2009 Chevrolet Suburban 1500 problems & reliability
55 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2009 Chevrolet Suburban 1500. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Air Bags → | 25 | 45% |
| Unknown OR Other | 14 | 25% |
| Structure | 8 | 15% |
| Electrical System | 6 | 11% |
| Engine | 6 | 11% |
| Latches/locks/linkages | 3 | 5% |
| Electronic Stability Control (esc) | 2 | 4% |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 2 | 4% |
| Power Train | 1 | 2% |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 1 | 2% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Mileage when problems occurred
Half of the failures with a reported odometer reading occurred by 77,500 miles (middle 50% between 57,750 and 97,904 miles), based on 42 complaints that included mileage.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“Takata recall recall 16v381 is quite old and needs to be finalized. It is difficult to tell if this is a serious issue or not.”
Air Bags · filed May 30, 2019
“I recently experienced the conditions described by the gm recall 14515 in my 2009 chevrolet suburban 1500. In the past 6 weeks, the car has failed to start. The first incident required nearly 10 minutes of starting the car before it would start. Once started the car was fine. It was a cold start - first thing in the…”
Fuel/propulsion System · filed Apr 22, 2019
“The dashboard cracked in two places at around 50,000 miles. There is a crack between the passenger side airbag cover and the front edge of the dashboard and one over the instrument panel to the front edge of the dashboard. I was told initially that this is simply a cosmetic issue, but subsequent reports suggest that…”
Air Bags · filed Apr 21, 2019
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Technical service bulletins
222 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 2009 Chevrolet Suburban 1500. The 10 most recent:
New Vehicle Monitoring Programs Section in IVH
13598 · Other · issued Sep 9, 2025
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician about vehicles that have an intermittent no crank, no start, or start stall concern with the security light coming on. Technician may…
PIC5650M · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 7, 2025
This PI communicates the requirement to provide a pico file to receive diagnostic assistance from TAC.
PIP5601C · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jul 18, 2025
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician about the use of J-35616-64B and Mini 50 terminal test probe, replacement terminals, and terminated leads.
PIT5074R · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued May 30, 2025
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician about the use of J-35616-64B and Mini 50 terminal test probe, replacement terminals, and terminated leads.
PIT5074R · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued May 30, 2025
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician about the use of J-35616-64B and Mini 50 terminal test probe, replacement terminals, and terminated leads.
PIT5074R · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued May 30, 2025
This service bulletin provides information for dealers/technicians on OnStar Module 2G Sunset Information.
23-NA-001 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 28, 2025
This service bulletin explains how to measure for oil consumption and possible reasons for loss of oil.
03-06-01-023I · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Dec 18, 2024
This service bulletin explains how to measure for oil consumption and possible reasons for loss of oil.
03-06-01-023H · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Oct 7, 2024
This service bulletin provides information for maintenance cleaning of the fuel injectors and gasoline detergent additive.
04-06-04-051J · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Sep 27, 2024
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
No NHTSA recall campaigns name the 2009 Chevrolet Suburban 1500 in our current data. Recalls may apply only to certain VIN ranges — always confirm with a VIN check.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 2009 Chevrolet Suburban 1500?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.
- · Owners most often reported problems around 77,500 miles — budget accordingly if the car is approaching that mileage.