What breaks most · 1999 to 2014 model years
Chevrolet TrailBlazer problems by year
Owners have filed 6,520 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Chevrolet TrailBlazer across model years 1999 to 2014. Three years stand out: 2005 for electrical system complaints, 2002 for powertrain and transmission complaints and 2006 for fuel system complaints. The quietest years are 1999, 2001 and 2000.
- Years to check closely: 2005, 2002, 2006
- Fewest complaints: 1999, 2001, 2000
- Complaints on file
- 65201999 to 2014, all trims
- Worst year
- 20051438 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 337220 fires · 352 injuries · 28 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 70kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 38Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 0 | 0 | Powertrain and transmission (2) | |
| 26 | 3 | 0 | Powertrain and transmission (5) | |
| 20 | 2 | 0 | Powertrain and transmission (5) | |
| 1129 | 100 | 13 | Powertrain and transmission (308) | |
| 887 | 68 | 8 | Electrical system (280) | |
| 1057 | 53 | 2 | Electrical system (619) | |
| 1438 | 55 | 2 | Electrical system (612) | |
| 1064 | 25 | 8 | Fuel system (437) | |
| 700 | 18 | 5 | Fuel system (215) | |
| 168 | 8 | 0 | Electrical system (60) | |
| 26 | 5 | 0 | Exterior lighting (12) | |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | Engine (1) |
What fails on the 2005 Chevrolet TrailBlazer
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 43% |
612 | 4 | Shop electrical system parts for the 2005 Chevrolet TrailBlazer |
| Fuel systemFuel pumps and injectors | 30% |
435 | 0 | Shop fuel system parts for the 2005 Chevrolet TrailBlazer |
| Exterior lightingHeadlights, tail lights and bulbs | 9% |
134 | 0 | Shop exterior lighting parts for the 2005 Chevrolet TrailBlazer |
| Fuel System, Other | 7% |
95 | 0 | — |
| Fuel systemFuel pumps and injectors | 6% |
89 | 1 | Shop fuel system parts for the 2005 Chevrolet TrailBlazer |
| Speed control and throttleThrottle and pedal sensors | 5% |
76 | 3 | Shop speed control and throttle parts for the 2005 Chevrolet TrailBlazer |
| Air bags | 4% |
62 | 39 | Check recalls for air bags on NHTSA.gov |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 3% |
50 | 5 | Shop powertrain and transmission parts for the 2005 Chevrolet TrailBlazer |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
-
The speedometer isn't working. I've been hearing how common this issue is. Every now and then it will jump to a random spot when i start the vehicle and stay there. But it never moves while driving
-
Driving on highway transmission blew, leaked 10 out of 12 quarts of transmission fluid... Very common in 2002 trailblazers i feel chevy should have recalled the 2002 transmissions due to how many complaints people have had.
-
The fuel gauge read 3/4 of a tank so we did not stop to get gas, thinking we had enough to get home. 3min later we ran out on the hwy with 4 children in the car 2 that are under the age of 2 .
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 30, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Chevrolet TrailBlazer years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2005, 2002, 2006 carry the most filings on the Chevrolet TrailBlazer. The 2005 alone has 1438 complaints, led by electrical system.
What is the most common Chevrolet TrailBlazer problem?
On the 2005 model year, the most-reported component is electrical system with 612 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Chevrolet TrailBlazer problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Chevrolet TrailBlazer complaints that include mileage is about 70,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.