# Cruze reliability b



## htoler (Dec 8, 2019)

Does anyone have a Cruze that has not had problems with it ?
Most of what I have read here on the forum makes it sound like The Cruze is a piece of junk 

I bought a used 2016 Cruze Lt that was a lease car that had only been leased 2 times and only had 12 K miles on it 
Consumer reviews I found on the Cruze before I bought it said it was a reliable vehicle .
But finding this forum. 
The information here completely counterdicts 
The consumer reports .
And wondering now if I made a bad choice


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## MP81 (Jul 20, 2015)

All vehicles have problems. The vast majority of regulars here are/have been very happy with their Cruze(s).


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## Shroomie (Jan 16, 2017)

Lol just give it some time. I'm willing to bet you'll have coolant issues and PCV issues before you reach 80k miles. Good luck and god speed


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## Taxman (Aug 10, 2017)

I don't think I've seen any mention of PCV or cooling issues in GEN2/LE2 yet.
Just LE2 pistons and diesel manual transmission/flywheel issues.


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## Eddy Cruze (Jan 10, 2014)

The CRUZE has been a nightmare for some. I don't entirely trust my CRUZE, never have, yet it has never broke, and I do have full repair coverage on my 14 until 2/21. Overall its been decent and the MPG is amazing!


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## UpstateNYBill (Jan 14, 2012)

htoler said:


> Does anyone have a Cruze that has not had problems with it ?
> Most of what I have read here on the forum makes it sound like The Cruze is a piece of junk
> 
> I bought a used 2016 Cruze Lt that was a lease car that had only been leased 2 times and only had 12 K miles on it
> ...


Most of the issues are Gen1 related.

I have a 2017 hatch with 140,000 miles and zero problems so far.


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## Iamantman (Sep 24, 2018)

Hey OP it's also the internet where complaints ring loudest. Remember that anywhere you go online. Its not a good representative image of any product. 

I think MP81 probably gave you the most honest answer here you could hope for.


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## 17Hatch6MT (Dec 28, 2015)

So, what are the common (that is, more than 1%?, not the majority I suppose?) issues for the Gen 2 cars ID'd to date?

-Water leaking into the 3rd brake light on sedans - Mfr recall issued
-Cracked pistons caused by low-speed preignition - Recommendations here are to use the proper oil, don't go overly long between changes, use premium fuel, don't lug the engine excessively (manual models especially). Manufacturer response is to change pistons or new engine if it happens within warranty, and since mid '17 or so, new engines have revised pistons and tunes to reduce/prevent.
-Clutch slave cylinder quits working, both diesel and gas
-Dual-mass flywheel problem, diesel manual (did I see a gas manual owner complaining about it?)
-Wind noise around the B pillar. Mine was due to a weatherstrip error at the upper rear corner of the driver's window. Easily fix by stuffing a piece of plastic bag up there.

Anything else?


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

17Hatch6MT said:


> So, what are the common (that is, more than 1%?, not the majority I suppose?) issues for the Gen 2 cars ID'd to date?
> 
> -Water leaking into the 3rd brake light on sedans - Mfr recall issued
> -Cracked pistons caused by low-speed preignition - Recommendations here are to use the proper oil, don't go overly long between changes, use premium fuel, don't lug the engine excessively (manual models especially). Manufacturer response is to change pistons or new engine if it happens within warranty, and since mid '17 or so, new engines have revised pistons and tunes to reduce/prevent.
> ...


Tie rods on 16/17 causing a clunk/rattle over bumps or a harsh thump on restart.

Aside from this one, I have had no other issues with mine. They were replaced under a TSB and been fine since.


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## dhartsock (Jul 16, 2015)

htoler said:


> Does anyone have a Cruze that has not had problems with it ?
> Most of what I have read here on the forum makes it sound like The Cruze is a piece of junk
> 
> I bought a used 2016 Cruze Lt that was a lease car that had only been leased 2 times and only had 12 K miles on it
> ...


Zero issues to date with my 2016 Chevy Cruze LT. Only routine maintenance other than, I believe 3 minor factory recalls. 58,000 miles. That said, bad cars are manufactured and as someone else has mentioned, when you are on the internet you will hear a predominance of bad stories because the satisfied customers do not have much to say.


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## funkyman (Apr 15, 2017)

htoler said:


> Does anyone have a Cruze that has not had problems with it ?
> Most of what I have read here on the forum makes it sound like The Cruze is a piece of junk
> 
> I bought a used 2016 Cruze Lt that was a lease car that had only been leased 2 times and only had 12 K miles on it
> ...


