The contact owned a 2021 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked on the driveway, the contact's sister-in-law became aware of a burning odor. The contact stated that while walking towards the vehicle, the contact became aware of smoke coming from underneath the hood. The contact unlatched the hood and became aware of the fire underneath the hood. The contact's husband attempted to extinguish the fire with a water hose. The Fire Department arrived and extinguished the fire. The vehicle was consumed by the fire. The vehicle was towed to a local tow yard. The manufacturer was contacted, and a case was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 105,000.
Chevrolet Traverse fire or smoke problems
44 of the 5,526 owner complaints about the Chevrolet Traverse describe fire, smoke or burning smell, most of them for the 2010 model year.
- owner complaints
- 44
- worst model year
- 2010
- typical repair cost reported
- $2,000
- typical mileage
- 44,000
Is there a fix? There are 3 recalls for this area of the car. See below
By model year
Often reported together
Check engine light 7Loss of power 4Grinding brakes 3Stalling 2Overheating 2Misfire 2Jerking 2Headlights 2
Trouble codes mentioned
P3056 1P3055 1P0107 1
What owners say
Approximately four weeks ago on 02/03/2026, during rainy conditions, the brakes on the vehicle did not function properly, creating a serious safety concern. At the same time, a hose connected broke and there was a strong burning smell coming from the vehicle. I also noticed fluid leaking from the vehicle. I immediately took the vehicle to the dealership for repair, and the vehicle remained there for approximately five days for inspection, parts, and repair. Additionally, this is now my third time bringing the vehicle in for service. During previous visits, I asked the service department about the condition of my brakes because they were making a squeaking noise and I was concerned about their performance. I was told by the service department that the brakes were fine, that I still had plenty of brake life remaining, and that the squeaking noise was normal. However, as of March 4, 2026, my vehicle displayed a new warning message stating “Service Brake Pad Monitor – Front Brakes.” This is concerning because the vehicle currently has approximately 25,490 miles. Given the previous brake concerns I reported and the dealership’s response that the brakes were normal, the new warning message raises additional concerns about the safety and reliability of the braking system. Because this defect involves the braking system and creates a safety concern, I am requesting that General Motors review my case under the applicable Lemon Law and advise me on the next steps toward either a vehicle replacement or buyback if the issue cannot be fully resolved.
Our Traverse spontaneously caught fire.
White smoke was coming out the car and my car eventually sat on fire. I had to call the fire department.. fire department stated that it was a electrical issue
Experienced severe vibrations while driving and when I got out of the car there was a burning smell coming from inside the driver's side front tire. No warning light or messages on my dash. Brought to the dealer to find that the master brake cylinder is defective and I am currently waiting over a month to have it repaired as the parts are unavailable.
Purchased the 2020 traverse on [XXX] from Basswood in Ft. Payne Alabama. Under the guise of the salesman I was assured that the vehicle was in great shape, with no issues at all, and a very clean Carfax. Well I'm new to purchasing a car via financing with a co-signer in which he was assured the vehicle was in great shape. Well unbeknownst to us my household the car was nothing of the sort. Within a few days the Start/Stop malfunctioned to the point it would not restart 98% of the time without sounding like a Demo Saw, it's a dangerous problem and there's times we smelled fuel once we were able to restart the vehicle. The front right wheel assembly looks as if it were on fire and if that's brake dust and it has a grinding whomp whomp sound when in motion,that's really not good no wonder it's hard to stop at times. The front end sounds like drums when going over bumps, speed bumps, road imperfections etc.. on morning start-up there's an absurd amount of exhaust coming into the cabin area, the codes [P3055 and P3056] are registered from the computer of vehicle. Now the smell of fuel is blowing through all vents whenever the defrost is running or all vents are used front and rear, with the truck in motion. It was so bad today that my entire family had to pull over to a gas station and get fresh air our eyes were burning and my [XXX] son nose started to bleed., so that's two parents and 6 children scrambling for safety. This is our only reliable vehicle other than an old 99 suburban that is hardly even road worthy anymore. I spoke with several people that have purchased vehicles and all agreed that the salesman and mostly the sales managers knew that the vehicle came from an auction and was never serviced nor inspected at the basswood dealership, which equates to them actively concealing major effects and problems with the vehicle in question. Just to make a one time commission on a fraudulent deal! They didn't provide any inspection papers to me! INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA
The contact owned a 2010 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked, the contact discovered that the driver's side door, the driver's side seat, and the ceiling had caught on fire and was burned; the windshield was also cracked. The vehicle was unoccupied during the fire. A Fire Department report was filed the following day and the Fire Department inspected the vehicle and determined that the wiring was hot to the touch and could have possibly caused the fire; the vehicle was deemed totaled. The local dealer was not contacted. A Police report was not filed. The vehicle remained at the residence. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 175,000.
