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VERY dangerous reduced engine power issue!!
CF Beginner
Joined: Jan 2016
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
2006 Cobalt Reduced Power/Traction Control
A few times per year, for no known reason my 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt will lite the "Check Engine" light. Usually that is followed by "Traction Control" light and reduced power. Unlike some others who claim they can only go about 10 MPH, I can get to about 50 MPH after a long time. But when it comes on, it is like somebody stomped on the brakes. Very dangerous!!! During the time traction control light is on, the transmission shifts rough. Usually the next ignition cycle the "Traction Control" light goes off, but it may be 50 miles or several days before "Check Engine" light goes off. Diagnostic code is "P070E".
Hoping GM tech support sees this and does something - could be a big law suit if this happens in traffic and I get hit.
Suggestions for repair are corroded wire terminals, throttle body, computer, transmission control module. Sounds like throwing parts.
Any help?
Hoping GM tech support sees this and does something - could be a big law suit if this happens in traffic and I get hit.
Suggestions for repair are corroded wire terminals, throttle body, computer, transmission control module. Sounds like throwing parts.
Any help?
CF Beginner
Joined: Jan 2016
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
2010 Chevy Malibu- almost was in a wreck, THANK GOD my NEWBORN wasn't with me!
I was just driving home from work on the highway and same thing here, service traction control and reduced engine power came on. I had to coast to a fire station and now I'm sitting in the colds airing to be picked up. My newborn had to be dragged out in this weather so I can be picked up. Chevy dealer telling me this isn't covered! NOT HAPPY!
greenfield3
greenfield3
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Chevrolet 1,445 Chevrolet Malibu 70 Repairs & Maintenance 4,557 Engine 937 2011 8
This has happened to me 4 times in the past two weeks, and I am honestly lucky to be alive. I have a 2011 Chevy Malibu with 58,000 miles on it. My husband and I just moved from Dallas to Atlanta, so I have had to make several trips back and forth to handle things with our home in Dallas. The first time this happened, I was about 70 miles outside of Atlanta going 70 MPH on the highway surrounded by 18 wheelers. Suddenly my traction light and service engine light came on and the reduced power notification came on, the car slowed to about 10 miles an hour very suddenly and the car was shaking violently. The 18 wheeler behind me could not stop fast enough and the only reason I was not hit was because I was able to veer onto the shoulder. Terrified, I sat on the side of the road for several minutes after turning the car off. I started it again and it began driving normally, but the service engine light stayed on. Since I was pretty much in the middle of nowhere and it was extremely dark, I got back on the road again to get home. I made it to Atlanta, but the same thing happened again when I was entering the city on the loop. I basically coasted home. We took it to Goodyear the next day because that was the closest place. They told us it was the gas pedal sensor and charged us $265 to replace it. The car seemed to work normally until a week later I was back in Texas when the exact same thing occurred when I was going 60 MPH on the highway. Luckily, I was close enough to yet another Goodyear to coast in. They told me there was a frayed wire on the throttle body pigtail and they replaced that for $113.40. Again, the car seemed to work normally for a few days until I was again on the highway, this time in Jackson, MS and the same situation happened again. I was able to coast into a Chevy dealership this time. Here they told me that the problem was the Engine Control Module and they replaced it free of charge saying it was under warranty. Since I spent all day there, I was now faced with driving to Atlanta in the dark, not trusting that this would not happen again. Thank God I stopped in Birmingham and got a hotel room, because the whole thing happened yet again. I got it towed to a Chevy dealership the next morning, and because it was now Christmas Eve, no one would even look at it since they all wanted to go home at noon. So that I would not have to spend Christmas alone in a hotel room, I rented a car to get to Atlanta. It is now the day after Christmas, and the Chevy dealership just called to tell me it is an internal failure of the throttle body, and it will cost $550 to fix it. So, I am faced with driving 3 hours back to Birmingham, paying all that money, only to risk my life driving it 3 hours back to Atlanta, hoping this won't happen again. Oh, and if you are wondering why I didn't trade it in somewhere in this whole process, it is because I currently owe more than the trade in value. Sorry for the long post, but I feel helpless and hopeless at the moment, not to mention I am broke now. I hope I make it back to Atlanta in one piece. Thanks, Chevy, and Merry Christmas!
