Brakes - Gasoline - Steering - Chevrolet - Cobalt :: 2007 - Car Started Drifting Backward
Mar 18, 2014
My wife was about to pull off of our hill (facing uphill) to go to work. She said she stopped, held on the brake, and looked back and forth. She then went to press the gas and the pedal wouldn't respond (no rev either) but the engine WAS on. The car started drifting backward and she said that both the steering and the brakes were very difficult to control (power and brake assist had disappeared). She was able to guide it back into the driveway and get it parked. She said that when she got it parked, she turned it off and started it up again. She tried the gas and it worked and she tried the steering and brakes and both worked. She stayed home today while we try to figure out what's going on with it for fear that it will happen again.
I initially thought some sort of power loss but she said that the radio stayed on. There were no dash warning lights or sounds indicated to her and she said that there were no unusual sounds from the car during this whole thing.
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So 2 weeks ago I noticed that after 30 minutes of driving on the highway my steering wheel started making a loud growling noise and vibrating really hard! When I hit the brakes it got worse but got better as I slowed to 30 mph. It doesn't happen all the time and not right away, only after a while of driving and the dealership says without codes they can do nothing...
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I have a 2006 Chevy Cobalt... I can smell gasoline ONLY when I turn the heater or a/c on. I have taken the car to TWO different auto shops and no one knows WHAT is causing this. The check engine light came on recently after a radiator flush and the first auto shop said it was a thermostat switch and bring it back the next day. I was leery of this and went to the second auto shop who told me they never heard of a thermostat switch and to bring it back whenever the check engine light comes on again. Meantime, I will not turn on the heat or air because the gas smell gives me a headache. What this could be?
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My car used to vibrate at a speeds above 50mph and I took it to NTB for wheel balancing. They did the balancing and when I first drove, the steering wheel was wobbling very badly and the wheel is stiffer than previously, Also the car is drifting to the right which did not happen previously. They said they didn't do anything other than balancing and reducing the tire pressure. They also gave me a quote for 2300 $ for the services to be done (many services shown there were done a month back..!!!). Then I took it to another NTB for alignment and they did the alignment first time and problem not solved. I took it the second time, they said toe was little off and they fixed it.! The problem is still not fixed and then I took it the third time and this time I got the car the TPMS was on.!!!!
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I have a 2009 cobolt when I put on the brakes slowly there's a rattle noise and some shaking. The ball joints are new and so are the bearings. Could it be bad brakes or a strut?
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13.5k, 2.2 Ecotec, Automatic
The MAF had to be replaced, while the car was at the dealer the power steering motor was replaced (recall). When I got the car back the steering motor (reman) was making a lot of noise and I took it back. This time the motor and the steering column were replaced. After a week I got the car back last night.
This morning I noticed the steering wheel is off center (~1/2 to 3/4") to the right. The car tracks straight with no pull to either side.
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I noticed this problem day as I was out and about, as I come out of a medium to hard turn (at least one wheel rotation) my wheel doesn't want to return fully to the center position. The wheel starts to slow down about half a turn in either position and I need to get it around the quarter turn position. I don't have to force it much, it feels more turning the wheel while in park.
I has winter tires put on in December and the mechanic told me they couldn't do an alignment because one of my rear coils was broken (planning on getting that fixed myself once I get a weekend where it's not at or below 0 outside) and my front ball-joints (I think that's what they said) was loose and that the front joint didn't need to be looked at immediately, but by spring should be replaced.
That front joint is what's giving me problems? Or is it something else?
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This started several months ago. I can feel it in steering wheel & gas pedal. I thought it was the tires so I put 2 new tires on front, but no change.Tires had no unusual wear. Happens at any speed, worse around curves, left or right. Worse when temp is colder, 55 degrees, better at 75 degrees. Not affected by braking or in coasting neutral. No problem with steering or pulling.
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Recently my car started to go at a lower speed like around 5-10 mph. Then it started not showing the speed I was going. Then the RPM goes higher and higher and does not come down. I took it to the shop thinking the recall for the ignition switch was going to fix the problem but even after I got the egnition switch fix I was still experiences those issue.s I took it back to the shop to get a diagnostic that cost 100 bucks they told me to get my transmission fixed. After I had gone and done that my car still was experiencing those problems. Also some times the car turns back to normal like it wasn't even having issue everything goes soothly for about a good 2 to 3 miles and it goes back to it's old issues. What I can do or if they are experiencing these issue too? I wondering if I should take it back to the dealers and have them look at it again or not?
