Owner-reported complaints naming the electrical system, filed with NHTSA
Data refreshed
Reports naming the electrical system — wiring, battery, charging, control modules, infotainment and electrical accessories. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 2016 Chevrolet Sonic submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 10 reports on file name it.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Shown in the owner’s own words, exactly as filed
My car lock and unlocks when I did not hit any buttons. The remote start does not work sometimes. The battery loses connection from time to time with a brand new battery. I own 2 of these cars and the same exact thing is happening. There needs to be a recall on this
My car lock and unlocks when I did not hit any buttons. The remote start does not work sometimes. The battery loses connection from time to time with a brand new battery.
THE HEAT DOESNT WORK. KEEPS BLOWING OUT COOL AIR. THIS PAST SUMMER THE AC WOULDN'T WORK. WHEN I TOOK IT TO THE DEALERSHIP THEY SAID IT WAS AN ELECTRICAL ISSUE BUT THEY FIXED IT. I BELIEVE THE TWO ISSUES ARE RELATED.
TURN SIGNAL INDICATORS DO NOT MAKE SOUND WHEN ACTIVE
I BOUGHT A 2016 CHEVY SONIC LT IN JANUARY OF 2020. IT HAS ONLY HAS 30,000 MILES ON IT AND HAS BEEN WELL MAINTAINED. INITIALLY, I BELIEVED THAT THE COMPUTER WAS JUST SLOW. IN MARCH, 2020 I NOTICED THAT WHEN I WOULD TURN THE CAR ON THE RADIO/COMPUTER WOULD SOMETIMES TAKE SEVERAL MINUTES TO BOOT UP. THEN ONCE BOOTED, THE BACK-UP CAMERA LINES WOULD NOT SHOW UP. ONLY OCCASIONALLY WOULD THE GUIDING LINES APPEAR ON THE SCREEN. THEN, A PROBLEM DEVELOPED WHERE AFTER I TURNED THE CAR OFF AND LOCKED THE DOORS, THE RADIO WOULD CONTINUE PLAYING UNTIL THE VEHICLE WAS RESTARTED OR THE BATTERY WAS DISCONNECTED. THIS FIRST OCCURRED IN MAY 2020 AND WOULD OCCUR PERIODICALLY OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL MONTHS. IN JUNE 2020, THE RADIO WOULD RANDOMLY NOT BOOT WHEN STARTED OR BOOT EVEN MORE SLOWLY THAN USUAL. SOMETIMES I COULD DRIVE TEN OR TWENTY MINUTES BEFORE THE COMPUTER WOULD FINALLY TURN ON. OTHER TIMES THE COMPUTER WOULD NEVER TURN ON. YET AGAIN, THE ONLY SOLUTION WAS TO RESTART THE CAR OR DISCONNECT THE BATTERY. ON AUGUST 1, 2020, THE RADIO WILL NOT TURN ON AT ALL, EVEN AFTER RESTARTING THE CAR OR RECONNECTING THE BATTERY. NOW THAT THE RADIO IS COMPLETELY NONOPERATIONAL, OTHER SYSTEMS HAVE BEEN EFFECTED, TOO. FOR EXAMPLE, THE BLINKERS DO NOT SIGNAL PROPERLY. ALTHOUGH THEY BLINK, I DO NOT RECEIVE A NOTIFICATION THAT THEY ARE ENGAGED (NO BLINKING SOUND). THE SEAT BELT, DOOR AJAR, AND KEY IN IGNITION WARNING DO NOT SOUND ANYMORE EITHER. ADDITIONALLY, THE COLLISION NOTIFICATION AND LANE RECOGNITION NO LONGER PRODUCE AN AUDIBLE WARNING. IT DOES NOT MATTER WHETHER THE CAR IS STATIONARY OR IN MOTION, THE RADIO AND ALL RELATED SOUND COMPONENTS DO NOT WORK AT ALL. I HAVE NOT FOUND ANY SOLUTION YET. THERE HAVE BEEN RECALLS FOR PROBLEMS SUCH AS THESE FOR THIS VEHICLE, BUT NONE OF THEM ARE CURRENTLY OPEN.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 CHEVROLET SONIC. THE CONTACT STATED WHILE DRIVING AT 45 MPH, THE VEHICLE LOSS MOTIVE POWER AND STALLED WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT STATED THAT SEVERAL ATTEMPTS WERE NEEDED TO RESTART THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC BUT WAS NOT DIAGNOSED NOR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS UNKNOWN.
MY CAR WAS BOUGHT IN OCT OF 2015. IT DID NOT COME WITH A REAR CAMERA BACK UP SYSTEM, HOWEVER THE CENTER DISPLAY (RADIO & CONTROLS PANEL) STARTED DISPLAYING AN ERROR MESSAGE ABOUT THIS BACK UP SYSTEM. AT THE SAME TIME THE PHONE & RADIO CONTROLS LOCATED ON THE STEERING WHEEL ALSO STOPPED WORKING. WHEN BLUE TOOTHING A PHONE (HAVE TRIED WITH MORE THAN ONE TYPE) IT OFTEN DISCONNECTS & WHEN IT DOES CONNECT, IT DOESN'T FULLY CONNECT. BOTH THE STEERING WHEEL CONTROL & BLUE TOOTH PROBLEMS STARTED AT THE TIME THE REAR BACK UP ERROR BEGAN SHOWING UP. THIS ERROR HAS BEEN DISPLAYING FOR MANY MONTHS & I NO LONGER HAVE A WARRANTY THAT WOULD COVER THIS EXPENSIVE REPAIR. THE DATE SELECTED IS AN ESTIMATION.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 CHEVROLET SONIC. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 20 MPH, THE VEHICLE JERKED, LOST POWER, AND THE CHECK ENGINE INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO BARBER CHEVROLET (205-631-2669, LOCATED AT 90 BARBER BLVD, GARDENDALE, AL 35071) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE IGNITION COIL NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 75,200.
TAKATA RECALL . ONE TIRE HAS ALREADY BEEN REPLACED AT THE OWNERS EXPENSE IN FEBRUARY 2019.. IT WAS DEFECTIVE AT THE TIME OF PURCHASE AND TAKEN BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP FOR REPLACEMENT BEFORE THE WARRANTY EXPIRED. THE OTHER PROBLEM WAS ELECTRICAL, THE DRIVER SEAT WASN'T HEATING AND THE INFOTAINMENT CENTER REAR CAMERA WAS BLURRING CAUSING A UNSAFE DRIVING CONDITION.. THE DASHBOARD WAS CLICKING OUT FOR A SECOND WHILE DRIVING ON A CITY STREET.
AS I WAS DRIVING ON A STREET, POSSIBLY TWO MINUTES AFTER DEPARTING MY HOME, IS WHEN I'D REALIZED THE AIR BAG INDICATOR LIGHT WAS ILLUMINATED. EVERYTIME FOR THE NEXT THREE DAYS, THE WARNING LIGHT WOULD ILLUMINATE AS SOON AS THE CAR TURNED ON. IT FINALLY SHUT OFF AFTER I WENT OUT TO SHOP. IT WAS ILLUMINATED ON MY WAY TO THE SHOPS. I TURNED THE CAR OFF, SHOPPED AND WHEN I TURNED IT BACK ON, THE LIGHT DID NOT ILLUMINATE AND HAS NOT SINCE THEN. NOW, IT HAS BEEN AROUND TWO WEEKS SINCE IT TURNED OFF.
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Categories with enough reports to have a page of their own
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