IllustrationJUST BOUGHT CAR USED WITH 26K MILES AND REAR BRAKES ARE METAL TO METAL. SO FAR DEALER CANT FIND PARTS IN THERE SYSTEM FOR MY CAR. *TR
2008 Chevrolet Cobalt Ss
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Limited comparison data
There is not enough comparable history to draw a useful model-year comparison.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Cobalt Ss years →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
600–25K
825–50K
1050–75K
575–100K
1100–150K
1150K+
85 reports with mileage · 10 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.
- Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 64 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes. Review the 7 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 6 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
0 crash reports1 fire reports0 injury reports
Service Brakes, Hydraulic complaints
64 reportsNORMAL DRIVING HAS CAUSED MY REAR BRAKES TO BE TOTALLY SHOT AT 15000 MILES. HAVE NOT TRIED TO WARRANTY THE ITEM YET, BUT I HAVE HEARD THEY WILL NOT REPLACE THE ITEM. *TR
REAR BRAKE ISSUE ON BRAND NEW 2008-2010 COBALT SS THE REAR BRAKE PADS ARE OVERLY HARD TO THE ROTOR, CAUSING HEAVY SCOURING AND WARPING THIS IS A KNOWN ISSUE IN THE COMMUNITY FOR THIS VEHICLE AND MANY GM DEALERS ARE NOT REPAIRING THE ITEM UNDER WARRANTY, THIS ITEM NEEDS A RECALL. *TR
2008 CHEVY COBALT SS UNDER NORMAL DRIVING AND BRAKING CONDITIONS THE REAR DISK BRAKES WEAR UNEVENLY AND FAIL PREMATURELY. INCIDENT 1: 0% PAD MATERIAL ON INNER LININGS ON BOTH LEFT AND RIGHT REAR WHEELS WITH >80% MATERIAL OUTBOARD PADS. FAILURE OCCURRED WITH ABOUT 17K MILES. ON INSPECTION IT WAS OBSERVED THAT GM HAD FAILED…
Read full complaint
2008 CHEVY COBALT SS UNDER NORMAL DRIVING AND BRAKING CONDITIONS THE REAR DISK BRAKES WEAR UNEVENLY AND FAIL PREMATURELY. INCIDENT 1: 0% PAD MATERIAL ON INNER LININGS ON BOTH LEFT AND RIGHT REAR WHEELS WITH >80% MATERIAL OUTBOARD PADS. FAILURE OCCURRED WITH ABOUT 17K MILES. ON INSPECTION IT WAS OBSERVED THAT GM HAD FAILED TO APPLY LUTRICANT TO THE GUIDE PINS OF CALIPERS. REPLACEMENT OF ROTORS AND PADS WAS REQUIRED. INCIDENT 2: SAME FAILURE AS INCIDENT 1. 0% PAD MATERIAL ON INNER LININGS OF BOTH LEFT AND RIGHT REAR WHEELS WITH >80% MATERIAL ON OUTBOARD PADS. FAILURE OCCURRED WITHIN 20K MILES. REPLACEMENT OF ROTORS AND PADS WAS AGAIN REQUIRED. *TR
I HAD ONLY 12000 MILES ON MY NEW COBALT TURBO 08 MODEL AND HAD TO PAY OUT OF POCKET TO HAVE THE REAR PADS AND ROTORS REPLACED. *TR
REAR BRAKES ARE WEARING PREMATURELY. GROOVES ARE FORMING IN ROTORS FROM FAULTY EQUIPMENT. CAR IS AT 23,000 MILES. *TR
AT 6000 MILES, MY REAR BRAKES ARE COMPLETELY WORN DOWN, MY ROTORS ARE SCORED, AND ONE GM DEALER SAID THEY WOULD WARRANTY MY ROTORS IF I PURCHASED NEW PADS FOR OVER $100, AND ANOTHER DEALER SAID THAT THE WEAR WAS "NORMAL" FOR MY CAR. THIS OBVIOUSLY IS A MANUFACTURER DEFECT, AND I AM NOT VERY HAPPY. THE DEALER SAID I HAVE OVER 75%…
Read full complaint
AT 6000 MILES, MY REAR BRAKES ARE COMPLETELY WORN DOWN, MY ROTORS ARE SCORED, AND ONE GM DEALER SAID THEY WOULD WARRANTY MY ROTORS IF I PURCHASED NEW PADS FOR OVER $100, AND ANOTHER DEALER SAID THAT THE WEAR WAS "NORMAL" FOR MY CAR. THIS OBVIOUSLY IS A MANUFACTURER DEFECT, AND I AM NOT VERY HAPPY. THE DEALER SAID I HAVE OVER 75% LIFE LEFT ON THE PADS THROUGH HIS GAUGE SYSTEM, AND YET IT MAKES HORRIBLE SCREECHING NOISES. THE ROTORS ARE SCORED VERY BADLY. *TR
2008 CHEVROLET COBALT SS REAR BRAKES FAULTY. REAR PADS ARE GOUGING IN TO ROTORS VERY BADLY AT THIS POINT, 11,000 MILES. I DRIVER CONSERVATIVELY. THIS GOUGING OF ROTORS ACTUALLY BECAME NOTICEABLE AT ONLY 3500 MILES. I HAVE OWNED THE CAR SINCE NEW. I RECOMMEND GM PUTS RECALL OUT ON REAR BRAKES FOR THIS CAR TO REPLACE ROTORS…
Read full complaint
2008 CHEVROLET COBALT SS REAR BRAKES FAULTY. REAR PADS ARE GOUGING IN TO ROTORS VERY BADLY AT THIS POINT, 11,000 MILES. I DRIVER CONSERVATIVELY. THIS GOUGING OF ROTORS ACTUALLY BECAME NOTICEABLE AT ONLY 3500 MILES. I HAVE OWNED THE CAR SINCE NEW. I RECOMMEND GM PUTS RECALL OUT ON REAR BRAKES FOR THIS CAR TO REPLACE ROTORS AND PADS FREE OF CHARGE. *TR
