Reliable Auto DB

2012 Chevrolet Camaro reliability

Is it reliable?

Owners have filed 113 complaints with NHTSA about the 2012 Chevrolet Camaro over 15 years — 15 per year. That is more complaints per year than most Camaro years here — over the median of the other years, which is 6. NHTSA has 5 recalls on file, including Ignition, Power adjuster, and Air bags.

2012 Chevrolet Camaro
Photo by Ermell, resized from the original. Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0
Complaints

113

Per year

15

Recalls

5

Years on the road

15

What owners report

The complaints owners file most often name Electrical system (27 of 113), then Engine (26) and Air bags (22). Those filings include 10 that report a crash, 4 that report a fire, 6 that report an injury, and 1 that reports a death.

Next to 2013

The 2013 Camaro has 187 complaints, 19 per year. The 2012 has fewer complaints per year than the 2013.

The complaint rate is complaints filed in this year’s first 3 years on the road, divided by however many of those years have passed. Recalls are a separate count. The numbers are for the US-market 2012 Chevrolet Camaro. How we count. Data as of .

Recalls (5)

Recall electrical system, ignition 2019-09-19 · NHTSA campaign 19E064000
Summary General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain replacement flip-key ignition transmitter assemblies sold as replacement equipment for 2010-2015 Chevrolet Camaro vehicles. GM dealers may have inadvertently sold these assemblies as replacement keys despite them having been recalled under NHTSA recall number 14V-346 (GM number 14294) when they were the original equipment assemblies. The driver may accidentally bump the ignition key with their knee, moving the ignition out of the run position and turning off the engine.
Remedy GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, as necessary, replace the key with the flat blade design, free of charge. Interim notices informing owners of the safety risk were mailed November 6, 2019. Owners received a second notice and the recall began February 4, 2020. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N192223230.
Recall seats, front assembly, power adjuster 2014-07-23 · NHTSA campaign 14V447000
Summary General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2011-2012 Buick LaCrosse, Regal and Chevrolet Camaro, as well as certain 2010-2012 Cadillac SRX, Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain vehicles, equipped with power height adjustable driver and passenger seats. In the affected vehicles, the bolt that secures the driver's and passenger's power front seat height adjuster may fall out causing the seat to drop suddenly to the lowest vertical position.
Remedy GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the height adjuster shoulder bolts, free of charge. The manufacturer distributed interim letters to owners on September 11, 2014. The recall began on December 26, 2014. Owners may contact GM customer service at 1-800-521-7300 (Buick), 1-800-458-8006 (Cadillac), 1-800-222-1020 (Chevrolet), or 1-800-462-8782 (GMC). GM's number for this recall is 14271.
Recall electrical system, ignition 2014-06-20 · NHTSA campaign 14V346000
Summary General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling all 2010-2014 Chevrolet Camaro vehicles manufactured December 3, 2008 to May 23, 2014. In the affected vehicles, the driver may accidentally hit the ignition key with their knee, unintentionally knocking the key out of the run position, turning off the engine.
Remedy GM will notify owners, and dealers will remove the key blade from the original flip key/RKE transmitter assemblies, and provide two new keys and two key rings per key. The recall began August 25, 2014. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 14294. Note: Until the recall has been performed, it is very important that drivers adjust their seat and steering column to allow clearance between their knee and the ignition key.
Recall Air bags 2014-06-06 · NHTSA campaign 14V300000
Summary 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.
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.
Recall Air bags 2013-01-24 · NHTSA campaign 13V023000
Summary 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.
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.

Complaints by component (113 total)

Electrical system
27
Engine
26
Air bags
22
Powertrain
15
Structure
11
Steering
8
Service brakes
7
Visibility and wipers
7
Suspension
6
Seats
5
Exterior lighting
3
Fuel and propulsion system
3
Speed control
3
Adaptive and mobility equipment
2
Electronic stability control (ESC)
2
Tires
2
Wheels
2
Seat belts
1
Visibility
1
Show 11 more Show less
Crash-flagged

