2009 Chevrolet Tahoe recalls and problems

The 2009 Chevrolet Tahoe has 5 safety recalls and 284 owner complaints filed with NHTSA. Recall repairs are free at any Chevrolet dealer.

Recalls
5
Complaints
284
Crashes / fires
3 / 0
Injuries / deaths
8 / 0

Recalls may cover only some 2009 Chevrolet Tahoe vehicles. Check your VIN at NHTSA ↗ to see open recalls for your exact car.

2009 Chevrolet Tahoe recalls

Recall 21V-052: Air Bags

Reported Feb 5, 2021 · 557,023 vehicles affected · General Motors, LLC

Problem: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2009 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Sierra 2500, Sierra 3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." Additionally, GM is recalling certain 2007-2008 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, and Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming or "Zone C." These vehicles are equipped with non-desiccated passenger frontal inflators containing phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate (PSAN) propellant. These inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, high temperatures, and high temperature cycling.

Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.

Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on February 23, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed on September 20, 2021. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N212328780.

Recall 21V-050: Air Bags

Reported Feb 5, 2021 · 2,641,272 vehicles affected · General Motors, LLC

Problem: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2007-2011 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Yukon, Yukon XL, and 2009-2011 Chevrolet Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, GMC Sierra 2500 and Sierra 3500 vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." Additionally, GM is recalling certain 2007-2008 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Yukon, Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." These vehicles are equipped with non-desiccated passenger frontal inflators containing phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate (PSAN) propellant. These inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, high temperatures, and high temperature cycling.

Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.

Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on February 22, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed on March 1, 2021. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020; Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006; and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N212328760.

Recall 21V-053: Air Bags

Reported Feb 5, 2021 · 692,526 vehicles affected · General Motors, LLC

Problem: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2013 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, and Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Silverado 2500/3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Sierra 2500/3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." Additionally, GM is recalling certain 2010 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, and Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Silverado 2500/3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Sierra 2500/3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." Additionally, GM is recalling certain 2009 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, and Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Silverado 2500/3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Sierra 2500/3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming or "Zone C."

Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.

Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on February 24, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed on May 11, 2021. Owners may contact Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006; Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020; and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N212328790.

Recall 10V-240: Electrical System

Reported Jun 4, 2010 · 1,365,070 vehicles affected · GENERAL MOTORS CORP.

Problem: Gm is recalling certain model year 2006-2009 buick, lucerne; cadillac dts; hummer h2; model year 2008-2009 buick enclave; cadillac cts; model year 2007-2009 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, escalade ext; chevrolet avalanche, silverado, suburban, tahoe; gmc acadia, sierra, yukon, yukon xl; saturn outlook; and model year 2009 chevrolet traverse vehicles equipped with a heated washer fluid system (Hwfs). A recall was implemented in 2008 to add a fuse to the control circuit harness to address the potential consequences of a printed circuit board (Pcb) electrical short. However, there have been new reports of thermal incidents on hwfs modules after this improvement was installed. These incidents resulted from a new failure mode attributed to the device's thermal protection feature. The significance varies from minor distortion to considerable melting of the plastic around the hwfs fluid chamber.

Risk: It is possible for the heated washer module to ignite and a fire may occur.

Fix: Dealers will permanently disable and remove the heated washer fluid module. An updated page for the owner manual will be provided and inserted in the owner manual to document that the feature has been permanently disabled and removed from the vehicle. The safety recall began on june 11, 2010. Owners may contact buick at 1-866-608-8080, cadillac at 1-866-982-2339, chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, saturn at 1-800-972-8876, gmc at 1-866-996-9463 and hummer at 1-800-732-5493 or at the owner center at www.gmownercenter.com.

Recall 09V-154: Fuel System, Gasoline

Reported May 6, 2009 · 27,188 vehicles affected · GENERAL MOTORS CORP.

