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2012 Chevrolet Camaro

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

More warning signs than most Camaro years

Owner complaints for the 2012 Chevrolet Camaro are substantially higher than the model-year median of 32.

About this comparison →

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

84 reports with mileage · 29 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.

  • Electrical System. Review the 27 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Engine. Review the 26 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Air Bags. Review the 22 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

10 crash reports4 fire reports6 injury reports

Service Brakes complaints

7 reports
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Mileage unknown · Jul 15, 2026
Service BrakesStructureSuspension

I purchased this vehicle July of this year and just drove it to find it pulled extremely to the right. I was told it was an alignment issue which they attempted to fix which seems successful in July coming off the offramp after first time on the highway and applying the brakes, the car shook side side, and then up and down. It f…

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I purchased this vehicle July of this year and just drove it to find it pulled extremely to the right. I was told it was an alignment issue which they attempted to fix which seems successful in July coming off the offramp after first time on the highway and applying the brakes, the car shook side side, and then up and down. It felt like the car was coming apart. I again notified the dealer. I purchased it from and was reminded it was bought as his, but that they would do what they can to fix it so that I would feel safe driving it. Also upon purchase when it got dark, I could not see even the beam of the headlights that they promised to replace and have not as yet.

NHTSA ODI #11750591

Mileage unknown · Jun 14, 2026
Service Brakes

Parking brake failed because crimped stopper at end of cable coming from interior lever failed. The stopper appears to be made of very soft metal and does not have much contact area with wire rope portion of cable. According to the dealership this is a very common failure, however, Chevrolet has discontinued the part. The manner…

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Parking brake failed because crimped stopper at end of cable coming from interior lever failed. The stopper appears to be made of very soft metal and does not have much contact area with wire rope portion of cable. According to the dealership this is a very common failure, however, Chevrolet has discontinued the part. The manner in which this failed should never have happened. The car is equipped with a manual transmission and requires a functioning parking brake. Had this broken while the vehicle was parked and I was out of the vehicle, it could have rolled away. There was no indication that this was going to fail prior to failure. I pulled up on the parking brake lever and it just suddenly failed.

NHTSA ODI #11744021

20,250 miles · Dec 19, 2014
Air BagsService BrakesSteeringCrashInjury

WHILE DRIVING WITH TRAFFIC ON 6 LANE ROAD WITH 45 MPH SPEED LIMIT, THE VEHICLE, A 2012 CHEVROLET CAMARO CONVERTIBLE, WAS STRUCK FROM THE REAR BY A BOX TRUCK AT SPEED CAUSING A SIGNIFICANT DELTA-V EVENT. UPON INITIAL IMPACT, THE STEERING WHEEL, AIRBAG, IGNITION LOCK, TURN SIGNAL AND WIPER SWITCH ASSEMBLY, SPLINE SHAFT AND METAL C…

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WHILE DRIVING WITH TRAFFIC ON 6 LANE ROAD WITH 45 MPH SPEED LIMIT, THE VEHICLE, A 2012 CHEVROLET CAMARO CONVERTIBLE, WAS STRUCK FROM THE REAR BY A BOX TRUCK AT SPEED CAUSING A SIGNIFICANT DELTA-V EVENT. UPON INITIAL IMPACT, THE STEERING WHEEL, AIRBAG, IGNITION LOCK, TURN SIGNAL AND WIPER SWITCH ASSEMBLY, SPLINE SHAFT AND METAL CYLINDER FROM THE TILT/TELESCOPING ASSEMBLY SEPARATED FROM THE VEHICLE AS A SINGLE ASSEMBLY. THE STEERING WHEEL ASSEMBLY STRUCK THE DRIVER IN THE CHEST AND JAW, BREAKING THE MANDIBLE IN MULTIPLE PLACES. DRIVER ALSO SUSTAINED COMPRESSION FRACTURE OF THE T12 VERTEBRA AMONG OTHER INJURIES. THE VEHICLE CONTINUED MOVING FORWARD AFTER THE INITIAL IMPACT BUT DRIVER COULD NOT STEER WITH THE SEPARATED STEERING WHEEL. VEHICLE DRIFTED OFF THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE ROAD STRIKING A 6? I-BEAM SUPPORTING A ROAD SIGN. ELECTRICAL CONNECTIONS TO THE AIRBAG AND IGNITION SEPARATED DURING THE INITIAL IMPACT. DRIVER WAS THE SOLE OCCUPANT OF THE CAMARO AND WAS USING SEAT BELTS AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10667311

