2009 Chevrolet Traverse Problems, Complaints & Recalls
- Compared with other Traverse years
- More complaints than other years 5th of 18 for complaints
- Safety recalls
- 8 recalls: check your VIN
- NHTSA crash rating
- Not rated
Owners have filed 448 complaints with NHTSA about the 2009 Chevrolet Traverse. That ranks 5th out of 18 Traverse model years for complaints. The most reported problem area is steering (231 complaints, 52%), typically at around 76,000 miles. Complaints mention 17 crashes, 2 fires, 16 injuries. There are 8 safety recalls covering this model year. NHTSA has opened 3 defect investigations involving it.

- 448owner complaints
- 8safety recalls
- 3NHTSA investigations
- 17complaints mentioning a crash
Complaints are unverified owner reports and are not adjusted for sales volume.
Most common 2009 Chevrolet Traverse problems
Complaints grouped by the part of the car owners reported, with the median mileage when the problem happened.
| Problem area | Complaints | Share | Median miles | Owners mention most | Typical repair cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steering problems | 231 | 52% | 76,000 | “rack pinion” (16%) | $1,800 |
| Power Train problems | 58 | 13% | 90,000 | “wave plate” (14%) | $5,450 |
| Engine problems | 50 | 11% | 112,485 | “timing chain” (28%) | — |
| Electrical System | 36 | 8% | 88,000 | — | — |
| Unknown or Other | 35 | 8% | 105,700 | — | — |
| Air Bags | 26 | 6% | 69,122 | — | — |
| Electronic Stability Control (esc) | 21 | 5% | 101,863 | — | — |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 18 | 4% | 93,000 | — | — |
| Seat Belts | 17 | 4% | 110,000 | — | — |
| Suspension | 13 | 3% | 91,261 | — | — |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 12 | 3% | 64,906 | — | — |
| Service Brakes | 12 | 3% | 92,150 | — | — |
| Structure | 9 | 2% | 88,350 | — | — |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 8 | 2% | 71,725 | — | — |
| Visibility | 7 | 2% | 29,800 | — | — |
| Exterior Lighting | 6 | 1% | 65,868 | — | — |
| Tires | 6 | 1% | 34,391 | — | — |
| Traction Control System | 5 | 1% | 77,000 | — | — |
| Seats | 2 | 0% | 83,000 | — | — |
| Visibility/wiper | 2 | 0% | 98,500 | — | — |
| Wheels | 2 | 0% | 83,445 | — | — |
| Child Seat | 1 | 0% | — | — | — |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 1 | 0% | 130,000 | — | — |
| Fuel System, Other | 1 | 0% | — | — | — |
| Latches/locks/linkages | 1 | 0% | 97,000 | — | — |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 1 | 0% | 20,000 | — | — |
One complaint can list several problem areas, so shares can add up to more than 100%.
Complaints by year received
2009 Chevrolet Traverse recalls (8)
Tap a recall to see the problem, the risk and the fix.
Structure:body:hatchback/liftgate
Problem: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2008-2012 Buick Enclave vehicles manufactured January 3, 2007, to February 29, 2012, 2009-2012 Chevrolet Traverse vehicles manufactured July 6, 2008, to March 9, 2012, 2007-2012 GMC Acadia vehicles manufactured September 15, 2006, to February 29, 2012, and 2007-2010 Saturn Outlook vehicles manufactured August 17, 2006, to March 18, 2010. The affected vehicles, equipped with the power liftgate option, have gas struts that hold the power liftgate up when open. These struts may prematurely wear and the open liftgate may suddenly fall.
Risk: If the open liftgate unexpectedly falls, it may strike a person, increasing their risk of injury.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will update the software for the power liftgate actuator motor control unit so that the motor will prevent the rapid closing of the lift gate, free of charge. The recall began on November 15, 2016. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782, and Saturn customer service at 1-800-553-6000. GM's number for this recall is 15240.
Seat belts
Problem: General Motors is recalling certain model year 2009-2014 Buick Enclave vehicles manufactured April 14, 2008, through May 14, 2014, Chevrolet Traverse vehicles manufactured June 6, 2008, through May 14, 2014, and GMC Acadia vehicles manufactured April 9, 2008, through May 14, 2014, and 2009-2010 Saturn Outlook vehicles manufactured April 14, 2008, through March 18, 2010. In the affected vehicles, the flexible steel cable that connects the seatbelt to the front outboard seating positions may fatigue and separate over time.
Risk: If the steel cable becomes fatigued and separates, the seatbelt may not properly restrain the seat occupant increasing the risk of an injury in a crash.
Fix: General Motors will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, if necessary, repair and replace the lap pretensioner, free of charge. Parts are not currently available. An interim notice will be mailed to owners in July 2014. A second notice will be mailed to owners once parts become available. The recall for the 2009-2010 model years began on July 11, 2014. The interim letter for the 2011-2014 model years were distributed on July 11, 2014. Owners may contact General Motors at 1-800-222-1020 (Chevrolet), 1-800-521-7300 (Buick), 1-800-462-8782 (GMC), 1-800-553-6000 (Saturn). General Motors recall number for this campaign is 14187.
