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2010 Chevrolet Avalanche Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 111 complaints with NHTSA about the 2010 Chevrolet Avalanche, most often about the air bags (48% of complaints, typically around 70,500 miles). It is 7th of 14 Avalanche model years by number of complaints and has 3 recalls.
Most common 2010 Chevrolet Avalanche problems
Air bags
53 complaints · 48%Half of these problems showed up before 70,500 miles.
My dash started cracking around the airbag and above the gauge cluster. Numerous other owners have had identical cracks which we believe could cause shrapnel in case of air bag deployment.
Another faulty gm dashboard. Flaps around while driving - center clip blown out with no structural support to hold two pieces together. Leading cause of dashboard cracking in similar gm vehicles. Concern over air bag effectiveness on account of this issue.
Other or unspecified
51 complaints · 46%Half of these problems showed up before 65,000 miles.
The dashboard on my truck has developed two cracks, one is in the hump over the instrument gauges on the drivers side and the other is on the corner of the cut out for the passenger air bag.
I have a 2010 Chevrolet Avalanche ltz my dash is cracking around center mount speaker on both sides all the way to air bag compartment, this is not normal wear and tear, and could be a safety issue with air bag. There is no support around speaker is what is causing issue.
Body and structure
16 complaints · 14%Half of these problems showed up before 52,000 miles. Parts named most often: body.
Crack appeared in dash while truck was parked coming from the passenger side airbag location. The bag may catch on the crack if it was deployed.
Beginning of december 2015, noticed a dash crack over instrument panel behind steering wheel. Also small crack by passenger air bag. Contacted and took to ray Chevrolet. I expressed concern about crack by airbag--was told by service manager that it was probably not a safety issue and the amount that I had to pay was…
Electrical
8 complaints · 7%Half of these problems showed up before 50,000 miles.
Gm tsb #10047479 this is a well know problem on gm truck and SUV models with power adjustable pedals. The wires rub against the mechanism causing a short and making errors to the computer causing communication problems and loss of power. Repaired at dealership, and charged $300 for labor no parts involved. Not covered…
I was driving on a bridge when the check engine light came on and the engine power reduced. The truck immediately dropped to below 30 MPH and I could not accelerate up the bridge and barely avoiding an accident, as this was in a heavy traffic area. I was able to get it to the dealership and are working on it now. This…
Engine
6 complaints · 5%Half of these problems showed up before 71,000 miles.
Immediately upon starting my truck, while in park, the dashboard indicated the vehicle was in reduced engine power mode and the check engine light came on and the stabilitrak was disabled. The truck would not accelerate properly and would only drive approximately 25 MPH. This is the 5th time this has occurred on this…
The contact owns a 2010 Chevrolet Avalanche. While driving approximately 50 MPH with the windshield wipers activated, the vehicle suddenly stalled. The vehicle regained power within less than a minute. The contact stated that the failure recurred an additional two times; however, the windshield wipers were not…
Speed control
3 complaints · 3%I was driving on a bridge when the check engine light came on and the engine power reduced. The truck immediately dropped to below 30 MPH and I could not accelerate up the bridge and barely avoiding an accident, as this was in a heavy traffic area. I was able to get it to the dealership and are working on it now. This…
I was on vacation and had my Avalanche running while I packed it up to return home. After about 5 minutes of running idle, the check engine light came on and the display showed reduced engine power, service traction control, and service stabilitrak. This had happened to the truck three times before and each time they…
Transmission
3 complaints · 3%When turning the rear differential momentarily locks up sounding like little skids. During normal slow accelerations the issue causes the truck to lunge or bump feeling like it is coming from the differential. Since I fisrt purchased the thruck new from the dealer there has always been an issue with clunking from the…
Stability control
3 complaints · 3%Stabilitrac and traction control lights came on along with service both and the check engine light is on and sometimes flashes. Truck is idling very rough and seems to downshift hard from 2nd to 1st.
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2010 Chevrolet Avalanche recalls
Air bags: inflator module
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.
Full defect summary
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, missou
Air bags: inflator module
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.
Full defect summary
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, ne
Air bags: inflator module
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 25, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed to 40 VIN owners on may 11, 2021. A second owner notification letter was mailed to all other owners on january 24, 2022. 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'
Full defect summary
General motors, llc (gm) is recalling certain 2014 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, chevrolet silverado 2500, silverado 3500, suburban, tahoe, gmc sierra 2500, sierra 3500, yukon, and yukon xl vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of al, ca, fl, ga, hi, la, ms, sc, tx, pr, as, gu, the mp, and vi or "zone a." additionally gm is recalling certain 2011-2014 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, chevrolet silverado 2500, silverado 3500, suburban, tahoe, gmc sierra 2500, sierra 3500, yukon, yukon xl and 2011-2013 cadillac escalade ext, chevrolet avalanche, silverado 1500, and gmc sierra 1500 vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of az, ar, de, dc, il, in, ks, ky, md, mo, ne, nv, nj, nm, nc, oh, ok, pa, tn, va, and wv or "zone b." additionally, gm is recalling certain 2010-2014 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, chevrolet silverado 2500, silverado 3500, sub
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Desiccated air bag inflator rupture
Summary
From 2000 through 2017, takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("psan") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004l. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited. The rapid burning can cause the inflator to rupture during deployment, potentially causing serious or even fatal injury to vehicle occupants. See 2016 blomquist report at www.NHTSA.gov/sites/NHTSA.gov/files/documents/expert_report-hrblomquist.pdf.consequently, all frontal inflators using propellant 2004 that do not contain a "desiccant" (a substa
Questions about the 2010 Chevrolet Avalanche
- What are the most common problems with the 2010 Chevrolet Avalanche?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: air bags (53 complaints, typically around 70,500 miles); other or unspecified (51 complaints, typically around 65,000 miles); body and structure (16 complaints, typically around 52,000 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2010 Chevrolet Avalanche have?
- 3 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from February 5, 2021 (air bags). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2010 a bad year for the Chevrolet Avalanche?
- It is 7th of 14 Avalanche model years by number of complaints, with 111 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.