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2013 Chevrolet Suburban problems

The most common problem on the 2013 Chevrolet Suburban is airbags, typically around 57,900 miles. Its complaint count is close to a typical Suburban model year.

Typical yearClose to a typical year
Year score
75/100
Owner complaints
118
Recalls
4
Service bulletins
1,762
Worst area
Airbags
Fuel economy
12-17mpg

The worst 2013 Chevrolet Suburban problems

Ranked by number of owner complaints. Mileage and cost come from what owners wrote.

Problems by type

Tap a problem to see which part fails, at what mileage and in which other years.

  • Airbags
    28
  • Body
    23
  • Engine
    16
  • Electrical
    14
  • Brakes
    8
  • Transmission
    6
  • Driver assistance
    5
  • Fuel system
    5
  • Acceleration
    4
  • Visibility
    3
  • Lights
    2
  • Seats
    2
  • Steering
    2
  • Suspension
    2
  • Locks
    1
  • Seat belts
    1

Specific symptoms reported on the 2013 Chevrolet Suburban

Check engine light 5

Recalls 4

Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator moduleReported February 5, 2021 · 692,526 vehicles affected
What is wrong
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2013 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, and Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Silverado 2500/3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Sierra 2500/3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." Additionally, GM is recalling certain 2010 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, and Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Silverado 2500/3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Sierra 2500/3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." Additionally, GM is recalling certain 2009 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, and Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Silverado 2500/3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Sierra 2500/3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming or "Zone C."
Risk
An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Remedy
GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on February 24, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed on May 11, 2021. Owners may contact Cadillac customer service at 1‑800‑458‑8006; Chevrolet customer service at 1‑800‑222‑1020; and GMC customer service at 1‑800‑462‑8782. GM's number for this recall is N212328790.

Recall number 21V053000 · Recall details

Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator moduleReported February 5, 2021 · 1,778,128 vehicles affected
What is wrong
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2014 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 2500, Sierra 3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of AL, CA, FL, GA, HI, LA, MS, SC, TX, PR, AS, GU, the MP, and VI or "Zone A." Additionally GM is recalling certain 2011-2014 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 2500, Sierra 3500, Yukon, Yukon XL and 2011-2013 Cadillac Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, and GMC Sierra 1500 vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of AZ, AR, DE, DC, IL, IN, KS, KY, MD, MO, NE, NV, NJ, NM, NC, OH, OK, PA, TN, VA, and WV or "Zone B." Additionally, GM is recalling certain 2010-2014 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 2500, Sierra 3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL and 2010-2013 Cadillac Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, and GMC Sierra 1500 vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of AK, CO, CT, ID, IA, ME, MA, MI, MN, MT, NH, NY, ND, OR, RI, SD, UT, VT, WA, WI, and WY or "Zone C." These vehicles are equipped with non-desiccated passenger frontal inflators containing phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate (PSAN) propellant. These inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, high temperatures, and high temperature cycling.
Risk
An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Remedy
GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on February 25, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed to 40 VIN owners on May 11, 2021. A second owner notification letter was mailed to all other owners on January 24, 2022. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1‑800‑222‑1020; Cadillac customer service at 1‑800‑458‑8006; and GMC customer service at 1‑800‑462‑8782. GM's number for this recall is N212328800.

Recall number 21V054000 · Recall details

Electrical systemReported October 1, 2014 · 106,307 vehicles affected
What is wrong
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.

Recall number 14V614000 · Recall details

Power train: automatic transmissionReported January 2, 2013 · 54,686 vehicles affected
What is wrong
General Motors (GM) is recalling certain model year 2013 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, and Escalade EXT; Chevrolet Avalanche, Express, Silverado HD, Silverado LD, Suburban, and Tahoe; and GMC Savana, Sierra HD, Sierra LD, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles, manufactured between November 7, 2012, through December 18, 2012, for failing to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 102, "Transmission Shift Lever Sequence, Starter Interlock, and Transmission Braking Effect", and FMVSS No. 114, "Theft Protection and Rollaway Prevention." The vehicles may have been built with a fractured park lock cable or a malformed steering column lock actuator gear in the lock module assembly.
Risk
As a result, the vehicle may shift from Park with the ignition key removed or the ignition key in the OFF position. The vehicle may also shift out of Park without application of the brake pedal while the key is off. Either of these scenarios may cause the vehicle to roll away after the driver has exited the vehicle, resulting in a possible vehicle crash and/or injury.
Remedy
GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the affected vehicles and replace the steering column as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on January 21, 2013. Chevrolet owners may call 1‑800‑630‑2438. Cadillac owners may call 1‑866‑982‑2339. GMC owners may call 1‑866‑996‑9463.

