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2012 Buick Verano

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2012 Buick Verano do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 80.

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How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

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Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

All reported categories

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

75 reports with mileage · 31 unknown

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Engine. Review the 48 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Air Bags. Review the 27 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 16 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

8 crash reports1 fire reports3 injury reports

Air Bags complaints

27 reports
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75,000 miles · Sep 29, 2016
Air BagsSteering

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 BUICK VERANO. WHILE DRIVING VARIOUS SPEEDS, THE AIR BAG WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING WHERE IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THE STEERING COIL SPRING WOULD NEED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE VIN WAS NOT INCLU…

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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 BUICK VERANO. WHILE DRIVING VARIOUS SPEEDS, THE AIR BAG WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING WHERE IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THE STEERING COIL SPRING WOULD NEED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE VIN WAS NOT INCLUDED IN NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 14V300000 (AIR BAGS). THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 75,000.

NHTSA ODI #10910651

97,000 miles · Aug 22, 2016
Air Bags

WHILE DRIVING IN THE FREEWAY GOING AT 65 MPH. THE LIGHT ON THE DASH CAME ON AND IT SAID, SERVICE AIRBAGS. WHEN I GOT HOME AND I TURNED OFF MY CAR THE LIGHT WENT OFF AND I THOUGHT THAT IT COULD OF BEEN A GLITCH IN THE CAR. TWO DAYS LATER THE LIGHT CAME BACK ON AND HAS BEEN ON EVER SINCE. I HAVE CALLED THE DEALER TRYING TO FIND AN…

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WHILE DRIVING IN THE FREEWAY GOING AT 65 MPH. THE LIGHT ON THE DASH CAME ON AND IT SAID, SERVICE AIRBAGS. WHEN I GOT HOME AND I TURNED OFF MY CAR THE LIGHT WENT OFF AND I THOUGHT THAT IT COULD OF BEEN A GLITCH IN THE CAR. TWO DAYS LATER THE LIGHT CAME BACK ON AND HAS BEEN ON EVER SINCE. I HAVE CALLED THE DEALER TRYING TO FIND ANSWERS BUT THEY SAY THERE IS NO RECALL FOR MY CAR. BUT YET I SEE SO MANY ISSUES WITH HE AIRBAGS ON BUICK VERANOS.

NHTSA ODI #10897754

5,000 miles · Apr 21, 2015
Air Bags

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 BUICK VERANO. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 40 MPH, THE DRIVER SIDE AIR BAG WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER ON SEPARATE OCCASIONS AND SERVICED UNDER NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBERS: 12V522000 (AIR BAGS) AND 13V023000 (AIR BAGS); HOWEVER, THE FAILURE PERSISTED AFTER EACH RECALL …

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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 BUICK VERANO. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 40 MPH, THE DRIVER SIDE AIR BAG WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER ON SEPARATE OCCASIONS AND SERVICED UNDER NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBERS: 12V522000 (AIR BAGS) AND 13V023000 (AIR BAGS); HOWEVER, THE FAILURE PERSISTED AFTER EACH RECALL REPAIR. THE VEHICLE HAD NOT BEEN REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 5,000. UPDATED 6/8/15*CN UPDATED 10/06/2017*CN

NHTSA ODI #10711967

20,000 miles · Mar 11, 2015
Air BagsCrashInjury

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 BUICK VERANO. WHILE DRIVING AT AN UNKNOWN SPEED, THE CONTACT WAS INVOLVED IN A CRASH AND THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. THE VEHICLE STRUCK A POLE, SPUN AROUND, AND SUSTAINED DAMAGES ON BOTH SIDES. THE VEHICLE WAS DESTROYED. THE CONTACT WAS TAKEN TO THE HOSPITAL AND PLACED IN A COMA FOR THREE DAYS. THE…

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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 BUICK VERANO. WHILE DRIVING AT AN UNKNOWN SPEED, THE CONTACT WAS INVOLVED IN A CRASH AND THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. THE VEHICLE STRUCK A POLE, SPUN AROUND, AND SUSTAINED DAMAGES ON BOTH SIDES. THE VEHICLE WAS DESTROYED. THE CONTACT WAS TAKEN TO THE HOSPITAL AND PLACED IN A COMA FOR THREE DAYS. THE PASSENGER RECEIVED STITCHES. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 20,000. UPDATED 6/30/15*CN

