# 2014 Cruze Diesel sputtering during low speeds



## sailurman (Sep 29, 2016)

121K 2015 CTD... never a sputter. And I do a lot of slower speed driving. I average about 29 MPH.


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## [email protected] (Mar 16, 2017)

Is it happening consistently at slower speeds? I use to get it during a regen at slower speeds but it was only during regens so it wasn't every day.

Have you pulled the engine cover off to inspect for a fuel leak around the injectors?


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

Apparently normal during a regen.

However, 
https://www.cruzetalk.com/forum/64-...my-fix-cleaned-egr-intake-throttle-valve.html


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## LiveTrash (May 24, 2015)

jblackburn said:


> Apparently normal during a regen.
> 
> However,
> https://www.cruzetalk.com/forum/64-...my-fix-cleaned-egr-intake-throttle-valve.html


Very normal during a regen, at least in my experience.

Is it all the time OP, or infrequently?


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## Plomaman (May 15, 2017)

wow thats amazing... mine has had the problem for years! I chalked it up as a "quirk" with the CTD's since Ive seen so many others with the same problem. Some took it to the dealer who couldnt find a solution....


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## Plomaman (May 15, 2017)

sailurman said:


> 121K 2015 CTD... never a sputter. And I do a lot of slower speed driving. I average about 29 MPH.


 Wow, I guess youre one of the lucky ones! Ive seen quite a few posts about this problem with their CTD's. No definitive solution either. It happens mostly around 25 mph give or take 5 mph. Annoying as heck!


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## Plomaman (May 15, 2017)

"Originally Posted by jblackburn

Apparently normal during a regen.

However, 
https://www.cruzetalk.com/forum/64-g...tle-valve.html


Awesome, thanks a lot for the link! I had my EGR valve serviced 6 months ago which made it run better for about a month, but it started bucking again. Looks like my throttle body is likely a victim of EGR valve gunk... I'll take a look at it and post the results.


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## Plomaman (May 15, 2017)

Looks like youre one of the lucky ones... Ive seen a lot of CTD owners with the same problem. If it does happen to yours, you'll probably have to clean out the EGR valve and throttle body valve. I picked up that info on this thread.


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## Plomaman (May 15, 2017)

LiveTrash said:


> Very normal during a regen, at least in my experience.
> 
> Is it all the time OP, or infrequently?


It happens MOST of the time. Occasionally runs smoothly at slower speeds but the exception rather than rule. I just found out that I should check out the throttle body intake for dirt and gunk. Sounds like a plan!


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## Plomaman (May 15, 2017)

[email protected] said:


> Is it happening consistently at slower speeds? I use to get it during a regen at slower speeds but it was only during regens so it wasn't every day.
> 
> Have you pulled the engine cover off to inspect for a fuel leak around the injectors?


Yes its happening only during slower speeds around town. Freeway the engine runs smoothly. I just learned to check the throttle body for gunk. I have a feeling thats the problem!


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## TyGeR (Oct 24, 2016)

Hello, I am having a similar issue. When driving around 40-60mph the car feels like its sputtering. The engine RPMs do not change, It almost feels like the transmission is slipping and catching, or the turbo is dropping out. I've watched the turbo readings with an OBS tool and I can see it dropping the amount of boost then picking back up when the car is sputtering. I do not see the engine RPMs change. It only does this when the car is under a lite load, driving between 40-60mph on flat ground. If I am pulling up a hill or driving at highway speeds I do not have this issue. Its been doing this for a few years and slowly getting worse but I, or anyone else thats look at it can track down the problem.

Does any of this sound similar to your issues? Next time I have some time off I will check the EGR valve and throttle body to see if that may be an issue. I've been thinking of running some Seafoam thru the fuel system to see if it will help, never used it on a diesel.


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## MP81 (Jul 20, 2015)

When our EGR valve was getting a bit stick, it was most noticeable at idle and when cold-starting the car. It really didn't make a huge impact when on the freeway.

At those speeds, I'd almost wonder about the torque converter - could be locking and unlocking.


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## TyGeR (Oct 24, 2016)

MP81 said:


> When our EGR valve was getting a bit stick, it was most noticeable at idle and when cold-starting the car. It really didn't make a huge impact when on the freeway.
> 
> At those speeds, I'd almost wonder about the torque converter - could be locking and unlocking.