Air bags:side/window
Problem: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2008-2013 Buick Enclave and GMC Acadia and 2009-2013 Chevrolet Traverse and 2008-2010 Saturn Outlook vehicles. In the affected vehicles, increased resistance in the driver and passenger seat mounted side impact air bag (SIAB) wiring harnesses may result in the SIAB and seat belt pretensioners not deploying in the event of a crash.
Risk: Failure of the side impact air bags and seat belt pretensioners to deploy in a crash increase the risk of injury to the driver and front seat occupant.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the affected harness connections with soldered connections, free of charge. The recall began on June 16, 2014. Buick owners may contact the owner center at 1-800-521-7300, Chevrolet owners at 1-866-694-6546, Saturn at 1-800-553-6000, and GMC owners at 1-866-996-9463. GM's number for this recall is 14030. Note: Vehicles repaired as part of Customer Satisfaction Campaign 10085 and special coverage 10335 have already had the subject condition repaired and therefore are not included in the safety recall.
Seat belts
Problem: General motors is recalling certain model year 2009-2010 chevrolet traverse, buick enclave, gmc acadia, and saturn outlook vehicles. The second row seat side trim shield restricts the upward rotation of the safety belt buckle when the seat back is returned to a seating position after being folded flat. If the buckle contacts the seat frame, additional effort is required to return the seat to a seating position. If sufficient force is applied, the buckle cover could be pushed down the strap, exposing and partially depressing the red release button.
Risk: The safety belt may not restrain the occupant as intended during a crash, increasing the risk of injury to the seat occupant.
Fix: Dealers will modify the second row seat side trim shields. If a safety belt buckle is damaged, dealers will replace it free of charge. The safety recall began on august 18, 2010. Owners may contact chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, buick at 1-866-608-8080, gmc at 1-866-996-9463, and saturn at 1-800-972-8876, or at the owner center at www.gmownercenter.com.
Electrical system
Problem: Gm is recalling certain model year 2006-2009 buick, lucerne; cadillac dts; hummer h2; model year 2008-2009 buick enclave; cadillac cts; model year 2007-2009 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, escalade ext; chevrolet avalanche, silverado, suburban, tahoe; gmc acadia, sierra, yukon, yukon xl; saturn outlook; and model year 2009 chevrolet traverse vehicles equipped with a heated washer fluid system (hwfs). A recall was implemented in 2008 to add a fuse to the control circuit harness to address the potential consequences of a printed circuit board (pcb) electrical short. However, there have been new reports of thermal incidents on hwfs modules after this improvement was installed. These incidents resulted from a new failure mode attributed to the device's thermal protection feature. The significance varies from minor distortion to considerable melting of the plastic around the hwfs fluid chamber.
Risk: It is possible for the heated washer module to ignite and a fire may occur.
Fix: Dealers will permanently disable and remove the heated washer fluid module. An updated page for the owner manual will be provided and inserted in the owner manual to document that the feature has been permanently disabled and removed from the vehicle. The safety recall began on june 11, 2010. Owners may contact buick at 1-866-608-8080, cadillac at 1-866-982-2339, chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, saturn at 1-800-972-8876, gmc at 1-866-996-9463 and hummer at 1-800-732-5493 or at the owner center at www.gmownercenter.com.
Parking brake
Problem: Gm is recalling 15,393 my 2009 chevrolet traverse vehicles for failing to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 135, "passenger car brake systems." these vehicles may have a park brake cable link (connector) that is not to specification. This connector may fracture when the park brake pedal is depressed.
Risk: If the transmission shift lever is in the park position, there will be no unintended vehicle movement. However, if the keys are left in the ignition, the transmission shift lever is in any position other than park, and the vehicle is parked on a sufficient slope, it could result in unintended vehicle movement. This could result in a crash without prior warning.
Fix: Dealers are to replace the park brake cable link (connector) free of charge. Gm anticipates that the dealer bulletin will be sent may 5, 2009 and owner letters will be mailed in june 2009. Owners may contact chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, or at www.gmownercenter.com.
Power train:automatic transmission:lever and linkage:column shift
Problem: General motors is recalling 276,729 my 2009 buick enclave, chevrolet cobalt, hhr, malibu, traverse, gmc acadia, pontiac g5, g6 and saturn aura and outlook passenger vehicles. These vehicles fail to comply with federal motor vehicles safety standard 102, "transmission shift position sequence, starter interlock, and transmission braking effect", and fmvss 114, "theft protection and rollaway prevention". On some of these vehicles, the transmission shift cable adjustment clip may not be fully engaged. If the clip is not fully engaged, the shift lever and the actual position of the transmission gear may not match. With this condition, the drive could move the shifter to "park" and remove the ignition key, but the transmission gear may not be in "park".
