BUICK VERANO · model year

2013 BUICK VERANO

154 NHTSA complaints, 6 crash reports, and 3 active recalls for this specific cohort.

NHTSA overall rating

5 / 5 ★

New Car Assessment Program

The 2013BUICKVERANO carries 154 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 6 crashes, 2 fires, 5 injuries, and 0 fatalities. For crash performance, NHTSA's New Car Assessment Program gave this cohort an overall 5/5 rating, with 5/5 front crash, 5/5 side crash, and 4/5 rollover scores derived from standardized barrier and dynamic tests.

Component-level analysis is where model-year complaints become actionable: the top complaint category for the 2013 VERANO is engine with 33 filings, followed by electrical system (23) and air bags (16). Concentration in one or two component groups is the classic signature of a systemic defect; a flat distribution usually reflects normal aging, warranty complaints, or isolated build-plant variability. This model year has 3 active recall campaigns, which means the manufacturer is obligated to remedy the covered defect at no charge for the life of the vehicle — the full NHTSA campaign numbers are listed below.

NHTSA currently has 1 investigation file overlapping the 2013 VERANO. Owners comparing this cohort against neighboring years should pair the counters above with the complaint-by-year trend on the parent model page — a spike in a single year often tracks to a platform refresh, a new transmission supplier, or an updated ECU calibration. Use the related-complaint feed below to read raw owner narratives before deciding whether any pattern here affects your specific use case.

154
Complaints
6
Crashes
2
Fires
5
Injuries
0
Deaths
2013 BUICK VERANO — NHTSA crash-test profile NHTSA NCAP crash-test star ratings for the 2013 BUICK VERANO. Overall composite: 5.0 of 5 stars across 3 safety dimensions. Front CrashSide CrashRollover 5.0 NHTSA NCAP of 5 stars
  • Front Crash 5.0 ★
  • Side Crash 5.0 ★
  • Rollover 4.0 ★
NHTSA overall 5.0/5 stars, with front-crash, side-crash and rollover ratings from standardized NCAP barrier and dynamic tests.

Total Complaints

154 filings

Crashes Reported

6 reports

Source

NHTSA ODI

Federal complaints database

Complaints vs. fleet median (215)

At or below the fleet median complaint volume.

NHTSA NCAP overall: 5/5 — Top NCAP rating · Front: 5/5 · Side: 5/5 · Rollover: 4/5

Complaints by Component

ComponentCount
ENGINE33
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM23
AIR BAGS16
STEERING14
UNKNOWN OR OTHER14
POWER TRAIN12
TIRES8
WHEELS7
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC)4
STRUCTURE:BODY4
SEAT BELTS4
SEATS3
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL2
SUSPENSION1
EQUIPMENT ADAPTIVE/MOBILITY1

Recalls (3)

23V51600027/07/2023

AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE

General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2013 Buick Verano, Chevrolet Camero, Sonic, and Volt vehicles. The driver-side air bag inflator may explode during deployment due to a manufacturing defect.

16V50200005/07/2016

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION

General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Buick Verano and 2016 Chevrolet Malibu as the electronic park lock lever may allow the ignition key to be removed without the transmission being in PARK. Also, certain 2013 Buick Encore, 2011 Buick Regal, 2013-2014 Buick Verano, 201

14V41700002/07/2014

EQUIPMENT:ELECTRICAL

General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2013-2014 Buick Encore all-wheel-drive vehicles manufactured August 23, 2012, to September 9, 2013; Verano vehicles manufactured August 8, 2012, to June 20, 2013; Chevrolet Cruze vehicles manufactured August 7, 2012, to August 16, 2013, and 201

Recent Complaints

20250128AIR BAGS

My driver side air bag notification keeps coming on. On and off, while I'm driving. My electrical system is odd. I can not charge any devices and my screen will turn off while I'm driving. I'm giving today's date, but this is an ongoing problem for at least a year.

20250128ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

My driver side air bag notification keeps coming on. On and off, while I'm driving. My electrical system is odd. I can not charge any devices and my screen will turn off while I'm driving. I'm giving today's date, but this is an ongoing problem for at least a year.