NHTSA ODI #10693676

54,698 miles · Nov 6, 2014
Air BagsCrash

I WAS DRIVING HOME AROUND 6: 55PM GOING WEST ON 152 WHEN A CAR COMING N THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION HEADLIGHTS BLINDED ME N I WENT UP ON THE DIVIDER IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD. I FELT THAT I HIT THE DIVIDER SO I CAME OFF TRYING TO AVOID HITTING OTHER VEHICLES N CONTINUED DRIVING OUT OF FEAR. MY ON STAR CAME ON LETTING ME KNOW THAT THE…

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I WAS DRIVING HOME AROUND 6: 55PM GOING WEST ON 152 WHEN A CAR COMING N THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION HEADLIGHTS BLINDED ME N I WENT UP ON THE DIVIDER IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD. I FELT THAT I HIT THE DIVIDER SO I CAME OFF TRYING TO AVOID HITTING OTHER VEHICLES N CONTINUED DRIVING OUT OF FEAR. MY ON STAR CAME ON LETTING ME KNOW THAT THEY KNEW I HAD AN ACCIDENT AND CHECKING TO SEE IF I WAS ALRIGHT. I TOLD THEM I SMELLED SMOKE AND A FUNNY SMELL THEY INFORMED ME THAT SMELL WAS FROM MY AIR BAGS DEPLOYING WHICH THEY DID NOT. I TOLD THEM I DIDN'T NEED HELP MY CAR WAS STILL OPERABLE SO THEY INFORMED ME TO GET MY AIR BAGS CHECKED AND HUNG UP. I CALLED HOME BECAUSE I WAS SCARED AND REALIZE MY SEATBELT HAD ME PINNED TO MY CHAIR AND COULDN'T MOVE. MY SON HAD TO GET ME OUT OF MY DRIVER SEAT WITH FORCE. IF MY CAR DID CATCH ON FIRE I WOULD HAVE BEEN IN TROUBLE PINNED IN SEAT AND AIR BAGS NOT DEPLOYING COULD HAVE BEEN WORST. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10653068

10,000 miles · Aug 3, 2014
Air BagsCrash

I WAS NOT PAYING ATTENTION AND HIT A PARKED CAR WITH THE FRONT, RIGHT SIDE OF MY BUICK VERANO. IT MESSED UP MY FRONT, RIGHT TIRE AND SIDE AS WELL AS THE OTHER CAR'S LEFT BACK TIRE AND SIDE. THE POLICE CAME AND TOOK A REPORT. THE CAR WAS TOWED TO BOB [XXX], MY DEALER, IN PLYMOUTH, MI. MY FRIEND DROVE ME BACK HOME. ONCE I WAS H…

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I WAS NOT PAYING ATTENTION AND HIT A PARKED CAR WITH THE FRONT, RIGHT SIDE OF MY BUICK VERANO. IT MESSED UP MY FRONT, RIGHT TIRE AND SIDE AS WELL AS THE OTHER CAR'S LEFT BACK TIRE AND SIDE. THE POLICE CAME AND TOOK A REPORT. THE CAR WAS TOWED TO BOB [XXX], MY DEALER, IN PLYMOUTH, MI. MY FRIEND DROVE ME BACK HOME. ONCE I WAS HOME RETHINKING THE INCIDENT, I REALIZED THAT NO AIR BAG DEPLOYED AT ANY TIME. I WENT TO INTERNET AND DISCOVERED THAT BUICK VERANO 2012 AIR BAGS WERE RECALLED A YEAR AGO. I NEVER RECEIVED ANY INFORMATION ABOUT THIS RECALL. I HAVE SINCE TALKED TO THE GM CUSTOMER SERVICE WHO SAID THEY WILL MAKE A THOROUGH INSPECTION OF THE CAR. THIS ACCIDENT TOOK PLACE ON JULY 17, 2014. I HAVE HEARD NOTHING ABOUT MY CAR. IT IS STILL AT BOB JEANOTTE'S, I THINK. MY INSURANCE, AUTO OWNER'S, SENT ME A CHECK FOR APPROX. $4,000 TO COVER THE COST OF REPAIRS. BUT I AM NOT TURNING IT INTO [XXX] UNTIL I GET MY CAR BACK. I AM VERY NERVOUS ABOUT THIS INCIDENT. THANK GOD, I ONLY HIT A PARKED CAR. IF I WAS HIT FROM THE FRONT, I COULD BE SERIOUSLY INJURED OR KILLED! INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR

