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."
8.0
pretty bad
Typical Repair Cost:
$1,760
Average Mileage:
75,300 miles
Total Complaints:
4 complaints
Most Common Solutions:
not sure (2 reports)
replace turbo charger assembly, feed and return lines (2 reports)
Poor acceleration, engine light did not come on for a couple of months that indicated there was a turbo issue; almost missed the 70K window and would have cost-ed me instead. It's known issue and Chevy isn't saying anything; no recalls, nothing. Beware with this model and year with a bad turbo; which is poor acceleration.
I bought this car last yr. in June. After I got the car I had to take it back because a bad tire was on the back. Had it changed, it drove just fine. Then the battery light popped on & off took it back to the dealership & he said he put a new battery in it (I didn't see him do it). I took the car to the local Chevy place to get the battery looked at (they had other cars before me) so, never had it checked cause they let my car just sit 4 to 5 days. Now the engine light is on & it is sounding like its gonna cut off.....runny sluggish, not sounding good. So the man from the dealership will not trade it cause I would need a down payment & get the problem fix also...I hate that I bought this car & ready to trade it now....we all need to get together & talk junk to Chevy for for making a car like this....
I have a 2012 Chevy Cruze, 1.4L Turbo, 6sp manual trans, 19k miles, the engine runs very poorly during acceleration and sometimes misfires at idle. Also has a tapping noise at idle, it sounds like an old pushrod engine with a lifter going out. I've had it to 4 GM dealerships and they won't touch it because it's not throwing a code.
I went to a private mechanic, he found the problem in 10 minutes on Alldata. The service bulletin has recently been taken down, and GM says the Alldata and my mechanic are wrong. TSB PIP5011, or Document ID 2811105. It said Check Engine Light On Or Misfire Cylinder 1 On Very Low Mileage Vehicles -(Mar 26, 2012). VIN range is C7241359 to C7297581, mine is C7241388. The bulletin went on to mention plugs, wires, coil pack, and injectors, and then said if all that is normal, look at the valve springs on #1 cylinder, and that it may or may not have low compression on that cylinder.
So I'm stuck with a new car that GM refuses to diagnose because they are too stupid to actually diagnose something without hooking it to a computer! I bought the car with 251 miles on it, and it was 2 years old. It had been sitting for 2 years with the same gas in the tank from new. The car was acting up when I bought it, and I thought it would clear up with some tanks or fresh gas, but it's just getting worse.
Update from Dec 29, 2014: My Cruze has been at the dealership for a month, they still can't get it to throw a code, so they won't do anything the bulletin says. So, my car still runs like crap.
- gswick,
Alice, TX, US
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A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
Poor acceleration, engine light did not come on for a couple of months that indicated there was a turbo issue; almost missed the 70K window and would have cost-ed me instead. It's known issue and Chevy isn't saying anything; no recalls, nothing. Beware with this model and year with a bad turbo; which is poor acceleration.
- ibradh, Soledad, CA, US