# Radio, Stability Trac, Power Steering, Theft Deterrent System Issues



## cargirl77 (Sep 26, 2013)

My 2012 has experienced a variety of weird electrical issues recently. My radio display blinks on & off. Service warnings for the Stability Trac & Theft Deterrent System have displayed. The power steering seemed to go off once. Two nights ago my car completely died. No electrical power whatsoever. I jumped the battery & power was restored. It seemed to be restored too quickly for a bad battery. I took the car to the dealership yesterday & they could not get any of the problems to replicate and could find nothing wrong. They called it a "head scratcher" and I took the car home. Today the radio started going & on off again. When I parked & shut the car off, it completely died again. I tried to jump the battery again & could not get power restored. It has been towed back to the dealership again. I've seen a few other posts with similar problems. Did anyone get a definitive diagnosis on what causes these problems? Is it a battery issue or something worse? Of course I am about 5,000 miles past the warranty so I'm hoping I'm not totally screwed!


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## BowtieGuy (Jan 4, 2013)

First guess based upon those issues would be a bad battery. There have been a few cases of stuff like that happening when the battery started to go.


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## Jim Frye (Mar 16, 2011)

Second guess would be a bad ground cable to the battery. 

Third guess would be a bad power cable to the battery. 

Did the dealer's service department do a proper load test on the battery? Did they remove and clean the connections to the battery? Did they check the alternator output with the appropriate equipment? It seems, from other posts here and on other Cruze forums, that the problem can be traced to several causes. If all else fails, is there another dealer that you can try?

Mods: should this thread be merged into the other one here on this subject?


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## Chevy Customer Care (Oct 29, 2011)

Hi cargirl77

Please feel free to send me a private message if you need any assistance in getting this issue diagnosed and resolved. am available to make a dealership appointment, speak to the Service Adviser on your behalf or anything else that you may need.

Jackie
Chevrolet Customer Care


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## cargirl77 (Sep 26, 2013)

The dealership has identified the problem to be in the negative battery cable. There's a grounding issue. This seems to be consistent with the other Cruze owners that experienced similar problems.


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## BoilerRacingCo (Oct 17, 2013)

cargirl77 said:


> The dealership has identified the problem to be in the negative battery cable. There's a grounding issue. This seems to be consistent with the other Cruze owners that experienced similar problems.


I've been diving in and out of threads trying to track down where to fix my 2012 with same symptoms. Most say "electrical" problem but not everyone has luck replacing battery cables. Many posts describe dealerships scratching heads and sending customers home. My car is almost undrivable and is very unsafe at best. Any other owners with success fixing this problem?


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## Chevy Customer Care (Oct 29, 2011)

Hi BoilerRaceCo,

Have you opened a Service Request with customer care? I would be happy to open one and assist you in getting the issue with your Cruze resolved. Please send me a private message if you are interested in opening an SR and working with a customer care agent.

Jackie
Chevrolet Customer Care


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## Lanceb86 (Dec 17, 2013)

I am having the exact same issues! It is driving me crazy. My car wouldn't even start one day because it said the antitheft system needed serviced. First it started with my radio randomly going on and off on and off etc...now service lights are blinking on and off while I am driving and my power steering has gone out twice now, once when I was turning and it pulled the steering wheel out of my hand. I love my Cruze, but I am beginning to think that I made a horrible decision. I took it up to a Chevy dealer and I showed them the video on my phone I took while all these crazy things were happening and they looked and told me they didn't see anything so they did nothing! I was like seriously I showed you a **** video of what was happening and all they say is I am sorry we didn't see it! I NEVER had this problem with my Fords! I AM SO FRUSTRATED!!!!!!!!!!!


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## mlindsay (Jan 10, 2014)

I am having this exact same issue with my Cruze. Radio goes out, then the DIC flashes on and off, my blinker sound goes out, and it feels like the power steering then goes out as well. It seems this onset is initially triggered by depressing the brake or doing something electronic (i.e. wipers, blinker, etc.). Once I stop and restart my car, it's like it resets itself, and it will take awhile before this starts happening again.

