2012 Captiva electrical issues
October 25th, 2015, 3:59 PM
#91
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Expensive 2012 Chevy Captiva Electrical Issues
I also have a 2012 Chevy Captiva that I bought in April 2013 and had the same kinds of issues off and on since purchasing - most specifically the error on the radio "cannot connect to USB port" even when nothing was plugged in. However, last month (Sept 2015), when traveling from Virginia to Florida for vacation, more things started to go wrong - the radio would go off and on intermittently, the seat heater went off and wouldn't come back on, the AC went warm and the battery showed as low. I stopped by Auto Zone and had them check the battery and they advised it was fully charged, so I stopped for the night in GA and decided to make the rest of the trip in the morning. When i started back on the interstate the next morning, the same issues started happening, but then i felt the electronic fuel injection stuttering and all the gauges (speedometer, fuel, and tachometer) went flat to zero - all while going 80 mph on the interstate. When I pulled off the interstate, as soon as i had to stop at the end of the exit ramp, i could no longer get it to accelerate above 24 mph, and it completely died when i slowed to turn into a truck stop. I couldn't get it out of gear or turn the key or even turn the hazard lights on. It wouldn't do anything, and I was in the middle of the road, in the turn lane at the light, having to flag semi trucks and all other vehicles to go around me. I shudder to think what could've happened had it died on the interstate. With the car completely dead, i called roadside assistance, who were able to jump it enough to get it onto the wrecker truck to get it to the Bennett Chevrolet Dealership in Kingland, GA. I left the vehicle there and got a taxi to take me to Jacksonville airport to rent a car to take to FL, since the nonrefundable condo rental had already been paid. Once they opened, I called to let them know what i had read in this forum about electronic issues related to my year/make/model vehicle, and they said they'd look into it. To the tune of almost $1000, they replaced the battery and the alternator, and advised those were the only issues causing the problems. I picked it up on my way back to VA and shortly after it started having the same issue with the USB port, indicative of the electrical problem still not being fixed. At that time I also noticed that I couldn't get the heater to get warm, it would blow, but not heat, so I took it to my local Chevy Dealership, Holiday Chevrolet of Williamsburg, VA, and told them of the same issues i was experiencing that I found on this forum, and that I felt like the heater not working was related. They said they'd run some tests and get back to me. After the tests, they found that there were 2 Actuators behind the dash that weren't working and for approximately $1000 more, they replaced them. When I picked it up and was still experiencing the same USB issue, i went into detail with Rob, who works at Holiday Chevrolet, about the all the same symptoms that others with the 2012 Captiva had that I was experiencing, and his reply was, "Look, you can't believe everything you read online." I was pretty shocked, because I felt like he was totally talking down to me and i wondered if it was because I was a woman, and perhaps he thought I didn't know what i was talking about. So after I was listing all the symptoms again, he said, "You know, I googled Bic pens, and would you believe there are lots of issues with those too." I was furious, but had just been notified of a death in the family and had to go out of state for a funeral, so I didn't follow up. However, because of the issues, I rented a car because i didn't want to be stranded on the side of the road again. It was interesting to me that during the conversation Rob admitted that there had been recalls for all 2012 Captives for this electrical issues, all except US and Canadian models. I want to know why GM/Chevy aren't doing anything to address these problems? I will never buy a Chevy again, it has been extraordinarily stressful and expensive, and there has been no assistance from anyone at the dealerships to get to the bottom of this. Did I mention that when I got to Bennett Chevrolet to pick my vehicle up, the service manager had driven it home (30 miles away) for lunch? Where is the customer service??
Last edited by Beth Randolph Sellars; October 25th, 2015 at 4:04 PM.
