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CarComplaints.com Notes: There are a fair-number of power steering related complaints which is a continuation of problems from the previous model year. Considering the problem tends to happen beyond the standard warranty (73k+) it's best to avoid this vehicle or at least be prepared for the $1,300+ repair.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
2 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
74,040 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2011 Chevrolet Traverse drivetrain problems

drivetrain problem

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2011 Chevrolet Traverse Owner Comments (Page 3 of 4)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #37

Feb 162016

Traverse

  • 72,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Traverse. While driving 55 mph, the vehicle independently decelerated to 25 mph. The stabilitrac warning indicator illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 72,000. The VIN was not available.

- Elizabethtown, KY, USA

problem #36

Dec 122015

Traverse

  • 10 miles
December 2015 drove the 2011 Traverse to the grocery store. After parking the cooling fan was on after engine turned off. Very loud fan noise had me concerned. After driving home I notice no fan noise so I felt it was an isolated incident considering it is cool winter weather outside. Next a.M. we went to church approx 7 mile trip and fan was running when we turned off car again and saw puff of steam or smoke coming out from front of hood. Reasoned it was morning fog? or evaporating water! on the way to do errands 2 days later engine was running about 260* on gauge on dash. Fan came on when I parked and ran very loudly. I went straight to dealership which is across the street and met Chevy service rep. He said it was just the car reacting to run the defrost mode on the ac system and sent me on my way. Before I reached our home the temp gauge was at 260* or higher because it was on the highest point on gauge. Returned the next day to dealership as car had now overheated again, no fan coming on at all, and service writer said turn it off before it does damage. Wow! left car and was called the next a.M, with diagnosis as bad water pump covered by recall. Work was done and then I was informed the rack amd pinion assembly was leaking and needs to be replaced and the engine mount is broken. I am sure the leak on the rack and pinion is due to overheating and extra pressure on the gaskets. No leaks ever noticed before this visit during multipoint inspection performed by dealer on 9/10/15. Area of fluid is fresh on rack area. Estimate at $1745. I'm sure this recall will be happening soon. I just received the November 2015 recall on faulty throttle position sensor repair. I can only hope the recall for the steering system leak and failures will come soon.. fyi we have owned 30 Chevrolet cars and we have never had anything like this happen or the amount of recalls occur

- Momroe, NC, USA

problem #35

Dec 162015

Traverse

  • 70,000 miles
Timing belt issues and power steering pump leak and issues needing replaced.

- Roundhill, VA, USA

problem #34

Jun 292015

Traverse

  • 104,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The car just completely stopped. No warning no lights no oil light no service engine. Just quit going down the road at 60mph with my children in the car. Now I am being told it is the motor. I have serviced the car I should have and treated it very well. There is not one reason a 2011 should just quit. I also had a issues with traction control in the dead of winter the car would flash traction control off engine will lose speed service stablitrack and the car would drop from 65mph right to 25mph in 5 seconds flat which was extremely dangerous any time of year not just winter. Get those 2011 Chevrolet Traverses off the road.

- Fair Haven , VT, USA

problem #33

May 012015

Traverse

  • 70,000 miles
I just recently purchased this 2011 Chevy Traverse last night from the dealer. My first time buying a used vehicle. Within 3 months, my heat stopped working in my vehicle. I purchased the vehicle at 40,000 miles. Brought it to the dealer, and asked if there was anything they can do as I just purchased this vehicle not too long ago, and they stated there wasnt any recall. I would have to pay out of pocket to have this fixed. Just recently this month I have been having an issue with a whining noise when I am driving, and when I am turning the wheel. I took my vehicle to a mechanic and they filed all of my fluids, including power steering which was low. Found out that I have a leak. I started doing some research on this, and found out that all of the 2011 Chevy Traverse vehicles had this same issue. I am going to contact the dealer today to see what they can do, as I didnt purchase an extended warranty with this vehicle. Should this not be something that is covered under Chevrolet if the majority of these vehicles are having this same issue?

- Midlothian, VA, USA

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problem #32

May 072015

Traverse

  • 36,300 miles
The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken to the dealer because of a grinding noise emerging from the engine every time a turn was made. The technician diagnosed that the power steering unit was faulty and needed replacement. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 36,300. Updated 09/18/15

- Richfield, MN, USA

problem #31

Mar 182015

Traverse 6-cyl

  • 50,208 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Engine overheated, reduced engine power came on and car shut down. Had to have it towed. Water pump had to be replaced, car is only 4 years old. Doesn't make sense.