Risk: The driver may not be able to restart the vehicle and the vehicle could roll away after the driver has exited the vehicle, resulting in a possible crash without prior warning.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and ensure that the shift cable adjustment clip is fully engaged. In the event that the clip does not engage, the shift cable will be replaced free of charge. The recall is expected to begin on or before march 24, 2009. Owners may contact buick at 1-866-608-8080, chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, gmc at 1-866-996-9463, pontiac at 1-800-620-7668 and saturn at 1-800-972-8876 or at www.gmownercenter.com.
Seat belts: rear/other:buckle assembly
Problem: Gm is recalling 16,667 my 2009 buick enclave, chevrolet traverse, gmc acadia, and saturn outlook vehicles for failing to conform with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 209, 'seat belt assemblies.' these vehicles may have been built with a safety belt buckle in the second or third row that is missing a rivet.
Risk: In a vehicle crash, if the rivet is missing, the buckle may separate from the mounting strap, increasing the risk of injury to the passenger.
Fix: Dealers will inspect the safety belt buckles in the second and third rows, and replace them if necessary. The recall began on november 26, 2008. Owners may contact buick at 1-866-608-8080; chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438; gmc at 1-866-996-9463; saturn at 1-800-972-8876; or through their website at <a href=http://www.gmownercenter.com>http://www.gmownercenter.com</a> .
To see whether a specific car still has an open recall, enter its VIN on NHTSA's official recall lookup. You can also decode a VIN here.
NHTSA defect investigations
- Outboard Front Seat Belt Anchor Cable Failure (EA20002) — opened Aug 31, 2020, closed Aug 30, 2024, led to recall 21V245.
- Seat Belt Anchor Cable Failure (RQ19003) — opened May 28, 2019, closed Aug 31, 2020.
- Fleet Vehicle Recall Completion Audit (AQ10001) — opened Nov 18, 2010, closed Dec 28, 2015.
Recent owner reports
Short excerpts of the latest complaints filed with NHTSA, with personal details removed. Full reports can be searched on NHTSA.gov.
Limp mode. It doesn't have speed only goes about 10-20 mph, doesn't give any gas it'll stall act as if it wants to shut down. Transmission Shift Cable. Stalls want let me get gas or nothing slowing down in traffic, it just gives up. No. yes. others Check engine light, Stabilitrak/traction control…
I just bought the car from sb auto . The car I had for 4 days wasn't making funny nosies nothing. The timing went when I was driving the car it came to a dead stop lost power steering . Had me and my son in the car thankfully I was Turning into a complex when it happened. It's got 159163 miles
The contact owns a 2009 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated that when she started her vehicle and shifted into drive (D) and depressed the accelerator pedal, the vehicle failed to respond as needed. The contact stated that she attempted to drive the vehicle however, the vehicle failed to exceed…
I bought the car in August of last year and drove it for about 3 days before it started giving me problems. First incident I was driving my children home from the hairdresser and the car completely went out us on the highway, after repeated attempts for a half hour or so I was able to start it and…
I bought my car and not even a month later I was driving off the interstate and it shut down on me. I had it towed to my house and it wonât start anymore. The car makes a funny clickin noise. It could have killed me if I would have wrecked.
Other Chevrolet Traverse years
| Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 Traverse | 25 | 1 |
| 2025 Traverse | 183 | 0 |
| 2024 Traverse | 140 | 0 |
| 2023 Traverse | 92 | 2 |
| 2022 Traverse | 99 | 1 |
| 2021 Traverse | 92 | 3 |
| 2020 Traverse | 233 | 8 |
| 2019 Traverse | 411 | 3 |
| 2018 Traverse | 463 | 2 |
| 2017 Traverse | 361 | 3 |
| 2016 Traverse | 292 | 5 |
| 2015 Traverse | 313 | 5 |
| 2014 Traverse | 548 | 7 |
| 2013 Traverse | 162 | 4 |
| 2012 Traverse | 354 | 5 |
| 2011 Traverse | 608 | 5 |
| 2010 Traverse | 669 | 5 |
| 2009 | 448 | 8 |
See all Chevrolet Traverse problems by year, every Chevrolet model, or the Chevrolet VIN decoder.
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Frequently asked questions
What are the most common problems with the 2009 Chevrolet Traverse?
Owners most often report steering, power train, engine problems. The top one, steering, accounts for 231 complaints.
Was there a recall on the 2009 Chevrolet Traverse?
Yes, 8 safety recalls. Enter your VIN at NHTSA.gov to check whether the repairs were done on your car.
Was the 2009 Chevrolet Traverse a good year?
Complaint data can't fully answer that, because counts aren't adjusted for sales. Compared with other Traverse model years, the 2009 has more complaints than most years. Always get a pre-purchase inspection and check the VIN for open recalls.