I've never had any problems,but my car has 23k miles 2018


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## poemranger (Sep 10, 2019)

htoler said:


> Does anyone have a Cruze that has not had problems with it ?
> Most of what I have read here on the forum makes it sound like The Cruze is a piece of junk
> 
> I bought a used 2016 Cruze Lt that was a lease car that had only been leased 2 times and only had 12 K miles on it
> ...


The cruze is a good car. I have a 2015 which I bought last year. It has 75k The car is a mechanics friend. Everything is bolted on including the front wheel hubs (no need to press bearings they just bolt on). I love my car and I love working on it. This is a cruze website the same as if u bough another car you can find a website where people with just ur car have random issues and post to help other owners out. Every car has issues if you want something that will have no issues buy new and get rid of every 3-4 years. I have a friend who has a 2011 with 40k and it’s been salvaged. I work on both cars.


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## eddiecress (Dec 8, 2019)

htoler said:


> Does anyone have a Cruze that has not had problems with it ?
> Most of what I have read here on the forum makes it sound like The Cruze is a piece of junk
> 
> I bought a used 2016 Cruze Lt that was a lease car that had only been leased 2 times and only had 12 K miles on it
> ...


I've had mine since 2013, have had the usual issues regarding traction control. check engine light etc but those were repaired. My biggest issue was a recall for reprogramming the ECU, which I had done last spring, apparently it was too lean and burnt the number two piston. I had to replace the engine for that reason, it was cheaper to do that than repair mine. The car drives and rides great, have gotten 40 MPG on long trips. I plan on keeping it until it or me dies.


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## Fireworks234 (Jan 4, 2018)

I had a '16 Sedan, only had the Axle squeak TSB and the 3rd brakelight recall. It was a great car otherwise and a friend of mine bought it. It's now up to 6X,000 miles and new tires. (Also replaced a bent rim and 3 tires for potholes)

I currently have a '18 Hatchback with 16k miles and I've had 0 problems (except a bent rim on day one from a crater of a pothole in the dark)

I love them and the Trifecta tune helped me really enjoy the cars!


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## Chad20101 (Jul 23, 2019)

My 


htoler said:


> Does anyone have a Cruze that has not had problems with it ?
> Most of what I have read here on the forum makes it sound like The Cruze is a piece of junk
> 
> I bought a used 2016 Cruze Lt that was a lease car that had only been leased 2 times and only had 12 K miles on it
> ...


2016 Cruze 1.8L Limited LS was was flawless & gave no issues with the 60,000 miles under 2 years I put on & including getting hit from behind an pushed into a truck. My 2019 Is doing good so far.


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## billy_j844 (Oct 30, 2016)

I have two Cruzes, both bought new. The first is a 2013 LT, with 55K miles. No problems with it yet. The second is a 2014 LTZ with 45K miles. The only issue was a recall on the sunroof glass; dealer took care of it. Very pleased with both of them.


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## CRUISE-CRUZE (Nov 8, 2010)

I had/have 5 Cruze-s in my family. Put it in this way: this car makes me a great mechanic! 
But... this is the car I can maintain myself and still do changes and updates for low cost. This is a great forum where you can find a lot of information that you can use to DIY! Sure, I can afford a higher end cost car but do you think these are free of issues? No way! And even I may have the skills to fix its issue, the cost would be much higher for everything and the "out" time for repairs will also increase! Then my conclusion is this: yes, the Cruze, as it is, ... is the best car for me and for many of us on this forum! You can try different other cars but I can see my friend who has a Japanese car has also issues, my colleague at work with a German has also issues.... then what you are going to buy?? And I'm scared to look at what is coming next on the market.. cyber....


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## Taxman (Aug 10, 2017)

UpstateNYBill said:


> I have a 2017 hatch with 140,000 miles and zero problems so far.


JINX!


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## UpstateNYBill (Jan 14, 2012)

Taxman said:


> JINX!


Yeah, no kidding.

TOTALED!  

Hell of a jinx...


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## Blasirl (Mar 31, 2015)

htoler said:


> Does anyone have a Cruze that has not had problems with it ?
> Most of what I have read here on the forum makes it sound like The Cruze is a piece of junk
> 
> I bought a used 2016 Cruze Lt that was a lease car that had only been leased 2 times and only had 12 K miles on it
> ...


A large majority of people that find us here do so because they have a problem. That kind of skews the numbers a bit. For all of those that have no issues, not all of them show up here as they are not interested in adding more social media to their life.

I myself have had a number of issues with my Cruze, many of them caused by myself, but most were relatively easy to fix, much of the time with help from the forum. Consider yourself lucky to have a nice low mileage Cruze with ready information on the most common issues and most of them have handy How-To's to fix them. Many links to fairly cheap sources of parts to boot.


