# Darn thing won't start



## robertbick (Jan 1, 2011)

Can you use the Lemon law on a demo car?


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## casey67 (Apr 20, 2011)

robertbick said:


> Can you use the Lemon law on a demo car?


About one more problem and I'm going to find out!!


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## scaredpoet (Nov 29, 2010)

Silly suggestion, but worth checking anyway: is the key bent in any way when you're putting it in the ignition to start? There was a TSB on this a while back. The key needs to be fully extended and locked outwards for it to start the car.


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## audog (Apr 28, 2011)

Service Dept found a defective, from the factory, battery in mine. Not saying that's it, but if it can happen once............


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## mike1415 (Jan 10, 2013)

*Cruze No Start*

I have a 2011 Cruze, with about 12,000 miles on it. Two days ago I went into a store, and when I came out it wouldn't start... no crank ... nothing. Tried jumping it, but nothing... no crank. It sat there for about an hour and still would no start. Finally had it picked up and hauled to the dealership. They looked at it the next day and lo and behold - it started! No sign of any battery of charging system failures, and nothing else "apparently" wrong with the ignition system. Needless to say, I am not a happy camper.


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## Chevy Customer Care (Oct 29, 2011)

mike1415 said:


> I have a 2011 Cruze, with about 12,000 miles on it. Two days ago I went into a store, and when I came out it wouldn't start... no crank ... nothing. Tried jumping it, but nothing... no crank. It sat there for about an hour and still would no start. Finally had it picked up and hauled to the dealership. They looked at it the next day and lo and behold - it started! No sign of any battery of charging system failures, and nothing else "apparently" wrong with the ignition system. Needless to say, I am not a happy camper.



mike1415,
I would like to apologize for the issues that you have experienced with your Cruze. I would be happy to look into this for you. Can you please send me a PM with your name, address, phone number, VIN, current mileage and the name of your dealer? I look forward to hearing back from you.
Thank you,
Stacy Chevrolet Customer Service


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## mrc100 (Jan 24, 2013)

*Won't Crank*

Well this morning my 2013 Cruze with 800 miles would not crank. All the gauges light up radio etc but just clicks a relay and does not crank. I have road side assistance coming out this afternoon to cart her off to the dealer. Probably something simple but still a bummer. Will keep the thread posted on the outcome.


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## Lady12 (Sep 7, 2012)

Happily my car started for me this morniing at -16 degrees F in NNY. While it didn't sound 'happy', it began to sound normal after a couple of minutes, and allowed me to drive on down the road. My first experience with this vehicle in frigid temps.


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## mrc100 (Jan 24, 2013)

mrc100 said:


> Well this morning my 2013 Cruze with 800 miles would not crank. All the gauges light up radio etc but just clicks a relay and does not crank. I have road side assistance coming out this afternoon to cart her off to the dealer. Probably something simple but still a bummer. Will keep the thread posted on the outcome.


Update

Figured it was a simple fix and i was right. My Cruze is push button start so i was wondering if the auto trans was not finding park. So i used a screw driver to open up the park release and shifted to neutral and tried starting the car and voila she started right up. So all we need is a little adjustment and we'll be a-ok.


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## dfwtxpatrick (Apr 22, 2012)

My dad has the 2011 SRX Caddi and he's had the same issue 2x now.

I told him when he takes it to the dealer to have them adjust the linkage now matter what. 

Glad you're up and running.


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## Chevy Customer Care (Oct 29, 2011)

mrc100 said:


> Update
> 
> Figured it was a simple fix and i was right. My Cruze is push button start so i was wondering if the auto trans was not finding park. So i used a screw driver to open up the park release and shifted to neutral and tried starting the car and voila she started right up. So all we need is a little adjustment and we'll be a-ok.





mrc100,
I would like to apologize for the issues that you have experienced with your Cruze. Has your dealer had a chance to look into this for you? I would like you to keep me posted on this. If you have any questions please feel free to contact me anytime.
Thank you,
Stacy Chevrolet Customer Service


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## missstarree (Jul 1, 2013)

*won't start*

I've been having trouble with my 2011 cruze not starting. I get a click and that's it. All the lights come on but the car just won't turn over. Once it's like thst the only way to start the car is to get a jump start. Had the battery checked and it's good. Not sure what could be the problem. It's happening at least once a week now.


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## sciphi (Aug 26, 2011)

First off, welcome!

Secondly, have you had any changes to the battery done lately or any work done to the car where the battery cables would need to be unbolted from the battery? 

Lastly, who checked the battery, and how did they check it?


