2015 Chevy Sonic - Check Engine Lite

Joined
Jan 13, 2013
Messages
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Location
Texas
Lite came on early this week . Parked the car . This afternoon , I hooked up our code reader , Had 3 codes , having to do with the evap purge system . Erased the coses , re-tightened the gas cap & wife & I went to Walmart and back ,

So far , the lite has not come back on , again . Praise the Lord ! :)

Car has ~ 70,000 + miles on the 1.8l 4 cylinder w/automatic .
 
Yeah give it 80-100 miles before you start celebrating. Had a Fiat 500 with an evap leak and even after new gas cap it took somewhere near/north of 80 miles for the CEL to trigger....at which point the Chrysler dealership proposed replacing the tank and all the lines to the tune of almost $1,000.
 
Originally Posted by michaelluscher
Keep monitoring to see if it comes back

Be careful what you erase, it might have 8/80 emissions coverage


Yes, do look into this!
 
Originally Posted by eljefino
Originally Posted by michaelluscher
Keep monitoring to see if it comes back

Be careful what you erase, it might have 8/80 emissions coverage


Yes, do look into this!


+1
 
Be carefull not to fill the tank - especially in HOT weather.
That flood the evap system and causes codes and malfuntion.

I still see people topping off. One of the worse things you can do to a car these days,
 
Last edited:
Likely totally unrelated but my wife had a 2014 sonic in the past that kept throwing a lean code. Couldn't figure out what the heck the issue was. Finally after looking all around and pulling on the intake tube i realized it was cracked and the crack opened when the engine moved. Seems to be a common problem on the early sonics.

This may not be your issue now, but i would suggest inspecting your rubber intake tube and potentially even ordering a new GM unit as it will eventually crack.
 
Originally Posted by dwcopple
*light. Good luck!


Miller Lite .
lol.gif
 
A bad/loose gas cap isn't going to cause 3 separate EVAP codes IME. There is an honest to goodness leak somewhere in the system. Take it somewhere with a smoke machine.
 
Is this the same car that was in an accident recently? If it is, I'd inspect the emission control system on that area of the car. Front end collision, I'd be checking to making sure nothing is broken or disconnected.
 
Originally Posted by ARCOgraphite
Be carefull not to fill the tank - especially in HOT weather.
That flood the evap system and causes codes and malfuntion.

I still see people topping off. One of the worse things you can do to a car these days,


I've lived in Texas my whole life and this has never been an issue.
 
Originally Posted by JoelB
Likely totally unrelated but my wife had a 2014 sonic in the past that kept throwing a lean code. Couldn't figure out what the heck the issue was. Finally after looking all around and pulling on the intake tube i realized it was cracked and the crack opened when the engine moved. Seems to be a common problem on the early sonics.

This may not be your issue now, but i would suggest inspecting your rubber intake tube and potentially even ordering a new GM unit as it will eventually crack.
We purchased the car , mostly on price . We have been pretty happy with it , 70,000 + miles , so far .

I did some research on it , after we took delivery . The rubber intake hose and the thermostat housing came up as common fault . I did purchase the hose , just in case .

The code is P0496 which is the purge solenoid . YouTube videos show the location , under the hood . Does not look that bad to replace . Ordered the AC Delco brand part , from RockAuto.com for $ 25.55 , delivered . Should arrive by the end of the week . We will see how it turns out .

https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=2578856&cc=3309721&jsn=2706

https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/chevrolet,2015,sonic,1.8l+l4,3309721,exhaust+&+emission,vapor+canister+purge+valve+/+solenoid,4936

In the mean time , I have also replace the gas cap . $ 11 , locally , at O'Reilly Auto Parts .

Thanks , :)
 
Originally Posted by buddylpal
Is this the same car that was in an accident recently? If it is, I'd inspect the emission control system on that area of the car. Front end collision, I'd be checking to making sure nothing is broken or disconnected.

Yes , had not thought about that .

Thanks , :)
 
Have not asked my wife , again about the CEL . Last time I drove it , the CEL had not reappeared . May turn out the new gas cap took care of it . If so , the new purge solenoid I ordered from RA , may not be needed ?

If that is the case , I will not be upset . Put the new part back as a spare . It only cost $ 25.55 ( email from RA saying it should arrive Friday ) . That + the $ 11 for the new gas cap , cheap fix .
 
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