I have a 07 Equinox & keep getting a warning light saying Stabiltrak off, Service Traction Control. Sometimes if I shut my vehicle off & then restart, it will be fine for a while. Not sure what is causing it. Just put in a new battery & new tires. Someone said might be a senser. Of course it's not under warranty any longer. Anyone know how much to replace a senser?

 

I am having a simlar issue at only 56,000 miles. The ABS light is not on and works fine. I get the "Service Stabilitrak" and "Service Traction Control" messages immediately when I first start the car. Of course it occurs just after the extended warranty expired. I am going to take it to the dealership sometime in the coming weeks when I get a chance (wife drives it daily). Just wondering if there's anything I can look for beforehand. The car was parked in a flash flood (~2 feet of water) zone almost three months ago. I gutted the interior and cleaned out the dirt & water that made it into the cabin 3 days after it occurred, but it just started acting up a couple weeks ago. The vehicle drives fine otherwise.

 

I have been suffering the same exact issues. A good mechanic I go to found that the sensor had water in it. He dried it out and cleaned it, then the message went away for 6 months. Issue is back now. Taking it back to mechanic to see if he can dry it out again. Will find prices tomorrow of replacing sensor.

 

Find out which sensor it is and where it's located if you don't mind. It may help other members who run into this problem in the future.

 

A Saturn mechanic told me it's a sensor reading problem on startup, like a quick computer glitch that happens like 1/1000 time. Nothing to worry about.

On mine it does it only if I stop de vehicule and restart it quickly.

 

Hmmmm, that's interesting. But since it's nothing to worry about, I guess it's okay.

 

Do not ignore the problem. I did the same thing - told it was a sensor, sensor was wet. in 24 hours I now have major engine problems as with the stabilink and traction contol lights coming on - the engine light comes on and engine power is reduce. Continued driving causes transmission issues - get your vehicle into the shop immediately and have the mechanic run diagonostics - it's better to take it to the dealer, ignoring the transaction control light will eventually cause irreversible damage with your transmission. This happened with a 2006 Chevy Impala at 30K miles and now with a 2009 Equinox at 33K miles - it's definitly an issue with Chrevrolets.

 

Please research before you buy an Equinox. There are literally hundreds of problems with the stabiltrak/traction control warning light. We have had our 2009 in several times. Never know when the light is going to come on. The service technicians have checked codes (while the warning light was on) and say there is nothing wrong. This is a certified GM service technician. We do not know if our vehicle is safe or not. Apparently this warning light can mean many, many different issues. GM has failed on this problem. We actually drove it home and got 21 miles after leaving the service department before the light came back on again. We got 50 miles last time. This is after having the vehicle in for over a week to try to find the problem. We are now logging every time we have a Stabilitrak/Traction Control issue so we can file the appropriate forms with our state Attorney General to have this looked into before there is a fatality from this due to loss of power. Hopefully there haven't been any accidents that this issue caused, but the issue and accident "coincidence" have not been discovered yet. So disappointed in this vehicle and scared to drive it anywhere!!

 

Going to your Attorney General regarding this problem is a waste of time and resources IMO. Unfortunately, it seems that your "certified GM service technician" isn't that good at diagnosing a problem or explaining the severity of it to you. I would recommend going to a different dealer if possible. Keep in mind that you don't need to go to a Chevrolet dealership. You can go to a dealership for any of the other GM brands (Cadillac, GMC, Buick) if necessary.

You didn't mention it, but I'm assuming you're also seeing the "Stabilitrak Off" message. The messages you are seeing only mean that Stabilitrak has been disabled. Your vehicle is no less safe to drive than a brand new 2005 or 2006 Equinox that didn't come with Stabilitrak. The Equinox wasn't equipped with Stabilitrak until it became a standard feature for the 2007 model year. We have driven our 2007 Equinox since October 2008 and have only once (intentionally) invoked Stabilitrak while driving.

Whenever the Service Stabiltrak/Service Traction Control messages are displayed, a troublecode is stored that techs can see and use as a starting point for diagnosing the problem. There is one particular trouble code (C0561) that, when properly interpreted, indicates that there are no problems in the ABS/TCS system; only that Stabiltrak is disabled. I'm willing to bet that is the code your current dealership is getting. This code is often accompanied by other potential (either pending or confirmed) faults. In these situations it is up to the tech to properly interpret the data they find and diagnose the problem.

I have found that in many cases with the 2007-2009 Equinox w/3.4L engine, a bad EGR valve is to blame, and the fix is to replace the EGR valve with a new one.

If lowly me can figure all of this out, then it should be a breeze for a "GM certified" technician that wrenches on cars for a living to figure out.

 

ya the c0561 is just a system disable that was set from another code. Do you have a check engine light as well? You need to start with the P code first if that's the case. I've been in the business a while and certified means nothing, I've worked with guys that are ASE master techs and maxed out in dealer training that I still wouldn't let touch my vehicle. Unfortunately it seems that half the battle anymore is finding a good shop/tech to do the work.