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I have a 2007 Chevrolet Cobalt with 26700 miles on it and I have recently started hear some odd rattling noises from the back right tire area and I have looked under the car to make sure that there was not anything loose under there and I didn't see anything. The tires on getting pretty worn out and I have order a whole new set, but I am still very worried about that noise.
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I recently bought a beater '89 F-150 (I-6, MT) with the following problems:
1) Both rear brakes seem to stick on occasion--almost like there was a "check valve" on the rear brake line. When that happens, there is a "BRAKE" and "Rear ABS" light (although the light does occasionally come on without brakes sticking noticeably).
What I noticed in Haynes is that the "RABS I" system functions in the following way: a) Upon noticing rear axle spinning slower than front axle, it actuates a valve, isolating the rear brakes b) If the problem persists, it then dumps the pressure back into the main system.
So, I wonder: Is this an ABS system acting up? If I were to (temporarily) de-power the ABS setup, would it default to "no ABS," or would I need to remove the hydraulic valves from the brake lines? (Don't really want to if I don't have to.)
2) You can select either fuel tank, get that tank's level to indicate on the fuel gauge...yet it only "draws" from the front tank.
Again, Haynes says there is a low pressure pump in each tank, feeding a high-pressure pump in essentially a small "header" tank. The "dual-function reservior" has a wholly mechanical selector, and notes that "Tank switching versus gauge conflicts can occur under certain failure mode conditions."
So: I can understand that the mechanical selector can, in effect, "stick" on one tank. But what I don't understand is how it can still draw from the front tank, with the "rear" tank selected (and presumably, that tank's low-pressure pump trying to feed the header tank.)
Is it possible that the low pressure pump--while beneficial to prevent gravitation at the main pump--isn't strictly necessary to fuel the engine? Or do I have a problem with a low pressure pump that's "always on," regardless of the selected tank?
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I have a 2008 Prius basic model bought second hand. There are two issues since I have bought the car; first it will roll back or forward when the brake applied, this happens on any uphill or downhill. I brought the car to Toyota service centre, they did a brake test, the test passed. but this doesn't resolve this issue. It just very weird. during driving, all brake works ok, but parking the car, if not in even service, it starts to roll.
Second, recently I hear there's a crack sound when apply the brake during low speed, especially during the stop/start traffic, and I notice mostly happens when the electrical motor in running. So when brake, the crack, like the spark comes from somewhere like battery. While brake to slow down from high speed, seems no sound. So I suspect it was from the battery or electric motor.
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Every 6 weeks my car, a 2007 Chevrolet Cobalt, won't start. Key goes in half way and won't go any further. Key won't come out and it's totally dead. Jump start it and it's good for another 6 weeks or so. What could be causing this?
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I currently own a 2006 Chevy Cobalt. For the past few months it had a problem that every time I get gas when I go to start the car up I have to pump the gas pedal and crank it at the same time to get it to start running. Once its running I have to either get driving pronto or sit and it park and accelerate it a little for a bit to keep the car running. If I let go of the gas pedal the car will clunk and shut off. If I drive off after a few blocks it’ll work fine and I won’t have the problem again until I put more gas in it. Occasionally when at a light or stop sign while in drive the car will clunk a little but normally stop after few seconds.
I went to AutoZone and they told me I had a pressure thing (can’t remember fully) but to replace the gas cap. Which the car tells every so often to check my gas cap. Well 4-5 gas caps later problem still there. What it could be or how to fix it, last resort is to take it to the mechanic and pay a nice bill for a fix.
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I am having an issue with my 2006 Chevy Cobalt. I recently had a new fuel pump put in. Within a week the car would not start. The very next day the car started fine and ran well. The next day it would not start again. The next day, started and ran fine. Then this morning it would not start again. I don't think it can be a faulty fuel pump. What might be the problem?
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Make: Chevy Model: Cobalt LS Year: 2005 Mileage: 120000
So I'm having this problem with my engine stalling at low RPM. The RPM goes to 0 and the engine shuts off.
This only happens when traveling at low speeds (e.g. slowly accelerating from a stop, braking, moving in stop and go traffic)
This NEVER happens when I'm traveling above 10 mph (e.g. if I'm coasting at 40 and let my foot off the gas, the RPM can go to 500 RPM but it will never stall in this case).
