Print this page

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
5 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
6 / 0
Average Mileage:
60,449 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

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.

2010 Chevrolet Malibu brakes problems

brakes problem

Find something helpful? Spread the word.
Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2010 Chevrolet Malibu:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

2010 Chevrolet Malibu Owner Comments (Page 9 of 9)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #20

Oct 022013

Malibu 4-cyl

  • 80,480 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Brake lights stay on even when pedal is not pushed. When pedal is pressed lights will flash off, brake lights basically working in reverse. I have to turn the car off for the lights to shut off. Almost was rear ended this morning due to brake lights not working properly.

- Houston, TX, USA

problem #19

Sep 102013

Malibu 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 58,000 miles
The contact owns a 2010 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the cruise control failed to engage and the brake lights failed to operate intermittently. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer or diagnosed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 58,000. The current mileage was 58,200. Updated 11/13/13 according to the invoice, the brake lights illuminated when they were not needed and did not illuminate when the brake was applied. The dealer replaced the brake pedal position sensor. Updated 11/14/13

- Janesville, WI, USA

problem #18

May 012013

Malibu

  • 95,000 miles
Brake light stays on or dosen't go on when brakes are applied. Cruise control intermittent

- Vallejo, CA, USA

problem #17

Jul 272013

Malibu

  • 31,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2010 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that after leaving a car wash and applying the brakes, the vehicle would not stop while driving 15 mph. The contact crashed into another vehicle. The vehicle was destroyed. The contact was wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash however, suffered a back injury and transported to the emergency room. A police report was not filed. The contact did not call the manufacturer. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer for a diagnostic test however, the dealer stated that they could not find a issue with the braking system. The failure mileage was 31,000. Updated 09/30/13

- Fort Wayne, IN, USA

problem #16

Sep 142011

Malibu 6-cyl

  • 24,019 miles
Brake light problem that causes the light to illuminate for no reason or to fail to light up when the brake pedal is pressed 1st "fixed" 9/14/2011, then again 11/27/2012. Now it is happening again. This is a significant safety issue that could cause a rear end collision especially with sudden stop conditions. The Malibu is not safe to drive in this condition. Read more: www.nydailynews.com/autos/GM-forced-recall-million-vehicles-including-Chevrolet-Malibu-article-1.1286106#ixzz2bjkpy33E

- Mason, MI, USA

problem #15

Jul 202013

Malibu 4-cyl

  • 55,500 miles
After the cruise control stopped working on my Malibu, I noticed that the brake lights were staying on while driving. The brake lights are on while driving normally, then when the brake peddle is pressed lightly the lights turn off. After the peddle is depressed quite a bit (while braking for stopping or to make a sharp turn) the brake lights will turn back on. After releasing the brakes all the way, the lights will turn off and then back on again a few seconds later. Every time the brake lights turn on, the cruise control stops working.

- L'anse, MI, USA

problem #14

Jul 212012

Malibu 4-cyl

  • 24,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

This car has had a history of malfunctioning brake lights, ESC and traction control system failures over the past year. The car has been in two different dealerships numerous times without repairing the root cause. In may the car was rear ended causing significant damage. The failure of the brake lights to operate correctly may have been a factor. The brake lights operate sporadically. The car is not currently safe to drive after spending last week at a dealership service department. Being a licensed professional engineer it is my opinion that there are several engineering design deficiencies that are not addressed by the repair procedures listed within the service manual. I recommend that these cars be recalled as a car with no known problem can develop this problem without warning placing the driver in harms way. An 8D corrective action request would require a problem containment of issuing a recall immediately of any vehicle that has experienced this problem.

- Longview, TX, USA

problem #13

May 272013

Malibu

  • 27,500 miles
Coming to a stop on an off ramp, brakes failed couldn't stop. (it had been raining). 2nd incident on June 26, 2013, going down highway and service traction light with sec light came on and car was powering down and steering was difficult. Called landmark service center in taylorville, Illinois they told me to turn the car off, then restart (of course lights went out) and drive it to the nearest GM garage. (I was out of town at the time). When I arrived at the location they put it on the computer and of course nothing showed up because the lights were not on. On Wednesday I took may car to landmark in taylorville to have the oil changed and to see if they could check on the problem. And true to form the computer showed nothing because the lights were no on. But was told if this happened again to go to the nearest service center and don't turn the car off. I've had this experience and it is very dangerous when in traffic. And am scared to drive the car out of town. I like my car and want to keep it but if the problem is not fixed someone may get hurt. But before that happens I will trade the car and I assure you that I will not by another GM product and will tell everyone of the problems I had.

- Taylorville, IL, USA

problem #12

May 262013

Malibu 4-cyl

  • 48,600 miles
Vehicle brake lights illuminate without applying the brakes. Cruise control fails to activate or disengages unexpectedly. Brake lights fail to illuminate while applying the brakes until approximately 2 seconds after applying the brakes.

- Columbus, OH, USA

problem #11

Jun 132013

Malibu 4-cyl

  • miles
Brake lights remain on while driving, turn off momentarily but then turn back on. Service traction control notice appeared immediately after.

