# 2010 Chevrolet Cruze LT (diesel) stalling problem



## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

Hello,
After this post (http://www.cruzetalk.com/forum/9-ge...ine-stalling-2nd-post1649298.html#post1649298) where i was asked to open up a new thread i decided just to do so.

I am the owner of a 2010 Chevrolet Cruze LT (110 kw) diesel. I bought the car 2nd hand in september 2012 from a garage here in the neighbourhood. The owner is a good friend of mine so i think i can trust him. Back then the car had approx. done 35.000 km (22.000 miles). It was like new and i drives like an absolute dream.

About a year ago i encountered a strange problem. When slowing down for an intersection or a sharp turn and shifting back to 2nd gear the car sometimes completely stalls from the moment i started turning my steering wheel. It is really hard to make the car do it. It sometimes just happenend. Now, i'm not a trained mecanic but most of the work on my car, even changing the timing belt, i do myself. I have an OBD-link here at home and it never showed at any errors after i stalled it. I however filled the car up at a gas station i normally never go to so i assumed that the diesel fuel just was no good. From then on i always starting taking on fuel at the same place and the problem disappeared.

Until a week ago. The car now has 65.000 km (40.000 miles) and it is almost time for big maintenance (new filters, oil,...) My wife came home and she said the car stalled on her again. Always when in 2nd gear, always when taking a sharp turn to the right. I went for a spin and yep, it did stall on me once. I can even show you where (http://goo.gl/maps/kf34q). I was just cruising along, pressed the clutch, went back to 2nd and from the moment i turned right the engine light luminated and the engine stalled. I just released the clutch and the engine pop started back to life. After that i decided to change the air filter and cabin filter a little early. In 500 km i will change the oil, the oil filter and fuel filter as well.
The day after i was again driving and i heard a beep. I looked at the dashboard and it said code 84. There was no other warning light what so ever. For a second or so i felt that all power was gone. The code dissapeared and the car now just drives again like there is nothing wrong.

The car still is in premium condition. I do all the maintenance myself and i always follow it by the book. I have no idea if this problem is electrical or if there is something wrong with the fuel in it. The strange thing is that it always happens when i turn the wheel, and always when i turn it to the right.
Two days ago i added an additive to clean the injectors and since that day it stopped stalling. I have no idea if the problem is fixed or not. I will wait for the wife to get home so maybe she can tell me if it happened today or not. I'm not very reassured in it. Stalling when taking a turn is not pleasant. The steering wheel gets very heavy because power steering is gone. For me that isn't a big problem, but women are not as strong as men. I'm not sure if the wife is strong enough to make the turn.


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## TDCruze (Sep 26, 2014)

It is possible the fuel filter is blocked causing fuel starvation. I have had similar stalling issues on previous vehicles when the filter became clogged up. If you are almost due for a change anyway I would try that first.


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

That would indeed explain the stalling issues i am having now. But i also had the same problems a year ago and i did not change the fuel filter after that. The problems went away after i filled up the car at another gas station. So i always thought there was something wrong with the diesel fuel i filled the car with. From that moment on i always started filling up at the same station and the problems were gone, untill last week.

One more thing i noticed is that when the car does those strange things the fuel gauge isn't correct. It shows way less then what i know i have in the tank. No idea why it does that.


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## grs1961 (Oct 23, 2012)

Fuel. Fuel, fuel, fuel.

When you went back to the good fuel, it diluted what ever caused the problem, now, over time, it has built up again.

It could be algae in the fuel, it could be gelling. I would change the filter, and run a diesel fuel treatment through as well, just to be sure.


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## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

PeterW said:


> That would indeed explain the stalling issues i am having now. But i also had the same problems a year ago and i did not change the fuel filter after that. The problems went away after i filled up the car at another gas station.


Change the fuel filter. Even though the problems went away your filter is still dealing with the crap from that one station.


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

grs1961 said:


> Fuel. Fuel, fuel, fuel.
> 
> When you went back to the good fuel, it diluted what ever caused the problem, now, over time, it has built up again.
> 
> It could be algae in the fuel, it could be gelling. I would change the filter, and run a diesel fuel treatment through as well, just to be sure.


I have allready ran a diesel treatment through it. This one (Halfords | Comma Diesel Magic 400ml) to be more precise.
I will change the fuel filter this evening or tomorrow. Thnx for the help.


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

Well... problems are getting from bad to worse. I changed the fuel filter but that did not fix the problems. Yesterday is was just driving along. Because of snowy road conditions i was not going very fast. 3rd gear at around 1700 rpm's. I came up to a right hand corner. I did not shift back, just stayed in 3rd gear. I came out of the corner, pressed the accelerator pedal and ... nothing happened. I pumped the accelerator pedal a few times... nothing.No warning lights, nothing. The car was just stalling. I pressed the clutch pedal and the engine light went on. Shifted back to 2nd, released the clutch, the engine again popstarted back to life and i could just drive on like nothing happened. Came home, attached the OBD link... no error messages.
I have not yet put new diesel fuel in it. I want to empty the tank first. Something tells me there is something wrong with the diesel. To much dirt or maybe some water in it. I'm scared i will kill the diesel pump or injectors by trying to empty the tank.

