This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
When parking brake was applied, a load popping noise was heard. The left rear cable popped out of the parking brake equalizer since the part was rusted out. I am very concerned as I am well aware of the high mileage of this vehicle. It is still a popular car on the road today.
I bought this car from a private owner not a dealership. The only problem it had when we bought it was the fuel gauge did not work. Now almost a year later I have multiple problems. The worst is while driving down the road at 65 mph my car just shuts off, no warning, the steering locks up and this happened with my 2 children in the car it was very scary. Then while sitting at a red light when I got ready to drive it died on me again. Each time I have had to pull over, sit for a few minutes, then try to restart and it usual does until Dec. 2. it died and now it will not start. It will crank, the fuel pump is working and I have spark. Other problems: While checking oil one day I leaned against car and it shocked me; brake lights work when they want to; cannot lock doors from drivers side; coolant has to be refilled every week (no leaks have been found); trunk is not wanting to open with button or key; radio/antenna gets 1 station; A/C worked when we got it and apparently the diode or something went bad but you cannot buy just the diode. I am tired of all of these problems and have read many others like these. My main concern is the car dieing while driving down road and locking everything up.
While driving my 1999 Chevrolet Malibu my brake pedal fell to the floor no brakes fortunately I was close to my repair shop my mechanic found a rusted thru brake fluid line caused brake fluid to leak out loosing braking action a partial line was installed the remaining brake & gasoline lines are badly rusted.
Rotor replacement X 3. suspension - front replaced. Calipers X3. Tire wear and leaks - replaced annually. Radio - bad wiring. A/C in dash wiring replaced twice. Rear light assembly replaced twice. Leaking in rear light assembly and trunk. Coolant leak - 8/06 at 74000 miles. Mechanic believes it is the water pump. A/C sensor replaced.
- Palm Harbor, FL, USA
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In July of 2005 I was involved in a accident due to the fact I was unable to stop this vehicle. I did not realize at the time that I had the ability to file a complaint to a federal safety organization. This vehicle has now had 5 brake jobs, the last being today. The front rotors had to be repaired because the vehicle was difficult to stop and had severe vibration during braking. The mileage on this vehicle is 101000 miles. At the last brake overhaul it was noted that the rear brakes were not working, ( the vehicle was delivered to me this way new) this problem was reported as repaired. I purchased this vehicle new from gamblin motors in Apr 1999 and as I have stated 5 brake repairs in 101000 miles. In July 2005 the reason I rear ended a vehicle was I was unable to stop due to poor braking action. This vehicle has had 3 sets of front rotors and brake pads and the rotors have been turned (trued on 2 separate occasions). I have filed complaints with GM about this problem and it has been disregarded. This may be because the original complaint was because of coolant system leaks that caused damage to the engine.
Chevrolet Malibu 1999. 84000 miles. In the last four years I had to replace the tail lights twice this is the entire unit which cost over $250 each I also had to replace the stop/brake light bulbs at least six times on each side. The socket that holds the bulbs keep melting and last December it melted to the point that I saw smoke coming out and when I opened the plastic socket was completely melted. As of now neither light is working. I checked in this site and NHTSA action number RQ04005 indicates the following: GM in December 2004, GM will issue a special policy for my 1999-2000 Alero, Grand Am and Malibu vehicles not covered under recall 03V327. The policy covers turn signal/hazard flasher failure for a period of 10 years or 150,000 miles (whichever occurs first) to provide a no cost replacement of the hazard switch. GM will send letters to owners starting December 30, 2004. The actions taken by the manufacturer is sufficient to resolve the issues raised by this investigation. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that no safety-related defect exists. The Agency reserves the right to take future action if warranted by the circumstances. I called GM as well as the local Chevy dealer and they would not replace the light they claim the agreement was only for some of the 1999 Chevy Malibu and my vehicle [xxx] is outside the range they are covering. I was told by a GM customer service to wait and see if they recall other cars. I am very disappointed of the advice as this is a safety issue. Also, the information and agreement posted on NHTSA (see above) does not indicate any exceptions. Can someone investigate this please? in addition to this problem, the coolant was leaking and I had to have the manifold removed and a new gasket put in twice. Replaced brake pads 5/6 times and rotors once. Updated 07/16/2012 information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Brakes and rotors have been replaced 3 times since 2002- A/C goes off and on- ignition switch replaced due to electrical failure- driver's side window don't roll down- alternator and battery replaced- intake manifold gasket and radiator replaced.
Problems with brake equipment on Chevrolet Malibu. The consumer has had to replace the vehicle's brakes, calipers and rotors many times. The vehicle's struts were also replaced. The consumer was made aware of other consumers with the same make/model that have experienced the same problem.