I thought about the torque converter, but I would think if it was locking and unlocking I would see the engine RPMs change due to the load changing on the engine. not 100% sure but that was my thinking.

Everything I've though to check seems fine. I'm about to do the timing belt and water pump (100K maintenance, only 20k past due). While I'm doing that i'm going to look at the turbo and try to clean the intake and EGR valve. Maybe that will help. I'm not sure what else to do. I will be looking to buy my wife a new SUV so Ill take this over from her.


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## MP81 (Jul 20, 2015)

Pulling the EGR and throttle valve isn't the most difficult job - as long as you have functioning EGR, it's just maintenance IMO.

I'd pull 'em to clean them out, they get pretty gross.


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## oreo382 (Sep 17, 2014)

Cleaned my MAF,EGR and throttle body.EGR was sooty but not bad,throttle body was worse,chunks of carbon coming off.Made a small difference on cold start missing/hesitation at light throttle but did not cure it.Checked glow plug resistances,all about 0.35 ohms cold.So all that doesn't cure the miss/stutter problem.However the intake manifold further in is a mess,there are supposed to be butterfly valves somewher in there.Not sure but all I can figure is complete intake manifold removal and walnut shell blasting (like they do for audis).Not going there,too much cash and not sure that would cure it.Car runs fine when warmed up.Anyone have any other ideas?


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## Snipesy (Dec 7, 2015)

oreo382 said:


> Cleaned my MAF,EGR and throttle body.EGR was sooty but not bad,throttle body was worse,chunks of carbon coming off.Made a small difference on cold start missing/hesitation at light throttle but did not cure it.Checked glow plug resistances,all about 0.35 ohms cold.So all that doesn't cure the miss/stutter problem.However the intake manifold further in is a mess,there are supposed to be butterfly valves somewher in there.Not sure but all I can figure is complete intake manifold removal and walnut shell blasting (like they do for audis).Not going there,too much cash and not sure that would cure it.Car runs fine when warmed up.Anyone have any other ideas?


The cylinders have swirl valves but I doubt they would cause stuttering. They are more like airplane flaps than a throttle valve. The temps those are at I doubt there is much carbon on them.


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## oreo382 (Sep 17, 2014)

Snipesy said:


> The cylinders have swirl valves but I doubt they would cause stuttering. They are more like airplane flaps than a throttle valve. The temps those are at I doubt there is much carbon on them.


Looking at some diagnostics, when first started #2 fuel pressure regulator controls the fp until fuel is heated to about 60 celsius,then #1 regulator takes over.Scan data showing a sticking fp regulator shows the idle bouncing up and down which is what mine does.Maybe these things get tired after a few years?In addition there is a filter screen on this regulator.I may unscrew this and take a look.


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## BDCCruze (Jul 12, 2017)

The only time I get hestitation on my 14 is after I start it in the morning and hit the road around 42-45MPH it might jerk a couple times but that's it. I think it's just the vehicle not being up to temperature. But it does it pretty consistently at that speed.


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## oreo382 (Sep 17, 2014)

Update to my miss/stumble after first start in the morning.I noticed the other day after starting the idle seemed ok but when i put the car in drive it really started to stumble,idle bounced up and down (couple hundred rpm).This was after letting car idle for about 15 seconds after starting.Put it back in park and idle smoothed out.I was going to pull out the fpr on the fuel rail to take a look at it but i read some info that the fpr is a one install unit,they say you can't reinstall it due to the pressure connection being compromised.So i guess the only thing left is to the dealer,hopefully they find something,there are no codes set and after reading other posts regarding dealers saying all is ok with similar issues i am concerned.Will keep you posted as to what transpires.Funny,after the temp gage gets above half way to normal the car runs great,no stumbling,smooth idle etc.


