AutoUtility currently tracks 219 official NHTSA owner defect complaints for the 2016 Chevrolet Suburban. Brakes & Traction Control issues are the most frequently reported category, appearing in 82 complaints (37.4% of submitted records). Among these NHTSA complaint records, 9 filings cite a crash, 1 cites a fire, 7 report one or more injuries.

Key Problem Findings
  • Total NHTSA Complaints: 219 reports
  • #1 Reported Problem Area: Brakes & Traction Control (82 reports • 37.4% of submitted complaints)
  • Secondary Problem Areas: Powertrain & Transmission (45), Electrical System (26)
  • Crash-Citing Complaints: 9 filings
  • Fire-Citing Complaints: 1 filings
  • Complaints Reporting Injuries / Fatalities: 7 injury filings • 0 fatality filings
Reporting Methodology: Statistics describe unverified consumer submissions voluntarily filed with NHTSA. Complaint volume is not normalized for vehicle sales volume or miles driven. Multiple components can be cited within a single owner complaint submission.
Total Complaints
219
Submitted to NHTSA ODI
Crash-Citing Complaints
9
Filings citing a collision
Fire-Citing Complaints
1
Filings citing smoke or fire
Complaints Reporting Injuries
7
Filings citing one or more injuries
Complaints Reporting Fatalities
0
Consumer filings citing fatalities

Most Reported Problems for 2016 Chevrolet Suburban

Top automotive subsystem defect categories ranked by unique owner complaint volume in federal records

#1 Problem Area 37.4% of complaints

Brakes & Traction Control

82 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 2 official safety recall campaigns for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
⚠️ 6 crash reports 🩹 5 injury report entries
#2 Problem Area 20.5% of complaints

Powertrain & Transmission

45 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ 1 crash report
#3 Problem Area 11.9% of complaints

Electrical System

26 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
✓ 0 crashes or fires cited
#4 Problem Area 11.9% of complaints

Engine & Cooling

26 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
🔥 1 fire report
#5 Problem Area 10.5% of complaints

Steering System

23 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
✓ 0 crashes or fires cited
Domain Share Note: Share percentage represents the proportion of unique complaint filings referencing each vehicle system. Because single complaints may cite multiple systems (such as engine and electrical simultaneously), domain percentages represent individual category incidence and may sum to over 100%.

Symptoms Mentioned in NHTSA Owner Reports for 2016 Chevrolet Suburban

Specific mechanical, electrical, and driver-assist defect symptoms identified via deterministic narrative analysis

AutoUtility uses deterministic phrase matching to identify recurring symptom descriptions within consumer-submitted NHTSA complaint narratives.

Brakes & Traction Control 2.7% of complaints

Reduced Braking / Brake Pedal to Floor

6 complaint narratives describe this symptom
Symptom Identification Method: A complaint may describe more than one symptom, so percentages may sum to more than 100%. Symptom identification reflects text contained in consumer-submitted complaint records and does not establish a confirmed mechanical diagnosis.

Recent NHTSA Owner Reports for 2016 Chevrolet Suburban

Representative defect filings submitted by owners to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation

Visibility, Wipers & Glass NHTSA ODI ID: #11759630
Filed: 08/26/2026

"The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Suburban. The contact stated that while driving approximately 70 MPH, there was a loud booming sound coming from the vehicle, and the sunroof glass exploded. During the failure, the sunroof cover was closed. Upon inspection, the contact discovered shards of glass..."

Incident Date: 08/25/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: VISIBILITY
Powertrain & Transmission NHTSA ODI ID: #11758109
Filed: 08/19/2026

"The transmission failed suddenly and without warning. When I Went to pull out from a stop sign with cross traffic doing 55 mph, the vehicle shuddered and stopped pulling. We barely had enough momentum to get out of the way of oncoming traffic at the last second. The oncoming traffic had to brake..."

Incident Date: 08/16/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: POWER TRAIN
Driver Assistance & Safety Tech NHTSA ODI ID: #11754919
Filed: 08/05/2026

"While in the parking lot or stopping at the stop light the brakes will get hard and won’t brake ."

Incident Date: 07/20/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE
Body & Structure NHTSA ODI ID: #11746400
Filed: 06/25/2026

"Hood and roof of Suburban has discolored and lost its shine coat. The door and panels are fine"

Incident Date: 01/02/2024 • Raw NHTSA Component: STRUCTURE
Steering System NHTSA ODI ID: #11743382
Filed: 06/11/2026

"As I was driving 75 mph down the highway my collision alert flashed all my lights turned off, including my headlights and all interior lights as it was dark time and they flashed back on a couple of times until they finally stayed on. I pulled over and as I came to zero, speed, the vehicle..."

Incident Date: 06/09/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Consumer Narrative Notice: Excerpts are sanitized text descriptions submitted by vehicle owners to the federal ODI database. They reflect the reporting consumer's observations at the time of filing and have not been independently confirmed by vehicle manufacturers or government investigators.