I just read this in the shoutbox. Sorry for the caps, i did not type it...
[Yesterday 05:14 PM]aviatorkk
: OR IS MY FUEL PUMP GONE BAD??[Yesterday 05:14 PM] aviatorkk
: WHAT IS THE METHOD FOR PURGING OUT THE AIR??
[Yesterday 05:13 PM] aviatorkk
: MY CAR WAS RUNNING PERFECTLY FINE UNTILL THE FUEL TANK WAS TAKEN OFF. I HAVE A 2010 CRUZE LTZ. 80000KM. CAN ANYONE HELP BECAUSE THE PROBLEM EVEN AFTER CHANGING THE INJECTORS IS THE SAME.
[Yesterday 05:12 PM] aviatorkk
: THEN THE ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON CODE P0089.RPM WOULD SOMETIMES NOT EXCEED 2500 AND ENGINE WOULD SHUT DOWN ANYTIME. AFTER FEW FAILED ATTEMTS TO DIAGONSE THE PROBLEM NOW ALL THE FUEL INJECTORS HAVE BLOCKED.
[Yesterday 05:08 PM] aviatorkk
: I AM IN BIG TROUBLE.MY FUEL LEVEL SENSOR HAD SOME TROUBLE. SO TO GET IT REPAIRED THE FUEL TANK WAS UNMOUNTED, FUEL PUMP TAKEN OUT, AND SENSOR CHECKED WHICH WAS WORKING FINE.

It is the same car. He also has these stalling problems. Looks like he had problems with the fuel sensor, just like i felt i had a while ago. At least he had an error code, i have nothing. I'm slowly getting tired of this car.


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## grs1961 (Oct 23, 2012)

Have you taken it to a mechanic who has a GM Tech II scanner?

There are codes that are *not* visible on the standard OBD scanner, NFI why, but they do exist.


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

No, not yet. It maybe is an idea.
Last time i had these problems, about a year ago, they dissapeared after i had almost completely emptied the fueltank and refueled the car. I'm hoping the problems will again be gone then. 
I'm going to empty the car (hopefully it won't break down before it's empty), refuel it, again put in a new fuel filter and hopefully that will do the trick. If not i think i will be obligated to take it to a garage with a GM tech II scanner.


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## NickD (Dec 10, 2011)

2010 Cruze diesel? What country are you from?


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## iKermit (Dec 13, 2010)

Moved to the diesel section for more exposure by our diesel members


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

Belgium. Why ?


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## diesel (Jun 8, 2013)

Peter, it seems like everything is pointing to a fuel delivery problem. When you changed the filter, what did it look like? 

Have you checked fuel pressure?


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

No, i haven't checked fuel pressure.

The fuel filter indeed looked dirty and yes, it really is starting to look like a fuel problem. Yesterday i changed the filter again. After that it was better, not ok, better. The car only stalled once. The engine light luminated every time i turned violently to the right though.

Normally i Will have to fill the tank this evening. I will keep you updated on what happens after that.


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## Aussie (Sep 16, 2012)

Could you have water in the tank and a right turn sloshes it over the fuel pickup?


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

Well, i was actually thinking in the same direction. That's why i, before i removed the fuel filter, i took a sample by opening the tiny screw at the bottom from where you normally purge water. Here you can see it : http://i57.tinypic.com/2vsf6tj.jpg

Looks perfectly clean to me. No dirt, no water, nothing. I'm still hoping bad fuel is the reason though. The wife is at work with the car. Normally she should refuel it today.


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

diesel said:


> Peter, it seems like everything is pointing to a fuel delivery problem. When you changed the filter, what did it look like?


Here it is : http://i62.tinypic.com/64kxtj.jpg

The new filter is white. I have no idea if this was white as well but i think so because one of the fins (no idea how i should call it) still is white, or at least more white then the others.
This filter has been in the car for 30.000 km (approx 18750 miles).

Is there a brand of diesel fuel that you guys recommend ? Or a brand that you see as being bad fuel ? Last year when i had those problems i tanked at a Lukoil station. I normally never go there but the car was empty so i had to fill it. Then i always started filling up at a very small gas station near here. It is not a famous brand (Pollet), but i know the owner and i never had any problems. Last time i filled up the pump was making a lot of noise like the gas station itself was almost empty. I am really hoping problems will, just like last year, again be gone once the car is refueled.
One guy once told me i should take Shell V-power but there isn't a Shell station near here. A few times i drove to a Shell station only to find out they were out of V-power so i had to take on the normal Shell diesel fuel. After 3 times i gave up on it and started taking fuel at the Pollet station 1 mile from where i live. I had no problems at all for an entire year.


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

Well, the wife is home. She did about 60 miles today and the petrol gauge did not move at all. Yesterday i drove the car and it said i still had approx 120 miles before i had to refuel, not it still says 120 miles.
That gauge always drops to fast, except when you want it to drop lol.


