"How reliable is the 2009 Chevrolet Suburban?"

"Based on 133 NHTSA complaints, the 2009 Chevrolet Suburban has a median complaint mileage of 83500 miles. The most common issue is Air Bags."

"What are common problems with the 2009 Chevrolet Suburban?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 2009 Chevrolet Suburban is Air Bags, accounting for a significant portion of the 133 total complaints filed."

2009 Chevrolet Suburban: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 133 complaints

133

Total Complaints

83,500mi

Median Mileage

Air Bags

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

45,250 25th Percentile

83,500 Median Mileage

154,000 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

Air Bags

Unknown Or Other

Electrical System

Engine

Body

Latches/Locks/Linkages

Fuel/Propulsion System

Electronic Stability Control (Esc)

Steering

Sidewall

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"CASE NO. 1-4061367 REPORTED TO GM CUSTOMER COMMUNICATION CENTER ON 18/11/2009 "STEERING VIBRATION" WHILE DRIVING ABOVE 100 KM/H'. ACCORDING TO GM DEALER SERVICES DEPARTMENT CONFIRMED VERBALLY 'ACCEPTABLE VIBRATION'. CHEVROLET HAS NOT RESPONDED TO A COMPLAINT CASE NO. 1-4061367 REPORTED TO GM CUST..."

"ELECTRICAL MALFUNCTION ON MY 2009 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN LTZ. THE CAR WAS PURCHASED NEW FROM THE DEALER IN NOV 2009. UPON DELIVERY, IT WAS NOTED THAT THE DASH LIGHTS FOR FUNCTION BUTTONS DID NOT ILLUMINATE AND VISOR LAMPS WERE INOPERABLE. DEALER ASSURED US THAT THEY WOULD FIX THE PROBLEM. THE HAZARD OCC..."

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

When Were Complaints Filed?

Number of complaints by the year the issue occurred.

When Does Each Component Fail?

Median mileage at complaint for top components.

Air Bags 38 complaints

25th: 63,500 mi Median: 95,000 mi 75th: 158,500 mi

Unknown Or Other 23 complaints

25th: 86,000 mi Median: 94,000 mi 75th: 140,000 mi

Electrical System 16 complaints

25th: 46,763 mi Median: 122,000 mi 75th: 172,500 mi

Engine 10 complaints

25th: 73,000 mi Median: 120,000 mi 75th: 157,750 mi

Body 9 complaints

25th: 58,500 mi Median: 80,000 mi 75th: 172,500 mi

Where Are Complaints Coming From?

Top states by complaint count.

TX: 26 CA: 16 LA: 8 FL: 7 AZ: 7 OH: 7 OK: 6 NC: 6 MI: 6 GA: 5

Chevrolet Suburban — Other Years

See how this model compares across different model years.

Year	Complaints	Median Mileage	Top Issue	Crashes
1990	67	-	Recliner	2
1991	65	106,744	Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip	6
1992	226	-	Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip	45
1993	616	120,000	Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip	110
1994	1038	124,062	Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip	158
1995	587	113,450	Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip	64
1996	531	93,100	Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip	25
1997	556	90,000	Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip	27
1998	298	76,500	Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip	11
1999	859	81,250	Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip	65
2000	382	68,000	Parking Brake	30
2001	543	60,000	Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip	38
2002	352	63,700	Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip	34
2003	360	71,000	Service Brakes	39
2004	264	65,250	Instrument Cluster/Panel	14
2005	161	85,000	Electrical System	5
2006	33	84,500	Latches/Locks/Linkages	0
2007	357	80,000	Air Bags	4
2008	276	87,000	Air Bags	4
2010	161	86,000	Air Bags	3
2011	192	68,245	Air Bags	3
2012	139	68,000	Unknown Or Other	3
2013	170	55,700	Unknown Or Other	4
2014	77	55,000	Unknown Or Other	0
2015	584	62,000	Service Brakes	29
2016	288	55,000	Service Brakes	11
2017	178	50,000	Service Brakes	8
2018	108	38,155	Engine	3
2019	84	48,000	Power Train	3
2020	59	3,250	Engine	3
2021	223	60,000	Engine	12
2022	134	64,083	Engine	7
2023	122	25,000	Engine	0
2024	42	16,600	Engine	0

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28