2004 CHEVROLET CAVALIER — Owner-Reported Problems
Verdict & Safety Summary
- Crashes 17
- Fires 6
- Injuries 19
- Deaths 1
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
Component Problem Distribution
Share of owner complaints filed for each vehicle system (unaffected by sales volume)
UNKNOWN OR OTHER is an NHTSA classification artifact and is always listed last.
View component data as a table
| System / Component | Complaints | Share of Reports | Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires) |
|---|---|---|---|
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 158 | 49.7% | 1 crashes · 4 fires |
| POWER TRAIN | 19 | 6.0% | 2 crashes · 0 fires |
| VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | 18 | 5.7% | 0 crashes · 0 fires |
| VISIBILITY | 18 | 5.7% | 1 crashes · 0 fires |
| STEERING | 13 | 4.1% | 1 crashes · 0 fires |
| AIR BAGS | 12 | 3.8% | 8 crashes · 0 fires |
| ENGINE | 12 | 3.8% | 1 crashes · 1 fires |
| SERVICE BRAKES | 11 | 3.5% | 1 crashes · 0 fires |
| STRUCTURE | 9 | 2.8% | 0 crashes · 1 fires |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 160 | 50.3% | 8 crashes · 3 fires |
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
Problem & Recall Timeline
Observed complaint volume and manufacturer recall actions over time
- Campaign 04V300000 was reported 69 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
| Date | Record type | Count | Record identifier |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004-Q1 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2004-Q2 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 2004-Q3 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2004-Q4 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2005-Q1 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 2005-Q2 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2005-Q3 | Owner reports | 8 | |
| 2005-Q4 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 2006-Q1 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 2006-Q2 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2006-Q3 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 2006-Q4 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2007-Q2 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2007-Q3 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2007-Q4 | Owner reports | 8 | |
| 2008-Q1 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2008-Q2 | Owner reports | 9 | |
| 2008-Q3 | Owner reports | 10 | |
| 2008-Q4 | Owner reports | 10 | |
| 2009-Q1 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 2009-Q2 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2009-Q3 | Owner reports | 6 | |
| 2009-Q4 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2010-Q1 | Owner reports | 16 | |
| 2010-Q2 | Owner reports | 15 | |
| 2010-Q3 | Owner reports | 15 | |
| 2010-Q4 | Owner reports | 8 | |
| 2011-Q1 | Owner reports | 10 | |
| 2011-Q2 | Owner reports | 6 | |
| 2011-Q3 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 2011-Q4 | Owner reports | 9 | |
| 2012-Q1 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 2012-Q2 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 2012-Q3 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2012-Q4 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 2013-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2013-Q2 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2013-Q3 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2013-Q4 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2014-Q1 | Owner reports | 10 | |
| 2014-Q2 | Owner reports | 11 | |
| 2014-Q3 | Owner reports | 6 | |
| 2014-Q4 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2015-Q1 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2015-Q2 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2015-Q3 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2015-Q4 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2016-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2016-Q2 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2016-Q3 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2016-Q4 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2017-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2017-Q2 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2017-Q3 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2018-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2018-Q3 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2019-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2019-Q2 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2019-Q4 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 2020-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2020-Q4 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2021-Q4 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2022-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2024-Q2 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 04V300000 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 08E063000 |
Safety Recalls (2)
Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA
-
Manufacturer action
Recall campaign 04V300000
- Report date
- Component:
- SEAT BELTS
- Consequence:
- IN A SEVERE CRASH, THE UPPER SEAT BELT ANCHORAGE MAY SEPARATE. THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE SEAT BELT COULD THEN BE REDUCED AND THE OCCUPANT COULD RECEIVE GREATER INJURIES.
- Remedy:
- DEALERS ARE TO INSPECT THE SAFETY BELT ANCHORAGE AND INSTALL A NEW NUT AND BOLT, IF NECESSARY. THE RECALL BEGAN ON AUGUST 23, 2004. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT CHEVROLET AT 1-800-630-2438 AND PONTIAC AT 1-800-620-7668.
-
Manufacturer action
Recall campaign 08E063000
- Report date
- Component:
- Not available in the source record
- Consequence:
- IF THE WELD FAILS, LOSS OF STEERING COULD RESULT, POSSIBLY RESULTING IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
- Remedy:
- DORMAN WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND REPLACE THE STEERING SHAFTS FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON OCTOBER 16, 2008. OWNERS MAY CONTACT DORMAN TOLL FREE AT 1-800-523-2492.
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
Complaint Narrative Explorer
Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records
No complaints match the current filters.
Estimated Ownership Cost
EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates
Adjacent Model Years
Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
Methodology & Data Integrity
Data sourced from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Snapshot date: 2026-08-21.