3,000 miles · Sep 1, 2014
Electrical SystemService Brakes

I STARTED TO HAVE AN ISSUE WITH THE IGNITION IN MY CAR. AT ALL DIFFERENT TIMES THE KEY WOULD STICK AND NOT TURN IN THE CAR. I BROUGHT IT IN AND TOLD HEM AND THEY AID IT WAS THE WAY I WAS STARTING IT. THAT THE WHEELS WERE NOT STRAIGHT. THIS WAS NOT THE CASE AS IT HAPPENED AT ALL DIFFERENT TIMES AND I NOW THE WHEELS NEED TO BE STR…

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I STARTED TO HAVE AN ISSUE WITH THE IGNITION IN MY CAR. AT ALL DIFFERENT TIMES THE KEY WOULD STICK AND NOT TURN IN THE CAR. I BROUGHT IT IN AND TOLD HEM AND THEY AID IT WAS THE WAY I WAS STARTING IT. THAT THE WHEELS WERE NOT STRAIGHT. THIS WAS NOT THE CASE AS IT HAPPENED AT ALL DIFFERENT TIMES AND I NOW THE WHEELS NEED TO BE STRAIGHT. I CONTINUED TO HAVE PROBLEMS UNTIL THIS DAY. A FEW MONTHS AGO WHEN I WAS AT A DEALERSHIP IN FL WHERE I MOVED I HAD SUCH A BAD EXPERIENCE AND NO HELP FOR A CONTINUED BREAK ISSUES I PRINTED PAPERWORK TO FILE FOR A LEMON LAW YET HAVE NOT PURSUED THIS AS OF NOW. TODAY I RECEIVED A SAFETY RECALL ON THE IGNITION. THIS IS VERY TROUBLING TO ME AS I HAVE SAID SINCE MY CAR WAS NEW THAT THERE WAS SOMETHING SERIOUSLY WRONG WITH THIS IN MY CAR YET NO ONE WOULD HELP ME. NOW WITH THE RECALL NOTICE AND THE BRAKE ISSUE I AM WANTING TO PURSUE THE LEMON LAW. PLEASE ADVISE ON WHAT I SHOULD DO. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10629840

3,256 miles · Aug 20, 2014
Service BrakesStructure

I PULLED OUT OF MY PARKING PLACE AT MY CONDOMINIUMS. I COULD NOT GET MY CAR TO STOP. THE BRAKES WERE NOT WORKING. THIS HAS HAPPENED MANY TIMES OVER THE YEARS SINCE I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE. I HAVE TAKEN IT INTO THE DEALERSHIPS IN MY AREA ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS BUT THEY HAVE TOLD ME THEY WILL ONLY FIX IT IF IT DOES IT WHILE IT IS I…

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I PULLED OUT OF MY PARKING PLACE AT MY CONDOMINIUMS. I COULD NOT GET MY CAR TO STOP. THE BRAKES WERE NOT WORKING. THIS HAS HAPPENED MANY TIMES OVER THE YEARS SINCE I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE. I HAVE TAKEN IT INTO THE DEALERSHIPS IN MY AREA ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS BUT THEY HAVE TOLD ME THEY WILL ONLY FIX IT IF IT DOES IT WHILE IT IS IN THEIR CARE. I HAVE OTHER PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN DRIVING MY CAR WHEN IT HAS HAPPENED BUT IT HAS NOT HAPPENED WHILE I HAVE BEEN AT THE DEALERSHIP. THE MOST RECENT OCCURRENCE HAPPENED AND I RAN INTO POLL AND MY BUMPER NOW NEEDS TO BE REPLACE. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10626869

2,000 miles · Sep 26, 2013
Service Brakes

MY 2012 CAMARO HAD A LEAK AT THE MASTER CYLINDER RESERVOIR! ONE DEALER WHERE I BOUGHT IT CANCELLED MY APPOINTMENT AND SAID THEY WOULD MAIL ME A CAP! I REFUSED AS THIS WOULD VOID THE WARRANTY!TOOK TO ANOTHER DEALER AND THEY CONFIRMED AND REPLACED CAP! ABOUT 10K LATER THE BRAKE PEDAL WENT TO THE FLOOR AND LOST MY BRAKES!DEALER ORD…

