The engine started having problems where it didn't want to move and the gas pump kept messing up and the gas needle doesn,t show correct it will say you have a half a tank when you really have a quarter tank, and the throttle sensor is messed up I was on I-4 which is a major highway in orlando in the middle of traffic the was on but loss power and stalled out.
Chevrolet Cavalier loss of power problems
88 of the 4,549 owner complaints about the Chevrolet Cavalier describe sudden loss of power, most of them for the 2003 model year.
- owner complaints
- 88
- worst model year
- 2003
- typical repair cost reported
- $800
- typical mileage
- 63,871
Is there a fix? No recall or service bulletin covers this area of the car yet.
By model year
Often reported together
Fuel pump 27Stalling 23Power steering loss 15Won't start 4Overheating 4Check engine light 4Adaptive cruise 4Hesitation 3
What owners say
I had the air conditioner replaced. The tech said the tensioner needed to be replaced. One week later I returned and had a new belt tensioner installed. About a month later the new air conditioner had premature failure. I had it repaired under warranty and also had a new drive belt installed during the repair. About one year later I began hearing a chatter when accelerating from stop position and had excessive vibration. I took to the shop and they said the belt tensioner was bad. This seems excessively short life span for a replacement part of good quality. Today the shop tried three different tensioners and still it was not correcting the issue. I even double checked the belt routing pattern to ensure it was correct. I dont understand what the problem is with the belt tensioners for this vehicle. All my prior ford vehicle never had this problem with their tensioners of same design. Please look into this problem as a belt that breaks or slides of a pulley due to a faulty tensioner can cause immediate loss of power steering resulting in hazardous and potentially fatal driving conditions and situations. Also the backlighting on the odometer does not work.the odometer registers milage driven but the backlight does not work at all.please look into and dont wait for someone to have to die before this issue become important.thanks.
My key came out of the ignition while the car was still running and in the on position, and also another time the car key turned off by itself and I lost power to the vehicle and my brakes locked and almost caused me to get into a crash.
While accelerating on an on-ramp onto an interstate, I was using my multi-function device (signaling my merge into traffic, then once at 65mph setting cruise control) when the car lost power. I was able to turn the steering wheel slightly to the right before the wheel locked. I turned my emergency flashers on and coasted/braked my way to the shoulder of the road. The car was towed to a mechanic who tried to find the source of the problem. The incident was on a saturday. On monday when the shop was open for business, they tried the car and it started/ran just fine. They couldn't duplicate the problem so they charged me for the tow only. Previously, the car would fail to start. Similarly dead. I have been told it was the ignition - replaced that twice. I was told it was the fuel pump - replaced that. I was told it was the multi-function switch-replaced that three times. Winter 2013 the car started fine and then a block from home all power went out and engine failed to start up again. Towed car to electrical specialist. They ran diagnostics and found that there was a rusted out wire. Replaced the wire. It happened again six months later. They replaced another wire. I've notice the car will think a blinker is out before the whole electrical system just fails.
Car will not start consistently. Have to wait a couple of days, then it may start or not. But if it starts, it will not start again until days go by............ Ignition shut off on one occasion when operating on a public road. Loss of power, engine and power brakes.steering wheel did not lock but coasted vehicle off the road.
I purchased a 1996 chevy cavalier in 1999 and from the beginning had problems with the check engine light continually on etc. From 1999 to sept 2010 - I took it to several chevy dealers while it was under warranty and they never fixed the problem completely and the lights remained on. I was told to put fuel injection cleaner in it by one car dealer of course that didn't work. Years later and many repairs, engine rebuilt, thermostat replaced, water pumps, fans etc.. Four catalytic converters I still have the same problem - loss of power, car shutting off and leaving me in intersection, freeways etc.. Causing a very dangerous situation, I have over these years become very frustrated the codes read o2 sensors, the cat converter pieces fall apart easily causing very costly repairs because these defective parts clog the air flow causing overheating and loss of power, it should not be this difficult or cost to keep this car in repair order. Cat converters, sensors, head gaskets, seals, water pumps, sticking thermostats etc.. Continually replaced and still the same on going problem with no hope of ever finally fixing this dangerous defective problem.
Driving on highway. 2003 chevy cavalier just started losing power and then died on highway. Had to wait 1 hr. For aaa to come to tow in 111 degree heat. Turns out to be a faulty fuel pump.
2003 chevrolet cavalier, died while driving lost power steering and almost drove into ditch because I couldn't easily turn steering wheel! I think it is a problem with the fuel pump because the car would not start after incident. Starter will turn the engine over but will not start...
I was driving my cavalier to pick up my wife. As I approached an intersection, the system completely shut off and I could not restart the car. I was able to stop at the beginning of a left turn lane and put my hazards on. With the help of my passenger and a police officer, we moved the car across 2 lanes of travel to the shoulder. The car had 116,000 miles at the time of the incident. The only warning before the car lost all power and drive-ability was the battery light turning on briefly.
I was returning home and when I pulled into my driveway my car had an extreme loss of power. I was surprised by this because it was a sudden change in my cars performance. I had not been having any trouble before this. After I parked my car and turned it off I later attempted to leave. It would not start. The engine and everything turned over fine it just did not seem to be getting fuel. I then turned the key on and off and realized that the fuel pump was not running. I researched online and found this to be a very common issue with the 2003 cavaliers. Thankfully I was in my driveway when this happened and not in the left lane of the freeway in rush hour. I will be spending my weekend replacing my fuel pump. I will keep the dead pump if it is needed for investigation.
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the Chevrolet Cavalier loss of power
Which Chevrolet Cavalier years have sudden loss of power problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2003 (34 complaints), 1996 (12 complaints) and 1995 (9 complaints).
How much does it cost to fix sudden loss of power on the Chevrolet Cavalier?
Owners who mentioned a price put the repair at about $800 (median of 9 complaints that include a dollar amount). Costs vary with mileage, warranty and where the work is done.
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