REAR BRAKES STARTED TO BE NOISY AT ABOUT 2000KM, HUGE GROOVES ON THE ROTORS. I DOWNSHIFT/REV MATCH ALL MY GEARS,I DON'T ABUSE MY CAR, I DON'T GO IN DIRT ROAD. BRAKES ARE SUPPOSED TO LAST 60K MINIMUM. DEALERS WON`T PUT THE JOB UNDER WARRANTY. *TR
2008 CHEVROLET COBALT SS. REAR BRAKE ROTORS BADLY GROOVED. INNER BRAKE PAD WORN COMPLETELY OUT. OUTER PAD WORN TO LESS THAN 50%. FRONT ROTORS HAVE SMALL GROOVES AND HAVE JUST UNDER 40% OF PAD LIFE LEFT. GM DEALER WOULD NOT FIX UNDER WARRANTY BUT ACKNOWLEDGED THAT THEY DIDN'T KNOW WHY REAR BRAKES ARE WEARING BEFORE FRONTS. I HAVE…
Read full complaint
2008 CHEVROLET COBALT SS. REAR BRAKE ROTORS BADLY GROOVED. INNER BRAKE PAD WORN COMPLETELY OUT. OUTER PAD WORN TO LESS THAN 50%. FRONT ROTORS HAVE SMALL GROOVES AND HAVE JUST UNDER 40% OF PAD LIFE LEFT. GM DEALER WOULD NOT FIX UNDER WARRANTY BUT ACKNOWLEDGED THAT THEY DIDN'T KNOW WHY REAR BRAKES ARE WEARING BEFORE FRONTS. I HAVE OWNED CAR SINCE IT WAS NEW. NO RACING JUST DAILY COMMUTING TO AND FROM WORK (40MILES ONE-WAY). INSTALLED OEM PADS AT 15000. HAVE SEEN PROBLEM PROGRESSIVELY GET WORSE SINCE ABOUT 7000 MILES. CURRENT MILEAGE APPROX. 32000,PADS WORN OUT IN SAME MANNER AS STATED ABOVE AND ROTORS ARE SEVERELY GROOVED, WORN PAST SAFE REFINISH LIMITS. FRONT PADS ARE IN OK SHAPE AND SMALL GROOVES IN ROTORS. 95% OF DRIVING IS DONE ON HIGHWAY. *TR
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
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
2PE20011 · Fuel Line Leak
Opened Jul 5, 2020 · Closed Aug 17, 2023
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Fuel System, Gasoline; Fuel System, Other:delivery:hoses, Lines/piping, And Fittings; Fuel/propulsion System
On July 5, 2020, the Office of Defects Investigations (ODI) opened PE20-011 to investigate instances of metal fuel lines under the vehicle corroding and leaking fuel in model year (MY) 2008 through 2010 Chevrolet Cobalt and 2008 through 2009 Chevrolet HHR passenger cars manufactured by General Motors (GM). The metal fuel lines are corroding and leaking fuel in the area between the front and rear wheels on the driver's side of the vehicle before the muffler. Most consumers allege a fuel odor and/or an observable fuel leak that alerts them to the condition.The subject metal fuel lines have a protective AGE coating and, in the vicinity of the left rear wheel, are further wrapped in a foil heat shield. The AGE coating consists of an annealed zinc aluminum alloy metal coating with extended corrosion protection paint. Under certain conditions, water and corrosive road deicing agents may enter a crevice between the heat shield and the AGE coating. With extended environmental exposure in high corrosive environments, the AGE coating can degrade. If it degrades enough, the base metal lines may begin to corrode beneath the heat shield.Corrosion to the fuel lines may eventually cause a perforation to develop in the line, allowing fuel vapors to escape from between the line and the heat shield, emitting a fuel odor that will be detectable to the vehicle operator. If the corrosion progresses, fuel may begin to weep from the line. Further metal degradation due to corrosion could create a drip or a mist of fuel. If this occurs, vehicle owners may see drips, spots, or puddles on the ground near the rear portion of the vehicle, primarily along the driver's side rear wheel.The majority of allegations (85%) were reported for vehicles that are operated in the salt belt region of the United States. This area includes states in the Northeast, mid-Atlantic, and Midwest regions. Additionally, the average failure mileage in the subject vehicles is approximately 111,000 across all data sources.Considering the low manufacturer complaint/warranty rates of fuel line replacement, the fact that the majority of failures are concentrated in salt belt states, high failure mileages, as well as the field exposure time