2012 CHEVROLET IMPALA — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 255 complaints · 3 recalls
Most-reported system: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM (40 complaints · 15.7%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 20
  • Fires 5
  • Injuries 16
  • Deaths 0
Compare with 2011 →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Component Problem Distribution

Share of owner complaints filed for each vehicle system (unaffected by sales volume)

Component Problem Distribution ELECTRICAL SYSTEM appears in 40 of 255 owner complaints (15.7%) in this vehicle snapshot. ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 40 complaints, 15.7% of reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 40 · 15.7% · 1 crash reports 2 fire reports STEERING: 34 complaints, 13.3% of reports STEERING 34 · 13.3% · 3 crash reports 1 fire reports ENGINE: 24 complaints, 9.4% of reports ENGINE 24 · 9.4% · 2 crash reports 1 fire reports WHEELS: 20 complaints, 7.8% of reports WHEELS 20 · 7.8% · 3 crash reports POWER TRAIN: 17 complaints, 6.7% of reports POWER TRAIN 17 · 6.7% · 1 crash reports SUSPENSION: 14 complaints, 5.5% of reports SUSPENSION 14 · 5.5% FUEL SYSTEM: 11 complaints, 4.3% of reports FUEL SYSTEM 11 · 4.3% SERVICE BRAKES: 10 complaints, 3.9% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 10 · 3.9% · 3 crash reports AIR BAGS: 9 complaints, 3.5% of reports AIR BAGS 9 · 3.5% · 3 crash reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 58 complaints, 22.8% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 58 · 22.8% · 2 crash reports 1 fire reports 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

UNKNOWN OR OTHER is an NHTSA classification artifact and is always listed last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 40 15.7% 1 crashes · 2 fires
STEERING 34 13.3% 3 crashes · 1 fires
ENGINE 24 9.4% 2 crashes · 1 fires
WHEELS 20 7.8% 3 crashes · 0 fires
POWER TRAIN 17 6.7% 1 crashes · 0 fires
SUSPENSION 14 5.5% 0 crashes · 0 fires
FUEL SYSTEM 11 4.3% 0 crashes · 0 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 10 3.9% 3 crashes · 0 fires
AIR BAGS 9 3.5% 3 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 58 22.8% 2 crashes · 1 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Problem & Recall Timeline

Observed complaint volume and manufacturer recall actions over time

Problem & Recall Timeline Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Oct 2011; the first recall shown was reported in Aug 2011. 2011-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2012-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2012-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2012-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2012-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 2013-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2013-Q2: 7 owner reports 7 2013-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 2013-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2014-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2014-Q2: 13 owner reports 13 2014-Q3: 20 owner reports 20 2014-Q4: 13 owner reports 13 2015-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2015-Q2: 7 owner reports 7 2015-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2015-Q4: 11 owner reports 11 2016-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 2016-Q2: 12 owner reports 12 2016-Q3: 9 owner reports 9 2016-Q4: 7 owner reports 7 2017-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 2017-Q2: 7 owner reports 7 2017-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 2017-Q4: 7 owner reports 7 2018-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 2018-Q2: 10 owner reports 10 2018-Q3: 7 owner reports 7 2018-Q4: 8 owner reports 8 2019-Q1: 8 owner reports 8 2019-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2019-Q3: 10 owner reports 10 2019-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2020-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2020-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2020-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 2020-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2021-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2021-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2021-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2021-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 2022-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2022-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2022-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2023-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2023-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2023-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2023-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2024-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2024-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2024-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2025-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2026-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 Owner reports Aug 2011 Jan 2026 Recall campaign 11V398000 ◆ Recall campaign 11V398000 Recall campaign 12V377000 ◆ Recall campaign 12V377000 Recall campaign 14V355000 ◆ Recall campaign 14V355000
  • Campaign 14V355000 was reported 364 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
2011-Q4 Owner reports 1
2012-Q1 Owner reports 2
2012-Q2 Owner reports 3
2012-Q3 Owner reports 3
2012-Q4 Owner reports 3
2013-Q1 Owner reports 2
2013-Q2 Owner reports 7
2013-Q3 Owner reports 6
2013-Q4 Owner reports 5
2014-Q1 Owner reports 3
2014-Q2 Owner reports 13
2014-Q3 Owner reports 20
2014-Q4 Owner reports 13
2015-Q1 Owner reports 3
2015-Q2 Owner reports 7
2015-Q3 Owner reports 3
2015-Q4 Owner reports 11
2016-Q1 Owner reports 5
2016-Q2 Owner reports 12
2016-Q3 Owner reports 9
2016-Q4 Owner reports 7
2017-Q1 Owner reports 5
2017-Q2 Owner reports 7
2017-Q3 Owner reports 6
2017-Q4 Owner reports 7
2018-Q1 Owner reports 5
2018-Q2 Owner reports 10
2018-Q3 Owner reports 7
2018-Q4 Owner reports 8
2019-Q1 Owner reports 8
2019-Q2 Owner reports 3
2019-Q3 Owner reports 10
2019-Q4 Owner reports 5
2020-Q1 Owner reports 1
2020-Q2 Owner reports 2
2020-Q3 Owner reports 6
2020-Q4 Owner reports 2
2021-Q1 Owner reports 3
2021-Q2 Owner reports 1
2021-Q3 Owner reports 1
2021-Q4 Owner reports 3
2022-Q1 Owner reports 2
2022-Q2 Owner reports 1
2022-Q4 Owner reports 1
2023-Q1 Owner reports 1
2023-Q2 Owner reports 3
2023-Q3 Owner reports 2
2023-Q4 Owner reports 1
2024-Q1 Owner reports 1
2024-Q2 Owner reports 1
2024-Q4 Owner reports 1
2025-Q3 Owner reports 1
2026-Q1 Owner reports 2
Recall campaign 1 11V398000
Recall campaign 1 12V377000
Recall campaign 1 14V355000
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (3)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

  1. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 11V398000

    Report date
    Component:
    STEERING
    Consequence:
    POWER STEERING FLUID COULD FLOW ONTO THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER, AND AN ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRE COULD OCCUR.
    Remedy:
    GM DEALERS WILL INSPECT TO ENSURE THAT THE UPPER POWER STEERING HOSE IS ROUTED CORRECTLY AND MAKE THE NECESSARY REPAIRS FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON SEPTEMBER 5, 2011. OWNERS MAY CONTACT CHEVROLET AT 1-800-630-2438.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 12V377000

    Report date
    Component:
    SUSPENSION
    Consequence:
    A broken control arm can result in the loss of control of the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
    Remedy:
    GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace both front lower control arms, free of charge. The safety recall began on August 21, 2012. Owners may contact the Chevrolet owner center at 1-866-694-6546.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  3. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 14V355000

    Report date
    Component:
    ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
    Consequence:
    If the key is not in the run position, the air bags may not deploy if the vehicle is involved in a crash, increasing the risk of injury. Additionally, a key knocked out of the run position will cause loss of engine power, power steering, and power braking, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash.
    Remedy:
    GM will notify owners, and dealers will install two key rings and an insert in the key slot or a cover over the key head on all ignition keys, free of charge. The recall began on September 23, 2014. Owners may contact General Motors customer service at 1-800-521-7300 (Buick), 1-800-458-8006 (Cadillac), and 1-800-222-1020 (Chevrolet). GM's number for this recall is 14299.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Complaint Narrative Explorer

Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-08-21
Safety incident filters
Showing 0 of 255 complaints · page 1 of 11

No complaints match the current filters.
EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

 Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Data sourced from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Snapshot date: 2026-08-21.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources