Chevrolet Cruze Forums banner

2011 1.4T Cruze Automatic can barely get up to highway speed

7K views 40 replies 8 participants last post by  BadBowtie 
#1 ·
I have had this car going on 3 years now. I'm honestly surprised it's still running, the amount of problems I've had. I think I have 137k miles or so..

Anyway this just started the other day. The car has always shifted weird, but I started getting huge power loss and it seems almost like the transmission is slipping but I'm not sure if that's really the case.. The engine also seems not as loud, and it won't get past like 3-4k RPM even with the pedal to the floor.. And then it won't shift until I let off the pedal completely. Super weird, problem just started after I got gas the other day. I'm hoping it was just really bad gas, but IDK. I feel like I got bent over by the dealership on this car..
 
#4 ·
Yes it is.. I have already been having a problem with miss firing and a very rough idle. The other day I was trying to find an air leak and I put my finger over a hole sucking in air under the cosmetic plastic engine cover thing.. Hard to describe but there's a circular thing on the valve cover plastic that has a hole in it like some kind of diaphragm thing it was sucking in air and I covered the hole like an idiot and sucked in oil into the intake, it smoked for a while but this was last week and it drove fine after it all burnt off minus the rough idle.. I was def thinking I'm having a vacuum leak though because of how rough the idle is. Also an intermittent problem with the AC turning off due to high engine temp.. This happens sporadically and can happen from a cold start so I don't believe it's overheating. I just recently replaced the AC blower, a temp sensor near the coolant reservoir, and have another temp sensor that goes in the radiator but I can't get to it. I've also replaced the thermostat. I have had the idle so rough it died a few times when I was stopped.. I'm really hoping it's not the transmission as it was pretty sudden in regards to the power loss and high RPM delay in shifting..
 
#17 ·
The valve cover should hopefully help immediately with the drivability issues until you get/install the fix kit.

My note of caution would be that plugging one proverbial hole in a dike may cause other oil leaks if there aren't already. Cam seals, a chirping crankshaft seal, the oil cooler, and oil pan seal are the common ones.

So...ideally, take care of both ASAP, but it's fine to install the new valve cover and drive it for a few days. Beats trying to drive a car that is very unpredictable about when it will actually respond as you expect it to. I nearly got hit when I tried to make a left turn and my car fell on its face.
 
#18 ·
The valve cover should hopefully help immediately with the drivability issues until you get/install the fix kit.

My note of caution would be that plugging one proverbial hole in a dike may cause other oil leaks if there aren't already. Cam seals, a chirping crankshaft seal, the oil cooler, and oil pan seal are the common ones.

So...ideally, take care of both ASAP, but it's fine to install the new valve cover and drive it for a few days. Beats trying to drive a car that is very unpredictable about when it will actually respond as you expect it to. I nearly got hit when I tried to make a left turn and my car fell on its face.

**** well thanks for all the info, it didn't really feel like the tranny was slipping it just won't rev over 4k RPM and then doesn't really shift, I think it gets to 3rd or 4th gear and won't go past that.

Thanks a lot guys.
 
#24 ·
Alright these are the codes I'm getting;

P2227, P2181, P0299, P0128, P0171.

Any insight would be greatly appreciated.
P0171 - Replace the valve cover to fix the P0171. You may also want to apply the rest of the fixes jblackburn suggested.
P0128, P2181 - Check your coolant levels and ensure the coolant in a cold tank is to the top rib of the surge/recapture tank. It may also be something else but this is a cheap and easy place to start.
P0299 - Check your oil levels and ensure they're between the low and high hash areas of the dip stick.
P2227 - ??? as I don't know if the Cruze has a barometric sensor

I'd also recommend getting the engine bay cleaned of all oil and dirt residue once you've replaced the valve cover and brought the coolant and oil into range. The Cruze doesn't consume much oil, but if you have a leak cleaning the engine bay will help identify this.

To diagnose a coolant leak, in addition to the general engine bay cleaning make sure the surge tank is cleaned as well. There are a few common leaks in the cooling system. The water pump, the water pump outlet, and the surge tank cap. You may still be under the water pump warranty (10 years/150,000 miles) so get that looked at quickly. If it's the tank cap then replacing the cap with a new one is a good place to start. The water pump outlet is unfortunately not under warranty for you but it's relatively easy for any mechanic to replace.
 
#20 ·
I see the underboost code, but the cooling system codes I'm goign to guess is something to do with the temp sensor I haven't been able to get flexible enough to install yet (on the radiator) the temp gauge has been crazy for a while.. Hopefully I don't have to replace the thermostat again.
 
#21 ·
Baro / underboost codes suggest a boost leak - maybe outside of valve cover. The hose up to the throttle body works its way loose at the clamp, and sometimes deforms around the boost sensor on top of it too.

Haven't seen those cooling system codes around here, but sounds like you're on the right track.
 
#28 · (Edited)
Which connectors?