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## diesel (Jun 8, 2013)

Do keep us posted, I would be curious to see what the root cause is. What is fuel quality in general like where you live?


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

Good i think. Belgium is wedged in between Germany, France and Holland so it's the centre of western Europe. I am 42 years old, got my driving licence when i was 18 and drive approx. 70.000 miles a year with my car (now Chevrolet, before Citroën and before that Ford, all diesels), my Mitsubishi pick-up diesel, my Fiat camper diesel and several Mercedes trucks at work. I never had a broken fuel pump.

I now am starting to think in that direction though. Or electronical. Today the engine light went on twice but it immediatly went out. The car made a beeping sound and for a second "Code 84" came on the screen but it immediately went away, the glow plug light went on once while driving and the car even refused to start when my wife wanted to come home from work. It started when she switched off the radio but i have no idea if that has something to do with it. Maybe it was just a coincidence.

Anyway... still 90 miles to go. Tomorrow i will fuel the car if it then still has problems i will go to a Chevrolet dealer.


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## Aussie (Sep 16, 2012)

PeterW said:


> Good i think. Belgium is wedged in between Germany, France and Holland so it's the centre of western Europe. I am 42 years old, got my driving licence when i was 18 and drive approx. 70.000 miles a year with my car (now Chevrolet, before Citroën and before that Ford, all diesels), my Mitsubishi pick-up diesel, my Fiat camper diesel and several Mercedes trucks at work. I never had a broken fuel pump.
> 
> I now am starting to think in that direction though. Or electronical. Today the engine light went on twice but it immediatly went out. The car made a beeping sound and for a second "Code 84" came on the screen but it immediately went away, the glow plug light went on once while driving and the car even refused to start when my wife wanted to come home from work. It started when she switched off the radio but i have no idea if that has something to do with it. Maybe it was just a coincidence.
> 
> Anyway... still 90 miles to go. Tomorrow i will fuel the car if it then still has problems i will go to a Chevrolet dealer.


Before you go to the dealer, check that your battery cables are on tight and not corroded. A bad connection could fool your car into switching off the fuel to the engine just long enough for it to stall.


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

As you might see in this pic (http://i57.tinypic.com/20adlcn.jpg , sorry about the quality-took this pic with my phone, not my camera) the cables and everything are like new. I always took very good care of my car  .
I however maybe must add that the battery is not any more in premium condition. Last year i took the car to the garage for small maintenance (oil + oil filter) and the guy said that my battery needed replacing. He said : "you can hear that the start engine isn't turning as fast as it should when you start the car". I agreed with him but i laughed in his face when he told me what he charged for a new battery. "I will replace it myself i said". So i went where i always buy my filters, brake pads etc and they only asked me 1/3 of the price the other guy asked me. But they also added that i was stupid to replace the battery because it was far from dead. It still had 60 amps start power while it should have 75 amps. I went back last week to have the battery checked again and it still is at 60 amps so according to them replacing is not needed.
However... i'm almost certain that when i go to the Chevrolet dealer they will say the battery needs changing. But i don't believe that that will solve the problem. The battery still has 12.5 volts and with the engine running the alternator still gives 14 volts so i don't believe that the battery is the problem.


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## Aussie (Sep 16, 2012)

I still think it is something electrical as other things do strange stuff. Put an extra cable from the negative terminal to the body of the car and see if that helps.


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## diesel (Jun 8, 2013)

In the US all the 2011-2014 Cruzes (I think) were affected by an improperly crimped negative battery cable. I just had this done on mine. I wonder if yours may have the same problem.


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

ok.. car was refueled today. Result is that now the car is completely undriveable. It stalls, it shutters, alarm bells ring, dashboard lights (glow plugs light, check engine light, clean dfp light) go on and off and the car gives error codes that immediately dissapear. To be more correct, error 82 and 84.

That was what the wife told me when she got home. So i jumped in and wanted to go to the Chevrolet dealer. I was only 1 km away and i could hear that the dfp filter was cleaning itself so i decided to keep on driving. I could not see any error codes, the only thing i saw was the glow plugs light that went on once. Then, the dfp filter stopped cleaning itself, i got an error code 84, the engine light went on and the error code was gone. Problem is, the engine light stays now. It decided to stop at the nearest garage which was, by coincidence, exactly the garage where i bought the car. I went in fuming mad. This is the 4th time in 3 years that i have the car that this happens. Last time the engine light stayed on it was the dfp filter that was clogged. It always costs a lot of money cleaning that thing. I'm so tired of it.
No idea what i will do next. The guy from who i bought the car offered to take it back. He offered me a reasonable price if i agreed to by another car from him. Problem is... i can't see anything to my interest. I love the Cruze, its looks, its interieur, the way it drives, everything. But i'm fed up with the reliability of it. He has a few other Cruze's in his garage, both diesel and petrol powered, but to be honoust i don't want to buy a new Cruze.

