2010 Chevrolet Cobalt problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Steering (213) · Fuel/Propulsion System (95) · Electrical System (44)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Chevrolet Cobalt model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
🛣️ Complaints by mileage
453 NHTSA complaints that reported an odometer reading.
Safety recalls (6)
Air Bags:side/Window 2015-08-10 · campaign 15V500000 · 59,474 vehicles
Defect: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2010 Chevrolet Cobalt vehicles manufactured January 4, 2010, to June 23, 2010. The affected vehicles may be equipped with an improperly routed Side-Impact Sensor (SIS) wiring harness in the driver side front door. The misrouted wiring harness could cause an electrical short that disables the driver side curtain air bag.
Risk: A disabled driver side roof-rail air bag will not deploy in the event of a crash necessitating deployment of that air bag, increasing the risk of injury to the driver.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the sensor's wiring in the driver's door and make repairs as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on September 8, 2015. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 15075.
Electrical System:ignition:switch 2014-04-30 · campaign 14E021000 · 14,529 vehicles
Defect: UCI-FRAM Group is recalling certain LS1328 ignition Switches sold as Wells LS1328, Duralast LS1328, Airtex 1S6097, and Carquest 53-27479, and LS1497 Ignition Switches sold as Wells LS1497, Duralast LS1497, Airtex 1S10961, and Carquest 53-27967, for use on various General Motors model and model year vehicles during repair and replacement of the original ignition switch. The weight on the key ring and/or road conditions or some other jarring event may cause the affected ignition switches to move
Risk: If the ignition switch moves from the run position to accessory, the car would stall and the air bags will not deploy in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of personal injury to the occupants.
Fix: UCI-FRAM Group has notified its purchasers to quarantine and return all inventory. Any switches already installed in vehicles will be replaced by GM dealers as part of NHTSA recall 14V-047, free of charge. UCI-Fram's purchasers should contact UCI-FRAM Group at 1-800-890-2075. GM vehicle owners requiring additional information on that recall campaign should contact GM at 1-800-222-1020 (Chevrolet), 1-800-762-2737 (Pontiac) or 1-800-553-6000 (Saturn).
Electrical System:ignition 2014-04-10 · campaign 14V171000 · 2,191,014 vehicles
Defect: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2005-2010 Chevrolet Cobalt, 2006-2011 Chevrolet HHR, 2007-2010 Pontiac G5, 2006-2010 Pontiac Solstice, 2003-2007 Saturn Ion, and 2007-2010 Saturn Sky vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the key can be removed from the ignition when the ignition is not in the "Off" position.
Risk: If the key can be removed from the ignition when the ignition is not in the "off" position, the vehicle could roll away: (a) for an automatic transmission, if the transmission is not in the "Park" position; or (b) for a manual transmission, if the parking brake is not engaged and the transmission is not in the "Reverse" position. This potential for rollaway increases the risk for a crash and occup
Fix: General Motors will notify owners, and for vehicles that were built with the defective ignition cylinder and have not previously had the ignition cylinder replaced with the redesigned part, dealers will replace the ignition cylinder and cut and, if necessary, re-learn two ignition/door keys for each vehicle. For vehicles that were built with the redesigned ignition cylinder or had the ignition cylinder replaced with the redesigned part, dealers will cut and, if necessary, re-learn two ignition
Steering:electric Power Assist System 2014-03-31 · campaign 14V153000 · 1,373,177 vehicles
Defect: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2004-2006 and 2008-2009 Chevrolet Malibu, 2004-2006 Malibu Maxx, 2009-2010 HHR (non-turbo), 2010 Cobalt, 2008-2009 Saturn Aura and 2004-2007 Ion, and 2005-2009 Pontiac G6. In the affected vehicles, there may be a sudden loss of electric power steering (EPS) assist that could occur at any time while driving.
Risk: If power steering assist is lost, greater driver effort would be required to steer the vehicle at low speeds, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will perform one of four bulletins. Parts are not currently available. GM expects to send an interim notification around May 28, 2014. When parts are available, owners will be mailed a second letter to come in to have the applicable bulletin applied. Bulletin 14115 covers model year 2004-2007 Saturn Ion, 2009-2010 Chevrolet HHR and 2010 Chevrolet Cobalts. Dealers will replace the EPS motor. Bulletin 14116 covers model year 2004-2006 Chevrolet Malibu and M
Air Bags 2014-02-10 · campaign 14V047000 · 2,190,934 vehicles
Defect: This defect can affect the safe operation of the airbag system. Until this recall is performed, customers should remove all items from their key rings, leaving only the ignition key. The key fob (if applicable), should also be removed from the key ring. General Motors LLC (GM) notified the agency on February 10, 2014 that they are recalling 619,122 model year 2005-2007 Chevrolet Cobalt, and 2007 Pontiac G5 vehicles. On February 25, 2014, GM increased the recall to include an additional 748,0
Risk: If the key is not in the run position, the air bags may not deploy if the vehicle is involved in a crash, increasing the risk of injury.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the ignition switch, free of charge. An interim notification was issued to owners of 2007 and earlier models on March 10, 2014, informing them of the safety defect. Owners of 2008 and later vehicles will be mailed an interim letter on April 21, 2014. All affected owners will receive another letter once parts are available. The recall began on April 18, 2014. Owners may contact Chevrolet at 1-800-222-1020, Pontiac at 1-800-762-2737 or Saturn at
Steering:electric Power Assist System 2010-03-03 · campaign 10V073000 · 1,050,889 vehicles
Defect: GENERAL MOTORS IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2005-2010 CHEVROLET COBALT AND MODEL YEAR 2007-2010 PONTIAC G5 VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH ELECTRIC POWER STEERING. THE DRIVER MAY EXPERIENCE A SUDDEN LOSS OF POWER STEERING ASSIST THAT COULD OCCUR AT ANY TIME WHILE DRIVING.