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MY 2012 CAMARO HAD A LEAK AT THE MASTER CYLINDER RESERVOIR! ONE DEALER WHERE I BOUGHT IT CANCELLED MY APPOINTMENT AND SAID THEY WOULD MAIL ME A CAP! I REFUSED AS THIS WOULD VOID THE WARRANTY!TOOK TO ANOTHER DEALER AND THEY CONFIRMED AND REPLACED CAP! ABOUT 10K LATER THE BRAKE PEDAL WENT TO THE FLOOR AND LOST MY BRAKES!DEALER ORDERED A NEW RESERVOIR AND REPLACED IT! I TOOK THE CAR HOME AND FOOT KEPT GOING TO THE FLOOR! BROUGHT CAR BACK AND DEALER SAID IT WAS FINE.THEY REFUSED TO LET ME SPEAK TO A TECH OR SERVICE MANAGER!BROUGHT TO ANOTHER DEALER AND THE CALLED GM.THERE WAS NO BRAKE PRESSURE AND NO WARNING LIGHTS ON! THEY TOOK OFF MASTER CYLINDER AND REBLED SYSTEM! LESS THAN 100 MILES LATER I WENT OUT TO START CAR AS I BEEN SICK AND DIDN'T WANT A DEAD BATTERY AND FOOT WENT RIGHT TO THE FLOOR! I OPENED HOOD AND RESERVOIR WAS SOAKED AND BRAKE FLUID SPRAYED ONTO THE POSITIVE JUMPER CABLE, LEAKED UNDER MASTER CYLINDER AND YOU CAN SEE THAT THERE WAS A SPRAY PATTERN DIRECTLY FROM THE MASTER CYLINDER! FLUID IS BEING FORCED OUT AND AIR BEING SUCKED BACK IN! CAR WILL BE TOWED BACK TO DEALER! LAST TIME THEY CLAIMED PREVIOUS DEALER OVER FILLED RESERVOIR AND THAT'S WHY THERE WAS NO PRESSURE! A SLIGHTLY AS THEY SAID OVERFILLED MASTER CYLINDER WILL NEVER CAUSE A NO BRAKE PRESSURE ISSUE! SOUNDS LIKE THEY WERE TOLD WHAT TO WRITE BY GM LEGAL DEPARTMENT! FRONT BRAKES ALSO GRIND WHEN THERE IS PRESSURE AND CAUSING ROTORS TO BE GROOVED! SO SAD THAT THEY DON'T CARE THAT THIS IS A LIFE AND DEATH ISSUE! *JS

NHTSA ODI #10545558

1,456 miles · Jul 21, 2012
Service Brakes

BRAKE FLUID RESERVOIR CAP LEAKS BRAKE FLUID. WE HAVE HAD 4 CAMAROS AND THE TWO WE HAVE NOW AND OUR PREVIOUS TWO ALL LEAKED WITH THOUSANDS OF OTHERS ON THE ROAD. GM TSB SAYS REPLACE THE CAP.THEY KEEP USING SAME CAPS AND THEY STILL LEAK!MY DEALER ELKINS CHEVROLET IN NEW JERSEY ,THEY EVEN CANCELLED AN APPOINTMENT I MADE,THEY COULD…

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BRAKE FLUID RESERVOIR CAP LEAKS BRAKE FLUID. WE HAVE HAD 4 CAMAROS AND THE TWO WE HAVE NOW AND OUR PREVIOUS TWO ALL LEAKED WITH THOUSANDS OF OTHERS ON THE ROAD. GM TSB SAYS REPLACE THE CAP.THEY KEEP USING SAME CAPS AND THEY STILL LEAK!MY DEALER ELKINS CHEVROLET IN NEW JERSEY ,THEY EVEN CANCELLED AN APPOINTMENT I MADE,THEY COULD CARE LESS AND GAVE ME TROUBLE ORDERING A NEW ONE! *TR

NHTSA ODI #10466896

Official recalls

4

14V447000 · Seats:front Assembly:power Adjust

Jul 23, 2014

General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2011-2012 Buick LaCrosse, Regal and Chevrolet Camaro, as well as certain 2010-2012 Cadillac SRX, Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain vehicles, equipped with power height adjustable driver and passenger seats. In the affected vehicles, the bolt that secures the driver's and passenger's power front seat height adjuster may fall out causing the seat to drop suddenly to the lowest vertical position.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: If the driver's seat unexpectedly drops, the distraction and altered seat position may affect the drivers' control of the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the height adjuster shoulder bolts, free of charge. The manufacturer distributed interim letters to owners on September 11, 2014. The recall began on December 26, 2014. Owners may contact GM customer service at 1-800-521-7300 (Buick), 1-800-458-8006 (Cadillac), 1-800-222-1020 (Chevrolet), or 1-800-462-8782 (GMC). GM's number for this recall is 14271.

14V346000 · Electrical System:ignition

Jun 20, 2014

General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling all 2010-2014 Chevrolet Camaro vehicles manufactured December 3, 2008 to May 23, 2014. In the affected vehicles, the driver may accidentally hit the ignition key with their knee, unintentionally knocking the key out of the run position, turning off the engine.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: If the key is not in the run position, the air bags may not deploy if the vehicle is involved in a crash, increasing the risk of injury. Additionally, a key knocked out of the run position could cause loss of engine power, power steering, and power braking, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash.

Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will remove the key blade from the original flip key/RKE transmitter assemblies, and provide two new keys and two key rings per key. The recall began August 25, 2014. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 14294. Note: Until the recall has been performed, it is very important that drivers adjust their seat and steering column to allow clearance between their knee and the ignition key.

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.

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.