general problems of the 2011 Chevrolet Traverse - part 1

Components related to timing chain failed, and vehicle is currently available with plans to sell to a salvage yard by 10/25/24. My 9 year old and I were at risk of collision when the vehicle failed. I was driving approximately 70-75 mph when we started to lose power. At 65 mph, I managed to cross 2 lanes of highway traffic and stopped on the shoulder. I turned off my vehicle and waited several minutes, hoping it would help reset or cool off a component or something. I had to try a couple of times before it started, and I attempted to drive as safely as I could, made it to 60 mph before it stopped running completely. I had to pull hard on the steering wheel to get to the shoulder again, only this time, the shoulder was pinched off in front of us and around a small blind spot behind us. I had my daughter move to the side closer to the cement barrier while waiting for a tow truck. She became very nervous about how close some of the other vehicles got. Afterwards, the error codes indicated several components pointing to a timing chain problem. I had the timing chain repaired around April or may of 2023 by a certified mechanic. I watched the oil life percentage and oil temperature gauge consistently. Everything indicated as normal, but I had difficulty pulling out the dipstick to check the oil level. Since it was hard to get a good reading, I tried to add some oil and recheck. The oil cap was nearly impossible to open, so I decided to wait for an oil tech to do it. Around 40-50% oil life, I had planned to have the oil changed. In spite of my efforts to maintain proper oil quality, the oil cap had to be opened with a wrench. Smoke rose out and dried out oil residue lined the inner walls. It was about a quart low. I don’t drive hard on it and it had only been around 3,000 miles between oil changes. It had been one year since the timing chain was replaced. Error codes remain and the vehicle runs rough if it stays on long enough after much effort to start it.

While driving down highway at 55 mph suddenly hear a beep and see a warning that traction control is off, then service stabilitrak warning kept flashing and car in skid image is on constantly. Also after these warnings started flashing the speed control could not be set. Luckily I did't lose power this time as so many others have reported. After arriving home and restarting the car later all the warning lights were off. For several weeks now when resuming speed after stopping the car lunges while getting back up to speed. This could have been very dangerous had I lost or had reduced power like has happened to so many. Gm really needs to issue a recall and fix this problem before someone is killed.

2011 Chevrolet Traverse: while driving all the lights start flashing and the vehicle turns off and on, not letting you accelerate and slowing the car down rapidly. Then the traction control turns off and vehicle idols rough. If I step on the accelerator there is no repose from the vehicle. We do not treat the vehicle hash or drive wild. I dont have the money for a lot of repairs. I change the oil when it's time and make sure its running smoothly. I have looked online and have seen many other complaints about the same issue and gm has not done anything about it. This is a major safety issue especially for someone driving at a high speed. Death is a major possibility if this were to happen in front of another vehicle. This has happened once before today.

Driving my car on the street and heard 3 beeps go off and car wouldn't accelerate. Stabilitrak warning, traction control and abs lights. Tried pushing on pedal to go and car couldn't pick up speed. Turn car off let sit tried again 30 seconds later same. Had the throttle switch worked couple days and now its happen again.

Traverse traction control light and brake light come on and off all the time. Making think that car is not safe to drive. All of the time that the lights come on when we arr driving in a straight line on a flat surface.

Reduced power on vechile with dash lights indicating check stabile track. See a lot of complaints on this. Happened 3 times finally had to replace throttle body and harness for $550. No recalls? 110,000 miles. Very dangerous to have car slow down on highway during winter conditions.

While driving normally on a freeway where speed limits are 65+ the car suddenly lost engine power and its impossible to reach speeds above 15 mph. Several codes appear "service traction control" "reduced engine power" "traction control off". The cause is a faulty throttle body, which is not a serviceable part it just randomly fails. Online forums show reports of this problem 100s and 100s of times dating back to at least 2014, on low mileage vehicles no less. Dealers deny knowing of a problem. Chevy has been notified many times by many customers yet no recalls have been issued and dealerships aren't aware of the problem in order to fix it. A loss of engine power like this could be fatal. If your fortunate enough to be near a dealership you might find a repair. Otherwise your stuck trying to limp it to a shop, find the part and reset the idle codes. This is turning into a very expensive repair.

