Engine & cooling

Chevrolet Colorado Engine problems by year

250 complaints filed with NHTSA about the Chevrolet Colorado's engine & cooling. Stalling, loss of power, oil consumption, overheating, head gaskets, timing chains and engine failure.

Engine complaints by model year

'04 '05 '06 '07 '08 '09 '10 '11 '12 '13 '14 '15 50'16 '17 '18 '19 '20 '21 '22 '23 '24 '25 '26

Year	Engine complaints	Crashes	Injuries
2026	3	0	0
2025	3	0	0
2021	21	0	0
2020	22	0	1
2019	23	0	0
2018	24	0	0
2017	29	0	0
2016	50	1	0
2015	36	0	0
2012	11	1	2
2011	4	0	0
2009	10	0	1
2008	14	0	0

Latest Colorado engine complaints

2017 Chevrolet Colorado Electrical system Engine & cooling Fuel system

Whenever i an accelerating on the highway or driving more than 20 minutes the words stabiltrak and reduced engine power come on along with the symbols for engine light, tract control and the car with the squiggly lines under it. The same codes keep popping up, p0091 and p0024. We have had 4 tires replaced, break fluid pump flushes, ventilation in the fuel tank replaced, fuel pump has been replaced 3 times, battery and alternator has been checked, wires are non corroded or cut anywhere. We even had the timing chain...

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replaced which caused us to have to get a new-ish engine. The symbols are still popping up. It has been 3 months and we have spent 9k. We have been going to a midas and they are stumped and believe it is an internal ECM issue and is apparently a common issue in this year and model truck. But there has been no information anyone on how to fix it. Mind you we got this truck in 2023 and are now having issues after getting the tires replaced in august 2026. Oddly enough they have test driven it for 30-90 minutes and no codes come on but then as soon as i pick it up and drive home, they all come on

2012 Chevrolet Colorado Engine & cooling

My truck will not start a couple time each month. I have to wait 10mins each time before my truck will start. This is very dangerous because it makes me late for important meetings and events. Can you disarm this feature PLEASE it happens several times

2020 Chevrolet Colorado Brakes Engine & cooling

2020 Chevrolet Colorado 2.5L, approximately 81,500 miles. I experienced a sudden loss of power brake assist. There was no warning noise associated with the failure; the brake pedal became extremely hard and required substantially greater pedal pressure to stop the vehicle. The vehicle was inspected by an independent professional mechanic. Inspection found that the brake booster vacuum pump itself was not the primary source of the failure. The failure was at the engine exhaust camshaft interface that...

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mechanically drives the vacuum pump. The camshaft drive was damaged and no longer properly operated the vacuum pump, resulting in loss of brake vacuum assist. This is not normal brake-pad or rotor wear. The hydraulic brakes remained functional, but without the vacuum assist the pedal effort increased dramatically, creating a significant braking safety concern. The vehicle has been removed from normal use pending repair. I am reporting this because failure of an engine component that drives the brake vacuum pump can cause sudden loss of power brake assist.

2021 Chevrolet Colorado Brakes Engine & cooling

The brake booster vacuum pump broke and caused my brakes to stop working properly while driving on the highway. There were zero warnings from the vehicle I went to press on my brake and it was stuck i luckily was able to push it down enough to safely stop

2020 Chevrolet Colorado Seats & seat belts Brakes Engine & cooling

Vacuum pump for brakes failed and damaged the whole engine to be replaced because of faulty vacuum pump design

2020 Chevrolet Colorado Engine & cooling

The engine malfunctioned, specifically the 4 camshaft actuator solenoid valves, making the car unable to safely drive. The check engine light came on, likely indicating the car was unsafe to drive. GM issued GM Special Coverage N232430470 covering 2020 Colorado's with a 3.6L V6 engine for the Bank 2 exhaust camshaft actuator solenoid up to 15 years/150,000 miles. This was confirmed by a Chevy dealership. The vehicle was not inspected by the manufacturer, police, or insurance representative. My check engine light...

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first came on 09/05/26, however, the check engine light did disappear later in the week. It came on again 09/27/26, so i decided to have the car inspected, despite the fact that the check engine light later went away.

