2010 Chevrolet Traverse Problems: Steering (667 Complaints)
The most-reported problem on the 2010 Chevrolet Traverse is Steering (45% of 667 owner reports). There are 5 safety recalls. Check the VIN and inspect Steering — this is the NHTSA file, not a score.
NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-09-07 667 complaints · 5 recalls
What problems show up on the 2010 Chevrolet Traverse?
300 of 667 filings named Steering (45% of the file). That is what owners wrote, not a shop diagnosis of the vehicle in the driveway.
Second is Engine (130 reports).
There are 5 official safety recalls on this year. They were filed about Airbags and Body / frame. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov — a campaign on this page can still be open on a specific truck.
The 2009 has 445 reports on file; this year has 667. Older years collect more reports just by being on the road longer. If you need a fairer comparison, use the equal-time view.
What owners reported
System named most often: Steering 300 complaints · 45.0% of the file
Crashes, fires, injuries and deaths in those filings:
- Crashes 17
- Fires 6
- Injuries 12
- Deaths 0
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-09-07 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
Which systems owners named
Share of owner complaints filed against each vehicle system. These shares are not adjusted for how many vehicles were sold.
“Unclassified NHTSA leftover” is not a car part. It is a filing bucket and always sits last.
View component data as a table
| System / Component | Complaints | Share of Reports | Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steering (STEERING) | 300 | 45.0% | 5 crashes · 1 fires |
| Engine (ENGINE) | 130 | 19.5% | 0 crashes · 2 fires |
| Transmission / driveline (POWER TRAIN) | 44 | 6.6% | 1 crashes · 1 fires |
| Cruise / speed control (VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL) | 31 | 4.7% | 1 crashes · 0 fires |
| Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM) | 26 | 3.9% | 0 crashes · 1 fires |
| Airbags (AIR BAGS) | 17 | 2.6% | 7 crashes · 0 fires |
| Seat belts (SEAT BELTS) | 15 | 2.3% | 1 crashes · 0 fires |
| Fuel system (FUEL SYSTEM) | 9 | 1.4% | 0 crashes · 0 fires |
| Suspension (SUSPENSION) | 9 | 1.4% | 0 crashes · 0 fires |
| Unclassified NHTSA leftover | 82 | 12.3% | 3 crashes · 1 fires |
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-09-07 Open source record
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
When reports and recalls showed up
When owners filed reports, and when recall campaigns showed up.
- Campaign 14V118000 was reported 1,476 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 15V415000 was reported 1,762 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
- Campaign 21V246000 was reported 4,055 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
| Date | Record type | Count | Record identifier |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010-Q1 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2010-Q2 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2010-Q3 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 2010-Q4 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2011-Q1 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2011-Q2 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2011-Q3 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2011-Q4 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2012-Q1 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2012-Q2 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2012-Q3 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2012-Q4 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2013-Q1 | Owner reports | 11 | |
| 2013-Q2 | Owner reports | 26 | |
| 2013-Q3 | Owner reports | 27 | |
| 2013-Q4 | Owner reports | 14 | |
| 2014-Q1 | Owner reports | 37 | |
| 2014-Q2 | Owner reports | 70 | |
| 2014-Q3 | Owner reports | 58 | |
| 2014-Q4 | Owner reports | 31 | |
| 2015-Q1 | Owner reports | 20 | |
| 2015-Q2 | Owner reports | 19 | |
| 2015-Q3 | Owner reports | 21 | |
| 2015-Q4 | Owner reports | 16 | |
| 2016-Q1 | Owner reports | 17 | |
| 2016-Q2 | Owner reports | 11 | |
| 2016-Q3 | Owner reports | 17 | |
| 2016-Q4 | Owner reports | 16 | |
| 2017-Q1 | Owner reports | 16 | |
| 2017-Q2 | Owner reports | 26 | |
| 2017-Q3 | Owner reports | 20 | |
| 2017-Q4 | Owner reports | 15 | |
| 2018-Q1 | Owner reports | 15 | |
| 2018-Q2 | Owner reports | 13 | |
| 2018-Q3 | Owner reports | 12 | |
| 2018-Q4 | Owner reports | 11 | |
| 2019-Q1 | Owner reports | 9 | |
| 2019-Q2 | Owner reports | 15 | |
| 2019-Q3 | Owner reports | 6 | |
| 2019-Q4 | Owner reports | 6 | |
| 2020-Q1 | Owner reports | 8 | |
| 2020-Q2 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 2020-Q3 | Owner reports | 8 | |
| 2020-Q4 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2021-Q1 | Owner reports | 6 | |
| 2021-Q2 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2021-Q3 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2022-Q1 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2022-Q2 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2022-Q3 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2022-Q4 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2023-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2023-Q2 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2023-Q3 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2024-Q2 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2024-Q4 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2025-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2026-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 10V375000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 14V118000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 14V266000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 15V415000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 21V246000 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | RQ19003 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | EA20002 |
Safety Recalls (5)
Official campaigns. Each one says what could go wrong and what the dealer was told to fix.
In short, these campaigns were filed about Airbags and Body / frame.
-
Recall campaign 10V375000
Safety recall 10V375000
- Report date
- Component:
- Not available in the source record
- Consequence:
- THE SAFETY BELT MAY NOT RESTRAIN THE OCCUPANT AS INTENDED DURING A CRASH, INCREASING THE RISK OF INJURY TO THE SEAT OCCUPANT.
- Remedy:
- 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.