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## Chevy Customer Care (Oct 29, 2011)

Hi missstarree

Have you taken your Cruze to have this issue be diagnosed by the dealer? Please let me know if you need assistance locating or calling a dealer. Just send me a message and I will assist you.

Jackie
Chevrolet Customer Care


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## chevycruze2012 (Nov 13, 2012)

casey67 said:


> Drove it two days ago, went out today and all I get is a click! Checked voltage info and that's fine, so had to call a wrecker to tow it to the dealership. Just had it in there two weeks ago because the "check engine" light stayed on and they found that the thermostat regulator or something was defective.
> 
> I've only put about 500 miles on it since I got it (it was a demo car with 5,000 when I got it). This makes 5 trips back and forth since I've had it. They do give me a Malibu to drive while it's in the shop, so that is good. Just a nuisance. Wish I could have kept driving Pontiacs as I never had an issue with any of the 6 that I owned.


My LT did this same exact thing. I took into my dealership and they first diagnosed it as the radio..they put in a new radio and that wasn't it...so I brought it back because it did it again the very next day, and my advisor calls me later that afternoon and said it did have two dead cells in the battery and it was the radio control module. They put in a new battery and radio control module and that seemed to do the trick. I hope this all helps =]


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## beancountr (Sep 28, 2014)

Can you explain what you mean by "opened up the park release"? How do i go about doing that?


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## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

beancountr said:


> Can you explain what you mean by "opened up the park release"? How do i go about doing that?


Welcome to the forums! 

Page 9-24 in the book in hand or 214 in this pdf...

http://www.chevrolet.com/content/da...rship/Manuals and Videos/02_pdf/2k13cruze.pdf


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## henshawjc (Oct 23, 2014)

*Here we go*



mrc100 said:


> Update
> 
> Figured it was a simple fix and i was right. My Cruze is push button start so i was wondering if the auto trans was not finding park. So i used a screw driver to open up the park release and shifted to neutral and tried starting the car and voila she started right up. So all we need is a little adjustment and we'll be a-ok.


My 2013 Cruz would not start this morning only 10K miles, after reading all the posts on starting problems I'm a little concerned, Jumped it and if fired right up, all voltages check good.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

henshawjc said:


> My 2013 Cruz would not start this morning only 10K miles, after reading all the posts on starting problems I'm a little concerned, Jumped it and if fired right up, all voltages check good.


Have the battery checked...and check your battery cable and ground connections


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## Chevy Customer Care (Oct 29, 2011)

henshawjc said:


> My 2013 Cruz would not start this morning only 10K miles, after reading all the posts on starting problems I'm a little concerned, Jumped it and if fired right up, all voltages check good.


Oh no! Sorry to hear this, henshawjc. We're glad you got your Cruze running, but definitely understand how this must've been upsetting. If there's anything we can do to look further into this just send us a PM with your VIN and mileage. We're happy to help.

Amber N.
Chevrolet Customer Care


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## Atexan11 (Aug 11, 2012)

My Daughters 2012 Cruze wouldnt start when she was at Target. It would just click when you turned the key and she got a anti-theft message. She locked and unlocked her car with the fob and then it started. The next day again it wouldnt start tried everything but jumping it. Yesterday it did it again and said to check Power Steering. Last night i tried it and it started right up, but now i don't trust it and i'm afarid she'll get stranded somewhere. I'm goin gto the dealer tomorrow. Any adice?


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

Atexan11 said:


> My Daughters 2012 Cruze wouldnt start when she was at Target. It would just click when you turned the key and she got a anti-theft message. She locked and unlocked her car with the fob and then it started. The next day again it wouldnt start tried everything but jumping it. Yesterday it did it again and said to check Power Steering. Last night i tried it and it started right up, but now i don't trust it and i'm afarid she'll get stranded somewhere. I'm goin gto the dealer tomorrow. Any adice?


Loose cable connection or bad cable. Both have been fairly common on 12-13 model years. 

Have the battery load tested as well.


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## Atexan11 (Aug 11, 2012)

I hope that's what it is jblackburn. It's actually been a nice car and this is the first issue we've had with it.


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## Chevy Customer Care (Oct 29, 2011)

Atexan11 said:


> My Daughters 2012 Cruze wouldnt start when she was at Target. It would just click when you turned the key and she got a anti-theft message. She locked and unlocked her car with the fob and then it started. The next day again it wouldnt start tried everything but jumping it. Yesterday it did it again and said to check Power Steering. Last night i tried it and it started right up, but now i don't trust it and i'm afarid she'll get stranded somewhere. I'm goin gto the dealer tomorrow. Any adice?


