How Reliable is the Chevrolet Avalanche?

Front 3/4 view of a Chevrolet Avalanche

The Avalanche ranks 29th in reliability out of 40 Chevrolet models. Its overall PainRank™ of 24.86 is based on relative complaint analysis from 690 owner complaints sent to CarComplaints.com over 12 model years.

We'd recommend avoiding the 1st generation Avalanche which runs from 2002–2006.

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The 3 Most Common Avalanche Problems

We've pulled together a list of the most widespread problems that Avalanche owners have to deal with.

Cracked Dashboard

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Multiple GM vehicles from the 2007-2014 model years are developing dashboard cracks. One of the most common areas of concern is around the passenger airbag cover, leaving owners wondering about potential safety risks.

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Passlock Security

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One of Chevrolet’s solutions for stopping thieves from driving away with a car is, coincidently, doing the same thing to the actual owner.

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Takata Recalls

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A large number of Chevy vehicles have been recalled because they contain dangerous airbag inflators made by Takata. The shrapnel-hurling inflators have been recalled in over 37 million vehicles (and counting).

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What Avalanche Owners Complain About

Sometimes it helps just to tally up the complaints and see where the biggest stacks are. Use this information to learn about troublespots or to run for the hills.

Worst Issues

Worst Topics

Worst Years

Full Lists on CarComplaints.com

Avalanche Generations

Generations are groups of model years where few, if any, changes were made to the vehicle which means their model years tend to break in similar ways. The Avalanche has 2 generations available in North American markets.

By the Numbers

  1. 690 complaints

    Running tally of owner grievances filed to CarComplaints.com.

  2. 1,936 service bulletins

    Documenting the process of troubleshooting common problems.

  3. 21 recall campaigns

    Time-sensitive, free repairs for widespread safety problems.

The Latest Avalanche News

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