2005 Cavalier Died In a Sharp Left Turn, Won't Restart

[wbrab]

2005 Chevrolet Cavalier, 148,000 miles, 4-cylinder engine

My car is older, but the engine has been reliable over the last 8 years I've had it. It has been driving fine for the past few years with just basic maintenance, but today I made the sharpest left turn I've ever made in my life trying to park in the back of a store parking lot. At the end of the turn, it was like the wheel locked and the vehicle died. I coasted into a parking spot, put it in park, and turned the car off.

When I try to restart, a "Theft System" light comes on, and the car won't even turn over.

Has anyone ever had this happen before? The car was driving normally until the end of that left turn.

 

[DP]

When something breaks down completely, locating point of defect is easy. Problem starts when malfunction is intermittent. Then past experience can help

 

[carmanmemoranda]

I don't understand a lot of your post.

Sharpest left turn ever? Full lock?

The wheel locked? Steering wheel or road wheel?

Vehicle died? As steering went heavy, no power steering or after?

Sounds like a wire been overstretched or rubbed through. But could be much much more. Tried a different key?

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Has anyone ever had this happen before? The car was driving normally until the end of that left turn.

We don't have many Chevvies this side of the pond, to have been able to experience that issue.

It sounds like the engine died, which would cause loss of power steering. The actual point of failure could be almost anything.

 

[just pumps]

Is there an owners club where the reason and fix might be found?

 

[wbrab]

?Sharpest left turn ever? Full lock?

The wheel locked? Steering wheel or road wheel?

Vehicle died? As steering went heavy, no power steering or after?

Sounds like a wire been overstretched or rubbed through. But could be much much more. Tried a different key?"

Hi, sorry, I wrote when I was tired, probably didn't make a lot of sense.

When I say the sharpest left turn ever, I mean I took the wheel all the way over to the left and then further, like pressed as hard as I could to the left. I was trying to pull into a parking space at a sharp angle. At the very end, the steering went heavy, not completely out, I could turn it but with a lot of force. It also felt like the engine cut off. The first person that looked at it said the battery cells looked like they might be dead.

Someone did mention a burning rubber smell. With my luck, it's nothing good, and I know you can't help a lot with just a few symptoms listed, was just trying to get ideas to calm my nerves.

 

[wbrab]

Thank you everyone for replying. This car has had so few issues over the years, and it has never failed to start completely. So it might be one of those cars that is just awesome until it's outright so tired it just dies. The old girl has been through a lot, couldn't have asked for a better car at $2,800, but I'm not expecting any good news tomorrow.

The only other new thing I noticed once I got her home (a friend towed it back here for me) is a very odd disc-like clicking noise coming from the ignition where the key goes in. The Theft System light did stop coming on, now it's just the battery light showing. I'm praying it's the battery.

 

[DP]

When the engine is running, battery just sits there doing nothing other than getting charged by the alternator that is running due to engine power

 

[cdbe]

Not that I'm complaining, as we all know Great Britain still rules the World, but don't the Americans have their own DIY/car fixing forums?
Maybe in this case a bit of specific knowledge on any particular idiosyncrasies of that particular model would help.