Automatic Transmission Problems of Chevrolet Cobalt - part 1

The contact owns a 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the power steering seized and the vehicle stalled. The contact had to wait a few seconds to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to a dealer. After diagnosis, the contact was advised that the anti theft module had failed and was later replaced. Immediately after the repair, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 97,000. The current mileage was approximately 109,507. Updated 03/07/lj the consumer stated the power steering will shut off, the transmission will shift very roughly, the instrument cluster go on and off,and the car will die at various speeds. When this failure occurred the steering would lock up. Recently, 02/13/2013, the vehicle had no power steering then, it suddenly turned on nearly causing the vehicle to fly off the road. Updated 03/11/2013.

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The contact owns a 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt. The contact stated that the instrument panel gauges were malfunctioning and the power of steering would fail sporadically without warning. In addition, the transmission was shifting gears independently. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who was unable to diagnose the failure. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and the current mileage was 53,000.

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I own a 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt LS sedan. This car every year like clock work has to either have a new transmission put into it, or has shifting problems. The car will be fine for about a year and then it struggles to shift gears and it will be subtle. Then it slowly starts to feel like the transmission is " slipping" when u reverse and then put it back into drive it slides back before it begins to move forward again. This car is only 5 years old but has had 3 transmissions in it's life time, and it's starting to feel like it's going for its 4th.

The shifter lock no longer locks out the shifter. The trandmission can be shifted out of park without depressing the brake or depressing the lock on the shift lever. This condition would allow the transmisson to shift when the car is parked by just being bumped. This condition is constant. The gear shift lock lever began to get rough to depress then it just stopped locking all together.

With no advanced signs or warning (mileage at 99,930), upon starting the vehicle, the traction control and security light came on. The car's rpm revved up and down and wanted to stall. The fuel gauge jumped back and forth. There was a constant clicking in the gear shift and the steering wheel locked into place where I could not turn it. I shut the car off and restarted three additional times before everything seemed to go back to normal and I was able to drive. The next time this occurred was when mileage was at 99960. After several attempts at stopping and starting the vehicle, the traction control and security warning lights went out and I put the car into gear to drive, only to be practically jerked out of my seat with hard shifting and acting light it wanted to stall when coming to a stop. I drove the car directly to the dealership and the problem continued on the entire drive there. Once the car was shut off, the problem could not be recreated at the dealership and therefore I was sent on my way with no explanation of what might be wrong. The next repeat event occurred 3 weeks later (mileage 100,450) but corrected itself with several off/on of the engine. Next occurrence again at 100,600 with same results. This has not yet happened while driving, but I did ask the dealership about the possibility of this happening and he said if it did, I would easily be able to control the car and pull off the road. Personally, I do not want to experience this while driving 55-65 mph! the dealership said that this could be a costly fix since it is a process of elimination and no guarantees each time whatever they tried would fix it. . . Not much confidence coming from the chevy dealership mechanic!!.

Gm recall notice NHTSA campaign number: 09v073000 for the 2009 chevy Cobalt should cover all years. I own a 2006 model year with the same problem and have read about more complaints online when trying to diagnose on why mine would not shift into park and I could not remove the key from the ignition going back to the 2005 model year. I believe this is a serious safety issue and believe it should be corrected ASAP.

First we noticed that the shifter on our 2006 Cobalt was acting unusual, it took more effort to take out of park and the button did not need to be depressed in order to shift from drive to reverse or the lower gears. Then the key got stuck in the accessory position. It could only be removed by depressing the button inside the steering column. The car was repaired by a chevy dealer by replacing the gear shifter control assembly for $208 as this car is out of warranty. The mileage at the time of failure was 69,800.

My 2006 Cobalt ss sedan has had a recurring issue. The traction control (t/c) light comes on and then the transmission will begin to shift hard, slamming into each gear. I had this problem shortly after buying the vehicle used. I took the car to the chevy dealership and no problem was found. Eventually the engine light started to come on with the t/c light. I took the car into the shop and I had a cracked exhaust manifold and a damaged cylinder head. The powertrain was still under warranty and I thought that the problem was fixed. Not long after, my power steering started to go out, every time I drove. I had the faulty component replaced per the recall. Now the t/c, transmission problem is back, the car doesn't store any codes and the t/c light goes away when I turn the car off (most of the time) this is exactly the same way it started out last time. This issue is dangerous, expensive and it is being ignored. I have read hundreds of reviews, forums with the exact same complaint. This problem needs to be resolved!.

Automatic 2007 Chevrolet Cobalt. Gm sent me a letter about the power steering recall. Went to dealership to get the problem fixed September 1, 2010. September 24, 2010 I was involved in a car accident where my Cobalt hydroplaned and completely lost control as described in the investigations done by gm, on this issue.

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My 2006 chevy Cobalts stalls and shuts off while accelerating or while stopped at red lights. This has almost cause driver behind me to rear end my car. Thank goodness, I nor my children have been injured due to this malfunction. I've had the car served numerous times to no avail. The repair shop says, they cant find a problem. Although this happens almost daily.