So, what's next.. I have no idea yet. The garagist is going to contact a big Chevrolet dealer and i'm going back there tomorrow evening. I have no idea what i will do next. I'm 99% convinced that it again is the dfp filter.The garage where i went today tried to read it but the OBD link they have does not give enough information. According to them there was a problem with the air-intake system but the problem was gone. The engine light still is luminated so i think there still is a problem.....


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## diesel (Jun 8, 2013)

PeterW said:


> ok.. car was refueled today. Result is that now the car is completely undriveable. It stalls, it shutters, alarm bells ring, dashboard lights (glow plugs light, check engine light, clean dfp light) go on and off and the car gives error codes that immediately dissapear. To be more correct, error 82 and 84.
> 
> That was what the wife told me when she got home. So i jumped in and wanted to go to the Chevrolet dealer. I was only 1 km away and i could hear that the dfp filter was cleaning itself so i decided to keep on driving. I could not see any error codes, the only thing i saw was the glow plugs light that went on once. Then, the dfp filter stopped cleaning itself, i got an error code 84, the engine light went on and the error code was gone. Problem is, the engine light stays now. It decided to stop at the nearest garage which was, by coincidence, exactly the garage where i bought the car. I went in fuming mad. This is the 4th time in 3 years that i have the car that this happens. Last time the engine light stayed on it was the dfp filter that was clogged. It always costs a lot of money cleaning that thing. I'm so tired of it.
> No idea what i will do next. The guy from who i bought the car offered to take it back. He offered me a reasonable price if i agreed to by another car from him. Problem is... i can't see anything to my interest. I love the Cruze, its looks, its interieur, the way it drives, everything. But i'm fed up with the reliability of it. He has a few other Cruze's in his garage, both diesel and petrol powered, but to be honoust i don't want to buy a new Cruze.
> ...


What oil are you running in it?


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

Total Longlife 5W30 ACEA C3

Went to the Chevrolet dealer today. They are going to check the car tomorrow.

What they told me....
The light of the glow plugs luminating is an indication of problems with the DPF filter
The car stalling is not normal, but maybe when the DPF filter is completely blocked and the car can't get rid of the exhaust fumes it might cause the car to stall.
Why it only happens when turning right is very strange. They think dirt is in the fuel tank and it comes into the fuel filter when turning right.

They offered me 4300 euro for the car. I'm totally gutted. The car is like new, not a dent, not a scratch, nothing. It is 5 years old and has 65.000 km (40.000 miles). I payed 13.900 euro 2.5 years ago. I have no idea what i should do next....
Fixing the car is not an option. This is the 3rd time. Fixing it is good for a few months and i'm back at the garage.
Sell it ? For that price. Please...
removing the dpf filter might be an option but that's expensive and in Belgium we have to have our cars checked every year. They check emissions so i don't know if it will pass the test if i do.


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## Danny5 (Dec 22, 2011)

I am pretty sure there are European companies that specialize in DPF delete modifications to the ECU. A company that does this can tell you if it is legal in your country to do so. I am willing to bet that flashing the ECU to remove the DPF is cheaper than buying a new one. 

I am curious to see what the Chevy dealer states.


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## diesel (Jun 8, 2013)

As much as it sucks, it might be best to cut your losses on this one. It doesn't seem like there are any good mechanics around you who can properly diagnose the problem. I know what it's like to get to the end of your rope with a car.


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

Little update...

The car is in the garage. With an official Chevrolet dealer. they called me yesterday. They did not have much time but the hooked it to the computer and it gave an error on the "pressure-difference-sensor". They ordered that piece and are going to install it next week. I forgot to ask if the DPF-filter needs emptying so i have no idea if that will boost costs yet.

Last week i wrote a mail to Chevrolet Belgium stating that i was not at all happy with the car. I can understand the DPF-filter gettting clogged up because i don't drive enough long distances but i can not understand why a car will stall without any reason. It is dangerous because when the car stalls, the steering is gone. I gave them my name, phone number, adress, the chassis number of the car, what Chevrolet dealer i go to,....
Yesterday evening i got a phone call from Chevrolet Belgium. They contacted the dealer to know if he allready found a problem. They also noticed that my car was recalled for a security issue with the right hand side drive shaft. They said to the Chevrolet dealer that he needed to fix that as well. They did not think that that caused the stalling, but they called me to say that they informed the dealer of that problem. I must say i'm impressed with the service of Chevrolet at this time.

