IllustrationTHE REAR BRAKES FAILED ON MY CAR AT AROUND 28,000 MILES. AS SOON AS I GOT THE NEW ONES INSTALLED THEY STILL ARE TERRIBLE, I DO NOT UNDERSTAND WHY THERE WOULD BE SUCH BRAKES THAT FAIL SO EARLY AND COULD CAUSE HARM TO PEOPLE. THERE NEEDS TO BE A RECALL ON THESE BRAKES, THEY ARE ENTIRELY TOO UNSAFE. *TR
2009 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
1330–25K
2325–50K
950–75K
675–100K
2100–150K
1150K+
174 reports with mileage · 16 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 133 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Parking Brake. Review the 18 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes. Review the 13 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 reports2 fire reports3 injury reports
Service Brakes, Hydraulic complaints
133 reportsTL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 CHEVROLET COBALT SS TURBO. THE CONTACT STATED HIS REAR BRAKE PADS WERE PREMATURELY WEARING OUT RAPIDLY. THE ROTORS AND BRAKE PAD NEVER MADE ANY NOISE ALERTING THE CONTACT THERE WAS SOMETHING WRONG. WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS BEING SERVICED THE MECHANIC SHOWED HIM HOW THE ROTORS AND BRAKE PADS WERE WORN. TH…
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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 CHEVROLET COBALT SS TURBO. THE CONTACT STATED HIS REAR BRAKE PADS WERE PREMATURELY WEARING OUT RAPIDLY. THE ROTORS AND BRAKE PAD NEVER MADE ANY NOISE ALERTING THE CONTACT THERE WAS SOMETHING WRONG. WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS BEING SERVICED THE MECHANIC SHOWED HIM HOW THE ROTORS AND BRAKE PADS WERE WORN. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 31,000 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 40,000.
WHEN BRAKING SOFTLY, REAR BRAKES MAKE A LOUD NOISE AND I'VE STARTED TO NOTICE SLIGHTLY UNEVEN WEAR ON ONE OF THE REAR BRAKE PADS. ALSO OCCASIONALLY WHILE MOVING IN REVERSE WITH FOOT BRAKES APPLIED I CAN HEAR A VERY VERY LOUD SOUND SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT AND WAY LOUDER THEN THE SOUND WHEN MOVING FORWARD. *TR
REAR BRAKES ARE DRAGGING ON THE ROTOR AND GRINDING AT STOPS. *TR
WITHIN THE FIRST 15000 MILES OF MY CAR THE REAR BRAKES FAILED. IT WAS METAL ON METAL. READING THE FORUMS ON COBALTS SS I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE THAT HAD REAR BRAKE FAILURE WITHIN 15000 MILES. I DO NOT RACE THE CAR, AND MOST OF MY MILES ARE HIGHWAY. I BELIEVE THERE MAY BE A FACTORY DEFECT. *TR
AT 20,300 MILES, THE INNER REAR BRAKE PADS HAD WORN COMPLETELY DOWN TO THE METAL AND SCORED THE ROTORS TO THE POINT THEY HAD TO BE REPLACED. THE DEALERSHIP MAINTAINS THIS IS NORMAL WEAR. THE FRONT BRAKES WERE FINE AND THE OUTER REAR PADS WHILE WORN, WERE STILL WITHIN ACCEPTABLE LIMITS. AFTER SEEING NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS ON THE NHT…
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AT 20,300 MILES, THE INNER REAR BRAKE PADS HAD WORN COMPLETELY DOWN TO THE METAL AND SCORED THE ROTORS TO THE POINT THEY HAD TO BE REPLACED. THE DEALERSHIP MAINTAINS THIS IS NORMAL WEAR. THE FRONT BRAKES WERE FINE AND THE OUTER REAR PADS WHILE WORN, WERE STILL WITHIN ACCEPTABLE LIMITS. AFTER SEEING NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS ON THE NHTSA WEB SITE (144 OUT OF 168 TOTAL COMPLAINTS, OR 86%) NEARLY IDENTICAL TO MINE, THIS IS CLEARLY A GLARING SAFETY ISSUE - 144 COMPLAINTS FOR A LOW-VOLUME 2-YEAR OLD VEHICLE. I CANNOT UNDERSTAND WHY THE NHTSA HAS NOT INITIATED AN INVESTIGATION ALREADY. PERHAPS THEY ARE WAITING FOR FATALITIES CAUSED BY THIS OBVIOUS DEFECT BEFORE TAKING ACTION. UPDATED IVOQ 12/01/11. UPDATED IVOQ 01/05/12 *TR
