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.
I have owned my 2005 Malibu maxx for just over a year and have had to replace the front turn signal sockets, both driver and passenger sides, three times now due to melted sockets and amber covers melting down to the bulbs. Even though they are vented they do not stay cool enough to prevent severe electrical damage to the components. In replacing these components I have to wait a week until the parts are shipped out and am forced to drive with faulty equipment. I am unable to just replace the bulbs and have to constantly change the bulbs out before they melt to the sockets. This is a huge hazard as they can go out on me in the middle of driving in rush hour traffic putting me at a greater risk of injury. Please force GM to issue an actual recall on this issue and not just skate free on the service bulletin that has been issued. Thank you,
I have a 2005 Malibu maxx. Approximately 2 1/2 weeks ago, I was pulling into a parking space -very, very slowly, there were a series of red pole about 3 feet high, I saw them. I was turning right and my car jerked to the left accelerated and I hit a pole damaging my front end. Car was towed and repaired by state farm insurance for about $2500. I got my car back and drove it for about two weeks, I was again pulling into a parking space only I was completely in and parked, I was braking and shutting off my car when this happened. The brake went completely loose, the steering wheel started to spin and the car surged, it surged and flew over the curb about 6 feet into an ice machine at a speedway gas station on 15 mile and Dodge park in sterling heights. This was about 8:15 - 8:30 a..M.. that car surged and flew at about 60 mph my foot never left the brake. This car was towed to buff whelan Chevrolet on 18 and van dyke in sterling heights Michigan and they are fixing the bumper. I have reported this problem to General Motors, to the president of buff whelan and to keith armstrong in the uk who wrote an article about cars that surge in 2010 for the usa today. I received after contacting the sterling heights police a ticket for reckless driving, which I have requested a hearing over. I am going to be picking up my car on Tuesday 8/9/2011 "fixed" but I will have it towed somewhere, probably home. It will not be driven, this car scared me to death. You would have to experience a "surge" to be able to comprehend what could happen during one. This car must never be driven, I don't think GM knows what to do or how to identify this, they haven't responded.
The contact owns a 2005 Chevrolet Malibu maxi. The contact stated that the turn signals over heated, which caused the sockets to melt. The dealer and manufacturer denied any assistance with repairs to the vehicle. The failure was not remedied. The failure mileage 65,000 and the current mileage was 140,000. The VIN was unavailable.
Complete and total lock up of power steering; battery light flicks on and then everything locks up until you replace the gas peddle for about 3 seconds. My lights randomly flash and rear bulbs on the driver side blow every 3 days. My turn signals will sporadically blink and the wiper blades go off with out warning or being prompted. Even with no keys near or in the car it will not turn over to start the car until you floor the gas peddle and hold it there for 3-5 seconds. My radio reads at -19* all the time and the cd player has never worked correctly. When going from 0 to 50 getting on the parkway (highway) the whole car locks up and loses power including the steering radio and lights unless you completely release the gas then start to go again. Im so highly frustrated and Chevy refuses to fix it even though these are all recalled problems but my VIN doesn't fall in there "bracket".
The steering has a heavy clunk sound when turning left in reverse, no sound when going to the right. Then at just over 50K miles, the steering on the vehicle started having issues with power while turning to the right under power, to the left was just fine. The head lamps also have gotten severely cloudy which limits visibility during night time driving. Front turn indicator lights also had a problem with loose sockets, causing the lights to short out and eventually fail because of sparking residue on the contacts. Also, for some reason the rear window wiper randomly turns on for no apparent reason. The vehicle also has a starting problem where at times, the vehicle will crank and not start. Looking around, quite a few folks have that problem as well, where some people have had to short out the hood safety switch to make the car work... now that is crazy to have to short out something to start your car. Apparently though, the electrical system is severely sensitive to voltage issues in general, more so then most vehicles on the road.
- Richmond Hill, GA, USA
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2005 mailbu maxx. Consumer states intermittent problems with brake lights the consumer stated the brake lights would illuminate when the brake wasn't applied and would not illuminate when the brake was applied. The dealer replaced the brake lamp, but the problem continued.