Hey there,

Very sorry to hear about this! Please let us know what the outcome was, and if further assistance is needed from us. We would be happy to assist you the best way possible. 

Patsy G
Chevrolet Customer Care


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## ksmit72 (Oct 15, 2015)

I have a 2011 Chevy Cruze, I have had it for 3 years with several recalls, factory, and power train issues, I had a small dime sized rock go through the bottom of the radiator and AC condenser while on the highway, and now it wont start, I have checked the battery, starter, and alternator and all of them are good. I can start the car after jumping it and it will work for a day, and the next morning will be back to not starting. The battery reads 12.4-13.6 Volts and when running 14 Volts. I am wondering if its something to do with the anti theft system and will try locking and unlocking it to see if that is the issue. Other than that I am out of ideas and will probably take it to the shop again, for the 6th time this year and the 9th time in 2 years.


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## ChevyGuy (Dec 13, 2014)

ksmit72 said:


> I have checked the battery,


How did you check it? Voltage only tells part of the story. You need a load test.




ksmit72 said:


> I can start the car after jumping it and it will work for a day, and the next morning will be back to not starting.


Sounds like a classic weak battery. Since you've had the car 3 years, it's about time for it to go. The fact that a jump gets it going sure points to battery/battery connection. 

You didn't say exactly what happens/doesn't happen when you try to start it. Do the lights dim? Do you get a loud click from the engine? Does it crank but slowly? Does it crank but not catch?


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## brandothe3rd (Oct 21, 2015)

My wife has the same problem: Won't start but then will either 5 minutes or 4 hours later. We took it to the dealer and they couldn't find anything wrong. They gave us a bulletin about how RFID devices can interfere. We have an EasyPass in the car, but that's the only possible culprit. If that's the case then why would it start without us removing it? This whole thing is terrible. We live in constant fear of being stuck and the dealer basically told us to go pound sand.

Edit: 2011 Cruze.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

brandothe3rd said:


> My wife has the same problem: Won't start but then will either 5 minutes or 4 hours later. We took it to the dealer and they couldn't find anything wrong. They gave us a bulletin about how RFID devices can interfere. We have an EasyPass in the car, but that's the only possible culprit. If that's the case then why would it start without us removing it? This whole thing is terrible. We live in constant fear of being stuck and the dealer basically told us to go pound sand.


I have an EZPass in my dashboard compartment and never had an issue...seriously doubt it's that. 

Did you receive the extended warranty notice for the battery cable? Special Coverage 14311 I believe...go to a different dealer armed with that and ask them to fix it (they should do so without having to "duplicate" the issue, as instructed by the TSB).


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## ChevyGuy (Dec 13, 2014)

brandothe3rd said:


> Won't start but then will either 5 minutes or 4 hours later.


"Won't start" covers a wide range of symptoms. Details are needed if you want someone to take a guess at what's wrong.

How is your TPMS (Tire Pressure Monitoring System)? I believe that receiver is part of the anti-theft/starting system.


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## asherriel (Feb 3, 2016)

I'm having trouble with my 2014 Chevy Cruze LT starting up. It would run one day but the very next morning the car won't start. I took it to the dealership and they ran a diagnostic and it showed the negative battery cable was bad. So that was replace but the issue is still there. I'm so upset that I would be experiencing issues like this with a newer vehicle. Now I have to spend more money to see what else it could be.


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## ChevyGuy (Dec 13, 2014)

asherriel said:


> but the very next morning the car won't start.


That covers a whole range of symptoms:

Does it:

Do nothing
A single click and does nothing
The starter turns normally but no sign of life
It kinda wants to run, but just won't catch.


It think some of reported a problem that might be fuel pump. It may not start on first attempt, but will always start on the second try.


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

asherriel said:


> I'm having trouble with my 2014 Chevy Cruze LT starting up. It would run one day but the very next morning the car won't start. I took it to the dealership and they ran a diagnostic and it showed the negative battery cable was bad. So that was replace but the issue is still there. I'm so upset that I would be experiencing issues like this with a newer vehicle. Now I have to spend more money to see what else it could be.


Hello and welcome, 
I understand how frustrating problems can be. Every modern manufacturer suffers from modern production errors. There's no way to know a car is going to be reliable when it is brand new. However a brand new vehicle does come with a warranty, just in case. The negative battery cable is a known issue and an easy fix, the dealer will be able to take care of that no problem.

