1999 Chevrolet Cavalier problems
Owners have filed 337 complaints about the 1999 Chevrolet Cavalier with NHTSA. Electrical system accounts for 15.4% of them — narrowly the most common, ahead of service brakes, hydraulic at 14.8%.
Complaints337
Crashes37
Fires5
Injuries23
Deaths0
What owners report breaking
Electrical system 15.4% · 52
Service brakes, hydraulic 14.8% · 50
Engine and engine cooling 13.9% · 47
Steering 9.2% · 31
Air bags 7.1% · 24
Power train 5.9% · 20
Visibility 4.5% · 15
Exterior lighting 3.3% · 11
Severity
Of those complaints, 37 describe a crash, 5 describe a fire and 23 report an injury.
Reading the numbers
Across the 14 model years of the Chevrolet Cavalier in this data, 1999 sits 10th by complaint volume. 2003 draws the most.
Filings are rising — 10 in the last three years against 8 in the three before. For a vehicle this age that usually points to a wear-related failure owners are hitting now.
The median odometer reading at the time of complaint was 62,000 miles.
In owners' own words
Nhtsa recall 04v036000 concerning ignition switch failure. Recall was not being honored by the dealer, who installed the wiring harness, used to prevent high current flow. However, dealer did not install the ignition switch. The dealer asked consumer to pay for diagnosis when they won't change the ignition switch. Currently vehicle did not start. Electrical system · reported at 32,000 miles
Headlight failure, not bulb. Called dealer, they said it was wiring harness problem, that it is very common on 1999 chevy cavaliers (what I have), but refused to warranty it. If it is so common that the harness fails why does chevy not recall it? Electrical system · reported at 38,744 miles
With ignition key in start position I begin to smell something burning. This prompted site search and it appears that re-call #02v070000 applies to my 1996 Cavalier. Dealer does not acknowledge existance of recall. Electrical system
Verbatim from NHTSA filings. Complaints are unverified owner reports.
Safety recalls
Checking NHTSA for open recalls…