NHTSA ODI #10618451

10,000 miles · Jul 23, 2014
Air Bags

I HIT A PARKED CAR. MY FRONT, RIGHT TIRE WENT FLAT AND WAS TWISTED. I SWERVED TO THE RIGHT TO AVOID HITTING ANOTHER CAR. MY CAR ENDED UP IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET, BUT COULD NOT BE DRIVEN BECAUSE OF THE RIGHT FRONT TIRE. BY THE TIME I GOT HOME, I REALIZED THAT MY AIR BAG DID NOT INFLATE AT ALL. ALTHOUGH MY LEFT LEG WAS TERRIBL…

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I HIT A PARKED CAR. MY FRONT, RIGHT TIRE WENT FLAT AND WAS TWISTED. I SWERVED TO THE RIGHT TO AVOID HITTING ANOTHER CAR. MY CAR ENDED UP IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET, BUT COULD NOT BE DRIVEN BECAUSE OF THE RIGHT FRONT TIRE. BY THE TIME I GOT HOME, I REALIZED THAT MY AIR BAG DID NOT INFLATE AT ALL. ALTHOUGH MY LEFT LEG WAS TERRIBLE SWOLLEN, MY BIGGEST FEAR WAS THE AIR BAG. IT WAS TOWED TO BOB JEANOTTE DEALERSHIP IN PLYMOUTH, MI WHERE THEY SAID THEY WOULD GET AN INDEPENDENT PERSON TO INVESTIGATE THE AIR BAG - IT IS WAS PART OF THE RECALL. WHETHER IT WAS OR NOT, IT DIDN'T OPEN. I COULD HAVE BEEN KILLED. NO ONE TOLD ME OF A RECALL! *TR

NHTSA ODI #10615811

Official recalls

3

14V300000 · Air Bags

Jun 6, 2014

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.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: 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.

Remedy: 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.

13V023000 · Air Bags

Jan 24, 2013

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.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: 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.

Remedy: 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.

12V522000 · Air Bags

Oct 31, 2012

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.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: 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.

Remedy: 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.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

1

RQ13002 · Air Bag Non-deployment

Opened May 31, 2013 · Closed Jul 9, 2014

Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Air Bags; Air Bags:frontal; Air Bags:frontal:driver Side:inflator Module

General Motors (GM) has initiated a safety recall of 31,520 model year (MY) 2012 Buick Verano and Chevrolet Camaro, Cruze and Sonic vehicles to address a defect condition that could result in the primary or secondary stage air bag not deploying.These vehicles are a small percentage of all MY 2012 vehicles and were built on several specific production dates broadly ranging from December 1, 2011 to August 2, 2012 (see NHTSA recall 14V-300 for more information).Also, see attached additional report for more information.This investigation was opened to evaluate the scope of two uninfluenced safety recalls (NHTSA recalls 12V-522 and 13V-023) of certain MY 2012 Verano, Camaro, Cruze and Sonic vehicles.These recalls involved the same defect issue as the new recall mentioned above.Accordingly, this investigation is closed based on the recall actions GM is undertaking.

Additional source detail variants (6)

Air Bags:frontal:driver Side:inflator Module

General Motors (GM) has initiated a safety recall of 31,520 model year (MY) 2012 Buick Verano and Chevrolet Camaro, Cruze and Sonic vehicles to address a defect condition that could result in the primary or secondary stage air bag not deploying.These vehicles are a small percentage of all MY 2012 vehicles and were built on several specific production dates broadly ranging from December 1, 2011 to August 2, 2012 (see NHTSA recall 14V-300 for more information).Also, see attached additional report for more information.This investigation was opened to evaluate the scope of two uninfluenced safety recalls (NHTSA recalls 12V-522 and 13V-023) of certain MY 2012 Verano, Camaro, Cruze and Sonic vehicles.These recalls involved the same defect issue as the new recall mentioned above.Accordingly, this investigation is closed based on the recall actions GM is undertaking.

