What breaks most · 1996 to 2017 model years
Chevrolet Cobalt problems by year
Owners have filed 7,681 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Chevrolet Cobalt across model years 1996 to 2017. Three years stand out: 2006 for steering complaints, 2005 for steering complaints and 2007 for steering complaints. The quietest years are 1996, 2000 and 2012.
- Years to check closely: 2006, 2005, 2007
- Fewest complaints: 1996, 2000, 2012
- Complaints on file
- 76811996 to 2017, all trims
- Worst year
- 20062330 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 55970 fires · 541 injuries · 48 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 67kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 35Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | Air bags (1) | |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | Fuel system (1) | |
| 2 | 1 | 0 | Steering (2) | |
| 1649 | 97 | 6 | Steering (1143) | |
| 2330 | 164 | 6 | Steering (1299) | |
| 1564 | 116 | 6 | Steering (689) | |
| 845 | 76 | 5 | Steering (309) | |
| 710 | 59 | 6 | Fuel system (226) | |
| 574 | 46 | 6 | Steering (239) | |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | Steering (2) | |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | Unknown or other (1) | |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | Fuel system (1) | |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | Steering (1) |
What fails on the 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SteeringPower steering pumps, racks and hoses | 56% |
1299 | 78 | Shop steering parts for the 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 18% |
412 | 36 | Shop electrical system parts for the 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt |
| Fuel systemFuel pumps and injectors | 11% |
255 | 1 | Shop fuel system parts for the 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt |
| Fuel systemFuel pumps and injectors | 9% |
215 | 4 | Shop fuel system parts for the 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt |
| Air bags | 6% |
146 | 59 | Check recalls for air bags on NHTSA.gov |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 6% |
137 | 12 | Shop powertrain and transmission parts for the 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt |
| EngineEngine gaskets and seals | 4% |
93 | 12 | Shop engine parts for the 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt |
| Body and structureDoors, latches and body hardware | 2% |
51 | 6 | Shop body and structure parts for the 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
-
Car drove fine during a routine trip for groceries. When about to leave the parking lot, my steering wheel was very hard to turn, almost impossible and I noticed a power steering warning on the dash. Thankfully this didn't happen on a highway or something, I had my kid with me.
-
Power steering was lost while driving, speedometer stopped working and will not shift from low. Other sources say there has been a recall.
-
Fuel Leak it smells and leaks it seems to be coming from the gas tank and sometimes I get random electric failure when I'm driving I lose power steering and My brakes get stiff and hard to push down and my dash will go Off and then go crazy and show that i have no gas
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 6, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Chevrolet Cobalt years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2006, 2005, 2007 carry the most filings on the Chevrolet Cobalt. The 2006 alone has 2330 complaints, led by steering.
What is the most common Chevrolet Cobalt problem?
On the 2006 model year, the most-reported component is steering with 1299 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Chevrolet Cobalt problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Chevrolet Cobalt complaints that include mileage is about 67,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.