[Robby]

If you lose control your arms are wet noodles....it just drops the assist off, the steering becomes non-powered for a moment....works like a non assist car.

Regardless, the newest fix for 2011 and 2012 is rack replacement and I learned a reflash as well.
As an aside.....rumor at this moment bacause I haven't read the bulletin, the warranty on the 2011/2012 rack has been extended....a lot....like ten years, 150k miles alot.
I'll dig deeper over the next few days unless someone beats me to it.

Currently it appears the 2013/2014 units are reflash only.....again, my info source is good but, I prefer to read it before I report it.....the above post motivated me to say something.

With that in mind, think of the info provided as a very strong rumor.....it appears this is something that just popped up today.



Rob

 

[Chevy Customer Care]

I stopped into the dealer yesterday on my way home from work, since the steering was acting up pretty noticeably. The service adviser grabbed the tech for me--the same one who did the re-flash on the steering computer last winter and has gotten to know the car. They always give my car to the same guy since it's the only Cruze Diesel they service, and he did the research to learn how to service it properly--talk about attention to quality service! He went out for a quick drive with me and observed the problem himself (so the battle is already half won, since I won't have to worry about a "could not duplicate"). I have an appointment on Tuesday morning for him to do the formal diagnosis in the garage and go from there, and they're doing some research on the problem between now and then so they'll be ready to go to work on it.

Hey Rev,

I'm happy to see that the dealership has been working on this, and please let me know how everything went on Tuesday regarding the steering. Have a good weekend.

Patsy G
Chevrolet Customer Care

 

[Tomko]

Mainly happens during cold temperatures. I believe every Cruze will do this at some point in their lives, including Diesels. Good luck fixing it, steering rack replacement is installing the same part. I do believe a reflash is the proper repair but I don't think that GM has an actual fix for the problem. Mine hasn't started doing it yet this winter but I'm sure it will. It rocks when the roads are covered in snow. Only a matter of time before someone loses control due to the resistance in the wheel and gets killed. GM DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS. IT IS DEFINITELY RECALL WORTHY AND SUPER DANGEROUS.

Sorry brother - but I just can't let this one go.

If if a slight and momentary loss of power steering assist, under very limited and specific circumstances, quantifies as "SUPER DANGEROUS" for you, what term do you apply to people talking on their cellphones while driving?

 

[obermd]

Mainly happens during cold temperatures. I believe every Cruze will do this at some point in their lives, including Diesels. Good luck fixing it, steering rack replacement is installing the same part. I do believe a reflash is the proper repair but I don't think that GM has an actual fix for the problem. Mine hasn't started doing it yet this winter but I'm sure it will. It rocks when the roads are covered in snow. Only a matter of time before someone loses control due to the resistance in the wheel and gets killed. GM DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS. IT IS DEFINITELY RECALL WORTHY AND SUPER DANGEROUS.

if a slight notch in your steering is dangerous a flat tire would be a disaster for you. Having had both this notchiness and my driver side front tire go flat on me I can safely say the tire is much harder to control. The notchiness is an annoyance but it's not dangerous.

 

[ems2158]

if a slight notch in your steering is dangerous a flat tire would be a disaster for you. Having had both this notchiness and my driver side front tire go flat on me I can safely say the tire is much harder to control. The notchiness is an annoyance but it's not dangerous.

Have to disagree with you on this. It can be dangerous and more than an annoyance. My 2012 Cruze developed the notchy steering around 9,000 miles. The rack was replaced and the problem went away for 6,000 miles. It came back with a vengeance. I've driven every kind of vehicle you can think of and found the sticking steering to be dangerous under certain conditions The second time it came back it was worse than the initial case. it seems that there are degrees of notchiness. Some worse than others. I can speak from first hand experience.

Driving the Cruze on an interstate with a light coating of sleet, is stressfull at best. Adding steering that does not have a smooth, consistent response makes driving dangerous. I got rid of the Cruze a few weeks later. I stop by here occasionally to see how GM is dealing with this problem. I guess I am surprised to see this dragging on for four model years. Would have thought they learned a lesson from the ignition switch fiasco.

 

[Tomko]

So tell us about what you replaced your cruze with and how it compares.

 

[Gh0st]

Is there a legitimate fix for the notchiness yet? It's frustrating having the dead zone on the steering and then it just jerks once it decides to escape the dead zone.

 

[2013LT]

if a slight notch in your steering is dangerous a flat tire would be a disaster for you. Having had both this notchiness and my driver side front tire go flat on me I can safely say the tire is much harder to control. The notchiness is an annoyance but it's not dangerous.

It's not that dangerous 99.9% of the time. I've had a flat tire and all that fun stuff but whatever. There was a lot of snow on the highway and I may have been going slightly faster than I should have. The notch was there and I tried to break the steering wheel free from it and turned the wheel a little more than I wanted to, causing me to slide a bit and a correction. If it was any worse I can see hitting the guard rail. The car just shouldn't be this way and coupled with a couple other problems it can be dangerous.

