What 864 owners told NHTSA about the 2012 Chevrolet Cruze Limited

2012 Chevy Cruz turbo failed. Car is available For inspection upon request. The dealer that I had purchased a vehicle from in 2022 was informed that my check engine light had turned on and I checked this at AutoZone that there was still an oil leak as well as an additional issue after they had finished repairing a coolant leak that caused my vehicle to overheat all before my 30 day warranty ended. He informed me he would get it repaired for me. However, he never returned my calls or texts, since I had let him know on the final 30th day since I had purchased the vehicle. The vehicle has been inspected by a mechanic that has confirmed. The turbo is in fact bad and needs to be replaced. My car broke down while turning right on a busy intersection.

NHTSA ODI 11521449

I am wondering when GM is gonna admit fault on these Chevy Cruzes? My mechanic father owns one. He's had to replace Valve cover gasket on his 3x. Mine at least 4-5x now. One bad oil change at a dealership almost cost me my engine at Sunfair Chevrolet. They left 2 rings on the oil fuel filter causing it to leak all over my engine compartment which left me roadside the next day after driving it 2 hours the night before back in Aug 2016. So they gave us 10K miles over this incident in case my engine blew. It ran a bit hotter than it did before this incident. I also noticed a burning smell. Enclosed in the scanned documents you will find a letter from Chevrolet discussing a "engine light" coming on and engine coolant leak from the water pump reservoir leading to a drip of coolant onto the engine or onto the ground. Overtime, the loss of coolant will reduce cooling performance and eventually could lead to engine overheating. Well, that isn't the only issue. Look at my scanned documents to see how many times the valve cover has been the issue. Always the engine light coming on and pull codes. A mechanic friend, replaced the valve cover gasket for me before it became a recall to save me$. Engine light came on again in 1 year. The PCV valve was built into the valve cove creating a chronic problem. Leads to a loss of turbo power. The last time manifold had to be repaired, they lifted the valve cover to get to it; leaked oil one day after my husband just replaced it. We assumed that was the issue (again), so instead of taking it in, he replaced the seal before taking it in. Someone please help us. Last fix was Aug. 2023, one day after it was in the shop. over $1200 in repairs I called GM, they told me to take it into the dealership. They focused on an oil leak from oil feed line. 4 days in still wasn't repaired. 1-20-14 I think was first incident of a valve cover issue. This is only 2 years after the car was "NEW". 137K miles on it now. Faithful with oil changes.

NHTSA ODI 11512592

Please attache the scans attached to this email to incident/complaint # 11512592. I needed more room to upload my history with this car and the issues with it.

NHTSA ODI 11512593

Please print off the scanned documents and add them to the complaint form # 11512592. I needed more room to upload 4 more jpeg files to show the history of the problem with the valve cover and PCV valve attached to it. Thank you.

NHTSA ODI 11512594

The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Cruze. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH, he smelled a burning odor and saw smoke coming from underneath the hood of the vehicle. The contact then drove the vehicle to a local dealer where it was diagnosed that the front valve cover gasket and oil pan were leaking. The front valve cover gasket and seals were replaced; however, the failure reoccurred. Additionally, the contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the message "Low Power" was displayed, and the vehicle lost motive power. The contact veered to the side of the road. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where the front valve cover gasket and seals were replaced. Additionally, the dealer diagnosed that the thermostat had overheated and had melted the coolant hoses. The thermostat and coolant hoses were replaced; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was towed back to the dealer where the front valve cover gasket and seals, the thermostat, five coolant hoses and coolant reservoir were replaced; however, the oil leak persisted. The vehicle was taken to a second dealer, Curry Center Auto Center, Inc. Chevrolet (2906 E Buick Cadillac Blvd, Bloomington, IN 47401) where the coolant sealant hoses, the front crank seal, the oil cooler, and other unknown repairs were completed; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle model had been discontinued. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 95,000.

NHTSA ODI 11497120

The cars turbo system fails. This causes a loss of power when accelerating. Pulling out into traffic or merging onto the freeway are all unsafe now as the car suddenly doesn't accelerate. This can cause crashes. I have pulled out and assumed I was at a very safe distance only to have the car not pick up as it usually does. I feel very unsafe.