Complaint History for Chevrolet Suburban

Reported defect complaint volume across sibling model years (2015–2026)

Model Year NHTSA Complaints Crash Reports Safety Recalls Detailed Report
2015 Chevrolet Suburban 428 21 11 View 2015 Problems →
2016 Chevrolet Suburban Current Page 219 9 6 Current
2017 Chevrolet Suburban 141 7 5 View 2017 Problems →
2018 Chevrolet Suburban 81 3 4 View 2018 Problems →
2019 Chevrolet Suburban 77 2 3 View 2019 Problems →
2020 Chevrolet Suburban 42 2 4 View 2020 Problems →
2021 Chevrolet Suburban 186 6 12 View 2021 Problems →
2022 Chevrolet Suburban 111 4 4 View 2022 Problems →
2023 Chevrolet Suburban 134 1 4 View 2023 Problems →
2024 Chevrolet Suburban 38 1 2 View 2024 Problems →
2025 Chevrolet Suburban 27 0 1 View 2025 Problems →
2026 Chevrolet Suburban 0 0 3 View 2026 Problems →
Comparative Disclaimer: Complaint totals are unadjusted historical counts and are not normalized for vehicles sold, active fleet size, or total road mileage. Newer model years naturally have had less calendar exposure time to accumulate owner filings.

Detailed NHTSA Component Breakdown for 2016 Chevrolet Suburban

Complete distribution of consumer defect reports across all 62 granular NHTSA system and subsystem classifications

Vehicle Component / System Total Complaints Crash Reports Fire Reports Reported Injury Entries Reported Fatality Entries
Service Brakes NHTSA category: SERVICE BRAKES 62 4 0 2 0
Powertrain NHTSA category: POWER TRAIN 37 1 0 0 0
Other / Uncategorized NHTSA category: UNKNOWN OR OTHER 17 0 0 0 0
Steering NHTSA category: STEERING 8 0 0 0 0
Structure & Body NHTSA category: STRUCTURE 6 0 0 1 0
Engine NHTSA category: ENGINE 5 0 1 0 0
Electrical System NHTSA category: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 4 0 0 0 0
STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE 4 0 0 0 0
Suspension NHTSA category: SUSPENSION 4 1 0 1 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE 3 0 0 0 0
Fuel & Propulsion System NHTSA category: FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 3 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ENGINE 3 0 0 0 0
Service Brakes NHTSA category: SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC 3 0 0 0 0
STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 3 0 0 0 0
Tires NHTSA category: TIRES 3 0 0 0 0
Air Bags NHTSA category: AIR BAGS 2 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,SERVICE BRAKES 2 0 0 0 0
Seat Belts NHTSA category: SEAT BELTS 2 0 0 0 0
Seats & Restraints NHTSA category: SEATS 2 0 0 0 0
STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EXTERIOR LIGHTING 2 0 0 0 0
SUSPENSION,WHEELS,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 2 0 0 0 0
Wheels & Hubs NHTSA category: WHEELS 2 0 0 0 0
AIR BAGS,SEAT BELTS 1 1 0 1 0
AIR BAGS,SEAT BELTS,SERVICE BRAKES 1 1 0 2 0
AIR BAGS,SEATS 1 0 0 0 0
AIR BAGS,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,LANE DEPARTURE,BACK OVER PREVENTION 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,STRUCTURE,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC),SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
ENGINE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 0 0 0 0
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 1 0 0 0 0
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
Doors, Latches & Locks NHTSA category: LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ENGINE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 1 1 0 1 0
SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,STRUCTURE 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,SUSPENSION,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,SUSPENSION,WHEELS 1 0 0 0 0
STRUCTURE,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
SUSPENSION,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
SUSPENSION,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
SUSPENSION,STRUCTURE,WHEELS 1 0 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,VISIBILITY 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
Visibility / Glass NHTSA category: VISIBILITY 1 0 0 0 0
VISIBILITY,STRUCTURE,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 0 0 0 0
Visibility & Wipers NHTSA category: VISIBILITY/WIPER 1 0 0 0 0
WHEELS,SERVICE BRAKES,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
Data Attribution & Reporting Methodology: Complaints are unverified voluntary submissions to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI). Because multiple vehicle components can be cited within a single owner complaint submission, component-level rollups may sum to more than the unique complaint count (219). Injury and fatality entries in the detailed table reflect raw values entered by reporting consumers across individual submissions; they are not deduplicated casualty statistics and may include duplicate or unverified entries. Complaint volume is not normalized for sales volume or vehicle mileage and does not represent an audited component failure rate.

Official NHTSA Defect Investigations (1)

1 CLOSED

Formal safety defect inquiries and engineering analyses opened by the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI)

Official Federal Inquiries: NHTSA opens a defect investigation when safety screening or consumer defect trends indicate a potential unreasonable safety risk. An open investigation is a formal inquiry and does not by itself confirm a defect or result in a mandatory recall.
CLOSED Preliminary Evaluation (PE) ODI Action #PE18012
Opened: 2018-11-20 • Closed: 2022-04-10

Brake Vacuum Pump Failure

Affected Component: SERVICE BRAKES

On November 20, 2018, the Office of Defects Investigations (ODI) opened PE18-012 to investigate instances of sudden onset of a hard brake pedal that could result in extended stopping distance due to an issue with the brake assist vacuum pump in model year (MY) 2014 through 2016 GMC Sierra 1500 and Chevrolet Silverado 1500 series pickup trucks and MY 2015 through 2016 Cadillac Escalade, Chevrolet Suburban, Chevrolet Tahoe, and GMC Yukon SUVs.If th...

✓ Resulted in Safety Recall Campaign: 19V645000 Official NHTSA File →
Official US Government Data Provenance

The complaint records on this page are retrieved directly from the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) public database.

Local Production Store Compiled: August 2026 • Deterministic Audited Dataset • Zero Dynamic External API Runtime Latency.