There are 2 stored owner reports matching the lighting leading-label group for the 2012 Chevrolet Sonic in our NHTSA-sourced dataset. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
This group counts stored reports whose component label starts with one of this site's matching prefixes, ignoring case. Each matching report counts once within the group. Components mentioned later in the label or only in the narrative are not searched. How component counts work
Loaded 2 of 2 matching reports.
Open the full vehicle complaint log (all categories)WHILE DRIVING AT HIGHWAY SPEED ON A TWO LANE ROAD AT NIGHT, APPLIED BRAKES TO AVOID ANIMAL IN ROAD. CONDITIONS WERE CLEAR AND ROAD WAS DRY. THERE WAS PLENTY OF TIME TO SLOW TO AVOID ANIMAL SO THIS WAS NOT A PANIC STOP. UPON APPLICATION OF BRAKES, HEADLIGHTS WENT OUT. DASH LIGHTS STAYED ON MAKING IT IMPOSSIBLE TO SEE OUT OF THE VEHICLE. APPLIED BRAKES WITH MORE URGENCY AND ALL FOUR WHEELS LOCKED. VEHICLE SKIDDED STRAIGHT UNTIL THE RIGHT TIRES MADE CONTACT WITH THE RIGHT SHOULDER. THE CAR THEN SPUN COUNTER CLOCKWISE BACK ONTO THE ROADWAY, ACROSS BOTH LANES, AND CAME TO REST ON THE SHOULDER OF THE ONCOMING LANE (APPROXIMATELY ONE AND ONE-HALF REVOLUTIONS). SKID MARKS ON HIGHWAY CONFIRMED THE WHEEL LOCK AND THE SPIN. CAR WAS SHUT OFF AND RE-STARTED AND ALL SYSTEMS WORKED FINE. UNABLE TO DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM.
AFTER PURCHASING MY CHEVY SONIC 2012, I WENT TO GET MY FIRST OIL CHANGE 3 MONTHS LATER. AND THE ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. I HAVE GONE BACK MULTIPLE TIMES, AND HAVE BEEN TOLD THAT IT WAS THE GAS CAP WHICH BY THE WAY HAD A RECALL ON IT. THE LIGHT CAME BACK ON A WEEK LATER. TOOK IT BACK THEY SAID THAT THE ONE THEY REPLACED IT WITH HAD A BAD SEAL. THEY ORDERED THE PART REPLACED THE CAP. DROVE FOR ANOTHER TWO WEEKS AND THE ENGINE LIGHT CAME BACK ON. TOOK IT BACK, THIS TIME THEY TOLD ME THAT THE CAR NEEDED A THERMOSTAT REPLACEMENT DONE THE LIGHT CAME BACK ON AGAIN. TOOK IT BACK THIS TIME, I WAS TOLD THAT IT WAS A AIR VENT TUBE THAT WAS CONNECTED TO THE ENGINE, WHICH BY THE WAY IS NOT COVERED UNDER MY POWER TRAIN, DID THAT AND YET AGAIN THE LIGHT IS BACK ON. NOW MY RADIO GOES ON AND OFF WHEN IT WANTS TO. WHEN I GET UP TO GO TO WORK MY BATTERY IS DEAD. THEY HAVE ALSO REPLACED THE DRIVERS AIR BAG FOR SOME SORT OF RECALL. THE WINDSHIELD WIPERS WAS REPLACED AS IT ALSO HAD A RECALL. I REALLY WANT TO TRADE THIS CAR IN I AM LITERARY SCARED TO DRIVE IT. SCARED DRIVER...........
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
NHTSA source checks for this vehicle year
Checks are recorded separately for each dataset, not for the whole page. Dates use UTC. A missing check date does not mean no records exist.
Vehicle import recorded: Apr 28, 2026. This is the stored import date, not confirmation that every source was successfully refreshed.