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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.

8.6

pretty bad
Typical Repair Cost:
$2,150
Average Mileage:
76,550 miles
Total Complaints:
19 complaints

Most Common Solutions:

  1. not sure (12 reports)
  2. replace timing chain (3 reports)
  3. replacing the throttle body (3 reports)
  4. replace corroded plug at fuel control module (1 reports)
2011 Chevrolet Traverse engine problems

engine problem

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2011 Chevrolet Traverse Owner Comments

problem #19

Apr 012019

Traverse LT 3.6L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 114,200 miles

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

GM issued a recall for 2007 - 2009 for under 120,000 miles and under 10 yrs old. They have been made aware of this issue with 2011 and many owners have had to replace their engines. GM knows that there is an issue. They issued a service bulletin for this issue on 2009-2012 Chevy Traverse and still do not want to do anything for their customers. Expense is on their own. The dealership that I bought it from, Polar Chevrolet/Mazda does not care about the issue. I have only owned this vehicle for 1 yr and 10 months and paid $15,000 for the vehicle!!! I have owned GM vehicles since I started driving at the age of 16. I have NEVER had this many problems with a vehicle EVER!!! I do love this car but the and the way it drives when it's in decent shape but these repairs are completely unexplainable. This vehicle has been in and out of the service dept at the dealership since I bought it. This engine is similar to those in Chevy Rquinox and GMC Acadia. All of which are having these issues. I called 12 mechanics and they all know of this severe issue and incredibly poorly made engine. Costs are ranging around $3,000 just at a private mechanic. Some mechanics will not touch this repair due to having to replace the entire engine. GM needs to take responsibility for their lack of attention to detail and incredibly poor customer issue. As a dedicated GM customer of 18 yrs, I will NEVER buy another GM vehicle and will be glad to switch!!!

- Shanan R., Circle Pines, MN, US

problem #18

Dec 012017

Traverse LX V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 56,000 miles

My car is only 6 years old and driven 20 minutes to work [and 20 min. back] week days and 20 minutes to church each Sunday; I'm talking under 50,000 miles. Within seven months of the 6th year I had to replace the timing chain -over $4,000.00. I had to but a new starter in $700.00. I had to but new motor mounts on $700.00. I'm so upset I can't remember the other $700.00 bill they suckered me with. I brought this car not only because I liked it but be because it had a high rating. I'm trying to stick with it because I have two kids in college and I can't afford a new car and don't want to risk buying a used one. This is so frustrating, I don't know what to do!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I will never trust a Chevy again, never!!!!!!!!!!!! I will not put my HARD WORKING money in their trust again!!!!!!!!!!!!! they are keeping poor people poor. Many dealerships play games with loaner cars so yes, it's a major problem. I'm still hoping to elude car payments, but I'm hating this car!!!!!! Dam!!!

- Cc V., Westminster, MD, US

problem #17

Nov 012017

Traverse LT 3.6L V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 111,247 miles

Been having issues with this vehicle for quite some time now. my check engine light on along with reduced engine power, and blown new parts. My Traverse can't drive it. contact gm all I got was the run around and excuses. Took to dealer paid these cats $96.00 to a diagnostic test still didn't pin point the problem. Stuck with a SUV that I still owe payments on truck a piece of crap! 😠😠😠😠😠😡😡😡

- Tisa B., Sanford, US

problem #16

Oct 072017

Traverse

  • Automatic transmission
  • 103,000 miles

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

First time the "Engine Power Reduced" flashed on the dash I was stopped at an intersection. Engine shut off completely. It took 2-3 times to finally get it started and got to work. It was fine for 3 days following this. Then I was on my way home and it did the same thing while I was driving. Luckily I wasn't on a busy road. It restarted after about 5 minutes and I got it to a parking lot and had it towed. The repair shop I have my warranty through said it was a Fuel Control Module (not covered under the extended warranty - no modules are) so I paid $450 to replace it.

A week later the same thing happened while I was driving. I had it towed again and they found a corroded plug going into the Fuel Control Module.