October 27th, 2015, 11:47 AM
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Try this
I also have a 2012 Chevy Captiva that I bought in April 2013 and had the same kinds of issues off and on since purchasing - most specifically the error on the radio "cannot connect to USB port" even when nothing was plugged in. However, last month (Sept 2015), when traveling from Virginia to Florida for vacation, more things started to go wrong - the radio would go off and on intermittently, the seat heater went off and wouldn't come back on, the AC went warm and the battery showed as low. I stopped by Auto Zone and had them check the battery and they advised it was fully charged, so I stopped for the night in GA and decided to make the rest of the trip in the morning. When i started back on the interstate the next morning, the same issues started happening, but then i felt the electronic fuel injection stuttering and all the gauges (speedometer, fuel, and tachometer) went flat to zero - all while going 80 mph on the interstate. When I pulled off the interstate, as soon as i had to stop at the end of the exit ramp, i could no longer get it to accelerate above 24 mph, and it completely died when i slowed to turn into a truck stop. I couldn't get it out of gear or turn the key or even turn the hazard lights on. It wouldn't do anything, and I was in the middle of the road, in the turn lane at the light, having to flag semi trucks and all other vehicles to go around me. I shudder to think what could've happened had it died on the interstate. With the car completely dead, i called roadside assistance, who were able to jump it enough to get it onto the wrecker truck to get it to the Bennett Chevrolet Dealership in Kingland, GA. I left the vehicle there and got a taxi to take me to Jacksonville airport to rent a car to take to FL, since the nonrefundable condo rental had already been paid. Once they opened, I called to let them know what i had read in this forum about electronic issues related to my year/make/model vehicle, and they said they'd look into it. To the tune of almost $1000, they replaced the battery and the alternator, and advised those were the only issues causing the problems. I picked it up on my way back to VA and shortly after it started having the same issue with the USB port, indicative of the electrical problem still not being fixed. At that time I also noticed that I couldn't get the heater to get warm, it would blow, but not heat, so I took it to my local Chevy Dealership, Holiday Chevrolet of Williamsburg, VA, and told them of the same issues i was experiencing that I found on this forum, and that I felt like the heater not working was related. They said they'd run some tests and get back to me. After the tests, they found that there were 2 Actuators behind the dash that weren't working and for approximately $1000 more, they replaced them. When I picked it up and was still experiencing the same USB issue, i went into detail with Rob, who works at Holiday Chevrolet, about the all the same symptoms that others with the 2012 Captiva had that I was experiencing, and his reply was, "Look, you can't believe everything you read online." I was pretty shocked, because I felt like he was totally talking down to me and i wondered if it was because I was a woman, and perhaps he thought I didn't know what i was talking about. So after I was listing all the symptoms again, he said, "You know, I googled Bic pens, and would you believe there are lots of issues with those too." I was furious, but had just been notified of a death in the family and had to go out of state for a funeral, so I didn't follow up. However, because of the issues, I rented a car because i didn't want to be stranded on the side of the road again. It was interesting to me that during the conversation Rob admitted that there had been recalls for all 2012 Captives for this electrical issues, all except US and Canadian models. I want to know why GM/Chevy aren't doing anything to address these problems? I will never buy a Chevy again, it has been extraordinarily stressful and expensive, and there has been no assistance from anyone at the dealerships to get to the bottom of this. Did I mention that when I got to Bennett Chevrolet to pick my vehicle up, the service manager had driven it home (30 miles away) for lunch? Where is the customer service??
Try disconnecting the battery sensor connector. It is on the positive battery cable (back left corner of the battery when looking into the engine compartment from the front of the vehicle). It seems to have helped with my Captiva without any detrimental effects that I can determine.
October 27th, 2015, 11:57 AM
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Can we get an update?
Apparently, there is an electrical sensor attached to the battery cable wiring harness that will begin to fail. That's when the radio will randomly shut-off or any number of gages will start to illuminate. Those are the canaries in the coal mine. If left unaddressed the sensor, which (I think) regulates voltage to the rest of the car's electrical system, will continue failing & either short or surge other systems causing more serious problems.
My local garage spliced a new sensor (ordered from the dealership) into my existing battery cable harness & I have driven the car over 200 miles with no problem.
Good luck in your quests to find the fix for yours.