I took it to the dealer, and they said they couldn't help me because I would have to bring it in when this is actually happening so they can get a code with their diagnostic tool. Now, I've been having issues with the car completely losing power, and it won't start, as if they battery is dead. When this happens, the key will get stuck in the ignition.

I've figured out when I wiggle the battery cables on the terminals, my car will come back to life. It seems that it might be something as simple as a corrosive battery terminal, bad battery cable, etc., but I don't know for sure yet. Anybody have any other ideas? Other forums similar to this seem to point to a bad battery or bad battery cable.


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## pumaog10 (Feb 21, 2014)

Hello I Am experiencing the same problems and want to know how much the dealership charged you for fixing this issue.?


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## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

mlindsay said:


> I am having this exact same issue with my Cruze. Radio goes out, then the DIC flashes on and off, my blinker sound goes out, and it feels like the power steering then goes out as well. It seems this onset is initially triggered by depressing the brake or doing something electronic (i.e. wipers, blinker, etc.). Once I stop and restart my car, it's like it resets itself, and it will take awhile before this starts happening again.
> 
> I took it to the dealer, and they said they couldn't help me because I would have to bring it in when this is actually happening so they can get a code with their diagnostic tool. Now, I've been having issues with the car completely losing power, and it won't start, as if they battery is dead. When this happens, the key will get stuck in the ignition.
> 
> I've figured out when I wiggle the battery cables on the terminals, my car will come back to life. It seems that it might be something as simple as a corrosive battery terminal, bad battery cable, etc., but I don't know for sure yet. Anybody have any other ideas? Other forums similar to this seem to point to a bad battery or bad battery cable.


The next time this happens (no power at all) instead of wiggling the cables call the 800 number in your owners manual. There is a 5 year/100,000 mile road side assistance. If GM has to pay for this they will be motivated to fix it.


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## 06mistreSS (Feb 20, 2014)

I've been dealing with this exact problem on and off for about a year and the car has been into the dealership 3 times in 8 months. Posted about mine here > *http://www.cruzetalk.com/forum/25-s...domly-service-stabilitrac-service-tc-etc.html* so refer to that thread for my info (pg. 25 post #247).


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## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

06mistreSS said:


> I've been dealing with this exact problem on and off for about a year and the car has been into the dealership 3 times in 8 months. Posted about mine here > *http://www.cruzetalk.com/forum/25-s...domly-service-stabilitrac-service-tc-etc.html* so refer to that thread for my info (pg. 25 post #247).


Have you Private Messaged the Chevy Customer Care staff here on CruzeTalk? They seem to be able to get dealerships to fix cars when the regular GM Customer Care folks can.


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## 06mistreSS (Feb 20, 2014)

obermd said:


> Have you Private Messaged the Chevy Customer Care staff here on CruzeTalk? They seem to be able to get dealerships to fix cars when the regular GM Customer Care folks can.


I should mention that I'm about a month out from the last, 3rd, visit to the dealership where they replaced one of the battery cables (showed higher than normal voltage drops). So far it's been okay but I'm far from ready to call it just yet; 2nd visit I went about 2 months before the problem arose again but then again the dealership didn't replace any parts that 2nd visit. I's been frustrating but I can at least say I'm happy with the dealership through the process. The car was under warranty 1st visit but not on visits 2 and 3, however they have covered visits 2 and 3 as well since it was initially in under warranty for this problem.

The other thing I can say, regarding the problem itself, is that, at least in my case, the problem seems worse in colder weather. I had issues early last year but went through this past summer with almost zero; it became more prevalent again in October.


