AutoUtility currently tracks 109 official NHTSA owner defect complaints for the 2018 Chevrolet Cruze. Powertrain & Transmission issues are the most frequently reported category, appearing in 23 complaints (21.1% of submitted records). Among these NHTSA complaint records, 17 filings cite a crash, 3 cite a fire, 6 report one or more injuries, 1 reports one or more fatalities.
- • Total NHTSA Complaints: 109 reports
- • #1 Reported Problem Area: Powertrain & Transmission (23 reports • 21.1% of submitted complaints)
- • Secondary Problem Areas: Engine & Cooling (22), Brakes & Traction Control (15)
- • Crash-Citing Complaints: 17 filings
- • Fire-Citing Complaints: 3 filings
- • Complaints Reporting Injuries / Fatalities: 6 injury filings • 1 fatality filings
Most Reported Problems for 2018 Chevrolet Cruze
Top automotive subsystem defect categories ranked by unique owner complaint volume in federal records
Powertrain & Transmission
NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:
- Campaign #20V668000 POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
Engine & Cooling
Brakes & Traction Control
NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:
- Campaign #18V576000 SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS:DISC:CALIPER
Electrical System
Air Bags & Restraints
Recent NHTSA Owner Reports for 2018 Chevrolet Cruze
Representative defect filings submitted by owners to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
"My 2018 Chevy Cruz has developed a sticky or tacky surface discovered when I was cleaning my interior. I used warm water and soap to clean all plastics. Tried to dry off my dash with paper towels and discovered the issue . My car has been garage kept since its purchase so I have no idea as my..."
"Coming to a stop sign or red light the car won’t accelerate or will go in traction control making it difficult to move or not accelerate. Had 2-3 fuel leaks this year also having problems to keep the car going sometimes the max speed it will go is 20-40 miles n won’t go up unless u keep letting it..."
"The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Cruze. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the windshield wiper compartment inadvertently opened. There was a failure with the seat belts. The contact stated that the driver’s side seat belt was excessively loose, and the front..."
"Unknown. The car seems to stall or slip when accelerating as is misfiring. It cuts off in the middle of the streets after coming out of auto stop mode. Pcv valve keeps popping up as issue. I had the pcv changed o2 sensors checked cleaned throttle body and air filter changed. The car still gives..."
"-The engine experienced internal failure resulting in low compression in cylinder 1. The failure has rendered the vehicle inoperable. The vehicle and engine are currently available for inspection upon request. The issue was diagnosed and confirmed by both an independent mechanic and an authorized..."
Complaint History for Chevrolet Cruze
Reported defect complaint volume across sibling model years (2015–2019)
| Model Year | NHTSA Complaints | Crash Reports | Safety Recalls | Detailed Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 Chevrolet Cruze | 251 | 20 | 4 | View 2015 Problems → |
| 2016 Chevrolet Cruze | 249 | 19 | 4 | View 2016 Problems → |
| 2017 Chevrolet Cruze | 201 | 8 | 2 | View 2017 Problems → |
| 2018 Chevrolet Cruze Current Page | 109 | 17 | 3 | Current |
| 2019 Chevrolet Cruze | 20 | 4 | 2 | View 2019 Problems → |
Detailed NHTSA Component Breakdown for 2018 Chevrolet Cruze
Complete distribution of consumer defect reports across all 47 granular NHTSA system and subsystem classifications
| Vehicle Component / System | Total Complaints | Crash Reports | Fire Reports | Reported Injury Entries | Reported Fatality Entries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Powertrain NHTSA category: POWER TRAIN | 16 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Other / Uncategorized NHTSA category: UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Engine NHTSA category: ENGINE | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Service Brakes NHTSA category: SERVICE BRAKES | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Visibility & Wipers NHTSA category: VISIBILITY/WIPER | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Air Bags NHTSA category: AIR BAGS | 3 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,ENGINE | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Electrical System NHTSA category: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Engine & Cooling NHTSA category: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Structure & Body NHTSA category: STRUCTURE | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Vehicle Speed Control NHTSA category: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Wheels & Hubs NHTSA category: WHEELS | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| AIR BAGS,SEAT BELTS | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| AIR BAGS,STRUCTURE,SERVICE BRAKES | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,AIR BAGS,SEAT BELTS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC),SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,SERVICE BRAKES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Seat Belts NHTSA category: SEAT BELTS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Service Brakes NHTSA category: SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Steering NHTSA category: STEERING | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,AIR BAGS,STRUCTURE | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,AIR BAGS,WHEELS | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Suspension NHTSA category: SUSPENSION | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| SUSPENSION,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| SUSPENSION,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| SUSPENSION,WHEELS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tires NHTSA category: TIRES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC),ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| WHEELS,SERVICE BRAKES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
The complaint records on this page are retrieved directly from the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) public database.
Local Production Store Compiled: August 2026 • Deterministic Audited Dataset • Zero Dynamic External API Runtime Latency.