# Sparkman's "Build" - 2012 1LT/RS



## Terryk2003 (Sep 22, 2014)

I've been waiting for one of these from you! Looks like you're off to a great start! 

Something to keep in mind on the door handles, I believe you want the GM Accessories handles, because I'm not 100% on this, but I think the LTZ handles all have the push buttons on them that work with the keyfob for keyless entry (I may be wrong, that may have been optional).


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

*Sparkman's &quot;Build&quot; - 2012 1LT/RS*



Terryk2003 said:


> I've been waiting for one of these from you! Looks like you're off to a great start!
> 
> Something to keep in mind on the door handles, I believe you want the GM Accessories handles, because I'm not 100% on this, but I think the LTZ handles all have the push buttons on them that work with the keyfob for keyless entry (I may be wrong, that may have been optional).


Thank you! I wish I had loads of cash to dump into this!

Ahhhhhhh, never thought of that. Good catch, I would have not been a happy camper.


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## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

The handles would be way cheaper w/o the LTZ gadgetry. There was a random set of handles with wires for side markers but I didn't spend any time skipping over that video.


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## rokstarcruze (Jan 4, 2016)

How was it doing license plate lights. My gfs cruze screws are rusted and one broke so I didn't mess with it further. 

Sent from my HUAWEI Y536A1 using Tapatalk


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

*Sparkman's &quot;Build&quot; - 2012 1LT/RS*



rokstarcruze said:


> How was it doing license plate lights. My gfs cruze screws are rusted and one broke so I didn't mess with it further.
> 
> Sent from my HUAWEI Y536A1 using Tapatalk


Oh man, it sucked. My screws were starting to rust a bit, but I got them out. The hardest part was getting the left side lens to detach from the bulb socket and put back on. I don't know what GM was thinking when they designed this. I had to use needle nose pliers to grasp the bulb socket so I could twist the lens off, that took 5 minutes. Then after I got the LED's in I tried to attach the lens back to the socket and simply had no room to work. After 15 minutes and lots of swear words, I got it back together. Sheesh. At least they look nice and hopefully I don't have to replace them again.


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## rokstarcruze (Jan 4, 2016)

Ya I'm gonna have to drill the screws out and I wanna put bolts there instead

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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

sparkman said:


> Oh man, it sucked. My screws were starting to rust a bit, but I got them out. The hardest part was getting the left side lens to detach from the bulb socket and put back on. I don't know what GM was thinking when they designed this. I had to use needle nose pliers to grasp the bulb socket so I could twist the lens off, that took 5 minutes. Then after I got the LED's in I tried to attach the lens back to the socket and simply had no room to work. After 15 minutes and lots of swear words, I got it back together. Sheesh. At least they look nice and hopefully I don't have to replace them again.


I had this exact issue, if only the wires were 2 inches longer. 

I've had them installed for about 3 months now, and one of them is now very dim don't know why.


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## 170-3tree (Nov 4, 2014)

Sweet. Your car looks exactly like mine did before wheels. But I haven't done anything but tune and wheels and mid pipe muffler delete yet.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

chevrasaki said:


> I had this exact issue, if only the wires were 2 inches longer.
> 
> I've had them installed for about 3 months now, and one of them is now very dim don't know why.


No kidding! Wonder if one went bad or your entire assembly is shot. You know the trunk button and the two license plate lights are all one unit?


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Has anyone used or have these? 

Jackey Awesome® Chrome Head Light Lamp Cover Protector Trim 2Pcs/Set For 11 12 13 Chevy Cruze https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HO9MLGQ/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awd_gHVJwb49FWSSE


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## BU54 (Nov 24, 2014)

Sparkman what did you spill in the trunk there?
Nice pics thanks for sharing!!!


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Lol, that was just snow that fell in. 

Thanks!


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## BU54 (Nov 24, 2014)

sparkman said:


> Lol, that was just snow that fell in.
> 
> Thanks!


OK LOL, next question is when are you going to put siding on the house?
Sorry I couldn't resist. lol


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

BU54 said:


> OK LOL, next question is when are you going to put siding on the house?
> Sorry I couldn't resist. lol


Lol! Yeah that was just built. Nice place too, heated garage floor with drains, Reznor heater, hot and cold water spigots....


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Just got my Diode Dynamics XP50's in the mail today! Can't wait too get home from work and install them!


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## ranger024x4 (Jan 13, 2016)

sparkman said:


> Just got my Diode Dynamics XP50's in the mail today! Can't wait too get home from work and install them!


jealous!


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## CalamityRS (Jan 21, 2016)

Nice. Did you get an error when you replaced the license plate lights?


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## ChevyGuy (Dec 13, 2014)

CalamityRS said:


> Nice. Did you get an error when you replaced the license plate lights?


I've also put Diode Dynamics LEDs in - no errors for license plate, backup, stop or tail lights.


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## CalamityRS (Jan 21, 2016)

ChevyGuy said:


> I've also put Diode Dynamics LEDs in - no errors for license plate, backup, stop or tail lights.


Thanks


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## txcruze26 (Jul 7, 2015)

nice looking car!

I've been wanting to change out the license plate light as well as the reverse lights, is this a PITA?


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

CalamityRS said:


> Nice. Did you get an error when you replaced the license plate lights?


Nope!


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

txcruze26 said:


> nice looking car!
> 
> I've been wanting to change out the license plate light as well as the reverse lights, is this a PITA?


Thanks a lot! The license plate lights are the hardest. On the left side the wire is a bit to short and taking the lens off and putting it back on is a pain.

I did a YouTube video on the tail lights that's going to be released tomorrow. I'd post it but I'm not sure if it's allowed on here because of it being monetized (ad revenue). I'd rather not find out, ha ha. I'll PM you a link.


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

Do you have any plans for a sound system?


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

chevrasaki said:


> Do you have any plans for a sound system?


Aside from replacing the drivers door speaker, nope. I rarely turn on the radio in my car. When I do it's not loud and the sound quality is good enough for me.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Found a nice size ding in my front fender today. Probably got doored. 


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

This infuriates me. I assure you everything will be OK though.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

*Sparkman's &quot;Build&quot; - 2012 1LT/RS*



chevrasaki said:


> This infuriates me. I assure you everything will be OK though.


Yeah, I wasn't too happy.

It's just my luck too, happens with all my cars. 

This Cruze went 31,000 miles without a single ding or scratch on it from the previous owner, and I can't even go 1000 miles with a ding and a couple really small scratches. Just my luck. 

Heck, I don't even park near anyone though. When I go to college I usually park in an empty lot and it stays that way the entire day.


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

sparkman said:


> Yeah, I wasn't too happy.
> 
> It's just my luck too, happens with all my cars.
> 
> ...


If you drive a nice car, it's going to be a target. My cruze was just sitting quietly in the driveway of a quiet rural culdesac neighborhood, and out of all things, my roommate backed out of the driveway and managed to scrape my car pretty good right after I crossed over 10K miles.

Results: He footed the $427 repair bill. But now the car looks good as new and nothing structural was affected so no harm no foul.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Ouch. Yeah, I would have not been happy. At least he covered the cost.


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

sparkman said:


> Ouch. Yeah, I would have not been happy. At least he covered the cost.


He was running late for work, and was paying more attention to the older couple taking a morning walk around. He cut the wheel a little too soon causing this. He called me and woke me up to tell me the news. I wasn't actually mad at all, I've finally learned to accept that small stuff is going to happen and it's not worth it to let stress get at me. I would have been a lot more angry if there would have been structural damage or damage to the engine in any way.
Plus there was more damage done to the 2006 MX-5 he bought a week after I got my Cruze and I felt bad that he felt so bad about the whole thing.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

The more I think about it, I don't think I am going to switch my wheels to 2LT or get chrome door handles. I had an appointment the other day and was looking out the window just staring at my car. And you know, I kinda like the way it is. 

I do want a new set of 1LT wheels though, mine are a bit rough. 


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

I really like my 1LT wheels. I loved the 5-spoke alloy version that I had on my Cobalt. and the 5-spoke version on my Grand Prix. I think I just like 5-spoke alloys. It's what a wheel should look like IMO. I'm also not a fan of chrome on my cars. I don't mind the little piece around the grille, but I hate the strips on the windows.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Go figure. My drivers door speaker (the one that plays the door chime) sounded like it was shorting out. Every start-up it would sound terrible or not sound at all. The other week I plugged in some music and cranked up the bass settings, turned the volume up loud and haven't had a problem since.


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

So it works now? That's weird. The speakers in my Cobalt went out too and it was only then I realized they just use the door speakers for the chime and the blinker noises. I replaced them with some cheap 3 ways and they were fine after that, sounded much better than the stock paper speakers too. 

Also I feel you on weird unexpected things breaking. My windshield wipers disintegrated and I had to replace those recently.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

chevrasaki said:


> So it works now? That's weird. The speakers in my Cobalt went out too and it was only then I realized they just use the door speakers for the chime and the blinker noises. I replaced them with some cheap 3 ways and they were fine after that, sounded much better than the stock paper speakers too.
> 
> Also I feel you on weird unexpected things breaking. My windshield wipers disintegrated and I had to replace those recently.


Yep, we'll see what happens down the road. Haha

Yeah, I just replaced mine last week. They streaked so bad and missed parts of the windshield. I ended up going with Bosch Icons and have been extremely impressed with the results.



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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

sparkman said:


> Yep, we'll see what happens down the road. Haha
> 
> Yeah, I just replaced mine last week. They streaked so bad and missed parts of the windshield. I ended up going with Bosch Icons and have been extremely impressed with the results.
> 
> ...


When I replaced the Cobalt's wipers I treated it to some nice rain-X wipers. This time around since I haven't even had the car for a year, I wasn't really in the mood to spend money on wiper blades so I bought these off Amazon. They're probably a Chinese rip-off of the rain-X blades because they look and function identically, I'm quite pleased.
http://www.amazon.com/QUALITY-Premi...14:chevrolet:cruze&keywords=windshield+wipers


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## CClark (Feb 24, 2016)

Where did you buy the led's for the trunk light? I cant find ones that fit.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

CClark said:


> Where did you buy the led's for the trunk light? I cant find ones that fit.