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## Chevy Customer Care (Oct 29, 2011)

06mistreSS said:


> I should mention that I'm about a month out from the last, 3rd, visit to the dealership where they replaced one of the battery cables (showed higher than normal voltage drops). So far it's been okay but I'm far from ready to call it just yet; 2nd visit I went about 2 months before the problem arose again but then again the dealership didn't replace any parts that 2nd visit. I's been frustrating but I can at least say I'm happy with the dealership through the process. The car was under warranty 1st visit but not on visits 2 and 3, however they have covered visits 2 and 3 as well since it was initially in under warranty for this problem.
> 
> The other thing I can say, regarding the problem itself, is that, at least in my case, the problem seems worse in colder weather. I had issues early last year but went through this past summer with almost zero; it became more prevalent again in October.


Hello 06mistreSS,

I understand how an ongoing concern can be frustrating to experience but I am glad you have been satisfied with the service provided from your dealership. If you would like to further discuss anything, please feel free to send us a private message so we can look into this for you.

Sincerely,

Laura M.
Chevrolet Customer Care


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## Chevy Customer Care (Oct 29, 2011)

pumaog10 said:


> Hello I Am experiencing the same problems and want to know how much the dealership charged you for fixing this issue.?


Hi pumaog10,

I am sorry to hear you are also experiencing these concerns with your Cruze. Dealerships are independently owned and operated, therefore each location may vary in price. If you would like to further discuss your situation and have us look into this for you, please feel free to send us a private message. In the message include your full contact information, VIN and current mileage. 

Sincerely,

Laura M.
Chevrolet Customer Care


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## mlindsay (Jan 10, 2014)

Thank you 06mistreSS for directing me to the other posting about this issue.

I took my Cruze to my dealer a month ago and told them about my research and that it could possibly be a bad ground or bad cable. Their tests on the battery, cables, etc. came back fine. They said they checked and cleaned all connections. So far, I have not had any further issues.

And yes, it seemed my electronics problem would happen (or be exacerbated) when there were big temperature swings… like from 10 degrees Fahrenheit to 40 degrees in a day.

Anyways, if it starts up again I will be sure to contact GM. I would think this is a potential recall issue because of all the postings I'm seeing on this website regarding this topic. It's definitely a safety issue from the standpoint of loosing your power steering, stablitrak, and dashboard electronics. At the very least, it's a big distraction while driving.

Also in the meantime, another issue arose with my Cruze… black smoke came out the tail pipe and the engine was overheating. Looked under the hood and my anti-freeze reservoir was completely empty (only 20400 miles on my Cruze, take it in every 4000 miles for servicing). Refilled it with Dex-Cool and brought it to the dealer. They couldn't find a leak. The anti-freeze level has not dropped again since my last servicing (a month ago). I've read other forums about a slow leak in the anti-freeze system… not sure if that's what happened with mine.

I'm a GM guy with a Dad who is a GM mechanic. The issues I'm having with my Cruze are making me lose my faith in GM products.


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## Taddea (Feb 17, 2014)

I have had my Cruze 2013 for exactly one month. I bought it with about 24000 miles on it. Two weeks after I got it I had an issue with the message that the Theft Deterent system needed to be serviced and I couldn't start the car. I went into the dealership and asked them about it. They did the head scratching thing and advised that I bring it in if the problem persists. Then Monday I was in the car for a while with the key turned to Accessory to listen to the radio. This was maybe for 15 minutes at most. When I tried to start it it died completely. I couldn't get the key out either. Then about 10 minutes later everything came back on and I was able to start the car. The clock had reset to 12am. Then yesterday I was on my way to work at 6am and the car started acting like it was possessed. The radio, turn signals, messages, warning lights all started flashing off and on. I watched the battery in between and it was going between 13V and 15.1. It seemed that every time I came to a stop it would do it again. This happened 5 times. I turned off everything I could. 

The dealer said that the battery cables were badly corroded. They cleaned them and sent me on my way. This evening on my way home I stopped at the store. When I came out the car wouldn't start. It started the flashing messages and power thing all over again. This time it lost Power steering several times the 2.5 miles I drove home. I would lose it for a few seconds and then it would just come back on. VERY dangerous. It happened when I was making a left turn in front of traffic. Now I am thinking of having the car towed to the dealer tomorrow morning. 

