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10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
5 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
4 / 0
Average Mileage:
45,356 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2009 Chevrolet Cobalt brakes problems

brakes problem

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2009 Chevrolet Cobalt Owner Comments

problem #9

Dec 052018

Cobalt

  • 46,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Coming out of a roundabout in rush hour when a car ahead of her suddenly stopped. She had about one and half to two car lengths and her speed was about 35 mph. She applied her brakes and they did not respond. Her car rear ended another car. The airbag deployed. She has a sprained neck and back. She has been off for a couple of days per doctor's request. Major damage to the entire front end of the car.

- Livonia, MI, USA

problem #8

Dec 122012

Cobalt

  • 48,000 miles
The contact owned a 2009 Chevrolet Cobalt. While driving 40 mph and attempting to come to a stop, the brake pedal was depressed, but failed to respond. The brake pedal depressed all the way to the floorboard independently. As a result, the vehicle failed to stop and crashed into the rear of another vehicle. The air bags deployed with excessive force. The contact had to puncture the air bag to avoid suffocation, which caused the air bag to explode. The contact sustained back, neck, and ear injuries that required medical attention. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a towing yard and was deemed destroyed. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 48,000. The VIN was unavailable.

- Bradenton, FL, USA

problem #7

Apr 282015

Cobalt 4-cyl

  • 38,000 miles
This is the second time this issue has happened. The issue is when turning on an on-ramp that has sharp turning radius the car ABS system turns on and you lose control of the car. This also happens when you are already on a freeway that has a sweeping on ramp to another freeway the ABS starts to brake in the turn. I have reported this issue to the dealership and they have not addressed it.

- San Diego, CA, USA

problem #6

Oct 092014

Cobalt 4-cyl

  • 91,200 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

On Thursday October 9th, 2014 I was driving East on rt 70. It began to rain heavily at approximately 4:50pm and I attempted to use the brakes on my vehicle. The brakes were suddenly very stiff. I didn't think they were working. I was in the left lane when this occurred and immediately put on my emergency lights and tried to move to the middle lane, to the right lane so I could go to the shoulder. When I attempted to switch the lanes, the power steering wasn't working. I managed to move the steering wheel slightly so that I could switch lanes. There was oncoming traffic before an available shoulder so I tried to speed up. I was unable to increase my speed. I was able to slow down naturally but I wasn't able to completely stop until I got to the shoulder and pushed extremely hard on the breaks and held down on the break for several seconds. The radio was still working and the heater was blowing cold air. I was able to get the vehicle working again by turning the ignition to the off position and turning the ignition back on. I think my vehicle's engine turned off while I was driving. I have onstar on the vehicle and immediately pushed the button when I was unable to break properly with my vehicle. The lady I spoke with said that she was seeing some problem with my breaks but I took my vehicle to the local dealership the same day and they found no codes for my vehicle. The next day the dealership told me that they fixed the ignition recall on my vehicle and that might have fixed the issue. On two other occasions before the recall was announced, I had a similar issue and brought it into the dealership. They couldn't find anything wrong. This experience was terrifying and I'm just glad that I wasn't killed.

- Littleton , CO, USA

problem #5

Sep 142009

Cobalt 4-cyl

  • 4,000 miles
We were coming back to Maryland from a birthday party in springfield, Ohio. While coming down the mountainist area of I-69, the front end started to wobble when brakes were applied. We took it to the Chevrolet dealer in laurel, md when we got home. Instead of replacing the defective part. They turn the rotor. I had to go the and independent mechanic and have the front brakes and front rotors replaced to completely correct the problem that the certified mechanics at Chevrolet could not correct.

- Bowie, MD, USA

problem #4

May 132013

Cobalt 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 85,000 miles
The contact owns a 2009 Chevrolet Cobalt. The contact stated while driving approximately 40 mph, the brake pedal was engaged and the vehicle continued to accelerate. The contact crashed into another vehicle. The contact suffered an injury to his neck. The air bags failed to deploy. A police report was filed. The vehicle sustained damage to the front driver's side bumper and was towed to an independent mechanic. The manufacturer was not notified of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 85,000. Updated 12/23/13

- Hurlock, MD, USA

problem #3

Apr 152013

Cobalt

  • 20,500 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Premature rear brake wear, noise started at 17500 miles, complete failure at 23500 miles, this car has been pampered and never driven in snow and only driven by one driver. Rotors are badly scored, pads gone, unheard of wear for this kind of mileage!

- Belmont, MI, USA

problem #2

Dec 052012

Cobalt

  • 33,000 miles
The contact owns a 2009 Chevrolet Cobalt. The contact stated that while driving approximately 15 mph, the contact attempted to decelerate and a loud squeaky noise emitted outside of the vehicle. The failure occurred whenever coming to a stop. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where the front brake pads were replaced. The technician stated that the ceramic brakes performed as designed. The failure recurred two weeks after the repair was performed. The vehicle had not been repaired for the most recent defect. The manufacturer was notified of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 33,000.

- Connellsville, PA, USA

problem #1

May 022012

Cobalt 4-cyl

  • 42,500 miles
My son was driving to work, he was heading down a long winding road when he applied the brakes, and discovered that the brakes had suddenly failed. The brake pedal would not go to the floor; it was stuck and unable to move. He described that the car seemed to stall and continue to drift down the hill with no ability to stop, gradually picking up speed. He got in the curb lane and continued steering the vehicle while searching for the safest place to crash, as this was his only option because he was unable to slow to a stop. In the middle of morning rush hour, he was able to successfully cross opposing lanes of traffic and crash head-on into a hillside in a parking lot at about 45 mph. The underside of the vehicle was smashed in, damaging the frame beyond repair. The airbag deployed, which resulted in bruising of the chest. He did not lose consciousness, and did not acquire any cuts or scratches. He did require transportation to the hospital by ambulance, and was strapped to a backboard and put in a neckbrace. At the hospital, he was given a chest X-ray and an examination, which determined that nothing was broken or fractured. He did suffer micro tears in the muscles of his back due to the impact of the crash, and a bruised chest as a result of the seatbelt and airbag. Needless to say, he missed work that day and the next three weeks of work while recovering. The car was totaled.

- Pittsburgh, PA, USA

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