NHTSA Owner Complaint Log
This page lists owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2018 Chevrolet Traverse. Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA and do not by themselves prove a defect or defect rate.
Data synced from NHTSA on May 4, 2026
The car shifter doesn't detect that it's parked and keeps displaying "Shift to Park" message not allowing you to turn off the car completely. This problem happened before and was only fixed by replacing the shifter but it happens again after about the same time driving the original shifter.
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 75 MPH, there was an abnormal thumping sound coming from the engine compartment. Additionally, the contact noticed a smoky smell in the cabin of the vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an unknown dealer, where it was diagnosed that the exhaust system needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 139,136.
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated that the vehicle was shaking abnormally at start-up and while idling. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the purge valve was defective. The contact spoke with a dealer and the dealer confirmed that there were no recalls on the VIN. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 93,000.
I shift into Park, then turn the car off and the dash starts dinging stating" shift to park" You then have to shove the gear up to get it to park all the way.
The harness is coming loose by just being pulled. It comes loose with out pushing the button to loosen it. No debris in button
51000 miles.Rear toe links replaced.Well kept highway miles driven with low mileage. Other GM cars have been recalled for this.Well known problem on Traverse.
I was driving on the highway and without any warning, the acceleration did not work in my car. I coasted to the side of the highway and waited for over an hour for a tow truck to arrive. Chevrolet replaced the transmission. I was told Chevrolet would consider rebates if I go through a Chevrolet dealership to fix it. They charged $2,000 over other shops, but only offered $200 off. They also took over a month to repair my vehicle. I wish I did not use them for repairs. Also, during heavy rains, the car leaked water through the electrical components in the roof. We intervened several times, but water persistently came through. Finally, we purchased the car at under 30,000 miles and immediately needed to replace the exhaust and shift to park feature. The car would not recognize when I was in park and could not turn off.
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the welt was defective, and that there was a hole in the exhaust pipe. The dealer offered to assist with the repair. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the failure was related to Special Coverage Adjustment N212356540 Front Exhaust Pipe. The manufacturer was contacted and opened a case. The failure mileage was approximately 72,741.
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated while parking the vehicle, the shift gear was shifted to park, however, the contact stated that the vehicle did not turn off as intended. The contact stated that when turning the engine off, a warning light illuminated indicating shift to park instead. In addition, the contact stated that the vehicle did not turn off. The contact stated that the failure began a year ago, however the failure has become persistent. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The contact was advised to contact the NHTSA Hotline and report the failure. The failure mileage was 80,000.
Experiencing shift to park issues for the second time. Making it difficult to park and turn off vehicle. Vehicle only has ~68K miles. Chevy should also include the 2018 model year for recalls.
POWER STEERING ASSIST WARNING COMES UP. BECOMES VERY DOICCICULT TO STEER AND ALSO CAUSED STABILITY CONTROL TO BE TURNED OFF. EXTREMELY DANGERSOUS AS MY CAR COULD HAVE ROLLED AND KILLED ME OR MY PASSENGERS. AND APPEARS TO BE A MAJOR ISSUE, AS WHAT I HAVE FOUND ONLINE AND MANUFACTIRER/DEALER DONT CARE. PLEASE DO SOMETHING BEFORE PEOPLE START DYING/CRASHING BECAUSE OF THIS. 2ND CONCERN - SHIFTER......STARTS REFYSING TO GO INTO PARK. EVENTUALLY KILLING THE BATTERY. SWITCH IS ALL MESSED UP AND ALOT OF PEOPLE HAVE HTE SAME ISSUE AN DDEALER/MANUFACTRURERE REFUSE TO DO ANYTHING... THEY WILL FIX IT, AT OWNERS COST, FOR 700 BUCKS, WHICH IT ONLY TOOK ME 30 MINUTES, NOT 2.5 HRS LIKE THEY SAID.
Taken in for transmission shudder, dealer has known service bulletin for issue. Serviced and fixed issue. Few months later, same issue. Taken back for service, this time, no issues found. Transmission still shudders.
September 26th 2023 i noticed my traverse accelerated by itself while in park i reported the evap issue made my check emgine light come on and stay on i noticed gm recalled 2019 traverses and up a year models for the same reason but not 2018 models on september the 7th 2023 i also got a code saying control moduoe communication chassis expansion can bus offf when the check engine light ccame on also please help me with this matter i have a child i have to be responsible for im scared of this problem
"Shift to Park” message displays despite vehicle being in ”Park”. This prevents the engine from being shut off. Consistently need to move vehicle gear shift back into other gears, then shove gear shift into Park with force allowing me to shut off ignition. Apparently there was a recall about this same common issue many others are experiencing. My vehicle report shows No outstanding recalls, despite this exact issue being a documented, previous recall.