My local garage spliced a new sensor (ordered from the dealership) into my existing battery cable harness & I have driven the car over 200 miles with no problem.
Good luck in your quests to find the fix for yours.
I'm just wondering if the replacement of the battery sensor you describe has cured your problems since your post quoted above? At that time you said you'd travelled over 200 miles. I've been posting about my similar experiences that seem to have been resolved by jiggling or disconnecting the battery sensor.
November 2nd, 2015, 7:18 PM
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I bought my 2013 Captiva Sport back in August of 2014. I've had minimal issues with it since I bought it until a couple of months ago. Reading through all 10 pages of this forum I feel so relieved because now I don't feel like I'm crazy because there are actually other people out there experiencing the exact same issues as I am.
My problems started with my radio randomly shutting off. At first I thought maybe it was something I accidentally did. Then I had issues where the ECO light would come on and stay on. I'd press the button and it wouldn't turn off. All of this escalated into the radio shutting off when I would use my blinker to switch lanes on the highway. This is the point when it became concerning. When I would use cruise control, it would randomly shut off. Within the last two weeks it has gone from randomly having these issues to now when I try to turn the car on it won't start the first time, I turn it over again then it starts, but my stereo is completely reset.
Then I would start having warning lights telling me the parking brake was on, I needed to have the parking break checked, I needed to check traction control, the check engine light would come on. I also had an issue where my children and I became stranded at a park because my remote for my keys wasnt working. I took just the remote and left the actual key locked in the car so I wouldn't have to carry them all with me at the park. Thankfully my parents had the other set and brought them to us, but by the time my om arrived both remotes started working again.
The problems stopped for a couple of days and then yesterday, on the way to drop my kids off at their dad's house, I pulled into his driveway, put the car in park and it just died. I couldn't lock or unlock the car, it wouldn't turn over, the lights wouldn't come on, I couldn't even get the key out of the ignition.
THANKFULLY my kids and I were someplace safe both times we have had issues. If we had been stranded anywhere else I wouldn't know what to do and I would be one VERY ANGRY mother.
I asked my ex to come jump my car to see if that would work, by the time I walked in to ask and back out to my car everything came back on. I drove the car to my Sunday night church class but my radio wouldn't come on and my blinker lights would flash but not make the clicky noise. My traction control lights and parking brake lights would randomly flash off and on. When I left a couple hours later my car was completely dead. I had to have a friend jump start the car. It started right up. Radio was still dead, warning lights flashing. I was almost out of gas and was afraid to go to the gas station and even turn my car off for fear that it wouldn't start back up again on my way to pick up my kids.
I got my car home and took it to a local mechanic I've trusted for years this morning. They read through this thread and believe the battery cables are ok but I am going to contact a local Chevy dealer in the morning concerning the issue. My mechanic told me the codes all read dead battery, but the battery is fine. They stated they believed the radio was draining the battery in return causing the issues with the warning lights. My radio they stated is no completely dead, but I halfway wonder if the battery cables were replaced if it would come back on. I have no sound when I use my turn signal and they are telling me I will need to get an aftermarket radio installed which will cost me at the least over $500.
After reading through this thread I don't understand why this hasn't been a recall issue. I would be more than willing to join in on a class action lawsuit in regards to this issue if there is one started anywhere. I am a single mom of 2 small kids. I have always been a Chevy girl, born and raised that way, but I ABSOLUTELY DO NOT feel safe driving this vehicle anymore. I can't afford to get rid of it, I just lost my job in the oilfield and now am stuck paying mechanic bills on what seems to be a common issue with this model of car and all the multiple Chevy customer service reps seem to have to say on this is "We're sorry you're having issues..." That's great, BUT what are YOU going to do to fix this CHEVY?!?!? What point does this issue have to get to before you guys issue a recall on this vehicle? How many lives will have to be lost before you take care of this issue? What if my car had died on the highway, or the middle of the road? What if I had gotten stranded somewhere that wasn't safe for my children and I to be? I shouldn't have to be in constant fear that my car may break down somewhere? To top is all off, how the hell am I supposed to even get another job when I can't say I have dependable car. It's a 2013 for goodness sake with just over 62k miles on it. These kind of issues shouldn't be happening. This needs to be fixed and you need to make it right. Either fix the issue, get my another car, something, because so help me God is something happens to myself or my kids when I'm driving this car because of this issue that you refuse to issues a recall on, you will be hearing from the best lawyer I can find and it's going to cost you much more than what it will to just fix this issue now.
