Body complaints by model year
Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (doors, hood, frame, rust, paint and trim).
Mileage when the problem started
What owners report
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 Chevrolet Cavalier. The contact stated that the dashboard was disintegrating. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 80,000.updated 10/13/16
The weather was in the 10s and single digits. I was traveling in pair, we did not exceed 35 miles an hour as visibility was very poor due to snow and winds. I noticed my speedometer was accelerating, believed my tires were spinning on ice. I come to a stop and realized my speedometer was still going 60 miles an hour. Drove the rest of the way home following my friend who was previously following me. The MPH needle made its way to point straight down. I wouldn't have expressed concern if other Chevy Cavalier owners had told me to, because it has happened to them too. I am a new owner of this car, bought it from a dealership so I don't know that how well taken care of this car was. I pride myself in taking extra car of my vehicles. I do not think the speedometer should have failed unless it was because of operator misuse, and I have not misused my vehicle.
The garnish molding-windshield pillar-driver's side fell partly off blocking my visibility while driving home from work. It was never touched and for no reason it fell off and to this day I am unable to reattach it..
A strong fuel odor entered the inside of the vehicle when the vents were used. This odor caused nausea and headaches to any one riding in the vehicle. At any temperature, the vehicle took a very long time to crank up. Also, while driving at 50 MPH, the vehicle suddenly decelerated and bogged down. The vehicle would eventually pick up speed and act as if nothing ever happened. These problems occurred eight times. There was rattle in the drivers side door panel due to the regulator, there was also an intermittent noise on the passenger side rear, the vehicle would not start due to the power train control module, the engine was hard to start at times and was unable to be duplicated, the engine would lose power, the driver door made a rubbing noise, the floor area was buckling, and the A/C displayed a burning smell.
Power suddenly shut off, causing power steering to fail, which made me wreck into a ditch. It also caused the airbags to not deploy and prevented seatbelts from locking into place when the brakes were hit.
I have noticed a lot and I mean a lot of these cavaliers have had horrible frame problems I use to work on cars everyday until the last year when I got out of the mechanics field an now I own a 03 Chevy Cavalier its a two door 5 speed 2.2 I was on my way home from the store and I felt something rubbing so I stopped an got out to find out my k frame was horribly rotted an broke now this vehicle is 13 years old but as rotted out as it was it wasn't something that just happened its been bad I was just the lucky owner that the frame gave out on an I demand to know why this isn't a recall another thing is I owned a 98 Ford f150 which had recalls an when I was sent the letter about the recalls I asked Ford why the frames on the f150 or ranger wasn't a recall they had no answer. …
Tl* the contact owns a 2002 Chevrolet Cavalier. The contact stated that the dashboard of the vehicle was fractured and deteriorating. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the dashboard needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired due to parts being unavailable. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 60,000. Updated 01/25/17 updated 7/3/18
My 2002 Chevy Cavalier was in for front brakes....mechanic phoned and told me that my car's subframe was cracked. Mechanic told me that it was common with this model car. Called GM and they told me that because of the age of the car (2002) and mileage (64,500) that there was nothing that they could do. I told GM that my mechanic said that this is a common problem with this particular car. Still they told me nothing could be done. I called consumer affairs and they told me to contact the attorney general's office which I did. I was told that the only way I could make other folks aware of this problem was to contact NHTSA. I believe this to be a safety hazard for other folks that have this type of car. I would not have known if not for the replacement of my brakes.
Related recalls (2)
Structure › Body
Vehicle description: passenger vehicles. These vehicles were built with mis-located welds at the joint between the left rocker panel inner reinforcement and the body side ring. This does not meet the requirements of FMVSS no. 214, "side door strength."
Remedy: Dealers will inspect the welds and, if necessary, place five welds between the involved panels and apply primer and topcoat finish materials.
Structure › Frame and members
Some welds were omitted from the body lock pillar, or "b" pillar. This does not comply with FMVSS no.208, "occupant crash protection."
Remedy: All vehicles in this recall campaign have been repurchased and replaced with a comparable vehicle.
Frequently asked questions
Which Chevrolet Cavalier years have body problems?
By NHTSA complaints, the 1998 (28), 2000 (27), 1997 (20), 2001 (14) and 2005 (14) model years. Body complaints make up 8% of all complaints for the 1998.
Is there a recall for Chevrolet Cavalier body problems?
Yes — 2 recalls, including 98V-032 (body, Feb 25, 1998); 95V-141 (frame and members, Jul 26, 1995). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers; check a specific car with the VIN recall check.
At what mileage do Chevrolet Cavalier body problems start?
Across all years, half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 88,000 miles; 25% happened before 50,000 miles.
What part fails most often?
Owners most often name the body (42 mentions), followed by the body › door (32).
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.