Every 2012 Chevrolet Cruze recall
Each campaign as NHTSA published it: what is wrong, what can happen, and the fix. Newest first.
Electrical System · NHTSA 16V502000
May 7, 2016Electrical System:Ignition
- Problem
- 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
- If the key is removed without the transmission in PARK, the vehicle may rollaway as occupants are exiting, increasing the risk of injury.
- Fix
- 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.
Full recall details for 16V502000 →Air Bags · NHTSA 14V300000
Jun 6, 2014Air Bags
- Problem
- 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
- 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.
- Fix
- 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.
Full recall details for 14V300000 →Service Brakes, Hydraulic · NHTSA 13V360000
Aug 15, 2013Service Brakes, Hydraulic:Power Assist
- Problem
- 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
- 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.
- Fix
- 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.
Full recall details for 13V360000 →Air Bags · NHTSA 13V023000
Jan 24, 2013Air Bags
- Problem
- 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
- 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.
- Fix
- 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.
Full recall details for 13V023000 →Air Bags · NHTSA 12V522000
Oct 31, 2012Air Bags
- Problem
- 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
- 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.
- Fix
- 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.
Full recall details for 12V522000 →Engine and Engine Cooling · NHTSA 12V288000
Jun 22, 2012Engine and Engine Cooling
- Problem
- 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
- EITHER CONDITION COULD RESULT IN AN ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRE, POSSIBLY CAUSING INJURY OR DEATH.
- Fix
- 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.
Full recall details for 12V288000 →Fuel System, Gasoline · NHTSA 12V289000
Jun 22, 2012Fuel System, Gasoline:Storage:Tank Assembly:Mounting
- Problem
- 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
- 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.
- Fix
- 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.
Full recall details for 12V289000 →
2012 Chevrolet Cruze complaints and service bulletins
Owners filed 865 complaints with NHTSA about the 2012 Chevrolet Cruze, reporting 62 crashes, 18 fires, 30 injuries. Chevrolet has issued at least 1,817 technical service bulletins (repair instructions to dealers) for this model year. Complaints are unverified owner reports; a recall is the manufacturer’s admission of a safety defect.
Most-reported components
- Engine268
- Electrical System197
- Service Brakes142
- Power Train138
- Electronic Stability Control (Esc)108
- Steering105
Service bulletins by component
- Equipment (746)
- Electrical System (352)
- Engine and Engine Cooling (214)
- Power Train (163)
- Engine (157)
- Equipment Adaptive/Mobility (106)
Read Chevrolet Cruze owner complaints and bulletins, every year
NHTSA defect investigations covering the 2012 Chevrolet Cruze
NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation lists this model year in 3 investigations. An investigation is not a recall; it is how NHTSA decides whether one is needed.
- Air Bag Non-deployment
RQ13002Opened May 31, 2013Closed Jul 9, 2014
- Chapman Chevrolet / Cruze Engine Recall
AQ12002Opened Oct 15, 2012Closed Oct 20, 2014
- Engine compartment fire
PE12010Opened Mar 28, 2012Closed Jul 19, 2012
What people reported
Owners have filed 865 complaints with NHTSA about the 2012 Chevrolet Cruze. A few in their own words, shortened. Complaints are unverified and are not proof of a defect or of any recall.
Fire
“I was driving and the engine caught on fire. The flames came from the turbo gasket compartment not sure why or how it ignited. Thankfully the damage was not that extensive the car was towed to my residence and it is not drivable it won't start.”
2012 CHEVROLET CRUZEAug 31, 2026 · UT
Complaint filed with NHTSA, not verified by the agency · NHTSA complaint 11760905
Crash
“When the ac on the brake pad will lock and there no brakes you can't push it down it gets hard but when you turn the ac turns off the brake pad goes back to normal but it's damage to be driving and this happen .. Also the trac control light comes on along with the sailablzie light”
2012 CHEVROLET CRUZEJun 13, 2022
Complaint filed with NHTSA, not verified by the agency · NHTSA complaint 11469091
Injury reported
“The vehicle will start to smoke, filling the cab with smoke with a strong smell of antifreeze causing occupants to become sick to the stomach and dizzy. This will occur unrelated to speed and operating temperature, and has happened multiple times.”
2012 CHEVROLET CRUZEOct 30, 2021
Complaint filed with NHTSA, not verified by the agency · NHTSA complaint 11438762
Injury reportedCrash
“The contact owned a 2012 Chevrolet Cruze. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the brake pedal failed to respond causing another vehicle to crash into the rear of the vehicle. The contact did not recall whether there were warning lights illuminated.”
2012 CHEVROLET CRUZEOct 12, 2021
Complaint filed with NHTSA, not verified by the agency · NHTSA complaint 11436439
Crash
“I just recently had an accident, a deer ran out and hit me and I was going 60 mph. Once we impacted the airbag sensor came on and said airbags deployed. Then the sensor went off but you could smell the powder of the airbags but the airbags did not deploy.”
2012 CHEVROLET CRUZESep 28, 2021
Complaint filed with NHTSA, not verified by the agency · NHTSA complaint 11434609
Check your Cruze by VIN
Not every 2012 Chevrolet Cruze is in every recall. Enter your 17-character VIN to see the recalls on record for your exact vehicle, then confirm which are still open at NHTSA.gov or with any Chevrolet dealer.
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