The Lemon IndexChevrolet Cavalier reliability.
Is it reliable? Mostly. About two-thirds as many complaints as the average car.
Better than average · 2000–2004
What owners say on YouTube
1995–2005 Cavalier · 197 most-watched videos
Owners praise
Owners complain about
Fixes owners look up most
- Cooling system838K views
- Fuel pump, filter & tank622K views
- Infotainment, battery & electrical585K views
Before you buy, watch
Praise and complaints: the share of each generation's most-watched videos that mention a topic with a praise or trouble word next to it, in the title or what's said. YouTube rank: how positive owners and reviewers sound, compared with every car of the same model year. It measures tone, not failure rates. Videos belong to their creators; we link to them.
Fewest complaints
2004.
Every year. Lower is better. Tap a year for its full report.
Show 4 older years (1996–1999, YouTube reviews only, no complaint data)
Newest year first. Red = worse than average, gray = about average or too few complaints to score. #1, #2… = that year's YouTube rank among the 9 Chevrolet Cavalier years with enough videos (#1 = the year owners and reviewers talk about most positively). It is not a reliability rank.
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<iframe src="https://lemonindex.com/embed/cars/chevrolet-cavalier/" title="Chevrolet Cavalier reliability by model year (The Lemon Index)" width="100%" height="330" style="border:0;max-width:720px" loading="lazy"></iframe><p style="font-size:13px;margin:4px 0 0">Data: <a href="https://lemonindex.com/cars/chevrolet-cavalier/">Lemon Index</a> (Chevrolet Cavalier reliability by year)</p>Scores before 2010 are rough: fewer owners filed complaints back then.
YouTube rank: we read 198 YouTube videos about the Chevrolet Cavalier, 1996 to 2005, and ranked every year by how much they praise it vs. how much they talk about problems. YouTube's favorite: 1998. Old cars rank lower partly because most of their videos are repair and restoration videos. A gray dot means not enough data yet: under 10 videos, or a new year with no owner complaints to compare.
Compare the Chevrolet Cavalier.
Opens the compare tool with both cars, every year side by side. Compare with any car →
Quick answers.
Is the Chevrolet Cavalier reliable?
Mostly. It draws about two-thirds as many complaints as the average car, but YouTube owners complain about it more than about most cars its age. Fewest complaints: 2004.
Is the Chevrolet Cavalier a good car?
Yes, it draws fewer complaints than the average car, by owner complaints to the government per car sold (2000-2004: Lemon Index 63; 100 is average). Some years are much better than others: 2004 drew the fewest complaints and 2003 the most.
What are the best Chevrolet Cavalier years to buy?
By owner complaints per car sold: 2004, 2002, 2001. 2004 drew the fewest.
What Chevrolet Cavalier years should you stay away from?
No Chevrolet Cavalier year stands out as bad. Even the years with the most complaints per car sold beat the average car: 2003 (better than average, Lemon Index 80), 2000 (better than average, Lemon Index 66).
How many recalls does the Chevrolet Cavalier have?
23 safety recalls across the 6 model years we track. Most: 2000 (7), 2001 (6), 2002 (5). Each year's page lists them, and every Chevrolet Cavalier recall is in one list here.
What are the most common Chevrolet Cavalier problems?
Across every year, owners' complaints to the government name electrical, brakes and engine most. Some years are much worse than others: see the chart above.
Every year in one table
| Year | Index | Compared with average | Complaints | Top complaint | Recalls | Crash test | MPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 66 | about two-thirds as many complaints as the average car | 173 | service brakes, hydraulic (21%) | 7 | — | 22–24 |
| 2001 | 64 | about two-thirds as many complaints as the average car | 158 | electrical (20%) | 6 | — | 21–24 |
| 2002 | 54 | about half as many complaints as the average car | 132 | electrical (17%) | 5 | — | 21–25 |
| 2003 | 80 | somewhat fewer complaints than the average car | 168 | lights (36%) | 2 | — | 24–25 |
| 2004 | 49 | about half as many complaints as the average car | 82 | electrical (33%) | 2 | — | 24–27 |
| 2005 | – | complaints only, too few sold to score | 52 | electrical (35%) | 1 | — | 25–26 |
The Lemon Index counts owner complaints filed with the U.S. government (NHTSA) in a car's first 3 years, per car sold, against the average car of the same model years (100 = average, lower is better). It measures complaints, not crash safety. U.S. sales source: en.wikipedia.org. How it works
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Updated · Free to use with credit: Source: The Lemon Index (lemonindex.com)
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