I am very frustrated. I put 217,000 miles on my last car and 148,000 on the one before that and 170,000 on the one before that. This one doesn't even have 25,000 yet! I was so happy to get such a lovely car. The car is still under warranty, but when they cleaned the battery cables they acted like I would normally have to pay for it, but since I had just gotten the car they were doing me a favor. Should this be a warranty fix?

I took my Cruze in to the shop this morning. No problems, but the battery kept losing juice. I started with 15.1V and it went down to 12.8V. The shop has contacted Chevrolet and it sounds like they are going to replace some pretty major components. I'll let you all know more when I find out. The parts won't be here until Monday, so I'm going to have a loaner for a while.


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## 06mistreSS (Feb 20, 2014)

I can say this problem seems like something dealerships are on their own with for now, as mine was basically figuring it out as they went over the 3 visits and was more trial and error than knowing the exact problem and how/what to fix. I couldn't even tell you for sure that mine's resolved right now. Seems to be a somewhat common problem so you would think GM needs to figure it out on a large scale at some point.

Both from personal experience and what I've seen, cleaning connections seems to be a common first action by dealerships although it's a temporary band-aid fix. Mine did the cleaning 2nd visit and the problem resurfaced 2 months later.


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## 7becker7 (Apr 2, 2013)

Mine had the same issues as described last year. It ended up being a loose connection to the battery. I forget what cable. But overall I got stuck with a $180 bill...


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## Taddea (Feb 17, 2014)

I got my Cruze back last night. When I took it in the second time they contacted Chevrolet's tec assist and they were advised the check the G102 Ground, G100 for corrosion, checked voltage drop at Neg Battery cable and if they checked out OK to replace under hood Electrical Buss. Still had problems (this time the dealer experienced it). They then found high resistance in the Neg cable and UBEC. They replaced the UBEC and Neg Battery cable. For the moment it appears to be working fine. Hopefully that has fixed the issue. The information above came from my paperwork. The parts they replaced are:
95216200 Block 2.483 Y
95281536 Cable 2.341 Y

I hope this information helps someone else (and that it really has fixed my problems as well).


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## Nucruzer (Oct 15, 2013)

cargirl77 said:


> My 2012 has experienced a variety of weird electrical issues recently. My radio display blinks on & off. Service warnings for the Stability Trac & Theft Deterrent System have displayed. The power steering seemed to go off once. Two nights ago my car completely died. No electrical power whatsoever. I jumped the battery & power was restored. It seemed to be restored too quickly for a bad battery. I took the car to the dealership yesterday & they could not get any of the problems to replicate and could find nothing wrong. They called it a "head scratcher" and I took the car home. Today the radio started going & on off again. When I parked & shut the car off, it completely died again. I tried to jump the battery again & could not get power restored. It has been towed back to the dealership again. I've seen a few other posts with similar problems. Did anyone get a definitive diagnosis on what causes these problems? Is it a battery issue or something worse? Of course I am about 5,000 miles past the warranty so I'm hoping I'm not totally screwed!


I purchased my 2012 Cruze in Oct. 2013 with 35,000 miles and the flashing lights, etc. problem began in March 2014. I actively participated in the thread unique for the radio off/on problem. Finally, the day came when I started the car and entire dashboard looked like a Christmas tree and stayed like that all the way to the dealer's service center. I did as one of the posts suggested and kept the engine running so the mechanics could see it as well. Turns out they still couldn't locate the cause and were advised by GM tech assist to replace the fuse box. That worked as now I had more electrical response than when I bought the car. Then this month the new problem shows up: anti-theft deterrent kicks in, shutting down all electrical and not letting me remove the key. Tuns out I was starting the car THE OLD-SCHOOL WAY. I was told that instead of turning the key just enough until the engine engages (as I had been doing for decades in my older vehicles).....turn it hard as far as it will go and hold it there a millisecond. Tech. Asst. told me there are four computers that need to sequentially communicate and my quick-start was preventing them from fulling engaging, thus alerting the system to shut everything down.