10

Fire-flagged

4

Injury reports

6

Death reports

1

Complaints filed per year

15201213201317201492015820164201712201810201962020320213202242023320241202552026
Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings
  • "The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Camaro. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. The contact stated…"
    Electrical system · filed 2026-07-23
  • "The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Camaro. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed and making a left turn, the contact’s knee hit the ignition key and the vehicle shutoff and drove over into an…"
    Electrical system · filed 2026-07-21
  • "I purchased this vehicle July of this year and just drove it to find it pulled extremely to the right. I was told it was an alignment issue which they attempted to fix which seems successful in July coming off the…"
    Suspension, Structure, Service brakes · filed 2026-07-15
  • "Parking brake failed because crimped stopper at end of cable coming from interior lever failed. The stopper appears to be made of very soft metal and does not have much contact area with wire rope portion of cable.…"
    Service brakes · filed 2026-06-14
  • "Odometer Fraud. The contact purchased a 2012 Chevrolet Camaro. It was discovered that there was a mileage discrepancy. The vehicle was a private sale. At the time of purchase, the vehicle mileage was 90,480, and at the…"
    Electrical system · filed 2026-01-20

NHTSA crash ratings

Version Overall Front Side Rollover
2012 Chevrolet Camaro 2 DR RWD 5 stars 5 stars 5 stars 5 stars
2012 Chevrolet Camaro C RWD Not rated Not rated Not rated 5 stars

Stars are how this vehicle did in NHTSA crash tests. They are a safety result, separate from the complaint record. Not rated means that test was not run for this version.

Fuel economy

Trim Engine Transmission Drive City Hwy Combined Annual fuel cost
Camaro 6.2L, 8-cyl Automatic (6-speed) Rear-wheel drive 15 24 18 MPG $3600
Camaro 3.6L, 6-cyl Manual 6-speed Rear-wheel drive 17 27 20 MPG $3250
Camaro 3.6L, 6-cyl Automatic (6-speed) Rear-wheel drive 18 28 22 MPG $2950
Camaro 6.2L, 8-cyl Automatic (6-speed) Rear-wheel drive 12 18 14 MPG $4650
Camaro 3.6L, 6-cyl Automatic 6-speed Rear-wheel drive 19 29 22 MPG $2950
Camaro 6.2L, 8-cyl Manual 6-speed Rear-wheel drive 16 24 19 MPG $3400
Camaro 6.2L, 8-cyl Manual 6-speed Rear-wheel drive 14 19 16 MPG $5000

Specs and fitment

5th generation, 2012–2015
Body styles Coupe, Convertible
Oil 5W-30 (V6 and V8; dexos1) , 6 qt capacity
Tire size 245/50R18 to 305/35R20 (trim-dependent)

Known issues for this generation

Recall 15V-666 covers certain 2015 Chevrolet Camaro vehicles among other GM models: front seat-mounted side impact air bag inflators may rupture on deployment. Dealers replace the inflator modules. Recall 14V-409 covers certain 2014 Camaro vehicles: improperly torqued fasteners may allow the steering intermediate shaft or lower control arm joints to separate.

Compare

Next year 2013 Chevrolet Camaro See every Chevrolet Camaro model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2012 Chevrolet Camaro reliable?

Owners have filed 113 complaints with NHTSA about the 2012 Chevrolet Camaro over 15 years — 15 per year. That is more complaints per year than most Camaro years here — over the median of the other years, which is 6. NHTSA has 5 recalls on file, including Ignition, Power adjuster, and Air bags.

What are common problems with a 2012 Chevrolet Camaro?

The complaints owners file most often name Electrical system (27 of 113), then Engine (26) and Air bags (22). Those filings include 10 that report a crash, 4 that report a fire, 6 that report an injury, and 1 that reports a death.

Is the 2012 Chevrolet Camaro more reliable than the years next to it?

The 2013 Camaro has 187 complaints, 19 per year. The 2012 has fewer complaints per year than the 2013.

Has the 2012 Chevrolet Camaro been recalled?

The 2012 Chevrolet Camaro has 5 recalls on file with NHTSA. See the recalls table on this page for dates, components, and remedies.

How many complaints have owners filed about the 2012 Chevrolet Camaro?

Owners have filed 113 complaints about the 2012 Chevrolet Camaro with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2012 Chevrolet Camaro get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2012 Chevrolet Camaro is 18.7 MPG. See the fuel economy table on this page for city and highway figures by engine and transmission.

What generation is the 2018 Chevrolet Camaro?

6th generation (2016-2024).

What oil does a sixth-generation Chevrolet Camaro take?

US notes list 0W-20 or 5W-30 depending on engine (dexos1); confirm the grade for your VIN in the owner's manual.

What body styles does the Chevrolet Camaro offer?

US Camaro generations on this site include coupe and convertible body styles.