- Riverside, CA, USA

problem #10

Jun 172013

Malibu 4-cyl

  • 58,500 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

While driving vehicle, the brake lights will illuminate without pressing the brake pedal. Once the brake pedal is pressed, the brake lights go out and will come back on approximately 5 seconds later. In an emergency stop, the driver behind me will not have warning that there is an emergency stop. Additionally, the cruise control will turn off as the system believes the brakes are being applied when they are not. This will happen without warning while driving on the highway.

- Rockledge, FL, USA

problem #9

May 262013

Malibu 4-cyl

  • 53,000 miles
Brake lamps intermittently flash or stay on without the brakes being applied and the cruise control disengages. The warning lights for electric stability control fault and traction control also display.

- Grafton, WI, USA

problem #8

Oct 162012

Malibu 4-cyl

  • miles
The brake lights will go on for no reason while I am pressing the gas and then when I press the brake, they will shut off. As well as when I turn on the hazards, my traction light will switch on and when I turn them off the light stays on saying "service traction" and then the left tail light blinker shorts out and pretends like it is going out and will blink rapidly. Then when the brake light issue is happening my cruise control will be faulty. There is a short or something happening with the wiring, it has been bad for a while now. I haven't gotten around to actually doing anything about it until I read this: [xxx] parts of this document have been redacted to protect personally identifiable information pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Newton Falls, OH, USA

problem #7

Oct 082011

Malibu

  • 51,729 miles
Driving down the freeway at night with my cruise control on. All of a sudden it turns off and I notice my brake lights illuminated in my rear view mirror. I tap the brake only to have them come back on. It kept doing it for about 20 miles then stopped. It has happened on numerous occasions and Chevy has failed to do anything about the problem. I feel unsafe driving this vehicle. I have all my documentation of dealer records for this.

- Lake Elsinore, CA, USA

problem #6

Oct 152012

Malibu 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 65,000 miles
The contact owns a 2010 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that the brake lights illuminated independently while driving with the cruise control activated at an unknown speed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnosis. The technician stated that the brake lights would have to be adjusted. The vehicle was repaired however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where the brake light switch was replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 65,000. Updated 05/10/13 updated 05/28/2013

- Kerens, TX, USA

problem #5

Jan 152013

Malibu 4-cyl

  • 19,580 miles
My rear brake light comes on for no reason when I am driving.

- Atoka, TN, USA

problem #4

Feb 012012

Malibu

  • 35,000 miles
There are three issues that appear to be related: 1) brake lights come on when brake pedal is not being depressed, and stays on, and/or does not come on when brake pedal depressed. 2)"service traction" and "service ESC" warnings come on and remain on. 3) cruise control stops working. You can have one, two or all three of these events happening at the same time. Any of the three can occur first. They can occur each time the car is driven for some weeks, then not occur at all for a few days or occasionally even weeks. Can occur after driving for a few minutes, sometimes after an hour or more of driving. Seems to happen in all kinds of weather conditions, hot, cold, wet or dry. Has been happening intermittently for over a year now, and now seems to happen more often and for longer periods of time than when first began.

- Egg Harbor Twp, NJ, USA

problem #3

Sep 132012

Malibu 4-cyl

  • 52,000 miles
The rack and pinion on drivers side end rattles at slow speed. I have tried 3 different brand front brakes and all have squeaked, the transmission cooler line started leaking.the car has 69,000 on it as of now 1/26/2013. Dealer want fix any of the problem under the drive train warranty. Also has cold start engine knock.

- Sparta, TN, USA

problem #2

Sep 172012

Malibu

  • 42,000 miles
The contact owns a 2010 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while depressing the brakes, the brake lights failed to illuminate and erroneously illuminated when the brakes were not depressed. The vehicle was driven to a dealer where it was found that the brake switch failed. The contact also stated that the traction control warning light erroneously illuminated. The vehicle was repaired. The failure recurred several times after the repair. The manufacturer was not contacted about the issue. The failure mileage was 42,000 and the current mileage was 43,000. The VIN was not available.

- Indianapolis, IN, USA

problem #1

Jun 042012

Malibu

  • 30,000 miles
I've had my car in the warranty repair shop 6 times in the last 3 months. First occurrence I was driving down the road and my warning lights came on for ESC off, service traction control, service ESC at 20 mph. They've replaced 4 parts on my car and today the same lights service traction control and service ESC have come on once again. It varies (speed doesn't matter) whether or not going down the highway or stopping in a driveway when it comes on but warning lights will come on when you touch the brakes. I also observed that the brake lights stay on while going down the road (when its dark outside) but when you apply the brakes the brake lights go off. I feel this could be dangerous if someone is following behind you and thinks that you have let off the brakes but you are actually slowing down. I don't think that they have an apparent fix for this issue as I see several reports from vehicles ranging from 2008 to 2012 online complaining about this same issue. I am to take my car back again for service next week to hopefully get it repaired but I am not so sure they are going to find the problem after already having it in there so many times for the same issue. It is intermittant. When you turn the car off after this occurs the lights will go off. Sometimes only for a short period other times for a week to 3 weeks before it comes on again.

- Windsor, MO, USA

Not what you are looking for?