Here you be sir!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AQ4DX0O?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00

They're cheaper now then when I originally bought them.


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

CClark said:


> Where did you buy the led's for the trunk light? I cant find ones that fit.


I bought this set of LEDs off amazon which included the trunk light and license plate lights. However one of my license plate lights is dim now and I haven't had much time to figure out why.

Amazon.com: LEDpartsNow Chevy Cruze 2011-2014 Xenon White Premium LED Interior Lights Package Kit (7 Pieces): Automotive


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Replaced my cabin air filter today. Boy was it dirty.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Some idiot gave me a nice door ding, so I had it removed today.


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## Terryk2003 (Sep 22, 2014)

Sucks about the ding! How much did it cost to get it fixed up? I need to find one of these paint less dent guys to fix a couple dents on the wife's sonic.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Terryk2003 said:


> Sucks about the ding! How much did it cost to get it fixed up? I need to find one of these paint less dent guys to fix a couple dents on the wife's sonic.



It was $100, the guy is awesome and does excellent work, I'll send you a PM.


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## Robby (Mar 1, 2013)

sparkman said:


> Some idiot gave me a nice door ding, so I had it removed today.


Interesting......I found a boink on the hood of my new Trax.......Clayed twice, waxed twice.......Silver.......can't believe I missed it just forward of the cowl.
Anyways, I had decided to have my PDR guy do it on my dime.....the dealer would have wanted to putty & paint......NOT!

10 minutes, $50.00......I'm happy now............those folks that do that are amazing!

Rob


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

It is quite amazing, the guy here took special care because it was very very close to the bodyline in the fender. Worth the money in my opinion.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Small update here, made an appointment to get my windows tinted in 2 weeks, 50% front (legal limit in Ohio) and 15% rear. Can't wait for that!

Also, got new tires put on my car today. I did end up going with Goodyear Assurance Comortred Touring. I'll report back my review when I drive home from work!


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## Terryk2003 (Sep 22, 2014)

Awesome! Can't wait to see how she looks with the windows tinted!


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Windows are getting tinted tomorrow!

Annnnnnnnnnnnnnnd then it's going into service Monday. Transmission is acting funny, pretty rough shifting, 2/3 shift slips (happened to me three times the past month). Service guy told me they just had a Cruze in with the same issue, ended up rebuilding the transmission (warranty repair). Also was experiencing a rough idle this morning. Didn't happen at first, drove to the stop sign and while stopped it was lightly surging. Was told that it could be a valve cover (warranty repair). 

We'll see. Hopefully they get it figured out.


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## Chevy Customer Care (Oct 29, 2011)

sparkman said:


> Windows are getting tinted tomorrow!
> 
> Annnnnnnnnnnnnnnd then it's going into service Monday. Transmission is acting funny, pretty rough shifting, 2/3 shift slips (happened to me three times the past month). Service guy told me they just had a Cruze in with the same issue, ended up rebuilding the transmission (warranty repair). Also was experiencing a rough idle this morning. Didn't happen at first, drove to the stop sign and while stopped it was lightly surging. Was told that it could be a valve cover (warranty repair).
> 
> We'll see. Hopefully they get it figured out.


Hi sparkman,

We're sorry to hear you seem to be experiencing a transmission concern with your Cruze. While we cannot offer technical advice, we would be happy to reach out to your preferred dealership to further discuss this situation. If you'd like to proceed, please provide us your VIN, current mileage, contact information, and the name of your preferred dealer by private message.

Sincerely,

Alexis A.
Chevrolet Customer Care


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## jmlo96 (May 2, 2015)

sparkman said:


> Windows are getting tinted tomorrow!
> 
> Annnnnnnnnnnnnnnd then it's going into service Monday. Transmission is acting funny, pretty rough shifting, 2/3 shift slips (happened to me three times the past month). Service guy told me they just had a Cruze in with the same issue, ended up rebuilding the transmission (warranty repair). Also was experiencing a rough idle this morning. Didn't happen at first, drove to the stop sign and while stopped it was lightly surging. Was told that it could be a valve cover (warranty repair).
> 
> We'll see. Hopefully they get it figured out.


Hey at least its warranty right! That way you get a brand new transmission :grin:


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## joshuab (Apr 16, 2014)

sparkman said:


> Windows are getting tinted tomorrow!
> 
> Annnnnnnnnnnnnnnd then it's going into service Monday. Transmission is acting funny, pretty rough shifting, 2/3 shift slips (happened to me three times the past month). Service guy told me they just had a Cruze in with the same issue, ended up rebuilding the transmission (warranty repair). Also was experiencing a rough idle this morning. Didn't happen at first, drove to the stop sign and while stopped it was lightly surging. Was told that it could be a valve cover (warranty repair).
> 
> We'll see. Hopefully they get it figured out.


Well I start to experience a small "rough" shift between 2nd to 3rd gear. It more like a pause in shifting 1st is great, 2nd is good, 3rd seems to flare & then hop into 3rd 4,5,6 smooth as 1,2. It doesn't slip out of gear & rev real high, its just very noticeable. I am debating where I take it in or not, did you experience the same, or did you actually experience slipping?


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

joshuab said:


> Well I start to experience a small "rough" shift between 2nd to 3rd gear. It more like a pause in shifting 1st is great, 2nd is good, 3rd seems to flare & then hop into 3rd 4,5,6 smooth as 1,2. It doesn't slip out of gear & rev real high, its just very noticeable. I am debating where I take it in or not, did you experience the same, or did you actually experience slipping?



Here's exactly what happened. I just left work and was turning on a state route, giving the car 45% throttle. 1-2 was fine, but right when it was getting ready to shift to 3rd, it seemed like it popped out of gear. The RPM's would jump about 1k and then jerk into 3rd gear. 

Happened to me 3 times last month, but it hasn't done it in two weeks.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)




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## jmlo96 (May 2, 2015)

The window tints look good! It's nice to see what it looks like on my cars twin, lol. Have you noticed any difference in the amount of heat?


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Yes, for sure. Huge improvement!


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

That is sharp with the tint, Sparkman! Very nice!


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Thanks for the compliment! 


Bit of an update on my end, the dealer is rebuilding the transmission. They didn't find anything at first, but when I took them out for a spin when the car was cold it did it. Sucks that it has to be done since I've owned the car less than a year, but glad I caught it under warranty.


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

It's awesome when transmissions get rebuilt. A lot of the time every year there's an improvement which you'll normally get


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## Terryk2003 (Sep 22, 2014)

Tint looks good! We need to meet up again soon!


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## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

If your dealer is like mine, they just gonna swap out the trans. They were going to take mine apart but GM said to **** with all those hours and just replace the whole thing.

Tint looks nice, I been saying I want to do this for 3 years running.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

I was told they are going to replace the pistons and seals, and clean the valve body, and some other stuff I can't remember.

You should do it, it would look really awesome on your car.


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

sparkman said:


> Windows are getting tinted tomorrow!
> 
> Annnnnnnnnnnnnnnd then it's going into service Monday. Transmission is acting funny, pretty rough shifting, 2/3 shift slips (happened to me three times the past month). Service guy told me they just had a Cruze in with the same issue, ended up rebuilding the transmission (warranty repair). Also was experiencing a rough idle this morning. Didn't happen at first, drove to the stop sign and while stopped it was lightly surging. Was told that it could be a valve cover (warranty repair).
> 
> We'll see. Hopefully they get it figured out.


I'm curious about your transmission. Do you have an AT or MT?


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

BrandoFisher117 said:


> I'm curious about your transmission. Do you have an AT or MT?



AT.


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

sparkman said:


> AT.


Ok. Reason I ask is because I believe I *could *be having a similar problem to transmission issue.

Since I've had my Cruze, every now and again, when shifting from 3rd to 4th, the engine will rev +1000-1200 RPMs, then it will shift pretty rough into 4th with the RPMs dropping back down to where I was cruising (no pun intended...). After reading various threads, I thought it could be the ABS test. But after reading your issue, I will have to get it into the dealership to have it checked out.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Get that in before your warranty expires. That was the exact same problem I was having. 

I was just talking to the service manager a few minutes ago. Before me they had a customer with the exact same issue. They could not figure it out for the life of them, they had no codes to go off of, nothing. They did a couple flushes and still nothing. Finally, they got permission from GM to go ahead and tear apart the transmission. They found out that the pistons inside of the transmission that control fluid flow were sticking and causing that problem. They said something about the clutches too but I can't remember s*it for 30 seconds anymore....


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

Ok! So I'm not crazy! LOL.

I'll have to set up an appointment to have that checked out. Unfortunately the dealership I bought the car from was an utter and complete cluster F, so hopefully the dealership near me will be able to figure this out...


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

She's apart!

Just got another one in today with the same problem.


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

Omfg. Have to drop the whole frame? Man I hate that setup. My old cobalt was the same way. Cavaliers were much better, just removed a single bar


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Was going to get my car back today, but they informed me that it basically self destructed.

Sooooooo, they have to tear it apart AGAIN.

Ugh.

In the meantime, I've been driving a '13 Chrysler 200 Limited with the V6. Very nice powerful car, but I still wouldn't own a Chrysler product.

Switched to a 2014 Honda Accord tonight, I've always been interested in Honda's. Gonna give it a shot!

Ohhh what to to do with my car...


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## Terryk2003 (Sep 22, 2014)

So wait, they fixed the trans and it broke again? Orr, something else broke!?


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Terryk2003 said:


> So wait, they fixed the trans and it broke again? Orr, something else broke!?



Apparently the part attached to the pump was manufactured wrong. The old one had a gasket around it, the new part didn't which caused the failure.


