2013 Chevrolet Caprice

Routine

Owners filed 6 complaints about this vehicle with federal regulators, most often about the electrical system. It has been recalled 4 times.

What fails
ComponentReportsCrashesFiresInjuries
Electrical System2
000
Visibility/Wiper1
000
Suspension1
000
Power Train1
010
Fuel/Propulsion System1
000

4 safety recalls

Part 573 reports
Seat Belts15V399000
Filed Jun 23, 201547,042 vehiclesGeneral Motors Llc

Defect. General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2011-2013 Chevrolet Caprice vehicles manufactured October 15, 2010, to October 22, 2013, and 2008-2009 Pontiac G8 vehicles manufactured July 25, 2007, to February 18, 2009. In the affected vehicles, the flexible steel cables that connect the seat belts to the vehicle at the outside of the driver seat and the front passenger seat may be bent from being sat on while entering the vehicle. This repeated bending may result in the cable breaking.

Risk. If the cable breaks, the seat occupant may not be properly restrained in the event of a crash, increasing their risk of injury.

Remedy. GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the seat belt tensioner assembly which includes the steel cable, free of charge. These replacement parts reposition the tensioner cable out of the path of entry into the vehicle and uses a more flexible cable, set at a more upright angle. The recall began on July 5, 2016. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or Pontiac customer service at 1-800-762-2737. GM's number for this recall is 15206.

Electrical System › Ignition14V540000
Filed Sep 9, 201447,043 vehiclesGeneral Motors Llc

Defect. General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2011-2013 Chevrolet Caprice vehicles manufactured October 15, 2010, to December 6, 2013, and 2008-2009 Pontiac G8 vehicles manufactured July 25, 2007, to February 18, 2009. In the affected vehicles, the driver may accidentally hit the ignition key with their knee, unintentionally knocking the key out of the run position, turning off the engine.

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. Additionally, a key knocked out of the run position could cause loss of engine power, power steering, and power braking, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash.

Remedy. GM will notify owners, and dealers will remove the key blade from the original flip key/RKE transmitter assemblies, and cut and fit a revised key blade and housing assembly, in which the blade has been indexed by 90 degrees, to the original RKE transmitter assembly. GM issued an interim notification to owners on December 31, 2014. The recall began on February 4, 2015. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 and Pontiac customer service at 1-800-762-2737. GM's number for this recall is 14445. Note: Until the recall has been performed, it is very important that drivers adjust their seat and steering column to allow clearance between their knee and the ignition key.

Power Train › Automatic Transmission › Lever and Linkage › Column Shift14V544000
Filed Sep 9, 20147,598 vehiclesGeneral Motors Llc

Defect. General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2011-2013 Chevrolet Caprice vehicles manufactured March 24, 2011, to December 6, 2013. The affected vehicles are Police Patrol Vehicles (PPV), equipped with a specific transmission selector lever that contains two pins that can become displaced. If the pins get displaced, the driver may be able to shift the vehicle from "Park" without depressing the brake pedal or remove the ignition key without the transmission being in "Park." As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards No. 102, "Transmission Shift Position Sequence, Starter Interlock, And Transmission Braking Effect", and No. 114, "Theft Protection And Rollaway Prevention."

Risk. If the transmission can be moved from "Park" without depressing the brake pedal, unintended motion may occur increasing the risk of a crash. Additionally, if the ignition key can be removed without the transmission being in "Park," the vehicle may roll away, increasing the risk of injury to exiting occupants and bystanders.

Remedy. GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the shift lever roll pin, replace the base pivot pin and attach a Brake Transmission Shift Interlock retention enhancement clip, free of charge. The recall began on October 27, 2014. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 14549.

Visibility › Windshield Wiper/Washer14V375000
Filed Jun 27, 20144,794 vehiclesGeneral Motors Llc

Defect. General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2013-2014 Chevrolet Caprice vehicles manufactured June 7, 2013, to May 29, 2014, and 2014 Chevrolet SS vehicles manufactured September 13, 2013, to March 4, 2014. In the affected vehicles, the windshield wiper motor gear teeth may strip causing the windshield wipers to become inoperative.

Risk. Inoperative wipers will not clear rain or snow, reducing the driver's visibility, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy. GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the wiper module assembly and replace any affected ones, free of charge. The recall began on August 22, 2014. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 14295.

