GMC Canyon: Years to Avoid and Best Years to Buy
GMC Canyon: 13 model years scored from 1,093 NHTSA owner complaints and 32 recall campaigns. Worst year 2015, best year 2011.
GMC Canyon: which years to avoid
Across 13 scored model years the GMC Canyon ranges from 30/100 in 2015 to 95/100 in 2019 — a 65-point spread, so which year you buy matters more than whether you buy a Canyon at all. The weakest year’s complaints concentrate in Steering (226 of them).
Avoid: 2015, 2016, 2023, 2024 — scored below 45 on the complaint and recall record.
Safest years: 2011, 2012, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 — scored 70 or better.
Scored from NHTSA complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. How the score works · every car’s years to avoid.
Editor's note
The GMC Canyon's years to avoid are 2015 and 2016 (AVOID at 29 and 39, with Steering at 226 and 177 of 319 and 267 complaints) and 2023 and 2024 (45 and 39). The years to buy are 2017 to 2022, all BUY, with the 2019, 2020 and 2021 trucks at 95, 94 and 90 on 16, 14 and 11 complaints. The early steering complaints are corroborated by 16V054000 and 21V213000, both for a poor electrical connection in the steering gear that can cost the truck its power assist, and the 2015 truck's 8 campaigns, 7 safety-critical, also cover driver air bag wiring, front brake calipers and seat frame hooks. The redesigned 2023 truck has 59 complaints led by Electrical System (19) and Forward Collision Avoidance (18), the latter matched by 24V133000 for a camera that falsely triggers emergency braking. The 2024 truck is the Canyon's highest rate, 205 complaints at 102.5 per year, and 159 of them are Exterior Lighting, matched by 24V673000 for headlights that flicker.
Read the guide
Used mid-size pickups: Colorado, Canyon and Ridgeline years to avoid — written and signed by Adir Trabelsi, 2026-09-16.
How the Canyon changed, run by run
The federal record falls into 4 stretches of years that behave alike. A redesign shows up here as a step in the complaint rate that then holds.
2011–2012
Mean score 92/100, about 2 complaints per year on the road. Owners of these years complain about Unknown Or Other more than anything else (13 complaints). 1 recall campaign(s) in this run touch fire, crash or stall risk.
2015–2016
Mean score 34/100, about 28 complaints per year on the road. Owners of these years complain about Steering more than anything else (403 complaints). The record falls 58 points against the years before it. 10 recall campaign(s) in this run touch fire, crash or stall risk.
2017–2022
Mean score 89/100, about 4 complaints per year on the road. Owners of these years complain about Power Train more than anything else (64 complaints). The record improves by 55 points against the years before it. 3 recall campaign(s) in this run touch fire, crash or stall risk.
2023–2024
Mean score 42/100, about 61 complaints per year on the road. Owners of these years complain about Exterior Lighting more than anything else (159 complaints). The record falls 47 points against the years before it. 4 recall campaign(s) in this run touch fire, crash or stall risk.
Year-by-year data table
Best year in our data: 2011 (score 92). Worst: 2015 (score 30, AVOID).
| Year | Score | Verdict | Running cost / yr | NHTSA complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 82 | BUY | $3,782 | 8 | 2 |
| 2024 | 39 | AVOID | $5,718 | 205 | 3 |
| 2023 | 45 | AVOID | $4,284 | 59 | 3 |
| 2022 | 87 | BUY | $3,868 | 25 | 1 |
| 2021 | 90 | BUY | $3,932 | 11 | 2 |
| 2020 | 94 | BUY | $4,724 | 14 | 0 |
| 2019 | 95 | BUY | $4,213 | 16 | 0 |
| 2018 | 84 | BUY | $4,434 | 52 | 1 |
| 2017 | 82 | BUY | $4,586 | 65 | 1 |
| 2016 | 39 | AVOID | $5,097 | 267 | 4 |
| 2015 | 30 | AVOID | $5,431 | 319 | 8 |
| 2012 | 93 | BUY | $5,338 | 29 | 2 |
| 2011 | 92 | BUY | $5,468 | 23 | 5 |
Running cost is fuel or energy plus the maintenance band midpoint for that car at its age today, re-priced to your country. Purchase price, insurance and depreciation are not included.
Photographs and every generation of the Canyon, through the years →
Canyon sub-models & family
Variants & trims on record
Body, powertrain and trim variants of the Canyon on the federal record. Variants folded into this nameplate are counted in this page's data; the rest have too thin a record for a page of their own yet.
What goes wrong on the GMC Canyon
Across every Canyon model year in our index, owners report these component groups most often. The cost beside each one is the representative repair for that group at a US independent shop, re-priced to your country.
- Steering426 complaints across all Canyon years · typical job: Electric power-steering rack or column motor replacement$1,020–$2,500
- Electrical System174 complaints across all Canyon years · typical job: Alternator, battery-drain or body-module diagnosis and replacement$540–$1,310
- Exterior Lighting160 complaints across all Canyon years · typical job: Headlamp assembly or lighting-module replacement$360–$1,380
- Power Train148 complaints across all Canyon years · typical job: Transmission service or clutch-pack repair$1,290–$4,040
- Unknown Or Other90 complaints across all Canyon years · typical job: Diagnosis and mixed repair$360–$940
- Engine89 complaints across all Canyon years · typical job: Cooling-system or timing-drive repair$1,040–$2,220
Flat-rate labour hours x local shop rate plus a parts band. An estimate of what this class of failure costs, not a quote. Formula.
FAQ
Which GMC Canyon years should I avoid?
On the NHTSA record the years to avoid are 2015, 2016, 2023, 2024 — each scores below 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. The 2015 is the weakest at 30/100, with its complaints concentrated in Steering.
What are the best GMC Canyon years to buy?
2011, 2012, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022… all score 70 or better. The strongest is the 2019 at 95/100, on 16 complaints and 0 recall campaigns.
What is the most common GMC Canyon problem?
426 of the complaints filed against the Canyon across all its model years sit in the Steering group — more than any other component.
Compare with
Sources: NHTSA, EPA · Methodology · Updated 2026-10-04