Risk: IF POWER STEERING ASSIST IS LOST, IT WOULD REQUIRE GREATER DRIVER EFFORT AT LOW VEHICLE SPEEDS, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
Fix: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE ELECTRIC POWER STEERING MOTOR FREE OF CHARGE. OWNERS ARE BEING NOTIFIED ON A ROLLING BASIS BETWEEN MARCH 29 THROUGH NOVEMBER 2010. A COPY OF THE MAILING SCHEDULE IS LOCATED IN THE RECALL FILE. OWNERS MAY CONTACT CHEVROLET AT 1-800-630-2438 AND PONTIAC AT 1-800-620-7668 OR AT THE OWNER CENTER AT WWW.GMOWNERCENTER.COM.
Service bulletins (1,139)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Unknown Or Other 2026-09-04 · PIP4902W · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information advises a dealer on how to email gds2 session logs into technical assistance.
Unknown Or Other 2026-04-01 · PIT3271Q · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information communicates information about how to determine if a wheel and tires size change is available.
Unknown Or Other 2026-03-09 · PIP6104 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information communicates the steps on how to save a gds2 session log and upload to a technical assistance case in cx connect.
Unknown Or Other 2026-03-09 · PIP4902V · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information advises a dealer on how to email gds2 session logs into technical assistance.
Unknown Or Other 2026-01-08 · PIP4902U · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information advises a dealer on how to email gds2 session logs into technical assistance.
Unknown Or Other 2025-11-20 · PIT5214G · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information communication provides information to the technician about vehicles that have had multiple repair attempts that are being performed on customer’s vehicles that exhibit vibration conditions without utilizing the support of general motors technical assistance center. if va
Showing the 6 most recent of 1,139 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2026-08-15 · Air Bags“walked out to the car and the side air bags deployed and now it won't start. no power no accident. drove it to the driveway and parked it. now it won't start. …”
2025-10-31 · Fuel/Propulsion System“fuel lines leak around fuel tank, causing a fuel smell around the vehicle and a major fire hazard …”
2025-10-30 · Steering“ problem with steering column rattle…”
2025-09-24 · Steering · 54,000 mi“the contact's daughter owns a 2010 chevrolet cobalt. the contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the power steering assist failed to operate as needed. there was no warning light illuminated. due to the failure, extra effort was needed to steer the vehicle. the vehicle was not diagnosed or inspected for the failure. the manufacturer wa…”
2025-09-13 · Fuel/Propulsion System“air bag says it needs serviced gas gadge is all over the place hard to tell how much gas i actually have in my tank. …”
2025-09-03 · Air Bags · 💥 crash“the contact owned a 2010 chevrolet cobalt. the contact stated that, while her daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed during an ice and rainstorm with poor visibility, a vehicle parked sideways in the middle of the roadway suddenly appeared. unable to stop in time, the vehicle collided with the driver's side rear of the other vehicle, causing …”
2025-07-15 · Unknown Or Other“our daughter observed a significant puddle forming under her vehicle and noticed a strong smell of gasoline. she sent us a video, which clearly showed gasoline leaking from the driver-side rear area of the car. due to the proximity of the fuel leak to the exhaust pipe, we had the car towed to a mechanic, as it was too dangerous to drive. the mecha…”
2024-10-25 · Structure:body“internal mechanism of the driver-side door handle broke and the door would not open from the inside. tne dealership confirmed that the inside door ah glue is broken. the cable retainer snapped apart and the cable cannot stay connected. this might be available for inspection. driver must exit the vehicle by crawling over to the passenger side. the p…”
2024-07-08 · Fuel/Propulsion System · 🔥 fire“i found out about the recall on the 2007-2009 on the corrosion of the gas lines on drivers side rear wheel when i took my car to a chevy dealer and they said its the same thing thats happening to my car.and that they only did the recall on 2007-2009 colbalt models .the last colbalt's made was the 2010 models.why didnt they recall them also.i took …”
2024-02-05 · Steering · 260,000 mi“the contact owns a 2010 chevrolet cobalt. the contact stated while driving 55 mph, the power steering and brakes became inoperable. the driver was able to coast to the side of the road. the check engine warning light was illuminated after the failure. the vehicle was towed to her parent's residence. the vehicle was serviced by an independent mechan…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.