greenfield3
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Chevrolet 1,445 Chevrolet Malibu 70 Repairs & Maintenance 4,557 Engine 937 2011 8
This has happened to me 4 times in the past two weeks, and I am honestly lucky to be alive. I have a 2011 Chevy Malibu with 58,000 miles on it. My husband and I just moved from Dallas to Atlanta, so I have had to make several trips back and forth to handle things with our home in Dallas. The first time this happened, I was about 70 miles outside of Atlanta going 70 MPH on the highway surrounded by 18 wheelers. Suddenly my traction light and service engine light came on and the reduced power notification came on, the car slowed to about 10 miles an hour very suddenly and the car was shaking violently. The 18 wheeler behind me could not stop fast enough and the only reason I was not hit was because I was able to veer onto the shoulder. Terrified, I sat on the side of the road for several minutes after turning the car off. I started it again and it began driving normally, but the service engine light stayed on. Since I was pretty much in the middle of nowhere and it was extremely dark, I got back on the road again to get home. I made it to Atlanta, but the same thing happened again when I was entering the city on the loop. I basically coasted home. We took it to Goodyear the next day because that was the closest place. They told us it was the gas pedal sensor and charged us $265 to replace it. The car seemed to work normally until a week later I was back in Texas when the exact same thing occurred when I was going 60 MPH on the highway. Luckily, I was close enough to yet another Goodyear to coast in. They told me there was a frayed wire on the throttle body pigtail and they replaced that for $113.40. Again, the car seemed to work normally for a few days until I was again on the highway, this time in Jackson, MS and the same situation happened again. I was able to coast into a Chevy dealership this time. Here they told me that the problem was the Engine Control Module and they replaced it free of charge saying it was under warranty. Since I spent all day there, I was now faced with driving to Atlanta in the dark, not trusting that this would not happen again. Thank God I stopped in Birmingham and got a hotel room, because the whole thing happened yet again. I got it towed to a Chevy dealership the next morning, and because it was now Christmas Eve, no one would even look at it since they all wanted to go home at noon. So that I would not have to spend Christmas alone in a hotel room, I rented a car to get to Atlanta. It is now the day after Christmas, and the Chevy dealership just called to tell me it is an internal failure of the throttle body, and it will cost $550 to fix it. So, I am faced with driving 3 hours back to Birmingham, paying all that money, only to risk my life driving it 3 hours back to Atlanta, hoping this won't happen again. Oh, and if you are wondering why I didn't trade it in somewhere in this whole process, it is because I currently owe more than the trade in value. Sorry for the long post, but I feel helpless and hopeless at the moment, not to mention I am broke now. I hope I make it back to Atlanta in one piece. Thanks, Chevy, and Merry Christmas!
CF Beginner
Joined: Jan 2016
Posts: 10
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I almost caused a multi car pile up in the middle of 5o'clock traffic. I own a 2011 chevy cruze and in the middle of the road, my cars engine light came on and I instantly went from 55mph to 15. What a terrifying experience! I am furious that this isn't a recall and chevy is fully aware of this ongoing issue.
It looks like this problem arises after a certain amount of miles get driven? I have a '16 Malibu with almost 10k on it and no issues of any kind.
CF Beginner
Joined: Jan 2016
Posts: 1
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I just had this issue happen this morning on my 2009 Chevrolet Malibu LT 3.6L V6. It has 69,700 miles on in.
Has anyone narrowed down the problem or troubleshooting procedures I should follow first? Also, it looks like this issue has not been recalled?
Here is my full write-up:
Just this morning I was driving on the freeway at about 70MPH. The vehicle had been running for about 40 minutes (mostly highway) and I was getting off at an off-ramp. I slowed down to about 30MPH at a stoplight and increased to about 40MPH as the light went green. The engine began shaking and it seemed there was less power. Then a notification came up that said "ESC maintenance Service Traction, Engine Power Reduced" and the car was running rough. I pulled it into a parking lot and turned it off then back on a few moments later, same issue. I turned it off for about 2 minutes and turned back on. The shaking went away and I was able to bring the car back up to 60MPH with no issues other than the check engine light being on.
Has anyone narrowed down the problem or troubleshooting procedures I should follow first? Also, it looks like this issue has not been recalled?
Here is my full write-up:
Just this morning I was driving on the freeway at about 70MPH. The vehicle had been running for about 40 minutes (mostly highway) and I was getting off at an off-ramp. I slowed down to about 30MPH at a stoplight and increased to about 40MPH as the light went green. The engine began shaking and it seemed there was less power. Then a notification came up that said "ESC maintenance Service Traction, Engine Power Reduced" and the car was running rough. I pulled it into a parking lot and turned it off then back on a few moments later, same issue. I turned it off for about 2 minutes and turned back on. The shaking went away and I was able to bring the car back up to 60MPH with no issues other than the check engine light being on.
Official GM Rep
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 4,163
Likes: 27
From: Global Headquarters in Detroit, MI
I just had this issue happen this morning on my 2009 Chevrolet Malibu LT 3.6L V6. It has 69,700 miles on in.
Has anyone narrowed down the problem or troubleshooting procedures I should follow first? Also, it looks like this issue has not been recalled?