Traction control went haywire while going about 25 miles an hour, it started shaking uncontrollably, "traction control" light came on and went off almost immediately. Rpms revved up to 5k. It has done it 4 time within a 24 hour period. Mechanic hooked it up to the computer and it detected nothing. Only thing that showed up was that it lost connection to the transmission. When the engine revved it, it seemed like it went out of gear while the rpms went high, it felt as if I put it in neutral while going around 25 mph.

Stability traction control system problems. I have a 2011 chevy Traverse. Problems erupted after I finished paying it off. I had this car for 7 years now and 100k miles now. For the past year the traction control system has failed multiple times. At first I took it to the dealer and spent over $3500 to fix it. A few months after the problem came back. The dealer was asking for almost $4000 stating that it was something else not fixed before. Even a mechanic from the dealership told me to get rid of it because lots of people were complaining with same issues. At first the "traction control system off" comes on the screen every time I drive for a long period of time. Followed by "service stability traction control system". Now as soon as I turn the car on the same messages appear. Just a week ago I was in the highway and "power loss warning" came out in the screen. I couldn't accelerate, thank god I was near an exit and was able to get out in time before it stopped completely. Turned off the car and waited a few mnts. Turned on again and drove off on the service road. I was not able to go faster than 10 mph. Now the car is in my driveway and I'm getting ready to get rid of it ASAP! but just noticed that I'm not the only one with such a problem. We need a recall fast. I bought this car for 47k thinking that it was going to last just like the old chevys. But this new tech is killing it! we need a recall on this fast!.

Bought a 2011 Traverse a month ago with 93705 miles on it. On the drive home the lights of the dash came on and said traction control off, service stabilitrak, reduced engine power. It wouldn't go past 20 mph (mind you I'm on a busy street with my four kids). Was able to get it home and called the dealership I got it from and am waiting for a call back.

Service stabletrak . . . . Lose in engine power while driving on the highway and back roads. The problem occured more often while driing slower and or stopping at lights.

The steering is hard at low speeds. Trying to pull into a parking spot the car doesn't want to turn easily. At other times it works fine.

While driving in town (no more than 30 mph), a beep occurs and an error - no traction control - service stabilitrack - engine power reduced. I am then unable to go over 10 mph. The check engine light also comes on at the end of this. I have to pull over, stop my car and restart in order to assume regular speed, however, it did happen twice in a drive that was only 10 miles long.

2011 chevy Traverse. Sporadically decelerates while driving, flashes traction control off and service stabiltrak, check engine light. Pull over and let it "rest" for 15 minutes, it will resume driving. Have already had this issue "repaired" from chevy store10 months ago. Mostly occurs while in motion, once while driving 70mph on hwy decelerated to 35 mph and almost caused accident. Now dealership is suggesting I make another expensive fix, which may or may not fix the issue. This car is a lemon!!!! today we are blocking traffic in a parking deck because it has decided to happen again, no drive, but reverse works fine.

I accelerated from onramp to highway. I released pedal but engine revs rapidly increased and vehicle surged forward toward vehicle in front of me. Brakes did not stop my vehicle . I down shifted to low gear pulled onto shoulder to avoid collision. I applied brakes again . I slowed and shifted to neutral and park . Revs returned to normal and I shut off engine. Vehicle towed to dealer.

The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated that while driving at 4 mph, the vehicle accelerated without warning. The brakes failed and the vehicle had to shift to neutral. The vehicle crashed into a tree. The contact received leg and ankle injuries which medical attention was needed. A police report was filed. The vehicle remains at the scene. The contact had not taken the vehicle to the dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 31,000.

While driving errors pop up for stabiltrak/traction control/engine power reduced then you get about then you lose about 20% to 60% of power. It can happen anywhere at anytime while driving.

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.

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.

Driving on highway at 60 mph. Reduce power light and stability control light came on. Traverse slowed down to 20 mph. I could not accelerate. I was almost rear ended on the highway. Brought the Traverse to the dealership where they replaced the throttle body. Time for a recall.

Driving on the highway in nh in traffic when stabilitrac/reduced power/traction control light came on and car slowed down to 15 mph on a busy highway. Barely made it off the next exit as car wouldn't go over 10 mph. Luckily the cars behind me did not slam into me as it was a dangerous situation. A recall is needed is it is a serious safety issue.

