You guessed it. Supply chain issues.
Despite scoring rather well in our review, the Chevrolet Traverse has flown pretty under the radar since then. We don’t often hear about it. They say no news is good news. Well, here’s some news then. In keeping with that turn of phrase, it’s not good either. The Traverse has been recalled.
This recall is also dragging a very small handful of Buick Enclave crossovers into the crossfire. Thankfully, there are no actual fires to speak of. However, some owners may still be concerned upon hearing that their airbags may not deploy in the event of a crash. Worse still, GM doesn’t have the parts to fix them.
Chevrolet
Chevrolet
Chevrolet
Chevrolet
Here’s what’s wrong: GM says that on 2021-2022 Buick Enclave and Chevrolet Traverse models, the connectors on side curtain airbags may have had bad electrical terminals installed during “offline service at GM’s assembly plant.” These bad terminals in the side curtain airbags could mean that the circuit the airbags operate on isn’t complete, leading to at best, a poor connection. At worst, the side curtain airbags may not go off at all. Thankfully, only 89 units are affected, with 13 of those being Enclaves.
Owners will be able to tell if there’s an issue. If your airbag light is illuminated on the dash, it’s probably safe to assume that you’re going to need some work done on your Traverse or Enclave. GM says the light may illuminate either continuously or intermittently. That inconsistency is likely a sign of the incomplete circuit that’s causing the problem.
This should be the last time we hear about this issue. GM says the faulty terminals at the assembly plant that led to the poor wiring in the airbag have been replaced as of November 1st, 2021. Unfortunately, GM hasn’t given a timeline on when the parts needed to complete the recall will arrive. We’re chalking it up to supply chain issues. Customers will be officially notified starting May 16th, with repairs to commence as soon as the needed parts are available.