2012 Chevrolet Cruze: problems, recalls and reliability
7 recalls and 864 owner complaints on record; the weakest area is engine (22% of complaints).
Data updated weekly · 2 new complaints in the last 90 days · latest recall Jul 2016
All counts are reports filed with NHTSA in the United States - US market only, not worldwide totals.
Common problems
Computed from 864 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for this exact model year.
“Have called about this starting 2020. Had 137000. Also previous owner since 99000mi. Drive train & Turbo. Brake assist. Oil leaks, shutting off while driving. Now as of Saturday April 25 2026 Car shut off while driving and has been towed to dealership. Car deemed lemon by GM. In 2020 car to have been replaced I have all service contact numbers as well as my receipts. Car is a death trap. Do better Chevrolet & GM”Owner report · Service Brakes · Apr 2026
“The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Cruze. The contact stated that while driving at 40 MPH and accelerating over a speed bump, the key slid out of the ignition switch. An independent mechanic was contacted. The vehicle was taken to the independent mechanic, and it was determined that the ignition switch needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact associated the failure with NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V502000 (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, POWER TRAIN); however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and a case was opened. The failure mileage was 74,522.”Owner report · Power Train · Mar 2026
“Repetitive coolant leak repaired 5+ times over 9 years; incurred costs over $X,XXX. Coolant (toxic) leak causes burn off in the engine compartment and the vapors from this are transferred into the cabin, posing a risk to driver and passenger health.”Owner report · Engine · Sep 2025
Show 7 more owner reports
“My son just purchased this car and nearly hit 100,000 miles. It started leaking oil in the engine area the valve cover gasket. It's drips all over the car causing it to smoke and smell.”Owner report · Engine · Sep 2025
“Had a 3-5-R wave plate failure. Symptoms started at around 87,000 miles. Bouncing/jerking when put into reverse. 5th gear slams hard into gear when upshifting and downshifting, making it feel like I have been rear ended. Now 3rd gear is starting to shift hard like 5th. Soon I'll have no gears. Car has been both regular and preventative maintained so should not have such a massive failure at under 100k miles. Other vehicles with the same transmission (6t40) have been recalled due to similar issues, like the 1.4 turbocharged Cruze, but not the 1.8l Cruze for whatever reason. Now I have to pay $4k for a rebuild on something that Chevrolet should be liable to pay.”Owner report · Power Train · Feb 2025
“Car started jerking when put in reverse and slams hard into 5th gear only. Taken to transmission shop and they have no idea what's causing it. They said they've never seen something like this before, and said it doesn't feel like a major transmission failure. Car only had 98,000 miles on it when hard shifting started. Regularly maintained. Motor and trans mounts were checked and fine. More than normal amounts of metal in trans fluid when drain and fill was performed.”Owner report · Power Train · Dec 2024
“The check engine light keeps coming up after I buy gas in it and when I take it to Autozone for diagnose it keeps saying engine coolant which I just changed. After a while the light disappears but comes back when I fuel it.”Owner report · Unknown Or Other · Nov 2024
“The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Cruze. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer to be diagnosed. However, the vehicle was not yet diagnosed or repaired. The vehicle was taken to an auto repair shop where it was diagnosed that the vehicle was leaking oil, along with several other undisclosed failures. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact attempted to contact the manufacturer; however, the manufacturer had not yet responded. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.”Owner report · Engine · Oct 2024
“The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Cruze. The contact stated that while driving 30 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power and failed to respond while depressing the accelerator pedal. The vehicle was able to be restarted on the third attempt; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was not taken to be diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.”Owner report · Engine · Sep 2024
“The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Cruze. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact connected a diagnostic machine to the vehicle and retrieved a DTC code for a failure with the purge valve and the catalytic convertor. The contact replaced the purge valve; however, the failure reoccurred. The contact stated that several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated that the warning lights blinked on and off. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or the dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 98,039.”Owner report · Engine And Engine Cooling · Sep 2024
When filing, owners marked a crash in 62 of these complaints and injuries in 30 - self-reported to NHTSA, not verified accident statistics.
Recalls - 7 campaigns
General Motors is recalling certain model year 2012 Buick Verano, Chevrolet Cruze, and Chevrolet Sonic vehicles. The driver side frontal air bag has a shorting bar which may intermittently contact the air bag terminals.
Remedy: General Motors will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering wheel airbag coil, free of charge. The safety recall began on January 11, 2013. Owners may contact General Motors at 1-800-521-7300.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2012 Buick Verano vehicles manufactured December 2, 2011 to July, 16, 2012, Chevrolet Cruze vehicles manufactured December 7, 2011 to July 25, 2012, Chevrolet Sonic vehicles manufactured December 5, 2011 to August 2, 2012, and Chevrolet Camaro vehicles manufactured December 1, 2011 to June 11, 2012. The driver side frontal air bag has a shorting bar which may intermittently contact the air bag terminals.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering wheel air bag coil, free of charge. The recall began on July 25, 2014. Chevrolet owners may contact GM at 1-800-222-1020. Buick owners may contact GM at 1-800-521-7300. Note: This is an expansion of recalls 12V-522 and 13V-023.