After the stall, I can always put the car in park, turn the ignition and it will turn back on again.
I have not noticed any electrical problems that occur when this happens (the radio stays on during the stall and the lights don't dim).
My car was part of that Chevy ignition switch recall, but I took it to the dealership which (hopefully) repaired it.
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My Chevy Cobalt will not start when it is cold (when water freezes)...but only sometimes. When you go to start the engine, it will initially turn over but does not ignite. Then, the second time if you turn the key normally no sound will emit. However, if you put the key in and only turn to get the lights on the dash to come on and THEN turn the key, it will turn over, but no dice. This past time a code "engine pwr reduced" came up, but that doesn't always happen. When you wait four hours or more, it will start like normal accompanied by the check engine light. The check engine light goes off the second time you start it after the non-start.
I have taken it to a mechanic and they have not been able to reproduce the problem, even when it was cold enough to theoretically have happened. He said it might be an issue with the body module which explains why the ignition switch code comes up when you run it through a computer, but since this is such an expensive fix he said he can't recommend I get it done until we know for sure. So there is a pattern, this happens about every 2 months and then the issue clears up for a while.
What is going on??? Will there ever be a way to tell what is wrong (and fix it) without a mechanic reproducing the issue?
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Ran my battery down on my car when I left my lights on and proceeded to work an 8-hour shift.
Came out and stuck my key in the ignition. Nothing happened, which is when I realized my plight. The dang ignition wouldn't release my key! This meant I couldn't get into the trunk by key. I pressed the (stupidly electric) remote trunk lock. That's where the jumper cables are! Did I mention it was below freezing and I wasn't dressed for sustained outdoor shenanigans?
Fortunately, I was able to flag down co-workers with jumper cables, after a time. We opened the hood--praises, they actually left a cable-actuated device on the car!--and got going. None the less, it was a close scare.
1) Why does the ignition "grab" the key without battery power?
2) How does one defeat 1)?
3) Is it necessary to store my jumper cables INSIDE the car?
4) What mental giant decided a trunk latch that's INOP with a dead battery was a good idea?
I have a decent working understanding of a lock cylinder--6 or so spring-loaded wafers that retract into the cylinder body, allowing it to turn--but I don't see how that requires current flow to work. If it's a "safety" feature, how do I disable it, permanently?
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2008 Chevy Cobalt
The fan for my A/c and heat does not turn on anymore. The A/c and heating systems themselves do work because if I put my hand right up against the vent I can feel it. When I switch on the fan, there is no noise, no humming either. This happened over the course of two days where first the fan worked fine, then it took a little while to turn on, then it would only turn on if I put it on high and waited a long time, then it didn't turn on at all.
Since then I have not tried to turn the fan on for more than a few minutes to see if I can get it to work again because I'm concerned that the trapped heat or A/c might damage something inside (am I correct?).
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My wife recently got stuck in a snowstorm. Some people got her out and she drove a couple miles to work. After leaving work, her car started shaking at red lights (like big, slow shakes, back and forth, not making forward progress), but stopped as soon as she started to move or put the car in neutral. It did this on her way home from work and then continued when she left for a workout class about half an hour later. However, after this, it stopped completely.
Some people seemed to suggest engine mount problems to other people, which seems serious if it is that. However, since it did stop after a short time, is it possible there was snow stuck somewhere causing a problem and it finally just melted off? Or is the getting stuck in snow the same day probably just a coincidence? It seems odd that it would stop once the brake is let up.
Right now I'm planning to take it in sometime later this week most likely, but am wondering if I can avoid that since it hasn't exhibited any of the same symptoms for a few days. The car is a 2010 Chevy Cobalt.
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So I went to get in my car this morning and the key fob wouldn't unlock my car. None of the buttons work, I tried them all. Now someone would say ok... why don't you just open it with the key? Well I'll tell you why! My car was part of the ignition switch recall and when they swapped everything out at the dealership, the guys didn't cut me a key to go with my door. So the key that starts my car is not the same one that unlocks my car. I walked up to Autozone thinking a quick battery change would do the trick. The guy tested my fob with the indicator thing they have and said "this is fine." I explained my problem and he said he could sell me a battery, but he wouldn't want to if that's not the problem. Could it be something with the communication? In which case, what does the fob communicate with in my car? I can't even get into my car!
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