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

Well, I have 4 of them, and have had a total of 5 (traded one of the two Gen 1s I had for a Gen 2). I've had many vehicles over the years, including 2 bonafide lemons, one a Dodge 1/2 ton pick-up, the other a GMC 3/4 Diesel Pick-up. All cars can have issues, and sites such as this are going to skew toward the issues. With the Cruze, I had a few issues fixed under warranty on the Gen 1, DPF after the first week, was probably the biggest item, then later an ECU, ironically it has never broken down, the CEL came on and provided plenty of time to schedule service. All other issues were related to emissions, and for Diesel, that is all new technology, but GM covered all repairs at no cost to me. Now on the Gen 2s, the biggest item has been on the Manual, the Dual Mass Flywheel (DMF) failed at 12K miles, but that is not a problem unique to Cruze, as my Diesel Dodge 1 ton, with manual Transmission also had a DMF that I replaced at about 50K miles, but was starting to degrade long before that, I just didn't notice until it started to cause clutch slip. The issues on that is the design of a dual mass flywheel. On the truck I fixed by replacement with a robust single mass unit, and will do same for Cruze if it fails again outside of warranty. Other issues, (Diesel only) are the EGR cooler, apparently there is an re-designed unit out, but it's on national backorder, one of my 3 has been replaced the other is in progress. This issue however seems to have no noticeable affect on operation of the car, other than the CEL light, which also seems to clear itself and come on only periodically with the original cooler. So I don't consider the EGR issue significant. Now the only super annoying thing on one of my Gen 2s is some erratic behavior of the 7" infotainment system, but that is something that can happen on any new car, and if I'm lucky GM will finally figure out that it needs a replacement unit, that and on the 7" unit, the idiotic super bright display in back-up camera mode AT NIGHT.. renders it not only unusable, but dangerous as it harms night vision and distracts from seeing out of mirrors. That is an issue that it seems should be possible to fix by a software update, I'm perplexed as to why that has not happened yet, but again I consider these things minor.. the cars all get well over 40MPG average in mixed driving, the Gen 1 about 50 on the highway, the Gen 2s, just shy of 60 on the highway, and that is crazy good economy.


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## gannman2000 (Jan 28, 2019)

htoler said:


> Does anyone have a Cruze that has not had problems with it ?
> Most of what I have read here on the forum makes it sound like The Cruze is a piece of junk
> 
> I bought a used 2016 Cruze Lt that was a lease car that had only been leased 2 times and only had 12 K miles on it
> ...


I have a 2014 Cruze Eco, with the 1.4L turbo.
I have a long commute, and I currently have 146k miles on my Cruze.
While every car will have problems sooner or later, I have been very happy with my Cruze.
Overall, it has proven to be a very reliable car, to the point where I am seriously considering getting a low mileage Cruze to replace it (eventually).


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## cruze01 (Mar 25, 2011)

I've been driving my Cruze for 7 years now. I've got a 13LT with 110K on it now. I've had several of the common issues but nothing major. At 110K she still runs and drives like the first day I bought it, no machanicla problems whatsoever. I expect at least another 100K...


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## Iamantman (Sep 24, 2018)

My car has about 16k on it right now. It's a new car so it's obviously been pretty trouble free, but I have had a couple of small things that I've already taken it in for. First my radio was cutting in and out and that turned out to simply be a loose connector from the factory. Then I had a suspension creak on the front end which ended up being my sway bar end links. There is a revised part for that now. And currently, I have a interior steering squeak in cold weather that's coming from the steering linkage rubber boot. I just haven't had time to take it in and it only just started doing it again now that it's cold out.

So not ideal for a brand new car, but hey, nothing with the powertrain which is a good thing. Love how it drives though and the gas mileage is killer.


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## Chad20101 (Jul 23, 2019)

UpstateNYBill said:


> Most of the issues are Gen1 related.
> 
> I have a 2017 hatch with 140,000 miles and zero problems so far.


Dang! 140,000 miles just basic maintenance right ,if so you just gave me high hopes as I have a 2019 hatch RS which I plan on driving until it falls apart.


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## Patman (May 7, 2011)

Well I have had 6 of them(all gen 1 bc I like the car and it fits in my garage well) and at most I had a problem with the turbo but that was fixed under warranty and then just regular maintenance other than that I drove them to about 90K then I get involved in an accident. I have been surprised by my lack of problems with the cars I have had other than maintenance. Now #6 is at 13K and I am waiting for things to be done like a brake job etc. as I just did an oil change/tire rotation( I just bought it with 8K on it told it was just changed). .


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## UpstateNYBill (Jan 14, 2012)

Chad20101 said:


> Dang! 140,000 miles just basic maintenance right ,if so you just gave me high hopes as I have a 2019 hatch RS which I plan on driving until it falls apart.


141,000, and then it got totaled when I was rear ended at a stop light. But yes, just basic maintenance. Oil and filter changes, a set of brakes and rotors, and tires.


