CarComplaints.com Notes: In many ways, the 2012 Cruze continues the legacy of its predecessor. It's a legacy of sluggish transmissions and coolant leaks, but it's still a legacy.
On the flip-side, there's more concerns about brake problems.
However, there were far more Cruze vehicles sold for the 2012 model year so we'll give it our "Beware of this Clunker" badge rather than the "Avoid Like the Plague."
10.0
really awful
Crashes / Fires:
10 / 13
Injuries / Deaths:
5 / 0
Average Mileage:
53,677 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Cruze. While at a stop, the vehicle lost power and the check engine light illuminated. The contact placed the vehicle in park and restarted the engine. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the cam cover was leaking and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and stated that there was no recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 128,000.
Brought my car in for what looked like intake seals and found out that the intake manifold manifold is cracked. I called many other auto repair places and found that this is a massive problem and can only be gotten from the dealer and I will be getting one of the last in this area at the cost of $450 plus time. The car started running ruff and has 9 different codes all relating to a lean condition.
The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Cruze. The contact stated that an abnormal burning odor emitted from the vehicle and it overheated. In addition, when the accelerator pedal was depressed, the vehicle hesitated to respond and the brakes made an abnormal noise. The failure occurred without warning. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the thermostat and water pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.
The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Cruze. While driving approximately 25 to 35 mph, the check engine light illuminated. While the vehicle was idling at a red light, it shook violently. The dealer diagnosed that the valve cover needed to be replaced. The dealer stated that the vehicle was not included in an unknown recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was unknown.
My engine light is on. I put gas in my vehicle and when I turn the key to start it, it hesitates to start then when pulling off it begins to jerk.... when at lights it sometimes hesitates to take off.
- Williamsburg, VA, USA
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In Dec of 2015 I had to replace the thermostat with only 39000 on it check engine light on fan racing. 6 months later it's happening again check engine light on fan racing now there saying it might be an electrical problem.I have driven Chevy for 30 years and never have I had this much trouble this will be my last. From reading the forums it seems like a lot of people have the same problems why isn't there a recall on this car.
Driving my car at about 25mph started to hear a rattle in it. When went to accelerate the car started to smoke and had no power. When idling you could hear the motor "work" and it had a jump in it. Only has 50,000 miles and has never been driven hard. Of course it's out of warranty now and I have no clue why it wouldn't accelerate and started smoking. The engine light came on and was still on when I left my car sitting on the side of the road.
I was starting to cross a busy intersection when the engine loss power light and stability control light came on. Car would not go over 5 miles an hour. Just about 90 days ago it was at the Chevy dealership for same problem where the throttle body and all sensors were replaced.
The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Cruze. While driving 30 mph depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle would not accelerate. The vehicle sputtered and stalled, and the service engine light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the cam cover needed to be replaced and the fuel trim needed to be reset. The repairs were performed; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was towed again to the dealer. The contact stated that the stabilitrac warning light remained illuminated. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 60,000.
Vehicle has 29,980 approximate miles. Vehicle had a leaking torque converter seal. While dealership was removing transmission, a stray bolt fell from the interior of the motor. Bolt does not belong to car. It has damaged the bell housing. No other damage has been reported at this moment.
I purchased a new 2012 Cruze eco new and currently have 48K miles on it. This weekend the Cruze twice had the following problems: 1. dic error - engine power reduced 2. dic error - service stabilitrak 3. check engine light engine power was reduced to peak out at 10 mph. Luckily the power steering was unaffected and I was able to get the Cruze home without accident. Letting the Cruze sit for a few minutes in the off position seemed to clear the issue, but it was still scary to have the engine shut down like it did. Local dealer confirmed that the throttle body was junk and replaced it but not under any warranty. Total cost was $400. Dealer confirmed that similar issue is occurring with Sierra pickups and the TB is covered under the powertrain warranty. Very disappointed that the TB was not covered as an engine component. Many Cruze owners are having this problem...look on cruzetalk.com. The TB should not be wearing out at 48K...or 100K.
Vehicle cuts out while at a stop light like it wants to shut off, car was running about 10 minutes and in motion at 30 mph for 5 minutes when it started, then drove on the highway for 30 minutes and through town another 10 minutes, when I got home it was still cutting out, I was almost home when I noticed the engine light came on. Today I did fill my gas tank. It has done this on other occasions but not as bad as it did today and this was the first time the engine light came on. My car has a little over 70,000 miles on it, I've done regular oil changes, when I looked under the hood I noticed liquid around my motor gaskets and the tray under it, I couldn't tell if it was oil or antifreeze. Warranty has ran out.
61,000 miles and car is showing repeated P2135 codes for throttle/pedal senor issue and places the car in limited power mode. Event has happened during warm-up, at stop signs and lights, local street speeds, and during highway travel/speeds. I have cleared the issue using obd II tool and phone app.
I just purchased my 2012 Chevy Cruze 3 months ago, it has 36,000 miles. Last week when I started off to work I got a reduced engine power message and the car would not accelerate. I read the manuel and followed the instructions, turned off the car, waited and restarted, but it still would not accelerate. I checked online for reported problems with the car and found that many people have had the same issue. I called the dealership and was told I could take the car in but would have to pay for any repairs because there was no recall on this problem. A few days later I started the car and it seemed fine so I tried driving it. It was fine for the first 15 minutes but then the reduced engine power light came on again and the car would not accelerate once again. I had to pull off to the side of the road, turn off the car and wait several minutes to be able to drive a short distance before the problem happened again. Thank god I was not on the highway when this happened or I could have been in a terrible accident. I can not believe that with so many owners reporting the same problem there has not been a recall. Also it appears the manufacturer was aware of the problem from the beginning because in the owners manuel they tell you what to do if this should happen.
Around sunrise on a highway with an adult passenger the car lost all power instantly. The steering was heavy and the brakes had very little power. We was able to drift over to a safe area. The way this car performs with little braking effort it can cause some bad accidents in other enviroments such as mountains. The safety of the Chevrolet Cruze models needs to be improve.
The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Cruze. While driving 40 mph, the cooling fan was activated and the thermostat gauge indicated that the vehicle was running hot. Upon further notice, the contact noticed liquid leaking from the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to a local mechanic where it was diagnosed that the water pump, water pump housing, and the thermostat needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.
Chevrolet Cruze recall my 2012 Chevrolet Cruze was recalled twice, once of overheating while driving, and once for brake failure when crawling, such a parking. The dealership tried to fix these problems, but the brakes still fail, and now the uses 1 quart every week. The brake failure recently reoccurred when my spouse was parking and she hit a wall and damages the car. The dealer has since told me they do not know why the car is consuming oil, so I have elevated the issue to GM I think that the ntsb has to further monitor this problem to ascertain why the recalled items are still failing.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Sardina, OH, USA