I'm sorry I couldn't find this thread for a minute and started a new thread not realizing it hadn't been approved. I will continue here




UPDATE: I did PCV fix kit v3 and valve covers.. CAR IS RUNNING LIKE A TOP NOW... But other issues persist..

For the day after I had no issues at all, AC and heater felt like they were blowing like new... Then today at lunch, I was going home and I get the AC off high eng temp warning again...

I have replaced; radiator temp sensor, water outlet temp sensor, thermostat..

I am not losing any coolant, and if I am it is extremely minuscule..

Im debating whether to go ahead and change my water outlet valve and water pump... I am really hoping my car isn't actually overheating..

The temp guage stays towards the cold side - no sign of it actually working or being accurate.. This was happening since before I changed my thermostat probably 6-8 months ago.. But I wasn't getting this warning however, that started a while after I changed it..

The car is running great, the boost is back, I don't think it's ever driven this good.. I am just at a loss, I hope my car isn't actually overheating, because if it is it's been overheating for a very long time and I doubt it would be running this good.. No smoke, no steam.. Not consuming oil at all.

When I changed the water out temp sensor I did notice however there was a lot of stuff that looked chewed up, stuff from outside the car (cardboard maybe) that looked like a rat or mouse got in there at one time and tried to make a nest.. The wires don't look damaged, but it does look like there is/was a leak in that area at one time..Will clean it up a bit tonight and do some more trouble shooting..
 
#29 ·
Progress!

What brand were the replacement temp sensors/thermostat? A lot of non-OEM stuff is junk. It sounds like your car is confused about what the engine temperature actually is and may be opening the thermostat fully (and probably screaming the radiator fan) to put itself in "limp mode" to prevent any chance of overheating.

Water outlet (and the hose to the overflow tank) is just good preventative maintenance while you're in there. I'd recommend buying genuine GM parts.
 
#30 ·
I don't remember honestly lol. But I think I just went with the cheapest from O'Riley's.. The thermostat wasn't very cheap though, like $80 if I remember right. And I do remember one of the sensors was AC Delco. You think they'd fail this soon after installing? I've been reading about water pump issues and I have noticed the water pump is pretty loud when I turn my heater on sometimes. I will probably look for the weep hole to see if it's leaking any. Will probably replace the water outlet next weekend.

Also, I heard you have to disconnect the positive battery cable to reset it after a repair, is that true? I just had the negative unplugged when I was working on it.
 
#36 ·
Alright so I feel like I have overhauled my car now!

I have replaced: The thermostat, the water outlet valve, the PCV fix mod, the valve covers, and the other temp sensor in the radiator.. I replaced the water outlet one twice because I replaced it by itself before replacing the entire outlet.. Okay so now I'm at a loss. My car is driving better than it ever really has. I flushed the entire coolant system when I changed the water outlet valve just for good maintenance practice. So I noticed that my car runs great but after 3 days of the battery being connected the "AC off due to high engine temp" comes back, I will pull over and unhook my negative terminal, rehook it and it runs fine for another 3 days... What gives...? This is so frustrating. I don't think it can be the temp sensors. The thermostat is working fine, it's blowing hotter air than every before after I replaced the water outlet, I think the water outlet was a little gummed up because that seemed to make a bit of difference in how it runs..... What could it be????? I read somewhere but I can't find the post that GM had a software update that supposedly fixed this warning and that dealers were supposed to apply the update, but I can't find the post now and I don't even know if that's true or if that's the issue... But it sure seems like it.. I'm basically rebooting the computer every 3 days so I can use my AC..
 
#38 ·
Yes I did. I unscrewed it and fluid came out while it was running I believe it was up to temp.. It was doing this before I replaced the water outlet as well.

After I did the PCV fix I had no CEL for about a month and then I forget which code it was but I got a CEL, something to do with the coolant system running unexpectedly, so I flushed the coolant system and replaced the outlet valve.. So far after a week~ that CEL has not come back on, but I have been dealing with the intermittent AC Off high engine temp warning issue without a CEL every 3 days.
 
#39 ·
Did you verify if the vehicle is in-fact overheating..??
Check your radiator fan and see if it "runs" when you use your AC.
The AC should force it to run shortly after turning on the AC. If it doesn't,..check relays in fuse box under the hood.
Their is also a relay hard-mounted to the fan shroud that can go bad as well,...but it usually puts the fan in JET-MODE off and on.
It could also just be the radiator fan motor went bad.
 
#40 ·
Did you verify if the vehicle is in-fact overheating..??
Check your radiator fan and see if it "runs" when you use your AC.
The AC should force it to run shortly after turning on the AC. If it doesn't,..check relays in fuse box under the hood.
Their is also a relay hard-mounted to the fan shroud that can go bad as well,...but it usually puts the fan in JET-MODE off and on.
It could also just be the radiator fan motor went bad.

Fan is working.. When I turn AC on it turns on shortly after.. When car gets up to temp it turns on as well.. It also turns on in jet mode if I run the engine hard. I really don't think it's overheating.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top