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## oreo382 (Sep 17, 2014)

Another post.I was thinking how I could get some freeze frame data on my code scanner to see if anything pops out at me regarding the cold stumble issue.The only way the scanner catches freeze frame data is if there is a code (check engine light on).I thought that if i unplug my MAF sensor connector right after cold starting that will set a code and freeze frame some data which is what i did.The ambient temperature was 14 celsius which is what the coolant temp would be as the car had been sitting for 12 hours.Sure enough a code set and i read it on my scanner.The data showed the ECT reading 27 celsius which is 13 celsius higher than the actual.If the ECT reads high then the fuel delivery would be less than it needs and the engine will run lean which I think is causing the cold stumble/miss.The dash display reads one tick left of center when the engine is warmed up which is what it has always read warmed up,however if the sensor is skewed on the cold end of things then that would account for the "normal" warmed up reading.Anyone have any thoughts about all this?I'm going to change the sensor as its not expensive,I just have to find out exactly where it is and if its fairly easily accessible.


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## oreo382 (Sep 17, 2014)

Another update.I was thinking about my method of testing the ECT.I used weather data to determine the ECT temperature which was way off the mark.I re did the test twice using an infrared temperature gun and found the ECT actual and freeze frame data to be within 2 degrees of each other,so the faulty ECT theory is out the window.I did find that the last time I did the test the car idled perfectly,didn't sputter,rpm's increased smoothly,no step kind of rpm increase etc. So why is this? As I am unplugging and re plugging the MAF sensor connector to get a freeze frame set to be able to read the ECT temp. i'm wondering if the MAF sensor plug contacts were dirty/oxidized and all the unplugging/replugging cleaned them? Maybe close to 5 years of heat cool cycles,winter etc. messes up the contact surfaces.I had scheduled an appointment at the dealer for them to do a cold scan but seeing as it runs fine now there's no use.I'll have to keep an eye on things and see if/when it happens again.


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## oreo382 (Sep 17, 2014)

Update.Its back.Yesterday morning started the car and waited about 15 seconds and put it in gear,sat there with the brake on and watched the rpm's bounce up and down for a good 2 minutes.There were a couple of times I thought it would stall but didn't.Drove off and again when the coolant temp got above half way to normal it was like nothing ever happened,smooth running and perfect idling.I looked up my puplic library Chilton's cruze diesel info online and read through the fuel system description.What caught my eye is that until the fuel temp gets to 140F OR fuel pressure regulator #2 (left end of fuel rail) adapts then it is what controls the fuel pressure.After that point fuel pressure regulator #1 (on the pump itself) takes over.Turns out to adapt the FPR #2 you need to raise the engine rpms to over 1800 for more than 15 seconds . I've never done this,I always just reved the engine briefely to see if it would clear up.Anyway its at the dealers as I type this,i'll let you know what happens.I just wish I had read the full description before and was able to do the adapt procedure to see if the sputtering cleared up.


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## oreo382 (Sep 17, 2014)

Update.Dealer did a scan on cold startup and said there were multiple misfire codes.I guess they can get codes without there being a check engine light set.The service advisor said the shop foreman and tech think its the intercooler.Key word is think,so they are not completely sure.Didn't have enough time to change it out so I have another appt. for next Monday when I can get a loaner car.Advisor also said the "diesel tech" would be in next week which makes me wonder how close to the mark the other two are.From reading about intercoolers it seems if they are faulty there is usually a hissing sound,reduced power and the engine exhaust smokes.My power is good,I hear no hissing and there is no way to tell if the exhaust smokes due to all the crap in the exhaust chain.Well,i'll see next week what happens.I need to get this cleared up as I have a little over a month left on my GM Plus warranty.I'll post next week.


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## Rivergoer (Mar 30, 2017)

oreo382 said:


> Update.Dealer did a scan on cold startup and said there were multiple misfire codes.I guess they can get codes without there being a check engine light set.The service advisor said the shop foreman and tech think its the intercooler.Key word is think,so they are not completely sure.Didn't have enough time to change it out so I have another appt. for next Monday when I can get a loaner car.Advisor also said the "diesel tech" would be in next week which makes me wonder how close to the mark the other two are.From reading about intercoolers it seems if they are faulty there is usually a hissing sound,reduced power and the engine exhaust smokes.My power is good,I hear no hissing and there is no way to tell if the exhaust smokes due to all the crap in the exhaust chain.Well,i'll see next week what happens.I need to get this cleared up as I have a little over a month left on my GM Plus warranty.I'll post next week.


Sorry if you posted this earlier but how many miles? 

I would think inter coolers don’t fail that often but I suppose anything’s possible.....