for the subject vehicles, and the highly detectable and progressive nature of this failure over time, the potential safety consequences of this issue are very low. To date, there have been no reported crashes, injuries, or fatalities related to this issue. There are two reported fires in ODI data and no reported fires in GM data. Both ODI reported fires were minor, occurred after the vehicle was parked, and were extinguished utilizing fire extinguishers.In view of the progressive failure occurring at high mileages, the age of the subject vehicles, the high detectability of the leak, and the majority of failures occurred in salt belt states, this Preliminary Evaluation is closed. The agency reserves the right to take additional action if warranted by new circumstances.Review the ODI reports cited above at nhtsa.gov under the attached identification numbers.
Additional source detail variants (3)
Fuel/propulsion System
On July 5, 2020, the Office of Defects Investigations (ODI) opened PE20-011 to investigate instances of metal fuel lines under the vehicle corroding and leaking fuel in model year (MY) 2008 through 2010 Chevrolet Cobalt and 2008 through 2009 Chevrolet HHR passenger cars manufactured by General Motors (GM). The metal fuel lines are corroding and leaking fuel in the area between the front and rear wheels on the driver's side of the vehicle before the muffler. Most consumers allege a fuel odor and/or an observable fuel leak that alerts them to the condition.The subject metal fuel lines have a protective AGE coating and, in the vicinity of the left rear wheel, are further wrapped in a foil heat shield. The AGE coating consists of an annealed zinc aluminum alloy metal coating with extended corrosion protection paint. Under certain conditions, water and corrosive road deicing agents may enter a crevice between the heat shield and the AGE coating. With extended environmental exposure in high corrosive environments, the AGE coating can degrade. If it degrades enough, the base metal lines may begin to corrode beneath the heat shield.Corrosion to the fuel lines may eventually cause a perforation to develop in the line, allowing fuel vapors to escape from between the line and the heat shield, emitting a fuel odor that will be detectable to the vehicle operator. If the corrosion progresses, fuel may begin to weep from the line. Further metal degradation due to corrosion could create a drip or a mist of fuel. If this occurs, vehicle owners may see drips, spots, or puddles on the ground near the rear portion of the vehicle, primarily along the driver's side rear wheel.The majority of allegations (85%) were reported for vehicles that are operated in the salt belt region of the United States. This area includes states in the Northeast, mid-Atlantic, and Midwest regions. Additionally, the average failure mileage in the subject vehicles is approximately 111,000 across all data sources.Considering the low manufacturer complaint/warranty rates of fuel line replacement, the fact that the majority of failures are concentrated in salt belt states, high failure mileages, as well as the field exposure time for the subject vehicles, and the highly detectable and progressive nature of this failure over time, the potential safety consequences of this issue are very low. To date, there have been no reported crashes, injuries, or fatalities related to this issue. There are two reported fires in ODI data and no reported fires in GM data. Both ODI reported fires were minor, occurred after the vehicle was parked, and were extinguished utilizing fire extinguishers.In view of the progressive failure occurring at high mileages, the age of the subject vehicles, the high detectability of the leak, and the majority of failures occurred in salt belt states, this Preliminary Evaluation is closed. The agency reserves the right to take additional action if warranted by new circumstances.Review the ODI reports cited above at nhtsa.gov under the attached identification numbers.
