General Motors issued a recall last week affecting 2015 Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon pickup trucks. Those trucks with the problem could experience power steering assist loss either when first started or while driven on the road. There are two possible causes for the steering loss.

What causes the power steering loss?

It is either caused by a bad electrical connection due to corrosion, or damage that happened during the manufacturing of the component. Either way, if the connection loses contact it can cause the power steering assist to quit. A warning light will indicate the power steering is malfunctioning and an audible warning will occur.

Steering becomes much harder to perform though the ability to steer is not completely lost. It will require much more arm effort which, coming on suddenly, can cause an accident. More effort will be necessary during lower speeds. 

This only affects 2015 Chevy Colorado or GMC Canyon pickups

If your 2015 Canyon or Colorado pickup truck is one of the affected builds your local dealer will have to replace the steering gear torque sensor cover assembly. The replacement will be performed at no charge. That is because this is a mandatory recall. So, no cost to the truck owner. Affecting only the 2015 Colorado or Canyon pickup trucks, any other model years won’t be affected.

General Motors is not indicating how many trucks may be affected. GM has decided not to indicate how many vehicles are involved in recent months. This is a change from most all other recalls over recent years.

Here’s how to contact GM or the NHTSA with questions

If you are contacted by GM about your truck being part of the recall, you can make an appointment with your local dealer. If you don’t know whether your truck is part of the recall, or if you have other questions you can contact GM directly through its recall website. That, or the NHTSA site. You’ll need to have your VIN handy to plug into the query.