2026 Chevrolet Colorado Transmission & drivetrain Engine & cooling

The vehicle developed a rapid and moderate shudder followed by "Check Engine", "Service Traction Control", "Service ESC" messages and associated icons on the driver display. The shudder happened a second time within approximately 30 seconds and the engine lost power followed by "Reduced Power Warning" message. I engaged the emergency flashers and limped to the nearest side road. I had to stop on the road because of no shoulder. I waited there while assessing the situation and eventually was able to drive the...

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short distance home. I disconnected the battery to reset the PCM. This action temporarily cleared the fault code and check engine light. The first dealer said it couldn't do anything without a fault code. A second dealer said it was unable to duplicate the malfunction. Two weeks later the vehicle began to shudder on a busy interstate, with the same warning lights and messages and had to pull off the interstate. It happened once more on the way home. The dealer duplicated the issue. It took them over 30 days with multiple repair attempts. The dealer replaced all four fuel injectors, fuel injector wiring harness, Engine Control Module (ECM), and wiring between the ECM and another connector. The dealer had to reach out to GM's Technical Assistance Team (TAC) to get it back on the road again. Approximately 8 weeks later, the vehicle began to shudder again, this time only while travelling up hills. There has not been any messages or warning lights associated with this event. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where is has been now for almost a week with no follow-up on the diagnosis or repair status. These events compromised safety and we were put at risk due to the sudden lack of power while in traffic, maintaining control of the vehicle while trying to understand the situation, and the possibility of other drivers adversely reacting to these events.

2021 Chevrolet Colorado Brakes Engine & cooling

The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Colorado. The contact stated that while driving 40 MPH, the brake pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to stop as intended. The contact stated that the brake pedal was depressed to the floorboard and the engine seized. The contact stood on the brake pedal. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with a fractured camshaft. The contact was informed that the brake vacuum pump fractured the camshaft, and the camshaft was fractured in half. The contact was informed that the camshaft needed to be replaced. The contact was advised to contact the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 65,500.

2018 Chevrolet Colorado Engine & cooling

Crankshaft Position Tone Wheel delaminated, mechanic changed it out and not sure what they did with it. Stalled vehicle on uphill passing lane during rush hour traffic, cars where inches from me as they passed at 65-70 mph, I called 911 and had a state trooper come and direct traffic. Joe's Garage inspected my vehicle and did the repair. It was not inspected by anyone besides Joe's Garage to my knowledge. No warning, dashlights came on after engine stalled.

2016 Chevrolet Colorado Steering Electrical system Engine & cooling

While sitting in idle the engine will just start to idle rough for no reason this happens all the time and clear out when accelerated. While driving the radio and Infotainment screen will go blank then come back on. I was driving on the freeway going straight and all of a sudden the power steering went out and I got this warning light on for the power steering being disabled along with this vehicle symbol and squiggly lines behind it on. I drove to a safe spot with the truck feeling really heavy. Turned it off and on then it cleared up. This power steering issue just happened.

2020 Chevrolet Colorado Steering Brakes Engine & cooling

While driving my 2020 Chevrolet Colorado through [[redacted]], the truck began having difficulty accelerating. As I exited the highway and turned into a gas station, the truck suddenly lost power. The steering became extremely difficult, and I lost normal brake assist. The brake pedal became extremely hard, and I had to apply extreme force to stop the truck and avoid crashing into a wall at the gas station. Fortunately, no collision occurred. The truck was towed to Ed Corley Ford in [[redacted]] because I was...