I speculate the issue may still be persisting due to a bad battery, but without actually being able to test and diagnose it, it's hard to say for sure.


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## Chevy Customer Care (Oct 29, 2011)

> I'm having trouble with my 2014 Chevy Cruze LT starting up. It would run one day but the very next morning the car won't start. I took it to the dealership and they ran a diagnostic and it showed the negative battery cable was bad. So that was replace but the issue is still there. I'm so upset that I would be experiencing issues like this with a newer vehicle. Now I have to spend more money to see what else it could be.




Hey asherriel, 

I am sorry to hear that you are experiencing this repeat vehicle concern with your Cruze. I understand how frustrating it could be, especially with a newer vehicle. Please send me a private message with your VIN, current mileage, and the name of the dealership you have been working with so I can look into this further. 
Looking forward to your message. 

Cecil J. 
Chevrolet Customer Care


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## Aldavis94 (Apr 9, 2016)

I have a 2014 cruze 2.0 diesel mutliple times now it hasn't started and the radio shut off half the time when I use the directionals...not impressed with this car


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## reese3118 (Sep 4, 2016)

I'm having the same issue nothing come on when I tried starting. I haven't had my 2013 chevy Cruze ls not even six months already issues after issues. I now for some reason have a huge cut in my air intake tube. And my check engine light I been paying more money on this car trying to fix the issue than my payments and I go to school and work and it's a pain. Car won't even lock with the key buttons goto go to each door to lock. This is my first car and I'm starting to hate Chevrolet and GM. Now I have to wait until Tuesday to have the dealership pick up the car. I can't afford keep putting money into fixing the car. I have been having this issue sense Thursday. I'm not happy.


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## Philb (Jun 18, 2016)

Aldavis94 said:


> I have a 2014 cruze 2.0 diesel mutliple times now it hasn't started and the radio shut off half the time when I use the directionals...not impressed with this car


14311 – Negative Battery Cable Loose – 2011-2015 Chevrolet Cruze | gm.oemdtc.com


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## Chevy Customer Care (Oct 29, 2011)

Hello Reese3118,

We are very sorry to hear that you experiencing multiple concerns with your Cruze and we certainly understand how this experience can be frustrating. I would love to contact your dealership to gather more information in order to provide an additional layer of support and assist in any way that I can. If this is something you are interested in please send us a private message with your full contact information, VIN, mileage of your vehicle and your dealership.

Best,

Netty J.
Chevrolet Customer Care




reese3118 said:


> I'm having the same issue nothing come on when I tried starting. I haven't had my 2013 chevy Cruze ls not even six months already issues after issues. I now for some reason have a huge cut in my air intake tube. And my check engine light I been paying more money on this car trying to fix the issue than my payments and I go to school and work and it's a pain. Car won't even lock with the key buttons goto go to each door to lock. This is my first car and I'm starting to hate Chevrolet and GM. Now I have to wait until Tuesday to have the dealership pick up the car. I can't afford keep putting money into fixing the car. I have been having this issue sense Thursday. I'm not happy.


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## klumby (Sep 11, 2016)

We have the same issue on a 2011 Cruze. Took it in for an engine code (running too lean) that was fixed by the dealer. Drove it home that day. Drove it to a an autoparts store of all places to get wiper blades and it wouldn't start as we tried to leave. It won't try to turn over, just clicks. What luck, they were able to test it, get me a new battery (old was 5 yrs so not bad), and jump the one that was in it. I took it home, put in a new battery and it won't start. Just clicks again. All electrical systems work except it doesn't even try to turn the starter. After reading the forums I tried different keys, moving it into neutral to start, back to park, nothing. Of course the dealer is not working today, but my guess is that something got knocked loose or damaged during the service. I certainly hope they would have checked for open warranty work, but they said nothing of that so I doubt it. My next step is to replace the negative cable. Let's hope that is it. Just curious if anyone else who has had the same problems can verify what their fix was.


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## ChevyGuy (Dec 13, 2014)

klumby said:


> It won't try to turn over, just clicks.


One possibility is a bad battery ground cable. It's a known defect and can imitate a bad battery. Especially if the "clicking" is a chatter or rapid series of clicks.

Otherwise, I'd guess a bad starter. Especially if it's just a single click per attempt.


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## Robster (Sep 10, 2017)

Chevy Cruze or any car made by those muppets are ****! At 400000 the water pump and clutch went cost me over 3k then one day it would start and next day nothing changed battery twice starter motor alternator still the same BS. Never buy a Chevrolet I would rather crawl to the South Pole than buy a **** car.


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