This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
The vehicle dash board gauges started to rapidly fluctuate from minimum to maximum values as I was traveling down the road at 60 miles/hour. The tachometer was the first gauge to malfunction and does not work 95% of the time. The second gauge to malfunction, later on in the week, was the fuel gauge. The needle will display a full tank of gas at one moment and a near empty tank minutes later, proving to be unreliable to estimate the fuel level. Shortly after, the temperature gauge malfunctioned and moved from left to right never settling at a stationary temperature. I fear, through personal research, that the speedometer will be the next gauge to malfunction, making it unsafe to determine speed since the tachometer is already not working.
The contact owns a 2005 Chevrolet Cavalier. The contact stated that the speedometer malfunctioned and was providing erroneous readings. The vehicle was taken to a local repair shop, who diagnosed that the instrument panel was defective and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileages were 270,000.
Temperature gauge stopped working, reads sometimes, and sometimes does not. Replaced sensor and had no effect on gauge function. Fuel gauge is intermittent after the temperature gauge stopped functioning as well. Door on heating underneath the dash clacks constantly unless you set the heat in recirculation mode. Needles of the two gauges hit each other as they wander aimlessly through their orbits. Horn stopped working at 98000 miles. This vehicle is plagued by bad wiring and parts. However, it is a fine running vehicle and should ast another 100000 miles if you're willing to drive it without gauges, horn and only run through the heat and ac in recirculation mode. Chevrolet knows this has happened constantly with these vehicles and should recall and correct them. If I can't trust the original gauge cluster, how can I trust a new set if I take the vehicle to the dealer for repair and pay an exorbitant price to have them replaced and repaired? I would expect this from a Chrysler product but never a Chevrolet!!!
- Colorado Springs, CO, USA
Search CarComplaints.com for these popular complaint phrases...
Last December my 2005 Cavalier experienced a speedometer malfunction while I was traveling on the highway. I was in an area where the speed zone changed from 50 mph to 65 mph. The speedometer registered my increase in speed fine. When I slowed down, the speedometer stayed in place. Over the past 7 months my dashboard gauges (fuel, temp, speed, RPM) all malfunction. Sometimes they reset themselves. Most of the time I'm never sure how fast I'm going or how much gas I have. My engine temp will read off the charts even on a cool morning after it has sat still all night. Although this started last December, the problems continue to this day. I have poured so much money into other electrical issues with this car already, I'm convinced it is not worth one more dime to fix the instrument cluster. I've spent hundreds on power window motors that continuously malfunction. The rear right blinker has consistently gone haywire as well. I had resigned myself to the fact that I was one in a thousand who happened to get an electrical lemon. After reading all the complaints from other Cavalier owners, however, I realize that Chevrolet in 2005 played a sick joke on the whole lot of us. I have owned several imported cars, mostly Honda's and Toyota, and have never been as displeased. GM should be ashamed. The car drives great. I was very excited about it when I bought it as I liked the look and feel of it on the road. I'll never buy another Chevrolet.
This vehicle has lost the speedometer sveral times over the last 20,000 miles and now it has quit completely, I went to an on line forum and they say this has been happening a lot with no recall from General Motors. Usually before it would bounce up to 35 or 40 and then start working again, but it is dead now. No movement at all.
I have a 2005 Chevrolet Cavalier. The car's speedometer, temperature gauge, RPM gauge and fuel gauge do not work. When I made this complaint to the Chevrolet dealer where the vehicle was purchased they said that it wasn't a warranty issue because it didn't deal with any safety issue. I disagree because how could it not be a safety problem, if you can't tell how fast you are going or if your out of gas or if your car is overheating. The dealer acted like it was not a common problem, but all you have to do is go on the internet and there are hundreds of thousands of these same complaints, and not just in the 2005 models it goes back to 1998. The dealer did say that the could replace the cluster but that it would cost me over $500. Well, I cannot afford it. Also if you look through some of the complaints online there are people on there that have had their clusters replaced by the dealer and they still are not working properly. So what are we supposed to do" I also found out that Chevrolet did recall the same complaints in the Silverado trucks. So why not do the same for the Cavaliers" please help.
I loved my 2005 Chevy Cavalier when I first bought it back in 2006. After a year of driving my speedometer, as well as all the other gauges. Now my window on the passenger side will not go back up. Chevrolet has really put a bad taste in my mouth and I plan to never purchase any vehicle from Chevrolet again.
Speedometer and fuel guage were erratic. The problem has escalated to the point neither works. In researching this, I have learned this is not an isolated problem and feels it warrants investigating.