- mookfang, Magna, UT, US

problem #15

Dec 052016

Traverse

  • Automatic transmission
  • 93,000 miles

This is very unsafe , I was on the freeway and noticed the engine powering down but made to work then started it to leave work and got on the freeway and all the warnings came on "Service Stabilitrak , Traction Control off and Engine Power reduced. So I have to get off the freeway next exit but meanwhile I am losing power and damn near getting hit by cars going freeway speed. Then I have to take back roads all the way home driving on the side of the road with my flashers on.

I called the dealer they were too busy so I had it towed on a flatbed to a shop and they are the ones that figured out that it is the a throttle body issue and is part of a recall type thing so for anybody who needs the info its : Bulletin number 14582 for this throttle Body recall.

I want to trade it in but owe too much on this stupid car because It was way overpriced to begin with!! Feeling Ripped off!!!

- bonnie55, Proctor, MN, US

problem #14

Dec 192016

Traverse

  • Automatic transmission
  • 97,000 miles

So, I purchased my first vehicle from CarMax in 2014, a 2011 Chevy Traverse. I haven't has any real issues with it until December 2016 at which point I got 3 messages on the dash board (ENGINE POWER IS REDUCED, TRACTION CONTROL OFF & SERVICE STABILITRAK). As I was driving home from work, my truck began to slow down and then it turned off as I was driving. I had to keep turning it back on in order to get home. I couldn't get past 10 mph. I took it the same day to AutoZone and had it diagnosed. At this point, it came up that it was the throttle body. I found out through another website that GMC has a special warranty on the throttle body on this, but you have to call 866-790-5600 to make a claim. So on 12/23/16 made a claim. Again today, my truck lost power as I was driving to the dealership in Schaumburg, IL. It is $150 to get a diagnostic. Then I received a text message stating that it is my fuel pedal. The fuel pedal will have the same codes as the throttle body (supposedly). I have no warranty and there is no special warranty for this part. It will cost me $500 + taxes to fix it. My gas goes fast. I can fill up my tank one day and by the next its half way gone (just driving to work and back home). GMC needs to get to the bottom of this!!!!!

- Marina A., Chicago, IL, US

problem #13

May 012016

Traverse LS 3.6L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 108,000 miles

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

My car flashed reduced engine power one night with my kids in the car and I lost the brakes and the steering doing around 50mph. I had heard a slight noise under the hood a week before, just hadn't gotten it to a shop yet. Got it to the shop they said timing chain. Took to the dealership after I spoke with Chevy about the car they gave me a voucher to have the car diagnosed up to $100. When I was HONEST and told them that I had someone that always does my work on my car oil changes, brakes and such they said they would not fix the car.

Now after having to get the car towed to the dealership ,they so happen to say that the car had no oil which is not true the oil was just changed and hadn't been drove in about 4 months and that the oil stick was stuck in the motor and had to be lubed to get it out and was rusted. I checked it and well there was not rust on the dip stick. Chevy is allowing families to drive in unsafe vehicle leaving families with large amounts owed and not doing anything about it. I owe 17k on mine and its been parked for 6 months almost. I am a single mom of 2 and the 7500 they are telling me it gonna take to fix there mistake I can't afford. Who can? And that $7500 is if it doesn't need a new motor.

- Leann M., Hayesville, NC, US

problem #12

Jun 242016

Traverse

  • Automatic transmission
  • 77,000 miles

I just bought this Chevrolet Traverse 2011 a week ago and I'm already into problem!!!...

my wife was driving it and when she got to the gas station, it did not wanted to start again and the common message appeared stating Stabilitrak and the engine light came up in the dashboard lights. It happened three times while she was driving home...Car stalls and reduces engine power unexpectedly. I've read about the Stabilitrak / throttle issue and it is something I'm going to check now, but I'm frustrated already...a week and already with problems?!

Did your Stabilitrak / throttle issue was fixed/gone after replacing that throttle?

