Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
30–25K
1325–50K
1150–75K
1575–100K
12100–150K
2150K+
56 reports with mileage · 24 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 46 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
Engine. Review the 22 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
Electronic Stability Control (esc). Review the 12 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
2 crash reports2 fire reports1 injury reports
What owners actually said
80 reports
Mileage unknown · Feb 9, 2022
Engine
Vehicle has a know oil useage problem. Have to check to make sure it is not low between oil changes. In the past I had it start to cut out if I was sitting at a stop light & had to put my foot on the brake & the gas pedal to keep it from quitting. Only happened occasionally & never gave it more thought till about a month ago.…
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Vehicle has a know oil useage problem. Have to check to make sure it is not low between oil changes. In the past I had it start to cut out if I was sitting at a stop light & had to put my foot on the brake & the gas pedal to keep it from quitting. Only happened occasionally & never gave it more thought till about a month ago. Was sitting in my car while it was idling and it just quit. Started it back up & it did it again. Thank goodness I was sitting in a driveway not on a highway. It drove terrible on the way home. Sputtered at every stop sign. Got it home a mile away and parked it. I was lucky to get home because it had started to leak oil just before my driveway so you could see it on the road. I lost the rest of the oil in my driveway! Got to doing some calling & research & found out they have issues with freezing up a tube on the top of the engine & now I have a blow rear main seal! Had we been informed of this issue we would have been able to prevent a real problem. Now I have a 2012 Chevy Captive (manufactured 02/24/12) that has 87,000 miles on it an needs a major repair! From our understanding some vehicles were issued a notification that this was an issue & offered a engine repair. Our vin number unfortunately doesn't come up under this issue. So now we are sitting a a major repair issue & no help with covering the cost of this known issue! The car is in good shape and we are unable to drive it till we get it fixed. Wish we would have known about this issue. Not too happy to find out this problem has been known about but yet many have not been notified of this issue. Glad my car died in my driveway & not out on some highway in the middle of now where. Could have caused a major accident when the car just died in the roadway! Would like to know what is offered for this issue & why car owners are not notified of this issue. Just frustrating!
NHTSA ODI #11451164
125,379 miles · Oct 13, 2021
EngineFire
The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Captiva. The contact stated that while his engine was off, the vehicle had caught fire and burned out on its own. The contact discovered the failure upon the entrance of the vehicle and saw smoke within the cabin. The vehicle would not start and was towed to the dealer. The contact was then info…
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The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Captiva. The contact stated that while his engine was off, the vehicle had caught fire and burned out on its own. The contact discovered the failure upon the entrance of the vehicle and saw smoke within the cabin. The vehicle would not start and was towed to the dealer. The contact was then informed that the climate control module had caused a fire within the vehicle and the module was replaced. After the repair, the check engine light would intermittently illuminate on the dashboard. The contact took the vehicle to Bob Tyler Toyota(7201 Pensacola Blvd, Pensacola, FL 32505) where they diagnosed the vehicle with engine failure. The manufacturer was notified and the contact was given a case number. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was 125,379
NHTSA ODI #11436627
Mileage unknown · Aug 30, 2021
Electrical SystemExterior Lighting
Numerous complaints have been filed on the internet and to the NHTSA concerning the electrical system on this vehicle. Include engine not starting when turn key, car starts to have flashing instrument panel light and then dying, failure to be able to remove the key when turning off the ignition, most dangerous issue is the elec…
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Numerous complaints have been filed on the internet and to the NHTSA concerning the electrical system on this vehicle. Include engine not starting when turn key, car starts to have flashing instrument panel light and then dying, failure to be able to remove the key when turning off the ignition, most dangerous issue is the electrical system failing when on the highway, dealers seem to be aware of the problem but have not corrected problem which is probably related to positive and negative battery cables and "battery current sensor". This is a dangerous vehicle because of the uncertainty of the electrical failure to some time start or failing while driving down the highway. It certainly seems that there have been sufficient issues by any number Captiva owners to warrant a recall and have dealers correct the electrical problems before one is seriously injured.
