2018 Chevrolet Traverse POWER TRAIN,ENGINE
Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.
Complaint Timeline
Chronological view of owner reports
MAF sensor went bad on my 18 to traverse. I was told not to change the sensor that it was the manifold. Two days later I'm being told that my transmission is bad. I am in process now if getting it rebuilt. Needless to say I'm out a lot of money.
2018 Traverse. 70k miles. We purchased it brand new at the end of 2017. On [XXX], we were driving home from Michigan the car sputtered and would not accelerate. We were almost hit by a semi that was driving behind us. We were able to pull into a gas station and put the car in park. While sitting at gas station the car shut off and wouldn't restart. No warning lights came on prior to the vehicle shutting down. We had it towed to our mechanic (VIP Automotive- New Lenox, Illinois). The mechanic went through the car and advised that the engine had seized. All fluid levels were fine, no leaks, all scheduled maintenance completed on time. He found metal chunks- not just shavings- in the oil pan. He said he's never seen anything like this and that the catastrophic engine failure had to be due to a defect in the engine. It ended up costing us almost $6,000 to have another motor installed in the car. I contacted Chevy, and was basically told too bad, and that they would not cover or assist with anything. The car was extremely well maintained and I provided a copy of all service records dating back to 2017 when we purchased the car. There are numerous groups on Facebook that have same/similar complaints on the Chevy Traverse (3.6L V6) and Chevy Trucks/SUVs (6.2L V8). I believe they are aware that there are numerous issues with these vehicles and continue to sell them, despite the risk to consumer safety. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Car will not accelerate fast up hills
My vehicle has not reached 100.000 miles and my transmission needs to be replaced
N222385510, the exhaust system separated from the car. There are current recalls from GM for 2019-Current Traverse models with the exact same issue. Our 2018 has the exact same problem and our local GM dealer verified it, but they will not cover this expense. We were quoted $2,000 + for the fix, GM Customer Care has been no help.
"SHIFT TO PARK" WHEN CAR IS ALREADY IN PARK
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated that while attempting to turn the vehicle off while parked, the vehicle failed to turn off. The contact stated that a message was displayed on the instrument panel to shift into park(P). The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 77,000.
TODAY DRIVING AROUND 35 TO 40 MPH. CAR STARTED TO LOSE SPEED, ENGINE LIGHT ,PARK BRAKE LIGHT AND DASH READ ENGINE IN REDUCED SPEED. STILL NOT SAFE TO DRIVE. 3RD TIME THIS HAS HAPPENED AND HAS BEEN TO DEALERSHIP, SERVICE DEPT AFTER EACH OCCURANCE. NOT SAFE.
DRIVING DOWN BUSY ROAD AT ABOUT 35 40 MILES AN HOUR. VEHICLE BEGAN TO SLOW DOWN ENGINE LIGHT PARK LIGHT STARTED BLINKING. DRIFTED INTO PARKING LOST. THEN ONLY ENGINE LIGHT WAS SHOWING. NEXT A MESSAGE OF ENGINE REDUCE POWER WAS ON DISPLAY. CALLED DEALERSHIP STATED NOT TO DRIVE AND HAD IT TOWED IN. NOW NO ENGINE LIGHT IS PRESENT. THIS IS THE 2ND TIME SOMETHING LIKE THIS HAS HAPPENED. NOT SAFE AT ALL.
THE CAR DOES NOT REGISTER WHEN THE CAR IS IN PARK AFTER I TURN IT OFF. IT READS 'SHIFT TO PARK' AND I HAVE TO SPEND SEVERAL MINUTES JIGGLING THE SHIFTER OR RESTARTING THE CAR AND GOING THROUGH DIFFERENT GEARS. IT IS A VERY BIG INCONVENIENCE. I TOOK IT TO THE REPAIR SHOP AS IT STARTED RIGHT AFTER THE WARRANTY RAN OUT. THEY SAID EITHER THE SHIFTER NEEDS TO BE REPLACED OR THE GEARBOX VIA A CONVERSATION THEY HAD WITH SOMEONE THEY HAD AT CHEVY. THEY WERE TOLD CHEVY AND GMC ARE AWARE OF IT BEING A PROBLEM BUT IT'S NOT ON A RECALL LEVEL YET.
