The 2012 Buick Verano has 3 safety recalls and 106 owner complaints on file with NHTSA. The most-reported problem area is engine (48 complaints).
Recalls3safety recalls
Complaints106filed by owners
Crashes · fires8 · 1reported in complaints
Injuries · deaths4 · 0reported in complaints
Safety recalls
Air bags
NHTSA recall 14V300000 · Jun 6, 2014 · 31,520 vehicles · opened after NHTSA action (ODI)
Problem: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2012 Buick Verano vehicles manufactured December 2, 2011 to July, 16, 2012, Chevrolet Cruze vehicles manufactured December 7, 2011 to July 25, 2012, Chevrolet Sonic vehicles manufactured December 5, 2011 to August 2, 2012, and Chevrolet Camaro vehicles manufactured December 1, 2011 to June 11, 2012. The driver side frontal air bag has a shorting bar which may intermittently contact the air bag terminals.
Risk: If the bar and terminals are contacting each other at the time of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, that air bag will not deploy, increasing the driver's risk of injury.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering wheel air bag coil, free of charge. The recall began on July 25, 2014. Chevrolet owners may contact GM at 1-800-222-1020. Buick owners may contact GM at 1-800-521-7300. Note: This is an expansion of recalls 12V-522 and 13V-023.
Air bags
NHTSA recall 13V023000 · Jan 24, 2013 · 4,167 vehicles · opened after NHTSA action (ODI)
Problem: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2012 Chevrolet Camaro, Cruze and Sonic, and model year 2012 Buick Verano vehicles. The driver side frontal air bag has a shorting bar which may intermittently contact the air bag terminals.
Risk: If the bar and terminals are contacting each other at the time of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, that air bag will not deploy, increasing the driver's risk of injury.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering wheel air bag coil, free of charge. The safety recall began on February 13, 2013. Owners may contact General Motors at 1-800-521-7300.
Air bags
NHTSA recall 12V522000 · Oct 31, 2012 · 2,949 vehicles
Problem: General Motors is recalling certain model year 2012 Buick Verano, Chevrolet Cruze, and Chevrolet Sonic vehicles. The driver side frontal air bag has a shorting bar which may intermittently contact the air bag terminals.
Risk: If the bar and terminals are contacting each other at the time of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal airbag, that airbag will not deploy, increasing the driver's risk of injury.
Fix: General Motors will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering wheel airbag coil, free of charge. The safety recall began on January 11, 2013. Owners may contact General Motors at 1-800-521-7300.
Recall repairs are free at any authorised dealer. A recall listed here may already have been fixed on a particular car: enter its 17-character VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see open recalls.
Crash test ratings
2012 Buick Verano 4 DR FWD
Overall
Not Rated
Frontal crash
Not Rated
Side crash
Not Rated
Rollover
Not Rated
NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings (New Car Assessment Program). Ratings are comparable only between vehicles of similar size and weight, and ratings from 2011 on use tougher tests than earlier years. Photos: NHTSA.
Fuel economy
Verano FFV
24mpg combined
City / highway
21 / 31 mpg
Fuel
Regular Gasoline
2.4 L · 4 cyl · Automatic (S6) · Front-Wheel Drive · about $2,800/year to fuel
EPA estimates from fueleconomy.gov for each engine and transmission sold. Annual cost is the EPA's estimate for 15,000 miles a year at its current fuel and electricity price assumptions. Your results will vary.
What owners report
Problem area
Complaints
Crashes
Fires
Injuries
Typical mileage*
Engine
48
0
0
0
65,000 mi
Air bags
27
7
0
4
61,500 mi
Electrical system
16
0
1
0
56,000 mi
Steering
9
0
1
0
55,499 mi
Power train
7
0
0
0
53,125 mi
Vehicle speed control
7
1
0
0
44,000 mi
Unknown or other
5
0
0
0
—
Visibility/wiper
4
0
0
0
—
Service brakes
4
1
0
0
59,831 mi
Electronic stability control (esc)
4
0
0
0
—
Suspension
3
0
0
0
—
Fuel/propulsion system
3
0
0
0
—
*Median odometer reading when the problem happened, where owners gave one. One complaint can name several problem areas.
Recent owner complaints
May 5, 2026Visibility/wiper Rear window shattered while driving. No rock or other damage. I just heard a loud bang and it exploded
Jun 4, 2024Electrical system NAV display and radio stopped working black screen blank
Feb 20, 2024Engine On 2 separate occasions, I have gone through 4 quarts of oil in 2000 miles. No leaks as verified by mechanic. Just excessive burn. The check oil light does not come on to warn you and says I still have 50% oil life but almost bone dry.
Apr 1, 2023Air bags The passenger airbag indicator goes on and off with person in passenger seat. We first noticed this Summer 2023. It has gotten worse. Now a passenger can shift weight slightly one way or another and cause the indicator status to change which disables the airbag. Dealer also confirmed (4/16/24) DTC code B0081(internal malfunction with passenger presence module). I have recently learned there was a warranty extension for this failure (which had expired) which I was unaware of. I now have a vehicle which I feel is unsafe to travel with a passenger! If GM is aware of the problem and the dealer (imperial Chevrolet) has charged me $160 diagnostic fee for a known problem and tells me it will cost…
Apr 4, 2023Engine Oil Consumption- Burning through 2 qts of oil every 2000 miles. No warning lights coming on. Last oil change my car had no oil in it.
Jan 27, 2023Engine Car has had excessive oil consumption since start. Easily consuming 1-2 quarts of oil on monthly basis. Had timing chains replaced at 75000 miles. Car suddenly stopped without warning 1/16/23 and completely shut off while driving. Now, at 170000 miles the engine is blown, due to chains loosening, and valves getting bent and scattered.
Jan 11, 2023Air bags This airbag is supposed to last the lifetime of the vehicle and it has not. On top of it not lasting I am being charged to fix the airbag issue replacement and it is at fault of General Motors for not offering a lifetime lasting airbag.
Sep 20, 2022 · 106,000 miles · crashAir bags The contact owned a 2012 Buick Verano. The contact stated while driving at 30 MPH, another vehicle was traveling in the opposite direction and struck the front driver side of the contactâs vehicle causing damage to the front end of both vehicles. The air bags did not deploy in the contact's vehicle but in the other vehicle, the air bags did deploy. No major injuries and no one seeking medical attention. The police report was filed. The vehicle was towed and deemed total lost. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 106,000.
Owner complaints are submitted to NHTSA by the public and are not verified. Shown as filed (NHTSA removes personal details); long reports are shortened.
NHTSA defect investigations
RQ13002 · opened May 31, 2013 · closed Jul 9, 2014 · led to recall 13V023000Air Bag Non-deployment General Motors (GM) has initiated a safety recall of 31,520 model year (MY) 2012 Buick Verano and Chevrolet Camaro, Cruze and Sonic vehicles to address a defect condition that could result in the primary or secondary stage air bag not deploying.These vehicles are a small percentage of all MY 2012 vehicles and were built on several specific production dates broadly ranging from December 1, 2011 to August 2, 2012 (see NHTSA recall 14V-300 for more information).Also, see attached additional report for more information.This investigation was opened to evaluate the scope of two uninfluenced safety recalls (NHTSA recalls 12V-522 and 13V-023) of certain MY 2012 Verano, Camaro, Cruze and Sonic vehicles.These recalls involved the same defect issue as the new recall mentioned above.Accordingly, this investigation is closed based on the recall actions GM is undertaking.