NHTSA ODI 11484649

The car began to shake uncontrollably on the freeway at 55/MPH . The car then marked "Engine Power is Reduced", causing the car to no longer accelerate more than 5-7/MPH. This is a very dangerous situation because it can cause a terrible accident on the road since it's a random inconvenience. I have heard that many of these types of cars "Chevy Cruze" seem to experience the same type of problem. With that being said it's safe to say that as an owner this situation is far out of my control and it's definitely a collective problem with the type of car and make that it is. I ask for this to be immediately looked into.

NHTSA ODI 11482259

The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Cruze. The contact stated while driving 40-45 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated and the vehicle stalled. The contact veered to the side of the road. The contact was able to restart the vehicle; however, the vehicle started overheating while driving. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the knock control system, the knock sensor, the camshaft, the positive crankcase ventilation system, and the engine intake manifold gasket had failed. The contact received an unknown recall notification from the manufacturer associated with the failure at the beginning of the pandemic. The contact contacted several unknown dealers to schedule an appointment however, the dealers informed the contact that there was no availability to complete the recall repair on the vehicle. The manufacturer was later notified of the failure and assisted the contact in scheduling an appointment with the dealer for repair. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer who informed the contact that the vehicle could not be repaired under the unknown recall as the recall had expired. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was towed back to the contact's residence. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.

NHTSA ODI 11468626

The temperature gauge never shows the hand even get to half on the hot cold fail however the car could have no coolant and be 400 degrees the sail will Or reflect so. This has caused many probable s bc I can’t tell when it over hears it’s mezwwzs the comupeter

NHTSA ODI 11456379

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.

NHTSA ODI 11438762

The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Cruze. The contact stated while driving 30 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the temperature gauge was fluctuating on the instrument panel. The contact pulled over to the side of the road and turned off the vehicle for several minutes while waiting for the vehicle engine to cool down before restarting the vehicle and continuing to drive to his residence. The next day the contact took the vehicle to be diagnosed by an independent mechanic. The contact was informed that the head gasket needed to be replaced. Additionally, the mechanic performed temporary repairs on the thermostat housing and replaced the manifold and oil gasket however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.

NHTSA ODI 11432521

I had no heat for a long time, as well as the engine light constantly being on and never knowing why. There was a lag to accelerate. Also it would suddenly overheat and say turn off ac due to overheating, as well as suddenly fluctuate to cold and back to normal. I change the throttle body inlet heater hose to see if that would get it working. It did for a day. Then all over a sudden the same issues started happening. From what I can tell it is an extremely common issue that has not been address yet or had a recall yet....the thermostat. That is the only thing it could be at this point. I am going to try and bleed out the coolant for air again. But other than that it is the thermostat, it is the only thing that covers every symptom and it is an extremely, well documented problem with these types of cars.

NHTSA ODI 11431594

I have filed a complaint 2 other times on my car from the power train to the electrical and now my radiator. Because of the date of my car, which is one week off, my car doesn't fall under all the recalls that have been made. Everything wrong with my car is a recall including the head gasket! I have paid to fix my car out of pocket every time and now the repair isn't worth fixing because i never know whats going to happen next! Just like every other government agency NHTSA is controlled by the big corporations while the little guy gets screwed over! Times are hard as is now throw in this plandemic and car problems life becomes unmanageable at times.

NHTSA ODI 11428042

I've had this car for less than 2 months I've already spent $3,500 I've had to replace the thermostat the resvoir tank most oxygen sensors lower stream and upper stream now has a blown head gasket and a possible fuel pump

NHTSA ODI 11427813

The o2 sensor blew out of the catalytic converter and the sensor can't be replaced. The threads were basically gone! Took it to a professional and he said he wouldn't even put on a new one(aftermarket) because the Cruze and Sonic's are notorious for having this issue and it would do it again. He said they need to recall these immediately! I only have around 65,000 miles on this vehicle.

