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What 149 owners told NHTSA about the 2014 Chevrolet Sonic

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (149)Crash / fire / injury (13)Electrical system (48)Engine (38)Airbags (24)Transmission & drivetrain (20)Fuel system (16)Steering (13)Electronic Stability Control (esc) (8)Brakes (6)Lights (5)Body & structure (3)

1 of 149 complaints match · Brakes · crash/fire/injury only · clear filters

May 11, 2018BrakesCrashFire1 injury

THE ROAD I WAS DRIVING ON IS 55 MPH ON BEAR IN. AS I BEGAN TO BREAK NOTHING HAPPENED. A 90 CORNER WAS IN FRONT OF ME. 55TH AVE. I PUSHED AS HARD AS I COULD ON THE BREAKS. IT WAS SMOOTH.. TRACTION CONTROL WAS ON. NO BREAKING UNIT WENT INTO AFFECT. IT WAS SMOOTH ALL THE WAY INTO A TREE HEAD ON. ZERO SKID MARKS! I WAS CONSCIOUS THE ENTIRE TIME CLOSED ON EYES RIGHT BEFORE IMPACT. AIR BAGS DID WORK. THE ENGINE STARTED ON FIRE 3X. THEY HAD TO USE THE JAWS OF LIFE TO REMOVE THE VEHICLE FROM THE TREE. I PUSHED SO HARD ON THE BREAK THAT IT BROKE MY ANKLE, SPLIT MY KNEE OPEN AND SPRAINED MY KNEE. I WAS TAKEN TO THE HOSPITAL. MILEAGE ON THE VEHICLE WAS ABOUT 56K. THIS SHOULD HAVE KILLED ME. THE BREAKS HAD WORKED FINE BEFORE THIS.. NO SQUEALING, SHAKING ETC. IN GOOD WORKING ORDER. CONDITIONS WERE DARK, DRY ROADS, NO WIND. I DO HAVE REPORTS BUT CAN NOT SCAN THEM. I LOADED 5 IMAGES! PLEASE LOOK INTO THIS MATTER IMMEDIATELY. LIVES ARE AT STAKE.

NHTSA ODI 11093407

Working with the data? Download all 149 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 19, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2014 Chevrolet Sonic verdict →