29th Mar 2006, 14:00

I have a 96 z24 cavalier and I have had several problems with the driver side axle and wheel bearings. I just replaced pretty much everything and it is still making a growling sound. What could be the problem?

6th Jun 2006, 11:36

The ticking in the car means the head gasket is going or is gone and needs to be fixed.

16th Jul 2006, 20:22

I own a 1996 Cavalier. It was brand new when I bought it.

I now have 230000 miles on it. The major things I had go wrong is I replaced the air conditioning twice and the fuel injectors once. My daughter has a 1998 Cavalier and has 230000 miles on her car. The only major thing that has gone wrong is the air conditioner.

We both love our Cavaliers.

22nd Jul 2006, 21:31

I currently own a 96 Chevy Cavalier and have had it about 2 years.

I replaced the entire engine in 2005 with a stock 2000 model.

I have never had so many problems with a car.

It is comfortable, stylish and most of the time reliable.

The problem stems from my engine. My oil leaks, tran fluid leaks, water leaks, A/C is broken, power steering is stiff and also leaks. I am also hearing strange noises from the back of the car. Oh yeah, and the important part, it constantly overheats due to thermostat being in constant need of replacing, water pump went out 3 times and my head gasket has blown 2 times!! These are only the problems that I have had with the new engine.

When I bought it, I knew it needed a whole new engine, but this is crazy!! I'm putting it up for sale next month and I'm going to make sure to mention, " Needs new engine... Again."

29th Jul 2006, 18:29

1996 Cavalier 2.2 - we bought this car for our daughter after she graduated high school – the car had 100k when we purchased it for 3k.

The car looks great, and has been for the most part reliable. Timing chain broke, replaced starter, head job, main cooling fan, and ignition switch, all totaled we have spent an additional 3k in repair…

Well – our little girl has completed college and entered the workforce – it’s now time to find a good car for her..

Overall I think this car has excessive repairs.. But there are now close to 140,000 miles on it.. I would recommend this car – but encourage owners to stay current on maintenance.

30th Jul 2006, 15:05

Bought a 1996 Cavalier new, have had numerous problems: replaced A/C compressor and orfices, wheel bearings, brakes twice, ignition caught fire, sent current that fried starter, alternator and battery. One month later Chevy sent out a recall, however they would not reimburse my repair cost.

Replaced water pump twice, thermostat, and fan relay. Now I'm in the process of replacing the head gasket.

This is my second Cavalier, however I will never buy another Chevrolet due to the fact it has been very costly in repairs, and I spent over two years trying to get repaid for items due to the ignition recall, and never received one dime.

2nd Aug 2006, 11:51

I own a 96 Cavalier Z24 and in one month I have replaced the coil housing unit FOUR (4) times. It seems whenever I turn on the A/C fan it burns up the unit causing the vehicle to only run on 4 cylinders. My mechanic has given up and says try it w/out the A/C which I am doing - it has been a week and hasn't burned up yet!! Has anyone else experienced this problem? What might cause it?? Other than that, I love this car, I did replace the water pump once. Thanks!

8th Aug 2006, 18:59

I bought my 1996 Cavalier two years ago with 99,000 miles on it. It had only one previous owner who took excellent care of it. It's been absolutely great! Other than replacing a thermostat, I've had no problems. It now has 134,000 miles and I don't plan to replace it anytime soon.

7th Sep 2006, 02:01

I purchased a new Cavalier in 1997 and still own it today. It has 170,000 miles on it and still runs great. It has had a new head gasket put on about 20,000 miles ago and a water pump shortly after that. Besides the usual brakes replacement the only thing that bugs me is I am now getting ready to put my third fan blower resistor in the car. I am glad it is a fairly cheap part, but it is inconveniet to only have one or two fan speeds working. Good gas mileage, I have never been sorry I bought it.

20th Oct 2006, 12:48

I bought a 1996 Chevy cavalier ls 2 years ago. I have never had a problem, very dependable. The only thing is if you want a car for speed or power, I wouldn't recommend it!

15th Nov 2006, 19:59

1996 Cavalier with 2.2 engine and 4 speed automatic. This has been a great car. 160,000+ and still purring like a kitten. The 4 speed auto seems to give lower lows and higher highs so it feels like you're really driving something instead of an econobox. Had trouble with the fuel pump - nobody seemed able to diagnose the problem. Finally found someone who knows his way around a Cavvy and fixed it - may have been the result of the kids running it out of fuel too many times. Had one fuel injector go bad which caused a fuel leak, but the fix was a reasonable cost. ABS light has been on for the last 40,000 miles, but the system still works as you can hear it working when braking while going over a bump. All in all a dandy car for the price.

16th Nov 2006, 22:43

We have a 1996 Chevy Cavalier and it has been a great car except for the past couple of weeks. First, the car was turning over, but wasn't firing. We replaced the fuel pump on it and it worked for two days. After that, the same thing started to happen. My mechanic thought that the key was worn down, and it wasn't releasing the anti-theft device in the car. We had new keys done and now we cannot even turn the key to start the car... and if it does work it won't fire. someone help please!!! (65k miles).

4th Jan 2007, 07:01

My Cavalier has had many problems within 3 months. the throwout bearing, the other bearings, and a cracked head and a head gasket replacement, a clutch, and I'm pretty sure the timing chain is going in a few days. when my head gasket blew, my rods BENT. Its been a rough road for this great car.