NHTSA ODI 11427456

CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AND CAR WAS LEAKED OIL ONTO THE DRIVEWAY, WHEN CAR WAS PARKED. THE NEXT DAY, CAR WAS TAKEN IN TO BE SERVICED."UPON VEHICLE INSPECTION, TECHNICIAN(TECH) FOUND, OIL FILTER ADAPTER LEAKING OIL." "NEED GASKET TO BLOCK. "RESEALED OIL COOLER AND OIL FILTER ADAPTER SEALS." "TECH ALSO FOUND VALVE COVER LEAKING. REPLACE COVER LEAKING OIL. REPLACED VALVE COVER. TECH FOUND TRANS OIL COOLER LINES BOTH LEAKING LINES- REPLACED. CUSTOMER STATES CHECK ENGINE LIGHT IS ON. REPLACED PURGE VALVE. TECH FOUND BATTERY NEGATIVE CABLE HIGH RESISTANCE. REPLACED NEGATIVE BATTERY CABLE. AFTER 8 DAYS WITHOUT HER CAR AND AFTER PAYING FOR THE AFOREMENTIONED SERVICES, WHEN THE CAR WAS PARKED IN THE DRIVEWAY, IT CONTINUED TO LEAK OIL! TECH INFORMED HER THAT IT WAS A NEW PROBLEM AND THAT SHE WOULD HAVE TO PAY AN EXTRA $700! THE FACT THE TECH HAD THE AUDACITY TO THINK IT WAS OK TO SAY THAT TO HER OR ANYONE ELSE, IS APPALLING, TO SAY THE LEAST. I'M SURE SOMEONE HAS HAD A SIMILAR PROBLEM WITH THIS MAKE ND MODEL.

NHTSA ODI 11413467

ON MY WAY TO WORK FEBRUARY 22 I HAD NOTICE A STRONG BURNING SMELL AND JUST ASSUMED IT WAS FROM SOMETHING OUTSIDE. SO I JUST IGNORED IT AND CONTINUED MY DRIVE. ONCE I GOT TO WORK I NOTICED THAT THERE WAS SOME LIGHT SMOKE COMING FROM UNDER MY HOOD SO I LIFTED IT AND CHECKED TO SEE IF ANYTHING LOOKED STRANGE BUT I DIDN'T NOTICE ANYTHING. SO I CONTINUE TO DRIVE FOR A FEW MORE DAYS BECOMING ACCUSTOMED TO THE SMELL AND SMOKE. MIND YOU I CHECK ALL MY FLUIDS ONCE A WEEK BECAUSE I DO ALOT OF LONG DISTANCE DRIVING. AFTER ABOUT 6-8 DAYS OF DRIVING TO MY NEW JOB THE SMOKE STARTED GETTING THICKER AND MORE WHITE AND I STARTED TO NOTICE THAT MY OIL LEVEL WAS DROPPING. SO I BOUGHT SOME TO KEEP IN MY CAR SO I DIDN'T RUN IT DRY. BUT I HAD TO KEEP DRIVING IT TO WORK BECAUSE I NEEDED TO HAVE A PAYCHECK COMING IN. I HAD BEEN OFF WORK FOR ABOUT 3 MONTHS DUE TO THE PANDEMIC AND COULDN'T AFFORD TO BRING IT TO A MECHANIC UNTIL MY FIRST PAY DAY. WELL NEEDLESS TO SAY AS I PULLED UP TO MY HOUSE ON THE 8TH (TWO DAYS BEFORE MY VISIT TO THE MECHANIC) I NOTICED THE SMOKE WAS MUCX MORE INTENSE THEN IT WAS BEFORE SO I LIFTED THE HOOD AND SAW FLAMES. SO I CLOSED THE HOOD AND GRABBED SOME BAKING SODA FROM MY HOUSE AND POURED IT OVER THE FLAMES. MY NEIGHBOR SAW WHAT HAD HAPPENED AND CAME OVER TO SEE WHAT WAS HAPPENING AND NOTICED WHERE THE OIL WAS COMING FROM AND SAID HE COULD PATCH IT TEMPORARILY SO I CAN MAKE IT TO THE MECHANIC. BUT I AM NOT WILLING TO TAKE THE RISK. ALSO ABOUT A MONTH AGO I NOTICED THAT THERE WAS A NOISE COMING FROM MY FRONT WHEELS AS I WAS DRIVING AND THE VEHICLE STARTED PULLING TO THE DRIVER'S SIDE.

NHTSA ODI 11404827

LOSE OF COOLANT. ENGINE HOT. NOT IN MOTION

NHTSA ODI 11402780

IT KEEP SAYING A/C OFF DUE TO HIGH ENGINE TEMP BUT IT STAY IN COLD N I GOT COOLANT SENSOR RADIATOR SENSOR ALL FIXED N IT KEEP SAYIN THE SAME STUFF IT'S GIVING ME A HEAD ACHE WEN I GO FOR LONG DRIVES TO MALL OR STORE IT POPS ON

NHTSA ODI 11402534

MULTIPLE OILS LEAKS (MAINLY FROM THE TURBO AREA) CAUSING SMOKING AND BURNING SMELL. THE LATEST RESULTED IN OIL LEAKING ON THE MANIFOLD, WHICH COULD HAVE RESULTED IN A FIRE.

