Verdict
2014 Chevrolet Traverse: Complaints, Recalls & Known Issues
What the public record actually says about the 2014 Chevrolet Traverse — every figure below is a NHTSA or EPA number, not an opinion.
The read
More reported complaints than most SUV.
Owners filed 547 NHTSA complaints — more complaints than 85% of 2014 SUVs. Air Bags leads the reports (43%). 7 safety recall campaigns on record — check the VIN and remedy terms with a dealer.
Based on NHTSA complaint volume against 2014 SUVs, not adjusted for how many were sold. It describes the model year, not the individual car you are looking at.
Complaints filed
547
Reports to NHTSA, 2014
Safety recalls
7
NHTSA campaigns on record
NHTSA crash test
Overall NCAP rating
Combined MPG
19
EPA estimate
Complaint volume vs. segment peers
More complaints than 85% of 2014 SUVs
The bar is this car's percentile among 2014 SUVs by complaint volume — a full bar means the fewest complaints in its class. Not adjusted for sales.
Known issues
Air Bags issues lead owner complaints (43% of 547 reports), followed by electrical system (19%).
+ 13 more component categories with fewer reports.
Share of all 547 NHTSA complaints for this model year, grouped by the component owners named. Bars are scaled to the largest category. Examples: ODI 11735223, ODI 11651066, ODI 11437188, ODI 11234466, ODI 11129851.
Recalls(7)
Open a recall to read what NHTSA says is wrong, what can happen, and how it gets fixed. Check the VIN and remedy eligibility with a dealer; federal no-charge requirements have an age limit, though a manufacturer may offer more coverage.
Air BagsOct 2023 · 23V334000Details +Close −
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2014-2017 Buick Enclave, Chevrolet Traverse, and GMC Acadia vehicles. The driver's air bag inflator may explode during deployment, due to a manufacturing defect.
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the driver's air bag module, free of charge. GM began mailing final owner letters February 23, 2024 and will continue mailing through December 2025. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N232404980.
Air BagsAug 2021 · 21V246000Details +Close −
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2010-2015, 2017 Buick Enclave, 2010-2019 Chevrolet Traverse, and 2011-2016 GMC Acadia vehicles. The side curtain air bags may not be properly attached.
Risk: Unsecured side curtain air bags may not perform as intended, increasing the risk of injury.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, if necessary, realign or replace the weld nuts, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on May 24, 2021. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N202321200.
Air BagsJul 2021 · 21V782000Details +Close −
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2008-2017 Buick Enclave and 2013-2017 Chevrolet Traverse vehicles. The driver's air bag inflator may explode during deployment, due to a manufacturing defect.
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the driver's air bag module, free of charge. Interim owner notification letters were mailed on November 3, 2021. Owner notification letters were mailed on January 10, 2022. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N212349040.
Electrical SystemJan 2014 · 14V614000Details +Close −
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2013-2014 Cadillac CTS, Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Yukon, and Yukon XL, and 2014 Buick Enclave, Chevrolet Express, Impala, Silverado HD, Traverse, GMC Acadia, Savana, and Sierra HD vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the chassis electronic module may be internally contaminated, resulting in an electrical short.
Risk: If the module experiences an electrical short, the vehicle could stall, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the chassis electronic module, free of charge. The recall began on December 26, 2014. Owners may contact GM customer service at 1-800-521-7300 (Buick), 1-800-458-006 (Cadillac), 1-800-222-1020 (Chevrolet), and 1-800-462-8782 (GMC). GMs number for this recall is 14515.
Power Train · 14V092000Details +Close −
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2014 Buick Regal, LaCrosse, Verano, and Enclave, and Chevrolet Impala, Malibu, Cruze, and Traverse, and GMC Acadia vehicles equipped with automatic transmissions. In the affected vehicles, the transmission shift cable adjuster may disengage from the transmission shift lever. As such, these vehicles do not conform to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 102, "Transmission Shift Lever Sequence, Starter Interlock, and Transmission Braking Effect." They also fail to conform to FMVSS number 114, "Theft Protection and Rollaway Prevention."