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

Awwww man! I hope they get it squared away for you.


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

sparkman said:


> In the meantime, I've been driving a '13 Chrysler 200 Limited with the V6. Very nice powerful car, but I still wouldn't own a Chrysler product.


Before I bought my Cruze, I was leasing a 2013 200 Limited. I actually *kinda* loved it! Definitely loved the power, but the gas mileage I got with that was sub-par at best.


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## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

Sounds like they need to yank and replace it cause hours and parts will eventually end up that way. 

200 seems fun but MPG was never great.


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## jmlo96 (May 2, 2015)

I had to copy off your window tint @sparkman. I got 35 in the front and 20 in the rear. Looks good!


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

jmlo96 said:


> I had to copy off your window tint @*sparkman*. I got 35 in the front and 20 in the rear. Looks good!
> View attachment 201121


Dude our cars are twins!


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

jmlo96 said:


> I had to copy off your window tint @*sparkman*. I got 35 in the front and 20 in the rear. Looks good!
> View attachment 201121


Very nice! Looks great! :goodjob:

Always wanted to use that smiley


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## Terryk2003 (Sep 22, 2014)

So, did it ever get your car back!?


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Yep! Everything is just like new.


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

sparkman said:


> Yep! Everything is just like new.


That's great! I'm glad to hear that they got everything squared away.


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## jmlo96 (May 2, 2015)

sparkman said:


> Yep! Everything is just like new.


Does it shift better than since you have ever had it? I'm sure between 12 and 16 they have made a lot of small improvements to that transmission.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Yes sir.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Traded in my Cruze this morning for this beauty:





























Just kidding. I'm seriously considering it though. 1 mile on the sucker. Sun and Sound package, RS package, Driver Convenience Package, and Kinetic Blue. Everything i want.

Even has heated cloth seats.


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## Terryk2003 (Sep 22, 2014)

Haha, you totally had me! I was scrolling down to reply when I saw the "just kidding" lol! That is a nice looking ride tho!


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

I thought you did for sure! Heh.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

I'm seriously thinking about it though.


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

****, you've got me thinkin about it! :uhh:


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## GeneralDriver (Aug 2, 2016)

/hint/Honda Accord/hint/


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Welp, going back in for a completely new transmission. Doing it again. I no longer love this car if I can't even drive the **** thing.


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## joshuab (Apr 16, 2014)

sparkman said:


> Welp, going back in for a completely new transmission. Doing it again. I no longer love this car if I can't even drive the **** thing.


Well this sounds like me, when my motor went bad not long ago. They rebuilt the motor thinking that would last, & then a week later it messed up again & then they replaced w/ new motor. What happened this time, did it give the same issue prior to rebuild? Man I hate this unfortunate issue that is occurring but look at the bright side of things, these issues are arising during warranty & all on GMs dime!

On another note, why does GM like to go the 'rebuild = cheap' route then just simply replacing the defective part? Seriously; all rebuilds seem to go right back in sooner or later for a full replacement, & end up costing GM more then if they would have replaced in the first place, just doesn't make sense to me. But hey as long as they stand behind there product that is all that matters & I can say from experience GM has stood behind me 100% & the dealer I go to never gives a word to making sure I am took care of every time I have a issue little or big. 

So hopefully Sparkman you will get this behind you & you can get back to Cruzen real soon! I think once this is fixed you be in good shape I know once they changed my motor I have done put nearly over 3K on my new motor & still smooth!


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

sparkman said:


> Welp, going back in for a completely new transmission. Doing it again. I no longer love this car if I can't even drive the **** thing.


:signs053:

Wow, that is wild! Completely new is good though.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

I was wondering the same thing guys. I don't know why they choose to rebuild them either.

It's good that it's under warranty, but it worries me. My warranty expires April 2017. I've had the car less than a year and have driven it less than 8,000 miles. During that time the water pump, transmission, trunk switch, door speakers, and visor mirror covers broke/went out. I'd expect all that out of something that's 10+ years old and over 100k miles. I'm just discouraged with this thing. I know there are going to be more repairs down the road (valve cover, turbo's etc.) so I'm tossing the idea of getting rid of it before the warranty expires. 

I'm not bashing all Cruze's in general, as it's my own **** fault for not researching what years to stay away from. Oh well, life lesson learned.

And what's to say that this new transmission won't do the same thing in 30k miles? I'll be commuting to college for the next 2-3 years so I'll definitely be racking up the miles then.


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

Man, my trunk switch didn't even work when I purchased the car (asked them about it and they couldn't tell me anything due to the service department being closed when I purchased it). ***holes

So you don't get an extension on your transmission when it has gone out twice already? Did you check your my.chevrolet.com to check your warranties?


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Not sure, according to that website I have till 2022 on the water pump and power steering and the negative battery cable.

I also have a special warranty #38170? Don't know what that is and can't find any information about it.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

So supposedly they drove it and "adjusted some parameters". I doubt that fixes it, if they did do that. No paperwork was given documenting they did this. 

I know what I felt.

So I got my car back, which is a plus. We'll see.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Still doing it, took the car and had one of the service guys ride with me and it did it. Parked it overnight and in the morning drove it again and it shifted rough.

Don't know what they are planning on doing. Everything has been on a holding pattern.


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## joshuab (Apr 16, 2014)

sparkman said:


> Still doing it, took the car and had one of the service guys ride with me and it did it. Parked it overnight and in the morning drove it again and it shifted rough.
> 
> Don't know what they are planning on doing. Everything has been on a holding pattern.


The good news out of this is they are aware of the issue; now its just a matter of coming up w/ a game plan. But at the end of the day they need to stop wasting time & just simply replace the transmission & save them money. 

Just a thought have they re-scanned the car & looked for any pending TCM codes that could lead them into the right direction?


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

joshuab said:


> The good news out of this is they are aware of the issue; now its just a matter of coming up w/ a game plan. But at the end of the day they need to stop wasting time & just simply replace the transmission & save them money.
> 
> Just a thought have they re-scanned the car & looked for any pending TCM codes that could lead them into the right direction?


I agree.

They have before and nothing came about. They haven't since this latest one though.


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## Terryk2003 (Sep 22, 2014)

If it makes you feel any better, my car is at the dealer with low compression in cylinder 2...


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## joshuab (Apr 16, 2014)

Terryk2003 said:


> If it makes you feel any better, my car is at the dealer with low compression in cylinder 2...


Uh oh! I done experienced this on Cylinder 2 & 4 was at 0psi & it was the piston rings. Was rebuilt & a week later had to replace the motor. Hope all turns out well for you Terryk2003.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Yikes. You have a CEL come on or just felt it? @Terryk2003

I give up on mine. I'm just going to run it until it blows up to smithereens. No one seems to care.


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## Terryk2003 (Sep 22, 2014)

sparkman said:


> Yikes. You have a CEL come on or just felt it? @*Terryk2003*
> 
> I give up on mine. I'm just going to run it until it blows up to smithereens. No one seems to care.


Started idling rough and had seeing blips of knock retard constantly on the Aeroforce gauge on my way to work last Monday. When started the car to go home that night I got "Service Traction Control" and "Service Stabilitrac" messages on the DIC. Did a quick search to find that could happen if you have a misfire. Did a scan for kicks and giggles and got "Cylinder 2 misfire" code. Pulled plugs and they were all oily, with #2 being the worst. Started it after checking plugs and started getting flashing check engine light. On the way to dealer I also got a huge cloud of white/blue smoke out the back when accelerating from a stop. From the sounds of things, it is likely that piston failure that was supposedly a 11-12 issue and had been fixed. I'm considering either driving it into the ground when I get it back or immediately trading it in...possibly for a Ford Fusion.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Terryk2003 said:


> Started idling rough and had seeing blips of knock retard constantly on the Aeroforce gauge on my way to work last Monday. When started the car to go home that night I got "Service Traction Control" and "Service Stabilitrac" messages on the DIC. Did a quick search to find that could happen if you have a misfire. Did a scan for kicks and giggles and got "Cylinder 2 misfire" code. Pulled plugs and they were all oily, with #2 being the worst. Started it after checking plugs and started getting flashing check engine light. On the way to dealer I also got a huge cloud of white/blue smoke out the back when accelerating from a stop. From the sounds of things, it is likely that piston failure that was supposedly a 11-12 issue and had been fixed. I'm considering either driving it into the ground when I get it back or immediately trading it in...*possibly for a Ford Fusion*.


Ha! You know, I literally passed a Ford dealer last night and thought the same thing. Looking into used 2016 Nissan Maxima's as well. Same price as a Fusion but over 300 HP from that 3.5L.

EDIT:

Hmmmmmmmmmmm, they got a killer deal on 2017 Hyandai Elantra Limited's at the moment. No payments for 6 months, low APR, huge cash back, and most of them are around $20k


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## joshuab (Apr 16, 2014)

Terryk2003 said:


> Started idling rough and had seeing blips of knock retard constantly on the Aeroforce gauge on my way to work last Monday. When started the car to go home that night I got "Service Traction Control" and "Service Stabilitrac" messages on the DIC. Did a quick search to find that could happen if you have a misfire. Did a scan for kicks and giggles and got "Cylinder 2 misfire" code. Pulled plugs and they were all oily, with #2 being the worst. Started it after checking plugs and started getting flashing check engine light. On the way to dealer I also got a huge cloud of white/blue smoke out the back when accelerating from a stop. From the sounds of things, it is likely that piston failure that was supposedly a 11-12 issue and had been fixed. I'm considering either driving it into the ground when I get it back or immediately trading it in...possibly for a Ford Fusion.


White/blue smoke all symptoms I experienced & I went through a lot getting the dealer to fix my Cruze, actually got turned away from one dealership said they couldn't "meet my expectations" - & it consumed tons of oil, I would say around 2 quarts around 40miles. Do you still have warranty active?, If so get in contact w/ the GM customer service rep. explain to them what you think it is & tell them that you want the dealership to perform a compression check & that will give them a more inline detail & route to take, because honestly to me that sounds like piston failure w/ the rings. Have you already exhausted this part?

