Reliable Auto DB

2013 Chevrolet Traverse reliability

Is it reliable?

NHTSA's file on the 2013 Chevrolet Traverse holds 162 complaints after 14 years, a rate of 10 per year. That is fewer complaints per year than most Traverse years here — under the median of the other years, which is 16. NHTSA has 4 recalls on file, including Frontal, Critical fasteners, and Seat belts.

2012 Chevrolet Traverse
Photo by MercurySable99, resized from the original. Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0
Complaints

162

Per year

10

Recalls

4

Years on the road

14

What owners report

The complaints owners file most often name Electrical system (53 of 162), then Engine (45) and Electronic stability control (ESC) (43). Those filings include 7 that report a crash, 2 that report a fire, and 5 that report an injury.

Next to 2012 and 2014

The 2012 Traverse has 354 complaints, 11 per year, and the 2014 has 547 complaints, 24 per year. The 2013 has about the same number of complaints per year as the 2012. The 2013 has fewer complaints per year than the 2014.

The complaint rate is complaints filed in this year’s first 3 years on the road, divided by however many of those years have passed. Recalls are a separate count. The numbers are for the US-market 2013 Chevrolet Traverse. How we count. Data as of .

Recalls (4)

Recall air bags, frontal 2021-10-07 · NHTSA campaign 21V782000
Summary 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.
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.
Recall air bags, critical fasteners 2021-04-08 · NHTSA campaign 21V246000
Summary 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.
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.
Recall Seat belts 2014-05-20 · NHTSA campaign 14V266000
Summary 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.
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 air bags, side and window 2014-03-17 · NHTSA campaign 14V118000
Summary General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2008-2013 Buick Enclave and GMC Acadia and 2009-2013 Chevrolet Traverse and 2008-2010 Saturn Outlook vehicles. In the affected vehicles, increased resistance in the driver and passenger seat mounted side impact air bag (SIAB) wiring harnesses may result in the SIAB and seat belt pretensioners not deploying in the event of a crash.
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.

Complaints by component (162 total)

Electrical system
53
Engine
45
Electronic stability control (ESC)
43
Powertrain
28
Air bags
27
Speed control
19
Fuel and propulsion system
18
Steering
18
Service brakes
5
Seat belts
4
Exterior lighting
2
Lane departure
2
Structure
2
Suspension
2
Visibility and wipers
2
Back-over prevention
1
Engine and engine cooling
1
Equipment
1
Forward collision avoidance
1
Seats
1
Tires
1
Traction control
1
Wheels
1
Show 15 more Show less
Crash-flagged

7

Fire-flagged

2

Injury reports

5

Death reports

0

Complaints filed per year

32013142014132015620161920171720183520192320201320216202262023320242202522026
Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings
  • "Service Air Bag light is on and won’t go off. Car was never in an accident or anything done for this light to be on so I’m a bit confused. Car has been inspected and looked over only issue is the service air bag light…"
    Air bags · filed 2026-08-20
  • "The contact owns a 2013 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated while she has a passenger with her, she stated her passenger air bag light goes on and off but most of the times states the airbag is off although someone…"
    Air bags · filed 2026-05-18
  • "The "Service Airbag" light and notification comes up on the dash. This happened in the past as this vehicle was part of a recall NHTSA 14V118. The car was service for that recall already back on 3-18-2014 but the issue…"
    Air bags · filed 2025-08-04
  • "Service Traction Control, Traction Control Off/On/Off, Service All Wheel Drive display on dash. Check Engine Light on at times, When starting vehicle Service All Wheel Drive displays immediately. Codes come up as fuel…"
    Powertrain, Electrical system, Fuel and propulsion system · filed 2024-07-11

NHTSA crash ratings

Version Overall Front Side Rollover
2013 Chevrolet Traverse SUV AWD 5 stars 5 stars 5 stars 4 stars
2013 Chevrolet Traverse SUV FWD 5 stars 5 stars 5 stars 4 stars

Stars are how this vehicle did in NHTSA crash tests. They are a safety result, separate from the complaint record. Not rated means that test was not run for this version.

Fuel economy

Trim Engine Transmission Drive City Hwy Combined Annual fuel cost
Traverse all-wheel drive 3.6L, 6-cyl Automatic 6-speed All-wheel drive 16 23 19 MPG $3400
Traverse front-wheel drive 3.6L, 6-cyl Automatic 6-speed Front-wheel drive 17 24 19 MPG $3400

Specs and fitment

1st generation, 2012–2017
Body styles SUV
Oil 5W-30 (dexos1) , 6 qt capacity
Tire size 245/70R17 to 255/55R20 (trim-dependent)

Known issues for this generation

Recall 21V-782 covers certain 2013-2017 Chevrolet Traverse vehicles and 2008-2017 Buick Enclave vehicles: the driver's air bag inflator may explode during deployment due to a manufacturing defect, sending sharp metal fragments into the cabin; dealers replace the driver's air bag module. Recall 14V-266 covers certain 2009-2014 Traverse vehicles among other GM Lambda crossovers: the flexible steel cable connecting the seat belt to the front outboard seats may fatigue and separate so the belt may not restrain the occupant; dealers inspect and repair or replace the lap pretensioner. The published unit counts for these campaigns are shared across the listed GM nameplates.

Compare

Previous year 2012 Chevrolet Traverse Next year 2014 Chevrolet Traverse See every Chevrolet Traverse model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2013 Chevrolet Traverse reliable?

NHTSA's file on the 2013 Chevrolet Traverse holds 162 complaints after 14 years, a rate of 10 per year. That is fewer complaints per year than most Traverse years here — under the median of the other years, which is 16. NHTSA has 4 recalls on file, including Frontal, Critical fasteners, and Seat belts.

What are common problems with a 2013 Chevrolet Traverse?

The complaints owners file most often name Electrical system (53 of 162), then Engine (45) and Electronic stability control (ESC) (43). Those filings include 7 that report a crash, 2 that report a fire, and 5 that report an injury.

Is the 2013 Chevrolet Traverse more reliable than the years next to it?

The 2012 Traverse has 354 complaints, 11 per year, and the 2014 has 547 complaints, 24 per year. The 2013 has about the same number of complaints per year as the 2012. The 2013 has fewer complaints per year than the 2014.

Has the 2013 Chevrolet Traverse been recalled?

The 2013 Chevrolet Traverse has 4 recalls on file with NHTSA. See the recalls table on this page for dates, components, and remedies.

How many complaints have owners filed about the 2013 Chevrolet Traverse?

Owners have filed 162 complaints about the 2013 Chevrolet Traverse with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2013 Chevrolet Traverse get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2013 Chevrolet Traverse is 19 MPG. See the fuel economy table on this page for city and highway figures by engine and transmission.

What generation is the 2019 Chevrolet Traverse?

2nd generation (2018-2023).

What engine oil does a Chevrolet Traverse use?

5W-30 (dexos1)

What does NHTSA recall 21V-782 cover on the Chevrolet Traverse?

Recall 21V-782 covers certain 2013-2017 Chevrolet Traverse vehicles and 2008-2017 Buick Enclave vehicles: the driver's air bag inflator may explode during deployment due to a manufacturing defect, sending sharp metal fragments into the cabin; dealers replace the driver's air…