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2011-16 1.4L Turbo: What broke and at how many miles?

7K views 17 replies 9 participants last post by  Desacrasa 
#1 · (Edited)
2011-16 1.4L Turbo:
What broke and at how many miles?


Wanna make a one stop place to share what has broken on these cars and what miles.. so that you can prioritize your preventive maintenance interventions.
 
#3 · (Edited)
According to the site The Worst Chevy Problems From Bumper to Bumper (which I have no affiliation with :^)) production years 2013, 2015 & 2016 are the most reliable ones, of the Cruze Generation 1
Font Parallel Terrestrial plant Rectangle Screenshot


 
#4 ·
My 12 was fairly problem free and way outside the bell curve

AC tube/hose failed at the coil
PCV valve rupture 2X about every 70 - 80,000 miles
Normal oil change based off the OLM
Trans fluid dump/fill at 95K and then again at 150K
Spark plugs at 95K and then again at 150K
Purge valve solenoid north of 100K
Front brakes around 125K, rear were still original when I traded it in at 190K
Trans cooler hoses at some point in its life

Suspension 100% original, never had it aligned, never showed any wear patterns on the tires to say it needed

Factory Michelins lasted to 80K, second set lasted to 160K. 3rd set I put on were Continental Control Contact. Seemed to perform just as good but a lot less money.

Traded in at 190K.
 
#5 ·
My 2015 Cruze (The Golden Bullet) has been fairly service free.

I have has a couple issues:

1. The auto-dimming mirror stopped working at 20,000 miles. (Warrantied)
2. The washer fluid tank cracked at 25,000 miles. (Warrantied)
3. The washer fluid pump broke at 30,000 miles. (Warrantied)
4. Me reengineering the powertrain at 45,000 miles. (Ongoing for the last 2 years)
 
#7 ·
For my daughters 2011:

Purchased used at 77,000 miles
Normal oil changes by the OLM since we have owned it
106,000 new front rotors and pads
108,350. New plugs, trans dump and fill, purge valve solenoid, right front wheel bearing.

Ongoing issues:
We bought off the used dealer lot and they had redone the oil pan seal but very crapily. Need to drop and redo
Chasing an intermittent P0171 code. It faults and then acts perfectly fine for a month or more.
 
#8 ·
On my 2016 Cruze Limited (I drove 30,000+ per year first three years I’ve owned it, purchased new)
28,000 miles replaced battery (under warranty)
60,000 miles valve cover (eventually paid by GM)
94,000 miles another battery
94,500 water outlet
103.000 miles driver window regulator
104,000 miles passenger window regulator
(Got good at fixing that, sigh)
105,000 miles key fob
108,000 V3.4 manifold fix kit
109,000 miles passenger window regulator (again, sigh)

on my son’s 2016 Limited (also bought new, drives very little)
500 miles radio (would stop after 15 minutes. Erratically would start/not start again, dealer fix)
5,000 miles passenger mirror (someone hit it)
21,000 passenger window regulator
28,000 driver window regulator
30,000 battery

leaving out all the oil/fluid/filter changes.
 
#9 ·
2016 limited 220,000+ miles, excluding normal maintenance.
Pcv fix after 60,000 and 2 failures.
Turbo bypass hose upgrade @ same time.
Water pump @ 140,000 & 210,000
Added pag oil for noisy a/c compressor @80,000 still performs great, no noise.
2 alternators fried brushes and 2 batteries cracked, one killed the other, not sure which @ 120,000ish and 190,000ish
Evap solenoids galore, they average about 3-4 months each. Note: extreme idle times 4-6 hours daily
Spark plugs never failed, but changed once along with the msd preventive coil pack @ 60,000.
Wheel bearings @ 140,000 front only.

Oh my lord... The brake rotors! I tow a small 600-800 lb. trailer most of the time. Almost like a motorcycle trailer. I drive very modest when it comes brake time. I have passed stopped vehicles on the left and the right. Always bought ceramic pads and always warped rotors in under 20 hours driving time. This is after TURNING THE SAME 3 SETS of rotors +4 TIMES. Introduction of drilled and slotted rotors and I have not revisited the braking system in over 35,000+ miles. Before, I pulled rotors and trued them up at least 3 times per pad life cycle. Original rear shoes! Scuff and adjusted every front visit.