I HAVE A MANUAL COBALT SS 2009 AND THE EMERGENCY BRAKES ARE NOT WORKING. I HAVE TO HAVE THE EMERGENCY BRAKE TO PARK MY CAR. I BEEN HAVING TO REST MY CAR IN A GEAR SO IT WILL NOT GO ANYWHERE. *TR
I BOUGHT A USED 2009 COBALT SS. THE CAR HAD 3200 MILES ON IT. AFTER BRING THE CAR HOME I FOUND SOME PITTING IN THE REAR ROTORS. AFTER DRIVING THE CAR TO 3800 MILES IT HAD GOTTEN BEYOND THE POINT WHERE THE ROTORS COULD BE TURNED. I TOOK IT IN TO THE DEALER AND WAS TOLD THIS IS NORMAL EVERYTHING IS FINE. NOT BEING BORN YESTERDAY I…
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I BOUGHT A USED 2009 COBALT SS. THE CAR HAD 3200 MILES ON IT. AFTER BRING THE CAR HOME I FOUND SOME PITTING IN THE REAR ROTORS. AFTER DRIVING THE CAR TO 3800 MILES IT HAD GOTTEN BEYOND THE POINT WHERE THE ROTORS COULD BE TURNED. I TOOK IT IN TO THE DEALER AND WAS TOLD THIS IS NORMAL EVERYTHING IS FINE. NOT BEING BORN YESTERDAY I KNOW THIS IS NOT THE CASE. AFTER FIGHTING WITH THE DEALER FOR OVER AN HOUR I LEFT MAD AND WITH NO FIX FOR THE PROBLEM. I HAVE SINCE REPLACED THE ROTORS WITH DRILLED AND SLOTTED ROTORS, AND CERAMIC PADS BUT NOW IT SEEM AS IF THE REAR CALIPERS ARE NOT RELEASING ALL THE WAY WHICH IS CAUSING THE CAR TO MAKE RATHER LOUD NOISES WHILE DRIVE. ONCE AGAIN NO HELP FROM THE DEALERSHIP AS THEY CLAIM EVERYTHING IS NORMAL AND EVERYTHING WILL BE FINE. THIS NEEDS TO BE FIXED AS I KNOW OF AT LEAST A DOZEN PEOPLE IN MY AREA WITH THE SAME PROBLEM. I FEAR THAT IF THIS IS NOT CORRECTED QUICKLY SOME ONE MAY GET HURT, OR WORSE YET KILLED TO PARTS FAILURE. *TR
THE REAR BRAKES FAILED ON MY VEHICLE. AFTER TAKING IT TO A MECHANIC FOR INSPECTION THE REAR BRAKE CALIPERS DID NOT HAVE LUBRICATION ON THE SLIDING PINS WHICH RESULTED IN THE ROTORS FAILING AND THE BRAKE PADS BEING DESTROYED. MY REAR BREAKS NO LONGER WORK. AFTER RESEARCHING ONLINE THIS IS A DEFECT ON ALL 2008-2009 CHEVY COBALT…
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THE REAR BRAKES FAILED ON MY VEHICLE. AFTER TAKING IT TO A MECHANIC FOR INSPECTION THE REAR BRAKE CALIPERS DID NOT HAVE LUBRICATION ON THE SLIDING PINS WHICH RESULTED IN THE ROTORS FAILING AND THE BRAKE PADS BEING DESTROYED. MY REAR BREAKS NO LONGER WORK. AFTER RESEARCHING ONLINE THIS IS A DEFECT ON ALL 2008-2009 CHEVY COBALT SS MODELS. *TT
I HAVE A 2009 CHEVY COBALT SS AND MY REAR BRAKES HAVE FAILED- AT 15000 I BROUGHT THE CAR TO THE DEALERSHIP AND THEY SAID ITS STILL WITHIN FACTORY SPEC- AT 26000 MY REAR BRAKES ARE COMPLETELY SHOT AND WORN DOWN TO THE METAL AND I HAD TO REPLACE MY CALIPERS AS THEY WERE STICKING- CURRENTLY IN THE SHOP TO GET FIXED, WILL SEE IF THI…
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I HAVE A 2009 CHEVY COBALT SS AND MY REAR BRAKES HAVE FAILED- AT 15000 I BROUGHT THE CAR TO THE DEALERSHIP AND THEY SAID ITS STILL WITHIN FACTORY SPEC- AT 26000 MY REAR BRAKES ARE COMPLETELY SHOT AND WORN DOWN TO THE METAL AND I HAD TO REPLACE MY CALIPERS AS THEY WERE STICKING- CURRENTLY IN THE SHOP TO GET FIXED, WILL SEE IF THIS HAPPENS AGAIN. *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.