Chevrolet Cruze reliability by year
26 recall campaigns and 3,718 owner complaints across 10 model years. Best year to buy: 2019. Year to avoid: 2014.
Worst model years to avoid → — the single year to avoid for every model line we track, ranked side by side.
Years to avoid — and why 5 flagged on the NHTSA record
Cleaner on the data: 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019 . Still verify the specific vehicle.
At-a-glance: every year color-coded
Each cell shows the last two digits of the model year and its 0–10 reliability score from NHTSA data. Click any year to see the full record. ★ best year · ✕ year to avoid.
Year-by-year reliability 10 model years · newest first
Per-year recall counts add up to 44, more than the 26 campaigns above, because a single NHTSA campaign often covers several model years and is counted once in each.
Common trouble spots across the Cruze aggregated across 10 model years
Common questions
What's the best year to buy a Chevrolet Cruze?
Based on NHTSA complaint volume and severity weighting, the 2019 Chevrolet Cruze scores 8.2/10 — the strongest in the 2010–2019 range. 21 complaints on file, 2 active recalls. Reliability scores reflect the federal complaint record, not subjective owner reviews.
Which Chevrolet Cruze year should I avoid?
The 2014 Chevrolet Cruze scores 4.8/10 — the weakest in the lineup. 702 owner complaints with NHTSA, 10 active recalls. That doesn't mean every 2014 is a problem — it means failure rates run higher than peer model years on the same platform.
Which years of the Chevrolet Cruze should I avoid?
On the NHTSA complaint and recall record, the model years to be most careful with are 2014 (avoid — the electrical system — 6 fire-related complaints and 5 crash-related complaints on the electrical system); 2012 (avoid — the engine — 8 fire-related complaints and 2 crash-related complaints on the engine); 2011 (avoid — the cruise-control — 13 fire-related complaints on the engine); 2017 (high-risk ownership — powertrain: 39 complaints, classified severe); 2013 (high-risk ownership — engine: 118 complaints, classified severe). The cleaner years on the data are 2019, 2018, 2016, 2015. This is our read of the federal data, not a substitute for a pre-purchase inspection of the specific vehicle.
How many years of the Chevrolet Cruze are tracked?
10 model years (2010 through 2019) with NHTSA records on file. Total across the lineup: 26 distinct recall campaigns and 3,718 owner complaints. Those campaigns land on 44 model-year entries in total, because one campaign often covers several years at once — which is why per-year recall counts add up to more than the campaign count.
What's the most-reported problem on the Chevrolet Cruze?
engine is the most-reported category — 737 complaints across 8 model years. Average shop repair runs about $3,100.