Correction to odi 10315929. Mistype about engine overheating - the engine overheated due to a cracked head gasket, not a cracked manifold.

On February 26, 2010 as I was driving my 2006 chevy Cobalt the power steering quit functioning. I could not steer the car. The message "power steering" appeared on my dashboard. I took the car to a local mechanic. The mechanic stated he received complaints from other Cobalt owners about the same problem. On 2/28/10 I called Chevrolet customer service and reported the problem. I asked if there was a recall and told the representative what I was told by the mechanic. The chevy representative said there wasn't a recall at the time. I told the representative that I did not want my relatives to have to sue the dealership because I had died due to the power steering failing while I was driving my Cobalt. The representative scheduled an appointment with a local chevy dealership to inspect the problem and said I would have to pay a diagnostics fee. On 3/2/10 the power steering malfunctioned again as I was driving. Fortunately, I did not have an accident. Coincidentally, when I went home and turned on the television I saw on the evening news that chevy Cobalts were being recalled for power steering problems. I am leary of chevy dealerships. I purchased my used 2006 Cobalt in 2008. It had 36,000 miles on it. Soon after I purchased the car I noticed the engine kept overheating to over 240 degrees. I took my car to a chevy dealership three times about the engine constantly overheating. They told me it was due to the plastic radiator overflow bottle leaking when it expanded when warm. They replaced the plastice bottle but the car kept overheating. Out of frustration I took my car to another repair shop. The other repair shop discovered that the engine overheated due to a cracked manifold. The chevy dealership failed to identify this after three visits. I have also had to replace the gear shift after 36,000 miles and a bushing at 69,000 miles. I am curious as to what they will say about the power steering failure at my appointment next week.

Steering problems with 2007 Cobalt.

I was driving down the road about to get on the freeway and "power steering" showed up on my cars message center. If, while driving, I put the car in neutral, turn it off and back on, the power steering works again, but only for a few seconds, usually long enough to do a turn. There have been numerous times that I have almost hit another car because I lost my power steering right before a turn.

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Power steering goes out without warning. I can be driving along and it just goes out. I struggle to gain control of my car. It is very dangerous and I am afraid for the safely of the other passengers in my vehicle as well as those driving near to me. I have a friend who had the exact same problem, to date they have paid the dealer over $1,500 to attempt to fix the issue. She is still having problems.

While driving down a very busy highway! my digital reading on my car blinked power steering. This has never come up before in the past! no type of warning saying my power steering was even going out. Within minutes I lost all power steering! this made it hard to even steer right or left to exit the highway. This almost resulted in an accident! then when I pull over to read the Cobalt manual all that it informs me to do is to take my care immediately to a dealer ship! while driving my car the only way to get any type of steering back I would have to shut my car off then turn it back on to get about 2 minutes of steering before I would loose all my steering again. I how am I supposed to drive my car to a dealer ship if I have no steering! this has caused me a lot of hassle trying to get anything fixed! to get this fixed isn't cheap! and its not like brakes where you have control over how fast you have to replace them due to your driving! no warning and now my car is completely useless until I pay to get it fixed! I am quite unsatisfied as a chevy customer.

I have a 2007 chevy Cobalt and the power steering goes out when I go to make a sharp turn. (the wheel will not turn unless I give it gas and go straight for a little while, then sometimes it will then turn. ) garage says that computer doesn't show anything wrong with it. . . But will take it back to garage again and again. . . Until they tell me that a recall is on it. I pray that this doesn't happen when I'm in heavy traffic! very dangerous!.

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Power steering locks while driving on interstate while snowing why is this happening to alot od chevy Cobalt consumers??? this needs to be inspected. .

My "transmission" warning light on my 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt is displayed on my dash and the car will gain or lose r. P. M. 's while driving and trying to maintain a constant speed (without depressing or letting up on the accelerator). This causes the car's speed to jump or drop. Please advise me on what to do.

My 2005 chevy Cobalt was randomly losing it's power steering. Once I had that costly repair, it began randomly stalling. Usually at intersections, but sometimes just for slowing down. I've had it in to be fixed several times. It has improved but it still happens occasionally.

Power steering light keeps coming on in the dash, car will miss its shift points, powersteering goes inop, speedo goes from 40 to 60 mph, brakes pulsate when trying to stop. No repair has been found yet.

I have a 2006 Cobalt and I have had nothing but trouble with it. I have already replaced front end bearings, my most recent problem is the key will not come out of the ignition and the shifting lever can be engaged with the car off. Does someone have to die or be injured before something will be done. My battery has been drained on 3 occasions because my key is stuck in the ignition, my friends child was sitting in my car and he pulled the shifting lever and my car was going down the driveway with the engine off. This is a terrible safety concern. I am a single woman and I do not appreciate having a dead battery and having to ask someone(stranger)for help . I have been driving chevy's since 1978 and my last 2 brand new chevy's have been nothing but nightmares. I only have them 3 years before they are problems. These are not small problems either, they are safety concerns> lucky for us we were able to stop the vehicle before it went into the roadway and injured the child. Chevy should take responsibility for their defects. I cannot keep putting hundreds of $ into a car that is only 3 years old. With 54,000 miles. I also have a pretty steep car payment. Does someone have to die or become injured before they fix the problems. ? I cannot afford to fix this problem and it is very concerning, especially if people have little children. I have to park my car with the key in the ignition , which is also a theft concern. I have tried pushing the button under the steering wheel , but that only worked once. I don't think I will ever buy another chevy again, unless they take responsibility for their safety issues. I am also going to call gm and my dealer and see what they can do. I can see that this is a problem with others as well.

