CSR

GMC · NHTSA safety record

2016 GMC Canyon

Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government holds on this vehicle.

267

Complaints

8

Crashes

2

Fires

4

Injuries

0

Deaths

Owners of the 2016 GMC Canyon have filed 267 safety complaints with NHTSA between January 2016 and July 2026. The most complained-about system is the steering, named in 177 of them (66%). The typical failure was reported at 46,523 miles, the median across the 124 complaints that gave an odometer reading.

NHTSA has issued 4 recalls covering this vehicle.

Recalls (4)

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP

18V358000 · May 31, 2018

The defect
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015-2018 GMC Canyon, 2016-2017 Buick Envision, 2016-2018 Chevrolet Colorado and Malibu, 2017-2018 GMC Acadia, 2018 Buick LaCrosse, Cadillac ATS, Chevrolet Equinox, and GMC Terrain vehicles. The high pressure fuel pump may detach from its mounting flange, possibly resulting in the pump damaging the high pressure fuel line.
The risk
A damaged fuel line can create a fuel leak, increasing the risk of a fire.
The remedy
GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the high pressure fuel pump, and high pressure fuel pipe, free of charge. The recall began July 2, 2018. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 18188.

General Motors LLC · up to 895 vehicles across all model years covered

AIR BAGS:FRONTAL

17V621000 · October 5, 2017

The defect
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015-2016 GMC Canyon and Chevrolet Colorado, and 2016 Chevrolet Volt vehicles. The driver's frontal air bag may improperly inflate during second-stage deployment in the event of a high speed crash.
The risk
An improperly inflated air bag increases the risk of injury in a crash.
The remedy
GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver's frontal air bag module, free of charge. The recall began November 8, 2017. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 17387.

General Motors LLC · up to 16 vehicles across all model years covered

AIR BAGS:FRONTAL

16V125000 · March 2, 2016

The defect
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2016 Chevrolet Colorado vehicles manufactured January 19, 2016, to February 2, 2016, Chevrolet Malibu vehicles manufactured January 9, 2016, to January 26, 2016, and 2016 GMC Canyon vehicles manufactured January 21, 2016, to February 4, 2016. The driver frontal air bag may improperly inflate during second-stage deployment in the event of a high speed crash.
The risk
An improperly inflated air bag increases the risk of injury.
The remedy
GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver side frontal air bag module, free of charge. The recall began on April 14, 2016. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 28030.

General Motors LLC · up to 1,579 vehicles across all model years covered

LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES

15V807000 · December 1, 2015

The defect
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2016 Chevrolet Colorado trucks manufactured August 25, 2015 to September 24, 2015, and GMC Canyon trucks manufactured August 28, 2015 to September 24, 2015. The affected vehicles have a console compartment lid latch assembly that may fail to keep the compartment door closed in the event of a crash. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 201, "Occupant Protection in Interior Impact."
The risk
If the console compartment door does not remain closed in a crash, the contents stored in the console may strike the vehicle occupants, increasing their risk of injury.
The remedy
GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the console compartment door latch assembly, free of charge. The recall began on January 5, 2016. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 16370.

General Motors LLC · up to 8,763 vehicles across all model years covered

What owners report

Complaints naming each system. One complaint can name several, so these add up to more than 267.

STEERING 177 66%
POWER TRAIN 39 15%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 37 14%
ENGINE 21 8%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 19 7%
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 13 5%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 11 4%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 10 4%
AIR BAGS 6 2%
SERVICE BRAKES 6 2%
SUSPENSION 4 1%
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC 3 1%

When the complaints arrived

By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures happened. They peaked in 2022 at 50.

2016 2022 2026
2016 to 2026, the last of them a part year

In owners' own words

Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the people who filed them, not findings of fault.

AIR BAGS

2 injured · crash · towed

On September 14, 2021, my 2016 GMC Canyon struck another vehicle from behind going approximately 55 MPH and the airbags did not deploy. Every mechanic and insurance adjuster has stated that the airbags should have deployed in this collision.