I have a 2018 chevrolwt Traverse which needs repairs matching the TSB PIP5681C. This issue is on every traverse from 2018, and they have since created a special coverage to fox the issue for every vehicle from 2019 until now. One of the special coverage#'s is - N222385510. This is an emissions issue and a safety issue as the bracket that breaks actually punctures the exhaust pipe causing exhaust fumes to constantly smelled inside the cabin. There is no reason that GM is paying a special coverage on the 2019-2022 but not on the 2018 as well for the same exact parts and same manufacturing flaw.
N222385510, the exhaust system separated from the car. There are current recalls from GM for 2019-Current Traverse models with the exact same issue. Our 2018 has the exact same problem and our local GM dealer verified it, but they will not cover this expense. We were quoted $2,000 + for the fix, GM Customer Care has been no help.
I went to shell and got Gas on september 7th and september 8th when i started. My traverse it started shaking like it was cold then the check engine light came on i went to autozone it read a p0496 code forevap system flow during non purge
When I put my car into park and turn it off I’m Shift to park error code. So the car stays on and won’t turn off. I turn the car on and off shift the gear and nothing happens. I have to sit in the car a hope that it goes into park. See photo.
Just started happening: on occasion, when trying to shut vehicle off, the accessory light kicks on and DIC says "SHIFT TO PARK". I have to restart the car many times and shift it from drive to park to finally get it to shut off. The issue is commonly discussed on youtube. It's the sensor/switch that tells the car it's in park. Please offer a fix.
Active grille air shutter
Vehicle had known service bulletin transmission shudder and told torque converter failure for vehicle with only 57000 miles. Vehicle already had TCM and transmission control and flush services at 9,000 and 15,000 miles. GM did 50/50 split of bill since 5 year power warranty was expired. GM should be paying these entire costs to customers for a known quality issue documented in numerous service bulletins for the Traverse.
So since 8/02/23 when the vehicle had 54,000 miles it began to give electrical problems. I bought the car 01/16/23 it had only 26,000 miles. The service battery charging system light and battery saver mode went on and also the reduced steering light which began to shut the car down I immediately pulled over. Took it to gm dealer they tested battery was dead then charged it checked alternator it failed so they replaced alternator. 7 days later 8/10/23 the car is still running rough idle. Had savi code p0496 evap flow during non purge replaced purge solenoid. The car still the engine slightly was not 100 percent fixed I told them every time it wasn't good. 02/12/24 I took back to dealer engine running rough and every time I put gas it was hesitant the transmission I am assuming check engine light was on code p0496 the gm dealer diagnosised and replaced canister purge solenoid.so 2/28/24 battery saver mode light came on andservice battery charging vehicle stalled out checked alternator failed replaced alternator. 6/25/24 took to another gm dealer and the diagnosised it check engine light was on and told them my car wasn't starting well after I filled my gas and rough engine. Told me to come back 7/03/24 to do evap canister check engine light was on they found evap leak from from evap canister charged me 508 dollars. So I took vehicle from dealer towards hone filled up gas car would not start problem was not fixed called dealer immediately manager said get here before they close I did and manager left but on service guy got the master mechanic to look at it he said it's purge valve the next day they were closed due to 4th of July so was told to take back on 7/5/24 to replace purge solenoid. The gas issue was fixed but now the transmission is worse when I accelerate it stutters bad I been telling both dealers was told they can't look at vehicle unless check engine light was on so 3 faulty purge valves 2 alternators replaced and car stutters worse shift to park light.
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated that while driving at 30 MPH, the battery warning light and power steering assist warning light illuminated. The steering wheel seized, and the vehicle stalled and failed to restart. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with battery failure. The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated that eight days later, after stopping at a gas station, the vehicle failed to restart. The vehicle was towed back to the dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the Evaporative Emission Control (EVAP) system purge valve had failed. The canister purge solenoid valve was replaced. The contact stated that two weeks later, the alternator failed and was replaced; however, six months later, the failure reoccurred with the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact stated that on a separate occasion, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the vehicle failed to start. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that there was an Evaporative Emission Control (EVAP) leak. The SOP solenoid and the Evaporative Emission Control (EVAP) canister were replaced. After the vehicle was repaired, the contact stopped by the gas station, and the vehicle failed to restart. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the purge valve had failed. Most recently, the vehicle hesitated, and the engine was running rough. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the torque converter had failed. The vehicle was repaired. The contact went to several dealers for the repairs, and each dealer retrieved several electrical codes. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and several claims were filed. The failure mileage was approximately 52,000.