*@spartman* did they say they found any concerning issues w/ your transmission?; Or the typical response from dealer?


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## Terryk2003 (Sep 22, 2014)

joshuab said:


> White/blue smoke all symptoms I experienced & I went through a lot getting the dealer to fix my Cruze, actually got turned away from one dealership said they couldn't "meet my expectations" - & it consumed tons of oil, I would say around 2 quarts around 40miles. Do you still have warranty active?, If so get in contact w/ the GM customer service rep. explain to them what you think it is & tell them that you want the dealership to perform a compression check & that will give them a more inline detail & route to take, because honestly to me that sounds like piston failure w/ the rings. Have you already exhausted this part?
> 
> *@spartman* did they say they found any concerning issues w/ your transmission?; Or the typical response from dealer?


It has full bumper to bumper and powertrain warranty. Only 28k miles on it. The dealer has it and they already determined it has low compression in #2 cylinder and they are in the process of tearing it down to determine the next course of action.


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## joshuab (Apr 16, 2014)

Great! Then they are on the right track, mine had 0psi on Cylinder 2 & 4. This is crazy cars w/ only 28K miles & already have to be tore down & rebuilt. Mine started at around over 60K I can see that much more then yours at only 28K WOW. Good luck Terry, hope all works out well for you.

They mentioned they had some premature failure piston rings for 11' & some slipped into the 12's , yours a 14' looks like maybe they didn't get something right, what do you'll think?


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## anthonysmith93 (Jul 15, 2015)

sparkman said:


> Ha! You know, I literally passed a Ford dealer last night and thought the same thing. Looking into used 2016 Nissan Maxima's as well. Same price as a Fusion but over 300 HP from that 3.5L.
> 
> EDIT:
> 
> Hmmmmmmmmmmm, they got a killer deal on 2017 Hyandai Elantra Limited's at the moment. No payments for 6 months, low APR, huge cash back, and most of them are around $20k


The Sonata limited does look REALLY nice....but I can't do that 2.0 4 cyl NA engine. It's slow and since NA not much room for tuning lol.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

joshuab said:


> White/blue smoke all symptoms I experienced & I went through a lot getting the dealer to fix my Cruze, actually got turned away from one dealership said they couldn't "meet my expectations" - & it consumed tons of oil, I would say around 2 quarts around 40miles. Do you still have warranty active?, If so get in contact w/ the GM customer service rep. explain to them what you think it is & tell them that you want the dealership to perform a compression check & that will give them a more inline detail & route to take, because honestly to me that sounds like piston failure w/ the rings. Have you already exhausted this part?
> 
> *@spartman* did they say they found any concerning issues w/ your transmission?; Or the typical response from dealer?


Typical response from the dealer.  Oh well.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

anthonysmith93 said:


> The Sonata limited does look REALLY nice....but I can't do that 2.0 4 cyl NA engine. It's slow and since NA not much room for tuning lol.



It's faster than my current car, that's for sure. 0-60 in 7.8 seconds, which is good enough for me. Knowing what I know now, I'm never buying another turbo vehicle again.


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

**** bud... I just PMd Chevy Customer Care to try and come up with a game plan before I just take my car to the dealership and they just let it sit and wait.

EDIT: Just curiosity, since they were in the car when it happened again, you're still getting the run around?


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

BrandoFisher117 said:


> **** bud... I just PMd Chevy Customer Care to try and come up with a game plan before I just take my car to the dealership and they just let it sit and wait.
> 
> EDIT: Just curiosity, since they were in the car when it happened again,* you're still getting the run around*?


Yep. :banghead:

Pisses me off. It did the EXACT same thing ONE time with the tech riding with me before I got my transmission rebuilt the first time, and they went ahead and rebuilt the entire thing stating that this is a common problem and needed to be fixed ASAP. 

Last week, it did once again with a different technician riding. Then he had the first technician who originally rode in my car ride with me again and it wouldn't do it. So now they are not doing ****, and he told me to ride it until it blows up.

Well gosh darn it, you guys were supposed to fix the freaking bloody problem in the first place. What happens when it explodes when my warranty goes out in March? Why should I have to live with this problem in a freaking 4/5 year old vehicle with extremely low miles on it? 

Maybe I overstepped my boundries on here ranting, if I did just delete the post. I'm just not a happy camper.


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

sparkman said:


> Yep. :banghead:
> 
> Pisses me off. It did the EXACT same thing ONE time with the tech riding with me before I got my transmission rebuilt the first time, and they went ahead and rebuilt the entire thing stating that this is a common problem and needed to be fixed ASAP.
> 
> ...


What is wild to me is the fact that it happened with one of the techs (second time around) and then they had you take someone else on a ride when it wouldn't do it. If its under warranty, fix the **** thing! Especially if it is a "known problem". What kind of response is "..drive it till it blows up"? And you work there. This sounds unacceptable to me...


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

BrandoFisher117 said:


> What is wild to me is the fact that it happened with one of the techs (second time around) and then they had you take someone else on a ride when it wouldn't do it. If its under warranty, fix the **** thing! Especially if it is a "known problem". What kind of response is "..drive it till it blows up"? *And you work there*. This sounds unacceptable to me...


I know.

Check your inbox.


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## Terryk2003 (Sep 22, 2014)

sparkman said:


> Yep. :banghead:
> 
> Pisses me off. It did the EXACT same thing ONE time with the tech riding with me before I got my transmission rebuilt the first time, and they went ahead and rebuilt the entire thing stating that this is a common problem and needed to be fixed ASAP.
> 
> ...


I think I'd be talking to GM Customer Care. If that's their "fix" then they better add additional warranty coverage on that trans KNOWING there is an issue with it now. 

Its so sad that for the first couple years I owned my Cruze I defended everyone **** talking them repeatedly. Now, I totally get it. After my issue, and yours for that matter, I'm just completely disappointed. If I can't get the deal I want on a replacement vehicle I guess I'll hang on to mine for a little longer (since I have quite a bit of warranty left), but I won't be spending anymore time or money modding it in any way. I will just use it and abuse it.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Contacted GM customer care.


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

How is Chevy Customer Care handling your issue, bud? I hope you're making SOME progress!


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

BrandoFisher117 said:


> How is Chevy Customer Care handling your issue, bud? I hope you're making SOME progress!


GM customer care is great, but the other dealer I chose is still not contacting me. We've been trying for a while now. I got to call them then.

I don't think I am going to worry about it then and just trade it on an Impala.


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## joshuab (Apr 16, 2014)

sparkman said:


> GM customer care is great, but the other dealer I chose is still not contacting me. We've been trying for a while now. I got to call them then.
> 
> I don't think I am going to worry about it then and just trade it on an Impala.


GM Customer service reps, are really good & do there best to find a resolution to your issue/concern. This is a very unfortunate issue that you are experience even after your transmission has been rebuilt you are still having same issues; I would let it rip itself a part & then call road side & let them tow it to the dealer & get a new transmission.

But the main important thing is to keep claim & have patience's things will work out. Just hang in there & follow up w/ GM customer service rep. I am sure a good resolution will follow. But the Impala are nice rides. Either way you choose good luck!


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## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

sparkman said:


> Maybe I overstepped my boundaries on here ranting, if I did just delete the post. I'm just not a happy camper.


Nah you got enough post under your belt to make it a legit complaint vs a 1 post poster who vents then vanishes from the forum shortly after. You delete if you feel it could jeopardize your job or not. Extended warranty and a huge hit on resale kept me in my car. Not much else out there appeals to me MPG and fun factor. Thought about an Accord Sport SE 6MT sedan since it's priced around the 2 gen Cruze price range I was looking at. If I got my Subaru running I literally could milk the last 2000 miles on the extended warranty for the price i'm down paying to get out from under the Cruze. 

Hopefully you can get it fixed before you break down on a Saturday night out on a date like I was. They thought about rebuilding mine but Gm said just yank and replace. I'm glad that's what happened.


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## joshuab (Apr 16, 2014)

Merc6 said:


> Nah you got enough post under your belt to make it a legit complaint vs a 1 post poster who vents then vanishes from the forum shortly after. You delete if you feel it could jeopardize your job or not. Extended warranty and a huge hit on resale kept me in my car. Not much else out there appeals to me MPG and fun factor. Thought about an Accord Sport SE 6MT sedan since it's priced around the 2 gen Cruze price range I was looking at. If I got my Subaru running I literally could milk the last 2000 miles on the extended warranty for the price i'm down paying to get out from under the Cruze.
> 
> Hopefully you can get it fixed before you break down on a Saturday night out on a date like I was. They thought about rebuilding mine but Gm said just yank and replace. I'm glad that's what happened.


First I would agree w/ *@Merc6* I don't think you overstepped boundaries, you are frustrated as any of us would be in that type of issue. Many of us Cruze Owners know exactly how you feel; & you know that's sad?; But no matter what I am Cruze fan & love my car no matter what I have experienced! Call me crazy!

Now if my car broke down while I was a on date; that would just be the 'straw that broke the camels back' or whatever's back; & there would have went my patience w/ the car.


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## Terryk2003 (Sep 22, 2014)

sparkman said:


> GM customer care is great, but the other dealer I chose is still not contacting me. We've been trying for a while now. I got to call them then.
> 
> I don't think I am going to worry about it then and just trade it on an Impala.


Still a Chevy...if the dealer is crap they will still be crap no matter what the name on the car is. That is a lot of what kept me from buying another Chevy product. I was on incompetent dealer #2.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Ripped two boots this evening trying to get spark plugs changed. I can't win with this car. 

Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk


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## jmlo96 (May 2, 2015)

sparkman said:


> Ripped two boots this evening trying to get spark plugs changed. I can't win with this car.
> 
> Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk


You really hate your car now, lol. Remember to look on the bright side, before the Cruze I drove old junkers and its was a lot worse. Both of my previous vehicles were not very safe and it's easy to forget how good you have it sometimes, you know?


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## joshuab (Apr 16, 2014)

jmlo96 said:


> You really hate your car now, lol. Remember to look on the bright side, before the Cruze I drove old junkers and its was a lot worse. Both of my previous vehicles were not very safe and it's easy to forget how good you have it sometimes, you know?


Man you couldn't have put it any better, I was in the same boat, before my new Cruze, I drove not so reliable rides. But I still hate to hear the luck you are having w/ your Cruze *@sparkman*.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

I sold a good running near mint condition 1998 Pontiac Grand Am with 173k miles for this car, thinking it would help build my credit up, be easy to service, and be a reliable A to B transportation. Boy was I wrong. 

I kick my self in the ass everyday for selling that thing. 

Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk


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## Terryk2003 (Sep 22, 2014)

sparkman said:


> I sold a good running near mint condition 1998 Pontiac Grand Am with 173k miles for this car, thinking it would help build my credit up, be easy to service, and be a reliable A to B transportation. Boy was I wrong.
> 
> I kick my self in the ass everyday for selling that thing.
> 
> Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk


but that fuel economy tho! 

Btw, was the 1998 the newer (well, the last I guess) body style Grand Am?


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Terryk2003 said:


> but that fuel economy tho!
> 
> Btw, was the 1998 the newer (well, the last I guess) body style Grand Am?


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## Terryk2003 (Sep 22, 2014)

Ahh, nope. It was the previous gen. Looks like it was in great shape! I also couldn't help but notice that you have a thing for red cars. Lol


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Ahhhhhh, new tires, brakes, wheel stud (lol), spark plugs, and ignition coil. Car is running better than ever and I am finally enjoying driving my car again. 

Who knows, maybe Ill keep it to 200,000? Haha

Looking at all these mods (Scan gauge, downpipe, etc.) makes me want to pay it off quickly and start customizing haha.

Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

Now we're talkin! That is excellent news bud! I'm glad you reignited your enjoyment for your Cruze! Any flare shifting with your transmission anymore or do you think you've got that under control?


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

BrandoFisher117 said:


> Now we're talkin! That is excellent news bud! I'm glad you reignited your enjoyment for your Cruze! Any flare shifting with your transmission anymore or do you think you've got that under control?


It still does it, but it's documented under warranty. So if it would go out it shouldn't be a problem after warranty I believe. 

Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

In the process of purchasing a pillar pod and two GlowShift gauges, one boost and one volt! They were at the right price so I had to...


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Also learned that my e-brake does not work at all. Cool! Lol is it all connected with the rear drums not being adjusted right from the factory?

Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Bump for answer to previous post.

Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

I know there was a recall on the 2015 Cruzen due to the following:

The left-rear or right-rear parking brake cable brackets may not have been properly fastened during the assembly process, NHTSA said. As a result, the fastening bolts may back out completely, causing the parking brake bracket to separate. The parking brake may then fail to hold the vehicle in place. 
GM dealers will inspect the left-rear and right-rear parking brake brackets bolts, tightening them as necessary. There will be no charge for this service.

http://gmauthority.com/blog/2015/03/gm-recalls-2062-units-of-2015-chevy-cruze-over-rollaway-risk/


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

But then again, you do have a 2012...


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Turns out they're replacing the entire cable!


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## jmlo96 (May 2, 2015)

Odds are your drums aren't adjusted. Do you use your parking brake each time you park? If not you should, because that helps to adjust the drums. You may have to take the drums out and manually adjust them.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

jmlo96 said:


> Odds are your drums aren't adjusted. Do you use your parking brake each time you park? If not you should, because that helps to adjust the drums. You may have to take the drums out and manually adjust them.


Ahhh ok. Nope, it was just a test to mess around. 

Wonder if I can get the service people to do it. Last time I worked on my car it ended up being an expensive mistake.


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## jmlo96 (May 2, 2015)

sparkman said:


> Ahhh ok. Nope, it was just a test to mess around.
> 
> Wonder if I can get the service people to do it. Last time I worked on my car it ended up being an expensive mistake.


Yeah that's not a bad idea. Odds are those drums won't come off without a some good persuasion from a hammer. Make sure you use your parking brake, it will prevent things from seizing up and stay adjusted. If you don't use it you loose it, lol.

You could also try yanking the parking brake until it firms up.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Welp, we had to mess with it didn't we?



After Xtreme's write up, we thought it would be easy to do this ourselves. And it was!! Really easy! I needed to rotate my tires and Dad and I thought we might as well adjust the rear drums while we're at it. 

We followed his instructions perfectly. The left drum was too tight from the factory, so we backed it off a few clicks until we felt little resistance like the write up said. The right drum was WAY to loose, no resistance at all. We adjusted it 7 clicks and that took care of the issue. Perfect, right? I thought so, the brakes feel better then they ever did before. There were no rubbing noises, no dragging, nothing.

We went down to Church yesterday evening (about a half hour drive), and right around the corner from it we came to a stop sign. As I hit the brakes, the pedal went all the way down to the floor. Scary, we barely stopped. We entered the Church parking lot and put it park, and I called my manager at my dealer and asked if I could borrow a car to get home. So we drove it from the Church to the dealer (like 2 minutes away) and all of the sudden, the rear brakes started dragging...bad. When we got to the dealer it was all the little Cruze could do to move under it's own power. Also, for some reason my engine fan went into turbo mode when stopped. It was only 72 out, weird. 

Wow, I wrote that like a story, LOL.

So I have no clue what happened. I should've went with my gut and not messed with anything but the tires. 

Ugh. Still love the car though.


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## jmlo96 (May 2, 2015)

sparkman said:


> Welp, we had to mess with it didn't we?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


That's really odd. Sounds like something went screwy with the ABS.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

jmlo96 said:


> That's really odd. Sounds like something went screwy with the ABS.



Which is another thing I forgot to add. Almost every time you'd let off the brake the ABS self test would do it's thing.


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## jmlo96 (May 2, 2015)

Did you guys bump any of the ABS sensors? The car maybe activating the ABS because it thinks a wheel is locking up. ABS also works with traction and stability control, which could have contributed to the problem of moving.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

jmlo96 said:


> Did you guys bump any of the ABS sensors? The car maybe activating the ABS because it thinks a wheel is locking up. ABS also works with traction and stability control, which could have contributed to the problem of moving.


Nope. Didn't touch anything like that. All we touched was the stupid torx nut, the drum, and the thingy that clicks. That's it.


But why would it drive for 25 minutes perfect and then go into meltdown mode?


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

Good question, that leads me to believe that there is something going on with that sensor. Perhaps it got bumped or as you were going down the road *somehow* it came loose?


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## jmlo96 (May 2, 2015)

sparkman said:


> Nope. Didn't touch anything like that. All we touched was the stupid torx nut, the drum, and the thingy that clicks. That's it.
> 
> 
> But why would it drive for 25 minutes perfect and then go into meltdown mode?


It could be completely unrelated to you. We once had a brand new CTS we were using as a rental car have a similar issue. The customer just randomly lost the brakes while driving. The pedal was fine with the car off, but as soon as you started it then it went to the floor.


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## jmlo96 (May 2, 2015)

BrandoFisher117 said:


> Good question, that leads me to believe that there is something going on with that sensor. Perhaps it got bumped or as you were going down the road *somehow* it came loose?


Or rust built up on the sensors. It's called early activation ABS. It's very common on 99-05 GM trucks.


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## AutumnCruzeRS (Sep 10, 2012)

Did your car have the recall where the abs connector can corrode? My 99 s10 would prematurely activate abs and my 04 blazer I currently have does it too. I disconnected the pump by unplugging connector. No more abs just a light now.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

AutumnCruzeRS said:


> Did your car have the recall where the abs connector can corrode? My 99 s10 would prematurely activate abs and my 04 blazer I currently have does it too. I disconnected the pump by unplugging connector. No more abs just a light now.


Nope! The service people are driving it (?) right now, we'll see.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Apparently the e-brake got stuck.

They told me when I got to the service counter that they should have told me something before I left for the weekend, don't use the e-brake. Smh. 

Still weird of how I was able to drive for 25 minutes and then BAM no brakes. We'll see.

There goes $189.09


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## jmlo96 (May 2, 2015)

sparkman said:


> Apparently the e-brake got stuck.
> 
> They told me when I got to the service counter that they should have told me something before I left for the weekend, don't use the e-brake. Smh.
> 
> ...


I know you work there, but that is the biggest crock of crap I've heard in a while. Sorry to be blunt. First, I would show them the owners manual procedure for parking the vehicle. Step one is apply the parking brake lol. Next, I would be prepared for this to happen again. All that would happen with the parking brake being stuck is that the brakes would drag, maybe overheat. It wouldn't cause the car to not stop at all.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

jmlo96 said:


> I know you work there, but that is the biggest crock of crap I've heard in a while. Sorry to be blunt. First, I would show them the owners manual procedure for parking the vehicle. Step one is apply the parking brake lol. Next, I would be prepared for this to happen again. All that would happen with the parking brake being stuck is that the brakes would drag, maybe overheat. It wouldn't cause the car to not stop at all.


Well, let me rephrase that. I did have brakes, but it was minimal and the pedal was almost down to the floor.


----------



## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

sparkman said:


> Apparently the e-brake got stuck.
> 
> They told me when I got to the service counter that they should have told me something before I left for the weekend, don't use the e-brake. Smh.
> 
> ...


Absolute garbage. They forgot to tell you not to use the e-brake and yet they have the audacity to make you pay for something they should have told you about?


----------



## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

BrandoFisher117 said:


> Absolute garbage. They forgot to tell you not to use the e-brake and yet they have the audacity to make you pay for something they should have told you about?


Whoa, forgot to reply to this message. Yeah, they did.