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated that when the vehicle started, the engine made an extremely loud sound and smoke came from the exhaust. The contact stated that the vehicle sounded like a motorcycle. While the contact's wife was driving the vehicle, there were fumes from the exhaust entering the cabin of the vehicle. The contact stated that his wife had asthma, and the fumes affected her breathing while driving the vehicle. Additionally, the contact's wife was the main driver of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the mechanic where it was diagnosed with a fractured mid-pipe assembly bracket. The contact was informed that the mid-pipe assembly bracket needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact was advised to take the vehicle to the dealer. The dealer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was scheduled to be taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was filed. The contact was informed that the repair was not covered under an undisclosed Technical Service Bulletin. The contact was informed that the vehicle was not associated with the Technical Service Bulletin. The contact was advised to contact the federal safety agency Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 88,835.
The contact owns a 2017 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact had detected smoke coming from the vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 23V334000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was not contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was approximately 180,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
Sunday night 4/7/24, I was on my way to the emergency department with my 5 month old baby to be seen. 30min into my drive i came to a stop light when my truck completely shut off (BLACKOUT) No Power, NO LIGHTS not even my hazard would turn on, my car wouldn't go into park or allow me to press on my breaks it was like they were glued stuck. all my doors locked and I couldn't get them to open, not even manually because of the nobs that go all the way in. I couldn't put the car into park or anything just got locked in my car and I couldn't even hit the OnStar because everything was off! I started to see cars coming from a distance so i started to panic because they were going to rear end us really bad, so i broke the driver window and went to warn drivers to please stop by putting myself at risk to get hit by a car because i didn't know what else to do, i had a 5month old baby in the back seat that would have died if I didn't pull her out and we got hit. I started to scream for help because it was dark and we were stuck. two cars came inches from rear ending us, which caused an accident between the two vehicles. thankfully a police officer was passing by and got behind my traverse to stop traffic. but if it wasn't for the cop i don't know what the outcome would have been. THIS IS A HUGE SAFETY ISSUE. IF THE CAR WAS ON FIRE WE WOULD HAVE BURNED. THIS NEEDS TO BE RECALLED ASAP. Why would they design a car where you cannot get out. and why did it shut off like this. ???? I NEED ANSWERS PLEASE. I'M TERRIFIED TO DRIVE MY CAR AND THIS WAS A $38,000 VEHICAL THIS IS NOT OK!!!!
Related recalls
Electrical system
- 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). GMs number for this recall is 14515.
Recall number 14V614000 · Recall details
Electrical system: software
- What is wrong
- 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.
Recall number 14V223000 · Recall details
Electrical system
- What is wrong
- Gm is recalling certain model year 2006-2009 buick, lucerne; cadillac dts; hummer h2; model year 2008-2009 buick enclave; cadillac cts; model year 2007-2009 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, escalade ext; chevrolet avalanche, silverado, suburban, tahoe; gmc acadia, sierra, yukon, yukon xl; saturn outlook; and model year 2009 chevrolet traverse vehicles equipped with a heated washer fluid system (hwfs). A recall was implemented in 2008 to add a fuse to the control circuit harness to address the potential consequences of a printed circuit board (pcb) electrical short. However, there have been new reports of thermal incidents on hwfs modules after this improvement was installed. These incidents resulted from a new failure mode attributed to the device's thermal protection feature. The significance varies from minor distortion to considerable melting of the plastic around the hwfs fluid chamber.
- Risk
- It is possible for the heated washer module to ignite and a fire may occur.
- Remedy
- Dealers will permanently disable and remove the heated washer fluid module. An updated page for the owner manual will be provided and inserted in the owner manual to document that the feature has been permanently disabled and removed from the vehicle. The safety recall began on june 11, 2010. Owners may contact buick at 1‑866‑608‑8080, cadillac at 1‑866‑982‑2339, chevrolet at 1‑800‑630‑2438, saturn at 1‑800‑972‑8876, gmc at 1‑866‑996‑9463 and hummer at 1‑800‑732‑5493 or at the owner center at www.gmownercenter.com.
Recall number 10V240000 · Recall details
Questions about the Chevrolet Traverse fire or smoke
Which Chevrolet Traverse years have fire, smoke or burning smell problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2010 (6 complaints), 2011 (6 complaints) and 2018 (4 complaints).
How much does it cost to fix fire, smoke or burning smell on the Chevrolet Traverse?
Owners who mentioned a price put the repair at about $2,000 (median of 6 complaints that include a dollar amount). Costs vary with mileage, warranty and where the work is done.
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