Cobalt not running properly

Asked by dloz01 Jan 11, 2019 at 02:57 AM about the 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt LT Coupe FWD

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

Okay... so I was driving my car. I
tapped my gas a few times. All of a
sudden, this little light with what
looks like a coil and the letters “TC”
pop up. My car begins shaking
violently, and I couldn’t go over about
25 mph. It also said “reduced engine
power” on my dash. So I went parked
my car and shut it off. I sat for a
minute, and started it. When it
started, the RPM needle fluctuated
from 900-1100 RPMS. I could feel
shaking in the wheel, and my car
sounded like a motorcycle. I got out,
popped my hood, and took a look. I
could hear and see a few light
rumbles, then it would shake for a
second. Then it would go back to
shaking softly like it should for a
second, then back to shaking like
crazy. I felt the exhaust coming from
my muffler, and it like it was pushing
air out incredibly hard. I think it might
be my TCM, PCM, or ECM. I can’t
tell, though. I don’t know if it’s fixable
but I don’t have enough money to get
it diagnosed by an auto shop, as I live
from paycheck to paycheck and I
barely make enough to live on. I have
no clue what the problem is, but it’s
worrying me. I’ve tried starting it and
shutting it off a few times but it keeps
displaying the same message. Help
me? Please?

2 Answers
18,285

munron answered 5 years ago

TC is traction control. Reduced Engine Power means something is seriously wrong (not necessarily with the traction control) and needs immediate attention before driving it much further. There's no way around this. It needs to be scanned for trouble codes and it probably needs to visit a repair shop. If it runs enough to get it to a shop you can at least avoid the towing bill, but its not something you're likely to be able to fix yourself for free. Sorry for all the bad news. I feel your pain. Good luck.

Mark helpful

GuruLXRKK answered 5 years ago

Same exact thing happened to my wife on highway twice last summer. 2010 chevy cobalt basic. The garage computer gave generic explanation, Handheld unit was more specific. Pulled off the air intake sprayed throttle body cleaner to clean up the little flap door I guess the car was having issue recognizing its position, got a lot of that cleaner down through to the engine, started her up, sputtered for a moment i took out for a quick aggressive drive and has not happened since.

Mark helpful

Your Answer:

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