Fuel System, Gasoline
On July 5, 2020, the Office of Defects Investigations (ODI) opened PE20-011 to investigate instances of metal fuel lines under the vehicle corroding and leaking fuel in model year (MY) 2008 through 2010 Chevrolet Cobalt and 2008 through 2009 Chevrolet HHR passenger cars manufactured by General Motors (GM). The metal fuel lines are corroding and leaking fuel in the area between the front and rear wheels on the driver's side of the vehicle before the muffler. Most consumers allege a fuel odor and/or an observable fuel leak that alerts them to the condition.The subject metal fuel lines have a protective AGE coating and, in the vicinity of the left rear wheel, are further wrapped in a foil heat shield. The AGE coating consists of an annealed zinc aluminum alloy metal coating with extended corrosion protection paint. Under certain conditions, water and corrosive road deicing agents may enter a crevice between the heat shield and the AGE coating. With extended environmental exposure in high corrosive environments, the AGE coating can degrade. If it degrades enough, the base metal lines may begin to corrode beneath the heat shield.Corrosion to the fuel lines may eventually cause a perforation to develop in the line, allowing fuel vapors to escape from between the line and the heat shield, emitting a fuel odor that will be detectable to the vehicle operator. If the corrosion progresses, fuel may begin to weep from the line. Further metal degradation due to corrosion could create a drip or a mist of fuel. If this occurs, vehicle owners may see drips, spots, or puddles on the ground near the rear portion of the vehicle, primarily along the driver's side rear wheel.The majority of allegations (85%) were reported for vehicles that are operated in the salt belt region of the United States. This area includes states in the Northeast, mid-Atlantic, and Midwest regions. Additionally, the average failure mileage in the subject vehicles is approximately 111,000 across all data sources.Considering the low manufacturer complaint/warranty rates of fuel line replacement, the fact that the majority of failures are concentrated in salt belt states, high failure mileages, as well as the field exposure time for the subject vehicles, and the highly detectable and progressive nature of this failure over time, the potential safety consequences of this issue are very low. To date, there have been no reported crashes, injuries, or fatalities related to this issue. There are two reported fires in ODI data and no reported fires in GM data. Both ODI reported fires were minor, occurred after the vehicle was parked, and were extinguished utilizing fire extinguishers.In view of the progressive failure occurring at high mileages, the age of the subject vehicles, the high detectability of the leak, and the majority of failures occurred in salt belt states, this Preliminary Evaluation is closed. The agency reserves the right to take additional action if warranted by new circumstances.Review the ODI reports cited above at nhtsa.gov under the attached identification numbers.