Well, new issues have surfaced. I am getting bad engine vibration now when I accelerate (bad motor mount?). The idle is rough sometimes and surges, I suspect it's about time for a valve cover replacement. No CEL's at this time, car has 43k on it and I don't think it has been changed. 

I'm also getting a bad clunk under my feet over certain bumps. It's not the ABS self test, but I think something is messed up in my front end. I took a 150 mile road trip today with some friends and they noticed it, as well as harsh transmission shifting issues they said "were definitely not normal". Funny, service department thinks otherwise.

Oh, and something is messed up with my rear drums too. They usually howl like crazy when they're cold and you stop for the first few times (it literally sounds like a school bus, quite amusing actually). But, lately they have howled slightly without me touching the brakes at all. I don't feel any hesitation really, but something is dragging.

My car is falling apart guys! Lol


----------



## jmlo96 (May 2, 2015)

sparkman said:


> Whoa, forgot to reply to this message. Yeah, they did.
> 
> Well, new issues have surfaced. I am getting bad engine vibration now when I accelerate (bad motor mount?). The idle is rough sometimes and surges, I suspect it's about time for a valve cover replacement. No CEL's at this time, car has 43k on it and I don't think it has been changed.
> 
> ...


 @sparkman, if your car was a horse you'd have to shoot it lol. Have you considered getting a can of gas and a lighter?

I sure hope mine holds up better than this. I knew General Mess wasn't the best car company but you, jblackburn, and Merc6 have me a little concerned for the long term.


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## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

jmlo96 said:


> @*sparkman* , if your car was a horse you'd have to shoot it lol. Have you considered getting a can of gas and a lighter?
> 
> I sure hope mine holds up better than this. I knew General Mess wasn't the best car company but you, jblackburn, and Merc6 have me a little concerned for the long term.


Wow didn't realize you was going though what we were going through. I literally was like I guess I'm gonna suck it up and do a few more mods and stop thinking about a new car. I replaced most my car by now and had parts invested like you did so it should be new again and what kinda Craigslist add will I have? "200k on the body, 80k on the trans, 11k on the motor too many new parts to list $16.5 I know it's worth and don't have to sell it right now if I don't want to! Runs like a top, buyer responsible for tow!" 

My car had issues at like 300 miles but they weren't all the same in the window needed to be Lemon worthy plus extended warranty was king until it went away 3 months ago. Before that I was like it's a inconvenience but it's already paid for whatever broke. Once they said $3100 for another 3 year warranty on a car that wasn't worth double that today I said nope. Whatever happens happens, I'll just hope it's power train. Not too long after the grille and wheel mod I had drivability and CELS that didn't go away on stock tune and gone before I could power up the laptop and scan. 

If you didn't have issues in your 14 by now then you should be fine. My cuz has a 11 LTZ and I refuse to ask him how it is. He has no complaints using 87 octane and I didn't push the 93 issue. Sometimes it's best to not speak it into existence and that's how I been with it. Last time me and him got together I totally forgot to show him the vinyl and grille. We talked mostly about guns and trying to get to the range one day since I'm always posting pics on Fridays in the lane before I shoot my regular.


----------



## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

sparkman said:


> Whoa, forgot to reply to this message. Yeah, they did.
> 
> Well, new issues have surfaced. I am getting bad engine vibration now when I accelerate (bad motor mount?). The idle is rough sometimes and surges, I suspect it's about time for a valve cover replacement. No CEL's at this time, car has 43k on it and I don't think it has been changed.
> 
> ...


In all seriousness do another dealership. If you leave GM (not telling you to follow suit of Terry, Kobalt and I literally) your best bet is to not have such a crap car on appraisal. You want to up sell your car as much as you can to adsorb that hit. The hit is not pretty but if the pros outweigh the cons..... For me, I had almost 4 years left of payments on a car that was soon to not have a warranty. Trading in on a 3 year lease was like me paying a little more a month to hurry up and pay off that in 3 years plus new warranty on a new car. 3 years from now the debt of that car is gone and I'm free to pick whatever clean of a trade in with negative hanging over it. The choice is yours, you just have to take steps in the direction you calculated to work out for you. When I got the Cruze, I was in no position to lease as I was 18k miles in around 6 months ownership. As for the clunk I lost a BJ at about that miles range. Also check the sway links.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

@jmlo96 I thought about it honestly, lol. @Merc6 I looked at the 2017 Elantra Limited today, I might be going that route. 

Hate to say this, but I think another issue has just surfaced as well in the last hour. The defrost/floor split level doesn't work properly. I was driving with the defrost on and I wanted floor heat as well, so I hit the button. As I drove along, the windows started fogging up. Come to find out that there is absolutely no difference between floor heat and defrost/floor heat split. It all goes to the floor. 

Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

Oh no. I'm sorry bud. Eventhough you're getting service done at the dealership you work at, they may not be putting your best interests forward. As Merc said, I'd try a different dealership along with getting Chevy Customer Care involved yet again. With all this happening at roughly the same time, I'd be curious to know what they have to say.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

*Sparkman's &quot;Build&quot; - 2012 1LT/RS*



sparkman said:


> @jmlo96 I thought about it honestly, lol. @Merc6 I looked at the 2017 Elantra Limited today, I might be going that route.
> 
> Hate to say this, but I think another issue has just surfaced as well in the last hour. The defrost/floor split level doesn't work properly. I was driving with the defrost on and I wanted floor heat as well, so I hit the button. As I drove along, the windows started fogging up. Come to find out that there is absolutely no difference between floor heat and defrost/floor heat split. It all goes to the floor.
> 
> Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk


Nononono. Forget the limited. Look at the sport. Do it. Do it for love.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

jblackburn said:


> Nononono. Forget the limited. Look at the sport. Do it. Do it for love.


:lol:

Nahhh, after this Cruze I'm done with Turbo cars. DONE. No more premium fuel for me.


----------



## Blasirl (Mar 31, 2015)

sparkman said:


> :lol:
> 
> Nahhh, after this Cruze I'm done with Turbo cars. DONE. No more premium fuel for me.




Premium? I use 87 octane with no issues. No tune though.


----------



## Blasirl (Mar 31, 2015)

sparkman said:


> @jmlo96 I thought about it honestly, lol. @Merc6 I looked at the 2017 Elantra Limited today, I might be going that route.
> 
> Hate to say this, but I think another issue has just surfaced as well in the last hour. The defrost/floor split level doesn't work properly. I was driving with the defrost on and I wanted floor heat as well, so I hit the button. As I drove along, the windows started fogging up. Come to find out that there is absolutely no difference between floor heat and defrost/floor heat split. It all goes to the floor.
> 
> Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk


I just watched a youtube video that shows the guy looking at the flaps where the cabin filter goes. I just looked for it , but could not find it. What I remember was put it in recirc mode and rotate the gear that is just to the left of the filter housing towards you and down. When you restart the vehicle the flaps should be in the right position. Maybe this will help. Sorry I do not have the link. I have been looking through about what seems like a thousand warranty threads for some information. - still have not found it, but messaged the GM Customer Service Rep (What is their name?).


----------



## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Blasirl said:


> I just watched a youtube video that shows the guy looking at the flaps where the cabin filter goes. I just looked for it , but could not find it. What I remember was put it in recirc mode and rotate the gear that is just to the left of the filter housing towards you and down. When you restart the vehicle the flaps should be in the right position. Maybe this will help. Sorry I do not have the link. I have been looking through about what seems like a thousand warranty threads for some information. - still have not found it, but messaged the GM Customer Service Rep (What is there name?).


Thanks for the info, I believe the profile you are looking for is Chevy Customer Care.


----------



## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

Blasirl said:


> Premium? I use 87 octane with no issues. No tune though.


Depends on year and if GM ECU re flash was available for your car. Mine was 91 only and you would have a bad day if you tried to feed it 87. Even in the winter it would stall on 87 and punish you that entire 12 gallons. How the **** do you stall a manual already doing 20 MPH?


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## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

jblackburn said:


> Nononono. Forget the limited. Look at the sport. Do it. Do it for love.


Yeah, I thought about it but I wanted a bigger car. Numbers on paper for the price, DUDE!


----------



## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

I honestly would love it, but I truly want a N/A vehicle for my next one. Plus insurance would be thru the roof for that trim I bet. 

Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk


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## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

sparkman said:


> I honestly would love it, but I truly want a N/A vehicle for my next one. Plus insurance would be thru the roof for that trim I bet.
> 
> Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk


I keep forgetting about that, You aren't 25 yet? I got my Turbo Subaru when I was like 24 turning 25.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

sparkman said:


> I honestly would love it, but I truly want a N/A vehicle for my next one. Plus insurance would be thru the roof for that trim I bet.
> 
> Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk


I can't do 4 cylinder NA. Short of the Honda Accord, meh. 

Now a Japanese V6? Heck yes.


----------



## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Actually did insurance quotes last night, the 2017 Elantra limited is only $15 more a month for the same coverage I got on my Cruze! I'm shocked.

Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk


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## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

jblackburn said:


> I can't do 4 cylinder NA. Short of the Honda Accord, meh.
> 
> Now a Japanese V6? Heck yes.


Yeah My thoughts going in was dog slow but it feels like what you guys describe the BNR tune to be in such a bigger car. 



sparkman said:


> Actually did insurance quotes last night, the 2017 Elantra limited is only $15 more a month for the same coverage I got on my Cruze! I'm shocked.
> 
> Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk


New car discount may have helped some but I lost the Anti theft discount of "OnStar" going to the Accord. They also restructured the rental coverage on me. I had it set for $50 a day in the event I crashed/totaled in the snow so a SUV could be in reach. Now they literally have SUV as 2 whole categories up. There was also the 20% car replacement assistance option independent of gap and wherever your delectable amount is set for could also cause the change. Whenever I add a vehicle that deductible always changes from $300 to $500 so I usually have to take a few more looks before I finish to find out why it's cheaper than I thought.


