2018 Chevrolet Traverse · symptom sheet
Transmission shudders, slips or shifts hard
- 45owner reports
- 21,000median miles
- 0involved a crash
Newest report Sep 6, 2026 · checked Sep 9, 2026
194 of the 459 complaints on this car are about the transmission and drivetrain. 45 of those describe transmission shudder. Only stalling is reported more often on this car.
Tick what matches of 45 reports
What got replaced
Owners who name the part that was replaced mention the torque converter (4 reports).
Recalls and investigations
One recall on the transmission and drivetrain covers the 2018 model year. A recall on the same system isn't always the same failure, so read the defect text.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Chevrolet Cruze and Buick LaCrosse, 2018-2020 Chevrolet Equinox, Chevrolet Traverse and GMC Terrain, 2018 Chevrolet Malibu, 2019-2020 Buick Encore, Buick Enclave, Cadillac XT4, Chevrolet Blazer and GMC Acadia, and 2020 Cadillac XT6 vehicles. The start/stop accumulator endcap may have missing bolts.
Risk and remedy
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the start-stop transmission accumulator and replace it if any bolts are missing, free of charge. The recall began December 15, 2020. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-888-988-7267, Buick Customer service at 1-866-608-8080, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006. GM's number for this recall is N202313440.
When it happens
The middle half of failures fell between 15,000 and 57,000 miles, from the 24 reports that gave a mileage.
What owners wrote
“Our Traverse has the transmission shudder really bad. This started at about 20k miles. Dealership made some adjustments which helped. Now that it out of warranty, this has gotten soo much worse. This needs to recalled.”
Filed Apr 28, 2026 · 20,000 miles
“The transmission is slipping which caused the converter to go out in the transmission.”
Filed Sep 11, 2025
“Transmission shudders at low speeds changing gears. Less than 79,000 miles and changed or flushed transmission 3 times at dealership. Vehicle has been at dealership over a month with no fix in sight.”
Filed Jul 6, 2025 · 79,000 miles
“Transmission issues :hard shifts, shift delays , hesitation upon acceleration, trouble on reverse gear. Engine issues: grinding noises , ticking noises ,check engine light turning on, loss of power engine Vibrating in steering wheel when braking.”
Filed Oct 19, 2024
Should you keep driving it?
This page can't tell you that. 0 of 45 reports involved a crash. Owners who file are the ones who had a bad experience, and nobody checks their reports. If the problem affects steering, braking, power or a fire risk, treat it as a safety fault and have it inspected before a long or high-speed drive.
File your own report with NHTSA. Complaint counts are how a problem gets an investigation.
Other problems on this car
- Engine stalls or loses power while driving 70 reports
- Brakes grind, pulse or wear early 37 reports
- Check engine light or misfire 36 reports
- Infotainment, screen or backup camera fails 32 reports
- Battery dies or the car will not start 26 reports