2012 Chevrolet Sonic brakes problems

Filed Aug 20, 2026 · Body, Brakes · IL

I purchased a 2012 Chevy Sonic with 65k miles on it from Carvibe LLC earlier this month. When I took it into Firestone for a full inspection, they found that the car has severe rusting to the mechanical parts along with the body of the vehicle - the entire structure of the vehicle is compromised. Someone spray painted the rust black but Firestone was still able to see the covered up rust. Firestone has deemed the vehicle unsafe to drive.

Filed Apr 24, 2025 · Brakes · 159,000 miles · PA

The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Sonic. The contact stated that when the vehicle was turned on, the brakes, ABS, traction control, and braking system warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated while driving the vehicle at an undisclosed speed, the brake pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle took longer than normal to slow down. The contact stated that while the brake pedal was depressed, the vehicle jerked abnormally. The vehicle taken to a dealer where it was it diagnosed and determined that the brake booster pump assembly needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 159,000.

Filed Jan 26, 2017 · Airbags, Brakes · 945,000 miles · NC · crash · 1 injury

My 2012 chevrolet sonic was involved in an automobile accident resulting in injury to me because my airbags did not deploy. There were several recall campaigns on the vehicle that did not come up under my VIN.campaign id 12v52200, campaign id 13v023000, campaign id14v315000, campaign id 14v317000 campaign id 11v599000, campaign id, 12v408000. I collided with a vehicle that had blew a stop sign as I proceeded through the intersection. My vehicle t-bone the other vehicle. My air bags did not deploy the other vehicles air bags did. My car has been service at modern chevrolet university parkway in winston salem nc since purchasing the vehicle in nov. 2012 from that dealership. The only recalls the dealership or gm has notified me about were only gm campaign id 12172 replace swaybar links and gm campaign id12176. Vehicle was a total loss

Filed Jan 8, 2017 · Airbags, Brakes · 40,000 miles · MI · crash · 1 injury

On 1/31/2016 a vehicle pulled out in front of me. The first and biggest issue was the airbag never went off and the seat belt tensioners did not lock the belts either. I went forward and hit my head on the steering wheel rendering me unconscious!!! Almost the whole front end had to be replaced e.g.: grill and front panel, left and right front quarter panels, radiator, both wheel wells, suspension on both sides and everything that goes with those plus a whole lot of other things like the radiator, coolant and washer tanks etc. Etc.... This was a full-frontal wreck and not a single airbag went off!!! Secondly are the ABS and traction control. The roads were a little slick so I had the tc on. When I hit my brakes all they did, have done since I bought the car, and continue to do to this day, is immediately lock up! I had zero control of my car. This car has, by far, the worst ABS system I have ever used. The tc is complete [xxx], too!!! Thirdly, every time I start the car the engine seems to misfire or something! It rattles and shakes the whole car, hard!!! After a few seconds it seems to find it's groove and idles normally. I have brought the car in to the local chevy dealership where I purchased the car to address these problems. All they tell me is they are design and/or manufacturing flaws. They said I can pay to fix these issues with my own money or wait and see if the issues become recalls. Which, according to my research, have not yet. To me, these are some pretty big safety issues the manufacturer should be addressing!!! And why aren't they????? I have photos of the accident, but can't seem to find them anywhere. I'll come back if I find them. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).

Filed Nov 10, 2016 · Acceleration, Brakes · 47,000 miles · IL

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 chevrolet sonic. While driving 60 MPH, the vehicle accelerated independently without warning. The driver depressed the brake pedal, but the vehicle failed to decelerate. In addition, the contact stated that the vehicle started to lose power and the driver was able to coast to the side of the road. The vehicle was taken to a dealer for diagnostic testing. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 47,000.

Filed May 13, 2016 · Body, Brakes · 40,000 miles · CA · crash

Takata recall I was driving and I tried to brake at an intersection due to a red light and there was a car in front of me, I was unable to use the brakes because the pad got stiff and it didn't allow me to brake, I had to use my emergency brake but I hit the car in front of me .

Filed May 3, 2016 · Brakes, Engine · 75,000 miles · UT

In 2015, my 2012 chevrolet sonic had to have the fuel purge valve replaced. The car worked for a while after this. However, a few months ago, it started having a rough idle, with the rpms dipping up and down. The problem got worse recently, when the car actually completely died while making a left hand turn, almost causing me to get hit. Now, it is even worse. Now, in addition to the rough idle, traction control randomly engages even when I am not slipping, causing me to lose all power for brief periods of time, while in motion. The traction control is glitching so bad that it even randomly engages when I am completely stopped. This is a huge safety issue, and the dealership that sold me the car wants $113 just to tell me what is causing it, and how much it will cost to actually fix. There are no active recalls on this vehicle, but further research on the model I own, shows other owners having similar issues. Chevrolet has been no help

Filed Feb 13, 2016 · Brakes · 48,000 miles · MI

I was driving down the street (straight and flat, no turns or hills) at 25 MPH and went to use my brakes. To my surprise there was no power assist. The car only has 48k miles on it and had never displayed braking problems prior to this incident. The car did not have issues at the stop sign just a block before. As it happened a few blocks from my house, I drove it home and parked it. Besides the lack of power assist, the motor started to idle rough-- it would surge to 2500 RPM and then slow down to 700 RPM, all with no throttle input. When I popped the hood, to look for an obvious loose hose, I did not see anything that looked out of the norm. However, there was quite a bit more noise than normal-- it was a combination of hissing and whirring. Not the normal sound the engine would make while running with the hood open. There were some noises coming from the brake booster area (driver's side by the firewall) that I had never heard prior to that day. The car has a 1.8 four cylinder and a 5 speed manual. The issues did not impact the clutch pedal in any way, so I doubt it is the master cylinder. As I noted it seems to be a brake booster issue... However, I have not been able to get it to a garage yet as the issue just happened. (I am no mechanic, but have a decent understanding of how cars work.) either way, it was quite a surprise. While I am a male in good physical shape, even I needed to stand on the brakes to get the car to slow down from only 25 MPH-- had I been going faster, I would have likely needed to use the e-brake to slow the car. Again, at this time the car has not been repaired, but the issue happened just yesterday. For what it is worth, the temperature was cold at the time of the incident (15 f), but there was no snow or ice on the road, and it was sunny out.

Filed Jan 8, 2016 · Brakes · 35,500 miles · SD · crash

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 chevrolet sonic. The contact stated that the brake pedal stuck to the floor board, while attempting to slow down and driving at 65 MPH. As a result, the contact crashed into a guard rail. The vehicle was towed to a dealer but was not diagnosed or repaired. A police report was filed and there were no injuries reported. The approximate failure mileage was 35,500. Updated 03/09/16*lj

Filed Dec 28, 2015 · Brakes, Driver assistance · 37,000 miles · WY · crash

While driving at highway speed on a two lane road at night, applied brakes to avoid animal in road. Conditions were clear and road was dry. There was plenty of time to slow to avoid animal so this was not a panic stop. Upon application of brakes, headlights went out. Dash lights stayed on making it impossible to see out of the vehicle. Applied brakes with more urgency and all four wheels locked. Vehicle skidded straight until the right tires made contact with the right shoulder. The car then spun counter clockwise back onto the roadway, across both lanes, and came to rest on the shoulder of the oncoming lane (approximately one and one-half revolutions). Skid marks on highway confirmed the wheel lock and the spin. Car was shut off and re-started and all systems worked fine. Unable to duplicate the problem.