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## Wendekay (May 20, 2018)

TyGeR said:


> Hello, I am having a similar issue. When driving around 40-60mph the car feels like its sputtering. The engine RPMs do not change, It almost feels like the transmission is slipping and catching, or the turbo is dropping out. I've watched the turbo readings with an OBS tool and I can see it dropping the amount of boost then picking back up when the car is sputtering. I do not see the engine RPMs change. It only does this when the car is under a lite load, driving between 40-60mph on flat ground. If I am pulling up a hill or driving at highway speeds I do not have this issue. Its been doing this for a few years and slowly getting worse but I, or anyone else thats look at it can track down the problem.
> 
> Does any of this sound similar to your issues? Next time I have some time off I will check the EGR valve and throttle body to see if that may be an issue. I've been thinking of running some Seafoam thru the fuel system to see if it will help, never used it on a diesel.


I had same issue, also downshifted extremely hard on the downhills or slowdowns. It was a nightmare because it was sporadic. Ended up w new transmission, sensors and multiple other issues. ?


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## oreo382 (Sep 17, 2014)

Rivergoer said:


> Sorry if you posted this earlier but how many miles?
> 
> I would think inter coolers don’t fail that often but I suppose anything’s possible.....


My car has just under 40,000 miles.


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## Rivergoer (Mar 30, 2017)

oreo382 said:


> My car has just under 40,000 miles.


Man, that’s odd...the car’s barely broke in @ 40K

Interested to hear what the diesel mechanic says next week.


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## oreo382 (Sep 17, 2014)

Update----Dealer looked at intercooler and found no problems.Put it back together and cold started the car the next morning.It started right up and idled ok in park but as soon as he put it ind drive it started to stumble and miss.They got ahold of GM technical and they said that its carbon deposits on the intake valves,they've seen this before.So the dealer subbed out the work,they are pulling the head and cleaning/reconditioning it.Big job,glad I got the GMPP plus (for another month).Now the question is why? I'm thinking mostly city driving,sometimes short,sometimes more than an hour running time.However,a guy pulled into my parking lot with a 2004 Golf diesel,400,000km,mostly city.He's changed the timing chain,thats all.No running issues.I use Mobil 1 esp5w-30,one of the lowest noack volatility oils there is.The cruze has a sort of catch can in the pvc system already,its a canister that collects vapors and condenses them.Then there's the egr.So with a little less than 70,000 km this has happened.Something's not right with the design,maybe that's why only 2 years for the 2L motor.No where in the owners manual does it say "must run on the highway weekly".Anyway,i'll drive it for a while now,hopefully no more issues far a bit the tradein time.So others with stumbling problems and no codes,a borescope camera down the intake maybe? Not sure how easy that would be.


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## TyGeR (Oct 24, 2016)

Please keep us updated


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## oreo382 (Sep 17, 2014)

Update,here's a copy of what was done to the car.They since have repaired,in addition to below work, a leaking fuel injector,something with the turbo gasket, and am still waiting for for the replacement glow plug to come in.Says no rough idle detected,that was at first,they then cold started it,put it in gear and it started to miss and stumble.This report is missing some of that info.BTW,this is the second replacement water pump,first was changed at about 55,000km (along with a soaked timing belt).In the parts info (not shown) they mention machine shop grinding the valves as well.