Fuel System, Other:delivery:hoses, Lines/piping, And Fittings
On July 5, 2020, the Office of Defects Investigations (ODI) opened PE20-011 to investigate instances of metal fuel lines under the vehicle corroding and leaking fuel in model year (MY) 2008 through 2010 Chevrolet Cobalt and 2008 through 2009 Chevrolet HHR passenger cars manufactured by General Motors (GM). The metal fuel lines are corroding and leaking fuel in the area between the front and rear wheels on the driver's side of the vehicle before the muffler. Most consumers allege a fuel odor and/or an observable fuel leak that alerts them to the condition.The subject metal fuel lines have a protective AGE coating and, in the vicinity of the left rear wheel, are further wrapped in a foil heat shield. The AGE coating consists of an annealed zinc aluminum alloy metal coating with extended corrosion protection paint. Under certain conditions, water and corrosive road deicing agents may enter a crevice between the heat shield and the AGE coating. With extended environmental exposure in high corrosive environments, the AGE coating can degrade. If it degrades enough, the base metal lines may begin to corrode beneath the heat shield.Corrosion to the fuel lines may eventually cause a perforation to develop in the line, allowing fuel vapors to escape from between the line and the heat shield, emitting a fuel odor that will be detectable to the vehicle operator. If the corrosion progresses, fuel may begin to weep from the line. Further metal degradation due to corrosion could create a drip or a mist of fuel. If this occurs, vehicle owners may see drips, spots, or puddles on the ground near the rear portion of the vehicle, primarily along the driver's side rear wheel.The majority of allegations (85%) were reported for vehicles that are operated in the salt belt region of the United States. This area includes states in the Northeast, mid-Atlantic, and Midwest regions. Additionally, the average failure mileage in the subject vehicles is approximately 111,000 across all data sources.Considering the low manufacturer complaint/warranty rates of fuel line replacement, the fact that the majority of failures are concentrated in salt belt states, high failure mileages, as well as the field exposure time for the subject vehicles, and the highly detectable and progressive nature of this failure over time, the potential safety consequences of this issue are very low. To date, there have been no reported crashes, injuries, or fatalities related to this issue. There are two reported fires in ODI data and no reported fires in GM data. Both ODI reported fires were minor, occurred after the vehicle was parked, and were extinguished utilizing fire extinguishers.In view of the progressive failure occurring at high mileages, the age of the subject vehicles, the high detectability of the leak, and the majority of failures occurred in salt belt states, this Preliminary Evaluation is closed. The agency reserves the right to take additional action if warranted by new circumstances.Review the ODI reports cited above at nhtsa.gov under the attached identification numbers.
PE10005 · Electric Power Steering Failure
Opened Jan 27, 2010 · Closed Jul 19, 2010
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Steering:electric Power Assist System
In a March 1, 2010 letter, General Motors Corporation (GM) provided a defect information report to NHTSA regarding a problem that could result in sudden loss of power steering assist in certain model year (MY) 2005 through 2010 Chevrolet Cobalt and MY 2007 through 2010 Pontiac G5 vehicles equipped with electric power steering (EPS).The letter indicates that the loss of steering assist could occur at any time while driving and that, once assist is lost, a message is displayed on the Driver Information Center (DIC) and a chime sounds to inform the driver.The letter further states that steering control is maintained in manual mode, but would require greater driver effort at low vehicle speeds.In the next ignition cycle, power assist is typically regained and the DIC message is no longer displayed.GM's letter identifies the root cause of the EPS failure as the EPS motor and indicates that production of a new motor started in December 2009.GM's recall repair procedure instructs dealers to replace the EPS motor in all recalled vehicles. ODI's analysis of all information available related to sudden loss of EPS assist while driving in the MY 2005 through 2009 Chevrolet Cobalt vehicles shows current complaint and warranty rates of 323/100,000 vehicles and 0.4% respectively.In response to ODI's request for information, GM identified 81 complaints where a crash was claimed that may be related to loss of EPS assist.ODI's analysis of all crash claims was based on verifiable factors such as; whether a loss of EPS was indicated at the time of the crash by a chime or malfunction indicator lamp or if a EPS related component malfunction was identified after the crash occurred.With this method ODI identified 36 possible crashes related to EPS failure.GM assessed crash claims based on the available facts and excluded crash claims that indicated that the vehicle was travelling at speeds in the range of 30 mph or greater.GM said that it believes if power assist is lost while a vehicle is moving at speeds in the range of 30 mph or greater there is a small difference in steering efforts perceived in subjective evaluations at those speeds and it is unlikely to lead to loss of vehicle control. Based on GM's safety recall, this investigation is closed.