NHTSA ODI #11430982
Mileage unknown · Jul 23, 2021
Electrical SystemUnknown Or Other
UNABLE TO REMOVE KEY FROM IGNITION WHEN VEHICLE IS IN PARK. IT WOULD STICK IN THE AUXILIARY POSITION. I COULD RESTART THE ENGINE BUT I COULD NOT TURN THE VEHICLE COMPLETELY OFF. THIS STARTED A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO AND WOULD HAPPEN RANDOMLY. OVER TIME IT BECAME MORE FREQUENT BEFORE IT FINALLY WASN’T COMING OUT AT ALL. I WOULD H…
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UNABLE TO REMOVE KEY FROM IGNITION WHEN VEHICLE IS IN PARK. IT WOULD STICK IN THE AUXILIARY POSITION. I COULD RESTART THE ENGINE BUT I COULD NOT TURN THE VEHICLE COMPLETELY OFF. THIS STARTED A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO AND WOULD HAPPEN RANDOMLY. OVER TIME IT BECAME MORE FREQUENT BEFORE IT FINALLY WASN’T COMING OUT AT ALL. I WOULD HAVE TO LEAVE MY KEY IN THE CAR AND DISCONNECT THE BATTERY AFTER USE. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALERSHIP AND HAD THE TRANSMISSION CONTROL SHIFTER REPLACED. FOLLOWING THIS REPAIR I STARTED HAVING MORE ELECTRICAL ISSUES. MY RADIO WOULD CUT OUT AND THE TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT WOULD FLASH ON. I WENT TO GM SERVICE AND THEY COULD FIND NOTHING. THE ISSUE CONTINIUED AND ONLY GOT WORSE. I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AND LOST ACCELERATION TO MY VEHICLE IN HEAVY TRAFFIC. I HAD TO SLIDE ON TO THE SHOULDER AND WAS ABLE TO RESTART THE CAR AND GET GOING AGAIN TO ONLY HAVE IT HAPPEN AGAIN 30 MIN LATER. I WAS ON AN UPHILL AND HAD NO WHERE SAFE TO PULL OVER. MY CAR WOULD SURGE AHEAD, LOSE MOMENTUM AND REPEAT UNTIL I WAS FINALLY ABLE TO GET SAFELY TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. I HAD A NUMBER OF LIGHTS FLASH ON DURING THIS EPISODE… CHECK ENGINE, SERVICE STABILIZER, AIR BAG AND OTHERS. THE CHECK ENGINE STAYED ON FOR 2 DAYS. I WAS ALSO UNABLE TO REMOVE THE KEY AGAIN BUT THIS TIME I ALSO COULDN’T TURN THE ENGINE BACK ON AGAIN. I THOUGHT THAT I WAS GOING TO BE STUCK ON THE SIDE OF THE HIGHWAY. AFTER SITTING FOR A WHILE I WAS ABLE TO START THE CAR AND MAKE IT HOME. LUCKILY! SINCE THEN I HAVE CONTINUED TO HAVE REGULAR PROBLEMS WITH THE RADIO AND WAS STUCK AGAIN IN A PARKING LOT UNABLE TO REOVE MY KEY. SOMETHING SERIOUS IS HAPPENING BUT AGAIN MY MECHANIC CANNOT FIND A THING WRONG AND THEY HAVE JUST HAD THE CAR FOR 2 DAYS. I SEE THAT OTHER OWNERS ARE HAVING SIMILAR ISSUES. THIS NEEDS TO BE ATTENDED TO BEFORE SOMETHING SERIOUS HAPPENS TO SOMEONE.