What to do next ? I have no idea.
Selling the car ? I love driving it. Besides.. how much will i get for it ? Inregistring a diesel vehicle is getting very expensive in Belgium because diesels are bad for the enviroment. Up to 2 years ago everybody in Belgium bought a diesel because it was much cheaper then a petrol engined car. Problem now is that everybody wants a petrol engined car, and on the 2nd hand market you only find diesel cars. So prices of diesels are tumbling.
Another option is to keep it, but i'm afraid that in a few months time i will be again in the garage with a clogged up DPF filter.
The 3rd option is, like Danny says, to have the DPF filter removed. That way i will be able to keep on driving the car. I really am playing with that idea but a few things are holding me back. First off all, it is illegal ofcourse. But that doesn't stop several companies to do it anyway. The second reason is that not all tuners say that it is possible. I allready contacted 4 tuners. 2 say that it is possible, the other say that they are not sure. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. Problem is that in Belgium we have to go to have our cars checked. They check lights, brakes, suspension, etc etc. They also check emission levels. According to 2 of the tuners it is no problem at all. One even says that the emission level the allowed emission for a Euro4 car, what the 2010 Cruze is, 1.5 is. Even without the DPF filter the emission of the car will be in between 0.1 and 0.3. Well beneath the max allowed level. 2 of the 4 tuners say that it will be tight to get it below 1.5 . Removing that DPF filter is a big gamble. It isn't expensive (about the same amount as having it cleaned) but i will have to go to technical control next year in february. What if emissions are to high ? My car will be worthless...


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

And again an update. After 2 weeks i finally got the Cruze back. There were problems with a few mecanics having the flu which is why it took longer then expected. So what have they done ? Well... they changed the right hand side drive shaft (payed by Chevrolet because it was a callback) and they changed the exhaust pressure difference sensor which was broken. The DPF filter was nog clogged, but the computer thought it was because of the broken sensor. I asked if it was possible that the reason the car stalled was because of this broken sensor. According to the garage it was possible. I had to pay 240 euro, which was a lot less then i expected.
So i drove home, a happy camper. The Cruze drove like a dream, like i'm used to. Suddently, after approx 40 km... the engine light went on and the car stalled. This time in a left hand turn, not a right hand. First time that this has happened. But what's worse.. nothing happened when i turned the key. Before the car went into the garage i could easily restart the car after it stalled, now nothing. When i switched on the contact everything was normal, but when i turned the key to start the car all lights went out. Inside, outside, even the heater fan stopped blowing. 
I called my wife and she came and gave me a tow with the Jeep. I towed the car back home and started searching myself. I took out the starter relais and checked for some loose cables or connections but could not find anything. I took apart the 2 big plugs next to the battery, i checked mass cables, nothing helped. The Cruze was completely dead. I went inside to have dinner. Went back outside an hour later... got in the Cruze and it started like everything was normal. I have no idea what to do next. Check all cables again i think....


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## Aussie (Sep 16, 2012)

Is it possible that the fuel pump is having pressure problems?


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

Everything is possible. But with the starter engine not even working the problem looks more electrical or electronical.


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## diesel (Jun 8, 2013)

Man, I hate to hear about all this trouble you are having. The next thing I woudl do is have the battery load tested. Your car is old enough that the original battery could be bad.


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

On a Belgium forum i found a guy who had the exact same problems as me (stalling, car not starting, fuel meter going crazy,...) . He found out that one of the big connectors left of the battery was not fitted properly and that some dirt had come into that connector.

http://s1.postimg.org/yg3bpqhf2/037_1.jpg

I checked those connectors but sadly mine are in optimum condition. That must mean that on the other side of that cable i maybe have a loose connection. Sadly there are over 100 pins in each connector so the search will be endless. And that even is "if" there is a problem with a connector on the other side. Maybe the problem is inside a cable. That will make it impossible to find it. My guess is that it must be close to the steering wheel because it always happens when i turn the wheel. I removed the interior but i could not find anything. I really am getting tired of this car...


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## Aussie (Sep 16, 2012)

What type of steering does your car have? If it is electric it may have something to do with it. Also have you tried turning the stability control off as it works by cutting power to the engine and braking individual wheels, if it has a fault it might think turning the wheel is a loss of control and cut the power? You can turn it off by holding the traction control button down for seven seconds.


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

It's hydraulic steering, not electric. 
I have been driving the car for a week now and it's going just fine. Untill today.. it stalled on me again . Again in a right had corner. I just had to stop it, restart it and everything is back to normal. Looks like another trip to the garage tomorrow....


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## diesel (Jun 8, 2013)

I tried some googling on this (as I am sure you have) and didn't come up with much. Air in the lines? Fuel pump not holding pressure? Almost sounds like something that you might need to hook up a computer to so that it can capture real time data while it happens. I wonder if your dealer could/would do that.


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## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

I was going to suggest bad fuel pump but with the description of everything failing at once I'd start by replacing that OEM battery. It's possible for a battery to test good yet still be unable to provide sufficient amperage to drive the various components in the car. Also, your battery really is due for replacement simply based on age - it's 5 years old.


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

OK, went back to the garage today to hook the car to the computer. It showed an error "shortcircuit or bad communication between battery and starter relais". That error came from the time when the car stalled and refused to restart. The 2nd time the car stalled (yesterday) gave no error. That time the car restarted without a problem.
They cleaned the connectors of the fusebox and the connectors of the ECU and they told me that the battery was not in optimum condition and that it should be replaced. They however had not time to do it immediately.
No problem for me, i always buy my batteries elsewhere so i drove there. They measured my battery and normally it should give 720 ampères. It only gave 580 ampère. The battery is not new, but normally that should be enough especially when the engine is running. I had the battery replaced anyway.

