Research · Sport Utility Vehicle - 2WD

2009 Chevrolet TahoeRecalls, problems, MPG & safety

NHTSA lists 5 safety recalls and 306 owner complaints for the 2009 Chevrolet Tahoe. Most complaints involve air bags (99) and structure (54). The EPA rates it 14–17 mpg combined.

Combined MPG
14–17mpg
EPA · 7 versions
NHTSA overall
—
Not rated by NCAP
Safety recalls
5campaigns
Latest Feb 2021
Owner complaints
306
Top: air bags
Fuel cost / yr
$3,650est.
EPA estimate, best version
01 —Recalls

Safety recalls

5 NHTSA campaigns · applies to some vehicles, check your VIN

Air bags: inflator module

Remedy pending

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."

Air bagsReported Feb 5, 2021NHTSA 21V053000

Air bags: inflator module

Remedy pending

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.

Air bagsReported Feb 5, 2021NHTSA 21V052000

Air bags: inflator module

Remedy pending

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.

Air bagsReported Feb 5, 2021NHTSA 21V050000
Data from NHTSA Recalls API · synced Nov 10, 2026 · All recall detailsNHTSA vehicle page
02 —Complaints

Owner complaints by component

306 complaints filed with NHTSA · Nov 2008 – Jul 2026
  1. Air bags99
  2. Structure54
  3. Electrical system40
  4. Latches/locks/linkages23
  5. Engine16
  6. Power train16
  7. Electronic stability control (esc)15
  8. Service brakes10
  9. Fuel/propulsion system10

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.

By model year

Complaints for each Tahoe model year we’ve synced.

View as table
Model yearNHTSA complaints
2008586
2009306
2010319
2011457
2012180
2013233
2021464
2022197
2023233
202469
202552
202628
Crashes reported
5
Fires reported
1
Injuries reported
9
Deaths reported
0
Data from NHTSA Complaints API · synced Nov 10, 2026 · Full problem breakdownNHTSA vehicle page
03 —Common problems

What owners report most

Verbatim excerpts from NHTSA complaints, by component

Air bags

99 reports
“Dash cover is falling apart, a well known defect. I worry that an airbag deployment could cause dangerous shrapnel to be projected throughout the passenger compartment causing injuries like skin cuts and eye injuries.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Oct 10, 2024Air bagsODI 11619119

Structure

54 reports
“CRACKED DASHBOARD ABOVE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER AND LEFT UPPER PORTION OF PASSENGER SIDE DASH AIRBAG, VEHICLE WAS STATIONARY, CAME OUT ONE MORNING AND CRACKS SHOWED UP, ABOUT A MONTH WENT BY AND PIECES OF DASH STARTED BREAKING OFF DASHBOARD AND FALLING INSIDE DASH AREA”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Nov 16, 2018StructureODI 11152084

Electrical system

40 reports1 crash1 fire
“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.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jul 8, 2026Electrical system, Seats, EngineODI 11748963
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 10, 2026
04 —Key specs

Engines, transmissions & drive

7 versions rated by the EPA
EPA class
Sport Utility Vehicle - 2WD, Sport Utility Vehicle - 4WD
Engines
5.3L 8-cyl · 4.8L 8-cyl · 6.2L 8-cyl
Transmissions
Automatic 6-spd · Automatic 4-spd
Drive
Rear-Wheel Drive · 4-Wheel or All-Wheel Drive
Fuel
Regular Gasoline

Towing, payload and dimensions aren’t in the EPA or NHTSA data, so we don’t list them.