- Brownsburg, IN, USA

problem #30

Mar 142015

Traverse

  • miles
Car became very sluggish speed dropped down to 40mph the check engine light came on followed by two messages "traction control off" and "service stabilitrak" car barely moved after that. I pulled onto the shoulder of the road turned the car off, attempted to turn it back on the car wouldn't start after 3 mins the car started and I was able to make it home however the check engine light is still on and the error messages are still being displayed. I googled the problem apparently it's very common and a recall need to be issued.

- Edgewood, MD, USA

problem #29

Feb 262015

Traverse

  • 59,688 miles
I was driving to work and luckily had already gotten off the freeway, driving aprox. 35mph the vehicle started to loose speed, a couple of msgs were popping up "stabilitrac off" "service stability control" "reduced engine power". the speed dropped down to about 5 mph, I had to pull over in order for the vehicles behind me to pass me. I put the vehicle on park and while idling, it started vibrating. I turned it off and then turn it back on. After this it seemed to be doing good., enough for me to get to work

- Rio Rico, AZ, USA

problem #28

Feb 202015

Traverse

  • 50,000 miles
The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated that while driving at 60 mph, the alarm activated independently. In addition, the service traction and the power reduced warning lights illuminated. The failure occurred multiple times. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the throttle body needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 50,000.

- Manassas, VA, USA

problem #27

Jan 222015

Traverse 6-cyl

  • 71,558 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Stabilitrak warning light engine losing power down to 20 mph.went online this is an on going problem with many GM cars and should be fixed at the cost of the manufacturer.

- Willoughby, OH, USA

problem #26

Feb 172015

Traverse

  • 65,057 miles
The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated that while driving at 30 mph, the vehicle lost power. In addition, the accelerator pedal was depressed, but the vehicle failed to accelerate. The traction control warning light illuminated and stability track off, service stability track, traction control off, service traction control, engine power is reduced was displayed across the message board. The vehicle was towed to a dealer. The technician was unable to duplicate the failure or repair the vehicle. The manufacturer was not notified of the failures. The failure mileage was 65,057.

- Landenberg, PA, USA

problem #25

Jan 302015

Traverse

  • 69,000 miles
The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 35 mph, the accelerator pedal was depressed but the vehicle failed to accelerate. In addition, the traction control off and the engine power reduced warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed that the throttle body needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 69,000.

- Chatham Township , NJ, USA

problem #24

Jan 252015

Traverse 6-cyl

  • 64,369 miles
Daughter was driving, with kids in car. 6:45 pm 1/25/2015. Traction control warning light came on and acceleration dropped instantly. She pulled over and turned off vehicle. Restarted and still could not get past 45 mph. Pulled over again and turned off for five minutes. When pulled back onto highway was able to proceed normally, edmunds forum and chevytraverse forums stated this has happened repeatedly.

- Paducah, KY, USA

problem #23

Dec 292014

Traverse

  • 69,100 miles
I was driving down the expressway going 70 miles an hour and my car all of a sudden went into safe mode and dropped to 10 miles an hour in a matter of seconds. I came very close to being rear ended by the car behind me and I had to swerve off the road into loose gravel and almost lost control of my car. I took the car to hank graff Chevrolet where I purchased it and they said the throttle body had went out along with the rack and pinion. I was told that it was not covered under warranty and I would have to pay $2500. I called the detroit zone office and [xxx] told me that everything would be covered under warranty except for the alignment. I then received a call from the service writer a few days later and was told that GM would not cover it. I talked to the zone office again and asked why wouldn't this be covered, it is a safety item and other Traverses have had recalls for the throttle body. I was told sorry mine was not one of them and I would have to pay. I feel that you need to know about this as it can cause some major accidents or even deaths if this happens to someone else. I was very lucky that this did not result in a serious accident. My car has only 69000 miles on it, why would these parts fail at such a low mileage. The car has never been in any accidents and there has never been any previous repairs done on this vehicle. Thank you information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Linden, MI, USA

