What are the common problems with the 2002 GMC Sonoma?
Owners of the 2002 GMC Sonoma have filed 57 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the brakes (14) and the body structure (13). In NHTSA's complaints file of November 11, 2026, 38 of them list a mileage; a complaint is an owner's report, not a proven defect.
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See what the paid report includes →NHTSA's file holds 57 owner complaints on the 2002 GMC Sonoma. Owners named the brakes most often: 14 complaints, and half of the 9 that list a mileage came after 29,000 miles. A complaint can name more than one component. Of the 57 complaints, 2 report a crash, 1 reports a fire and 2 report an injury (2 people reported injured). These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
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Common problems with the 2002 Sonoma
NHTSA's file holds 57 owner complaints on the 2002 GMC Sonoma. Owners named the brakes most often: 14 complaints, and half of the 9 that list a mileage came after 29,000 miles. A complaint can name more than one component.
| Component (NHTSA category) | Complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 14 | 9 | 30,000 |
| Structure | 13 | 11 | 60,000 |
| Electrical System | 8 | 5 | 35,548 |
| Latches/locks/linkages | 5 | 4 | Under 5 mileages |
| Engine And Engine Cooling | 4 | 3 | Under 5 mileages |
Of the 57 complaints, 2 report a crash, 1 reports a fire and 2 report an injury (2 people reported injured). These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
Mileage when owners reported a problem with the 2002 Sonoma
The 38 mileages owners gave run from 127 to 200,000 miles. A quarter are at or under 28,000 miles, half at or under 41,000, three quarters at or under 63,710 and nine in ten at or under 92,000; 3 (8%) came after 100,000 miles, 2 (5%) after 150,000 and none after 200,000.
These mileages say when owners reported a problem, not when a 2002 Sonoma wears out. NHTSA's file holds only vehicles whose owners complained; one that ran without a problem never appears in it, so it gives no lifespan and no cutoff, and how a vehicle was maintained matters more than any one odometer reading.
Most of these reports came early in the vehicle's life: 35 of the 38 came at or under 100,000 miles, so they say nothing about how many miles a 2002 Sonoma can cover.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Lowest mileage listed | 127 miles |
| 25th percentile | 28,000 miles |
| Median (50th percentile) | 41,000 miles |
| 75th percentile | 63,710 miles |
| 90th percentile | 92,000 miles |
| Highest mileage listed | 200,000 miles |
| Complaints after 100,000 miles | 3 (8%) |
| Complaints after 150,000 miles | 2 (5%) |
| Complaints after 200,000 miles | none |
Every model year together: Half of the 325 NHTSA owner complaints on the GMC Sonoma that list mileage came after 58,000 miles (NHTSA complaints file of November 11, 2026). How many miles will a GMC Sonoma last? →
Is the 2002 Sonoma a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 2002 is a good or a bad Sonoma: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 2002 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file.
With 57 complaints, the 2002 ranks 9th of the 13 GMC Sonoma model years from 1991 to 2003 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most, tied with 1999. The most: the 1994 (224). The fewest: the 1992 (25).
Recent model years have had less time to collect complaints, so their counts are still growing. No year is ranked by mileage here, because a year's median mileage mostly follows its age.
| Model year | Owner complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 Sonoma | 29 | 4 | Under 10 mileages |
| 1992 Sonoma | 25 | 1 | Under 10 mileages |
| 1993 Sonoma | 58 | 0 | Under 10 mileages |
| 1994 Sonoma | 224 | 14 | 106,000 |
| 1995 Sonoma | 213 | 7 | Under 10 mileages |
| 1996 Sonoma | 148 | 12 | 90,000 |
| 1997 Sonoma | 111 | 27 | 66,000 |
| 1998 Sonoma | 156 | 59 | 67,000 |
| 1999 Sonoma | 57 | 24 | 55,000 |
| 2000 Sonoma | 136 | 63 | 56,400 |
| 2001 Sonoma | 89 | 48 | 51,300 |
| 2002 (this page) | 57 | 38 | 41,000 |
| 2003 Sonoma | 40 | 28 | 35,000 |
2002 GMC Sonoma recalls
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list no campaign for the 2002 model year under the names SONOMA and SONOMA CREW. Recalls can be filed under another name (a trim, a body or a series name), so a recall may still exist for the 2002 GMC Sonoma: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
What these figures can and cannot tell you
- Complaints are owners’ reports to NHTSA. NHTSA publishes them without verifying them: a complaint is an allegation, not a defect finding.