NHTSA ODI 11394475

MY CAR HAS BEEN FITTING THE DESCRIPTION OF A SPECIFIC RECALL ON THE SAME YEAR AND MODEL. (I.E.: RECALL #12V288000 - DATE: 6/22/2012 - COMPONENT ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING) I PURCHASED MY CAR THROUGH CARMAX LESS THAN A YEAR AGO AND HAVE HAD MULTIPLE ISSUES INCLUDING, AIRBAG SENOR PROBLEMS, RMP ISSUES, ALTERNATOR REPLACEMENT, ETC. I'VE DEALT WITH AN OIL LEAK FROM THE VALVE COVER MOST RECENTLY. I TOOK IT IN FOR AN OIL CHANGE AND FOUND OUT THERE WAS A LEAK WHICH WAS SO BAD IT SATURATED EVERYTHING IN THE ENGINE AREA COLLECTING NEAR THE ENGINE AND EXHAUST SYSTEM. THIS LEAD TO AN AWFUL BURNING SMELL. THE VALVE COVER WAS REPLACED AND NOW TWO WEEKS LATER THERE IS STILL AN AWFUL BURNING SMELL COMING FROM BOTH INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THE CAR. THE VALVE COVER DOESN'T SEEM TO BE LEAKING OIL, AND I DON'T SEE ANY WEIRD OBJECTS OR DEBRIS IN THE ENGINE AREA. THE RECALL PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED FITS MY CURRENT PROBLEM TO A T - BUT ACCORDING TO MY VIN THERE HAVE BEEN 0 RECALLS. THE CAR IS NOT DEPENDABLE AT THIS POINT DUE TO RISK OF FUME INHALATION AND POTENTIAL FIRE. IT HAS BEEN IN THE SHOP MULTIPLE TIMES SINCE I BOUGHT IT AND I HAVE BARELY PUT 6,000 MILES ON IT SINCE PURCHASE.

NHTSA ODI 11390512

I PURCHASED THIS VEHICLE AT ANAHEIM AUTO HUB LAST JUNE 6, 2020 FOR MY DAUGHTER. COUPLE MONTHS LATER IT STARTED LEAKING AND SMELLS LIKE BURNING OIL. AND THE STABILI TRACK SENSOR AND THE TRACTION CONTROL SENSORS CAME ON. AND, AS WELL AS THE KEY GOT STUCK INSIDE THE IGNITION COUPLE OF TIMES. SO I TOOK IT THE MECHANIC TO GET THE LEAKS FIX. THE MECHANIC FOUND THAT THE VALVE COVER GASKET LEAK AND VALVE TIMING SOLENOID. SO THE MECHANIC REPLACED THE VALVE GASKET COVER AND THE VALVE TIMING SOLENOID LEAK, AND RIGHT AFTER THAT BEING SAID, ONE WEEK LATER WE FOUND LEAKING SO, I TOOK IT BACK TO MECHANIC AGAIN, NOW THEY FOUND 3 DIFFERENT LEAK, FROM THE OIL COOLER LEAK, ENGINE OIL PAN GASKET AND LEAKING ON ENGINE TIMING COVER GASKET. AND I FOUND 7 RECALLS ON THIS VEHICLE THAT HAS NEVER FIX. AND I AM THE NEW OWNER AND I JUST FINING THIS OUT. HERE ARE THE RECALLS THAT HAVE NOT BEEN RESOLVE ON 2012 CHEVROLET CRUZE ECO: RECALL SUBJECT: AIR BAGS/ CAMPAIGN# 13V23000 RECALL SUBJECT: AIR BAGS / CAMPAIGN# 12V522000 RECALL SUBJECT: ENGINE & ENGINE COOLING / CAMPAIGN# 12V288000 RECALL SUBJECT: FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE STORAGE TANK, ASSEMBLY MOUNTING / CAMPAIGN# 12V289000 RECALL SUBJECT: SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC, POWER ASSIST / CAMPAIGN# 13V360000 RECALL SUBJECT: POWER TRAIN, AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION CONTROL MODULE (TCM,PCM)

NHTSA ODI 11389702

REPLACED PCV VALVE ASSEMBLY TWICE AND STILL LEAKS OIL FROM COVER AND CAP. RUNS ROUGH ESPECIALLY WHEN IDLING, BAD GAS MILEAGE.