I was talking to the mecanics over there and they told me that the servopump is steered electrically, so it is possible that the servopump stalls when you ask to much power and the battery can't give it. But normally, with the engine running, you have more then enough power since it is the alternator that is giving the power. Maybe the power given by the alternator fluctuates and maybe it is that what causes the stalling. However, since my old battery still had 12.7 Volts (on top of that it is foggy today so i drove there with all the lights, including fog lights on) they said that the alternator must be in good condition. They measured it when i had the new battery installed and it gave sufficient power however, that does not mean that there are some drops in that power. Like Diesel says, hooking it up to a computer to capture real time data would be a very smart thing to do.

For now i have the new battery installed. I took one a bit stronger then the previous one (760 amps) so now i just have to wait and see. If it does not solve the problem i will have to take a closer look at the alternator i think. I will keep you guys updated.

If it really is a battery that is low on power that causes the car to stall i will probably be pissed though. My wife is always on the road with that car and, as you might imagine, when the engine stalls she is not strong enough to keep control over the car since the power steering is gone. Having a low battery should not be a reason for a car to stall.


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## operator (Jan 2, 2015)

If a low battery stalls a car then i could imagine that you would not be the first to experience this as there would be multiple traffic fatalities reported over the years and a massive recall. Best of luck to you on pinning down the culprit. Electrical issues are always the worst and hardest to pin point.


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## Aussie (Sep 16, 2012)

Once running a diesel doesn't rely on electricity to run, so the problem is either something is causing the fuel to stop, or the motor is being loaded up to the point of stalling. Power steering can do this at low RPM if it has a fault or is held on full lock.


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## diesel (Jun 8, 2013)

Aussie said:


> Once running a diesel doesn't rely on electricity to run, so the problem is either something is causing the fuel to stop, or the motor is being loaded up to the point of stalling. Power steering can do this at low RPM if it has a fault or is held on full lock.


Someone correct me if I am wrong, but modern diesels require as much if not more electricity to run. Our injectors and other various bits are controlled and operated electronically.


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## Robby (Mar 1, 2013)

diesel said:


> Someone correct me if I am wrong, but modern diesels require as much if not more electricity to run. Our injectors and other various bits are controlled and operated electronically.



You are correct.

The old, mechanical fuel injected diesels are being confused with todays, highly electronic controlled designs.

Rob


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

operator said:


> If a low battery stalls a car then i could imagine that you would not be the first to experience this as there would be multiple traffic fatalities reported over the years and a massive recall. Best of luck to you on pinning down the culprit. Electrical issues are always the worst and hardest to pin point.


My thoughts exactly. I don't believe for a minute that a battery that still has 12.5 volts but delivers less amps then it should might cause a car to stall. Half of the cars on the road have batteries that produce less amps then they did when they were new. If all of those cats would stall it would be very chaotic on the road.
I had to replace it because the people at Chevrolet insisted that that was the problem. Sorry, i don't believe it.

They also cleaned the connector of the fusebox. I can believe that there is an issue with that. I found out today that the Opel (Vauxhall) Astra J has problems with that connector. The Chevrolet Cruze is not an Astra J but those 2 cars are closely related. I still don't understand why it would happen only in right hand corners but ok. It's really all a guess at this point in time.


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

Aussie said:


> Once running a diesel doesn't rely on electricity to run, so the problem is either something is causing the fuel to stop, or the motor is being loaded up to the point of stalling. Power steering can do this at low RPM if it has a fault or is held on full lock.


No need to hold it on full lock. Just a bend to the right was enough for the car to stall. If the clutch was engaged ofcourse. Where i live there is a small kink to the right just before i have to stop to give way to other cars. So at that corner i am always slowing down allost coling to a full stop. So the car is always in 2nd gear with my foot on the clutch pedal. In that kink the engine would stall every time. Since i have been to the garage it has been better but not solved. I hope that with the new battery and the cleaned connectors it is completely fixed.

I will post a pic of that kink in the road later on. When my kid gives me my computer back lol. I'm typing on my phone now.


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

Here is that kink where i could stall the car every time i wanted : http://goo.gl/maps/WFnby
Shift back to 2nd, keep the clutch engaged, turn right and the engine would stall. As you can see, nothing to do with full lock.


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## diesel (Jun 8, 2013)

A specific right hand turn would flex the body in a certain way. It could be causing a short in a questionable connection. Hopefully you have it resolved with the battery/connector. Are you getting the updated negative cable too?


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

I really think it is a questionable connection. But where..? That i don't know. Besides driving to the Chevrolet dealer almost daily i'm also still in contact with the Chevrolet importer in Belgium. They call me every 3 days for an update on the car. But neither of the 2 talked about the updated negative cable.
I'm going away with the camper now a few days. Will keep you guys updated on what happens next and if the problems are solved.


