20th Mar 2007, 15:09

I have owned 3 cavalier Z24's, a 1991 5spd, a 1993 auto, an a 1996 auto. I currently own the 96 and the 93. I miss the 91 5spd something fierce, I loved that car so much, it looked good and it flew, it had just about every thing I wanted in a car, no power options, the biggest motor it was equipped with, and a manual transmission. I bought the 93 because it is an identical twin to my 91, minus the manual tranny. the car currently is the proud owner of an odometer that reads 255,698 miles an runs as strong as the day I bought it. no problems in 3 years. the 96 on the other hand... pile of junk that disgraces the nameplate of the Z24.within the first hour of owning it, one of the shift solenoids crapped out on me so now I only have 2nd and drive, no 1st or overdrive. 2 days later the catalytic converter plugged up so bad the car backfired so bad it blew my air box to pieces. The power windows don't work, the a/c doesn't work, crunchin in the front, banging in the back. the car hasn't even been with me 6 months and I'm pretty much ready to set it on fire. I wouldn't recommend this car to someone I hated with a blind fury, to me from 95 to present, they all need to be recycled, as in melted into a blob an just start over completely.

22nd Mar 2007, 15:37

I bought a 1996 Cavalier Dec 2006 with 130,000km. There is a constant noise coming from the rear of the car that sounds like popcorn popping!I had the struts checked out and they were O.K. The dealer said not to worry. Other than the ABS light staying on at times and the engine seems to loud I like this little car. Does anyone know what this noise might be?

Thanks D.M.

29th Mar 2007, 17:20

So, I just bought a 97, Cav - 5speed, and after reading these comments I am a little disconcerned. My ABS light is also on and I am wondering if it is a waste of money to go get it checked out? It seems a lot of the comments mention the ABS being "stuck" on..

12th May 2007, 21:04

Well I just bought a 96 Chevy Cavalier and it is great everything works perfect even the convertible top and it has 126 k miles.

30th May 2007, 16:51

Can anyone help me? We were given a 1996 Cavalier for an old lawn tractor. It ran great for the first few weeks but then one night it failed to start - plenty of spark, but it sounded like no gas. After it sat for 1/2 an hour, it started and ran great for 2 weeks. Refused to start again on 5/19/07 so I let it sit all night. Started and ran great that day and the next two. On 5/29/07 7 p.m. it failed to start and has not started since. I am thinking the fuel filter. It only has 1/4 tank of gas, but refuses to start. Any help at all?

22nd Jun 2007, 17:18

My 97 Cavalier has 177,000 km now (bought it used 6 months ago) -

- the horn stopped working

- the power window motors are going

- the headlights stopped working which resulted in my needing to purchase a new computer system and get everything re-wired

- I changed the control arm bushings (the shocks were replaced a few years ago)

- the seals leak

- there is a loud squeaking underneath

- the muffler pops

(and its been through various recalls over the years...)

A friend warned me that if I buy this car I will be putting money into it forever!

25th Jun 2007, 02:26

I have a 1997 Chevrolet Cavalier, it has 325,000 km on it and I have not put anymore then $500.00 into and that is just basic maintenance. I drive it very hard everyday and for a straight month I was putting on 600kms a day. I have never had any problems with it and it has never left me stranded. My opinion the best car ever made very reliable and with the mileage that I have on it I am still getting about 700 kms per 56.litres I have just purchased a 2000 cavalier with 225,000 on it and it sounds like brand new and still runs like brand new I have never been so impresses by a car, however if you bought the Z24 models with the 2.4 litre motor in it then yes you are probably going to have a lot of problems with it just for the simple fact that they are a terrible motor. If you have the normal 2.2 litre or the 2.2 ecotec motor then they are great motors and you shouldn't have many problems at all with it. But over all fantastic car!! Wish they still made them!!

25th Jun 2007, 19:26

I just bought an 04 cavalier on 5/30/07 was extremely happy with it then n 6/17/07 while at a stop sign notice my speedo stuck at 70mph. Called the dealer took it in 6/20/07 & am still waiting on getting it back. Haven't even made my first payment yet on the car.

The car itself runs great & I couldn't be happier with it,.. as far as the car dealer I bought the car from,.. well that's another story.

26th Jun 2007, 19:36

My girlfriend bought a 1997 Cavalier Coupe last year around this time with about 110k miles on it. Right after the guy transferred the title, the car would not make it out of the parking lot. I first thought it was a bad ignition coil because the engine was misfiring and it through a misfiring code (as well as a fuel trim lean - P0171). I replaced coil pack on the 1/4 side and this fixed the misfiring. The car was still giving a P0171 code and stalling at stop lights now. After that, I had the head gasket replaced. Thankfully my father and his friend were able to do that on a weekend. They fond that it had recently had a replacement that was poorly done. This did not fix the problem. I replaced the fuel filter, thermostat and temp sensor too. Still no solution. I am now trying to check the fuel pressure to see if it is low. I hope that it will be low and only the boot on the pump will be clogged. Bought the car for $850 and have about that into it lol. Two of my mechanic friends have no clue what is wrong with it either. In case you were wondering the symptoms of current problem, they are:

- car starts fine

- engine temp quickly climbs

- if accelerating quickly, DTC code of P1071C will appear

- engine starts to misfire around 190F

- temp continues to rise until car stalls

- cannot start car for about 30 min (I think as a safety precaution from the vehicle

- car starts and the vicious cycle continues.