2014 Chevrolet Traverse

Owner complaints, recalls, fuel economy and safety ratings from public NHTSA and EPA data, updated Oct 17, 2026.

The 2014 Chevrolet Traverse has 548 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, the most for air bags at 258, followed by electrical system and engine. It is rated 19 mpg combined, with a 5-year fuel cost of $17,100 at U.S. average prices, based on 15,000 miles a year. NHTSA gives it 5 overall stars. Recall campaigns for it number 7 and may apply, covering air bags, electrical system, seat belts, and others.

Written by AI from public EPA and NHTSA data. Not a review.

Fuel economy
19 mpgcombined; city 16–17, highway 23–24; every version of this model year
Five years of fuel
$17,100U.S. average; Ohio $15,280 at local prices; every version of this model year; fuel only, not other costs of owning it; 15,000 miles a year, at EIA fuel prices for the week of Oct 12, 2026
NHTSA overall safety rating
5 starslowest across the versions NHTSA tested
Recall campaigns
7over its history; check a VIN for open ones
Owner complaints
548filed with NHTSA; not adjusted for sales

Trims

NHTSA's VIN data lists these trims for the 2014 Traverse. A trim's engine and numbers are shown as its own only where EPA names versions after the trim and no other version could be it; "seen with" means a source shows that engine on the trim, not that it was the only one. Recalls and complaints cover the whole model year: whether a recall applies to a car depends on its VIN, on NHTSA's recall lookup.

Problems owners report

Owners have filed 548 complaints with NHTSA about the 2014 Traverse. These are unverified owner reports, counted by the part of the car they name; one complaint can name several parts. Counts aren't adjusted for how many were sold, so they don't show how reliable a car is.

Complaints by part of the car
PartComplaintsCrashesFiresInjuries
Air bags2585012
Electrical system127100
Engine118110
Electronic stability control (ESC)117000
Vehicle speed control48207
Unknown or other44010
Power train36000
Steering27101
Service brakes22000
Fuel/propulsion system21000
Seat belts18002
Exterior lighting10000
16 more parts
Wheels5000
Fuel system, gasoline4000
Suspension4000
Structure3100
Traction control system3000
Back over prevention2000
Engine and engine cooling2000
Lane departure2000
Tires2000
Visibility/wiper2000
Child seat1000
Equipment1000
Latches/locks/linkages1000
Seats1000
Service brakes, hydraulic1000
Visibility1000

Complaints by model year

Newer years have had less time to collect complaints, and counts aren't adjusted for sales, so a shorter bar doesn't mean a more reliable year.

  1. 2009448
  2. 2010669
  3. 2011608
  4. 2012354
  5. 2013162
  6. 2014548
  7. 2015313
  8. 2016292
  9. 2017361
  10. 2018464
  11. 2019412
  12. 2020233
  13. 202192
  14. 202299
  15. 202392
  16. 2024141
  17. 2025184
  18. 202625

Every Traverse year side by side

Recalls

NHTSA lists 7 recall campaigns for the 2014 Traverse over its history. Campaigns are matched by model and year, so each one may apply to a given car, and its repair may already be done: check a VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup for the open recalls on that exact car.

Air bags: frontal

NHTSA campaign 23V334000 · reported May 10, 2023 · 995,085 vehicles potentially affected

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.

NHTSA's record and documents

Air bags: frontal; Air bags: frontal

NHTSA campaign 21V782000 · reported Oct 7, 2021 · 555 vehicles potentially affected

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.

NHTSA's record and documents

Air bags: critical fasteners

NHTSA campaign 21V246000 · reported Apr 8, 2021 · 108 vehicles potentially affected

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.

NHTSA's record and documents

Electrical system

NHTSA campaign 14V614000 · reported Oct 1, 2014 · 106,307 vehicles potentially affected

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). GM’s number for this recall is 14515.

NHTSA's record and documents

Seat belts

NHTSA campaign 14V266000 · reported May 20, 2014 · 1,339,355 vehicles potentially affected

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.

NHTSA's record and documents

Electrical system: instrument cluster/panel; Electrical system: software; Fuel system, gasoline

NHTSA campaign 14V223000 · reported Apr 30, 2014 · 51,640 vehicles potentially affected

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.

NHTSA's record and documents

Power train: automatic transmission

NHTSA campaign 14V092000 · reported Feb 21, 2014 · 355 vehicles potentially affected

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.

NHTSA's record and documents

Service bulletins and investigations

Carmakers sent NHTSA 1,550 service bulletins and notices that cover the 2014 Traverse, the latest on Sep 26, 2026. They tell dealers how to fix known issues.

The parts they mention most: equipment (679), electrical system (299), engine and engine cooling (173), engine (141), power train (103).

NHTSA defect investigations

Opening an investigation isn't a finding of a defect. Outcomes are as NHTSA's summary states them. A recall is shown as an investigation's outcome only where NHTSA's summary names it; other recalls NHTSA's file lists with it are marked as listed, not caused.

InvestigationPartOpenedStatus
Engineering analysis EA20002
Outboard Front Seat Belt Anchor Cable Failure · covers 4 makes
Seat beltsAug 31, 2020Closed Aug 30, 2024
NHTSA's summary names recall 14V266000
NHTSA's record and documents
Recall query RQ19003
Seat Belt Anchor Cable Failure · covers 4 makes
Seat beltsMay 28, 2019Closed Aug 31, 2020
NHTSA's summary names recall 14V266000, 15V269000, 16V209000, 16V518000
NHTSA's record and documents

Maintenance

Oil

The owner's manual gives the oil and how often to change it. We show oil facts only once we've checked them against the manual, and we haven't yet for the 2014 Traverse.

Oil change near you: Jiffy Lube · Take 5

Used ones for sale

See used 2014 Chevrolet Traverses for sale on: Autotrader · CarMax

These are searches on those sites; we don't copy or check their listings. Your ZIP is used for these links and never kept.

Specs

EPA class: standard sport utility vehicle. EPA greenhouse gas score: 4 out of 10. Each version EPA tested:

VersionEngineTransmissionFuelCity / hwy / comb
Traverse
Front-Wheel Drive
3.6 L, 6 cylAutomatic 6-spdRegular Gasoline17 / 24 / 19
Traverse
All-Wheel Drive
3.6 L, 6 cylAutomatic 6-spdRegular Gasoline16 / 23 / 19

Sources and dates

Fuel cost: EPA mpg with fuel prices for the week of Oct 12, 2026 and electricity prices for Jul 2026. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (Oct 2026). Complaints are unverified reports owners filed with NHTSA. About the data