2012 Buick Verano

Showing the 2012 Verano Convenience 1. NHTSA's VIN data shows it with a 2.4 L engine, but that may not be every version of it, so the numbers below cover every version of this model year. Every version

Owner complaints, recalls, fuel economy and safety ratings from public NHTSA and EPA data, updated Oct 17, 2026.

Fuel economy
24 mpgcombined; city 21, highway 31; every version of this model year
Five years of fuel
$13,530U.S. average; Ohio $12,090 at local prices; every version of this model year; fuel only, not other costs of owning it; 15,000 miles a year, at EIA fuel prices for the week of Oct 12, 2026
NHTSA overall safety rating
Not ratedNHTSA has no overall rating for this year
Recall campaigns
3over its history; check a VIN for open ones
Owner complaints
106filed with NHTSA; not adjusted for sales

Trims

NHTSA's VIN data lists these trims for the 2012 Verano. A trim's engine and numbers are shown as its own only where EPA names versions after the trim and no other version could be it; "seen with" means a source shows that engine on the trim, not that it was the only one. Recalls and complaints cover the whole model year: whether a recall applies to a car depends on its VIN, on NHTSA's recall lookup.

Problems owners report

Owners have filed 106 complaints with NHTSA about the 2012 Verano. These are unverified owner reports, counted by the part of the car they name; one complaint can name several parts. Counts aren't adjusted for how many were sold, so they don't show how reliable a car is.

Complaints by part of the car
PartComplaintsCrashesFiresInjuries
Engine48000
Air bags27704
Electrical system16010
Steering9010
Power train7000
Vehicle speed control7100
Unknown or other5000
Electronic stability control (ESC)4000
Service brakes4100
Visibility/wiper4000
Fuel/propulsion system3000
Suspension3000
6 more parts
Engine and engine cooling2000
Structure2000
Visibility2000
Fuel system, gasoline1000
Tires1000
Wheels1000

Complaints by model year

Newer years have had less time to collect complaints, and counts aren't adjusted for sales, so a shorter bar doesn't mean a more reliable year.

  1. 2012106
  2. 2013107
  3. 2014101
  4. 201559
  5. 201659
  6. 20179

Every Verano year side by side

Recalls

NHTSA lists 3 recall campaigns for the 2012 Verano over its history. Campaigns are matched by model and year, so each one may apply to a given car, and its repair may already be done: check a VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup for the open recalls on that exact car.

Air bags

NHTSA campaign 14V300000 · reported Jun 6, 2014 · 31,520 vehicles potentially affected

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.

Remedy: 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.

NHTSA's record and documents

Air bags

NHTSA campaign 13V023000 · reported Jan 24, 2013 · 4,167 vehicles potentially affected

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.

Remedy: 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.

NHTSA's record and documents

Air bags

NHTSA campaign 12V522000 · reported Oct 31, 2012 · 2,949 vehicles potentially affected

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.

Remedy: 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.

NHTSA's record and documents

Service bulletins and investigations

Carmakers sent NHTSA 1,487 service bulletins and notices that cover the 2012 Verano, the latest on Sep 4, 2026. They tell dealers how to fix known issues.

The parts they mention most: equipment (682), electrical system (309), engine and engine cooling (139), power train (106), engine (99).

NHTSA defect investigations

Opening an investigation isn't a finding of a defect. Outcomes are as NHTSA's summary states them. A recall is shown as an investigation's outcome only where NHTSA's summary names it; other recalls NHTSA's file lists with it are marked as listed, not caused.

InvestigationPartOpenedStatus
Recall query RQ13002
Air Bag Non-deployment · covers 2 makes
Air bagsMay 31, 2013Closed Jul 9, 2014
NHTSA's summary names recall 14V300000, 12V522000, 13V023000
NHTSA's record and documents

Maintenance

Oil

The owner's manual gives the oil and how often to change it. We show oil facts only once we've checked them against the manual, and we haven't yet for the 2012 Verano.

Oil change near you: Jiffy Lube · Take 5

Specs

EPA class: compact cars. Each version EPA tested:

VersionEngineTransmissionFuelCity / hwy / comb
Verano
Front-Wheel Drive
2.4 L, 4 cylAutomatic (S6)Regular Gasoline or E8521 / 31 / 24

Sources and dates

Fuel cost: EPA mpg with fuel prices for the week of Oct 12, 2026 and electricity prices for Jul 2026. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (Oct 2026). Complaints are unverified reports owners filed with NHTSA. About the data