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## Chad20101 (Jul 23, 2019)

UpstateNYBill said:


> 141,000, and then it got totaled when I was rear ended at a stop light. But yes, just basic maintenance. Oil and filter changes, a set of brakes and rotors, and tires.


Sorry to hear , what about carbon build up ? Turbo was perfect as well.


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## UpstateNYBill (Jan 14, 2012)

Chad20101 said:


> Sorry to hear , what about carbon build up ? Turbo was perfect as well.


I had no driveability issues. I only used premium gas.


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## Decimator (Jun 29, 2019)

Honestly its a complete hit or miss with your exact vehicle, but as MP81 said, all cars have problems at the end.

Personally with my 2nd Gen Chevy Cruze Premier Sedan I've only had one spark plug go bad and had that replaced at the dealer since its still under warranty. I haven't had a major issue ever since. The ECU sometimes likes to not reconigze my keyfob but I can get around that by putting the keyfob in the upper cup holder and it will start the car, so I have yet to be left stranded, but this happens on rare occasions for some odd reason.

I'm currently around 27,800 miles, bought it certified pre-owned, meaning its already had the cracked piston issue fixed, but I wouldn't be surprised if I were to have that problem happen to me one day in the near future, hopefully not anytime soon. So far my Cruze has been a reliable car. Now when I reach 30k miles or even 40k or 50k, I might give you a different answer if anything changes. I've only owned it for 1 year so far.

Personally I don't expect this exact car that I own to survive at 100k miles, since its no Honda or Toyota, so probably by that point I'll have to junk it, but that's very far into the future from right now.


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## Decimator (Jun 29, 2019)

UpstateNYBill said:


> 141,000, and then it got totaled when I was rear ended at a stop light. But yes, just basic maintenance. Oil and filter changes, a set of brakes and rotors, and tires.


Well I stand correct, I guess it is possible. Sorry about your car getting totaled though, that's awful. Rear ended at a stoplight? Dang. Me being a new driver (got my license at 2018) I have yet to experience a wreck. I hope I never do, I can't imagine how I'd react in that situation.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

Decimator said:


> Honestly its a complete hit or miss with your exact vehicle, but as MP81 said, all cars have problems at the end.
> 
> Personally with my 2nd Gen Chevy Cruze Premier Sedan I've only had one spark plug go bad and had that replaced at the dealer since its still under warranty. I haven't had a major issue ever since. The ECU sometimes likes to not reconigze my keyfob but I can get around that by putting the keyfob in the upper cup holder and it will start the car, so I have yet to be left stranded, but this happens on rare occasions for some odd reason.
> 
> ...


There's a TSB to fix the keyless receiver on 17s. While you're still under B2B warranty, go have it done.


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## Decimator (Jun 29, 2019)

jblackburn said:


> There's a TSB to fix the keyless receiver on 17s. While you're still under B2B warranty, go have it done.


I'm actually seeing the dealer on the 8th, thank you for this news.


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## GMDONE (Oct 15, 2019)

htoler said:


> Does anyone have a Cruze that has not had problems with it ?
> Most of what I have read here on the forum makes it sound like The Cruze is a piece of junk
> 
> I bought a used 2016 Cruze Lt that was a lease car that had only been leased 2 times and only had 12 K miles on it
> ...


















It's better than the 2014. Just learn to know your car.


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## dave56 (Apr 23, 2019)

2017 LT hatchback; 25K miles; about 2.5 years. Only issue has been occasionally the MyLink doesn't recognize that my iPhone is plugged in and refuses to go into CarPlay mode. Mechanically, it's been great; only routine maintenance. Mostly local driving, a few trips to the coast, and one long trip to the coast on the other side of the country. Fine mileage; very responsive. But if I had to do it again, this 60+ year old might consider something a bit easier to get into and out of (had an HHR for 10 years prior, which had a higher driver's seat).


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## Garybinga (Feb 1, 2020)

Bought 16 Premier with 12K on it that had been sitting under a pine tree for over a year ( owner in nursing home ) don't think I will ever get all the pine tar off of it. I did replace battery as I was leery of 4 year old battery even tho it has been no problem. Front fascia air dam is only problem, so low it snags on everything. Next time it needs fixing I am going to remove it. At 42 MPG I can put up with low power, no other problems.


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## plano-doug (Jul 1, 2015)

Garybinga said:


> Front fascia air dam is only problem, so low it snags on everything. Next time it needs fixing I am going to remove it.


The air dam helps air flow thru the radiator. Removing it could affect the cooling system. 

Perhaps you could try cutting an inch or so off of it instead. That might require removing and re-installing it. But having the air dam there helps create a low pressure area behind the radiator that helps pull air thru it.

Doug

.


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