SLOWED DOWN FOR STOP LIGHT AND TRIED TO ACCELERATE AND ENGINE, TRANSMISSION AND ACCELERATOR FELT DISENGAGED, ENGINE BACKFIRED, CAR HESITATED AND JOLTED FELT TRANSMISSION DISENGAGED. THIS WAS ON A STREET.
TL* THE CONTACT LEASES A 2018 CHEVROLET TRAVERSE. WHILE DRIVING IN TRAFFIC, THE VEHICLE POWERED OFF, THE ENGINE FAILED, AND ALL THE INSTRUMENT PANEL INDICATORS FLICKERED. THE CONTACT WAS ABLE TO COAST THE VEHICLE OUT OF TRAFFIC. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE CONTINUED TO ROLL WHEN THE GEAR WAS SHIFTED INTO PARK. THE CONTACT WAS ABLE TO STOP THE VEHICLE BY ENGAGING THE EMERGENCY BRAKE. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO COPELAND CHEVROLET (955 PEARL STREET, BROCKTON, MA 02301, (774) 257-5881). THE DEALER TEST DROVE THE VEHICLE, BUT WAS UNABLE TO DUPLICATE THE FAILURE. THE DEALER DID NOT PROVIDE A DIAGNOSTIC REPORT. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 2,000.
NEW LEASE UNDER 8,000 MILES AND THE TRANSMISSION FAILED. WHILE STOPPED AT A RED LIGHT ON A HEAVILY TRAFFICKED ROADWAY, WHEN I HI THE GAS THERE WAS A LOUD GRINDING. THE TRANSMISSION WOULD NOT ENGAGE AGAIN AS I SAT IN THE MIDDLE OF MAIN ROADWAY WITH CAR SPEEDING BY AS MY WIFE, MY CHILDREN AND MY NIECE SAT IN THE VEHICLE WITH ME. AFTER TRYING TO GET THE TRANSMISSION TO ENGAGE IN "AWD" I WAS ABLE TO GET THE CAR OFF THE ROADWAY AND INTO A MUCH SAFER PARKING AREA. WHEN PUT INTO "PARK" THE CAR CONTINUED TO ROLL UNLESS THE "EMERGENCY BRAKE WAS ENGAGED. THE CAR IS CURRENTLY IN A DEALER IN MARYLAND AWAITING REPAIRS MORE THAN A WEEK LATER, AND I AM BACK AT HOME ON LONG ISLAND.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 CHEVROLET TRAVERSE. WHILE DRIVING VARIOUS SPEEDS, THE VEHICLE STALLED WITHOUT WARNING AND WOULD NOT SWITCH GEARS EASILY. THE CONTACT STATED THAT EMISSION FUMES ENTERED INTO THE CABIN OF THE VEHICLE. IN ADDITION, THE CONTACT NOTICED A CLICKING NOISE ON THE FRONT PASSENGER AND DRIVER SIDE OF THE VEHICLE. SANDS CHEVROLET-SURPRISE IN SURPRISE, ARIZONA WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURES AND DIAGNOSED THAT A DUSTING CAP MAY HAVE BEEN LOOSE ON THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE VEHICLE WAS THEN TOWED TO AUTONATION CHEVROLET ARROWHEAD IN PEORIA, ARIZONA, BUT WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND PROVIDED THE CONTACT WITH CASE NUMBER: 8-432-436-5007. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 10,000.
Trend Over Time
Complaints by year
Other Issues
Common problems reported
Quick Summary
The 2018 Chevrolet Traverse has 14 POWER TRAIN,ENGINE complaints on file. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.