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## operator (Jan 2, 2015)

Wow driving down the road on google maps i would like to go off topic quickly to make a comment that **** u all believe in solar!!


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

That is because it is always sunny in Belgium 

Just kidding ofcourse. About 8 years ago the goverment Belgium decided that they wanted to do something good for the enviroment. So they wanted people to buy solar. If you bought solar they gave hughe bonusses for every kW you produced. Get this straight... You buy solar, you don't have to buy electricity any longer and the Belgian goverment payed you for the electricty you produced (and which you used yourself ofcourse).
Now, 8 years later there is a big crisis. Way to many people have bought those solar panels and it costs Belgium now a lot of money. Therefor prices for electricity have skyrocketed. Who bought solar panels ? Right, the rich. People who had the money to spare. Who now has to pay for those bonusses ? The people who didn't have the money to spare because those bonuses are now included in the price of electricity. You can understand that a lot of people are not very impressed with the situation over here.

Enough off-topic. Back to the Cruze 
Just got back from holiday (with the camper) so i haven't driven the Cruze yet. Just back and forward the store, a few kilometers. It hasn't stalled yet...


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## Aussie (Sep 16, 2012)

PeterW said:


> That is because it is always sunny in Belgium
> 
> Just kidding ofcourse. About 8 years ago the goverment Belgium decided that they wanted to do something good for the enviroment. So they wanted people to buy solar. If you bought solar they gave hughe bonusses for every kW you produced. Get this straight... You buy solar, you don't have to buy electricity any longer and the Belgian goverment payed you for the electricty you produced (and which you used yourself ofcourse).
> Now, 8 years later there is a big crisis. Way to many people have bought those solar panels and it costs Belgium now a lot of money. Therefor prices for electricity have skyrocketed. Who bought solar panels ? Right, the rich. People who had the money to spare. Who now has to pay for those bonusses ? The people who didn't have the money to spare because those bonuses are now included in the price of electricity. You can understand that a lot of people are not very impressed with the situation over here.


Australia did that too, but the government has reduced the rebate because it was costing to much.


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## ShaunFourie (Jul 28, 2015)

Hi Peter

Did you manage to find the problem on your Cruze, mine is doing the same even after being at Chev four times already.

Regards


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## Harpes1 (Feb 25, 2016)

*Potential solution*

Hi, don't know if this topic is still live my Holden Cruze (g'day from Aus) auto had this exact same problem and after it's 4th trip back they replaced the engine wiring loom, apparently battery acid had leaked and caused the loom to develop an intermittent short which was activated by the movement of a sharp right turn. So next time get them to check the engine bay loom that runs by the battery compartment for any damage, hope this helps.
-Liam


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## driver-start (Oct 13, 2016)

I also faced this problem in diesel model.As guide me what will i do?


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## driver-start (Oct 13, 2016)

Stalling problem is common in cruze shall i buy or not?


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## Aussie (Sep 16, 2012)

driver-start said:


> Stalling problem is common in cruze shall i buy or not?


Stalling is not common in a diesel, I would not buy it until the problem is fixed.


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## diesel (Jun 8, 2013)

driver-start said:


> Stalling problem is common in cruze shall i buy or not?


I believe the stalling mostly affects the older, non-US models. Haven't really seen that happen on the US models.


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

Oh boy.. been a while since i've been here and it seems like i'm not the only one with this problem. I have no idea if anyone is still interested but i think my problem is solved. I hope so at least lol. Let me recap..

I started having this problem back in january 2015. I have a 2010 Cruze 2.0 LT (150 hp). So my car was exactly 5 years old when the problem manifested itself. Since my wife always drives with this car and since the Cruze has wide tyres i was not at all happy with this problem. She is not strong enough to turn the steering wheel without the help of the servo-steering so this was a big safety concern for me. I contacted Chevrolet and they wanted to know what this problem was. They were very helpfull and after a few visits to the garage they advised me to change the battery since it, after 5 years, lost some of its capacity. So i did, and indeed, my problem was solved. The car stopped stalling and everything seemed to be perfect. I did not believe it because every car has some sort of energy management. If there is a problem with the electric power the first things that stop working are airco and blower for the heating. Stalling is never an option. Well, at that time i stopped updating this thread since my problem seemed to be solved.