I was traveling to work this morning (2/18/15) on a missouri state highway and suddenly power was reduced dramatically on my 2011 Chevrolet Traverse. I immediately looked at my dic and noticed the following readings listed: "service stable track", "engine power reduced", "traction control off", "service traction control". Also, my check engine light came on as well. I was able to pull over to the shoulder of the highway but my maximum speed was only 15 mph. I stopped on the shoulder of the highway and put the vehicle in park and then put back in drive. I went back in to traffic but my maximum speed was only 40 mph. After arriving at my office, I noticed the engine appeared to not being running properly, as if it wasn't getting the right fuel/oxygen mixture. I called the gm dealership to inform them of the problems and took the vehicle to them for testing. They diagnosed the problem as needing to replace the throttle body and the part would not be in until tomorrow. I will be picking the vehicle up tomorrow after the repair and I hope this doesn't happen again because if my wife or son had been driving the vehicle, it may have resulted in an accident on the highway. This is something that should never happen in a vehicle, the chance of an accident on a busy interstate or highway is very likely when your speed in reduced dramatically.

When I pulled out of a driveway and began to drive down the street, my Traverse message board read, traction control off, engine power reduced, service stablitrac. I was unable to accelerate past 40 mph. My car was unsteady and shaky. I called gm and they stated that I have recalls issued on the car but none of them have anything to do with my current issue. It seems this is a common problem that gm is not addressing concerning a faulty throttle body. I am very frighten yo drive especially of highway and with my children in the car. I bought this vehicle because I believed it would be safe for my family.

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.

On six separate occasions in 7 days, my vehicle has displayed the following messages, traction control off, check stabilitrak, and reduced engine power then suddenly reduces speed significantly unwilling to accelerate. I have to pull over, turn off the car and wait several minutes before I can turn the car back on for it to drive correctly. This is extremely dangerous and I know it is a recurring issue for many gm 2010-2012 vehicles and no recall or solution has been made yet.

I was driving along at 60 mph when my traction control light turned off, followed by "service stabilitrack", followed by "reduced engine power" and my vehicle went from 60 mph immediately down to 15 mph. If I were in heavy traffic or had any vehicles following me, this would have caused a major accident and potentially serious injuries, to me, my 1 year old son and whoever was behind me!!!.

My wife driving to work on busy highway. . All of a sudden the speed goes from about 60 mph to like 25mph. . . Stabilitrak light comes on. Cars honking, yelling,almost hitting her because her speed reduced to fast. She got to work when she left for the day the car seemed ok. Thought maybe she hit the stabilitrak button by mistake. A few days later same thing happened. After this incident it happened even more. I've been reading blogs re this and e mailed chevy, said it wasn't a recall. . I don't know why. This problem could kill someone. I had it fixed at the chevy dealer costing over $400. From what I've read I think this problem occurred in some earlier Traverses. It's like you put your foot on the gas and the car doesn't go anywhere. They replaced the throttle body assy. This should not be happening!! they will wind up with lawsuits if this isn't taken care of. After e mailing chevy I was told someone from the dealer I had the repairs done at would call to discuss. That never happened. I did call the dealer many times to no avail.

Driving on the road and all of a sudden the dashboard lights up. The car tells me that the "stabilitrack needs to be serviced" and "reducing speed". The car just slows down and I can't go above 15 mph in the middle of the road with cars all around me driving at the same speed. Thank god I was able to pull over to the right and get off the road. I shut car off and waited a few minutes. I turned car on and the system reset itself and car was fine. Now its doing it again as my wife drove it today. Researching online, I see many people are having this same problem. Gm needs to recall these vehicles and fix this problem. Someone is going to get killed in an accident!.

While traveling on the hwy at 65 mph I got a message on the dash that read "service traction control" then "service stabilitrack" then "engine power reduced" all simultaneously. Then I lost power and went drastically from 65 mph down to about 40 mph. I almost got ran over by a semi truck!! I pulled vehicle to the side and slowly made my way to the nearest exit. Once I got off the hwy I tried to make my way back home, but the power was reduced to a crawl, so I pulled into a parking lot and ended up having to get it towed to the shop. They diagnosed the car and found no mechanical issues, only what seemed to be a "glitch" in the computer system. Suggested that I may need to replace the throttle body. I picked up my car and it drove fine for 5 days then it did the same thing again, luckily I was in my neighborhood. Drove it home and parked it. The next morning it drove just fine, no issues, and today it happened again. I have spent the last few hours reading hundreds of other complaints describing the exact same scenario, and found that they are taking their vehicle into the dealer and getting parts replaced only to have it happen again and then more parts replaced and it continues in this cycle. . . This from only one forum and there are a number of others a like!.