Sincerely,
One VERY angry and disappointed Chevy customer
My problems started with my radio randomly shutting off. At first I thought maybe it was something I accidentally did. Then I had issues where the ECO light would come on and stay on. I'd press the button and it wouldn't turn off. All of this escalated into the radio shutting off when I would use my blinker to switch lanes on the highway. This is the point when it became concerning. When I would use cruise control, it would randomly shut off. Within the last two weeks it has gone from randomly having these issues to now when I try to turn the car on it won't start the first time, I turn it over again then it starts, but my stereo is completely reset.
Then I would start having warning lights telling me the parking brake was on, I needed to have the parking break checked, I needed to check traction control, the check engine light would come on. I also had an issue where my children and I became stranded at a park because my remote for my keys wasnt working. I took just the remote and left the actual key locked in the car so I wouldn't have to carry them all with me at the park. Thankfully my parents had the other set and brought them to us, but by the time my om arrived both remotes started working again.
The problems stopped for a couple of days and then yesterday, on the way to drop my kids off at their dad's house, I pulled into his driveway, put the car in park and it just died. I couldn't lock or unlock the car, it wouldn't turn over, the lights wouldn't come on, I couldn't even get the key out of the ignition.
THANKFULLY my kids and I were someplace safe both times we have had issues. If we had been stranded anywhere else I wouldn't know what to do and I would be one VERY ANGRY mother.
I asked my ex to come jump my car to see if that would work, by the time I walked in to ask and back out to my car everything came back on. I drove the car to my Sunday night church class but my radio wouldn't come on and my blinker lights would flash but not make the clicky noise. My traction control lights and parking brake lights would randomly flash off and on. When I left a couple hours later my car was completely dead. I had to have a friend jump start the car. It started right up. Radio was still dead, warning lights flashing. I was almost out of gas and was afraid to go to the gas station and even turn my car off for fear that it wouldn't start back up again on my way to pick up my kids.
I got my car home and took it to a local mechanic I've trusted for years this morning. They read through this thread and believe the battery cables are ok but I am going to contact a local Chevy dealer in the morning concerning the issue. My mechanic told me the codes all read dead battery, but the battery is fine. They stated they believed the radio was draining the battery in return causing the issues with the warning lights. My radio they stated is no completely dead, but I halfway wonder if the battery cables were replaced if it would come back on. I have no sound when I use my turn signal and they are telling me I will need to get an aftermarket radio installed which will cost me at the least over $500.
After reading through this thread I don't understand why this hasn't been a recall issue. I would be more than willing to join in on a class action lawsuit in regards to this issue if there is one started anywhere. I am a single mom of 2 small kids. I have always been a Chevy girl, born and raised that way, but I ABSOLUTELY DO NOT feel safe driving this vehicle anymore. I can't afford to get rid of it, I just lost my job in the oilfield and now am stuck paying mechanic bills on what seems to be a common issue with this model of car and all the multiple Chevy customer service reps seem to have to say on this is "We're sorry you're having issues..." That's great, BUT what are YOU going to do to fix this CHEVY?!?!? What point does this issue have to get to before you guys issue a recall on this vehicle? How many lives will have to be lost before you take care of this issue? What if my car had died on the highway, or the middle of the road? What if I had gotten stranded somewhere that wasn't safe for my children and I to be? I shouldn't have to be in constant fear that my car may break down somewhere? To top is all off, how the hell am I supposed to even get another job when I can't say I have dependable car. It's a 2013 for goodness sake with just over 62k miles on it. These kind of issues shouldn't be happening. This needs to be fixed and you need to make it right. Either fix the issue, get my another car, something, because so help me God is something happens to myself or my kids when I'm driving this car because of this issue that you refuse to issues a recall on, you will be hearing from the best lawyer I can find and it's going to cost you much more than what it will to just fix this issue now.