20241016POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:CONTROL MODULE (TCM/PCM/TECM)

The contact owns a 2013 Buick Verano. The contact stated that while the vehicle was off on an inclined driveway, the vehicle rolled away. The contact had accidentally not shifted out of the drive gear position. The contact was able to jump back in the vehicle where he pressed the brake pedal and shifted into the park position. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was examined, but not diagnosed. The contact was advised that all Buick vehicles perform the same action while in drive on an incline. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 100,000.

Mileage: 100,000

20240912UNKNOWN OR OTHER

I think my car has a faulty ignition. When I turn my car off with key in ignition, my car starts on it's own.

20240907ENGINE

Vehicle is consuming oil at an excessive rate (with still less than 70000 miles on the odometer) and I have had to keep a close watch on the levels. It is burning a quart right now about every 1400 miles and the problem is only likely to get worse with time. This could cause the engine to fail or catch fire while operating the vehicle, which is quite dangerous, especially at interstate speeds or on mountain roads. Buick has not issued a recall, and yet there is a service bulletin dating from 2016 (Bulletin No.: 13-06-01-003H). I have also read many complaints from other Verano owners about this problem. An engine is one of the most expensive parts of any vehicle, and if Buick will not voluntarily recall this model year to make the needed repairs, the NTSB ought to take a hand in getting a recall of affected vehicles. I don't want to risk my life on the road if this engine fails while the vehicle is in operation.

20231016UNKNOWN OR OTHER

In checking, my oil found that the oil was low but I’ve had no leaks concerned about where the oil is going and the oil consumption. I change my oil about twice a year. The car only has 45,000 miles on it..

20230710ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

Started having the radio blank out and then steering wheel would lose power while driving. Service stability track error comes on. Took in for diagnostic and was told rear control module was bad. After 1500 to 1800.00 in repairs still had the same issues within 7 days. I've contacted dealership and general motor. I'm afraid my car will lose power while on highway

20230710UNKNOWN OR OTHER

Started having the radio blank out and then steering wheel would lose power while driving. Service stability track error comes on. Took in for diagnostic and was told rear control module was bad. After 1500 to 1800.00 in repairs still had the same issues within 7 days. I've contacted dealership and general motor. I'm afraid my car will lose power while on highway

20230710STEERING

Started having the radio blank out and then steering wheel would lose power while driving. Service stability track error comes on. Took in for diagnostic and was told rear control module was bad. After 1500 to 1800.00 in repairs still had the same issues within 7 days. I've contacted dealership and general motor. I'm afraid my car will lose power while on highway

20230621ENGINE

My Buick Verano keeps running out of oil despite consistent oil changes. It ran out of oil, 3000 miles before my next oil change was due. There are many reports online of other owners of the same vehicle having the same issue. Recently, my car cut off in the middle of the street Without any warning due to no oil in the engine. The low oil warning light never came on. This is the second time that this has occurred. The first time the mechanic just said it was low on oil. Now my car will not restart. Again my next oil change was not due for another 3000 miles.

20230428ENGINE

The PCV orifice that is located inside the intake manifold is known to clog due to a manufacture defect, which then produces high pressure inside the crankcase. The pressure then forces high amounts of oil through the valve cover orifice into the intake breather box. The oil then fills up inside and get into the engine air filter and throttle body. The high amounts of oil being sucked into the intake will leave the engine running with zero oil, thousands of miles before a oil change is due. This would obviously destroy the engine if oil is not added regularly. There is also a high risk of the rear main seal blowing due to the high pressurization of the crankcase. This is a very known defect and without a question, needs to be issued as a recall.

20230426ENGINE

The contact owns a 2013 Buick Verano. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, there was a knocking sound coming from the engine. Upon inspection, it was the discovered that the engine oil level was extremely low, although the oil had recently been changed. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The manufacturer was not contacted. The contact stated that there was an unknown TSB to address the failure. The failure mileage was 70,000.

Mileage: 70,000

20221102POWER TRAIN

Power steering an steering wheel locks, Once this happens the car becomes a safety hazard, first time it happened two children were in the car and seconds from an accident on the freeway. Exited the freeway and car steering wheel failed again this time stopped working completely putting my children’s life in danger.