problem #22

Jan 242014

Traverse 6-cyl

  • 65,000 miles
It has to do with power to the engine being reduced. It has happened to me three times. Each time, I received three error messages ("traction control off", "service traction control", "service stabilitrak"), each time power reduced to my engine, and each time I paid substantial sums to the dealer to have it fixed, but each time it happened again. The first time I paid dealer #1 about $150 (if I recall correctly) to have them clean carbon from a sensor on the throttle body (which, coincidentally, I've had several problems caused by "carbon", according to the dealer #1). The second time, same thing, but paid only about $45 (to dealer #2 because I was out of town). The third time, I paid $600 for a completely new throttle body, including all of such sensors, from dealer #1. I am not confident that it is any safer now than it was before, since the track record is so poor (neither of the prior fixes solved the problem). Two of the three times (time #1 in January 2014, and just now for #3 in January 2015), I was on the highway at a high rate of speed, and fortunately the cars behind me were able to swerve and avoid rear-ending me at the last minute.

- Dexter, MI, USA

problem #21

Jan 262011

Traverse

  • 25,000 miles
TL-the contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 70 mph, the speed decreased independently to approximately 40 mph as the check engine warning light illuminated. The failure recurred multiple times. The vehicle was taken to a dealer for diagnostic testing. The mechanic stated that the throttle body sensor needed to be cleaned. The vehicle was repaired but the failure recurred. The vehicle was then taken to an independent mechanic, who performed a tune up and informed that the throttle body needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 25,000. Djr

- Chino Hills, CA, USA

problem #20

Nov 202014

Traverse

  • miles
I was driving home from work one evening. I just came off of the highway, then there was chimes coming from the 2011 Chevy Traverse. Then on the dash read traction control off stability control off service traction control service stability control engine power reduced. I went form 40 mph to 20mph in less than a second. Contacted the dealership was told to stop driving immediately and have it towed to them. I get a call the next morning regarding the Traverse and an estimate of $230 for a diagnostic and cleaning the throttle. Not even a month later it happened again right before I was about to enter a highway, I called the dealership again and they told me to have it towed and they will perform another diagnostic and give me another estimate for the exact same problem. They called back later that day with another estimate of over $500. I told them I was not paying another cent to repair the exact same problem that I brought the truck in for the first time. He gave me some story about it could be 1001 problems that causes this problem and I told him that is the purpose of a diagnostic to find out what the problem is the first time. Long story short I did not pay the $500 to fix my Traverse a second time for a repeat problem. The worker made it seem like he did me a favor for not charging me. Thank god I was not onb a highway when this happened or that I did not have my children with me. Chevy needs to fix this problem asap before a very bad accident happens and they will be sued.

- Washington, DC, USA

problem #19

Sep 222014

Traverse 6-cyl

  • 74,300 miles
Traction control turned off, stabilitrak trak turned off and then it said they needed service, immediately after it then started down shifting and quickly slowing itself down. It is a real hazard on icy roads and on the interstate in traffic when the vehicle quickly slows itself down. Many posts on the internet with this problem repeatedly occurring with multiple repair attempts at dealerships. I'm starting on my 2nd trip to the dealership. This is a definite safety issue when the car takes control and slows itself down. By shutting off the car it will reset the system and then it will work properly for a while. But this problem keeps recurring after it has been driven for a while.

- Malta, ID, USA

problem #18

Nov 142014

Traverse 6-cyl

  • 51,928 miles
Wife was on the highway when the stabilitrak turned off and the engine went into a safe mode dropping her speed instantly. Luckily, she was in traffic and not going full highway speed or else she would have been a major accident hurting many people involved. There was a recall on the 2010 Traverse for this same issue, and even though there are plenty of complaints about this issue on the 2011 (forums.edmunds.com/discussion/14979/Chevrolet/Traverse/Chevy-Traverse-stabilitrak-traction-control-problems), no recalls have been issued. Do there have to be deaths involved with this issue before Chevy decides fix this issue? the complaints also include the dealership attempting a bunch of attempted fixes, with some of them correcting the problem and some not (throttle body being one). In this state, this vehicle is not safe, and its not due to customer abuse or high mileage parts. This needs to be addressed by Chevy and corrected asap. We have also had to have the seat belt fixed under recall, the A/C unit under warranty, and recently received a notice that the power steering unit has a recall but not to bring it to the dealership until it fails. I expect a call from Chevy in order to get this issues fixed at their cost. I will continue to post on all forums, blogs, social media, etc until this is given the proper attention.

- Marietta, GA, USA

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