Side Detection unavailable alert keeps coming and off on, when car is started. The alert comes and goes.
SHIFT TO PARK error comes up when park to shut down. Does not allow shutdown of the car without beeping notices. Not allowing doors to lock or driver to exit. Must be fairly common as Google shows a lot of workarounds or how to fix a clip under the shifter knob down in the console.
“Shift to Park” message displays despite vehicle being in ”Park”. This prevents the engine from being shut off.
The car will not turn off 85% of the time. When I put it in park and hit the start/stop engine button the vehicle does not turn off. It shows a message "Shift to Park" but it's in park.
The exhaust system mount bracket broken allowing exhaust system movement resulting in a cracked catalytic converter . The mount bracket broke due to a poor weld from the part supplier. The repair cost $2404.74 on 6/5/2023 at 33.953 miles . Recently I researched this issue and found GM policy # N212356540 on 2019 Chevrolet Traverse and Buick Enclave with exact same issue with coverage to 150,000 miles. My research also found that many other owners of 2018 Traverse complaining about the exact same issue with very similar costs. This obvious emission item should have been covered. l
Exhaust cracks out creating a hole and cause’s problems with the catalytic converter. This is exactly the same problem as on the 2019 and up traverse that they have issued repairs on
When you turn off engine it tells you to shift to park when it is already in park. Then it continues to give you bells there is a problem. My nephews 2018 equinox has started doing the same thing. Since we just put $1400 in A/C and going back in for A/C we will probably park in since our income can not accommodate more repairs. It only has 53,000 miles on it very well taken care of.
Starting on June 1, 2023 (odometer 73,200), when I shift to park my vehicle & then attempt to turn off my vehicle, I receive a warning “ACTION REQUIRED Shift to Park.” I am unable to turn my vehicle off or lock it until I repeatedly jiggle the shifter for it to sense that my vehicle actually is parked. This is a know issue with multiple GM vehicles.
Drivers side seatbelt, wont stay latched. On several occasions seatbelt just released. Seatbelt button was not engaging.
I have a 2018 Chevy traverse with less than 30,000 miles and I keep getting a “Shift to Park” message after my car is in park. It prevents me from turning off my car and locking it. Dealership told me it is a common issue. I will have to pay out of pocket in addition to, in order to diagnose, I have to have the issue happening while it is at the dealership. It randomly happens and I can’t go bk and forth to the dealership to fix it.
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated that after turning off the vehicle, the interior and exterior lights remained illuminated. Additionally, the radio remained on, and the horn sounded off. The instrument panel displayed the words "Shift to Park," which, the contact performed; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer to be diagnosed; however, an appointment was scheduled. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 52,000.
Put vehicle into Park and push engine stop button. The engine does not shut off and shift to park light comes on along with alarm. You cannot shut off and lock the vehicle. This is a serious safety issue which GM has not issued a recall. They issued a Technical Service bulletin 19-NA-206 to dealer and requiring customer to pay for the update. This should be a safety recall. There are many complaint on file from GM customers on various models. Can you investigate this and get them to correct this safety issue.
I had just got gas and the vehicle took longer than usual to start/turn over. I was leaving the store and sitting at the stop sign that is on a small incline. When I proceeded to go, my truck shook a few times, cut off, and I had no control of the vehicle. The brake pedal would not push down and my vehicle began rolling backwards. There was a car behind me that started honking his horn because I was going to run into him. I pushed the start/turn off ignition button and tried the brakes again and it worked. I had to sit there for about 5 minutes to get myself together because I was terrified to take off again. About a week later I was pulling out from my subdivision and the truck started alarming to service the StabiliTrak as I was pulling out. At the moment, the steering wheel became almost impossible to turn and the car didn't want to go! I had several cars coming my way and my vehicle was in the middle of the road. Thank goodness the cars slowed down and my vehicle decided to start working. About a month later it started sounding like a go-kart. I had the vehicle checked out by a mechanic and I was told I needed a new battery and my exhaust pipe had a hole. I bought the battery and the $1200 pipe and had it installed. Now a different exhaust pipe has a hole and the part is on back order because apparently this is a frequent reccuring issue but no recall. I never feel safe driving my truck and it is a 2018 and not yet at 100,000 miles, That is pretty sad! The vehicle is available for inspection.
