235 miles w/ Check Engine Light On - P2261 Code

[JimmyJames]

Man I hate to post this up and scare any future buyers or new owners, but in all fairness I figured Id post it to let people know how this turns out. So far I'm not really worried, but things can always change. Fortunately as with any new car I've got a warranty.

2014 Sonic LT HB 1.4T 6PS MT
Brand New w/ 235 Miles
No Modifcations

On my wife's way home from work last night the check engine light came on. I pulled the code with my reader this morning at its P2261 (Turbo/Super Charger Bypass Valve - Mechanical) Car is running fine, no noticeable issues.

Already called the dealer and I have scheduled an appointment for tomorrow morning. (cant make it today due to other obligations). The service tech didn't seem overly concerned about the code, which validated my thoughts as well. It sounds like a minor issue with a defective bypass valve. I'm assuming an easy fix/replacement and we will be on our way.


If anyone else has any experience with this issue, and/or thoughts or concerns, feel free to share. opcorn:

 

[Al Marino]

Man I hate to post this up and scare any future buyers or new owners, but in all fairness I figured Id post it to let people know how this turns out. So far I'm not really worried, but things can always change. Fortunately as with any new car I've got a warranty.



2014 Sonic LT HB 1.4T 6PS MT

Brand New w/ 235 Miles

No Modifcations



On my wife's way home from work last night the check engine light came on. I pulled the code with my reader this morning at its P2261 (Turbo/Super Charger Bypass Valve - Mechanical) Car is running fine, no noticeable issues.



Already called the dealer and I have scheduled an appointment for tomorrow morning. (cant make it today due to other obligations). The service tech didn't seem overly concerned about the code, which validated my thoughts as well. It sounds like a minor issue with a defective bypass valve. I'm assuming an easy fix/replacement and we will be on our way.





If anyone else has any experience with this issue, and/or thoughts or concerns, feel free to share. opcorn:

Gm could have used better hardware for the turbo. There's a lot of plastic pieces that, in my opinion, shouldn't be, and although I've never had any trouble codes or lights come on, I keep an eye on them. I have the rs. It's a neat little commuter car. It surprises a lot of my friends who get in the car as to how it runs and drives. I hope you enjoy yours as much as I enjoy mine.

 

[ChrisJ]

I'm just under 30K now and have not had any turbo problems.
I have seen a few people here with turbo problems but not very many. When you think about the thousands if not hundreds of thousands of 1.4T's GM has sold in the Sonic and Cruze and like models world wide the failure rate appears extremely low.

If I were you I wouldn't be concerned. Have the dealer take care if the problem and move on.

If you want something to worry about, lets talk about the transmission, clutch or swaybar links. Those seem to be questionable. Actually, the transmission and clutch could be better but seem ok overall. The swaybar links are just inexcusable and will fail several times in the car's life.

 

[ahtoxa]

I'm also just under 30k miles and no turbo problems.

In addition to the above-mentioned issues, the waterpump is another common occurrence. Turbo issues are rare, based on anecdotal evidence.

 

[JimmyJames]

Update

So the service department had it for over an hour today trying to find out whats wrong. Unfortunately they weren't able to find anything wrong with the car. So I'm assuming they cleared the check engine light and sent my wife on her way. On the way home the light came back on so she had to turn around and give it right back to them.

They are going to keep it overnight and through the weekend to go through it more thoroughly. They did mentioned taking it out and driving it to see what might be going on. I know from my experience driving it, I cant tell anything is wrong. No lack of power or other weird noises I can notice.


I will keep you all updated with what the results are after the weekend unless they call us later this evening with an update.

On the plus side they are providing us a rental Camaro until they get it fixed. So at least my wife is happy with that. :banana:

 

[Swordsmith]

I put 38K miles on my original turbo, zero problems, and I am well outside specs on how much boost I'm running and how hard I beat on the poor thing, doing some WOT hard pulls up on ramps several times a day just because I love it.

Rebuilt/clipped/upgraded turbo only has a few hundred miles on it thus far, no sign of trouble there either, but I guess I'll report back when I get the car to 80K.

 

[JimmyJames]

Final Update

So the dealer had the car for a few days trying to figure it out. They replaced a solenoid, then the bypass Valve, and the code would not go away. They even got on the phone with GM for assistance to no avail. The final solution was to replace the turbo with a new one and see if it works. Problem solved. Fortunately all through out the troubleshooting the car was running fine and I don't expect any damage occurred anywhere else. So in the end it appears it just had a defective/flaky turbo causing a false/positive check engine light.

Regardless its fixed now and I got my car back and couldn't be happier. :banana:

 

[Chevrolet Customer Care]

So the dealer had the car for a few days trying to figure it out. They replaced a solenoid, then the bypass Valve, and the code would not go away. They even got on the phone with GM for assistance to no avail. The final solution was to replace the turbo with a new one and see if it works. Problem solved. Fortunately all through out the troubleshooting the car was running fine and I don't expect any damage occurred anywhere else. So in the end it appears it just had a defective/flaky turbo causing a false/positive check engine light.

Regardless its fixed now and I got my car back and couldn't be happier. :banana:

Hey JimmyJames,

I'm very happy that your vehicle is back home with you! Keep us posted if anything changes.

Sincerely,

Jonathan A. (Assisting Erica)
Chevrolet Customer Care