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10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
2 / 2
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
14,469 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.

2018 Chevrolet Malibu electrical problems

electrical problem

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2018 Chevrolet Malibu Owner Comments (Page 8 of 9)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #29

Jul 052020

Malibu 4-cyl

  • 78,000 miles

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

Car turned off in the middle of the road. Engine was completely off as well as no lights were on. So I could not put it on neutral to push it out of the road. I had several near misses where it could have gone badly. Also, took it to the dealership and nothing was found. Car still turns off for no apparent reason

- Baldwin, GA, USA

problem #28

Mar 072019

Malibu 4-cyl

  • 35,000 miles
When putting the vehicle in park, a message comes on the dash saying 'shift to park'. the vehicle is already in park, but the car doesn't pick that up. It is a known Chevy issue that they have yet to recall. Happens almost every time I drive.

- San Antonio, TX, USA

problem #27

Jun 162020

Malibu 4-cyl

  • 29,000 miles
I was driving on the freeway when I was forced to go over a cardboard box that happened to be on my lane. I felt it hit the underside of my car. A few minutes later, I smelled smoke and I was also alerted by surrounding drivers to pull over. I immediately pulled over and ran out of the vehicle to about 100ft away. I could see flames in the front of the car. By the time I reached out to emergency services and they got to the location, the car was completely on fire.

- Santa Clara, CA, USA

problem #26

Apr 052019

Malibu

  • 88,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to start while pressing the push to start button. The vehicle was taken to reed Chevrolet located at 4500 raeford rd, fayetteville, nc 28304, where it was diagnosed that the ECM and the accelerator pedal needed to be replaced. A year later, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to the same dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 88,000.

- Fayettesville, NC, USA

problem #25

May 282020

Malibu 4-cyl

  • 29,000 miles
Once my car is stopped and I shift to 'P'(park) and I try to turn off my vehicle it still gives me the 'shift to park' message. The shift gear has previously been replaced by the car dealership. However and unfortunately, it started to do it again. It has under 36,000 miles on it and we thought the issue had been fixed already but it started to do it again less then a year later.

- Tolleson, AZ, USA

problem #24

May 052020

Malibu 4-cyl

  • 35,210 miles
Was driving the car on the highway the speed control was on the car powered down almost made us wreck and the check engine light came on followed by the power down alert the car was dragging in speed and could not accelerate. There is only 35000 miles on this vehicle.

- Black Jack, MO, USA

problem #23

May 042020

Malibu

  • miles

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

It keeps giving the shift to park when the vehicle its in full park already.

- Missouri City, TX, USA

problem #22

Apr 012020

Malibu

  • 40,000 miles
Shift to park appears when car is definitely in park already

- Morrow, GA, USA

problem #21

Mar 142020

Malibu

  • 51,555 miles
Car engine will not turn over. System says 'engine power reduce' and 'service stabilitrak.' Brake clicks and locks when been pressed down, steering wheel also locks.

- Biscoe, NC, USA

problem #20

Feb 272020

Malibu

  • 50,447 miles
The contact called on behalf of the vehicle owner/driver her daughter. The contact stated that while her daughter was driving a 2018 Chevrolet Malibu at approximately 50 mph, the stabilitrak warning light suddenly illuminated as power was reduced causing the driver to lose control of the vehicle. The vehicle crashed into the center median causing damage to the vehicle. No injuries were reported and no police report was filed. The contact stated received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 19V642000 (electrical system, fuel system, gasoline, engine). The vehicle was towed to the local body shop. The cause of the failure was not determined. The local dealer and manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 50,447.

- Fellows, CA, USA

problem #19

Mar 102020

Malibu

  • miles

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

Warning messages light up "steering power is diminished, drive with care", something pertaining to brakes and battery, the warnings flash so quickly I can't read them all. The car goes dead when I stop, shuts down completely with dash lights going completely out, then a very slow restart as the lights brighten very slowly. After the third time yesterday and today I had to put the car in "park for it to restart at a stop light and now it will not start at all,

- Addison, TX, USA

problem #18

Mar 092020

Malibu

  • 61,830 miles
As I was exiting the freeway and stoped on the off ramp, I tried to step on the gas pedal to go but my car did not want to go. My steering wheel was locked, my bluetooth cut off, and the check engine light went on. I turned on my hazard lights and put my car in park. I tried to shut it off but it didn't shut off right away. I pushed the off button a few times before it finally shut off. When I turned it back on, I drove to the nearest parking lot and put it in park. Only this time, the message "shift to park" popped up. My vehicle was already shifted to park but the system obviously couldn't comprehend. My car only has 61,845 miles!! it should not be having these issues so soon!!

