CHEVROLET CAPTIVA SPORT · model year

2013 CHEVROLET CAPTIVA SPORT

13 NHTSA complaints, 1 crash report for this specific cohort.

NHTSA overall rating

Not crash-tested

New Car Assessment Program

The 2013CHEVROLETCAPTIVA SPORT carries 13 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 1 crash, 0 fires, 1 injury, and 0 fatalities. No NCAP 5-star crash-test rating is available for this model year in the federal database.

Component-level analysis is where model-year complaints become actionable: the top complaint category for the 2013 CAPTIVA SPORT is engine with 7 filings, followed by air bags (2) and service brakes (1). 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.

NHTSA currently has 57 investigation files overlapping the 2013 CAPTIVA SPORT, and 2 remain open. 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.

13
Complaints
1
Crashes
0
Fires
1
Injuries
0
Deaths

Total Complaints

13 filings

Crashes Reported

1 reports

Source

NHTSA ODI

Federal complaints database

Complaints vs. fleet median (215)

At or below the fleet median complaint volume.

Complaints by Component

ComponentCount
ENGINE7
AIR BAGS2
SERVICE BRAKES1
UNKNOWN OR OTHER1
BACK OVER PREVENTION: WARNINGS1
POWER TRAIN1

Recent Complaints

20250421CrashAIR BAGS

On [XXX] while driving this vehicle owned by the state of Arizona I was involved in a collision at 40 mph. The airbags did not deploy and I sustained serious brakes and internal bleeding. There were no warning lamps. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

20240809ENGINE

This car is know for engine consumption issues it is the motor and it is know has has been recalled due to issues in prior years. My engine is consuming a half a quart every 40 miles.

20240712ENGINE

The engine light was on and i went to dealership to have it checked out. They told me that it was a computer glich and not to worry about it. Was driving on the highway when the engine exploded and the car stopped. I was able to glide to the side of the road. After talking to dealership again they said that this model had something wrong with a part in the engine that normally would cause the car to stop without warning when reaching around 125,000 miles on it. I made it to 150,00+.

20240315ENGINE

Within 3 days my vehicle stopped working with no warnings (check engine or other warnings) the vehicle made a rattling noise and then would not turn on. Upon inspection mechanic informed me that the engine would need to be replaced. There were no oil leaks or issues that would have caused the engine to die. The vehicle did not give me any signs of warnings that there was a problem. This cost would be more than the total I purchased the vehicle for. The engine has 85,000 miles and vehicle was well cared for. The vehicle is unsafe to drive and unreliable and when researching this car thousands of other people have experienced this same issue. There is a recall on the 2011 and 2012 captivas and this same issue is occurring in the 2013 captivas.

20240315POWER TRAIN

Within 3 days my vehicle stopped working with no warnings (check engine or other warnings) the vehicle made a rattling noise and then would not turn on. Upon inspection mechanic informed me that the engine would need to be replaced. There were no oil leaks or issues that would have caused the engine to die. The vehicle did not give me any signs of warnings that there was a problem. This cost would be more than the total I purchased the vehicle for. The engine has 85,000 miles and vehicle was well cared for. The vehicle is unsafe to drive and unreliable and when researching this car thousands of other people have experienced this same issue. There is a recall on the 2011 and 2012 captivas and this same issue is occurring in the 2013 captivas.

20240307ENGINE

The contact owns a 2013 Chevrolet Captiva Sport. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle made an abnormal sound. Additionally, the contact stated while driving 30 MPH, the vehicle shuddered and stalled. The contact was able to veer to the side of the road. The contact was able to restart the vehicle and drove to the residence. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the failure recurred while driving, and the vehicle failed to restart. The vehicle was towed to an auto body repair shop, where it was diagnosed that the engine had failed and needed to be replaced. An unknown dealer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the manufacturing of the vehicle was discontinued due to engine failures. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 85,000.

Mileage: 85,000

20231128AIR BAGS

When describing what happened, try to answer these questions as specifically as possible: What component or system failed or malfunctioned? Is it available for inspection upon request? the engine, when I am at a traffic light or in line at school to pick up my daughter, the car starts to shake suddenly, what I have to do is put it in NEUTRAL so that the movement decreases. Also when I'm driving on the highway they change speeds unpredictably. The engine light comes on intermittently. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? It puts my safety and that of my family at risk because if I don't put it in NEUTRAL it can accelerate and collide with the car behind or in front if the distance in the school line is tight. And on the road, having this unpredictable change in speed puts our lives in danger since many cars go at speeds of more than 75 miles per hour. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by an independent dealer or service center? The problem was confirmed b