Data from EPA fueleconomy.gov · synced Nov 10, 2026EPA listing
05 —Fuel economy

EPA fuel economy by version

City / highway / combined, annual fuel cost and CO₂
EPA
VersionCityHwyComb.Fuel / yrCO₂ g/mi
Tahoe 1500 XFE 2WD
Auto 6-spd, 8 cyl, 5.3 L · Rear-Wheel Drive
152117$3,650523
Tahoe 1500 2WD
Auto 4-spd, 8 cyl, 4.8 L, CLKUP · Rear-Wheel Drive
141916$3,900555
Tahoe 1500 2WD
Auto 6-spd, 8 cyl, 5.3 L, CLKUP · Rear-Wheel Drive
142016$3,900555
Tahoe 1500 2WD
Auto 6-spd, 8 cyl, 5.3 L, CLKUP · Rear-Wheel Drive
142016$3,900555
Tahoe 1500 4WD
Auto 6-spd, 8 cyl, 5.3 L · 4-Wheel or All-Wheel Drive
142016$3,900555
Tahoe 1500 2WD
Auto 6-spd, 8 cyl, 6.2 L, CLKUP · Rear-Wheel Drive
121915$4,150592
Tahoe 1500 4WD
Auto 6-spd, 8 cyl, 6.2 L · 4-Wheel or All-Wheel Drive
121914$4,450635
  • Tahoe 1500 XFE 2WD
    Auto 6-spd, 8 cyl, 5.3 L
    15 city · 21 hwy · $3,650/yr
    17
    mpg comb.
  • Tahoe 1500 2WD
    Auto 4-spd, 8 cyl, 4.8 L, CLKUP
    14 city · 19 hwy · $3,900/yr
    16
    mpg comb.
  • Tahoe 1500 2WD
    Auto 6-spd, 8 cyl, 5.3 L, CLKUP
    14 city · 20 hwy · $3,900/yr
    16
    mpg comb.
  • Tahoe 1500 2WD
    Auto 6-spd, 8 cyl, 5.3 L, CLKUP
    14 city · 20 hwy · $3,900/yr
    16
    mpg comb.
  • Tahoe 1500 4WD
    Auto 6-spd, 8 cyl, 5.3 L
    14 city · 20 hwy · $3,900/yr
    16
    mpg comb.
  • Tahoe 1500 2WD
    Auto 6-spd, 8 cyl, 6.2 L, CLKUP
    12 city · 19 hwy · $4,150/yr
    15
    mpg comb.
  • Tahoe 1500 4WD
    Auto 6-spd, 8 cyl, 6.2 L
    12 city · 19 hwy · $4,450/yr
    14
    mpg comb.
Data from EPA fueleconomy.gov · synced Nov 10, 2026 · Fuel cost is EPA’s annual estimate (15,000 mi, 55% city)
06 —Safety

NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings

1 tested variant
NHTSA has not published 5-Star Safety Ratings for the 2009 Chevrolet Tahoe as of Nov 10, 2026.
Data from NHTSA NCAP Safety Ratings API · synced Nov 10, 2026Vehicle 5069
07 —Maintenance

Maintenance basics

General guidance, not the OEM schedule. Check your owner’s manual.
General guidance
ItemMilesTimeNote
Engine oil & filter5,000–10,000 mi6–12 monthsFollow the oil-life monitor if fitted
Tire rotation5,000–7,500 miEvery oil changeCheck pressure monthly
Engine air filter15,000–30,000 mi1–2 yearsSooner in dusty areas
Cabin air filter15,000–25,000 mi1–2 years
Brake fluid—2–3 yearsAbsorbs moisture over time
Coolant60,000–100,000 mi5–10 yearsLong-life coolants last longer
Spark plugs60,000–100,000 mi—Iridium/platinum plugs at the long end
12V battery—3–5 yearsHeat shortens battery life
  • Engine oil & filter5,000–10,000 mi
    6–12 months
  • Tire rotation5,000–7,500 mi
    Every oil change
  • Engine air filter15,000–30,000 mi
    1–2 years
  • Cabin air filter15,000–25,000 mi
    1–2 years
  • Brake fluid—
    2–3 years
  • Coolant60,000–100,000 mi
    5–10 years
  • Spark plugs60,000–100,000 mi
    —
  • 12V battery—
    3–5 years
Typical intervals for modern cars. Severe service (towing, short trips, extreme heat or cold) shortens them.
09 —FAQ

2009 Tahoe questions

How many recalls does the 2009 Chevrolet Tahoe have?

5 safety recalls as of Nov 10, 2026, according to NHTSA. Recall repairs are free at a dealer. Check your VIN to see whether your car is included and whether the repair was done.

What are the most common 2009 Chevrolet Tahoe problems?

Owners filed 306 complaints with NHTSA. The most-cited components are air bags (99), structure (54), electrical system (40). Complaints are unverified owner reports and aren't adjusted for how many cars were sold.

What MPG does the 2009 Chevrolet Tahoe get?

The EPA rates the 2009 Chevrolet Tahoe at 14–17 mpg combined, depending on engine and drivetrain (7 versions rated).

Data from NHTSA & EPA · synced Nov 10, 2026