The pcv pressure reg valve fails and causes damage to the engine. Gm sent a letter to customers but only covers the work up to 120k miles. Mine failed at 125k miles and cost over $1000 to fix. Gm is refusing to pay for the repairs.10/15/2020
2013 Chevrolet Sonic engine complaints
Page 2 of 3: complaints 11 to 40 of 60, newest first, as owners wrote them.
I purchased my vehicle 3 years ago preowned from the dealer and within these 3 years I have already had a catalytic converter recall, the issue recently is my AC system in my car is out and as a did research on the specific year there's people who have already replaced the AC system up to 5 times for 2013 sonics. This is a manufacturing issue that needs to be fixed on chevrolet's behalf.
Leaking water pump
My car has leaked out its entire coolant twice now within a six month period. This time it has leaked fluid onto the computer causing further issues than after the first fix. The lack of a temperature gauge to prevent the car from overheating is a huge issue. I constantly make sure there is coolant before driving the vehicle and all in the same day it has emptied without my knowledge causing a check engine light and breakdown instantly. It has happened twice now with my toddler in the vehicle, this should be a recall because fortunately it has happened while on street roads, where I could immediately and safely move into a parking lot, and not the highway but this situation puts my child's health at risk and that I am not okay with.
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 chevrolet sonic. The contact stated that while stopped, the vehicle started shaking abnormally and stalled. The contact was able to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to bob grimm chevrolet located at (2271 s main st, morton, il 61550, (309) 263-2241) where an appointment was scheduled to have the vehicle diagnosed and test driven. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 99,000.
Car gave me a code of u0101 and took it to chevy dealership and told me it has something to do with lost communication. They tried fixing issue but couldn't.
Began over heating at short distances. A/c went cool ran hot air tried to see if freon just needed refilling but even using alomst a full can still nothing. Having fuel issues big difference weeks apart fuel issues.then over heating, next unable to hold coolant, car was returned to dealer for repair. Still unable to keep coolant from leaking, while driving on interstate I 95 out of no where I loose the ability of speed then shuttering running hot again blew head gasket lost power hard to gain control and was almost hit 2 times by car behind and on side.car had to be pushed to shoulder and picked up with wrecker service. Mechanic had to come to car bc it wouldn't stsrt. He said the gasket is gone. Car will not do anything now. Will get receipts from dealer servicing, wrecker, auto zone mult coolant purchases, mechanic
I was driving to work and was coming up to an intersection I had to turn at. I pushed the break pedal, but it was really stiff and didn't do much. My car slid across the road into a wooden electric pole because it would not stop. My car is totaled and now I have to figure out some way to get a different vehicle.
Code p0171 and p0420. I have replaced everything in the car that these codes state. New thermostat, catalytic converter, both 02 sensors, exhaust hose. Fixes for a few days to a week and the same codes keep coming back. Now the button on my gear shift sticks keeping the gear shift from locking into place. This stops me from being able to turn my car completely off and removing key from ignition.
The sonic now runs very spotty, poor acceleration, and slow bumpy idle. Prior ball joint was replaced and the cv axil , entire engine replaced. Believe it or not, water pump replaced. These repairs, with receipts, constitute a lemon law breach. I should be entitled to a new car or compensated. Yes, the suspension issue did happen while I was driving, as well as the engine. Will upload documents soon.oh, one last thing, very difficult removing key from ignition, been going on 4 months.
When the car is first started and turned off, the horn goes off each time. If parked but still running, the horn goes off every 2-3 minutes. When locking the car, it doesn't make any noise indicating it has been locked. When phone is plugged in, the music doesn't always work properly. There is a piece to one of the hoses that broke and is now making car run lean. When idling (at a red light or stop sign) the engine shakes vigorously and is harder to get back speed. When car is running and the hood is open, there is a hissing sound.
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 chevrolet sonic. When the vehicle was started, the check engine warning indicator illuminated. The vehicle was taken to jack schmitt chevrolet of o'fallon (located at 127 regency park, o'fallon, il 62269, (618) 509-9727) where it was diagnosed that the catalytic converter needed to be replaced; however, the part was no longer manufactured. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified and provided case number: 9-5195608729. The approximate failure mileage was 96,540.
Takata recall - the engine has been misfiring this has also happen to someone else I know who has had the same vehicle. This is very unsafe and they don't have it as a recall yet but all of the dealership are aware of it. The vehicle jerks when your driving or when its parked. This is not the alternator or anything else I had that replaced and nothing was wrong with it and the same issue is still occurring. It a bad part they put in the engine and it neeeds to be recalled. It is unfair and not safe for customers with this issue. The vehicle jerks and when is does it it feels like it hesitates to drive while in drive mode. This has been happening for a couple of months it has just gotten worse and I am truly scared.
I have found one new leak and one leak that has been there for at least a year. The new leak is the radiator. It is leaking at the top on the driver side right where the plastic and aluminum meet. The other leak is the plastic thermostat housing. Current miles: 69,500
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 chevrolet sonic. While operating the vehicle, a burning odor was present. Upon inspection, it was discovered that fluid/water was leaking from the engine compartment. The vehicle was taken to 5 star chevrolet (495 watson blvd, warner robin, ga) where it was diagnosed that the water pump was faulty. The contact indicated that the water pump was previously replaced, but the failure recurred one year later. There were no warning indicators illuminated when the engine overheated. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified. The failure mileage was 85,000.