NHTSA ODI #11426212
Mileage unknown · Jul 19, 2021
Electrical System
Sometimes when driving all the electrical equipment will turn off for a brief moment. When this happens all the warning lights come on. Sometimes prior to this happening the dashboard lights will begin to flicker. Service lights such as "service traction control" will come on then go off, the headlights would noticably flicker a…
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Sometimes when driving all the electrical equipment will turn off for a brief moment. When this happens all the warning lights come on. Sometimes prior to this happening the dashboard lights will begin to flicker. Service lights such as "service traction control" will come on then go off, the headlights would noticably flicker and the cruise control would randomly turn off. This problem has not been replicated by the independent garage it was taken too however there were codes for low and high voltages thrown. The garage couldn't find anything wrong with it but replaced the battery and alternator. The problem went away for a brief period of time but will randomly come back from time to time. The key also would sometimes get in the ignition and this progressed untill the key became fully stuck and the car had to be serviced. Many others have these same complaints.
NHTSA ODI #11425382
76,000 miles · May 3, 2021
Steering
KEY GETS LOCKED IN THE IGNITION. ALWAYS NOT SOMETIMES ALL THE TIME. JUST PURCHASED THIS VEHICLE IS PARKED AND CANT DRIVE IT WITHOUT LEAVING THE KEY INSIDE
NHTSA ODI #11414920
150,000 miles · Apr 13, 2021
Service BrakesFire
BRAKE CALIPER LOCKED UP AND CAUGHT ON FIRE CAUSING THE CAR TO BURN TO THE CAR TO BURN TO THE GROUND.
NHTSA ODI #11407924
79,000 miles · Dec 27, 2020
Electrical SystemService BrakesWheels
I HAVE BROUGHT MY VEHICLE TO CHEVY AND WAS ADVISED THAT THEY COULD NOT FIND ANYTHING WRONG WITH THE TRACTION CONTROL OR THE RADIO. EVERY SO OFTEN THE TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT COMES ON AND STATES THAT THE TRACTION CONTROL NEEDS TO BE SERVICED WHEN THE VEHICLE IS RUNNING IDLE FOR MORE THAN 30 SECONDS. WHEN THAT COMES ON THE RADIO …
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I HAVE BROUGHT MY VEHICLE TO CHEVY AND WAS ADVISED THAT THEY COULD NOT FIND ANYTHING WRONG WITH THE TRACTION CONTROL OR THE RADIO. EVERY SO OFTEN THE TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT COMES ON AND STATES THAT THE TRACTION CONTROL NEEDS TO BE SERVICED WHEN THE VEHICLE IS RUNNING IDLE FOR MORE THAN 30 SECONDS. WHEN THAT COMES ON THE RADIO BLINKS ON AND OFF. IN THE PAST TWO WEEKS, THE VEHICLE HAD TO GET JUMPED TWICE. TOOK THE VEHICLE TO GET TESTED AT TWO DIFFERENT AUTO STORES AND WAS ADVISED AFTER THEY TESTED THE BATTERY THAT THE BATTERY WAS GOOD. I AM FRUSTRATED THAT THEY CANNOT FIND ANYTHING WRONG WITH IT YET IT IS ON THE BRINK OF NOT WORKING EVERY OTHER DAY. IN ADDITION, THE VEHICLE WAS NOT ABLE TO GO UP A SMALL HILL AFTER THE SNOW HAD FALLEN. I HAD TO GET ASSISTANCE. THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE.
NHTSA ODI #11385164
126,000 miles · Nov 25, 2020
Electrical System
HAVING NUMEROUS ISSUES. THE FIRST ONE IS THAT THE IGNITION WHEN SWITCHED TO OFF WILL NOT RELEASE THE KEY. DOES NOT TURN ALL THE WAY TO RELEASE THE KEY OUT. HAD IT SWAPPED OUT AND STILL HAVING THE SAME ISSUE. SOMETHING ABOUT A RELEASE INSIDE THE COLUM THAT WILL NOT FULLY DISENGAGE SECOND ISSUE IS THAT MY CAR WILL LOCK AS WEL…
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HAVING NUMEROUS ISSUES. THE FIRST ONE IS THAT THE IGNITION WHEN SWITCHED TO OFF WILL NOT RELEASE THE KEY. DOES NOT TURN ALL THE WAY TO RELEASE THE KEY OUT. HAD IT SWAPPED OUT AND STILL HAVING THE SAME ISSUE. SOMETHING ABOUT A RELEASE INSIDE THE COLUM THAT WILL NOT FULLY DISENGAGE SECOND ISSUE IS THAT MY CAR WILL LOCK AS WELL AS UNLOCK ITS SELF. THE CAR CAN BE OFF AND PARKED OR EVEN DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD. THE HATCH RELEASE AS WELL WILL DISENGAGE AND POP OPEN. TOOK IT TO SHOPS AND DEALERS.