Air Bags:frontal:driver Side:inflator Module

General Motors (GM) has initiated a safety recall of 31,520 model year (MY) 2012 Buick Verano and Chevrolet Camaro, Cruze and Sonic vehicles to address a defect condition that could result in the primary or secondary stage air bag not deploying.These vehicles are a small percentage of all MY 2012 vehicles and were built on several specific production dates broadly ranging from December 1, 2011 to August 2, 2012 (see NHTSA recall 14V-300 for more information).Also, see attached additional report for more information.This investigation was opened to evaluate the scope of two uninfluenced safety recalls (NHTSA recalls 12V-522 and 13V-023) of certain MY 2012 Verano, Camaro, Cruze and Sonic vehicles.These recalls involved the same defect issue as the new recall mentioned above.Accordingly, this investigation is closed based on the recall actions GM is undertaking.

Air Bags:frontal

General Motors (GM) has initiated a safety recall of 31,520 model year (MY) 2012 Buick Verano and Chevrolet Camaro, Cruze and Sonic vehicles to address a defect condition that could result in the primary or secondary stage air bag not deploying.These vehicles are a small percentage of all MY 2012 vehicles and were built on several specific production dates broadly ranging from December 1, 2011 to August 2, 2012 (see NHTSA recall 14V-300 for more information).Also, see attached additional report for more information.This investigation was opened to evaluate the scope of two uninfluenced safety recalls (NHTSA recalls 12V-522 and 13V-023) of certain MY 2012 Verano, Camaro, Cruze and Sonic vehicles.These recalls involved the same defect issue as the new recall mentioned above.Accordingly, this investigation is closed based on the recall actions GM is undertaking.

Air Bags:frontal

General Motors (GM) has initiated a safety recall of 31,520 model year (MY) 2012 Buick Verano and Chevrolet Camaro, Cruze and Sonic vehicles to address a defect condition that could result in the primary or secondary stage air bag not deploying.These vehicles are a small percentage of all MY 2012 vehicles and were built on several specific production dates broadly ranging from December 1, 2011 to August 2, 2012 (see NHTSA recall 14V-300 for more information).Also, see attached additional report for more information.This investigation was opened to evaluate the scope of two uninfluenced safety recalls (NHTSA recalls 12V-522 and 13V-023) of certain MY 2012 Verano, Camaro, Cruze and Sonic vehicles.These recalls involved the same defect issue as the new recall mentioned above.Accordingly, this investigation is closed based on the recall actions GM is undertaking.

Air Bags

General Motors (GM) has initiated a safety recall of 31,520 model year (MY) 2012 Buick Verano and Chevrolet Camaro, Cruze and Sonic vehicles to address a defect condition that could result in the primary or secondary stage air bag not deploying.These vehicles are a small percentage of all MY 2012 vehicles and were built on several specific production dates broadly ranging from December 1, 2011 to August 2, 2012 (see NHTSA recall 14V-300 for more information).Also, see attached additional report for more information.This investigation was opened to evaluate the scope of two uninfluenced safety recalls (NHTSA recalls 12V-522 and 13V-023) of certain MY 2012 Verano, Camaro, Cruze and Sonic vehicles.These recalls involved the same defect issue as the new recall mentioned above.Accordingly, this investigation is closed based on the recall actions GM is undertaking.

Air Bags

General Motors (GM) has initiated a safety recall of 31,520 model year (MY) 2012 Buick Verano and Chevrolet Camaro, Cruze and Sonic vehicles to address a defect condition that could result in the primary or secondary stage air bag not deploying.These vehicles are a small percentage of all MY 2012 vehicles and were built on several specific production dates broadly ranging from December 1, 2011 to August 2, 2012 (see NHTSA recall 14V-300 for more information).Also, see attached additional report for more information.This investigation was opened to evaluate the scope of two uninfluenced safety recalls (NHTSA recalls 12V-522 and 13V-023) of certain MY 2012 Verano, Camaro, Cruze and Sonic vehicles.These recalls involved the same defect issue as the new recall mentioned above.Accordingly, this investigation is closed based on the recall actions GM is undertaking.