- The mileage is what the owner wrote on the complaint; NHTSA does not check it against the odometer.
- The make, model and model year are the ones on the complaint. NHTSA records them as filed, so a few complaints sit under a model year the name was not sold in.
- They are not a lifespan study. The file holds only vehicles whose owners reported a problem, so these figures do not say how long a typical 2002 Sonoma lasts.
- A complaint count rises with how many vehicles were sold and how long they have been on the road, so it is not a rating of the 2002 Sonoma.
- Nothing here describes one vehicle: its title brands, odometer readings, accidents and open recalls are in the records for its own VIN.
- 19 of the 57 complaints on the 2002 GMC Sonoma give no usable mileage (blank, zero, a filler such as 999999, or over 500,000) and are left out of every mileage figure.
- NHTSA names counted: SONOMA and SONOMA CREW. NHTSA files some vehicles under several names (a series name and a trim name, for example); this page counts only these.
- Recall-file name matched: SONOMA.
Primary sources behind this page
Open the underlying public source and verify that its scope matches the question you are asking.
- NHTSA complaints flat file (FLAT_CMPL.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Complaints file field layout (CMPL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls file field layout (RCL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recall and complaint datasets: scope and documentationNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls Lookup by VINNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
NHTSA’s complaints file was downloaded on November 11, 2026 (FLAT_CMPL.txt, dated 2026-11-11 10:15, 2,265,416 rows), with its recall files (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.txt and FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.txt, dated 2026-11-11 08:02). Each complaint is counted once, by its NHTSA number, with the model year and mileage of its first row; a model year has a page only with 10 or more complaints. The collection script and its rules are in scripts/collect-nhtsa-model-year-longtail.mjs.
2002 GMC Sonoma questions
What are the most common 2002 GMC Sonoma problems?
NHTSA's file holds 57 owner complaints on the 2002 GMC Sonoma. Owners named the brakes most often: 14 complaints, and half of the 9 that list a mileage came after 29,000 miles. A complaint can name more than one component. Of the 57 complaints, 2 report a crash, 1 reports a fire and 2 report an injury (2 people reported injured). These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
At what mileage do owners report problems with the 2002 GMC Sonoma?
Of the 38 complaints on the 2002 GMC Sonoma that list mileage, the middle half came between 28,000 and 64,000 miles; 3 (8%) came after 100,000 miles, 2 (5%) after 150,000 and none after 200,000. These are mileages at a reported problem; they do not say how many miles a 2002 Sonoma can cover.
Is the 2002 GMC Sonoma a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 2002 is a good or a bad Sonoma: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 2002 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file. With 57 complaints, the 2002 ranks 9th of the 13 GMC Sonoma model years from 1991 to 2003 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most, tied with 1999. The most: the 1994 (224). The fewest: the 1992 (25).
How many recalls does the 2002 GMC Sonoma have?
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list no campaign for the 2002 model year under the names SONOMA and SONOMA CREW. Recalls can be filed under another name (a trim, a body or a series name), so a recall may still exist for the 2002 GMC Sonoma: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
How do I check a used 2002 GMC Sonoma before buying?
Take the 17-character VIN from the vehicle and compare the odometer with the readings on file for it: title transfers, inspections and auction sales record the mileage on the day. VIN Lookup (free-vin-lookup.com) sells the original ClearVIN PDF for $14.99 (3 reports for $29.99, 5 for $44.99): odometer readings, title brands and auction records on file for the VIN. Check the VIN before buying a used 2002 GMC Sonoma.