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Recalls are issued for a make, model and model year. Whether the repair has already been done on one specific car is known only to its manufacturer and dealers. Check your vehicle's official status at nhtsa.gov/recalls or with a dealer.
US recalls (7)
Electrical system: ignition
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."
Risk and remedy
Risk: If the key is removed without the transmission in PARK, the vehicle may rollaway as occupants are exiting, increasing the risk of injury.
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.
Air bags
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.
Risk and remedy
Risk: If the bar and terminals are contacting each other at the time of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, that air bag will not deploy, increasing the driver's risk of injury.
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.
Service brakes, hydraulic: power assist
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.
Risk and remedy
Risk: A loss of braking assistance will require extra pedal force and/or distance to bring the vehicle to a stop, increasing the risk of a crash.
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.
Air bags
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.
Risk and remedy
Risk: If the bar and terminals are contacting each other at the time of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, that air bag will not deploy, increasing the driver's risk of injury.
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.
Air bags
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.
Risk and remedy
Risk: If the bar and terminals are contacting each other at the time of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal airbag, that airbag will not deploy, increasing the driver's risk of injury.
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.
Engine and engine cooling
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.
Risk and remedy
Risk: EITHER CONDITION COULD RESULT IN AN ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRE, POSSIBLY CAUSING INJURY OR DEATH.
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.
Fuel system, gasoline: storage, tank assembly
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.
Risk and remedy
Risk: THE FUEL TANK COULD COME LOOSE IN A CRASH, POSSIBLY ALLOWING FUEL TO LEAK FROM THE TANK. A FUEL LEAK IN THE PRESENCE OF AN IGNITION SOURCE COULD RESULT IN A FIRE.
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.
Canadian recalls (7)
Show 7 Canadian recalls
Airbag
2014-07-22 · campaign 2014-306
On certain vehicles, the primary stage of the driver’s airbag may not deploy during a crash (where deployment is warranted). Failure of an airbag to deploy correctly could increase the risk of personal injury to the seat occupant. Correction: Dealers will replace the steering wheel airbag coil. Note: This is an expansion of recall 2012368.
Accessories
2014-07-03 · campaign 2014-274
On certain vehicles, insulation on the engine block heater power cord may become damaged if the cord is handled during very cold days (temperatures below -25C). This could create an electrical shock hazard, which could result in personal injury. Correction: Dealers will replace the block heater cord.
Airbag
2014-06-06 · campaign 2014-213
On certain vehicles, the primary or secondary stage of the driver’s airbag may not deploy during a crash (where deployment is warranted). Failure of an airbag to deploy correctly could increase the risk of personal injury to the seat occupant. Correction: Dealers will replace the steering wheel airbag coil. Note: This recall is superseded by recall 2014306.
Brakes
2013-08-15 · campaign 2013-282
On certain vehicles equipped with a 1.4L DOHC gasoline turbo engine and a 6T40 automatic transmission, the electric vacuum pump (which provides supplemental vacuum under certain operating conditions) may not function as designed. This could result in an intermittent reduction or loss of brake power assist, requiring greater brake pedal effort to slow or stop the vehicle. This could increase stopping distances, which may result in a crash causing property damage and/or personal injury. Correction: Dealers will replace a microswitch in the power brake vacuum pipe assembly.
Airbag
2012-10-30 · campaign 2012-368
On certain vehicles, the primary stage of the driver’s airbag may not deploy during a crash (where deployment is warranted). Failure of an airbag to deploy correctly could increase the risk of personal injury to the seat occupant. Correction: Dealers will replace the steering wheel airbag coil.
Other
2012-06-22 · campaign 2012-187
On certain vehicles, oil spilt as a result of improper engine oil change procedures could contact hot engine or exhaust components, as well as the engine shield, which could cause the shield to ignite and burn. In addition, on vehicles equipped with a manual transmission, continuing to drive with a completely worn clutch may cause hydraulic fluid to be expelled from the clutch housing vent hole. In some instances, the fluid could be burning as it exits the vent hole. If the burning fluid contacts the engine shield, this too could cause the shield to ignite and burn. These issues could cause an engine compartment fire which could result in property damage and/or personal injury. Correction: Dealers will modify the engine shield to prevent fluid from contacting the shield.
Structure
2012-06-22 · campaign 2012-188
On certain vehicles, welds may have been omitted from the fuel tank mounting brackets during the vehicle manufacturing process. This could allow fuel leakage to occur as a result of a severe side impact crash. Fuel leakage, in the presence of an ignition source, could result in a fire causing property damage and/or personal injury. Correction: Dealers will inspect and, if necessary, secure the fuel tank brackets using fasteners.
Owner complaints (865)
Owners filed 865 complaints with NHTSA about the 2012 Chevrolet Cruze (62 crashes, 18 fires, 30 injuries reported). Among 10 model years of this model, it ranks #1 for the most complaints (median 252).
| Most-reported problem | Complaints | |
|---|
| Engine | 268 | |
| Electrical system | 196 | |
| Service brakes | 142 | |
| Power train | 137 | |
| Electronic stability control (esc) | 108 | |
| Steering | 103 | |
| Unknown or other | 84 | |
| Vehicle speed control | 51 | |
Crash test ratings
NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings for the 2012 Chevrolet Cruze.
| Version | Overall | Frontal | Side | Rollover |
|---|
| 2012 Chevrolet Cruze 4 DR FWD | 5★ | 5★ | 5★ | 4★ |
Fuel economy
EPA ratings for each 2012 Chevrolet Cruze version.
| Version | City MPG | Highway MPG | Combined | Yearly fuel cost |
|---|
| Cruze 1.4 L Automatic (S6) | 26 | 36 | 30 | $2,250 |
| Cruze 1.4 L Manual 6-spd | 26 | 37 | 30 | $2,250 |
| Cruze 1.8 L Automatic (S6) | 22 | 34 | 26 | $2,600 |
| Cruze 1.8 L Manual 6-spd | 25 | 35 | 29 | $2,300 |
| Cruze Eco 1.4 L Automatic 6-spd | 26 | 38 | 30 | $2,250 |
| Cruze Eco 1.4 L Manual 6-spd | 28 | 40 | 32 | $2,100 |
Need this data in your app?
Recalls, complaints, crash ratings and fuel economy as a JSON API. Decode up to 50 VINs per call and get a daily feed of new recalls.
Explore the API →Sources: NHTSA recalls, complaints and 5-Star Safety Ratings, US EPA fuel economy and Transport
Canada's Vehicle Recalls Database (contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada).
Recalls updated 2026-10-30.