Sincerely,
One VERY angry and disappointed Chevy customer
January 6th, 2016, 6:31 AM
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They got the same message non stop until I put in the Flash Drive.
January 25th, 2016, 9:19 AM
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So Tired of These Issues
It has been a challenge with our 2012 Captiva and I am about at my wits end.
We have had the same issues described here... radio going in and out, random lights cutting on, Aux and USB ports not always working.
Last Monday I was pumping gas, went to get back in the car, and it wouldn't crank. After getting a jump I went to the local Auto Zone and was told my battery was bad. $175 I had a new battery.
Fast forward to two days later. I am on the freeway and my battery light comes on. Next, the car powers off. I try to crank and it won't do anything, can't get my key out. Tow truck comes and hooks up the car, alternator is dead. $770 later I have an alternator and car works.
This morning as I am driving to work the engine light comes on and it says the car is hot so a/c is off. Car is not hot.
Right now I am ready to drive it off a cliff.
We have had the same issues described here... radio going in and out, random lights cutting on, Aux and USB ports not always working.
Last Monday I was pumping gas, went to get back in the car, and it wouldn't crank. After getting a jump I went to the local Auto Zone and was told my battery was bad. $175 I had a new battery.
Fast forward to two days later. I am on the freeway and my battery light comes on. Next, the car powers off. I try to crank and it won't do anything, can't get my key out. Tow truck comes and hooks up the car, alternator is dead. $770 later I have an alternator and car works.
This morning as I am driving to work the engine light comes on and it says the car is hot so a/c is off. Car is not hot.
Right now I am ready to drive it off a cliff.
January 26th, 2016, 5:03 PM
#97
What can we do? Why aren't they recalling these vehicles?
I have a 2012 Captiva. I purchased at 32,000 miles. Just about everything has been replaced. New wiring, computer, sensors. Fix one thing then its another. I can't sell it because if anyone ever did a car fax on it they would never buy it. I'd have to give it away. I owe on it so I'm stuck. Tried to use it for a trade in and I can't even get enough to come anywhere near what the loan is left.
February 20th, 2016, 1:17 PM
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Same issue as everyone else!
So I read this forum and realize that I have the same issue as everyone else. I love my chevy captiva but can't stand the electrical issues. I was stranded on my house, not being able to turn on the engine. The engine was acting like it had a death battery. I opened the hood and checked the cables. Then the truck sounded and started normal. Didn't knew why but it worked. Days later same issue, so I open the hood again and shaked the negative cable a bit. Truck went as normal. Service mechanics seems not to find anything wrong. GM should take care of this issue.
March 6th, 2016, 7:53 PM
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Same Electrical Gremlin
Same issues as other posts...2014 Captiva LTZ 16500 miles. Owned since June 2015. Intermittent Park Brake Warning light, radio cuts out when blinker is activated numerous times. 3 times no start, completely dead, key would not come out of ignition, then "poof" everything works. Have had instances where activating blinker and blinker indicator flashes but, no relay clicking and blinkers not flashing. Took to dealer explained in detail the problems and also told them about these exact issues are well documented by other owners (fell on deaf ears, you all know what I mean!) Dropped off next day...6hrs later "car is ready"! Service rep explains that they had vehicle on lift, running and hooked up to diagnostics equipment for nearly 4hrs and they found nothing wrong. DUH I could have done that in my garage! Now it's happening again. Going back to dealer again tomorrow. Of course I'm a idiot that doesn't know anything cause I'm not a GM dealer mechanic. Whatever, been wrenching on cars (95% Chevy) for over 40years and over 35yrs working on jets (military & commercial). Should be a interesting discussion tomorrow!