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## Jim Frye (Mar 16, 2011)

Nucruzer said:


> Tech. Asst. told me there are four computers that need to sequentially communicate and my quick-start was preventing them from fulling engaging, thus alerting the system to shut everything down.


This should be in the OM.


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## brookecw (Jul 25, 2014)

Taddea said:


> I got my Cruze back last night. When I took it in the second time they contacted Chevrolet's tec assist and they were advised the check the G102 Ground, G100 for corrosion, checked voltage drop at Neg Battery cable and if they checked out OK to replace under hood Electrical Buss. Still had problems (this time the dealer experienced it). They then found high resistance in the Neg cable and UBEC. They replaced the UBEC and Neg Battery cable. For the moment it appears to be working fine. Hopefully that has fixed the issue. The information above came from my paperwork. The parts they replaced are:
> 95216200 Block 2.483 Y
> 95281536 Cable 2.341 Y
> 
> I hope this information helps someone else (and that it really has fixed my problems as well).


Did it did your vehicle? I think this is what's wrong with mine I just want to know if this fixed yours long term. Thanks!


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## svincent (May 15, 2014)

I purchased my 2012 LT in april and the Christmas tree in the cluster problem happened twice since. As what I have read, the most common problem is the negative battery cable. I went to my local Stealership and bought a new one. It is exactly identical , but the small numbers on the label are different. There was no corrosion on mine, neither on the battery and body ground. I brushed all contacts with a steel brush. I hope I will not have that problem anymore.


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## gator88girl (Jul 14, 2015)

I too have been having the same problems. I think the Cruzes are LEMONS!!!!!!! I was stranded with my little boy five hours away from home. Car would not crank and the Chevrolet place here in my town just replaced my battery due to it cracked and was putting off a terrible odor (liked to killed us the smell was so bad), According to the service department (who was even complaining about the smell) its a wonder the battery did not blow up. My radio randomly switches to AUX on its own. The service anti theft light comes on, service air bag keeps coming on, the service traction control light comes on. SO MANY PROBLEMS wish I would have gotten something else. Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet in Tallahassee is giving Dale Jr. a bad name with their service men. You have to double check behind them I have found where they charged my warranty for something that wasn't even done. I threatened to call my warranty people and tell them and of course they start stuttering and say I don't know how that happened bring it back in and we will do it...REALLY??? I bought this car for fuel reasons as the sticker that Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet had on the window said 42 MPG. THEY LIED, LIED, LIED I get 28MPG and I don't drive crazy. I am just really displeased with my car. If I were Dale Jr. I would make Rick Hendrix take my name of the Tallahassee dealership as it is going to bring his name down.


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## SheSam (Nov 17, 2021)

cargirl77 said:


> My 2012 has experienced a variety of weird electrical issues recently. My radio display blinks on & off. Service warnings for the Stability Trac & Theft Deterrent System have displayed. The power steering seemed to go off once. Two nights ago my car completely died. No electrical power whatsoever. I jumped the battery & power was restored. It seemed to be restored too quickly for a bad battery. I took the car to the dealership yesterday & they could not get any of the problems to replicate and could find nothing wrong. They called it a "head scratcher" and I took the car home. Today the radio started going & on off again. When I parked & shut the car off, it completely died again. I tried to jump the battery again & could not get power restored. It has been towed back to the dealership again. I've seen a few other posts with similar problems. Did anyone get a definitive diagnosis on what causes these problems? Is it a battery issue or something worse? Of course I am about 5,000 miles past the warranty so I'm hoping I'm not totally screwed!


My 2014 has the exact issues also ignition tries to start with the key off? No recalls on the issues but plenty of complaints.


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## Blasirl (Mar 31, 2015)

SheSam said:


> My 2014 has the exact issues also ignition tries to start with the key off? No recalls on the issues but plenty of complaints.


Welcome Aboard!

You should start your own thread here. Make sure you post any codes, icons etc that are occuring as well as any parts you have already replaced and when. Also any service that has been done, post what is on the invoice if you have it.

Don't forget to introduce yourself and your Cruze here.


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