- Tavo C., Juarez, Mexico

problem #11

May 062015

Traverse LTZ 3.2L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 30,000 miles

We are so frustrated with this Traverse! My wife fought hard for a GM vehicle (her dad was a GM employee for 32 years). Is there a recall on this vehicle regarding the reduced engine power caused by service stabilitrack. It is so dangerous to lose engine power on our snowy wet roads. We even lose power wile doing high speeds! This vehicle is unsafe as it beeps at you and within seconds "traction control off" then "service stabilitrack" and during these messages the engine power has already been reduced. The car has be shut off and restarted every time this happens (on wet roads it happens every minute or so). Whoever thought cutting engine power would be a good idea is sadly mistaken!

Clearly we are not the only ones experiencing this issue! Obviously this is a manufacturer flaw and we should not have to pay to have this unsafe problem fixed.

- Jason I., Niagara Falls, NY, US

problem #10

Jan 212016

Traverse LTZ V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 102,000 miles

click to see larger images

reduced engine power

driving down the interstate and suddenly - Traction control Off, Service Stabilitrak, Reduced Engine Power - all starting coming across the board. Check engine light came on and car started powering down. Had to pull off and turn off engine and restart. had to keep this going several times until I could make it into the dealership. Luckily I was only about 15 miles from the dealership. Was told the throttle body was need replaced and this was a common problem in '10,'11, & '12 model GM's so GM had issued and extended warrantly to 120K miles for this particular part. I had no idea about that, but was glad. It was going to be $600 part and labor otherwise.

- Karen P., CHAttanooga, TN, US

problem #9

Oct 272015

Traverse

  • Automatic transmission
  • 72,000 miles

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

Driving home on a town road, going less than 30 mph on a drizzling evening, the vehicle stabiltrak service traction control lights came on, then the engine began powering down and the engine light illuminated, at which point the vehicle decelerated to less than 5 mph.

- Sly M., Schererville, IN, US

problem #8

Oct 012015

Traverse

  • Automatic transmission
  • 79,800 miles

This car is problem after problem. The engine light is on, the power is reduced and it's making a weird sound.

- Irisha P., North Lauderdale, FL, US

problem #7

Feb 022015

Traverse

  • Automatic transmission
  • 99,542 miles

Under 100,000 miles and NOT covered by warranty??? SERIOUSLY? Hopefully, enough people will complain about this so GM does something. Was not happy about shelling out over $500 to fix something that GM should be fixing.

- sherryh518, Laingsburg, MI, US

problem #6

Apr 132015

Traverse LT 3.5L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 59,477 miles

I have a 2011 Chevy Traverse. We purchased it new and about a month ago it started driving sluggish. It drives like the emergency break is partially on or car is losing power. Some days it drives fine until it warms up. It seems the longer you drive it, it starts to drive sluggish. Really afraid to take it to a dealer for them to start guessing at what could possibly be wrong. Could be a serious bill while they're guessing. GO has to know there is a problem, with all the complaints I've seen online.

- Dwayne H., Akron, OH, US

problem #5

Feb 102014

Traverse 3.5L V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 54,000 miles

I bought my 2011 Traverse in December of 2012, with 24,000 miles on it. I thought it was a very nice vehicle, and took several trips in it over the next two years. Then on a trip out of town, I was headed down I-80, when suddenly my traction control light came on, then it said engine power reduced, and the car slowed down to 25 mph. I pulled over to the side, and shut the car down hoping to reset the problem. When that didn't work, I disconnected the battery to do the reset, which got us a little further down the road. I had to repeat this every so often for the rest of our trip.

I researched the problem online when we got home, and much to my dismay, found that this is a problem with this entire series of vehicle using this engine/transmission setup. There were hundreds of complaints in different forums about this issue. What made me even more upset was to learn that the issue has existed for several years and the 2010 Traverse had a recall issued for this problem, but NONE on the 2011. The problem STILL exists in the 2014 Traverse, and GM has done nothing about these later models and a recall.

I would pay to fix the problem myself if ANYONE could agree on what the problem really is. Some say that you need to replace the throttle body. Others say they have tried that and the problem reoccurs. Then they say try replacing the fuel control chip--$700--but that doesn't always work either. Others have had transmission work done, front end alignments, you name it trying to solve this problem. COME ON GM! Let's get going and solve this problem, or recall these vehicles!