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## Blasirl (Mar 31, 2015)

Merc6 said:


> Depends on year and if GM ECU re flash was available for your car. Mine was 91 only and you would have a bad day if you tried to feed it 87. Even in the winter it would stall on 87 and punish you that entire 12 gallons. How the **** do you stall a manual already doing 20 MPH?


I have 2014 LT 1.4...


A brick wall might work


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## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

Blasirl said:


> I have 2014 LT 1.4...
> 
> 
> A brick wall might work


If late built then the ECU is already programmed to accept 87 "seamlessly". 

Lol T/C and Stabilitrac activation are that brick wall then.


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

I completely understand your desire to have a vehicle with a 10 year 100K warranty and a 4 cylinder NA engine. I'd recommend the Elantra GT hatch with the 2.0L NA engine.

Just be warned that while the Elantra is very practical, it's also very boring. No one will genuinely be interested in it, or want to talk about it, and no one will care about it besides you. An Elantra is a lot like a gold Camry, it might as well be invisible. 

A 350 HP V6 Genesis on the other hand.......


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

chevrasaki said:


> I completely understand your desire to have a vehicle with a 10 year 100K warranty and a 4 cylinder NA engine. I'd recommend the Elantra GT hatch with the 2.0L NA engine.
> 
> Just be warned that while the Elantra is very practical, it's also very boring. No one will genuinely be interested in it, or want to talk about it, and no one will care about it besides you. An Elantra is a lot like a gold Camry, it might as well be invisible.
> 
> A 350 HP V6 Genesis on the other hand.......


Excellent point, and the Elantra is a pretty bland car. But, I would rather not have people interested in my car and it run forever than having a bunch of people talk about my car and I have to tell them how crappy my car is.

When people ask how I like my Cruze it's usually a 15 minute conversation. Lol

Now keep in mind, I'm not talking crap about all Cruze's in general, just my own car. 

A Genesis would be nice though.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

sparkman said:


> Excellent point, and the Elantra is a pretty bland car. But, I would rather not have people interested in my car and it run forever than having a bunch of people talk about my car and I have to tell them how crappy my car is.
> 
> When people ask how I like my Cruze it's usually a 15 minute conversation. Lol
> 
> ...


This is probably why Toyota sells so many RAV4s, Camrys, and Corollas year after year.


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## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

sparkman said:


> Excellent point, and the Elantra is a pretty bland car. But, I would rather not have people interested in my car and it run forever than having a bunch of people talk about my car and I have to tell them how crappy my car is.
> 
> When people ask how I like my Cruze it's usually a 15 minute conversation. Lol
> 
> ...


LOL, I know that pain! They all ended in "Why haven't you just set it on fire by now?" I'm like because I don't want the government in my life anymore than it already is! 

Genesis all seemed nice but I wondered how they (4 door) were doing in the used market. Seemed to held their value enough. Also, whats up with calling the one car "K900"? Sounds cheap and dated like it was made during the days The Adventures of Pete & Pete with Krebstar 2000 products.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

sparkman said:


> Whoa, forgot to reply to this message. Yeah, they did.
> 
> Well, new issues have surfaced. I am getting bad engine vibration now when I accelerate (bad motor mount?).
> 
> ...


My car literally was falling apart! They found out yesterday that my transmission mount was loose with bolts missing/loose. Apparently the tech who did the rebuild didn't tighten it. Ugh.

BUT, night and day improvement. No vibration anymore. No clunk under my feet. No jerky shifts anymore. It's fixed, FINALLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

OMG! WTF kind of techs are you working with at your dealership!? (jk lol)...

So are the flare shifts gone??


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

sparkman said:


> My car literally was falling apart! They found out yesterday that my transmission mount was loose with bolts missing/loose. Apparently the tech who did the rebuild didn't tighten it. Ugh.
> 
> BUT, night and day improvement. No vibration anymore. No clunk under my feet. No jerky shifts anymore. It's fixed, FINALLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Lmao. Same thing happened to me, except mine squeaked whenever I let the clutch out. Incredibly annoying.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Yes, believe it or not, the flare shifts are gone (of course, it might be still to early to tell)

As far as tech's go, the guy who did the rebuild no longer works for our dealership.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Measured my 0-60 time (twice) yesterday just for giggles...

11.2 seconds with a full tank of gas and just a passenger. 

Measured my buddy's Toyota Prius 0-60 time with 4 passengers with luggage and 3/4 tank...

10.1 seconds. 

Similar temp, no wind, and flat road.



At least mine looks cool and has a manly horn. Lmao


----------



## Blasirl (Mar 31, 2015)

jmlo96 said:


> Odds are your drums aren't adjusted. Do you use your parking brake each time you park? If not you should, because that helps to adjust the drums. You may have to take the drums out and manually adjust them.


That's new to me. I am used to adjusting either by hand or by going in reverse and hitting the brakes to adjust (have had no need yet on the Cruze).

Is this in the owners manual or some other?


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## Blasirl (Mar 31, 2015)

sparkman said:


> My car literally was falling apart! They found out yesterday that my transmission mount was loose with bolts missing/loose. Apparently the tech who did the rebuild didn't tighten it. Ugh.
> 
> ...


You ever think that someone at your dealership has a grudge??? Just Sayin, Not Knowin ....:S-A-Smack:


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

I wonder sometimes....

Almost got into an accident at lunch, my date is wrong on my camera...


----------



## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Painted my rear drums this morning the color of new brakes. Turned out really good in my opinion and when road grime gets on them they should match the front brakes.

1LT drums FTW! Haha


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

After working in a manufacturing environment now for 8 months I can say this:

Products that are built on the line are built with many many detection methods in place for ensuring the product is built properly. Whenever a unit is built off line at the repair station, the chances of that unit being returned for a warranty claim goes up by 600%.

Same goes for repair shops. When my Cobalt was involved in that accident and then immediately hit by that hail storm, the car had been taken almost completely apart twice in the course of 8 months. It took 4 years to work out most of the major kinks that were caused by re-installation of the engine. But even then, when I traded it in, it was still leaking rainwater into the passenger compartment by the bucket, and it had a small coolant leak.

Cars these days are designed to be built on an assembly line with really fragile connectors, when they are taken apart, the chances of them going wrong increase by a lot.

I'm very glad you have finally got the thing back together properly, hopefully now you can just drive it and stop worrying.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

sparkman said:


> I wonder sometimes....
> 
> Almost got into an accident at lunch, my date is wrong on my camera...


Not to mention your car is BRIGHT RED. 

I've almost been merged into a few times lately and mines bright freaking blue. The horn on the Gen 2 is terrible and I will be making it louder/better in the very near future.


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## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

sparkman said:


> Painted my rear drums this morning the color of new brakes. Turned out really good in my opinion and when road grime gets on them they should match the front brakes.
> 
> 1LT drums FTW! Haha


 Yeah looks way better as they start rusting and look horrible after time. 



jblackburn said:


> Not to mention your car is BRIGHT RED.
> 
> I've almost been merged into a few times lately and mines bright freaking blue. The horn on the Gen 2 is terrible and I will be making it louder/better in the very near future.


That is normal no matter how loud your horn is or how bright the color of your car. That happens to me on a daily sub stopsign for already red light. I really need to get a dash cam.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

chevrasaki said:


> After working in a manufacturing environment now for 8 months I can say this:
> 
> Products that are built on the line are built with many many detection methods in place for ensuring the product is built properly. Whenever a unit is built off line at the repair station, the chances of that unit being returned for a warranty claim goes up by 600%.
> 
> ...


I am glad as well. I think mechanically, everything is FINALLY sound. After I get it paid off this year, I plan to do coil-overs and some type of rim, not sure whether to go aftermarket or OEM. 

Let's face it, tune or no tune, turbo upgrade or no turbo upgrade, this thing is never going to win any drag races, so no more "performance" upgrades for me. But I think I can make it handle pretty darn good and give cars a run for their money in an autocross.


----------



## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Still running good! Better than it ever has, and I'M HAPPY.

I've decided once and for all, no more mods (except LED lights). It's not worth it and I think it's best to start saving for a place to live.

Going to take her up to 300k! 

Photo hosting site downgraded the photo, but it still looks cool:


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## BrandoFisher117 (Mar 14, 2016)

Still lookin good! Glad to hear that it is still running well!


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

It's time to enter that beautiful beast into the COTM contest. It looks great in that picture, but the first gen Cruze has always been very photogenic. I'm really glad to hear everything is finally settling down. Enjoy!


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

chevrasaki said:


> It's time to enter that beautiful beast into the COTM contest. It looks great in that picture, but the first gen Cruze has always been very photogenic. I'm really glad to hear everything is finally settling down. Enjoy!


Thanks! 

I wouldn't stand a chance in COTM with all the modded Cruzes. We should have a couple times out of the year of who can take best photos of their STOCK Cruze and put them in for COTM for people who can't afford and/or choose not to modify their cars.

May have to talk about that with someone on here...hmmmm.


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

All it would take for you to win the contest is some $10 black plasti-dip for the wheels, and some good clean HQ pics like the one you posted above and you'd win no problem. Then you can peel the plasti-dip off and it's back to normal. Even without the dip you'd still win, I'd vote for you.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

chevrasaki said:


> All it would take for you to win the contest is some $10 black plasti-dip for the wheels, and some good clean HQ pics like the one you posted above and you'd win no problem. Then you can peel the plasti-dip off and it's back to normal. Even without the dip you'd still win, I'd vote for you.


Thanks man.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

sparkman said:


> Thanks!
> 
> I wouldn't stand a chance in COTM with all the modded Cruzes. We should have a couple times out of the year of who can take best photos of their STOCK Cruze and put them in for COTM for people who can't afford and/or choose not to modify their cars.
> 
> May have to talk about that with someone on here...hmmmm.


You enter, I'll enter. 

