New Chevy Silverado And GMC Sierra Trucks Losing Useful Feature

Jun. 29, 2021 8:07 AM ET by Karl Furlong Industry News / 4 Comments

The semiconductor chip shortage rears its ugly head yet again.

The ongoing semiconductor chip shortage has created a range of issues for major automakers like General Motors. In some cases, the problems have been as serious as halting production entirely. To prevent this, GM has sought to continue producing some vehicles but with certain features removed. Earlier in June, some variants of the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and the GMC Sierra were being manufactured without the fuel-saving engine start/stop feature. Now, another popular feature, namely HD Radio, will be removed from numerous 2021 and 2022 model GM trucks, a direct consequence of the chip shortage.

2019-2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Front Angle View

2019-2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Side View Driving

2019-2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Rear Angle View

For customers who prefer tuning in to their favorite radio station rather than playing music via another source, it's a potentially frustrating omission. According to GM Trucks, an email was sent to dealerships confirming the change, which is expected to be permanent.

The deletion of HD Radio will apply to selected 2021 model year Silverado and Sierra 1500 trucks. All 2022 Silverado 2500/3500 HD models and 2022 Sierra 2500/3500 HD variants will lack this feature as well. For the popular 2021 Silverado 1500, virtually every trim from the cheaper LS to the high-spec High Country will be impacted.

2019-2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Dashboard

2019-2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Infotainment System

To alert customers, an updated Monroney label will display a new RPO code, RG0, which indicates that HD Radio is not equipped. As a small consolation, an MSRP credit of $50 is applicable to these specific trucks. All trucks produced after July 12, 2021, will be affected. While not ideal, GM is in a sticky spot, and getting trucks shipped to dealers certainly seems more valuable than ensuring that HD Radio is equipped to all of them. Of course, GM is not alone in having to make some tough decisions, with Ford saying it will redesign some of its components to make them compatible with the specific chips that are more widely available.