Recall number 13V001000 · Recall details

See all 4 recalls for the 2013 Chevrolet Suburban

Defect investigations

Desiccated Air Bag Inflator RuptureOpened September 17, 2021, still open

From 2000 through 2017, Takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("PSAN") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004L. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited. The rapid burning can cause the inflator to rupture during deployment, potentially causing serious or even fatal injury to vehicle occupants. See 2016 Blomquist Report at all frontal inflators using propellant 2004 that do not contain a "desiccant" (a substance that traps and holds moisture) in US vehicles are under recall. These "non-desiccated" inflators either have been or are required to be replaced.In some cases, the remedy part for these recalled inflators was, or will be, an inflator using either propellant 2004 or 2004L that does contain a desiccant. None of these "desiccated" remedy parts (which were installed in older model year vehicles) are currently under recall for a degradation concern. Certain subsets of desiccated PSAN inflators using propellant 2004 for use as original equipment, however, have been recalled for a degradation concern. All Takata inflators produced with propellant 2004L contain desiccant, and none of these desiccated inflators using propellant 2004L are under recall for a degradation concern. There have been no reported field ruptures in any non-recalled desiccated PSAN inflators.It is understood that desiccants fully saturate at some threshold, at which point any additional moisture will not be captured. This means the degradation process observed in non-desiccated inflators using propellant 2004 may also occur in non-recalled desiccated inflators using propellant 2004, assuming additional moisture enters the inflator and high temperature cycling occurs. Based on available information, desiccant saturation can occur within the first five years in the worst environments, and the time required for full saturation is affected by multiple factors. While no present safety risk has been identified, further work is needed to evaluate the future risk of non-recalled desiccated inflators using propellant 2004.Three entities -- Takata (now known as TK Global), the Independent Testing Coalition, and Exponent -- have been studying the long-term behavior of Takata desiccated PSAN inflators using propellant 2004L (as well as 2004) in the presence of moisture and temperature cycling. The research efforts, which include development of predictive modeling techniques and field sample analysis, are ongoing. To date, none of the researchers have identified field evidence showing that propellant 2004L is undergoing a degradation process that leads to aggressive deployment and potential rupture. However, the time in service of such inflators remains short compared to that of the inflators using propellant 2004. Further study is needed to assess the long-term safety of desiccated inflators using propellant 2004L.The Office of Defects Investigation is opening this investigation to examine whether a safety defect related to propellant degradation exists in non-recalled desiccated PSAN frontal inflators manufactured by Takata. This investigation will require extensive information on Takata production processes and surveys of inflators in the field. Lists of recall actions that may have used desiccated PSAN inflators as remedy parts, as well as the makes and models originally manufactured with them, is available with the downloadable version of this document (see -- note this information is subject to change/revision as the investigation proceeds). This investigation does not supersede EA15-001, which remains open.

EA21002

Technical service bulletins for the 2013 Chevrolet Suburban 1,762

Bulletins tell dealers how to fix known problems. A warranty extension means the manufacturer pays for that repair for longer.

See all 1,762 bulletins for the 2013 Chevrolet Suburban

2013 Chevrolet Suburban fuel economy

Official EPA estimates in miles per gallon (MPGe for electric). Ranges cover trims that share the same engine.

EngineDriveCityHighwayCombined
5.3L 8‑cylRWD152117
5.3L 8‑cyl4WD152117
6.0L 8‑cylRWD101612
6.0L 8‑cyl4WD101612

What 2013 Chevrolet Suburban owners say

Most recent owner complaints, unedited.

Filed Mar 3, 2026 · NY

The dashboard in 2007-2014 gm trucks and subs break apart. These can shatter when in an accident. There is insufficient bracing and supports to keep the dashboards from cracking and coming apart in pieces. Only remedy is to replace the dashboard or get an aftermarket cap that may or may not hold during an accident. Especially when the airbags is deployed.

Filed Jan 21, 2026 · Airbags · LA

The contact owns a 2013 Chevrolet Suburban. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 21V053000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure.

Filed Jan 3, 2026 · Body · MA

On the driver side adjacent to the fuel tank, improper drainage for the body frame caused severe rust. Over time the frame of the vehicle becomes a safety hazard and may cause the frame to crack or split resulting in loss of control to the rear of the vehicle.

Filed Nov 6, 2024 · Acceleration, Engine · AL

Bought 2013 suburban brand new and in 2018, on a trip to the mountains for fall break, the car quit with no warning signs, in the middle of the night. The car would not accelerate when gas pedal was pressed and RPM gauge needle “fluctuated erratically” until car came to a complete stop in the middle of the highway! It was a scary and dangerous situation because it was late at night and we were in the mountains with no phone signal. Cars were coming and going both ways on Highway. Eventually people stopped to help us get suburban towed to local Chevrolet dealership and we had to rent a vehicle to get us to where we were initially going to start our fall break. The dealership called a day later to tell us that there were “lose metal pieces” in the transmission, which meant the transmission had to be replaced. We spent $5000 on that new transmission! It was the only way for us to come back home. The car was out of warranty therefore, the manufacturer did not offer any help! This was a very expensive, frustrating, and dangerous fall break in 2018. Please help! We deserve reimbursement because 7 years later, we bought another 2020 Suburban, also brand new and the same thing happened to transmission, last week! We spent $6000 to replace that transmission!

