Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2013 Chevrolet Traverse owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
While driving on freeway traction control off light came on the engine speed reduced came on and car immediately went from 60 MPH to 15-20 causing me to spin out and lose control on freeway and eventually slammed into side of road, (managed to drive home going about 15 MPH at 1:00 in the morning)bending my axle and the next day on the news it was reported cars with OnStar were hacked. Next morning no light was on in the car and able to drive with bent axle. Repairs completed and my insurance rates were increased. One year later light came on again traction control off then engine speed reduced and car went from 40 to 15 (luckily I just got off freeway going to work) on surface street and managed to make it to work. Called Chevrolet dealer and was told many different things. …
While driving this 2013 Traverse, it lost all power with the stabilink and traction control warning lights being activated in the message center. Then the 2013 Traverse lost power with the check engine light illuminating, when this occurred the Traverse immediately slowed from 55 MPH to 15 MPH causing a rear end collision. All my online research in different forums displays numerous others incidents of this same stabilink/traction control issue. It does not appear to be a safe design and a recall should be announced before someone is seriously injured.
On all occasions, my car was in motion on major city streets and side roads and my driving speeds ranged from 25mph to 55mph. The following messages flash across the dashboard: traction control off, engine power is reduced, service traction control, service stabilitrak. The check engine light comes on with the stabilitrak icon. My speed was thrown down to the range of 10mph to 40mph. The entire car began shaking and the exhaust pipe was giving loud "puffing" sounds. This happened several times, but the third time, I was not able to restart my car. I had it towed to the dealership I bought it from. After having it for a month, they were unable to find the issue, therefore nothing was fixed, and I was told "let us know if it happens again." wow! ...and it happened again months later - again three separate times! …
Car turned itself off while driving 55 MPH on highway with my children in the car. Traverse randomly switches between cd and radio by itself. Traction control warning sounds randomly. Sometimes when key is turned off all goes black on dash without opening the door. There is no pattern to any of this. Always totally random. I have started pressing record on my phone before every time I start my car for the possibility that I will catch one of the random instances on camera. Dealership has replaced my radio focusing on it and ignoring my traction control issue and power loss. Since these issues cannot be triggered and are completely random I had to catch my radio freezing up on video to get dealer to believe my accusations. …
I have been having problems with my 2013 Chevy Traverse the traction control light/stabilitrax comes on, which makes my check engine light come on, which then causes my engine to power down, I will then have to wait 2-3 minutes and it will either crank up or it won't (has to be towed), it also causes it to stall out when taking off or coming to a stop. Stalled out on me while pulling out into oncoming traffic thankfully I wasn't all the way out in the road or I would have been t-boned. I have taken the vehicle to a two different Chevy dealers which it had to be towed to both within a month the first one told me it was just the battery $400 and 4 days later I was stranded on the side of the road with my 3 kids again. …
Our Traverse has had this problem mainly on the highway but it has also happened on our gravel road going 30 MPH. The Traverse will all of a sudden display "engine power is reduced, it will say service traction control, service stabilitrak, traction control off." during one of the times, it happened the steering column also locked up. The engine shakes enough that it makes the muffler shake when this happens. The dealership claimed they found a memo from GM on how to solve the problem. We just spent $690 to get a new fuse block and terminal installed. Supposedly there had been water damage/corrosion. Our Traverse has never been submerged in water. This problem is very dangerous and Chevrolet needs to be held responsible. Having our vehicle all of a sudden reduce power has lead to several almost accidents, especially when the steering also locked. …
While driving on a busy highway and without warning my 2013 Traverse started to loose power. This was very dangerous and quite scary as I almost got rear ended by cars behind me as my vehicle almost slowed down to a complete stop on the highway. The 'traction control is off' llight came on - followed by the 'stabilitrak', 'loss of engine power' and 'service traction control'. I made it to an hwy exit at about 5 MPH. Thankfully, I was able to find a safe place on the side of the road before my car engine started to shake and then cut off. I had to get a tow to the Chevy dealership service. This suvhas had a number of issues from the time I purchased the vehicle. The first issue is loss of power during acceleration, which the dealership has continued to dismiss. I have also had issues with the air bags, transmission, seatbelts and power steering. …
Takata recall, my airbag light comes on and goes off whenever it wants. Sometimes it with come on and stay on for days to months at a time, I took it back to the Chevy dealership where I purchased it from. I paid for the diagnostic and for them to fix it and it stood off for a few weeks and came back on and when I called and told them that my airbag light came back on they to me to make an appointment to get a 3rd diagnostic and for me to paid again I refused and I am just dealing with the light coming and going off on its own. I have to hold my key in the ignition in the forward position being cranked for about 4-5sec just for my SUV to turn on and asked the dealership why and they couldn't give me an answer and just shrugged there shoulders with no answers. …
The engine loses power as you drive a normal speed it just stops it flashes engine power is reduced , service traction control, service stabiltrak. I don't know what it mean but when you get it to the dealer these codes don't come up they can't find these things wrong. In the mean time I've been nearly rear ended on the highway causes my car just stops and I have to be towed cause sometimes she starts again sometimes she don't. I'm afraid to drive it because I don't know what to expect that's my transportation to and from the doctor being disabled. Please look into this I'm sure I'm not the first complaint. Chevy needs to recall before someone dies because you're traveling at a speed of 50-55 miles per hour and your car just stop the cars behind you will rear end you and end up in your back seat gas tank explodes. Your family in the car. I hope you all see the picture. …
2013 Chevy Traverse w/ 126K miles: while driving 65mph on the freeway the entire car shut off. Everything went black, and I couldn't depress brakes, or turn the steering wheel to move to the shoulder. Within 20 sec the car started back up and went into limp mode and I was able to make it to a gas station. Check engine light, traction control off, park assist off, engine power reduced and service stabilitrak all came on. When I disconnected the battery, or pulled fuses to reset ECM, the car would start just fine. Though it would happen again within another 20 mile or sometimes it would be a day or two, but would replicate the problem. I was told by two Chevy dealerships that there was nothing wrong, but apparently ther is something wrong and it needs to be recalled and address before deaths occur because of the issue. …
Traction Control complaints in other Traverse years
Frequently asked questions
How common are traction control problems on the 2013 Chevrolet Traverse?
NHTSA has 44 complaints about the stability & traction control of the 2013 Chevrolet Traverse, 27% of the model year's 162 complaints.
Is there a recall for 2013 Chevrolet Traverse traction control problems?
No. NHTSA lists no stability & traction control recall for the 2013 Chevrolet Traverse, though it has 4 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2013 Chevrolet Traverse traction control problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 77,000 miles, and 2% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 2 crashes, 1 fire and 1 injury to stability & traction control problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.