GENERAL MOTORS (GM) IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2011 AND 2012 CHEVROLET CRUZE VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM OCTOBER 2, 2009, THROUGH MAY 31, 2012. SPILLED OR DRIPPING OIL (SUCH AS AFTER AN OIL CHANGE) MAY COLLECT IN THE ENGINE SHIELD (BELLYPAN) NEAR HOT ENGINE OR EXHAUST SYSTEM SURFACES. AS A RESULT, THE OIL AND THE ENGINE SHIELD MAY IGNITE AND BURN.
Remedy: GM WILL NOTIFY OWNERS, AND DEALERS WILL MODIFY THE ENGINE SHIELD TO PREVENT FLUID FROM CONTACTING THE SHIELD. ALSO, ON VEHICLES WITH A MANUAL TRANSMISSION, DEALERS WILL APPLY A PROTECTIVE TAPE TO THE ELECTRONIC POWER STEERING WIRE HARNESS. REPAIRS WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE TO THE OWNER. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 10, 2012. OWNERS MAY CONTACT THE CHEVROLET OWNER CENTER AT 1-866-694-6546.
GENERAL MOTORS (GM) IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2011 AND 2012 CHEVROLET CRUZE VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM OCTOBER 2, 2009, THROUGH MAY 14, 2012. ATTACHMENT WELDS FOR THE FUEL TANK STRAP SECONDARY BRACKETS MAY HAVE BEEN OMITTED.
Remedy: GM WILL NOTIFY OWNERS, AND DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE VEHICLE FOR MISSING WELDS. IF THE VEHICLE IS MISSING WELDS, DEALERS WILL SECURE THE BRACKET ATTACHMENTS WITH FASTENERS. REPAIRS WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 9, 2012. OWNERS MAY CONTACT THE CHEVROLET OWNER CENTER AT 1-866-694-6546.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Buick Verano and 2016 Chevrolet Malibu as the electronic park lock lever may allow the ignition key to be removed without the transmission being in PARK. Also, certain 2013 Buick Encore, 2011 Buick Regal, 2013-2014 Buick Verano, 2011-2016 Chevrolet Cruze, 2010-2013 Chevrolet Equinox 2013-2015 Chevrolet Malibu, and 2011-2013 GMC Terrain vehicles may have been serviced with similar defective replacement electronic park lock levers. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 114, "Theft Protection and Rollaway Prevention."
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and if necessary replace the key cylinder lock housing, free of charge. The recall began on October 14, 2016. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, Buick 1-800-521-7300, and GMC 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 50490 and 50491.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2012 Chevrolet Camaro, Cruze and Sonic, and model year 2012 Buick Verano vehicles. The driver side frontal air bag has a shorting bar which may intermittently contact the air bag terminals.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering wheel air bag coil, free of charge. The safety recall began on February 13, 2013. Owners may contact General Motors at 1-800-521-7300.
General Motors (GM) is recalling certain model year 2011-2012 Chevrolet Cruze vehicles equipped with 1.4L DOHC gasoline turbo engines and 6T40 front wheel drive automatic transmissions and equipped with an electric vacuum pump to provide supplemental vacuum for brake assist, when needed. In the affected vehicles, the pump may not activate, resulting in an intermittent reduction or loss of brake assist.
Remedy: General Motors will notify owners, and dealers will replace a microswitch in the power brake vacuum pipe assembly, free of charge. The recall began on October 7, 2013. Owners may contact Chevrolet at 1-800-222-1020. GM's recall number is 12213.
Trouble codes owners mention
OBD-II codes that appear in NHTSA complaints about this car.
How other years compare
Check your exact Cruze by VIN
Recalls and equipment differ between individual vehicles. Decode your VIN to see what applies to yours.
Open VIN decoderFrequently asked questions
Is the 2012 Chevrolet Cruze reliable?
NHTSA has 864 owner complaints and 7 recall campaigns on record for the 2012 Chevrolet Cruze. The most complained-about area is engine (22% of complaints).
At what mileage do 2012 Chevrolet Cruze problems usually appear?
Half of the complaints that mention mileage were filed at 56,667 miles or less.
Does the 2012 Chevrolet Cruze have open recalls?
7 recall campaigns have been issued, the latest concerning air bags. Check your specific vehicle by VIN - recall repairs are free at franchised dealers.
Source: NHTSA recall campaigns and owner complaints (public domain). Counts reflect reports on file and are not a defect rate.