I need to go find some places for my car to be photogenic...and bring something other than my phone along.

huehuehue


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

jblackburn said:


> You enter, I'll enter.
> 
> I need to go find some places for my car to be photogenic...and bring something other than my phone along.
> 
> huehuehue


Alright, come at me bro.

lol

What day does it need submitted by?


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

sparkman said:


> Alright, come at me bro.
> 
> lol
> 
> What day does it need submitted by?


Deadline for this month's is supposed to be tomorrow, but it will probably end up being the 21st as I'll be driving tomorrow night. I probably won't enter for another month or two.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

jblackburn said:


> Deadline for this month's is supposed to be tomorrow, but it will probably end up being the 21st as I'll be driving tomorrow night. I probably won't enter for another month or two.



Crap, I won't have time to get more pictures.

Next month.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

sparkman said:


> Crap, I won't have time to get more pictures.
> 
> Next month.


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## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

Seems like you are the only one left in the whole area with one (original crew). I see many RS gen 1 and 2 all over now. I was gonna take a pic of a Premier RS with tint and YOHB it but the light turned. 

Glad it's still working out for you, tune at this point would only encourage spending more money on mods shortly after. LOL If I stayed stock the Subaru would be almost running by now. 

There was a point when the COTM was scarce but that was around the password issues time frame. I should have submitted mine when I had the chance, make sure you take the photos and just do it next month. Waiting till next month they most likely won't happen.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Yep, everyone got rid of theirs. I need to message him and we need to do a meet up again soon! 

Haha, with all the mechanical issues I've had, I don't want to increase the chances of another one by adding non-OEM parts.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Car is ******* leaking oil all over the front of the motor, I can't even drive the thing without being fumigated out of the **** cabin. I'm so pissed off.


Any idea what that is? Is that the stupid valve cover?


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

sparkman said:


> Car is ******* leaking oil all over the front of the motor, I can't even drive the thing without being fumigated out of the **** cabin. I'm so pissed off.
> 
> 
> Any idea what that is? Is that the stupid valve cover?


Oil cooler/cap? VC shouldn't leak unless the gasket is breached. 

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

jblackburn said:


> Oil cooler/cap? VC shouldn't leak unless the gasket is breached.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

FYI, the engine was cleaned mint the last time we did an oil change. So all of what you see is new.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

You're right; that does look like the gasket. Haven't seen that too much on these cars...maybe because the VC's are changed so often anyway.


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## Blasirl (Mar 31, 2015)

Have you ever thought that the Cruze is pissed at you because you won't enter it into the COTM? Just sayin', not knowin'!

Then again, all of your pictures look soooo similar....


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Blasirl said:


> Have you ever thought that the Cruze is pissed at you because you won't enter it into the COTM? Just sayin', not knowin'!
> 
> Then again, all of your pictures look soooo similar....


I've lost all my love for the stupid thing after having to drive home from work for the past week with the windows down because I couldn't freaking breathe...lol


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## Blasirl (Mar 31, 2015)

sparkman said:


> I've lost all my love for the stupid thing after having to drive home from work for the past week with the windows down because I couldn't freaking breathe...lol


Breathing is overrated!


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Blasirl said:


> Breathing is overrated!



Lol


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## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

sparkman said:


> I've lost all my love for the stupid thing after having to drive home from work for the past week with the windows down because I couldn't freaking breathe...lol


Yeah, been there plenty of times then once it's fixed I was content again. Hopefully they can fix it 1 good time and not be the repeat leak situation.




Blasirl said:


> Breathing is overrated!



LOL SO MUCH HATE JUST CAME BACK! Brings back memories of combat G strings and MOPP 4 for 13 hours at a time.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Thanks to @jblackburn I can see now at night, adjusted my headlights to the proper height and I CAN SEEEEEEEEEEEE


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

sparkman said:


> Thanks to @*jblackburn* I can see now at night, adjusted my headlights to the proper height and I CAN SEEEEEEEEEEEE


It makes a huge difference, doesn't it?!


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## jmlo96 (May 2, 2015)

Whoever sets the adjustment on the Cruze headlights from the factory must be blind haha.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

jblackburn said:


> It makes a huge difference, doesn't it?!


Yeah it super crazy. I added Sylvania ZXE's too and I'm impressed.


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## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

Now headlight harness upgrade. I always wanted to but not that great a electrical stuff.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Valve cover is leaking AGAIN, after the repair. Oil smell is everywhere. 

Went to go trade the car in today, $5,500.

Walked out. I'm stuck with it.


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## InsideMan (Sep 23, 2017)

How's all your Diode Dinamics LED's still working for you? I don't want to waist my time if I'm gonna have to do this more than once.
FIFTY FIVE HUNDRED!!!!!!!! A slap in the face would have been more appropriate!


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## Overbuilt (Jan 13, 2017)

sparkman said:


> Valve cover is leaking AGAIN, after the repair. Oil smell is everywhere.
> 
> Went to go trade the car in today, $5,500.
> 
> Walked out. I'm stuck with it.


Exactly how much were you expecting? What was it new? Economic cars like these lose 80% of their value in 4-5 years. Your welcome to try another dealer, but you'll most likely get the same song and dance since they all use the same math formula.

Sorry to hear you're having troubles!


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Overbuilt said:


> Exactly how much were you expecting? What was it new? Economic cars like these lose 80% of their value in 4-5 years. Your welcome to try another dealer, but you'll most likely get the same song and dance since they all use the same math formula.
> 
> Sorry to hear you're having troubles!


Around 6,500-7,000. KBB and NADA say that's average for my year, miles, and condition.

Yeah, I didn't do research when I bought it, my stupidity, I admit it.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

InsideMan said:


> How's all your Diode Dinamics LED's still working for you? I don't want to waist my time if I'm gonna have to do this more than once.
> FIFTY FIVE HUNDRED!!!!!!!! A slap in the face would have been more appropriate!



Get them.. you wont regret it.


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## Overbuilt (Jan 13, 2017)

$1000 to get rid of your troubles? That doesn't sound all that bad and there are plenty of deals especially in OH for 2017 models still on the lots. Hoping you get in another Cruze! I'll be honest here, I've owned a ton of cars. From Prius's to Hellcats (Yes I've had a few now). The best value and bang for your buck hands down is the Cruze. Even with all the problems you read about on these forums, want to try explaining to Dodge that your supercharger is pulling boost at 4000-4700RPM and you have the diag's to prove it and they tell you it's normal lol.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

sparkman said:


> Valve cover is leaking AGAIN, after the repair. Oil smell is everywhere.
> 
> Went to go trade the car in today, $5,500.
> 
> Walked out. I'm stuck with it.


Has your check valve gone missing?

Yeah the resale hit is hard to stomach. I'm glad I got out of mine when I did. And into another...lmao.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk


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## Merc6 (Jun 8, 2013)

I'm with Overbuilt, rip the bandaid off and roll with it. For me I took the lease route since I had a super long finance contract. My car would have not stayed in on piece by completion of that contract and been like my Subaru, not running, no warrantee still with a car note looking for another running car. It sucks but 3 years of new car warranty, the negative equity is gone and so is the lease w/o me having to worry about depreciation or selling it. Clean slate and a hypothetical running Subaru was the goal but time will tell. 

I also 2nd the LEDs, got cheaper and been replacing them 3 to 6 month increments.

Yeah Chrysler sucks when it comes to servicing any car. Had one and will never do that again. There is a girl in my snap that keeps posting about her Dart being a money pit.


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## joshuab (Apr 16, 2014)

sparkman said:


> Valve cover is leaking AGAIN, after the repair. Oil smell is everywhere.
> 
> Went to go trade the car in today, $5,500.
> 
> Walked out. I'm stuck with it.


 @sparkman, I hate to hear you have been having more issues out of your car. But that price you was offered over 5K trade in, my car right now in trade in is at 4,445! Its insane I must admit when we purchase these cars they are high, but as a salesman told me once, once them wheels roll of the lot it starts losing value! 

But in any event, I hope you the best & get these quirks worked out. As all us Cruze owners know these cars has there fair share of them!


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## Blasirl (Mar 31, 2015)

InsideMan said:


> How's all your Diode Dinamics LED's still working for you?


I have these as well and really like them. Here is my installation thread if you need it.


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

PAID OFF.

Victory.


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## frankh (Aug 25, 2014)

Do your future self a HUGE favour.. Keep the car.. save up some money and then buy all your future cars with cash! I'm still running a '99 Dodge Neon that I paid $350 and it runs perfectly.

Then finish school and pay off your school loans.

Never send a car to a mechanic

Buy a house, get some renters to pay it off.

Max out your pre tax retirement accounts and invest in low cost index funds.

Be financially independent in your late 40's (with over $1M) and retire if you want to.

A lifetime of debt is not a foregone conclusion, so why does almost everybody do it?


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## Sunline Fan (Jul 29, 2012)

Victory for the Victory Red! Congrats Sparky!


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## Cruzen18 (Jan 28, 2018)

NICE! Congrats!


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Thanks guys!


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

I need to update the first post in this thread with the repairs and things I have done to it so people don't have to scroll though 23 pages of crap! hahahaha


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## Sunline Fan (Jul 29, 2012)

sparkman said:


> I need to update the first post in this thread with the repairs and things I have done to it so people don't have to scroll though 23 pages of crap! hahahaha


OMG with permalinks to the specific page/post number with the supporting details on that repair/mod?!


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

Sunline Fan said:


> OMG with permalinks to the specific page/post number with the supporting details on that repair/mod?!


Really good idea, yep! 

Project for me to do this weekend.


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## BU54 (Nov 24, 2014)

sparkman said:


> I need to update the first post in this thread with the repairs and things I have done to it so people don't have to scroll though 23 pages of crap! hahahaha


Good idea, now get rid of some of the crap will ya??? 
Oh and it's 24 now...lol


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## sparkman (Oct 15, 2015)

First posted updated.


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