2003 Chevrolet Cavalier VL review from North America

Around 25,000 kms the non-tilt steering column kept coming loose, making it very difficult to drive as it shook violently. After having the car into the dealership a dozen times for the same problem, the owner, whom my father knows, informed us it was likely due to a design flaw and that his mechanics were unable to fix the it. We were quoted $1200 for installation of a new steering column (it was 1 month out of warranty) but were told there was no guarantee it would fix the problem.

After 2 years of ownership we received a recall notice for the turn signals. Despite the fact that ours were working normally, we brought the car in. The mechanic lubricated the bulbs with a contact grease as per the recall. This caused our turn signals to stop working almost immediately. They were never able to solve the problem.

The front upper strut mounts failed prematurely, around 22,000 kms. The dealership tried unsuccessfully to lubricate them, (yes lubricate them) and the problem persisted until they finally replaced them both with new mounts. Less than 6 months and 5,000 kms later they had failed again.

My wife & I got rid of our 2003 Cavalier (which we purchased new) last year as it was becoming too dangerous to drive. With only 30,000 kms, the front strut mounts kept failing, the turn signals stopped working, and the non-tilt steering column kept coming loose, making it very difficult to steer.

It's really too bad because the engine and transmission were fabulous. It was light and fast and had surprisingly great fuel economy. Despite the problems, I do miss that car and we would definitely still have it today were it not for the life-threatening problems.