What's Wrong with the 11th Generation Suburban?

Front 3/4 view of a Chevrolet Suburban

The 11th generation Suburban spans the 2015 to 2020 model years.

It has accumulated 120 owner complaints over those year and ranks 43rd in reliability out of 80 eligible Chevrolet generations.

Our reliability rank is based on our PainRank™ system. A higher number means you can expect more significant problems. The average Chevrolet score is 10.56 while this generation comes in at 7.89.

Compare With Other Suburban Generations

The Worst 2015-2020 Suburban Problems

  1. A/C Condenser Leaking

    GM used leaky air conditioners that buckle under pressure in many 2014-2017 trucks and SUVs. Whether it's busted hoses or leaky condensors, thousands of GM owners are showing up to work with sweat stains down their back. It's such a widespr…

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  2. Chevy Shake

    When traveling above 35mph, GM's full size trucks and SUVs are experiencing cabin vibrations along with terribly loud noises from buffeting wind that is making owners sick. GM says these vibrations are within their acceptable vibration rang…

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  3. Takata Recalls

    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 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

What Breaks

Years to Avoid

11th Generation Suburban Key Numbers

  1. 3 model years

    Grouping all models by their year can reveal some baddies.

  2. 120 complaints

    Running tally of owner grievances filed to CarComplaints.com.

  3. 43rd in reliability

    Overall reliability rank out of 80 eligible generations.

Recent 11th Generation Suburban News

There's a lot of news out there, but not all of it matters. We try to boil down it to the most important bits about things that actually help you with your car problem. Interested in getting these stories in an email? Signup for free email alerts over at CarComplaints.com.

  1. A federal investigation wants to know if rusty connectors are preventing 2020-2021 GM airbags from deploying.

    The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has received six reports of severe crashes where the airbags didn't deploy in GM vehicles, despite those vehicles receiving "significant frontal damage." All six crashes resulted in injuries.…

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  2. There’s an important recall for parents who’ve installed child seats using a seat belt.

    For installation of the child seat using the seat belt, there are automatic retractor assemblies equipped with retractors that lock automatically.

    This should lock the seat belt when it is completely pulled out of the retractor. However, the defects can cause the retractor to not lock the seat belt when it is pulled out of the retractor.…

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  3. A lawsuit says a failed vacuum pump in GM’s brake boosters can make the brake pedal extremely hard to push, leading to longer stopping distances and accidents.

    While investigating a rear-end collision involving the lead plaintiff ”GM told her she should read the manual to understand how the brakes worked.” Nothing says “we value our customers” like accusing them of not knowing how brakes work. GM promised to fix the plaintiff’s bumper in exchange for confidentiality. Obviously this didn’t go over well.

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  5. A lawsuit filed in Oklahoma says GM’s A/C will only blow hot air due to multiple defects in the HVAC system.

    And that the automaker wasn’t upfront about the problem.

    The lawsuit says there are at least two defective parts of the air conditioning system, the first being the line leading from the compressor to the condenser. This line consists primarily of an aluminum tube connected to a rubber hose, but the plaintiffs claim the tube can disconnect from the rubber hose and allow the refrigerant to leak.
    Additionally, the aluminum tube is allegedly defective because it can rupture and allow the leak to occur.…

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  6. GM is recalling nearly 4,800 new trucks and SUVs, and telling their owners to stop driving until their front upper control arms can be repaired.

    GM blames the problem on a bad weld near the control arm bushing, a problem the automaker discovered on a GMC Yukon XL Denali. The faulty weld can cause the control arm to change shape and eventually separate.…

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