2010 Chevrolet Cobalt problems
Owners have filed 795 complaints with NHTSA about the 2010 Chevrolet Cobalt. Steering is the most reported problem area, at 31% of complaints. After that come electrical system (16%) and fuel system (15%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 795 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Steering 31% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 76 and 9
- Injuries and deaths
- 67 and 4
- Typical mileage
- 66,000 miles 615 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 63 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 73 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 135 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 113 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 86 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 63 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 35 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 21 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 12 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 8 |
| 200k+ miles | 6 |
What the data shows
Among the 615 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 66,000 miles. For steering specifically, the median reported mileage is about 56,000 miles (213 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 76 complaints mention a crash; 9 complaints mention a fire; 67 injuries reported; 4 deaths reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2010 ranks 4th most-complained-about out of 6 model years of the Chevrolet Cobalt with enough data (484 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 5 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
Investigation: this is the initial report of the motor vehicle accident. They found the victim deceased in the motor vehicle, caused by the defective chevy cobalt. According to the police report, the fatal accident was due to poor pre-trip preparation by consuming alcoholic beverages and poor driving strategy. Updated 04/09/14
I took evasive action by swerving to avoid collision with other vehicle that abruptly changed lane and collided with my vehicle. A results, my vehicle struck a concrete barrier wall of the roadway, then burst into flames upon impact. My vehicle was completely burnt out at a total loss before fire rescue responded. The airbag never deployed. Prior to accident I was having numerous ignition related problems with my chevy cobalt.
I was just driving along when suddenly a chime sounded and "power steering" appeared on my dash instruments. I had no power steering. I was able to pull over to the side of the road and turn off the car. When it was restarted, the power steering was reset. This problem occurred once on 6/27/12 and then three times on 6/28/12 (once on the interstate at 70 MPH). According to websites, this power steering loss is a problem with chevy cobalts and there was a recall in 2010.
Driving on hiway start to shaking. Loosing power and shuttoff. And steering wheel hard to drive often. Dash board showing iconos all time.