2020 Chevrolet Tahoe Power Train
Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.
Complaint Timeline
Chronological view of owner reports
Lifter failed on my Chevy Tahoe 6.2L engine at ~75K miles in September 2025. One lifter bank was replaced. No reason for lifter failure was given. Less than 5 months later the other lifter bank has failed and damaged the cam shaft. Again, no reason for failure was provided. Failed lifters can cause catastrophic engine failure, which is incredibly dangerous when the vehicle is in motion. No check engine lights or and warnings occur with the lifter failure, it is only identified by the driver through the tapping noise from the engine. Even a cursory review of forums and complaints reveals that lifter failure is widespread on this engine and that manufacturing defects have caused issues with this power train dating back to 2019, not just the recalled 2021-2024 models.
I was starting to accelerate to a higher level of speed onto the highway; 55 mph going up a hill. I was unable to accelerate much as I pushed on the gas, however the RPM's would get higher. while I was at 45 mpg the RPM's were at 3.5. All of sudden my service engine light came on. I knew something was wrong. Turned around took my car back home very slowly, had my husband come look at my car, who has mechanical experience. Transmission fluid is dark and gritty; when its suppose to be a red in color and smooth. I am now needing to replace a transmission in a vehicle that is 5 years old. How is this possible? I have owned the car for 2 years. Why has these not been recalled yet? Why has these not been looked into further? We are paying a lot of money for these vehicles to turn around and put a new transmission, which isn't cheap into a vehicle that is 5 years old. Any assistance to look into these complaints would be very helpful. I am just glad no one was hurt and I was able to get my vehicle home safely. I keep up with all of the routine maintenance of this vehicle on a regular basis.
There is an unusual lifter/ticking noise coming from the valve covers on my vehicle. The vehicle is scheduled to go to the Chevrolet dealership on the 15th of this month but it sounds like the numerous other GM motors that have the failing lifters.
While driving, the vehicle's RPM's accelerated quickly and then the vehicle stopped in the middle of the road and would not move. I could not even get it to the side of the road to be out of traffic. All regular maintenance has been performed. The mileage is almost 100,000, but not there yet. This could have been a very dangerous situation as I was heading to an interstate highway. No warning lamps ever lit up and no strange sounds or vibrations ever came from the vehicle. This happened suddenly. No warning whatsoever. The vehicle is being repaired today. The transmission is being replaced at a cost of $5500.00.
High pitched whine between 2nd and 3rd gear, dealership states fluid and filter full of metal shavings transmission needed replaced
While driving making left and right turns a clicking noise was noticed. Vehicle also felt like it was engaged in 4wd when making turns on loose pavement by skipping, vehicle confirmed to be in 2wd mode. Vehicle has less than 10,000 miles. Dealership was able to determine that the noise was coming from the front hubs and saw metal shavings.Chevy Dealership suggested to have both front hubs replaced.
Trend Over Time
Complaints by year
Other Issues
Common problems reported
Quick Summary
The 2020 Chevrolet Tahoe has 6 Power Train complaints on file. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.