diff --git a/django/utils/datetime_safe.py b/django/utils/datetime_safe.py
index a048ecd066..b634888092 100644
--- a/django/utils/datetime_safe.py
+++ b/django/utils/datetime_safe.py
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@
 #
 # Based on code submitted to comp.lang.python by Andrew Dalke
 #
-# >>> datetime_safe.date(1850, 8, 2).strftime("%Y/%M/%d was a %A")
+# >>> datetime_safe.date(1850, 8, 2).strftime("%Y/%m/%d was a %A")
 # '1850/08/02 was a Friday'
 
 from datetime import date as real_date, datetime as real_datetime
@@ -83,7 +83,7 @@ def strftime(dt, fmt):
             sites.append(site)
 
     s = s1
-    syear = "%4d" % (dt.year,)
+    syear = "%04d" % (dt.year,)
     for site in sites:
         s = s[:site] + syear + s[site+4:]
     return s
diff --git a/tests/modeltests/serializers/models.py b/tests/modeltests/serializers/models.py
index 45d57e58d4..a3ff87353e 100644
--- a/tests/modeltests/serializers/models.py
+++ b/tests/modeltests/serializers/models.py
@@ -277,6 +277,21 @@ None
 >>> print obj
 <DeserializedObject: serializers.Player(pk=1)>
 
+# Regression for #12524 -- dates before 1000AD get prefixed 0's on the year
+>>> a = Article.objects.create(
+...     pk=4,
+...     author = jane,
+...     headline = "Nobody remembers the early years",
+...     pub_date = datetime(1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6))
+
+>>> serialized = serializers.serialize("json", [a])
+>>> print serialized
+[{"pk": 4, "model": "serializers.article", "fields": {"headline": "Nobody remembers the early years", "pub_date": "0001-02-03 04:05:06", "categories": [], "author": 2}}]
+
+>>> obj = list(serializers.deserialize("json", serialized))[0]
+>>> print obj.object.pub_date
+0001-02-03 04:05:06
+
 """}
 
 try:
diff --git a/tests/regressiontests/datetime_safe/__init__.py b/tests/regressiontests/datetime_safe/__init__.py
deleted file mode 100644
index e69de29bb2..0000000000
diff --git a/tests/regressiontests/datetime_safe/models.py b/tests/regressiontests/datetime_safe/models.py
deleted file mode 100644
index e69de29bb2..0000000000
diff --git a/tests/regressiontests/datetime_safe/tests.py b/tests/regressiontests/utils/datetime_safe.py
similarity index 83%
rename from tests/regressiontests/datetime_safe/tests.py
rename to tests/regressiontests/utils/datetime_safe.py
index e1fe2b0f0e..6c3e7df359 100644
--- a/tests/regressiontests/datetime_safe/tests.py
+++ b/tests/regressiontests/utils/datetime_safe.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-r"""
+"""
 >>> from datetime import date as original_date, datetime as original_datetime
 >>> from django.utils.datetime_safe import date, datetime
 >>> just_safe = (1900, 1, 1)
@@ -34,4 +34,11 @@ True
 '00'
 >>> datetime(*just_safe).strftime('%y')
 '00'
+
+>>> date(1850, 8, 2).strftime("%Y/%m/%d was a %A")
+'1850/08/02 was a Friday'
+
+# Regression for #12524 -- Check that pre-1000AD dates are padded with zeros if necessary
+>>> date(1, 1, 1).strftime("%Y/%m/%d was a %A")
+'0001/01/01 was a Monday'
 """
diff --git a/tests/regressiontests/utils/tests.py b/tests/regressiontests/utils/tests.py
index 56d41b9ae6..96b7b4d298 100644
--- a/tests/regressiontests/utils/tests.py
+++ b/tests/regressiontests/utils/tests.py
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ from django.utils.functional import SimpleLazyObject
 
 import timesince
 import datastructures
+import datetime_safe
 import itercompat
 import tzinfo
 
@@ -26,6 +27,7 @@ except NameError:
 __test__ = {
     'timesince': timesince,
     'datastructures': datastructures,
+    'datetime_safe': datetime_safe,
     'itercompat': itercompat,
     'tzinfo': tzinfo,
 }