Key locked in to the acc position. Had to hit a button inside the steering column to get key released. (see owners manual) dealer advised that the shifter needed to be replaced however the part was on a 7-10 back order.

Driving 2005 chevy Cobalt when sudden steering lock up due to power steering. Failure light illuminates and car is extremely difficult to navigate causing a near miss accident.

The contact owns a 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt. While accelerating from a yield sign, the vehicle shifted into reverse, rolled backwards down a steep hill over a ledge and rolled over. The vehicle was completely destroyed. She has a copy of the police report. She was waiting for a response from the manufacturer. The failure mileage was 60,000.

A 2008 chevy Cobalt was driven about 10 miles, parked, shut off, the key removed & locked with remote. A few hours later the car was unlocked with remote, the key was inserted in the ignition but it would not turn nor could the gear shifter be moved out of park. The car was started using the remote but shut off after the 10 minute time-out. Tried to call on-star but noticed the green light was not illuminated and would not work. Had to use home phone to contact them. Car was towed to dealer the next day. Dealer diagnosed that the ignition switch was defective and replaced it. Dealer would not repair it w/o cost even though there appears to be a service bulletin for this problem. Car had about 37,000 miles however problems with the ignition not turning on the first attempt were noticed on many occasions prior to failure.

Problem started speed at 55 noise on right front then hard vibration when you apply brakes it is worse . Now at 45 it does this not all the time about once a week and after 5 miles or more it will finally quit have had wheels rebalanced to make sure that not the problem and have changed tires still no difference. They did tell me seepage around struts but not bad. Told me to take to dealer as still under warranty. Took to chevy dealer it drove ok for them and they had me drive it to explain my prob they put on a lift and they see nothing seepage around struts no big deal unless dripping. They said unless it had vibration when they drove or I knew what the problem was couldn't help me nothing done to correct problem . Dealer told me next time it happened to bring it in and there would be no charge. That was a joke. When it happens may not be close enough to a dealer unless I pay a tow person to take it there. This has been going on for abt 3 months.

Transmission does not lock into park, thus not allowing the key to be removed from the ignition. Shift lever can be moved from park position to any other position without applying pressure to the brake petal. This is a serious issue as the car could easily be shifted into a motion gear without the user knowing. Entire shift mechanism must be replaced to correct this issue at a extreme amount of money. This should be recalled before someone is involved in a injury and death related incident.

2006 Chevrolet Cobalt steel pin falls out of console not allowing ignition key to come out. Then the gearshift will not lock in park. Children can not be left in car because car will come out of park when shifter is moved. Should be a callback on this issue. Just days after warranty expired this took place.

Researched on line due to issue with my car to find lots of people with the same issue. Key in the chevy Cobalt gets stuck in the accessory position and will not come out. Took to dealer said this has happened in a few vehicles they repaired there. Had to replace whole shifter assembly. Called chevy said no recall was out at this time for that problem. Read online to write to you guys. Thanks.

Went to start 2008 chevy Cobalt with just over 8000miles. When inserted key into ignition key got stuck and would not release/turn to start vehicle. Car would not even shift out of park.

1. There were no specific events leading to the failure, just normal driving. 2. This is the first time of the failure. The vehicle would not allow the key to turn completely off. In diagnosing problem, realized that the automatic transmission shift control would move through gears without the vehicle turned on. 3. The vehicle was taken to dealer and the shifter assembly was faulty and required immediate replacement. In talking to the dealer, this type of failure is becoming common, so much so, that they have repaired numerous vehicles with the same issue and are stocking the gear shift assembly for quick repair.

My 2006 chevy Cobalt keeps having power steering issues. I've taken it back to the shop only for them to say there was a computer error. They get the check engine light to come off, but two weeks later it does it again. My power steering goes completely out with my transmission knocking. I took it in back in July and the problem keeps coming back. I've researched this online, and seen that there are a lot of other people who has had this done to them as well.

While traveling at highway speeds, approximately 40 mph a message appears in the message center in my dash indicating the power steering has gone out. I feel no difference in steering, but when the car switches gears (it is an automatic ) it is very rough and almost dies. It occurs randomly and has happened twice this week local repair shop couldn't find any problem.

Whether the vehicle is being driven (at any speed) or in park, the traction control light comes on and the vehicle makes very hard/jumpy shifts. I bought the vehicle new and this started happening no more than 4 months after the purchase. Though I've brought the vehicle in numerous times 2 "repairs" have been made. I've kept some of the service orders but I do have all with noted repairs.