1999 Chevrolet Malibu required new rotors, pads and calipers. The vehicle had low mileage when the brake failed. The brakes continued to make noise after they were replaced.
The consumer smelled fuel while driving. She then observed fuel dripping onto the ground while parked, the vehicle was taken to the dealer for inspection. It was determined that the fuel line was leaking at the fuel filter connector due to corrosion. The consumer feels the manufacturer should be 100% responsible for replacing the fuel line. The consumer has had other components fail on the vehicle. All four tires were replaced due to center tread wear. The front brake pads were replaced at 20000 miles and again at 41313. The driver's side sunvisor broke. Both front wheel hub assemblies were replaced due to bearing failure at 41313 miles. Both front brake rotors were replaced at 41313 miles.
Air controls switch back & forth from fresh to recirculate. Car has refused to start twice & antitheft system activated. Intake manifold leak upper and lower. I had the gasket replaced and GM Canada paid for the labor and I paid for the parts, approx $180 Canadian. I believe there was 78000 km (48,000 miles) on the car at the time. Seatbelts are slow to retract. Clunking noise in front end, they can't identify or fix. Recall on rotors caused pads to fail.
Windshield: Whistles while driving at high speeds. Taken in for repairs numerous times and told that mechanic doesn't hear anything wrong. Ongoing problem. Brakes: Need to be replaced every year. Car seems to chew them up. Replaced with high quality brakes from auto zone. Lifetime guarantee, and replaced by myself. Transmission: When car goes from reverse into drive, car revs up as if in neutral. Finally kicks into gear, but is jerky for about 5 minutes afterwards.
3/18/03 - Malibu is diagnosed with an intake manifold gasket failure. The vehicle was losing coolant, but there was never any signs of leakage on the driveway. An independant shop diagnosed the problem. A little research on the internet revealed that very many other GM owners were experiencing the same problem. We attempted to get assistance in paying for the repair from GM, but they refused. The design of the gasket system combined with dexcool coolant appears to be faulty. We also have a cronic problem with the braking system on this vehicle. About every 12000 miles the brakes need to be replaced, the rotors are warped and the pads are bad. So far, GM is picking up all those costs because the problem was reported while it was still under warranty. Through the internet we also discovered that many Malibu owners have the same problem.
Air conditioning control problems dealer insisted nothing wrong never repaired tires; worn out at 16000 dealer insisted that that was normal fought to get them to replace only 2 tires engine: Intake manifold gasket went out never experienced the problem in all the cars I ever owned $978 later. Engine 3 months later presently engine has serious internal engine rattle, lose of power don't know what is wrong yet there was no indication of problem oil was clean no temp problem just blew last week towed to the house brakes; had to change both front calipers could not re use them needed new ones when doing brake job would never buy a Chevy product ever again!!!!
Consumer complained about two defects. Front brakes were wearing out prematurely. The brakes and rotors were replaced 4 times in less than 20,000 miles. Also, the intake manifold was leaking into the crankcase and onto the motor.
Since I've had the car, the brakes have been replaced twice, rotors replaced (also cleaned and other things-to the point they asked me to see if there was a recall on brakes and rotors). The right front passenger window will not work from the driver side to roll down but can still roll it up from there. The air conditioner button(resistor) needed replacing and then the vent button(resistor) needed replacing. Also, had to replace tie rod end and wheel bearing. Not to mention a water pump. We bought the car used from sawyer Chevrolet with 38,000 miles on it. It now has 76,000. But within a year and a half of owning it, this is all the work we had to put into it. I've never had a car that needed all that repairing done before it reached 100,000 miles. Plus we had to get new tires because they had Firestone tires on them that were warping, etc. But sawyers refused to replace them and Firestone did not get back to us in time before our vacation. So we put new tires on ourselves.
I don't know where to begin with the complaints that I have for my '99 Malibu. The brake system on this car is the worst. I can't count the number of times that I have replaced my brakes. I was reading the complaint board and could not believe the number of people that had similar brake problems. You would think that the government would see some kind of pattern and make GM do something about this. I think car manufacturers should take some responsibility for the products they put out and someone should make sure that they do. I am now going to have to replace my intake gaskets because of anti-freeze leaking into the engine. I have seen over 50 complaints about this on the complaint board. I will never again buy a GM made vehicle. From now on I'm buying nothing but foreign made cars. My car is still sitting in my driveway waiting go get fixed because right now I can't afford the $400+ it's going to take to fix it.
The front brakes have been repaired at 20,150 miles, 29,853 miles, 44,379 miles, and 60,000 miles. The consumer has contacted Chevrolet who stated there was nothing that could be done. The left and right front wheel bearings were replaced and the upper bearing strut plate was also replaced.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Amissville, VA, USA