Filed Sep 30, 2024 · TX

My Suburban's dashboard has a crack that extends now to the edge of the airbag compartment door, with a piece now missing and what appears to be something like an airbag visible. I am concerned the airbag will not deploy correctly if / when it is needed. I have called a certified Chevrolet dealer/ repair garage who said this is not an issue listed under Chevrolet's recall, although I have seen numerous other customers express similar concerns and issues as mine. Thank you.

Filed Apr 25, 2024 · TX

The vehicle has exterior side mirrors that fold in. Once folded in the driverside mirror can be powered back out, but the passager side does not. this makes it unsafe to change lanes and identify a vehicle in your blind spot. This malfunction has happen several times on this vehicle. Prior to this vehicle had another 2013 suburban that the same malfunction occurred on. What are the odds of the same malfunction occurring on two seperate vehicles. The vehicle is currently at a mechanic shop that I have asked to check this out. Without this mirror it is unsafe to drive on a multi-lane freeway where changing lanes is necessary.

Filed Feb 5, 2024 · Body · 294,000 miles · GA

The contact owns a 2013 Chevrolet Suburban. The contact stated that the dashboard had many fractures nearby the air bag enclosure. The vehicle had not been taken to the dealer to be diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, and it was confirmed that the VIN was not included in a recall. The failure mileage was 294,000.

Filed Oct 4, 2023 · Body · TX

Starting approximately 24 months ago the dash on my Suburban started cracking. Now it has cracked in several locations on both the driver's and passenger side of the dash. The cracks on the passenger side go up to the air bag location. Cracks on the driver's side are numerous and getting worse. The driver's side cracks are such that the pieces would come apart in an accident, even if the air bag was not deployed.

Filed Aug 31, 2023 · VA

On July 8th I went into Sheehy Honda to look at a Suburban that Miss [XXX] said she had on sale. When I arrive Ms [XXX] showed me the vehicle, after looking over the vehicle it was something hanging from the back part of the vehicle they looked at it they got the manager out there he said he was going to take care of it doing, that time I went back into the building and try to see would I be able to purchase this vehicle and as the agreement started they say that I will have to put 4200 down after that the two guys went in the back I was still in the front with Miss [XXX] at her desk and the two gentlemen's came back and ask me do I have $500 more and I can get the vehicle and I told them if I was to give them 4,700 I want them to subtract it from asking price then Finance the balance from, $17,999 and I'll be financing only balance from that $17,999, because they told me the VIP was free for free oil change rotations and looking over your car and also I had warranty on the motor transmission and I want to say drive shaft but come to find out all these are add ones that they told me that was free. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed Aug 17, 2023 · NC

The Dash has cracked in several spots and makes loud vibrating noises and I’m worried with one crack being near air bag that air bag will not work correctly or dash will have projectile pieces that may impel into a person if the airbag deploys

Used buying checklistWhat to check on a 2013 Chevrolet Suburban before you buy

Compare the 2013 Chevrolet Suburban

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Other model years

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Questions about the 2013 Chevrolet Suburban

Is the 2013 Chevrolet Suburban reliable?

Owners have filed 118 complaints about the 2013 Chevrolet Suburban, close to a typical Suburban model year.

What is the 2013 Chevrolet Suburban year score?

The 2013 Chevrolet Suburban scores 75 out of 100 (average). The score compares it with the other model years of the Chevrolet Suburban: 75 is a typical year, 50 means twice the usual complaints, and serious complaints and recalls lower it.

What is the most common problem with the 2013 Chevrolet Suburban?

Airbags, with 28 complaints, typically around 57,900 miles. Next is body (23).

How many recalls does the 2013 Chevrolet Suburban have?

4 recalls, covering air bags, electrical system and power train.

Was there a recall on the 2013 Chevrolet Suburban airbags?

Yes, 2 recalls: 21V053000, 21V054000. Check your VIN to see if your car still needs the free repair.

What year does the Chevrolet Suburban have bad airbags?

The Chevrolet Suburban model years with the most airbags complaints are 2007 (146 complaints), 2008 (96 complaints) and 2011 (66 complaints).

What gas mileage does the 2013 Chevrolet Suburban get?

Official estimates for the 2013 Chevrolet Suburban range from 12 to 17 mpg combined. The most efficient version (5.3L 8-cyl, RWD) gets 15 city and 21 highway.

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