2006 Chevrolet Cobalt Recalls

Recalls on record Updated July 2026

The 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt has 5 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 5,600,683 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 3,056 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the steering. Last updated July 5, 2026.

Recall campaigns

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 14V171000 2014-04-10 2,191,014 affected
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…

Consequence

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…

Remedy

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…

AIR BAGS 14V047000 2014-02-10 2,190,934 affected
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,…

Consequence

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.

Remedy

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…

STEERING 10V073000 2010-03-03 1,050,889 affected
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.

Consequence

IF POWER STEERING ASSIST IS LOST, IT WOULD REQUIRE GREATER DRIVER EFFORT AT LOW VEHICLE SPEEDS, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.

Remedy

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…

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE 09V419000 2009-10-29 69,139 affected
Defect

GENERAL MOTORS IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2006 CHEVROLET COBALT AND SATURN ION VEHICLES ORIGINALLY SOLD IN OR CURRENTLY REGISTERED IN THE STATES OF ARIZONA AND NEVADA; AND MODEL YEAR 2007 CHEVROLET COBALT, PONTIAC G5 AND SATURN ION VEHICLES ORIGINALLY SOLD IN OR CURRENTLY REGISTERED IN THE STATES OF ARIZONA,…

Consequence

FUEL LEAKAGE, IN THE PRESENCE OF AN IGNITION SOURCE, COULD RESULT IN A FIRE.

Remedy

DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE FUEL PUMP MODULE FREE OF CHARGE. A SPECIAL COVERAGE WILL BE IMPLEMENTED IN THE SAME TIME FRAME FOR MODEL YEAR 2006 VEHICLES REGISTERED IN ALABAMA, ARKANSAS, CALIFORNIA, FLORIDA, GEORGIA, HAWAII, LOUISIANA, MISSISSIPPI, NORTH CAROLINA, NEW MEXICO, OKLAHOMA, SOUTH CAROLINA, TENNESSEE AND TEXAS…

STRUCTURE 07V014000 2007-01-18 98,707 affected
Defect

CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES NOT EQUIPPED WITH OPTIONAL ROOF-MOUNTED SIDE IMPACT AIR BAGS FAIL TO COMPLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 201, 'OCCUPANT PROTECTION IN INTERIOR IMPACT.'

Consequence

IN A CRASH, HEAD IMPACT PROTECTION MAY BE INADEQUATE.

Remedy

DEALERS WILL INSTALL ENERGY ABSORBING PLASTIC TO THE HEADLINER TRIM TO REDUCE THE SEVERITY OF HEAD IMPACTS IN A CRASH. THE RECALL BEGAN ON MARCH 21, 2007. OWNERS MAY CONTACT CHEVROLET AT 1-800-630-2438.

Complaints by component

STEERING
1,237
70crashes4fires129injuries3deaths
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
365
32crashes3fires121injuries3deaths
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
255
1crashes3fires1injuries
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE
163
3crashes2fires2injuries
AIR BAGS
132
49crashes1fires40injuries4deaths
ENGINE
93
12crashes3fires5injuries
POWER TRAIN
76
10crashes4injuries2deaths
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP
52
STEERING:ELECTRIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM
48
8crashes4injuries
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
41
6crashes2injuries
Total complaints3,056

What owners report

Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.

“The contact’s wife owns a 2006 chevrolet cobalt. The contact stated there was an abnormal fuel odor inside the cabin of the vehicle. While exiting the vehicle, the contact became aware that there was an oil leak underneath the rear end of the vehicle, and the fuel odor was more evident. There…”

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE · reported 2025-07-23

“The contact’s wife owns a 2006 chevrolet cobalt. The contact stated there was an abnormal fuel odor inside the cabin of the vehicle. While exiting the vehicle, the contact became aware that there was an oil leak underneath the rear end of the vehicle, and the fuel odor was more evident. There…”

ENGINE · reported 2025-07-23

“The fuel tank has an evap leak that somehow breaks on top the tank so it leaks the gas vapors and could potentially start a fire but the part that breaks is a non serviceable part so it can’t be fixed without purchasing a whole new gas tank that isn’t cheap. My other concern is the infamous…”

FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM · reported 2025-07-13

“The fuel tank has an evap leak that somehow breaks on top the tank so it leaks the gas vapors and could potentially start a fire but the part that breaks is a non serviceable part so it can’t be fixed without purchasing a whole new gas tank that isn’t cheap. My other concern is the infamous…”

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM · reported 2025-07-13

“I have been experiencing the loss of steering assist. This occurs at any time while driving and that, once assist is lost, a message is displayed on the driver information center (dic) and a chime sounds. Steering control is maintained in manual mode, but requires greater driver effort at low…”

STEERING · reported 2025-06-01

“My power steering is going out and then coming back in to use. Today is the second time it has happened. It went out just now, I reversed down the road to my house, and turn it off once I crank it again the steering is back. I haven’t gotten any pictures of it as i’m more worried about making…”

STEERING · reported 2024-09-26

“My power steering is going out and then coming back in to use. Today is the second time it has happened. It went out just now, I reversed down the road to my house, and turn it off once I crank it again the steering is back. I haven’t gotten any pictures of it as i’m more worried about making…”

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL · reported 2024-09-26

“Was driving home from work on i70 through the canyon when out of no where I wasn't able to steer my car...was able to stop the car, turned it off .waited a minute then started back up that is when power steering came across my dash .nothing was wrong with my car ,drove normal then out of nowhere…”

STEERING · reported 2024-09-06

Defect investigations

Investigation PE10005 Opened 2010-01-27 · closed 2010-07-19

Electric Power Steering Failure

In a March 1, 2010 letter, General Motors Corporation (GM) provided a defect information report to NHTSA regarding a problem that could result in sudden loss of power steering assist in certain model year (MY) 2005 through 2010 Chevrolet Cobalt and MY 2007 through 2010 Pontiac G5 vehicles equipped with electric power…

Sources & methodology

Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.