Here is my full write-up:
Just this morning I was driving on the freeway at about 70MPH. The vehicle had been running for about 40 minutes (mostly highway) and I was getting off at an off-ramp. I slowed down to about 30MPH at a stoplight and increased to about 40MPH as the light went green. The engine began shaking and it seemed there was less power. Then a notification came up that said "ESC maintenance Service Traction, Engine Power Reduced" and the car was running rough. I pulled it into a parking lot and turned it off then back on a few moments later, same issue. I turned it off for about 2 minutes and turned back on. The shaking went away and I was able to bring the car back up to 60MPH with no issues other than the check engine light being on.
Has anyone narrowed down the problem or troubleshooting procedures I should follow first? Also, it looks like this issue has not been recalled?
Here is my full write-up:
Just this morning I was driving on the freeway at about 70MPH. The vehicle had been running for about 40 minutes (mostly highway) and I was getting off at an off-ramp. I slowed down to about 30MPH at a stoplight and increased to about 40MPH as the light went green. The engine began shaking and it seemed there was less power. Then a notification came up that said "ESC maintenance Service Traction, Engine Power Reduced" and the car was running rough. I pulled it into a parking lot and turned it off then back on a few moments later, same issue. I turned it off for about 2 minutes and turned back on. The shaking went away and I was able to bring the car back up to 60MPH with no issues other than the check engine light being on.
We’re terribly sorry to hear of the unexpected issue you experienced in your 2009 Malibu. I certainly understand why this would be concerning for you. Did you get a chance to bring this to the attention of your servicing dealership? We’d be glad to contact them on your behalf to set up an appointment for diagnosis. We can also check your VIN for any open recalls or service announcements listed referencing this issue. Just send your VIN, contact information, and preferred dealership in a direct message if this is of interest.
Sincerely,
Jasmine
Chevrolet Customer Care
Official GM Rep
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 4,163
Likes: 27
From: Global Headquarters in Detroit, MI
We apologize for the unexpected concerns with your Malibu. We would be more than happy to look into this further, and get in touch with your GM Dealer. If so, please send us a private message along with your VIN, current mileage, contact information and preferred dealership. Looking forward to your response!
Patsy G
Chevrolet Customer Care
CF Beginner
Joined: Mar 2015
Posts: 6
Likes: 1
Yeah, its the Throttle body sensor. I got a notice from GM in the mail to take my car in to get it replaced free of charge IF the milage was under 120000. This is bull because I took my car in last year when this happen and they changed a wiring something, $800 later and it did the same damn thing as I pulled into my drive. This ONLY happens when it get cold, so here in AZ thats like 3 months or less out of the year. Not sure what cold has to do with it but that seems to be a trigger for mine. I can not drive it the mile down the road to take my child to school because of this so now I pay someone to pick her up and take her. GMs reply to bad its 134000 miles. Well we have only ever bought chevy cars and never again, like 40 years of nothing but chevy but you can bet your boots i tell everyone I run into about this when we talk cars. Its a recall , or it should be. So when I get killed because of this my family has all the info to sue the pants off them. And yes we have contacted an attorney he is looking into it. Its not just my car its all of these. Stop buying CHEVY
CF Veteran
Joined: Feb 2012
Posts: 1,428
Likes: 0
From: nebraska
so paying someone to pickup your child is cheaper than just fixing the car? If the wiring issue in question was related and documented the dealer should still do the special coverage but that's no guarantee as each dealer operates differently. Plus without codes or doing testing you can't even say what the problem is as there is a lot of different things that can cause those messages. Its kind of like going to the doctor and saying "I have pain, last time I was here I had pain too and you didn't fix it" Pretty much impossible to do anything without more information.
CF Beginner
Joined: Feb 2016
Posts: 1
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2010 malibu LTZ Throttle Position Sensor issue =(
I bought a 2010 Chevy malibu ltz from Autonation and purchased the extended warranty (New Plan), car gave Reduced Engine Power mssg, initial start of car, would start doing funny things, engine light comes on, had code read and gave TSP code for replacement. Took car to Chevy dealership, said they would have to do a full diagnosis costing me $115.00 in order for them to send for an approval for my warranty and to make sure that it's really the TSP. RRRRGH, I was so tempted to finding a replacement to have our own mechanic do this for me, of course, was informed any after factory part installed would void warranty...sounds like GM really wants you to be stuck paying them to deal with such defects in their vehicles. Horrible....sometimes I think I have no choice but to gamble with $115 for whatever they diagnose this vehicle and wait for the bad news. The GM throttle body part alone would cost me around $300+. This is such a catastrophe, if anyone has any advice, please send it this way...on top of that...it's Calclulus class work. Awesome...