NHTSA ODI #11376277
Mileage unknown · Nov 4, 2020
Electrical SystemEngineService Brakes
STABILITY CONTROL AND BREAK WARNING CONSTANTLY..HAD BREAKS COMPLETELY REPAIRED TWICE WITHIN THE 2 YEARS OF PURCHASING IT..ONLY HAS 160,000 MILES. LIGHTING WIRING ISSUE MALFUNCTION.
GENERAL MOTORS LLC (GM) IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2012 CHEVROLET CAPTIVA SPORT PASSENGER VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM APRIL 26, 2012, THROUGH MAY 17, 2012. THESE VEHICLES FAIL TO CONFORM TO THE PARK BRAKE PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 135, "LIGHT VEHICLE BRAKE SYSTEMS." THE PARK BRAKE CABLE MAY NOT BE FULLY SEATED IN ITS CONNECTOR AND MAY SEPARATE FROM THE CONNECTOR. IF THIS OCCURS, THE PARK BRAKE WILL BECOME INOPERATIVE AND WILL NOT HOLD THE VEHICLE.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: IF THE VEHICLE IS ON AN UNEVEN SURFACE, THIS COULD RESULT IN UNINTENDED VEHICLE MOVEMENT AND A CRASH.
Remedy: GM WILL NOTIFY OWNERS, AND DEALERS WILL INSPECT AND ENSURE THAT THE PARK BRAKE CABLES ARE CONNECTED AND SECURE FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 27, 2012. OWNERS MAY CONTACT THE CHEVROLET OWNER CENTER AT 1-866-694-6546.
GENERAL MOTORS (GM) IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2011-2012 CHEVROLET CAPTIVA VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM OCTOBER 2, 2009, THROUGH APRIL 21, 2011. DRIVING THE VEHICLE WITH THE TRANSMISSION IN MANUAL MODE AND IN FIRST GEAR CAUSES THE ENGINE AND POWER STEERING PUMP TO OPERATE AT HIGHER SPEED THAN IS TYPICAL. INCREASED PUMP SPEED GENERATES HEAT THAT IS TRANSFERRED TO THE POWER STEERING FLUID AND CAN RESULT IN POWER STEERING FLUID TEMPERATURES THAT APPROACH THE POWER STEERING PUMP RESERVOIRS MELTING POINT.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: AFTER PROLONGED EXPOSURE TO ELEVATED FLUID TEMPERATURES, THE RESERVOIR MAY LEAK. LEAKING FLUID, IN THE PRESENCE OF AN IGNITION SOURCE, MAY RESULT IN A FIRE.
Remedy: GM WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE POWER STEERING FLUID COOLER WITH AN IMPROVED VERSION, FREE OF CHARGE. AN ADVISORY LETTER TO CUSTOMERS, ALONG WITH INSTRUCTIONS, WILL BE MAILED IN JANUARY 2012. WHEN PARTS BECOME AVAILABLE, GM WILL SEND ANOTHER LETTER ASKING CUSTOMER TO TAKE THEIR VEHICLE TO A GM DEALER TO HAVE THE REPAIRS PERFORMED. GM ANTICIPATES PARTS WILL BE AVAILABLE IN MARCH 2012. OWNERS MAY CONTACT CHEVROLET AT 1-800-630-2438.
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
0
No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.
2012 Chevrolet Captiva Sport Problems, Complaints & Recalls | Skip That Year