Problems · NHTSA complaints

2012 Porsche 911 Turbo S problems

Owners filed 5 complaints about the 2012 Porsche 911 Turbo S with NHTSA between Oct 2015 and Oct 2024. The most-cited component is exterior lighting (1).

Complaints
5
Filed with NHTSA
Crashes
0
Reported by owners
Fires
1
Reported by owners
Injuries
0
People reported injured
Deaths
0
Reported to NHTSA
01 —By component

Complaints by component

One complaint can cite several components
  1. Exterior lighting1
  2. Electrical system1
  3. Structure1
  4. Power train1
  5. Vehicle speed control1
  6. Fuel/propulsion system1
  7. Engine1
  8. Other / unknown1

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.

Data from NHTSA Complaints API · synced Nov 6, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
02 —Trend

When complaints were filed

Does it get worse with age? Complaints per calendar year filed
View as table
Model yearComplaints filed per calendar year
20151
20160
20170
20180
20190
20201
20210
20220
20232
20241

Mileage at failure isn’t a structured field in NHTSA complaint data, so we don’t chart it. Some owners mention it in their reports below.

03 —Owner reports

Top problems in owners’ words

Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first

Exterior lighting

1 report
“Tail light fall off the car while driving, catching it dangling from the car holding by only one wire. Upon inspection, they came off due to a broken plastic lug that was holding the taillights together. It appears that Porsche changed the taillight mounting design in the 991 after the 2013 model year, adding a metal piece to keep it together even after the plastic cracks, melts, or fails. Mine is 2012 so it will cost us a fortune for get it fixed, for something it was clearly a design failure from the beginning.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Oct 22, 2024Exterior lightingODI 11621187

Electrical system

1 report
“1. Door panel Issue. I have a 2012 911, and have noticed last year that the door panels have popped up on both sides, it looks like the glue has given way. It seems that this is a common issue for Porsche 911. 2. Keyless Entry Issue. I was not able to lock my car by pressing by the door handle's button. I was able to unlock the car. I then tried on the passenger's side and was able to lock it. It's been going on for months, and every time it occurs I will have to spend minutes to get into the car.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Oct 18, 2023Electrical system, StructureODI 11550582

Structure

1 report

Power train

1 report
“Cruising on the highway and a transmission error comes up saying that there's no reverse gear. Got off the highway and even gears aren't engaring, no 2,4,6 gears. 1,3,5,7 gears are engaging. Turned off and parked the car for about an hour. Turned it on car drove fine but start/stop wasn't available and sport modes are not available. Had the car diagnosed at the dealer and the same symptoms and codes are exactly as SB-10054511-7606. The 2012 model year needs to be included.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jul 8, 2023Power train, Vehicle speed controlODI 11531070

Vehicle speed control

1 report

Fuel/propulsion system

1 report
“PORSCHE 991 911 AND 981 CAYMAN/BOXSTER MODELS HAVE AN ISSUE WHERE THE FOAM PADS SECURING THE FUEL TANK DEGRADE OR FALL OUT. THE INITIAL MANIFESTATION IS A SQUEAKING SOUND WHERE THE PLASTIC TANK RUBS AGAINST THE METAL BODY OF THE CAR. WITH PROLONGED MOVEMENT THE FUEL TANK CAN BE DAMAGED AND A FIRE COULD RESULT. PORSCHE IS AWARE OF THE ISSUE AND HAS AN INTERNAL SERVICE BULLETIN TO FIX IT BUT ONLY FOR CUSTOMERS UNDER WARRANTY. THEY CLAIM THE ISSUE IS ONLY A SQUEAKING SOUND BUT COMMON SENSE WOULD DICTATE PLASTIC RUBBING ON METAL SEVERAL TIMES PER DAY WILL WEAR AND START LEAKING. FUEL TANKS SHOULD BE SECURE AND NOT BOUNCING AROUND. PLEASE INVESTIGATE THE MATTER FURTHER - HUNDREDS OF OWNERS HAVE HAD THE ISSUE OF AN IMPROPERLY SECURED GAS TANK.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Aug 24, 2020Fuel/propulsion systemODI 11351045
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 6, 2026

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.