# 2011 Cruze Eco P0106 P0171 P1101



## NCSUAaron (Mar 8, 2016)

2011 Cruze 1.4L Eco 6 Speed Manual

About a year and a half ago, I had the well-known issue with these codes being thrown, and had the valve cover replaced. The start of that journey is here: http://www.cruzetalk.com/forum/25-g...check-engine-p1101-p0171-traction-contol.html

But, after that, I actually had to take it back 3 or 4 more times, because every time I got it back, there was still an oil leak and codes throwing. Finally, they kept the car for about a week, and when they gave it back, the problem was fixed.

Fast forward to about a month ago. The car is no longer under warranty. Check engine light came on, and threw, in this order, B2AAA, P0106, P0171, and P1101.

The car is idling hard as well, and will die while sitting in bumper-to-bumper traffic if I can't keep some gas going. There are also power fluctuations. For example, sometimes if I am accelerating in first, then I release the accelerator and push the clutch in anticipation of going to 2nd (or maybe idling because I am in traffic), the engine will continue revving up, sometimes for several seconds. I've never had it come close to redlining, but it's gotten pretty far up there before it finally stopped spazzing out and coming back down to idle RPMs. I've had my hand near the ignition multiple times, ready to kill it if it didn't stop revving.

Anyway, popped the hood after the codes threw the first time, and could definitely feel and hear the air from the PCV, so I needed to replace the cover... again... this time on my dime, since no more warranty.

I ordered the cover, and when I removed the old one, the first thing I noticed was that the dealer had but sealant underneath the gasket at the points where the sections of the block came together, just on either side of the timing chain. See picture. I had already scraped off the built-up sealant on the inside before i thought to take a picture, so what you see is what seeped out to the outside.

Anyway, I installed the new cover, test drove it, lots of oil spitting out, got home, took off the cover, and apparently the gasket had fallen out when i was putting the cover down, and i had put a bolt through the edge of it, so that was shot. I examined the old gasket, and it looked OK, so I re-installed the new cover with the old gasket. But, that didn't work either. Faint smells of oil burning, codes still active, bad idling.

So, I thought maybe the dealership was on to something when they put that sealant on. Like maybe my block was a bit 'off' and it wasn't flush enough at those transition points to create a good seal, so I'd need to seal it as well. (I tried to call the dealership to see if the tech had made any notes, but they said there were no special notes, and the tech no longer worked there). 

So, bought high-temp RTV, pulled the cover back off, and there was oil all in the ridges of the gasket and, of course, all over the lip of the block.

Went and bought a new gasket, and installed it, WITH the RTV.

I test drove it for several miles, and after a few, the codes came back on. WHen I got home and was under the hood, it started idling rough and died. But, I can't detect any smell of oil (I have been able to before), and I spent a lot of time examining the gasket all the way around, and I can't find any leaking out anywhere.

So, I'm stuck. I think the cover and PCV are good, but I'm still getting the codes, and obviously it's not idling great. No return of the phantom power fluctuations as of yet, though.

I could take it to someone to look at, but I'd like to have an idea of what to tell them to look at next so I'm not presenting a diagnostic challenge that's going to take weeks and tons of money to get through. Or, I'd love to try another fix on my own if I think it fits my skill level. I'm just not sure what to try next.

Thanks in advance!


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

The check valve in the intake manifold is likely missing too, which caused the valve cover to fail again. XtremeRevolution here sells a kit to avoid replacing the whole intake manifold.

At this point, I would look for an vacuum or air leak elsewhere. The intercooler/turbo air hoses have blown off or blown holes in them before.


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## Blasirl (Mar 31, 2015)

2011-2016 Cruze/Sonic/Trax 1.4L Turbo Intake Manifold PCV Check Valve Fix: http://www.cruzetalk.com/forum/34-g...urbo-intake-manifold-pcv-check-valve-fix.html


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## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

The B code is thrown by the Body Control Module. The P0106 is a the MAP sensor out of range. These two are pointing to an air leak in something the BCM manages.