- lylea, Rock Springs, WY, US

problem #4

Jan 042014

Traverse

  • Automatic transmission
  • 68,900 miles

This is the same problem as the other reviewers. Check stability trak message comes across dashboard, then my traction control goes offline, then reduced engine power, then my car just crawls at less than 5 miles per hour until it stops. This happens repeatedly off and on, you never know when. Took my car to my dealership shop which charged me $145 for software uploads??? The problem seemed to be fixed but is starting up again.

With a car with the capacity for 8 passengers, who is mostly driving these?? FAMILIES!! I was terrified when this happened with four of my children in the car. On the iciest, coldest days we have had in northwestern Pennsylvania. The SAFETY features on my car is what put us in the most danger!! Looking for a new car...I have had it!!

- Sharon W., Ellwood City, PA, US

problem #3

Jan 072014

Traverse LTZ V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 64,000 miles

Well let me tell you that I'm am almost done with this car and Chevy all together. Once again while dropping my child off at day care this morning, the stability track and engine Power reduced message came again. I was on my way to work so I thought I would turn the car off and reset and deal with it a lunch time. But not this time, it wouldn't reset and I had to take all the back roads to get to work and fortunately for me the service station opens early.

So instead of going to work this morning I took my car straight to the dealership. This time the engine light was on and stayed on. I just received a call from the dealership. $660.00 is what they said they would charge me to fix the problem. What for?......... The throttle body needs replaced. WTF, WTF, WTF. First, how / why does a vehicle that is 2 years old need a new throttle body already and second why is that not covered under warranty or with the safety issues this has caused, how has this not been recalled yet. Talking about being FN pissed. The bad thing is there's no guarantee that this will fix the problem.

- Mike W., Brunswick, MD, US

problem #2

Nov 252013

Traverse LTZ V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 60,000 miles

While driving on the highway to my in-laws. The stability tract sensor came on and shortly afterwards the Engine Power being reduced came across the display. Which then followed by a sudden loss of power. Thankfully I was driving and handled the problem fairly well and also was luckily enough not to be in heavy traffic. But the fact that I had my entire family in the car was very unsettling. If we would've been on I 95 and this would of happened, this could've easily resulted in a unforeseen accident.

We looked in the manual and did as it said and turn the vehicle off for a minute or two and back on. It reset itself and we started off again about another 2 -3 miles down the road it did it again. We repeated these steps as we limped our way to my in-laws since they were closer than going home.

I looked around online to find out what the problem could be and I was amazed of all the complaint with this issue. From the throttle body sensor to dust on on the Speed sensor. What I was even more amazed about is the fact that Chevy doesn't have a recall on this truck for this problem. This is obviously a safety and life threatening issue. Does it take someone being killed to cause a recall to happen or what? I took it to the local dealer and to no avail, they couldn't find anything wrong with the vehicle. All I can say is WTF!!!!!

Update from Jan 7, 2014: Well just want to update everyone that just before Xmas my wife and I were out shopping for the kids and this same exact issue came again. And once again I was on the Highway and fortunately I was able to get off the shoulder safely. This time though I didn't turn the car off. Since I was close enough to my local Chevy Dealership I drove it right to them with car running and i told them not to turn the car off because I wanted someone to see the problem first hand. The service man there treated me great, saw the problem and gave me a free rental. Unfortunately, the person who moved my car to the service bay apparently was unaware of the problem and turned the Vehicle off. When the mechanic came to check the problem was gone. Mr. Rice the service person who helped me earlier, said he saw the problem and asked if he could take it home to see if it did it again. Unfortunately, it didn't and even the Service manager took it for a ride and still nothing. So once again I'm still stuck with a car that's unsafe and unfixed.

- Mike W., Brunswick, MD, US

problem #1

Jun 222011

Traverse LT 3.6L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 5,200 miles

I HAVE A 2011 TRAVERSE. TWICE NOW I START IT AND OUT IT INTO DRIVE AND NOTHING HAPPENS. IF I RESTART IT ALL IS FINE EXCEPT THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WILL STAY ON FOR A WHILE AND GO OFF. NO ONE KNOWS WHAT THE PROBLEM IS BECAUSE NO CODE SHOW UP. PLEASE HELO. ROLAND

- Roland D., Latham, NY, US

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