P.S. At this point and time it was pretty bad and needed a good amount of force to break free... I took it to the dealer shortly after and they told me they couldn't duplicate the problem, luckily this year it hasn't returned yet.

 

[Tomko]

It's not that dangerous 99.9% of the time. I've had a flat tire and all that fun stuff but whatever. There was a lot of snow on the highway and I may have been going slightly faster than I should have. The notch was there and I tried to break the steering wheel free from it and turned the wheel a little more than I wanted to, causing me to slide a bit and a correction. If it was any worse I can see hitting the guard rail. The car just shouldn't be this way and coupled with a couple other problems it can be dangerous.

P.S. At this point and time it was pretty bad and needed a good amount of force to break free... I took it to the dealer shortly after and they told me they couldn't duplicate the problem, luckily this year it hasn't returned yet.

Curious about two things: 1) were you running four winter tires at the time; and, 2) did you feel the Stabilitrak kick in?

And let me squeeze a third one in: 3) were you exceeding the posted maximum speed limit at the time or were you simply going more than prudent for the conditions?

IMHO FWD is downright dangerous in slippery conditions without some kind of electronic stability program and solid rubber on all four corners. In the 80s and 90s I'd regularly see FWD vehicles spun around 180 degrees on the side of the road. We used to call it FWD ambush, because before you knew it you would loose control and the car would spin around. I grew up driving RWD and honestly preferred it for its more predictable and forgivable behaviour in challenging road conditions. But with the advent of Stabilitrak about 15 years ago I'm happy driving FWD.

 

[2013LT]

Hey those are all pretty easy to answer.

1. Yes, four winter tires with no studs (not allowed in my province) (I got the tires straight from the dealership the day I bought my car)
2. The stabilitrack did kick in, and I can honestly say it did a wonderful job.
3. The posted speed limit was 100km/h, I was doing roughly 80. It was probably faster than I should have been but what happened is I hit an area where snow drifts onto the road, otherwise the roads weren't that bad.

All I'm saying is when you add a couple other "Potential" issues, there is no way you can consider sudden loss of power steering even momentary, safe. An accident can occur.

I have tons of driving experience as I commute regularly to work, and have never had this kind of worry in any other car that I have driven... Yes I've gotten sideways before and gotten flats and all the rest, but never because of loss of power steering, always due to my driving habits or road conditions. I'm not saying I drive like an idiot either, I would love to hear someone here say they haven't gotten a little sideways driving in bad weather.

(Sorry, this power steering thing is a bit of a sore spot for me, absolutely LOVE this car nonetheless) I'm so happy it hasn't done it yet this season.

P.S. I'm trying to remember the exact details but it was almost a year ago lol...

 

[Tomko]

Thanks LT for filling in a few of those blanks. Much clearer understanding of the situation and how it played out at the wheel.

 

[2013LT]

No problem. If the wheel didn't stick my correction would have been very smooth and most likely I would not have gotten sideways. However with the resistance I felt in the wheel I turned it a bit further than I would have normally which caused the sideways motion. If it returns the car is going to live at the dealership until it's resolved.

 

[Tomko]

Understood.

 

[boraz]

my diesel is goin in next for this

 

[revjpeterson]

Hey Rev,

I'm happy to see that the dealership has been working on this, and please let me know how everything went on Tuesday regarding the steering. Have a good weekend.

Patsy G
Chevrolet Customer Care

Tech checked it out and found another update had been released for the steering computer software since he initially re-flashed it last December. So, he updated it to the newest software. Service Advisor said to observe and return if the notchy behavior returns. I took 350 mile round trip yesterday afternoon after the appointment and did not observe the behavior during the trip, but since it is an intermittent issue that only gets bad under certain conditions, it will take some more observation to see if the issue s truly gone.

 

[money_man]

my diesel is goin in next for this

The update is for the diesel? How new is this update?


Sent from the sexy electrician

 

[Chevy Customer Care]

Tech checked it out and found another update had been released for the steering computer software since he initially re-flashed it last December. So, he updated it to the newest software. Service Advisor said to observe and return if the notchy behavior returns. I took 350 mile round trip yesterday afternoon after the appointment and did not observe the behavior during the trip, but since it is an intermittent issue that only gets bad under certain conditions, it will take some more observation to see if the issue s truly gone.

Thanks for the update, Rev. Let me know if anything acts up, and you are in need of any further assistance. Have a great Thanksgiving!

Patsy G
Chevrolet Customer Care

 

[boraz]

The update is for the diesel? How new is this update?


Sent from the sexy electrician

goin in for steering being stuck...i dont know what theyll do/try to do to 'fix'

its due for oil change, and ive told them the trunk switch is broke, remote start dont work, oil pan heater cord replace and the steering

i noticed the steering a month ago.

 

[money_man]

I hope I don't have steering issues. I came from a cobalt so you can understand my worries


Sent from the sexy electrician

 

[revjpeterson]

The update is for the diesel? How new is this update?

I know that the update I had installed December 2013 is no longer the current version. I think the tech said the version he installed on mine yesterday was released July 2014.