All of my junk is the normal pile of parts for a Cruze with the exception of the brake components. The brakes flat suck for anything but city commute. (I feel like I have to say here. I am a one footed driver. Don't start! Haha)

I have had 0 electrical or window/lock/latch problems. Never ran hot🔥. One fail to start, bad starter, smacked with hammer and drove away, 3 minutes later. No fuel pumps, nothing. Original hoses with the exception of the coolant tank and lines as preventative. Original turbo, everything. I do change fluids (all but brake fluids) at least once a year, oil on schedule. Premium gas.
Mine has been good.
 
#15 · (Edited)
@ 3 years and 36,000 miles the O-ring on the coolant surge tank cap was leaking. FIX: Coolant Odors/Coolant Loss from Reservoir
@ 3 years and 36,000 miles the little lenses inside the headlight housings that hang in front of the turn signal bulbs had fallen off.
@ 3 years and 36,000 miles the front crankshaft seal was intermittently chirping. Never got better or worse. Finally replaced 5 years later.
@ 7 years and 99,500 miles the driver's window regulator failed.
@ 8 years and 100,000 miles the little snap clip that holds the driver's side sun visor in place had lost its snap.
@ 9 years and 103,000 miles, the water pump outlet housing started leaking. Also, the valve cover started leaking and was replaced under special coverage.

So far that's it.

I have broken the outside temp sensor and the corrugated hose going from the filter box into the turbo inlet, because I couldn't leave well enough alone. I've also snapped off a couple of radio antennas while removing snow. Gotta get my shark fin installed.
 
#17 ·
2016 Limited, not sure what trim - 1.4L, drum brakes + torsion bar in rear, has OnStar. Former rental fleet vehicle.

Replaced water pump around 65,000 miles

Driver's window actuator broke at about 70,000 miles. I should have used some double sided adhesive foam or something because the cable rattles inside the door now.

Oil leaking from valve cover seal onto exhaust manifold at about 75,000 miles. Was unaware of the PCV issue at the time. Replaced valve cover and gasket.

Chirping sound under the hood at about 95,000 miles. Discovered PCV manifold to turbo inlet hose brittle and broken, PCV diaphragm leaking. Had valve cover replaced by dealer under TSB. Installed PCV bypass fix kit.

Minor things that haven't been fixed:
Missing trim on rear quarter windows
12v outlet in center console broken loose when someone broke into the car
Black coating coming off radio buttons
 
#18 · (Edited)
I don't have specific dates/miles here but things on my 2013 Cruze LT

  • Replaced Valve Cover Gasket 2020ish (milage unknown but probably north of 70k~)
  • Replaced Crank Shaft seal around the same time (milage unknown but probably north of 70k~)
  • Replaced Entire Valve Cover+Gasket 2022 90k~
  • Replaced Water Outlet 2019 (milage unknown but probably around 60k~)
  • Replaced small pressure relief hose to coolant surge tank (Done same time as water outlet replacement)
  • Replaced Water Pump (under special coverage) 2021 80k~
  • Replaced Coolant Line to Turbo (done same time as Water Pump. Dealer claims it was leaking) The dealer replaced the thermostat and a bunch of random **** associated with this during "fix". Dealer claimed the way the car was designed you couldnt replace the coolant line without destroying the thermostat.
  • Transmission flush done same time as water pump getting replaced
  • Replaced Turbo Intake Manifold line (cracked after mechanic replaced the gasket on valve cover the first time... I didn't complain just replaced the part... I had the gasket in valve cover replaced at the time I was doing the crank shaft seal).
  • Added CruzeKit V3.4 at 92,000 miles (this previous weekend)
  • Other stuff is regular maintenance such as replacing cabin filters, replacing cold air intake filter, changing oil (I'm using amsoil SS this year), getting new key FOB (after so many years my first key fob was pretty busted and needed replacement), and battery replaced.
Other on the horizon stuff

  • Check Oil Pan for leaking and correct (minor oil leak developed I suspect from check valve missing in take)
  • Remove oil pan heater (part of previous bullet)
  • Check other seals for oil (VVT, etc)
  • Replace Idler tension pulley (going out...)
  • Get new tires (mine badly need replacement... may do this upcoming weekend)

I think that's it?
 
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