- Hesperia, CA, USA

problem #17

Mar 072020

Malibu

  • 43,000 miles
While driving on the freeway at speeds of up to 80 mph at random times the car will suddenly slow itself down to 20 mph and the dash will message that engine power is reduced. It's a serious problem that is dangerous to not only the people in the vehicle but all other vehicles on the road also.

- Wrightwood, CA, USA

problem #16

Feb 032020

Malibu

  • 80,000 miles
Power steering reducing and the car will shut off temporarily I had my car serviced for this already 2 weeks ago for the same problem now it's happening again

- Elizabeth, NJ, USA

problem #15

Feb 282019

Malibu

  • 1,000 miles
In motion on highway at 60 mph, my car acceration shut down and I started losing speed even though I was pressing acellerator. At this time my car started to down shift and the more I stepped on the accellerator nothing happened. My car then turned off on the highway. I immediately shifted to park and started the vehicle again because I was in fear of getting rear ended. We have taken the car to the dealership 4 times for them to fix it and the last time, they said there was nothing wrong with it. We still have exceleration issues with this vehicle. We got a recall notice of software from Chevrolet but the dealer ship is unaware of the repair and I do not believe they can correct this problem. We bought this car new and it has been in the shop 4 times for this recall. We wish to receive a new car for safety reasons. We are taking the car to the dealership again today but I am afraid to drive the vehicle.

- Richmond, TX, USA

problem #14

Sep 302019

Malibu

  • 37,000 miles
When the car is shifted to park, the car does not register that it is in park. The car then has to be turned on, the shifter moved back to drive, and then back to park again. The car then has to be shut off again, and if I am lucky, the message goes away. If it does not, I have to repeat this process over and over again until the message does go away. This is a common issue specifically in Chevrolet Malibu dating back to the 2016 model. This should be a recall issue given that it is widespread and the fact the GM makes people pay to repair their faulty parts out of warranty is ridiculous.

- Melissa, TX, USA

problem #13

Oct 222019

Malibu

  • 46,000 miles
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 19V642000 (electrical system, fuel system, gasoline, engine). The recall repair was performed at autonation Chevrolet waco (located at 1625 N valley mills dr, waco, tx 76710, (254) 236-6415). Shortly after the vehicle was serviced, while driving 60 mph, the vehicle began to seize and was moved over to the side of the road. The vehicle was restarted and the failure continued while the contact was driving to his destination. In addition, the check engine warning indicator illuminated. The contact called the dealer back and was informed that the vehicle needed to be diagnosed. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 46,000.

- Waco, TX, USA

problem #12

Jun 032019

Malibu

  • 29,196 miles
The contact owned a 2018 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact's student attempted to place the vehicle into park; however, the vehicle continued to move forward independently. The driver attempted to place the vehicle into reverse, but it continued to move forward. In addition, the contact mentioned that the check engine and low power mode indicators illuminated. The vehicle continued to roll as the driver attempted to stop and it crashed into a boulder. The air bags did not deploy. There were no injuries and a police report was not filed. The contact spoke with crain Chevrolet (9911 I-30, little rock, ar 72209, (501) 436-4484) and was informed to tow the vehicle to the dealer for diagnostic testing. The vehicle was sent to the collision department and the contact had the vehicle towed back to her apartment for insurance purposes. The manufacturer was notified and informed the contact not to touch the vehicle. The contact was informed to take the vehicle to an authorized Chevrolet dealer so that it could be assessed by an investigator. After some back and forth with the original dealer, the vehicle was towed to gwatney Chevrolet (1301 T P white dr, jacksonville, ar 72076, (501) 295-4448) where an investigator determined that they could not find any fault with the vehicle. Recently, the contact received a recall notice for NHTSA campaign number: 19V642000 (electrical system, fuel system, gasoline, engine) the vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 29,196.

- Little Rock, AR, USA

problem #11

Apr 302019

Malibu

  • 2,141 miles
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Malibu. While driving and approaching a stop light, the vehicle stalled without warning and lost power. The contact was able to coast to the side of the road and power off the engine. The vehicle failed to restart and was towed to ourisman Chevrolet of baltimore (6633 security blvd, baltimore, md 21207, (410) 265-7777) where it was diagnosed that the ECM failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The VIN was included in NHTSA campaign number: 19V642000 (electrical system, fuel system, gasoline, engine). The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and provided case number: 9-5537893606. The failure mileage was approximately 2,141.

- Baltimore, MD, USA

problem #10

Sep 062019

Malibu

  • miles
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 19V642000 (electrical system, fuel system, gasoline, engine). The contact called anderson Chevrolet at 888-312-6558 (located at 31201 auto center dr, lake elsinore, ca 92530) and was informed that the parts were not available. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and was not able to confirm when the parts were to become available. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

- Murrietta, CA, USA

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