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stranded in a remote area with very limited options. They diagnosed a failed/broken vacuum pump and told me replacing it should make the truck operable so I could drive it home to [[redacted]]. I authorized the repair. After replacing the vacuum pump, they told me they started the truck and heard an abnormal sound. They shut it off, and when they tried to restart it, the truck would not start. They wanted to perform additional diagnosis, but I declined and had the truck transported back to [[redacted]] for evaluation by a Chevrolet dealership. Huffines Chevrolet Lewisville inspected the truck. Their technician removed the camshaft position sensor and used a borescope to inspect the camshaft. They documented that the camshaft is damaged at the end where it connects to the vacuum pump and stated the actuator pin was most likely bent due to the vacuum-pump failure, damaging the camshaft and causing it to be slightly out of time. I have also been informed of engine damage. The truck remains inoperable and is currently available for inspection. I am concerned this is a safety defect because the vacuum-pump failure resulted in a sudden loss of normal brake assist while I was driving and was followed by camshaft/engine damage. I am asking NHTSA to investigate this failure and similar Chevrolet Colorado complaints. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

2020 Chevrolet Colorado Engine & cooling

a/c control knocks out tempter senor and gauge goes to zero and check engine light comes on, gas mileage goings to hell, turn off engine clutch fan runs for several minutes, can still touch water hoses by hand and not even hot. This is a big safety problem because I'm looking at the gauge and now causing more smog! Chevrolet Merele Stone in Porterville CA had it all day reporting A GM Strat sticking ,it was a brand new gm delco and senor and still doing it . It's a $1000.00 to repair itThey had to jump start my...

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truck went picking it up. tried to charge the battery over night but dead battery, had to replace it $250.00 expense, and $189.00 to denoised. Called GM for a appointment in Visalia to check the problem 42 mile on way from home and showed up to No APPOINTMENT!

2020 Chevrolet Colorado Engine & cooling

The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Colorado. The contact stated that while reversing out of the driveway, the check engine warning light illuminated. The failure recurred while driving 65 MPH. The vehicle was taken to AutoZone, where DTCs P0024 and P0014 were retrieved, indicating exhaust camshaft position system performance issues for Bank 2 and Bank 1. The contact associated the failure with GM Special Coverage Number: N232430470 (Camshaft Position Actuator Valve Solenoid - Bank 2 (Left Side) Exhaust). The vehicle...

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was then taken to the dealer, where the diagnostic result was confirmed. The dealer swapped the camshaft position sensor actuators between both banks and cleared the codes. The contact was advised that the cause of the failure would be determined if the diagnostic trouble codes returned. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the VIN was not included in the special coverage. The failure mileage was approximately 36,500.

2021 Chevrolet Colorado Brakes Engine & cooling

The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Colorado. The contact stated that while driving approximately 75 MPH, the engine revved without the accelerator pedal being depressed. The contact stated that while turning onto an exit ramp, the brake pedal was depressed to slow the vehicle; however, there was resistance to the brake pedal, and an excessive amount of pressure was needed to depress brake pedal to stop the vehicle. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to be diagnosed or repaired. The...

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dealer was informed of the failure. The dealer informed the contact that failure might cause the complete engine failure. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 106,000.

2018 Chevrolet Colorado Transmission & drivetrain Engine & cooling

While driving at normal and safe highway speeds, without warning (no audible or visual warning from the vehicle information display) my vehicle experienced engine lockout, loss of all non-electric power, and no control over vehicle speed. A few seconds after loss, the information display did show a "check engine light" and that the engine was in "lockout." We (my spouse, young child, and self) were surrounded by multiple commercial semi-trucks and passenger vehicles and had to weave and serve to avoid collisions...

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at highway speeds and get to the shoulder of the highway in a few seconds. The root cause as diagnosed by a Chevrolet Dealership Service Department was failure of the magnetic strip that is press fit to the reluctor (tone) wheel. A 1/2in piece of the magnetic strip was missing and over 10 cracks within the strip itself observed. This magnetic strip is used by the Engine Control Module to measure engine RPMs. The strip's failure caused the EMC to shutdown the engine without warning which is a significant hazard for controlled vehicle movement at highway speeds. My vehicle's engine (LWN) is one of the few GM designs that have the press fit magnetic strip reluctor wheels. The rest use integrated wheels with the crankshaft or traditionally stamped steel with machined teeth. The vehicle and reluctor wheel has not been inspected by GM or any other representatives. I offered to send images to GM for records but they declined.

Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) complaints and recalls, checked daily. Complaints are owners' own reports and are not verified. How we use the data