Owners have filed 1,475 complaints on the GMC Jimmy, covering 1984–2004. The system named most often is Service Brakes (420 reports). Worst years by volume: 1995, 1996, 1997; cleanest: 2004, 1984, 1985. 166 reports describe a crash, 21 a fire, 2 a death. On average the car was 4.0 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on GMC Jimmy
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 1,475 Jimmy complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Service Brakes 420 Read
2000 gmc jimmy experienced a problem with the front right hub and the wheel speed sensor. *mr the consumer was pulling into a parking space and the brake pedal became stiff and or would not activate. The consumer had run into a brick wall and bounced into traffic. The check ABS system light had immediately…
Problem with vehicle is intermittent malfunction of ABS system. When making emergency stops, brakes give way and increase stopping distance. This happens at low speeds mainly and has been a problem with these vehicles in past recalls that do not cover my year. Dealer cannot duplicate conditions,and I have a case…
Dt: the front and rear windshield wipers began to intermittently work. This was over a period of three months and later stopped working all together. Consumer did not take the vehicle to a dealer for any repairs because it was no longer under warranty. The transmission did not shift properly after acceleration for a…
Visibility 177 Read
Consumer stated that the windshield wiper failed three times
While driving in inclement weather the windshield wipers would come on and off on their own. Driver brought vehicle to the dealer for inspection, and mechanic determined that the windshield wiper motor needed to be replaced
Driverside mirrior has double vision, and it is difficult to see. Dealership is aware of problem
Engine And Engine Cooling 148 Read
Vehicle involved in a frontal collision, it t-boned a 1988 dodge, dakota at approximately 50 mph. Upon impact, both air bags did not deploy. Dealer notified. *ak after collision, there was an engine fire
My truck lost power and stopped running while driving on the freeway on the afternoon of 9-19-03. It was eventually towed to the dealer. Upon inspection I was told that nothing was wrong and that it ran fine. I was not convinced. On 9-22-03 it was determined that the truck needed a new catalitic converter and was…
While driving consumer looked in the rear view mirror and noticed smoke in the road and pulled over to the side of the road and when he opened the hood, there were flames engulfing the engine, consumer then closed the hood and moved away from the vehicle. Ohio traffic crash report (10-89-383)
Suspension 147 Read
Consumer was traveling about 35mph on a side street and vehicle started shaking. Then, vehicle went out of control, and he hit a light pole ,and bounced off the pole. Upon impact, airbags didn't go off. Dealership was aware of problem
Experienced left upper ball joint separation (failure) while moving resulting in loss of control, damage, disablement. Failure is identical to that described in NHTSA recall # 01V200000, and, also gm bulletin 01048a. However, vehicle VIN # is not within the breakpoints specified by 01048a bulletin and manufacturer…
Right front control arm and upper ball joint broke at 45 miles a hour
Power Train 103 Read
2/2003 front end collapsed on highway travelling at 65mpg due to ball joint failure. Brakes and sterring would not work. Had to crash into a hill to stop vehicle. Ball joints again failing on 7/2005
While driving along the pennsylvania turnpike I had my 1997 gmc jimmy in cruise control. I taped to brake to turn off the cruise control. After resuming the cruise control the vehicle began picking up speed much to fast. I again tapped the brake and shut off the cruise control. I then heard what seemed like a flat…
Left rear axle sheared while driving down hwy at 65 mph, causing vehicle to roll 5 & 1/2 times and causing injury to passengers, dps stated defective axle on report
Electrical System 72 Read
There was an electrical short behind the radio and underneath the dashboard which caused smoke and fire. Manufacturer was contacted by consumer.*ak vehicle was totaled. *bf
Vehicle fire due to faulty wiring
No summary listed for above vehicle
Air Bags 62 Read
Bad 3 vehickle auto accident on I-96 in michigan. A white car stopped or stalled in center lane of highway and was then hit by a green car and we hit the green car "head on" in the rear.. Air bags did not deploy with a direct head on hit at 65 to 70 miles per hour. My truck was a 1997 gmc jimmy
Gmc never done a investigation on vehicle in site only by phone.this was a frontal accident an neither airbag deployed
While traveling on highway another vehicle was in front of consumer's vehicle. To avoid vehicle, consumer pulled over to the shoulder, hit an enbankment, and went into a ditch. Upon impact, dual airbags didn't go off. Consumer sustained minor injuries.*ak
Fuel System 58 Read
I was driving a 1998gmc jimmy from oklahoma city, ok to walters, ok. Everything was great and the car was driving perfectly. I was on the he bailey turnpike on highway marker 30 - I could see the sign and pull off for the faxon exit and the big sign for walters. A few wisps of white smoke appeared and then heavy grey…
Fuel gauge functions erratically. Marks full tank of gas and somewhere in the mid-full point the gauge will read what ever it wants (empty, 1/4, full...etc.)
The gas gauge will frequently jump down to empty and low fuel light come on. Constantly jumping back and forth, even when in park
Jimmy years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Service Brakes, Hydraulic,power Train | — | — | |
| 2001 | Air Bags | 9 | — | |
| 2000 | Air Bags | 11 | 2 | |
| 1999 | Air Bags | 10 | — | |
| 1998 | Air Bags | 14 | 2 | |
| 1997 | Air Bags | 18 | 3 | |
| 1996 | Air Bags | 45 | 7 | |
| 1995 | Air Bags | 54 | 5 | |
| 1990 | Fuel System, Gasoline | 1 | — | |
| 1989 | Electrical System | 2 | 1 | |
| 1988 | Electrical System | 1 | — | |
| 1987 | Electrical System | — | 1 | |
| 1985 | Seat Belts | 1 | — | |
| 1984 | Seat Belts | — | — |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 439 |
| Average complaints per series | 3.4 |
| Worst single series | 22 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 4.0 years |
A model average of 3.4 hides a worst series at 22. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
- The original window sticker and factory options
- Full research report as a PDF for the pre-purchase inspection
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- No ads, no tracking — and much more
How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the Jimmy?
By complaint volume, 1995, 1996, 1997 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which Jimmy years are the cleanest?
2004, 1984, 1985 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the GMC Jimmy have?
1,475 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 1984–2004. Of those, 166 describe a crash and 21 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.