Risk: If a vehicle's shift cable disengages from the transmission shift lever, a driver may be unable to shift gear positions and the indicated shift position may not represent the gear position the vehicle is in. Should a disengagement occur while the vehicle is being driven, when the driver goes to stop and park the vehicle, the driver may be able to shift the lever to the "PARK" position, but the vehicle transmission may not be in the "PARK" gear position. If the vehicle is not in the "PARK" position there is a risk the vehicle will roll away as the driver and other occupants exit the vehicle or anytime thereafter. A vehicle rollaway increases the risk of injury to exiting occupants and bystanders.
Remedy: General Motors will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and replace any affected transmission shift cable adjusters, free of charge. The recall began on April 10, 2014. Chevrolet owners may contact General Motors at 1-800-222-1020, Buick owners at 1-800-521-7300, and GMC owners at 1-800-462-8782. General Motors' number associated with this recall is 14048.
Electrical System · 14V223000Details +Close −
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2014 Buick Enclave, Chevrolet Traverse, and GMC Acadia vehicles manufactured March 26, 2013, through August 15, 2013. In the affected vehicles, the engine control module (ECM) software may cause the fuel gauge to read inaccurately.
Risk: An inaccurate fuel gauge may result in the vehicle unexpectedly running out of fuel and stalling, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the ECM to correct the fuel gauge reading, free of charge. The recall began on June 27, 2014. Owners may contact General Motors at 1-800-521-7300 (Buick), 1-800-222-1020 (Chevrolet), and 1-800-462-8782 (GMC). GM's number for this recall is 14007.
Seat Belts · 14V266000Details +Close −
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.
Remedy: 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.
A campaign can apply to this model year without being incomplete on a specific vehicle. Check the VIN with NHTSA or a dealer to confirm whether a particular car needs repair.
Investigations
2 NHTSA investigations on record
Investigations are agency reviews, not findings that a vehicle is defective.
On August 31, 2020, the Office of Defects Investigations (ODI) opened Engineering Analysis (EA) EA20002, as an upgrade of Recall Query (RQ) RQ19003. This investigation, related to recall 14V-266, was opened to investigate instances of detachment of the flexible steel seat belt anchor cable attached to the outboard side of the front seats in vehicles manufactured by General Motors (GM). The subject vehicles included model year (MY) 2009 through 2014 GMC Acadia, Buick Enclave, and Chevrolet Traverse SUVs as well as MY 2009 through 2010 Saturn Outlook SUVs. These vehicles were previously repaired for this defect under recall 14V-266. The subject vehicle population is approximately 1.3 million vehicles. Special Coverage N192219480, issued in June 2019, addressed the subject defect in vehicles that previously received the recall remedy repair for subject recall 14V-266. The Special Coverage allows for component replacement for 12 years or 180,000 miles from the initial sale date, whichever comes first. Special Coverage N192219480 instructed service technicians to inspect the driver’s seat belt anchor cable for any damage to the protective sleeve and if damage was observed, the cable was replaced with a new sleeve as well as a new closeout piece that relocated the cable to mitigate the subject condition. In view of the Special Coverage conducted by General Motors, the high detectability of the subject failure, and the low rate of occurrence, this Engineering Analysis is closed. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist. The Agency reserves the right to take additional action if warranted by future circumstances. To review the ODI reports cited in the Closing Resume ODI Report Identification Number document, go to NHTSA.gov. Please see the attached document “EA20-002 Detailed Closing Summary” for more a detailed closing resume summary.