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## unitednations161 (Mar 13, 2011)

I as well am chasing a high fuel trim, Replaced valve cover and PCV hose, both were bad. Fuel trim is lower at idle around 12-14 and -.3 at 3,000 rpms. Check valve is still there on my intake.


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## daptalms (Aug 15, 2016)

Hi,
In my case similar codes (from memory) and a high long term fuel trim required replacement of both O2/oxygen sensors. How many Kms/Miles do you have on the odometer?


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## NCSUAaron (Mar 8, 2016)

Thanks. I read through the directions on how to install that kit, and it's a bit more daunting than I think I have the time and/or energy for right now. I am going to take it to a shop later this week and see if they can detect where the leak is coming from. I usually try to do things like this on my own, but not sure it's gonna happen this time around...


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## NCSUAaron (Mar 8, 2016)

daptalms said:


> Hi,
> In my case similar codes (from memory) and a high long term fuel trim required replacement of both O2/oxygen sensors. How many Kms/Miles do you have on the odometer?


About 104,000 Miles.


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## daptalms (Aug 15, 2016)

I am no expert but it might be worth looking at the O2 sensors. My car has been driving much better and fuel efficiency improved as well since the sensors were replaced


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## NCSUAaron (Mar 8, 2016)

Here's an update. I ended up taking it to a shop to replace the intake manifold, which was indeed missing the check valve. (Thought about doing it myself, but I didn't have the time to put in to that job) While looking at it, they also noticed a hose to the PCV that was cracked (likely something I did when I was replacing the valve cover) and that's what was causing my extremely poor idling and random power fluctuations. So they fixed all of that, and a few days later, I got another CEL. This time, it is ONLY P0171. So, given that the valve cover has been replaced, and so has the intake manifold and PCV hose, is the next likely culprit the O2 sensor? I've made sure the oil cap is seated well, and I'll spend some time checking hoses, but if I don't see anything that looks loose, just wondering what the next logical thing to replace should be. It seems to be running fine - maybe a bit of a lag for the turbo to kick in, but seems OK otherwise.


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## NCSUAaron (Mar 8, 2016)

After a few more days of driving, the P0171 goes off and comes back on. But, I've also noticed some oil under the car after I park it, so I've got a bit of a leak. It appears to be coming somewhere from the side where the timing chain is (so, the left side if you're looking at it from the front). I can't pinpoint exactly where it's coming from, and it's not a huge leak, but I'm going to assume that the air getting in wherever that leak is is what is causing the P0171 code. I think I'll start by removing the valve cover and see if it looks like it wasn't seated properly, or if there is some damage to the gasket or something obvious. I'll do that this weekend and report back.


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## NCSUAaron (Mar 8, 2016)

I can no longer detect an oil leak. But I am still getting intermittent P0171 code. When the CEL is on, the engine seems to run a bit rougher. It will stay on for a few days and then go off, and then it seems to run smoother. But that might be my imagination. 

But, today, I noticed coolant under my car. This was first thing in the morning after it sitting all night, and i actually saw a drop fall from the undercarriage on to the ground as I was looking at it, so it seems to be a fairly active leak. I tried to trace it and I am pretty sure it's coming from the water pump. That and the water pump seems to be getting a bit noisy, so it's failing.

I'm gonna replace the water pump. But, question is: Could the water pump trigger P0171? Just wondering if replacing the water pump is likely to solve my CEL, or if I should still be looking for what is causing that.


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## Robby (Mar 1, 2013)

10 year 150k warranty on the water pump.

Doubt if it has anything to do with the code concern though.

Rob


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## NCSUAaron (Mar 8, 2016)

Yeah I didn't figure it was the culprit... Just hoping it was!

I didn't realize about the 10/150k. Thanks for letting me know! My memory is horrible so if I did get a letter telling me about it must have forgotten and tossed it. I'll call the dealership tomorrow!


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## NCSUAaron (Mar 8, 2016)

So, I had the dealership replace the water pump, and while in there I went ahead and had them do the hoses and thermostat. That was 3 months ago.