20231128ENGINE

When describing what happened, try to answer these questions as specifically as possible: What component or system failed or malfunctioned? Is it available for inspection upon request? the engine, when I am at a traffic light or in line at school to pick up my daughter, the car starts to shake suddenly, what I have to do is put it in NEUTRAL so that the movement decreases. Also when I'm driving on the highway they change speeds unpredictably. The engine light comes on intermittently. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? It puts my safety and that of my family at risk because if I don't put it in NEUTRAL it can accelerate and collide with the car behind or in front if the distance in the school line is tight. And on the road, having this unpredictable change in speed puts our lives in danger since many cars go at speeds of more than 75 miles per hour. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by an independent dealer or service center? The problem was confirmed b

20231128BACK OVER PREVENTION: WARNINGS

When describing what happened, try to answer these questions as specifically as possible: What component or system failed or malfunctioned? Is it available for inspection upon request? the engine, when I am at a traffic light or in line at school to pick up my daughter, the car starts to shake suddenly, what I have to do is put it in NEUTRAL so that the movement decreases. Also when I'm driving on the highway they change speeds unpredictably. The engine light comes on intermittently. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? It puts my safety and that of my family at risk because if I don't put it in NEUTRAL it can accelerate and collide with the car behind or in front if the distance in the school line is tight. And on the road, having this unpredictable change in speed puts our lives in danger since many cars go at speeds of more than 75 miles per hour. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by an independent dealer or service center? The problem was confirmed b

20230926ENGINE

These vehicles are known to use an excess of oil in the engine, when the engine oil is low there is no warning light/system to notify operator of this, I have talked with many other owners and it is the same story. Mechanics report this engine uses oil burnt by the catalytic convertor, they say it can only be fixed if you have a major engine repair, then it will be normal in oil usage. This seems to fit under the lemon law. Chevy knows about this problem, both the usage of excessive oil and also no low warning when oil is low. This can lead to a major cost or damage to the engine. Again this is a known issue. Let me know if questions. [XXX] [XXX] thanks. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

20230907ENGINE

I was driving down the highway when it started losing power. The engine light came on. I had got this car at a dealer, so I took it to them, and they wouldn't do anything. It was low on oil, so I got a gallon of oil and started home which was a half hour away. I could only drive a little way and had to stop and put oil in it. I took it to a mechanic, and they checked the motor and changed the oil. The oil pan had shavings in it. The mechanic said the motor had to be replaced. We found out later that the motor was getting bad when it was traded at the dealer. I had it less than a month. If I had been on the interstate and this happen, I could have been hit. The Better Business Bureau couldn't get anywhere with the dealer either. I talked to a gentleman at General Motors, and they wouldn't help either.

20230907UNKNOWN OR OTHER

I was driving down the highway when it started losing power. The engine light came on. I had got this car at a dealer, so I took it to them, and they wouldn't do anything. It was low on oil, so I got a gallon of oil and started home which was a half hour away. I could only drive a little way and had to stop and put oil in it. I took it to a mechanic, and they checked the motor and changed the oil. The oil pan had shavings in it. The mechanic said the motor had to be replaced. We found out later that the motor was getting bad when it was traded at the dealer. I had it less than a month. If I had been on the interstate and this happen, I could have been hit. The Better Business Bureau couldn't get anywhere with the dealer either. I talked to a gentleman at General Motors, and they wouldn't help either.

20230809SERVICE BRAKES

Reporting for my Mother in law. Confirmed by me several times. First incident occurred while she was driving, dry roads, normal traffic at approximately 65 MPH the front brakes locked up and abruptly bought the car to a stop. She was half in the traffic live lane and half on shoulder. She called me and I went immediately. I got there in about 30 minutes and there was several people trying to push the car off the road and all said it wouldn’t budge. I felt the heat of the left front brake was extremely hot. I sat in the car, started it up, attempted to get it to move, it wouldn’t. I figured it was electronic as there was no DTC/MIL lights. I thought the quickest thing I could do was remove power which I did for about 3 minutes. Started up and it drove to shoulder. We switched vehicles, I drove hers, I was traveling 65 mph when the stabilitrek service message showed on display and two minutes later the car stopped on its own again, I was barely able to get off the highway and people

Compare 2013CHEVROLETCAPTIVA SPORT to Similar Vehicles

NHTSA Investigations 2 Open

View all investigations

Frequently Asked Questions

How many complaints does the 2013 CHEVROLET CAPTIVA SPORT have?
The 2013 CHEVROLET CAPTIVA SPORT has 13 NHTSA complaints, 1 crashes, 0 fires, 1 injuries, and 0 deaths reported.
What are the most common problems with the 2013 CHEVROLET CAPTIVA SPORT?
The most-complained component for the 2013 CHEVROLET CAPTIVA SPORT is ENGINE with 7 complaints. Other frequently reported areas include AIR BAGS and SERVICE BRAKES.
Is the 2013 CHEVROLET CAPTIVA SPORT safe to buy?
Review the complaint history, crash and fire reports, safety ratings, and recall status on this page to make an informed decision. No NHTSA crash test rating is available for this model year. 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.