There are 8 owner-reported engine complaints for the 2016 Chevrolet Sonicin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
This car overheated and a head gasket blew. I am on a Facebook forum, and it seems like all of these cars have these problems. The Chevy Sonic ltz turbo 1.4 2016 is known for coolant issues and head gasket failures. My car only had 104,000 miles on it. It should last a lot longer than that, but this is a common issue. For some reason there was a recall but they stopped fixing cars with 1.4 engines that came out after 2014. There cars don't have temperature gauges and when they overheat they don't tell you until a light comes on the dash and by then it's too late and your engine is blown. This should be illegal. Chevrolet needs to fix this.
CAR HESITATED TO START AFTER GETTING GAS. WHEN IT DOES FINALLY START IT SPUTTERS AND HAVE TO REV MOTOR SOME TO MAKE IT STOP. IDLES HIGH. AFTER GET STARTED AND START TO DRIVE IT IT'S OK, BUT WHEN STOPPED AT A LIGHT IT IDLES HIGHER. I HAVE HAD THE PURGE VALVE REPLACED, BUT IT'S STILL DOING IT.
VEHICLE BEGAN HAVING TROUBLE WITH ACCELERATION AND JERKING WHEN STOPPED IN JULY 2019. TOOK VEHICLE TO A SHOP WHERE IT WAS SUGGESTED I REPLACE THE BATTERY AND THE OXYGEN SENSORS. BOTH WERE REPLACED. VEHICLE STILL CONTINUES TO JERK AND NOT PROPERLY ACCELERATE. VEHICLE DRIVES SMOOTH SO LONG AS THEIR IS A FULL TANK OF GAS AND ITS GOING A STEADY AT LEAST 40 MPH. WHEN THE GAS GETS BELOW HALF TANK, THE VEHICLE WILL CONTINUE WITH THE JERKING AND ACCELERATING ISSUE. VEHICLE ALSO HAS TO BE RESTARTED NUMEROUS TIMES AFTER GAS IS PUT IN.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 CHEVROLET SONIC. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VALVE COVER GASKET BECAME DEFECTIVE, THE CHECK ENGINE WARNING INDICATOR PERSISTENTLY ILLUMINATED, AND THE TURBO ENGINE'S FINS WERE BENT. THE CONTACT TOOK THE VEHICLE TO TWO INDEPENDENT MECHANICS TO BE DIAGNOSED. THE DEALER AND MANUFACTURER WERE NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE HAD NOT BEEN REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 50,000.
TAKATA RECALL- THE ENGINE LIGHT IS ON I HAVE TAKEN IT TO AUTO SHOP THEY COULD NOT FIND ANY WRONG TOOK IT TO A CHEVY DEALER THEY CANNOT FIND ANYTHING WRONG. BUT MY CAR SHAKES AND STALLS ON ME. IT'S VERY FRASTRATING SPENDING ON THE VECHILE AND ONE CAN FIND WHAT'S GOING ON.
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Sonic. The contact stated while driving 25 MPH, the vehicle began to stall inadvertently. The engine overheating warning light illuminated. The contact stated that she veered to the side of the road and turned off the vehicle. The contact's friend came on the scene and provided her with engine coolant, and she added the coolant to the vehicle. The contact continued to drive the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the thermostat housing had melted and needed to be replaced. The contact stated that the vehicle was repaired; however, the failure reoccurred while driving. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic several times and the thermostat housing was replaced three times due to its plastic-based material. The contact stated that she was unable to drive the vehicle for more than an hour and a half without a reoccurrence of the failure. The vehicle was taken back to the independent mechanic who diagnosed that the head gasket had melted. The independent mechanic advised the contact to purchase a new vehicle like the engine compartment of the vehicle was poorly made. The dealer was not notified of the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and offered to assist the contact with scheduling an appointment with the dealer for diagnosis. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle's approximate failure mileage was 38,000.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 CHEVROLET SONIC. WHILE DRIVING AT AN UNKNOWN SPEED, THE VEHICLE OVERHEATED, STALLED, AND COMPLETELY SHUT OFF. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO JEFF WYLER DIXIE CHEVROLET (5340 DIXIE HWY, LOUISVILLE, KY 40216, (502) 448-2820) WHERE THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS NOT INCLUDED IN A POWER TRAIN WARRANTY. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 72,000.
2016 CHEVROLET SONIC. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO SIGNIFICANT RODENT DAMAGE TO ENGINE COMPARTMENT INSULATION CAUSES A MINOR FIRE. *SMD
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 26, 2026