I purchased a 2005 Chevy Cavalier in October 2005. My car was purchased with bad or no shocks and within the first 1 to 2 years my trunk interior light blew off the wire sounding like a bomb. Then my driver rear door was not able to open (due to the linkages). Shortly after that the passenger rear door would not shut because the latch stuck (had to bungy strap it) then got it fixed to shut then it would not open (due to linkages) both front doors are messed up as well. ( drvier side difficult to open and poassenger side does not always catch when you shut it). My radio does not shut off when driver door is open like it should. My interior bulb had to be taken out due to never shutting off after doors were closed. My driver window makes noise when opening it.(manual window crank). My guages do not work properly either. I contacted GM and they said to take my car in to have it checked out and repaired but I can not afford the work to be done, the price for a rental, or to miss work. I had the car for 6.5 years (almost) but the age of the car should have ntohing to do with everything going wrong with the linkages and electrical. Passengers have to crawl over the front seat to get into the back. Any information is appreciated. Best way to contact me is email and I will respond if a number is left. I need answers to what can be donefinancially I can not afford anything. I believe that I may have been sold a lemon. I had to replace my trunk latch due to it not wanting to close.
A few years ago the speedometer stopped working randomly, but would start working again. This past summer my RPM gauge started saying my engine was rotating at 7000 RPM when the car was off. The RPM gauge has not worked since and the speedometer picks and chooses when it wants to work. Those are 2 very important pieces of equipment in a car. When I talked to Chevy about it in 2008 (I think), they stated that there were no recalls on the part and that no one else had filed any complaints about the same issues. They said it would cost up to a few thousand dollars to fix due to having to take the dash apart to replace the gauge cluster (which is $800 on its own). I have been watching forums etc since then and they are full of the exact same complaints and still Chevy is not doing anything about it.
The speedometer began to intermittently provide erratic indication of speed. The symptoms eventually got worse to the point that the speedometer doesn't indicate properly at all. The problem occurred at the same time the engine temperature gauge wouldn't work properly. Reviewed various websites and found that this is a well know defect for Chevrolet instrument panels. The speedometer will read low causing a safety hazard when the driver tried to maintain speed.
The contact owns a 2005 Chevrolet Cavalier. The contact was driving 50 mph when the speedometer failed to provide accurate readings and the vehicle experienced abnormally high engine rpms. The contact also stated that the temperature gauge failed to provide accurate temperature readings, displaying that the vehicle was overheating when it was not. The vehicle was taken to a local repair shop where the contact was advised that the temperature gauge would possibly need to be replaced. The manufacturer was contacted but the vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 126,000 and the current mileage was 130,000. Updated 01/10/12
I have had my car since 2004 and I loved it when I first drove it off the car lot. Then I have had problem after problem! my gauges mess up all the time. I can get into my car and start it up and it will say I'm doing 70 mph and I'm not moving. I have had to replace my clutch twice in a year. It would be really nice if Chevrolet would do a recall on the gauges with all of the problems that people are having!!
We bought our '05 Cavalier used in the fall of 2008, thinking it was a solid, reliable vehicle for our young family. It didn't take long (date I posted was approximate, based on when I know for sure it was doing it's thing) for the gauges to start acting up. From then on, it reads like it's overheating on a regular basis (going all the way to the red sometimes), despite the cooling system, thermostat, etc. Being fine. Also, the gas and odometer gauges act up, typically when the temp gauge does. They move around all crazy and stick sometimes. I find I often have to remove the fuse to the gauges to reset them, though this tends to require sitting for as much as 5 minutes. All this just to be able to discern how fast your going is ridiculous. With all the complaints I've read on the '05 cavs doing this, you think Chevy would fix the issue...it's a potential safety hazard to have your gauges mess up that bad.
Gauges on dashboard have failed. All lights come on and gauges fail. Speedometer says I'm going 60 mph when the car is stopped. Water temp gauge is not functioning and the indicator gets in the way off the speedometer indicator.
My gauges in my car are messing up. The fuel gauge is below the E and runs into the temp gauge. The speedometer reads I am going 110 when I am not the odometer reads error. All my emergency lights are lighting up. This is happening to alot of people who own these year of Cavaliers. Chevy needs to own up and issue a recall because this is unsafe not knowing what speed I am going and if I have enough gas to get to where I am going. I am a Chevy fan and this is upsetting that all these people are having these issues and they are not doing recalls.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Eddyville, IA, USA