Print this page

CarComplaints.com Notes: Widespread instrument panel failure is a common and frustrating reality for many 2004-2005 Chevy Cavalier owners. They're often left in the dark when it comes to knowing how fast they're going, what their engine temperature is, or even how much fuel they have left in the tank.

The likely culprit is a series of bad "stepper motors" which control the gauges and are no longer covered under warranty. Think not being able to see your speed is a safety issue and should be recalled for all owners? We'd agree. Trouble is, apparently the NHTSA does not.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
2 / 3
Injuries / Deaths:
2 / 1
Average Mileage:
73,543 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

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.

2004 Chevrolet Cavalier electrical problems

electrical problem

Find something helpful? Spread the word.
Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2004 Chevrolet Cavalier:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

2004 Chevrolet Cavalier Owner Comments (Page 4 of 6)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #49

Jun 052010

Cavalier

  • 100,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Entire dash cluster doesn't work!! speedometer says going 80mph when sitting still. Temp gauge says it's overheating when car is off. Gas gauge is now going haywire. Going on vacation is hard when you don't really know how fast you're going. Something needs to be done about this because a cluster for this car is $270. Then pay someone to put it in. There are too many 2004 Cavaliers having this issue for this to not be recalled.

- Knoxville, TN, USA

problem #48

Jan 172011

Cavalier

  • 107,000 miles
Gas gauge malfunction 1month ago, went half way to the right of full upon fill up, have been keeping track of gas by trip miles.this fuel gauge is halting the temp gauge from rising to normal. Today 1/17/11 started car this morning and speed gauge is pointing straight down to steering wheel. Proceeded to drive 8 minutes to work all the time the dash was going crazy the mileage spot had the word error on it, & every light was on, the dashboard- all of them. Apparently this has been a problem for sometime with this car. GM is aware and doing nothing.I have found out by looking it up on the internet tonight. Through my research im guessing I need a dash cluster at the cost of $500. I feel a speedometer should last for at least 10 yrs, my car is 6yrs old. I bought this car brand new and have followed the recommended service.

- Middleburg Heights , OH, USA

problem #47

Jan 012011

Cavalier

  • 60,000 miles
My wife's 2004 Chevy Cavalier has a wrong speedometer indication. It says the car is going 60 mph while not being moved at all. When the car reaches high speeds at the freeway it says the car is going at 120 mph and hits the top of the gauge. The oil temperature indication also shows 190 degrees with engine not running, and with engine running it goes to red band indication.

- Carolina, PR, USA

problem #46

Dec 252010

Cavalier 4-cyl

  • 36,505 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I own a 2004 Chevrolet Cavalier ls with 36,531 miles on it. Yesterday, I went to drive the car and had "no speedometer" function ---------- the needle just sat on "0 mph" no matter what speed I drove. I feel that this is a major safety issue and needs to be addressed. I have also read of the many hundreds of reported failures of the same kind concerning the instrument panel in these and many other GM products built during the years 2000 through 2005. Why are the trucks/ SUV's instrument panel problems a recall and the documented problems of the Cavalier (for the same years) not a recall? it appears to me that the relative cost of each vehicle plays a part in your decision and possibly the end of the manufacturing run of Cavaliers in 2005 has skewed your judgment. I find this instrument panel problem a serious driving concern for all who share the road. I also have been in discussions with others who have experienced this problem and there is a suggestion from the GM dealers that the problems of the "old GM" are not the problems of the "new GM (2009). Since my taxes pay your salary to keep me safe (without bias) and my taxes and future earnings make me a shareholder of the old/new GM, it would appear to me that this big problem could be solved between the parties because we are all on the same side and in the same family. Shame on you for not declaring this a "recall" for the Cavalier instrument panel. I still have the car and have not had the problem repaired. I also will not allow my family to drive this vehicle any more and I am not sure I will pay the approximate $500 to have it repaired. This reminds me of the lack of a recall for the 3.4liter V-6 motor that I had in my 2003 Buick rendezvous with all of its associated problems with head and intake gaskets..... I paid the $1,500 to have the intake gasket replaced....... hope the new GM gets its act together fast........as for me I will be spending my hard-earned dollars on Japanese.

- West Chester, PA, USA

problem #45

Nov 232000

Cavalier

  • 107,200 miles
The trunk latch on my Cavalier won't latch. This is the second time it has broke with the same problem. I replaced the trunk latch about three years ago I rarely use my trunk. Also the defrost, vent knob quit working it turn but won't switch to defrost or the different vent settings. The cd player won't take, or play cd's. there was a fly on my windshield right around a year after I bought the car and I barely tapped the windshield and the windshield cracked all over.

- Arlington, OR, USA

problem #44

Jan 072010

Cavalier 4-cyl

  • 100,988 miles
All gauges in my Cavalier have stopped working (speedometer, temp gauge, RPM's..) the car dies randomly while driving, dies when stopping. I actually tried to pull my car over because it was acting like it was going to die and while I was pressing the brakes it was trying to go!! very scary!!! could have wrecked!

- Seymour, TX, USA

problem #43

Jun 212010

Cavalier

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

In the winter my Chevy Cavalier's speedometer started to be disfunctional, it would read say 30mph while I was in park. Over the summer the problem got worse and I had to resort to using a gps to know my speed. The problem isn't limited to the speedo though, I have also experienced this with the temperature gauge.

