Buyer Research

2013 Buick Verano — Should You Buy One?

Typical asking price: $6,000–$10,000. There are 3 high-severity known issues you need to know before handing over a check.

Deciding between model years? Compare the 6 Buick Verano years we've written up →

Kestrel Take

Second year, and the shape of the record barely moves: a third of 107 complaints are the engine and most of that is the 2.4 Ecotec's oil consumption, one owner adding a quart every 40 to 50 miles before the car would stall. What is new for 2013 is a driver's airbag inflator recall — the kind that can throw metal at the driver — and a second campaign for a key that can come out of the ignition without the car being in Park. Both are free work and both are worth checking by VIN, because one owner here was told at purchase that her car had none. Check the oil cold, drive it long enough to get bored, and get the recall page printed.

What we checked

Reconciled against public records, 2026-09-25

NHTSA holds 107 owner complaints for the 2013 Buick Verano, and 3 recall campaigns.

A big number here usually means a lot of these were sold, not that it is a bad vehicle — popular models collect more complaints for the same rate of trouble. So the total on its own says little. What is worth reading is the shape of it. 31% of them are about one thing — the engine. That much concentration is a genuine pattern rather than background noise, and it is the first thing to check on any example you look at.

3 recall campaigns cover this model year. Recalls are repaired free, for any owner, with no time limit on most safety campaigns — but only if someone books it in. Ask the seller to show it was done, or have any dealer check the VIN; it takes them a couple of minutes and costs nothing.

Counts come from the NHTSA complaint and recall database — free, public, and worth checking yourself.

Known Issues for the 2013 Buick Verano

Ranked by wallet impact. These are documented, recurring problems — not freak accidents. How we decide that.

Driver's airbag inflator may explode when it deploys (recall 23V516000)High — wallet impact

In 2023 GM recalled 2013 Veranos along with the Camaro, Sonic and Volt because a manufacturing defect can make the driver-side airbag inflator burst on deployment and send sharp metal into the cabin. Dealers replace the whole driver's airbag module free. Because this campaign landed a decade after the cars were sold, plenty have changed hands without it being done — one owner writes that her service airbag light keeps coming on and she was told at the used lot that her car had no open recalls. Do not take a seller's word or a listing badge for this. Put the VIN into NHTSA's own lookup yourself and read what comes back.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under airbags (18); 3 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Oil consumption on the 2.4 Ecotec, bad enough that cars stall when the level dropsHigh — wallet impact

Thirty-three engine complaints and the theme repeats: a quart every 1,400 miles on a car under 70,000, a clicking noise when the level gets low, a dealer telling one owner that is just how these engines sound. The worst case in the file is an owner adding a quart every 40 to 50 miles with the car shutting off when the oil ran down. Chronic consumption on this engine usually traces to the piston rings, sometimes to the PCV system, and it takes out sensors and catalytic converters on the way. Pull the dipstick before the engine is started, look for a black, gritty film rather than clear oil, and ask how many quarts the seller buys between changes.

Repair cost (estimate): $300–$700 for PCV repairs; $2,500–$4,500 for pistons and rings — around 56% of what this car is typically worth

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the engine (33).

Cutting out in motion, screens going dark, and one door harness that caught fireHigh — wallet impact

Twenty-three electrical filings and they are not trivial. Cars shutting off while driving on the interstate and refusing to crank afterwards, sometimes with no codes stored at all. Screens and USB charging dying mid-drive. A warning light, a sudden rev and a loss of drive after hitting a bump at 70 mph. And one owner whose entire rear driver-side door was in flames within two minutes of a cold start with the defrosters on. A car that stalls without setting a code is genuinely hard to diagnose and expensive to chase, so take any of this seriously on a test drive: run the defrosters, the heated seats and the charging ports all at once for ten minutes and see what happens.

Repair cost (estimate): $150–$450 to trace and repair a chafed door or underbody harness; $600–$1,600 for a body control module or head unit

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under electrics and electronics (23).

The key can come out of the ignition with the car not in Park (rollaway recall)Medium

Campaign 16V502000 covers 2013 to 2014 Veranos among other GM cars: the electronic park lock lever can let you pull the key out while the transmission is still in gear, so the car can roll away as people are climbing out of it. Dealers inspect and if needed replace the key cylinder lock housing, free. You can test the symptom in the seller's driveway in ten seconds — with the handbrake firmly on, try turning and removing the key while the selector is in Drive. If it comes out, the recall has not been done or has not held.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed

Source: 3 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Passenger airbag turning itself off because of the seat presence sensorMedium

Several owners describe the PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF light staying on with an adult sitting there, or the light and the seatbelt chime behaving backwards with the seat empty. One paid 600 dollars just for the diagnosis. The cause is the presence sensor built into the passenger seat cushion, and while it is misreading the passenger airbag is switched off. Owners cite a GM bulletin covering this system on Veranos of this era, so a dealer should recognise it straight away — but on a car this old it is your money. Put someone in the seat and watch the indicator through a few minutes of driving before you decide.

Repair cost (estimate): $400–$1,000 for a passenger presence sensor or seat cushion module

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under airbags (18).

Engine block heater cord with exposed wires (recall 14V417000)Low

A small one, and only on cars fitted with the cold-weather engine block heater: the cord could develop exposed wires, which is a shock risk if you handle it while it is plugged in. Dealers fit a replacement cord rated to minus 40 Celsius, free of charge. Most Veranos in warm states never had the option, so look under the front bumper for a dangling plug. If there is one, add it to the list of campaigns you check against the VIN — it costs nothing to have done and nothing to walk away from.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed

Source: 3 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Walk-Away Red Flags

✗Oil low on a cold dipstick, or a light clicking from the top of the engine at idle
✗Any stall, cut-out or hard restart during a long test drive
✗A service airbag message that comes and goes while driving
✗The key pulling out of the ignition with the selector in Drive
✗Screens, charging ports or the backup camera dropping out under load

Good Signs

✓Recall 23V516000 shown complete on the NHTSA VIN lookup, printed out
✓Oil-change receipts every 5,000 miles with the level noted
✓A dealer oil-consumption test on file with a measured result
✓A passenger presence sensor or seat module replaced, with the invoice
✓Ten minutes of defrosters, heated seats and chargers running with the screen steady