NHTSA ODI 11377206

SHORTLY AFTER PURCHASING CAR, THE CAR STARTED AND LIGHTS STARTED FLASHING BY ITSELF MORE THAN 10 MINUTES AFTER EXITING THE CAR. THEN HEAT STOPPED WORKING IN 0 DEGREE WEATHER. WHILE DRIVING NOTIFICATION SAID "AC OFF DUE TO HIGHT ENGINE TEMP". WHILE DRIVING CAR SHUT DOWN AND WOULDN'T START SAYING "SERVICE STABILI TRACK" TOOK TO MECHANIC AND THEY SAID I NEED A NEW WATER PUMP AND HEAD GASKET. MIND YOU HEAT STOPPED WORKING AS WELL AGAIN. THEY CONFIRMED THERE WAS NO ANTIFREEZE BECAUSE ITS LEAKING. NOW THANK GOODNESS I WAS JUST GETTING HOME, COULD BARELY GET INTO THE DRIVEWAY BECAUSE NOW I'M GETTING A NOTIFICATION "SERVICE POWER STEERING". FROM EVERYTHING I'VE READ THERE HAVE BEEN RECALLS DUE TO ALL OF THESE ISSUES BUT MY VIN ISN'T LISTED. I STILL OWE ALMOST 5000.00 ON THIS CRAPPY CAR AND I'M COMPLETELY OVER IT... WORST CAR EVER

NHTSA ODI 11373249

OIL IS RUNNING FROM A CAST NUT THAT HOLDS AN ALTERNATOR BRACKET TO THE ENGINE BLOCK AND WITH THE CAR GOING DOWN THE ROAD AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS THERE' A STRONG POSSIBILITY THAT OIL COMING FROM THIS CAST NUT THAT CANT HOLD THE BRACKET STABLE IS LETTING THE PRESSURE OF THE OIL TO RUN OUT AND POSSIBLY COME IN CONTACT WITH THE INTERNAL WORKINGS OF THE ALTERNATOR AND SHORT IT OUT WITH THE POSSIBILITY OF A FIRE STARTING AND CAUSING OTHER PROBLEMS UNDER THE HOOD PLUS THE CHANCE OF DESTROYING THE ENGINE IF THE LEAK OF THE OIL PRESSURE PUSHES THAT END OF THE BRACKET OUT OF THE ENGINE BLOCK AND THE OIL WILL COME OUT LIKE WATER COMING OUT OF A WATER HOSE. WHAT IS HAPPENING NOW EVERY TIME I DRIVE THE CAR AND STOP IT LEAVES OIL ALL OVER DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT AND THE OIL LEAVES A BIG PUDDLE ON MY GARAGE FLOOR AND I END UP HAVING TO CRAWL UNDER THE CAR TO CLEAN EXCESS OIL OFF THE ENGINE AND THE GARAGE FLOOR ON A REGULAR BASIS. YOU TUBE IS SHOWING THAT SEVERAL DIFFERENT PEOPLE HAVE THIS PROBLEM THE BRACKET IS PUSHING OUT DUE THE FACT THAT THE CAST NUT IS BREAKING DOWN DUE TO THE HEAT AND IN TURN OIL STARTS RUNNING ALL OVER THE TOP SIDE OF THE MOTOR AND INTO DIFFERENT AREAS OF THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT. IT MIGHT REALLY GIVE YOU A BETTER IDEAL OF THIS PROBLEM IF YOU LOOK ON YOU TUBE CONCERNING OIL LEAK PROBLEMS WITH THE CHEVROLET CRUZE 1.4L ENGINE STARTING IN 2012 AND IT STARTED ON APPROX. 10-15-2020 AND CONTINUES TO HAPPEN ACCORDING TO HOW FAR I DRIVE AND HOW LONG THE ENGINE IS AT OPERATING TEMPERATURE. IF I CAN HELP YOU TO HELP ME AND A LOT OF OTHER PEOPLE THAT ARE HAVING THIS PROBLEM . THANKS FOR YOUR TIME AND I HOPE THIS CAN BE TAKEN CARE FOR THE SAFETY ASPECT! THANKS AGAIN I REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR HELP.

NHTSA ODI 11372583