What owners reported

Newest filings
Fuel/Propulsion System
Filed Dec 19, 201540,000 milesCO

THIS IS ONLY A 2013 CAPTIVA, ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON, FUEL PUMP CONTROL SYSTEM IS ON ITS WAY OUT. THINK WE BOUGHT A LEMON AS WE JUST HAD THE SHIFTING SENSOR CHIP GO OUT A MONTH AGO, NOT GOOD ON A WELL TAKEN CARE OF VEHICLE THAT IS ONLY 2 YEARS OLD.

Suspension
Filed Sep 3, 201555,364 milesMA

A CRUNCHING OR GRINDING NOISE FROM THE FRONT END WHEN TURNING AT SLOW SPEEDS. THE ABS LIGHT AND TRACTION CONTROL SYSTEM FLASHES WHEN THE GRINDING NOISE HAPPENS. THE PROBLEM HAPPEN MULTIPLE TIME ONE DAY THEN MAY NOT HAPPEN AGAIN FOR A WEEK

Electrical System
Filed Jun 9, 2015SC

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 CHEVROLET CAPRICE. THE CONTACT RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 14V54000 (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM); HOWEVER, THE PART TO DO THE REPAIR WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE MANUFACTURER EXCEEDED A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME FOR THE RECALL REPAIR. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE CONTACT HAD NOT EXPERIENCED A FAILURE.

Electrical System
Filed Mar 25, 2015GA

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 CHEVROLET CAPRICE. WHILE DRIVING AT 35 MPH, THE EMERGENCY EQUIPMENT FRACTURED. THE EQUIPMENT CONSISTED OF LIGHTS, SIREN, RADIO, AND MOUNTING SYSTEM WHICH WAS THE OVERALL RELAY SWITCH. THE FAILURE OCCURRED OVER SIX TIMES. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC, WHO DIAGNOSED THAT THE RELAY SWITCH NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS UNKNOWN. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE. UPDATED 7/10/15*CN UPDATED 10/2/2017*CN

Visibility/Wiper
Filed Nov 24, 201444,519 milesSC

WINDSHIELD WIPERS STOPPED WORKING. SENT TO DEALER FOR REPAIR, DEALER SAYS THE MOTOR GEARS STRIPPED. WE REFERENCE THE CURRENT RECALL ISSUED BY GM FOR THIS PROBLEM. WE WERE TOLD IT'S NOT COVERED BECAUSE IT WAS BUILT BEFORE JUNE 2013. THE WIPER MOTOR SHOULD LAST LONGER THAN 44,000 MILES. *TR

Power TrainFire
Filed Apr 3, 201426,000 milesWA

DRIVING VEHICLE ON DIRT ROAD, ROAD ABRUPTLY TURNED TO SOFT SAND. VEHICLE WAS LAGGING IN THE SAND. ABLE TO GET VEHICLE TURNED AROUND TO GET BACK TO SOLID ROAD. SWITCHING BETWEEN AUTOMATIC & MANUAL MODE ON THE TRANSMISSION TO KEEP MOVING FORWARD. AFTER VEHICLE WAS TURNED AROUND, SMELLED SOMETHING BURNING & SAW SMOKE FROM UNDER HOOD. STOPPED VEHICLE TO LOOK UNDER HOOD. UNDER HOOD SMOKE COMING FROM DOWN BELOW ENGINE AREA ON FRONT DRIVERS SIDE AREA. SMOKE WAS THICK WHITE & CHEMICAL SMELLING. ENGINE AREA IGNITED TO FLAMES. ATTEMPTED TO PUT FIRE OUT WITH WATER WITH NO LUCK. VEHICLE COMPLETELY BURNED UP. VEHICLE WAS A RENTAL CAR. *TR

6 of 6 complaints, reproduced as filed.

Across model years

Worst on record: 1994
YearComplaintsRecallsFiresDeathsAssessment
201412300Routine
2013 — this page6410Routine
20120300Routine
20111300Routine
20031000Routine
19973010Routine
199665801Fatalities reported
1995881100Routine
19941461080Routine
199361642Fatalities reported
1992891110Routine
19911311030Routine
19906200Routine

Compare every Caprice year →

Reading this record

No unusual pattern of severe incidents in the complaint record.

Complaint counts track how many cars were sold and how long they have been on the road as much as they track quality. A common model from 2013 has had a decade to accumulate reports; a rare one from last year has not. The signal worth weighing is in the severity columns, in whether the same component keeps appearing, and in whether the manufacturer eventually opened a recall for it.

Recall repairs are free for as long as the recall stands. Check whether a specific car still has open work at NHTSA's VIN lookup.

Most recent recall on file: Jun 23, 2015. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.