I still get P0171 about once every other week, and it stays on for a day or 2 and goes away.

Every couple of days, I am pretty certain I am detecting a faint whiff of oil. There are no drops under my car, however. But, I did my last oil change about 2 months ago, and when I checked the level yesterday, it was definitely low, and I added about 3/4 of a quart to it. So, seems to be a really slight leak - not sure where from.

The cooling fan is also running quite often after I turn the car off. I read that this is normal behavior for the Turbo, but since it's kind of a new thing that it's doing it so often, in my head I'm thinking that the engine is running too hot, even though the thermostat isn't showing anything odd.

Also, there is a squeaking noise coming from somewhere along the drive belt. I thought it was the tensioner originally, so I replaced that. The dealership replaced the water pump, so it shouldn't be that. But the noise seems to be coming from right in that area, so I just don't know what else it could be. I don't hear it all the time - just when idling, and even then not always. Seems to be worse after the engine has warmed up. The pulley bearings are part of the water pump, right? In other words, the dealership couldn't have replaced the water pump but re-used the old pulley bearings, right?

I've got a 3 hour trip tomorrow, and then back on Sunday, and I'm for some reason nervous that something is going to fail on me.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

NCSUAaron said:


> So, I had the dealership replace the water pump, and while in there I went ahead and had them do the hoses and thermostat. That was 3 months ago.
> 
> I still get P0171 about once every other week, and it stays on for a day or 2 and goes away.
> 
> ...


All symptoms (0171, chirping crankshaft seal) point towards a PCV system issue. Make sure the intake manifold check valve is still present. 

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk


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## NCSUAaron (Mar 8, 2016)

In December, I had the manifold replaced. I considered, at that time, having the shop do the modification that's been posted here, to eliminate the risk of that valve going bad again, but decided against it in the end and just went with the manifold. 

The P0171 started to come back on within a couple of weeks of the new manifold going on, so if it failed again, it failed pretty quick.

Given that the manifold was just replaced, is there anything else that could be the issue? 

I'll use these instructions and see if the check valve is still there, but just wondering what else, if anything, could be the issue?

http://www.cruzetalk.com/forum/34-g...4-pcv-valve-cover-intake-manifold-issues.html


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

NCSUAaron said:


> In December, I had the manifold replaced. I considered, at that time, having the shop do the modification that's been posted here, to eliminate the risk of that valve going bad again, but decided against it in the end and just went with the manifold.
> 
> The P0171 started to come back on within a couple of weeks of the new manifold going on, so if it failed again, it failed pretty quick.
> 
> ...


Gotcha, that's the usual suspect. Now that they're getting older, other things may have started to leak.

Other suspects would be: 
Vacuum leak 
Turbo air hose with a hole in it or blown off clamp
Valve cover gasket (given oil smell, a definite possibility)
New intake manifold install not seated correctly


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## NCSUAaron (Mar 8, 2016)

Yeah, the valve cover gasket has been a problem since I first started having problems a couple years ago. While still under warranty, I had the cover replaced, and had to go back to them 4 or 5 times because every time the gave it back to me, the cover wasn't seated properly and was leaking a bit of oil.

After it was out of warranty, the cover failed again, and I went about replacing it myself. I had the same problem of not being able to get it to seal. The dealership had actually put some RTV sealant along the joint just above and below the timing chain, so I figured there was a flaw in mine and it wasn't quite flush, so they had to help it out. I tried that, several times, and still could never get a proper seal. Right or wrong, what I ended up doing was adding RTV along the entire gasket to try to make sure any small gaps were plugged. So, if my issue is indeed with the gasket not being completely sealed, it's sealed better that it was the first couple of times I tried it and that the dealership tried it, because it's not visibly leaking oil.

In this picture, you can actually see the sealant that was left over from when the dealership finally got it to stop leaking.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/vJWTGpmBCFgFHWa17

I'll check the check valve, and if that seems OK, I'll make plans to try to take that cover back off again and try, again, to get it to seal properly.


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