NHTSA complaint 11442268. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STEERING

1 injured · crash · towed · 5,600 miles

FAULTY ELECTRIC POWER STEERING CAUSED VEHICLE VEER OFF THE RODE HITTING A CONCRETE WALL, CONCRETE MAIL BOX AND TELEPHONE. VEHICLE WAS TOTALED. THE VEHICLE WAS NORTH BOUND A TWO BLACK TOP ROAD AT A SLIGHT RIGHT HAND TURN.

NHTSA complaint 10821567. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STEERING

1 injured · crash · towed · 12,000 miles

ON 12/29.2015 AT APPROXIMATELY 8:00 AM ON A CLEAR BRIGHT DAY I WAS DRIVING NEAR MY MY HOME RETURNING FROM AND ERRAND. I WAS APPROXIMATELY 90% THROUGH A SLIGHT RIGHT TURN WHEN THE ELECTRONIC POWER STEERING WENT OUT CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO LEAVE THE ROAD, CONTINUE DOWN A DITCH HITTING A CONCRETE DRIVE, CONCRETE MAIL BOX AND A POWER POLE. THE VEHICLE WAS TOTALED AND I HAD SOFT TISSUE BRUISING, CUTS AND ABRASIONS.

NHTSA complaint 10882340. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

SERVICE BRAKES

fire · 4,000 miles

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 GMC CANYON. WHILE DRIVING 55 MPH, THE CHECK ENGINE INDICATOR ILLUMINATED WITHOUT WARNING. IN ADDITION, THE BRAKES ENGAGED WITHOUT WARNING AND WITHOUT THE ASSISTANCE OF THE DRIVER. THE VEHICLE DECREASED TO SPEEDS OF 20-30 MPH. THE CONTACT COULD NOT ACCELERATE BEYOND 30 MPH. IN ADDITION, OIL LEAKED ONTO THE EXHAUST MANIFOLD AND CREATED A BURNING ODOR. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 4,000.

NHTSA complaint 10947348. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STEERING
Was in my garage and started up my truck and seen an alert regarding the steering. Reversed truck and was un-able to steer the truck. Steering wheel would not move at all.

NHTSA complaint 11748199. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The contact owns a 2016 GMC Canyon. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the infotainment system and screen display became inoperable. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, where it was diagnosed and it was determined that an unknown part needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

NHTSA complaint 11747456. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STEERING
Power steering and StabiliTrack warning pops-up randomly and cuts off power steering assistance while I'm driving on the highway or on country roads. The power steering is very hard to maneuver. However, when it's safe to do so, I have to pull over on a safe place and have to restart my truck twice, in order to regain power steering. I have taken it to an independent mechanic and to a Chevy dealership on Merced. The dealership service tech informed me that in order to service the vehicle and find the code that is making this issue, that I would have to continue driving the truck and bring it in to the dealership with the power steering and StabiliTrack warning. According to the technician,

NHTSA complaint 11745386, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STEERING
This is a constant issue where the power steering issues disabled while driving and its very damgerous usually i just turn it off and on it fixes it, but then it happens again and frequently

NHTSA complaint 11745392. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STEERING
Recurring Stabilitrack issues while driving. Reset system replaced fuses and issue keeps happening. Bringing for further service.

NHTSA complaint 11744842. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The power steering and Stabilitrak systems intermittently fail while the vehicle is in operation. The issue occurs unpredictably, both immediately after startup and while driving. On several occasions, the systems have failed during turns, requiring sudden corrective action and increased steering effort to maintain control and avoid veering off the road or colliding with nearby vehicles. No warning signs or noticeable symptoms are present prior to the failure occurring.

NHTSA complaint 11736748. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the GMC Canyon

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2025 8 2
2024 205 3
2023 58 3
2022 24 1
2021 11 2
2018 52 1
2017 65 1
2015 301 8
2012 23 2
2011 12 5
2010 8 2

Other 2016 GMC models

Every GMC on this site — 144 vehicles, 425 recall campaigns and 3 open investigation s.

If this is your car and a dealer keeps failing to fix it, your state's lemon law may require the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back. What each state asks for , read from the statutes.

Where these numbers come from

A complaint is one owner's account and has not been verified by NHTSA or by us. A vehicle with more complaints is not necessarily worse: models that sold in larger numbers collect more of them. How this is counted.

Compiled and maintained by
Independent developer and analyst