My car started making a rattling noise. It took over a month to finally determine it was coming from the exhaust system. When we inspected it to try to fix it, there is a crack and a hole at the exhaust bracket. This is what has caused it to loosen. After doing research on this, it appears this is a known issue and the warranty was extended for the 2019 but not the 2018 when it is the exact same issue for both. So my vehicle repair for a known issue is now not covered.
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated while parked in the driveway, there was an abnormally loud sound coming from underneath the hood. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the exhaust pipe was fractured and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure TSB Number: PIP5681. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle was not covered. The failure mileage was approximately 42,000.
I placed my car in park & an alert went off stating, “shift to park.” My car would not turn off, after multiple attempts, until I turned it on & off & drove the car a short distance. This has happened several times this month, with no warning or symptoms. My car is currently in for service & the dealership mentioned there’s a shortage in the switch, requiring a $400 repair. I feel my safety & that of others, is at risk, as my car currently does not know if it’s in park or drive. What’s to say this issue won’t arise, when I’m driving down the interstate at 70mph? Or I am having a medical emergency & can’t turn my car off to place it in park? I did a google search & apparently this is a very common issue with this type of car. The dealer mentioned it would have been covered under a 3 year/36,000 mile bumper to bumper warranty, but my car is 4 years old with 37,000 miles on it.
Car has many issues: Jerks Shift to park error when it is parked causing car to have lights on for hours Brake error Fuel issue Traction error Computer failure at times I got the car used was not fixed when I received it needs recalls I have kids you people expect me to pay for your faulty equipment please make this right if I het into an accident it's because of your brand
My 2018 Chevrolet Traverse says shift to park and an alarm sounds. The vehicle is in park but will not turn off.
I see that there is a recall for the exhaust leaks on the 2019 model. But there is a service alert for all Chevrolet Traverse from 2018-2022. Why are repairs on covered on the 2019?
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated that after an independent mechanic performed an oil change, the vehicle made abnormal sounds while driving. The vehicle was taken back to the independent mechanic, who diagnosed that the subframe was corroded and the fuel line bracket had fractured due to corrosion. The dealer was made aware of the failure and scheduled an upcoming appointment. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 15,000.
I had my 2018 Chevy Traverse serviced at a local Chevrolet dealership and the mechanic suggested that I get my rear toe adjust links replaced as soon as possible. He said that when the toe links fail, the back of the car becomes unstable and starts moving from side to side when you are driving it. The dealership asked if I had noticed whether the back of my car was moving back and forth when I drove it. Fortunately, I did not have that problem before getting the toe links replaced for $599.56. Given that my car is only 4.5 years old with only 39035 miles on it, I asked why the toe links were failing. The Chevrolet mechanic said it was due to a "crappy design." It appears there is a recall on the Chevy Malibu toe links but none currently on the Traverse. There should be.
On multiple occasions the vehicle slowed to a stop but engine was still running. This happened once on the interstate at the speed limit. I got warning that power brakes and steering were not working. Other times the car shudders and stops. I then have to turn engine off and restart. I then take to dealer and they check with a computer and can find nothing wrong. I also had “shift to park”. Message and was unable to turn off engine. $300ish to get this fixed. The dealer said common in that vehicle. I want to make clear that this shuddering and limp mode problems have happened at least five times. The date above is the most recent
Transmission problems and stabilitytrack issues.
electrical codes saying power steering failure which could cause loss of control of vehicle catalytic converter failure - leading to oxygen sensor failure and burnt spark plugs. engine sputters. If you look online its non-stop reports of this same year having the same issues of catalytic converter failures. health concern, emissions concern, safety concern. GM needs to recall and replace these
Shift to park error. Happens often when the car is in park, the error states that the car is not in park and has an alarm that goes off. I am unsure if the car is safely in park and not sure my car will lock if I do not try to cancel out the message by continuously starting the car back up and shifting the gears to ensure it is in park. It happens very frequently. I was told by the dealership that they have replaced a lot of these parts and they are not sure why a recall has not been issued yet.
Catalytic converter issues and flex pipes, needing replaced due to weak welding and lack of structure is dangerous releasing carbon monoxide and gas in the car while driving with my children
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Traverse. The contact stated that the gear shifter failed to shift to park(P). The contact stated that the shift to park message was displayed. The contact stated that several manual attempts were needed before the vehicle properly shifted to park(P). The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the contact was provided an estimate for the repair. The vehicle remained with the dealer unrepaired. The failure mileage was approximately 36,000.