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2012 Buick Verano
Buyable, but go in with open eyes: this car has specific known issues to check before money changes hands.
106 owner complaints · 3 recalls · data verified July 25, 2026 · source: NHTSA
Buy-rated alternatives from this era
Other 2010–2014 cars in the same rough price bracket with a clean, matured Buy verdict, worth cross-shopping before you commit to the 2012 Buick Verano.
Why caution?
3 recall campaigns (3 safety-critical). Confirm every one shows "remedy completed" on the seller's VIN.
Engine problems dominate (45% of complaints, typically reported near 40k miles).
Very few owner complaints for its age and sales volume.
Complaint reports have faded. Early issues appear resolved or aged out.
Score breakdown, by factor
Full methodology →#292 of 483Among the 2012 models with a matured record, the 2012 Buick Verano ranks #292, scoring higher than 10% of them. See the 2012 ranking →
Complaints filed per year
Fading = early teething worked out. Climbing = problems aging in.
How it crashes
NHTSA’s own crash tests, separate from the reliability score above.
NHTSA crash-tested this model year but didn’t publish an overall star rating for it.
1 open NHTSA defect investigation on file for this model year, separate from the recalls above.
Source: nhtsa.gov/ratings. Star ratings compare vehicles within the same class and size, not across every car on the road.
The road ahead
What breaks on a 2012 Buick Verano, plotted where owners report it happening.
Also reported (mileage varies): Airbags (27) · Electrical system (16) · Steering (9) · Speed control (7)
Mileage medians come from owners who mentioned an odometer reading in their NHTSA complaint. Treat them as a rough guide.
Engine
45%48 complaints · typically near 40k mi
“Oil Consumption- Burning through 2 qts of oil every 2000 miles. No warning lights coming on. Last oil change my car had no oil in it.”
Airbags
25%27 complaints
“This airbag is supposed to last the lifetime of the vehicle and it has not. On top of it not lasting I am being charged to fix the airbag issue replacement and it is a…”
Electrical system
15%16 complaints
“NAV display and radio stopped working black screen blank”
Steering
8%9 complaints
“ON 10/11/2017 I WAS DRIVING MY CAR ATTEMPTING TO MAKE A RIGHT TURN AND MY CAR STEERING WHEEL LOCKED ON ME AND MY POWER STEERING LIGHT CAME ON I TOOK IT IN ON 10/12/17 …”
Check it against this car’s mileage
Type the odometer reading on the actual car you’re looking at to see which of these problem areas owners tend to report before it, around it, or after it.
We can place 1 of this model's commonly reported problem areas against a mileage. Nothing is stored.
Read all 106 owner complaints in their own words → · just the 9 crash/fire/injury reports →
Recalls (3)
Safety recall repairs are free at the brand’s franchised dealers. Before buying, run the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls and make the seller show the work was done.
Air Bags · 14V300000
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.
Air Bags · 13V023000
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.
Air Bags · 12V522000
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.
Questions to ask the seller
Questions worth asking the seller of this Buick before you buy, drawn from its public record:
- NHTSA lists 3 recall campaigns for the 2012 Buick Verano. Can you run this car's VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls and confirm each one shows "Remedy Completed"?
- Owners of this model report engine problems more than anything else (owners tend to report it near 40k miles). Has this car shown any engine symptoms, and are there repair records for it?
- Owners of this model report airbags problems more than anything else. Has this car shown any airbags symptoms, and are there repair records for it?
- Has this car been in any accident or had any structural, airbag, or flood-related repair? Do you have a clean title and a recent history report (Carfax / AutoCheck)?
- How many owners has it had, do you have the maintenance records, and why are you selling it?
- Are you open to me having an independent mechanic inspect it before we settle on a price?
Before you hand over money
Verify the recall work was done
NHTSA’s free lookup shows whether this exact car had its recall remedies completed.
Free NHTSA VIN check ↗Get a pre-purchase inspection
A $150 to $250 independent inspection of this exact 2012 Buick VERANO beats every score on the internet, including ours.
What to ask forNot set on the 2012? See how every Verano model year scores →
Cross-shopping? Compare the 2012 Buick Verano against another car →
What owners say
Real owners of this exact model-year, shown separately from the NHTSA score. If they disagree, that’s worth knowing.