2009 Chevrolet Traverse buying guide

A data-driven checklist for buying a used 2009 Chevrolet Traverse, built from 448 owner complaints, 8 recall campaigns, 1,216 service bulletins and federal safety records — not opinions.

Know before you buy

8 recall campaigns affect this model year. Check each one and confirm the repairs were done — recall work is free at any authorized dealer.
Main problem areas: steering (231), power train (58), engine (50), electrical system (36), air bags (26).
Symptoms owners describe: steering problems (47), loss of power (36), check engine light (26), stalling (20), vibration / shaking (19), hesitation / surging (14). Test-drive with these in mind.
Reported incident mileage: among 389 complaints with a usable odometer reading, half were filed between 60,000 and 102,000 miles (median 80,000). If the car you’re looking at is near that range, ask for service records covering it.
3 federal investigations have named this model year — read what they cover.
Fuel economy: 19 MPG combined (EPA; engines: 3.6L 6-cyl).

When problems get reported

Reported incident mileage among 389 complaints with usable odometer readings.

under 20k		18
20–40k		26
40–60k		51
60–80k		91
80–100k		90
100–150k		89
150k+		24

Before you hand over money

Run the VIN through our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact build.
Check open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls — a recall that was never fixed is a free repair you can claim.
Get a pre-purchase inspection focused on the problem areas listed above.

This guide is generated from official NHTSA, EPA and FARS records. Complaints are unverified owner reports and raw counts are not adjusted for sales volume.