2012 Chevrolet Silverado problems
Owners have filed 91 complaints with NHTSA about the 2012 Chevrolet Silverado. Air bags is the most reported problem area, at 16% of complaints. Next are body & structure (15%) and drivetrain & axles (12%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 91 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Air bags 17% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 13 and 7
- Injuries and deaths
- 12 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 19,000 miles 81 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 | 41 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 18 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 10 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 8 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 1 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 1 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 1 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 0 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 0 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 1 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Of the 81 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 19,000 miles. For air bags specifically, the median reported mileage is about 48,000 miles (13 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 13 complaints mention a crash; 7 complaints mention a fire; 12 injuries reported. Its complaints are more severe on average than those of 93% of model years in our database.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2012 ranks 20th most-complained-about out of 26 model years of the Chevrolet Silverado with enough data (88 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 2 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.
Tl* the contact owns a 2012 chevrolet silverado. The contact stated that while driving 2 MPH, the vehicle stalled without warning and another vehicle crashed into the passenger's side of the contact's vehicle. The vehicle was destroyed and the contact sustained whiplash. The manufacturer was notified but provided no assistance. The cause of the engine failure was undetermined. The failure mileage was 12,000. Updated 05/21/2013
Tl* the contact owns a 2012 chevrolet silverado. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked with the emergency brake engaged, the contact reached in from the passenger's side to shut the engine down and the vehicle rolled away in reverse. The contact was dragged several feet before the vehicle crashed into a bridge. The contact sustained major bruising and scratches to several parts of the body. A police report was not filed. The manufacturer was not contacted about the failure.
This truck has chattered, hopped, and had bad brakes as soon as we drove the truck off of the lot. When we went with the dealer who sold us the truck, my husband said why is it vibrating & he told us that it was in the tires from "sitting". It has had 2 new wheels & numerous brakes, pads, rotors, calipers, drums. & it still vibrates. The dealership has even put another trucks tires & rims on the truck & it still vibrates. This is unacceptable for a new vehicle.
At 34,162 miles the steering gear was binding, creating a safety problem. A steering gear should last longer than 34,162 miles.