On May 19, 2014, General Motors LLC (GM) notified the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) that it would conduct Safety Recall 14V266 to address fatigue and separation of the flexible steel cable that connects the front outboard seat belts to the seat-mounted belt pre-tensioner in 1.4 million model year (MY) 2009-2010 Saturn Outlook, 2009-2014 Buick Enclave, GMC Acadia and Chevrolet Traverse (Lambda Platform) vehicles.The remedy was to inspect for signs of damage and replace pre-tensioner anchor cables as needed. Re-work was conducted to relocate the pre-tensioner anchor cable out of the occupant entry path. ODI has subsequently received four (4) Vehicle Owners Questionnaires (VOQ) reporting anchor cable separations with no apparent warning in covered vehicles after the Recall 14V266 remedy had been applied.ODI opened RQ19-003 to assess the effectiveness of the actions GM took in Recall 14V266 and review the full warranty and complaint data related to seat belt anchor cable separations and replacements. ODI continues to receive occasional cable failure complaints both for the subject vehicles and other GM models and model years that have also been previously recalled addressing this condition.Although the cable separation complaint rate is very low, over the past three years ODI has received two (2) additional VOQ?s citing belt cable separations for Lambda platform vehicles outside the scope of recall 14V266, (11217092, 11118075) and complaints for other GM models covered in a number of similar Safety Recalls:* 15V269, 2011-12 Chevrolet Malibu (11181115, 11288168); * 16V209, 2014-15 Silverado 1500, Sierra 1500 (11254364, 10935183, 10953851, 11025376, 11282043, 11288701, 11309884); and * 16V518 2014-16 Caprice Police Pursuit, SS (10905644, 10990669, 11340893).ODI's review of GM's data confirms the low potential failure rate for the vehicles covered by recall 14V266. However, ODI believes that complainants may not recognize accumulating cable fatigue damage from the visual cues available in routine vehicle use.ODI is upgrading RQ19-003 to an Engineering Analysis to more closely assess seat belt conditions and strength levels in the field. This work will include the collection of seat belt samples from a wider range of recalled and peer vehicles for detailed analysis and testing.The ODI reports (VOQs) associated with this RQ19-003 can be viewed at NHTSA.gov under the following reference numbers: 11144704, 11076704, 11185619, 11151922, 11164011, 10967518, 11113486, 11115648
Crash-test ratings
2014 Chevrolet Traverse SUV AWD NHTSA source
- Overall
- Frontal
- Side
- Rollover
2014 Chevrolet Traverse SUV FWD NHTSA source
- Overall
- Frontal
- Side
- Rollover
Fuel economy by trim
| Trim | Engine | Drivetrain | Transmission | City | Hwy | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traverse FWD | 3.6L 6-cyl | Front-Wheel Drive | Automatic 6-spd | 17 | 24 | 19 |
| Traverse AWD | 3.6L 6-cyl | All-Wheel Drive | Automatic 6-spd | 16 | 23 | 19 |
EPA laboratory estimates by trim and engine. Actual mileage varies with driving, weather, load, and maintenance. EPA source.
Before you buy
Useful next checks
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Compare model years
"Fewest reports" and "most complained" describe raw NHTSA complaint totals, not vehicle reliability. The last few model years are left unlabelled because they have had less road time.
2014 Chevrolet Traverse: frequently asked
What does the complaint record show for the 2014 Chevrolet Traverse?
Owners filed 547 NHTSA complaints about the 2014 Chevrolet Traverse — more complaints than 85% of comparable 2014 SUVs, so it sits toward the weaker end of its class. That's a signal, not a guarantee about any single car.
What are the most common problems on the 2014 Chevrolet Traverse?
The most-reported problem areas are Air Bags (43% of complaints) and electrical system (19%).
How many recalls does the 2014 Chevrolet Traverse have?
7 recalls have been issued that affect the 2014 Chevrolet Traverse, covering components such as air bags. Check the VIN with NHTSA and ask a dealer to confirm remedy eligibility; federal no-charge requirements have an age limit, though manufacturers may offer more coverage.
What gas mileage does the 2014 Chevrolet Traverse get?
The EPA rates the 2014 Chevrolet Traverse at 19 mpg combined.