I have experienced four cooling system (radiator, water pump, engine block coolant intake, coolant expansion tank, engine/turbo coolant piping) related problems with this vehicle amounting to over three thousand dollars in repair costs. Four major repair expenses on the same system is questionable in my opinion, the two most major occurring within the same month. These all were noted during normal operation of the vehicle.
Air intake system. Not long after we bought the car the check engine light came on reading a code ph171. We were told it was a knock sensor which we replaced and it didn't fix the problem, after we were told it was the air intake hose, checked it and it looks like it's a new hose no issues with it. Now we are trying everything we can to figure out the problem. We check online forums and found out that this is a huge problem with this car and almost no one knows exactly what it is to fix it. When the car is driving it seems fine but as soon as you stop and it idles it seems like it wants to die and almost has a few times. Was just curious if this is such a huge problem that so many people are having why there has not been a recall?
The water pump was leaking.
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 chevrolet sonic. While the vehicle was stationary and while driving various speeds, the check engine warning indicator illuminated. The vehicle was towed to sarra chevrolet (1170 centerpoint parkway, birmingham, alabama 35215, (205) 853-2906) where the thermostat was replaced at approximately 24,000 miles. The contact stated that failure recurred. The dealer diagnosis revealed diagnostic trouble code: p0597 (thermostat heater fault, replace thermostat housing). The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 24,397.
The same issues with the coolant leak in the water pump for the 1.4l engine is happening to my 1.8l chevrolet sonic
I have had to replace the thermostat 3 times and it has gone out again.
Vehicle stalls and turns off on its own while driving. No warning. No codes appear on dash. After apprx 5-10 minutes of the car being dead (not able to start) it seems to "reboot" and start back up again without a jump to the battery. The car has stalled on both the freeway (1st time) and city streets. I've taken the car to two different dealers and both are unable to duplicate the problem after having the car for 3 weeks combined. A claim has been submitted to gm but with no resolution. The car just turned off on me this morning while driving my daughter to school located apprx 1 mile away from my home. Both of my daughters have witnessed the problems now 3-4x.
Things started after my vehicle was repaired after a car hit me and took off. I noticed the check engine light came and stayed on, at certain times the car either while driving or while stopped the car will either shake for 2-3 minutes or also while stationary the traction system light will come on then turn off. I've also experienced issues with slow or not as responsive acceleration or unprompted rpg gauge revving and sometimes thats coupled with the shaking to the point that my has shut off while driving down a city street. I was never aware of any recalls so im not sure if it has anything to do with a possible recall that hasnt been diagnosed but theres great cause for concern. - sn: I wasnt able to choose every affected part.
The car has been having intermittent reduced engine power since september 2016. The car was taken to the dealer, the check engine light never illuminated and no problem was diagnosed. During a recent trip the car began to have reduced engine power and surging. The check engine light illuminated. Trouble code p0171. The car was taken to the dealer who set an appointment. Check engine light turned off after a couple of days. On the way to the dealer the car almost died at a stop light. The problem was diagnosed as evap purge control solenoid.
When the car came to a complete stop at a stop light the engine was surging without application of the accelerator pedal. The check engine light came illuminated. We continued driving until about an hour later when the car was put in park in the driveway the engine surged until I shut it off. The check engine light remained illuminated and was taken to the local dealer the next day. The service advisor requested we bring it back the following monday. The check engine light turned off while driving saturday. During the drive back to the dealer for the monday appointment and stopped at a stop light the engine RPM's dropped in half and ran rough for a few seconds. The RPM decrease and rough running has been a longer term issue that has been previously diagnosed with no resolution. I was advised based on current diagnosis that the evap purge control solenoid needs to be replaced.
Acceleration is bad, and inconsisten. Also, when shifting gears the shifter button gets stuck everytime never fails. That's a real safety issue considering I accidently bump it, and the car went into manual, while driving. I barely touched it and it moved. This is the last gm car that I will ever buy always something with their cars. The acceleration for this car on the interstate is bad people go around me because it takes so long to accelerate, it also hesitates when accelerating. I've only had this car for about a month.
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 chevrolet sonic. While driving unknown speeds, the contact smelled burning oil and smoke. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the oil cap seal was torn. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer stated that the failure was not covered under the power train warranty. The failure mileage was 31,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 chevrolet sonic. While the vehicle was undergoing an inspection, the contact was informed that there was a manufacturer recall regarding the catalytic converter that needed to be addressed. In addition, the contact stated that the vehicle stalled several times without warning. The contact was able to restart the vehicle, but the failure recurred intermittently. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The recall details were not provided. The approximate failure mileage was 83,000.
Key sticks in the ignition, unable to remove when in park position. I work a dangerous job in bad areas and cannot depend on the key being released from the switch after parking. Whatch puts me in a awkward situation in regards to safety.
While driving my car for the past year now I have noticed my RPM gauge sticking and revving on its own. It is starting to happen more consistently. When I'm driving downhill the RPM gauge will rev high and stay stuck high. Then when I put the car in park it will rev high on its own and stay stuck and eventually come back down. Something new I have started to experience is when I'm at a complete stop the RPM gauge will start revving up and down on it's own while my car lights brighten and dim and my warning light comes on that I'm sliding which is impossible since I'm at a complete stop. I have also noticed the transmission has started to feel jerky lately with everything else. I just purchased this vehicle almost 2 years ago and I only have 58,000 miles on it.
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