2000 Daewoo Lanos S from North America - Comments

I just bought a 2000 daewoo lanos for 1,200 and the only problem I have with it is it doesn't have a dipstick to check the transmission fluid???!! theres no daewoo dealerships open... so I don't know what to do?

I recently bought a 2000 daewoo lanos, I thought I was getting a great deal!boy was I wrong it is now running hot, has a leak, oxygen sensor has gone out, radio has quit!!! I do not reccomend anyone buy this car. sorry it's true. I'm going to buy me another cavalier!!!

I have a 1999 Daewoo Lanos 2 DR. It had 65K miles when I bought it for 2.5K. Now it has 67K. I started getting CHECK ENGINE light. Got it scanned at Auto Zone for free. Code was P0342, possible cause - faulty camshaft position sensor, lose wiring or worn out timing belt. One shop told me that belt replacement will not remove the CHECK ENGINE. So probably the cause was faulty cam sensor. Checked a few places. Got it done at local Clay Dooley. It costed me 174.00. Break down: part (90.00) + 1 hr labor (69.00) + serv. supplies (7.00) + tax (7.00). Some had said 1.8 hours of labor and costlier part. CHECK ENGINE is gone after the change.

I also smell gas inside when standing at signal. No clues about that yet. Another problem is that my dash board vibrates and makes noise. I think avoid it by inserting some hard board etc.

The Lanos did not have a dipstick for the auto trans. You have to remove a plug to check the fluid level. Look in the owners manual for more info.

There was a recall for faulty camshaft sensor. You could have had that repair covered by Daewoo, like I did. Too late now.

You should have had the timing belt replaced by 65K miles. If it breaks your engine is toast.

I also notice strange behavior of my Lanos since we moved to Perth. If it goes, it goes as clockwork. Start - stop, no problem, but from time to time it simply refuses any cooperation with me. It won’t start in the morning. After 10 or more attempts you have to leave it for about 1/2 hour and it will start as nothing happened.

I did notice that in these moments fuel pump relay is not energized and ignition relay is dead as well. I am suspecting Central Controller (computer), but why when it is cold?

It did not happened up Central Queensland, where the temperatures where most of the time above 20C.

Any ideas?

Please!

T.rybak@westnet.com.au

Tad.

Take out the passenger seat, remove the threshhold on the door, pull up the carpeting around the ECM. There are wire harness connections next to the ECM. For some reason the floor board gets wet and these connectors tend to corrode. Check each wire and connection. Pull on them, take the connections apart, butt splice any bad connection. That is where I found the problem. Try to wrap the connectors and isolate them from the wet floor board. I'm still trying to fix the wet floor board problem. If you do not hear the fuel pump come on when you turn the key on, and if your fuel gauge does not work when this problem occurs, it will be the orange wire on on of those harnesses. Good Luck

Bruce.

I bought Lanos 1.4 3 door hatch, 1 owner, 10000 miles, full service history. Cost 1750 pounds, 3500 dollars. This was a 2001 car and I bought it last year. So far no problems; only snag is the CO2. We get taxed in GB so the high CO2 output is a real pain. How do I lower the CO2 per km output?

Anyway it's now 14:00 and time for dinner. Thanks for listening.

SUEPRAYNBIRD@talktalk.net

Don't waste any time or money reducing CO2 emissions, not that there's much you can do anyway.

The car will continue to be taxed at its "official" rating whatever you do to it.

I own a 1999 Lanos SX Hatchback with about 106k miles. Bought it with about 95k almost a year ago for $1900 bucks, a few bucks bellow Kelly blue book value.

The water leak under the passenger seat is due to the a/c condensation getting in the car under the dashboard. I have the same problem, but I was told that it's just a clogged hose that's supposed to lead the condensation straight down to the ground. A free fix.

Had very few problems so far, check engine light did come on one time and the mechanic who worked on it said it was a "miss-spark on cylinder 3", but changed spark plugs and it solved the problem.

Also have had the normal problem of lights going out, but the 3rd brake light, (inside rear window), has lost power, none of the wires is "hot", so I'll have to rewire a hot from another brake light. Again, not a big deal.

Other than that, just changed oil and filter, put gas in it, and drive it like I'm supposed to drive a fuel efficient vehicle, and it should last a long time... Not that I drive too slow, but I don't try to break the land speed record either. Great car, lot's of character and economic...

I am 19 and my boyfriend totalled my chevy cav a couple weeks ago. I had about 2000 dollars in my savings that I had to spend on a new car. My boyfriends sister recently bought a Daewoo Lanos from her neighbor for 750 dollars because he bought a new car. So I convinced her to sell it to me for 1500 dollars. I got the car yesterday and put it on the road but when I got back home after driving it, it started smoking and the radiator fluid started leaking. I had a mechanic friend look at it and they think it might be the thermostat but they aren't sure. Has this problem happened to anyone? And will this cost a lot to fix? I am concerned that I made a bad choice in purchasing this car.

Re the above comment: the thermostat housing on Lanos was notorious for breaking and allowing the coolant to leak out, resulting in overheating. The thermostat housing is a sealed unit, not repairable. Supposedly the replacement ones available now are an improved design, less susceptible to breaking.

The only place you are likely to find a replacement is from a dealer who still sells Daewoo parts. If there is none in your area, try www.daewoous.com, which has a lot of parts avail. The part itself is not that expensive, maybe $30-$40 iirc.

Good luck.

I think even with the new upgraded thermostat housing for the Daewoo Lanos it still does not work properly. My husband has replaced his twice and still the housing breaks causing fluid to go everywhere. He has replaced it a third time but now the car does not seem to have any pickup and it stalls. Does anyone know why? Thanks..

I have the same problem with my car overheating. I have replaced the thermostat housing with thermostat inside housing and it still overheats.

I am calling the finance company to come and get this 2000 Daewoo Lanos S junker.

I refuse to pay on this junker any more.

Goodbye junker!!!

I had this problem and it needs a whole new heating matrix which is expensive for the part as well as labour. This car is bad. Air bag light on permanently, heating dial on dash doesn't work, brake pipes corroding. It has only done 37k miles.