The drivers side turn signal (inside the harness in the headlight) keeps melting the plastic snap in base of the turn signal light bulb and causes it to become inoperative. Almost causing other vehicles to crash in to me at 4 way stop signs. The harness assembly gets very hot. May one day cause a fire. I have replaced light bulbs 4 times in the last month. Will have to get serviced.
Electrical issues with my 05 Malibu maxx.the power steering keeps going out-Chevy is aware of this problem. The engine has trouble starting. The rear wiper goes by itself without anyone touching the control-most recent event, happens every few days 1 or 2 times. I have had issues with the starting from the beginning of ownership. The power steering issue has been over the past month. Sometimes the warning light comes on first, usually not. I have not paid to have any work done, but have contacted Chevy's customer service and was told, that they would make a record of it. Restarting the car usually fixes the power steering temporarily. I have to change the brakes once a month, so they don't destroy my rotors. Power steering seems to go out more often when it is hot outside.
Brake lights come on by themselves and go out when pedal is pushed. Tried new switch, calibration, and tsb procedure. Problem will go away for a month or two then return. Has been happening for the last 2 years. Numerous complaints on the web. I have seen other cars drive by with the same problem. May work fine in the morning then act up in the evening. Also impacts the sift interlock and cruise control. The other day the cruise control would not disengage when I applied the brakes. I had to turn it off by the switch on the steering wheel.
2005 Chevrolet Malibu maxx (1) front park/turn/drl lamp inoperative and overheating problems. (2) rear stop/turn/tail lamp inoperative problems. This car currently has 41,000 miles. The lamps for the left front (driver side)has been replaced 5 times and right front 3 times. The rear lamps has been replaced 3 times each side. My major concern and cause for this complaint is the overheating of the front lamps (item #1 above). The upper side amber plastic housing for the lamps on both right and left has melted through at this time. When the problem was first detected, the amber housing showed some discoloration, bubbled plastic. This suggested the overheating problem either has intensified and/or the plastic has degradated over time. Visual inspection showed the charred/burnt through areas are adjacent to the lamp socket. This indicates extreme socket temperature and also the rising hot air affect the ceiling of the amber housing. All the burnt out light bulbs showed various degrees of charring/melting/deformation on the plastic base. This could have been caused by the extreme high temperature and electrical arcing. The rear is not as severe as the front but nevertheless, slight arcing can still be observed on the base of the burnt out bulbs. The left front lamp was serviced by a local Chevrolet dealer once on Dec. 16 2009 under technical service bulletin 06-08-42-004. Dealer deemed only the bulb needs to be replaced but not the socket. Prior to this, the problem already existed and both front and back bulbs replaced. The frequency of the bulb replacement and signs of arcing triggered this visit to the dealer. This repair by the dealer has not fixed the problem. Signs of overheating as evidenced by the melting plastic showed the problem has worsened. Fearing the extreme high temp can cause fire, I visited the dealer yesterday for repair under good will repair was denied. They simply said the car was out of warranty and this is not a fire hazard.
2005 Malibu maxx, starter assembly: Sometimes difficult to start, especially after running the air conditioner.problem started about 3 years ago, occurred since then about 40 to 50 times. I retired 18 months ago and do not drive as much now than I di while working. The problem persists despite new battery and not running concurrently the following:air conditioner disk player, windshield wipers, lights. All the systems always checked out ok, no problem was detected.
I have had numerous problems with the starter turning over even when the car starts and sometimes it still wont start. The dealer says it normal and after it gets miles on it then it will stop... it now has 52,000 miles on it and still does it. I also have had to have it in the shop every couple of months to have it lubed in the front axle which I have talked to other mechanics and they stated that it should not be needing it ever few months, if I don't do it then everytime I turn left or right there is this horrible popping sound from the front end. I also am having wiring trouble with the car, the front blinker wont work no matter how many light bulbs I put in it, it wont work and even keeps melting the plastic on the bulb itself.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Ashland, NE, USA