-
Recall campaign 14V118000
Airbags
- Report date
- Component:
- Airbags (AIR BAGS)
- Consequence:
- 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.
- Remedy:
- 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.
-
Recall campaign 14V266000
Safety recall 14V266000
- Report date
- Component:
- Not available in the source record
- Consequence:
- 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.
-
Recall campaign 15V415000
Body / frame
- Report date
- Component:
- Body / frame (STRUCTURE)
- Consequence:
- If the open liftgate unexpectedly falls, it may strike a person, increasing their risk of injury.
- Remedy:
- 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.
-
Recall campaign 21V246000
Airbags
- Report date
- Component:
- Airbags (AIR BAGS)
- Consequence:
- 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.
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
What owners actually wrote
Short excerpts from the public NHTSA file. Look for the same symptom repeating.
Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-09-07
Showing 9 of 667 complaints · page 1 of 27
CrashFireInjuryDeath
Side airbags deployed when we slid off the road. No impact not even a scratch or dent on the vehicle. We did not hit anything but only slid sideways off the road. The insurance company inspected the vehicle nothing but the airbags were damaged. No other warnings.
CrashFireInjuryDeath
Seat belts all lock up and back latch falls when opening
CrashFireInjuryDeath
The contact owned a 2010 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked, the contact discovered that the driver's side door, the driver's side seat, and the ceiling had caught on fire and was burned; the windshield was also cracked. The vehicle was unoccupied during the fire. A Fire Department report was filed the following day and the Fire Department inspected the vehicle and determined that the wiring was hot to the touch and could have possibly caused the fire; the vehicle was deemed totaled. The local dealer was not contacted. A Police report was not filed. The vehicle remained at the residence. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 175,000.
CrashFireInjuryDeath
No power steering at low speed . Makes it dangerous to turn sharp corners. Almost impossible to park in a parking spot if there’s other vehicles.so I park way out away from vehicles . I have had two power steering pumps and lines replaced . And still have the same issue. .
CrashFireInjuryDeath
I have now been told that my rack and pinion is leaking by 3-4 different mechanics. In doing a google search, I see that through various years of the chevy traverse, the rack and pinion leaking and needing to be replaced at a high cost (and also being a big safety risk to not replace) is a very common issue in the traverse.
CrashFireInjuryDeath
For several years now, when someone sits on the front passenger seat, the airbag light will intermittently come on. It also comes on if the person gets out of the seat. I took the vehicle to a dealership and they charged me over $100 to diagnose, and said the cable was loose and they fixed it. The next day it started doing this same thing again, but it doesn't happen when the dealer looks at the vehicle to replicate and fix the issue.
CrashFireInjuryDeath
Power steering is going out. Will only turn when rmps are up. Just bought car a few months ago
CrashFireInjuryDeath
My Traverse doors will lock, unlock, engine will race high then down shift now it will also shut off after it has done this while driving down the road. The safety issue is if it happens to stop running while on the highway or any road with traffic. Right now I am not able to drive it as it won’t start back up after it dies unless you let it cool off. I had to call my insurance for roadside assistance to get it towed. A
CrashFireInjuryDeath
This vehicle is dangerous. Looks great on the outside but horrible on the inside under the hood! Since my son bought one for me it’s had problems with engine revving and not shifting gears, and air conditioner continually going out even after repairs, and power steering leaks. I kept taking it to repair and oddly no technician anywhere could help! Read the reviews and watch the youtubes! This vehicle (all years) should be stripped from the market and considered under lemon law no matter the age! The culmination of my problems happened when leaving town, entering highway and accelerating and clicking cruise control! Immediately the car revved past 7 rpms and out of control! I had all I could do to stop it - then it died completely! The tow truck driver was also in an unsafe situation with many cars passing at high speed when he had to put special lifts on the back wheels! Scary! Towed to local Chevy dealer and without giving us the computer codes and no actual written estimate for repairs, they bluntly said metal shavings in engine and possibly a bearing and $11,500. And it’s typical for transmission problems and steering so up to $18,500! Really?! And if no one could ever detect and fix it before, how can they now? All this with the added comment, we can’t guarantee once we get into it that it will run properly and not need more repairs! LEMON! This is a very unsafe vehicle with notorious problems all in the face of competing with looks of other competitor cars! I praise God I was alone when this happened and no other passengers. If you love your life, family, and others, definitely join me in this recall / removal from market effort. Don’t take my opinion, read the huge number of complaints by many other owners and past owners of any and every chevy traverse! Horrifying! Thank you for reading and acting! God Bless you!
Frequently asked questions
What are the most common problems on the 2010 Chevrolet Traverse?
Owners named Steering most often — 300 of 667 reports (45%). That is the NHTSA file, not a diagnosis of every vehicle.
Are there recalls for the 2010 Chevrolet Traverse?
NHTSA lists 5 safety recall campaigns. They were filed about Airbags and Body / frame. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov; a campaign on this page can still be open on a specific vehicle.
What should I inspect before buying a 2010 Chevrolet Traverse?
Look up the VIN for open recalls. Check for play in the wheel, noises on lock and whether it tracks straight. Then skim owner filings for the same symptom and take that list to a mechanic.
Does a high complaint count mean I should skip this year?
No. Counts are reports people chose to file and they are not adjusted for sales volume. YearTell does not publish scores or a list of years to skip. Inspect the vehicle.
Estimated Ownership Cost
EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates
Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Adjacent Model Years
Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
Methodology & Data Integrity
Source: NHTSA ODI / recalls, snapshot 2026-09-07. YearTell is not a government agency.