COMPLAINT: CHECK & REPORT CUSTOMER ADVISES ROUGH ENGINE IDLE IBKY
DURING COLD START UP
CHANGED TO POWERTRAIN BY ERIC B AUGUST 8 2019 @ 9:31 (0390)
CAUSE: COLD STARTED VEHICLE IN PARKING WITH SHOP FORMAN AND NO
ROUGH IDLE WAS DETECTED. BROUGHT VEHICLE INTO SHOP AND
SCANNED VEHICLE FOR CODES AND NO FAULT CODES WERE DETECTED
IN ANY MODULE. CHECKED FOR BULLETINS PRETAINING TO ISSUE AN
FOUND #15-NA-084. REMOVED ENGINE COVER AND INSPECTED CLIP
AT THROTTLE BODY AND NO ISSUE WAS FOUND AT THIS TIME.
ALL WAS NORMAL WITH CLIP AND NO DAMAGE WAS FOUND (VERIFIED
WITH SHOP FORMAN). WAS UNABLE TO DUPLICATE CUSTOMER CONCERN.
AT THIS TIME
ST 1.0 BY ERIC B AUGUST 8 2019 @ 9:13
ST 1.0 BY ERIC B AUGUST 8 2019 @ 11:15
ST 0.5 BY ERIC B AUGUST 9 2019 @ 9:08
CORRECTION: DISCONNECTED BATTERY.SUPPORTED ENGINE.REMOVED MOTOR MOUNT.
REMOVED TIMING COVER AND TIMING BELT.REATTACHED MOTOR MOUNT.
SR 5380304456 KEVIN
REMOVED CATALYTIC CONVERTOR.REMOVED FUEL LINES AND INJECTORS
REMOVED EGR COOLER.REMOVED CAM COVER.REMOVED TURBO AND EXHAU
T MANIFOLD.REMOVED CYLINDER HEAD.REMOVED INTAKE MANIFOLD.
FOUND VALVES AND INTAKE TO HAVE EXCESSIVE CARBON DEPOSITS.
SENT CYLINDER HEAD TO MACHINE SHOP.CLEANED INTAKE MANIFOLD.
REINSTALLED INTAKE AND NEW GASKET ON CYLINDER HEAD.SELECTED
CYLINDER HAED GASKET.INSTALLED NEW CYLINDER HEAD GASKET AND
TORQUED NEW HEAD BOLTS TO MANUFACTURER SPECIFICATIONS.REINST
ALLED CAM COVER,EKHAUST MANIFOLD AND TURBO.REINSTALLED CATAL
YTIC CONVERTOR AND EGR COOLER.FOUND WATER PUMP TO BE LEAKING
REPLACED WATER PUMP.REINSTALLED TIMING BELT AND COVER.CHANGE
D OIL AND VAC FILLED COOLANT SYSTEM.ROAD TESTED VEHICLE.DURI
ING ROAD TEST CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON WHEN VEHICLE WAS ST
ARTED FOR SECOND TIME.SCANNED FOR DTC'S FOUND #2 CYL GLOW PL
UG NOT WORKING.PART ON ORDER FROM USA.
LABOR CODE:4061830
PARTS------QTY---FP-NUMBER---------------DESCRIPTION--------------------


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## oreo382 (Sep 17, 2014)

Well,after some deliberating I have traded in the Cruze.Going forward after all the issues,my driving style and the car coming out of warranty I couldn't hang on to it any longer.I lost confidence in the reliability and didn't want to take the chance getting stuck with some big repair bill.Hopefully someone buys it that is a commuter and can take advantage of the great highway mileage.


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

oreo382 said:


> Well,after some deliberating I have traded in the Cruze.Going forward after all the issues,my driving style and the car coming out of warranty I couldn't hang on to it any longer.I lost confidence in the reliability and didn't want to take the chance getting stuck with some big repair bill.Hopefully someone buys it that is a commuter and can take advantage of the great highway mileage.


With a city driving pattern, a hybrid seems to be the best fit for fuel economy. It's certainly true that the Diesel, with the modern emissions system requirements, really makes it an option that is best for people that do more highway driving. On my Diesel truck, I was always careful to limit short drives, since it would certainly clog up the emissions on that engine, but it's pretty expensive to have multiple cars and ones that you avoid driving due to potential issues from the clogged emissions and intakes. The big problem has been EGR, and they are working on designs that eliminate that system and still comply with requirements. One trend is lower compression ratio engines, even the Gen 2, 1.6L is a lower ratio than the 2.0 LUZ engine. A lower compression ratio is less NOx, which means less EGR is needed. The only downside on the lower ratio is cold start, but the OEMs are coming up with ways to mitigate that side of things. Maybe in a few years the difficulties with Diesel emissions will be worked out better where there won't be the issues that we see on the road today, we'll see.


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## Jamjam1008 (Mar 13, 2021)

Plomaman said:


> Is anyone else with a 2014 diesel having "sputtering" engine problems when driving at slower speeds? Mine is VERY noticeable and almost feels like its not getting enough fuel. But I changed the fuel filter 6 mos ago so thats not the problem.


chr
Checked to make sure throttle body and intake is clear of carbon. Mime did this and it was actually clogged! Now need an engine


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