As I was driving, I received three messages on my vehicle: service traction control, service stabilitrak and engine running at reduced power. Took the car to my local mechanic and they flushed out something (I don't remember what exactly). It ran fine for a few weeks then as I was on the freeway the same messages appeared and as I was trying to accelerate up a slight incline, the car's speed was decreasing even though I was pushing on the gas. Luckily I was in the right lane and there was light traffic or there could have been a major accident as I could not increase speed. Took the car to the dealership who says I need the throttle body replaced and it will cost $600. After looking at this site, I see there are many, many complaints for the same issue. This should definitely be a safety recall!.

I was entering onto the freeway when my stabilitrack turned off by itself and my engine power was reduced. I was very nearly rear-ended as my car couldn't safely accelerate (accelerate at all really) as I was coming onto the freeway. A search on problems similar to this appears very prevalent within the chevy line of vehicles, especially the Traverse. This is a very serious issue and was very unsafe where it occurred. It almost caused. It's very disappointing to see how many people are experiencing this same issue and chevy hasn't issued any kind of recall to try and fix it.

I bought a 2011 Traverse last winter. I was so excited about my new family car. Wednesday, the service stabilitrak, service traction control and reduced engine speed came on with no notice. Luckily, I was on a neighborhood side street taking my kids to school. I called to setup an appt to have a chevy dealer look at it but after turning it off while filling the tires up the lights all went off. Called back to see if they still wanted to see it and they said no because it must have just been a sensor. . . Appt canceled. Thursday drove with no problems. Now today, Friday, I hop on the expressway in chicago traffic and bam right as I am merging, ding ding and my car just revs and won't get up past 40 mph, all the same service lights came on. So scary! I have my little kids in the backseat and terrified to pull over on the side of the eisenhower, slowly get to the next exit as I pray we won't get rear ended. Call as soon as I make it home for another appt and the first time any chevy dealer near me has open is 4 days from now. Looks like we will be parked at home for the next 4 days. It really frustates me that we bought this "reliable family vehicle" that I am now scared to drive my family in. It's even worse now googling this issue and seeing many other having the exact same issues and nothing is being done for us.

Stabilitrak control, anti lock brakes and engine speed reduced. Wife's car while on her way to work. There are hundreds if not thousands of consumers with this exact same issue with various makes/models of gm vehicles. Once the throttle body / throttle positions sensor becomes dirty, it sets off a series of failures causing the vehicle to reduce power to the point where it can only travel at about 35 mph. This is a very dangerous situation to place drivers in. I called my local Chevrolet dealer to inquire about whether or not this was covered under the 5 year 100,000 mile power train warranty and was told that it was. When the dealer verified that it was the throttle body, they told me that it would cost me about 500 dollars and that it was not covered under the powertrain warranty. This is a vital engine component. How can it not be considered to be part of the power train?.

The first time this happened, I was driving a hilly back road from school the service stabilitrac and traction control warning lights came on then the engine power is being reduced warning light came on and the car immediately slowed to a crawl with very little steering control. I was able to drive it on the shoulder to my mechanic at no more than 20 mph and he said that 4 of the 6 coils needed to be replaced. A $700 repair. Second time it happened (12/3/14) I was driving on I-95 doing 65 and all the same lights came on again but this time the car instantly reduced the speed and I was craling at 10mph. I had several near misses with other cars as we were all traveling at the posted speed in rush hour traffic. I struggled to get the car to the shoulder. I stopped the car and restarted and everything reset and I was able to drive for about a mile or two and it reoccured. I happened 8 times before I was able to get it to the chevy dealer. The dealer took 3 days to try and diagnose it and said it was probably the throttle control. They replaced it $493! and told me they did not know if it would fix the problem - it may last 1,000 miles or 20,000 miles. If it happens again I will have to bring it back and they would have to take apart the engine which would cost me $5000!!! this car is unsafe! I/my family could be injured or killed if it happens again! recall it! codes shown in diagnostic were p0300, p0305, p0221, p0121.

The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated that while driving approximately 70 mph, the reduce engine speed warning message illuminated and the vehicle independently decelerated. The failure was recurring. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who stated that the throttle body position sensor needed to be replaced. The vehicle has not been repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 76,780.