20221102STEERING

Power steering an steering wheel locks, Once this happens the car becomes a safety hazard, first time it happened two children were in the car and seconds from an accident on the freeway. Exited the freeway and car steering wheel failed again this time stopped working completely putting my children’s life in danger.

20221102ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

The car power steering locked and stopped working while driving on the freeway, this incident put at risk myself and my children safety. After exiting the freeway the steering wheel stopped working again. this is a known issue as the car steering power was not recalled but the issue was acknowledged but GM. The car is a safety hazard for the person who drive it and the public.

20221102POWER TRAIN

The car power steering locked and stopped working while driving on the freeway, this incident put at risk myself and my children safety. After exiting the freeway the steering wheel stopped working again. this is a known issue as the car steering power was not recalled but the issue was acknowledged but GM. The car is a safety hazard for the person who drive it and the public.

20221102STEERING

The car power steering locked and stopped working while driving on the freeway, this incident put at risk myself and my children safety. After exiting the freeway the steering wheel stopped working again. this is a known issue as the car steering power was not recalled but the issue was acknowledged but GM. The car is a safety hazard for the person who drive it and the public.

20220920ENGINE

2.4L LEA engine is burning an excessive ammount of oil. Roughly 2L of oil has been burnt within a week. Upon contacting a dealer about the issue, the issue is known and has been recalled for other GM makes of the same year with the same engine model. The engine will start knocking and then stop running, no matter if the vehicle is driving.

20220918ENGINE

I purchased this used vehicle in March 2022 $8500 cash. I have had problems with oil consumption since I purchased. The car stalls and turns off when the oil is low. I am literally putting a quart of oil in the car every 40-50 miles. I have 6 children to get to school and I also work. At this time I can't afford another vehicle so I'm hoping that others come forth so this car can be recalled or fixed. Life is hard enough

20220829POWER TRAIN

The contact owns a 2013 Buick Verano. The contact stated while driving at 25-30 MPH, the shift lock release button mounted on the gear shifter fractured and she was unable to shift into park (P). The contact drove to the nearest independent mechanic and maintained the brake pedal depressed in order to keep the vehicle idle. The contact stated that she was also able to shift into neutral. The independent mechanic diagnosed that the gear shifter needed to be replaced. The contact provided the contact with a tool to depress the remaining part of the shift lock release button in order to park the vehicle. Upon arriving to her residence, the contact utilized the tool to park the vehicle. The contact contacted a tow company to tow the vehicle to the dealer. The tow agent was able to pull the remaining part of the shift lock release button out. The dealer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure but provided no assistance. The

Mileage: 60,000

Compare 2013BUICKVERANO to Similar Vehicles

NHTSA Investigations

Frequently Asked Questions

How many complaints does the 2013 BUICK VERANO have?
The 2013 BUICK VERANO has 154 NHTSA complaints, 6 crashes, 2 fires, 5 injuries, and 0 deaths reported.
What is the safety rating for the 2013 BUICK VERANO?
The 2013 BUICK VERANO received an overall NHTSA safety rating of 5/5, front crash rating of 5/5, side crash rating of 5/5, and rollover rating of 4/5.
Are there any recalls for the 2013 BUICK VERANO?
Yes, the 2013 BUICK VERANO has 3 recall(s). The most common affected component is AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE. Recalls are issued by NHTSA and manufacturers must provide a free remedy.
What are the most common problems with the 2013 BUICK VERANO?
The most-complained component for the 2013 BUICK VERANO is ENGINE with 33 complaints. Other frequently reported areas include ELECTRICAL SYSTEM and AIR BAGS.
Is the 2013 BUICK VERANO safe to buy?
Review the complaint history, crash and fire reports, safety ratings, and recall status on this page to make an informed decision. The 2013 BUICK VERANO has an NHTSA safety rating of 5/5. Compare with other model years using the links above.
Where does this data come from?
All complaint, recall, and safety rating data is sourced from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Complaints are filed by vehicle owners through NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation.

Vehicle Safety Guides

Data as of 2025. Sources: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) complaints database, NHTSA recall campaign API, NHTSA NCAP crash-test ratings, and NHTSA FARS for fatality cross-reference.