Fast forward 2 years. January 2017. The same problem manifested itself again. No way my battery is bad after only 2 years. Went back to the shop where i bought my battery and had it tested since it has 3 years of warranty but they told me the same thing. "Your battery is in very good condition after 2 years. It is not new, but we can't replace it under warranty since it is not broken at all. It is what you might expect from a battery after 2 years". I did not go in discussion since i agreed fully with them. The problem is not the battery, it's the car. Just like in 2015.
So... I contacted Chevrolet for some answers. 2 years ago i installed a new battery, but it seems like my problem was not solved. I want to ad that last summer my oldest son got his driver licence so he sometimes uses that car as well. That makes my wife and my son that are on the road with a car that is not safe at all if you ask me.
Chevrolet mailed me back saying there were 2 security-updates that were not done on my car. Normally does updates are done when you bring your car to a Chevrolet dealer for maintenance (oil service etcetera) but since i do those things myself those updates have never been done.
Like i said, 2 security updates
1. OSB14-04-76 (possible leakage of brake fluid)
2. OSB16-01-015 (loss of ignition source)

Loss of ignition ? That got my curious so i started looking on the internet. This is what i found :



> *Great Britain :
> The issue :* Chevrolet investigations have identified an issue with a small number of Cruze vehicles equipped with the 2.0L diesel engine that may intermittently experience a condition with loss of ignition source. This causes the engine to stall without any early warning.
> 
> *Chevrolet's action :* To rectify this issue they will replace the battery tray and ensure the engine control unit connector is secure and sealed.



and



> *
> Australia : *A condition has been identified whereby, over an extended period of time, fretting corrosion may develop in a wiring connector at the Engine Control Module (ECM). The vehicle’s engine may stall either while stationary or while driving at low speed. This may pose an increased accident and injury risk.



Well... this sounds familiar. So, i contacted the Chevrolet dealer. They were not very pleased with me (i can understand them since i normally never go there) and they could not understand where i got this information. But after a little discussion, they did those updates and i did not have to pay them. And even if i had to pay them, i would have been happy to do it if this would finally solve my problem. 
The car is 7 years now and i hope i can finally let my wife and son drive it without worrying the engine will stall and they would be in an accident because of it. The update has been done last week and since the car hasn't stalled once. Fingers crossed. I hope it's fixed.

Now, i don't want to attack Chevrolet but i think it is strange that i was never informed of these *safety*updates. Loss of brake fluid and loss of power seems kind of important if you ask me. I get advertising mail from Chevrolet, why did i never got a lettre saying something was fundamentally wrong with the safety of my vehicle ? Like i said, i don't want to attack Chevrolet. No other car manufacturer does this, so why should Chevrolet ? I just think all car manufacturers should be obligated to keep there customers updated on safety issues with their car.

No idea if anyone is still interested in my story. I just thought i'd share. Maybe someone else will benefit from it.


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## Aussie (Sep 16, 2012)

PeterW, you didn't say if this happened in summer or winter. I ask this because many cars have problems that show up when the weather turns cold. My 2012 Holden Cruze diesel still has the original battery with no problems. Also my steering is hydraulic and not affected by electrical problems. My engine may also be different to the one you have.

View attachment 223378


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

It always happens in january, which is in the middle of winter over here in Belgium. Temperatures are always around the freezing point at that time of year. When they are below 0° celsius it is usually dry, when they are aboven 0° celsius it is usually very humid. Humidity might also help with this problem i think.

My guess is that there is a problem with a connector close to the battery. With a very good, new battery there is enough power to overcome this bad connection, but from the moment the battery loses a little power the problem occurs. I winter time (when you always drive with the lights on and the blower blowing warm air) and if you often do short trips the battery loses a little power and that is enough to make this problem appear and to stall the car.
All good and well, but i don't agree with this problem. A car should never ever just stall when driving. There is something seriously wrong with the car if it just stalls for no reason at all. Anyway, i'm glad Chevrolet has found a problem and i'm very glad i they fixed this problem on my car. Or at least, i hope that this time it is finally fixed.

And yes, i have another engine


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## Aussie (Sep 16, 2012)

That engine looks like the one used in Australia from 2009-2010. Ours was a single cam 4 valve unit with the same engine cover. The one in my car is the series II with duel cams VVT and chain drive for the cams. It also has 120kw and 360nm of torque.


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## PeterW (Jan 19, 2015)

It has 110 kW and yes, it's a 2010 car.


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## swedgemon (Jan 16, 2017)

Returning to buying diesel fuel, or gasoline...when you pull in to a fuel station and see an oil company tanker making a fuel drop, it is good practice to either drive to the next station or wait until his drop is complete. In almost EVERY underground fuel tank there is an inch or two of water, plus some sediment. The fuel pickup line is usually about 4" from the bottom of the tank, so usually the water is harmless. During a fuel drop, however, the water (and/or other sediment) will be roiled up and picked up by the station fuel pump and delivered into your vehicle tank. I worked for a major oil company for 35 years and their guidance was to wait 15 minutes per foot of fuel for water and sediment to settle back to the bottom of the tank. YMMV - luck to all !!


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## diesel (Jun 8, 2013)

Thanks for the update, PeterW.

*To all USA diesel owners* - The problems described in this thread do *not* affect US cars.


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## Lench (Apr 11, 2018)

I've had that problem but my problem is graver. 

As a possible answer to your question, the Chevy Cruze has a Steering Angle Sensor which is connected to the BCM (Body Control Module) which also is controls the Theft Deterrent circuit, which may cut power to the engine.

Another possibility is a loose fuse, faulty ignition relay or poor grounding.

But, you're in a better position to try other possibilities, like changing your fuel station.


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