Problem: Gm is recalling 27,188 my 2009 cadillac escalade, escalade hybrid, escalade esv, and escalade ext; chevrolet avalanche, suburban, tahoe, tahoe hybrid, and colorado; and gmc yukon, yukon hybrid, yukon xl, and canyon vehicles. The fuel system control modules may have a condition in which an adhesive separation of the room temperature vulcanizing (Rtv) seal between the seal and the housing may allow water to seep into the module.

Risk: Water in the module could cause a short or open circuit, illumination of the service engine soon lamp, setting of diagnostic trouble codes or the engine may be hard to start, may not start or may stall increasing the risk of a crash.

Fix: Dealers will install a new fuel system control module free of charge. The recall began on may 18, 2009. Owners may contact cadillac at 1-866-982-2339, chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438 and gmc at 1-866-996-9463 or at www.gmownercenter.com.

2009 Chevrolet Tahoe problems reported by owners

Problem areaReports
Air Bags97
Unknown or Other92
Structure52
Electrical System33
Latches/Locks/Linkages22
Engine14
Electronic Stability Control (ESC)13
Power Train12
Service Brakes9
Fuel/Propulsion System9
Steering8
Vehicle Speed Control6

Most reported parts

  • Structure › Body — 35
  • Structure › Body › Door — 4
  • Power Train › Automatic Transmission — 3
  • Structure › Body › Hatchback/Liftgate › Hinge and Attachments — 1
  • Visibility › Glass, Side/Rear — 1
  • Visibility › Power Window Devices and Controls — 1
  • Lane Departure › Blind Spot Detection — 1

Typical mileage at the time of the problem: 78,000 miles (median of owner reports).

Problems that are not covered by a recall are paid repairs; labor rates follow local mechanic pay — see what auto mechanics earn in each state.

Recent 2009 Chevrolet Tahoe complaints

Owner reports filed with NHTSA, as written (personal details removed). Complaints are not verified by NHTSA.

Chest Clip, Buckle, Harness · reported Jul 31, 2026
I have contacted [XXX] for my concerns. I sent pictures and videos. the metal harness that is usually located behind the car seats is stuck under the seat and I can't unloosen my daughters straps now thats she's grown some. its concerning because she can't even use her car seat at this moment. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Electrical System · reported Jul 8, 2026
The dash and front and rear lights keep going on and off. And I changed all my lights on from and rear and it still happens there is a smell coming from my glove box. I can show you in person so we can see what can be done to fix this problem.
Power Train · reported May 14, 2026
The contact owns a 2009 Chevrolet Tahoe. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact noticed oil leaking from the vehicle with the transmission warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the JB Weld and the driveshaft had failed, causing the transmission to fail and needed to be replaced. . The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was contacted;. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was not available. The VIN was not…
Steering · reported Feb 28, 2026
System detected a slide that didn’t happen causing traction control to counter steer making the vehicle slide into a pole
Electrical System · reported Nov 10, 2024
P2138 code causing the car to have reduced engine power causing unsafe driving conditions and danger to other traffic. Vehicle has been to dealer multiple times for issue, ECM replaced costing thousands and still not working.

Other Chevrolet Tahoe years

Compare all Chevrolet Tahoe years · All Chevrolet models

Frequently asked questions

Does the 2009 Chevrolet Tahoe have any recalls?

Yes — NHTSA lists 5 recalls for the 2009 Chevrolet Tahoe: 21V-052 (air bags), 21V-050 (air bags), 21V-053 (air bags), 10V-240 (electrical system), 09V-154 (fuel system, gasoline). Not every vehicle is affected, so check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

What is the most common problem with the 2009 Chevrolet Tahoe?

Owners report air bags problems most often (97 reports), followed by unknown or other (92). The typical mileage when problems were reported is about 78,000 miles.

Are Chevrolet recall repairs free?

Yes. Safety recall repairs are free at authorized Chevrolet dealers, whether you are the first owner or bought the car used.