- Radford, VA, USA

problem #42

Sep 012006

Cavalier

  • miles
My dashboard doesn't work properly. All of the gauges, with the exception of the odometer, does not work. This includes fuel, speedometer, RPM, and temperature gauges. It started with my temperature gauge. I thought the car was overheating when it really wasn't. then my fuel gauge went out. Then it was the speedometer and RPM gauge. All of the gauges, except for the RPM, move up and down, but none of them are accurate. The speedometer can get stuck at 0, 60 or move off of the gauge entirely. It is obviously not very safe not knowing how fast you are going, or if your car is overheating or not. It is my understanding the entire dashboard has to be replaced, but I am not 100% certain.

- Crystal Lake, IL, USA

problem #41

Aug 282010

Cavalier

  • 54,800 miles
The speedometer on my 2004 Chevy Cavalier started going wacky. At first it started racing as you were driving. Showing 65 or 70 when you were going maybe 40. Now it raced past 110 and dropped down between 0 and 110. Looking over the different websites, I see this is a common problem, yet it is not on a recall list. Why? this can be extremely dangerous, not to mention you are looking for a ticket by guessing how fast you are going. My car only has 54,000 miles on it, and I sure wasn't expecting any major repairs and that mileage.

- South Bend, IN, USA

problem #40

Jul 032007

Cavalier

  • 17,000 miles
Defective instrument panel the instrument panel operated correctly until 2007. The speedometer began to operate incorrectly at random times. The needle would indicate high speed when stopped or when moving at slow speeds. The needle would continue to indicate an incorrect speed until the vehicle had been turned off. This continued to happen more often from 2007 until 2009. In 2009, the speedometer needle no longer indicated a correct speed at any time. The temperature gauge then began to indicate engine temperature to be above 300 degrees while driving. The temperature gauge continued to operate incorrectly. As a consequence, the speed of the car cannot be properly estimated. Any problem with the radiator would not be easy to identify for lack of knowing engine temperature. Attempts to fix: The instrument panel has been electrically disconnected and checked for a faulty connection. No faulty wiring has been found.

- Seattle, WA, USA

problem #39

Dec 272009

Cavalier

  • 25,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Over the past 2 years the speedometer on my 2004 Chevy Cavalier has stopped working at different times. The speedometer will go up past 100 mph when it is parked and will take 2+ weeks to reset itself and start working again. This past month the gas gauge and tachometer have also stopped working, this in addition to my speedometer being out have left me without know how much gas I have left, how fast I am going and multiple other issues.

- El Paso, TX, USA

problem #38

Apr 062009

Cavalier

  • 100,120 miles
Gauges on front panel are not working. Gas, speed, temp. I have contact Chevy dealers and they said it is not recalled. Read on many sites on the internet that other people are having the same problem.

- Kenosha, WI, USA

problem #37

Jun 012009

Cavalier 4-cyl

  • 60,000 miles
I have a 2004 Chevrolet Cavalier and the speedometer failed on me. I replace the speed sensor but problem is not resolved. I fear this could be a dangerous situation on the road and should be recalled.

- Greenville, OH, USA

problem #36

Jun 172010

Cavalier

  • 31,000 miles
2004 Cavalier gauges go crazy. 110mph in the driveway, tachometer says 9000 RPM when I am idling. Gas gauge is no longer reliable.. particularly a problem in cold and damp weather, hot weather and on open highway. I never know how fast I am driving, whether I will run out of gas, or if the engine RPM's are so high the motor will explode.. 31,000 miles on the car so it is low mileage.

- Canton, NY, USA

problem #35

Aug 072009

Cavalier 4-cyl

  • 41,625 miles
Defective instrument cluster/panel. Speedometer doesn't read the proper speed limit and the temperature gauge will not "reset" (?) it just keeps going clockwise around the dial.

- Augusta, ME, USA

problem #34

May 162010

Cavalier 4-cyl

  • 57,000 miles
Car caught on fire in the wiring in the floor left of the brake pedal. Driver and passenger escaped the vehicle with just minor injuries. A passer by cut the battery cable and the fire/smoke stopped.

- Mckee, KY, USA

problem #33

Jun 132009

Cavalier

  • 51,000 miles
I have a 2004 Cavalier and all the gauges have stopped working. Once in a while the RPM gauge works. I investigated and have found various websites with lots of other people experiencing the same problem. The cost of repair is 500+ dollars with no simple do it yourself fix available.

- Lake Wales, FL, USA

problem #32

Jan 012008

Cavalier

  • miles
All the dials in the instrument panel go haywire. I have tried disconnecting the battery but it still happens. Don't know how fast I am going who how much gas is in the car. Or even if the temp is okay.

- West Mifflin , PA, USA

problem #31

Jul 302008

Cavalier 4-cyl

  • 90,000 miles
About a year and a half ago the speedometer on my 2004 Cavalier stopped working correctly, it will stick at random places on the dial, even when not driving. Sometimes the needle will point straight down at the odometer and stick there also. The problem seems to get better with warm weather, but is still not right. Now if that wasn't enough, the tachometer has started to stick and not register at all when it is very cold outside, like the speedometer though, the tachometer works better in warmer weather. Coolant temp. Gauge sticks also when it gets cold out. These problems are very repairable, I just can't believe by the number of complaints that a recall has not been issued for this problem yet! this is surely a safety issue. Please GM do a recall on these cars before you pull off a "Toyota."

- Canton, MI, USA

problem #30

Jan 122008

Cavalier

  • miles
I noticed in the cold my speedometer would show the incorrect speed or just stop. Over the course of about 6 months my temp gauge started to do the same thing. Followed by my RPM gauge, then the gas gauge. I did some online research and found out the only thing I could do was to get a whole new cluster which is a bit pricey.

- Bennett, CO, USA

Read the next 20 complaints »

Not what you are looking for?