update. Non-chrome grilles use a different design and have not shown the same pattern of complaints, which narrows the population the agency is focused on.
Reported effects include cracked windshields and drivers swerving or braking suddenly to avoid a part coming loose on the road. NHTSA has not tied any crash, injury or fatality to the grille-deflector complaints reviewed so far.
A second look at an earlier fix
This is not the first time GM has addressed the issue. Recall 25V-060 covered certain 2022 Sierra trucks with chrome grille deflectors built between November 9, 2021 and September 29, 2022, with dealers paid to reinforce attachment tension points at the front of the truck.
The 21 complaints from repaired trucks are what is driving the new investigation, because they raise the question of whether the original fix actually solved the attachment problem it targeted. The agency's job now is to determine whether a safety defect exists and whether the earlier repair was adequate.
An open recall query is a review stage, distinct from a formal defect finding or a new recall order. GM has not announced an expanded recall tied to this review.
What GM says
GM spokesperson Bill Grotz said customer safety and satisfaction remain the company's highest priorities, adding that GM continues cooperating with the agency's evaluation.
The confirmed recalled population so far is narrower than the 535,639 trucks under evaluation, since the earlier recall covered a specific build window on 2022 trucks. The gap between those two figures is where an expanded recall would land if NHTSA finds the earlier repair was insufficient.
What Sierra owners should do
Owners of 2022 through 2024 Sierra 1500 trucks with chrome grille deflectors, including those already repaired under 25V-060, can enter their vehicle identification number on NHTSA's recall lookup site and then contact a GMC dealer for the latest guidance as the case develops.
For buyers shopping used Sierras from these years, the chrome-deflector detail is worth checking before purchase, since the complaint pattern is specific to that design. A VIN check against both the existing recall and the open query is the practical first step.
