What 976 owners told NHTSA about the 2011 Chevrolet Malibu Eco

I PURCHASED MY CAR IN FEB. OF 2012 AS OF TODAY MY CAR HAS BEEN IN THE SHOP 10 DIFFERENT TIMES FOR THE SAME THING. THE STEERING VIBRATES WHEN YOU DRIVE AND IT LOSES POWER WHEN SHIFTING. THEN, I HAD TO GET A NEW MOTOR IN THE CAR MAY 2013, THEN IT WAS RATTLING AGAIN SO I TOOK IT UP THERE. THEY TOLD ME THAT THE TRANSMISSION PROBLEM WAS THAT IT NEEDED A PROGRAM UPGRADE AND THAT I HAD TO PAY OUT OF POCKET 60.70 FOR THIS UPGRADE. TWO DAYS LATER THE WHOLE CAR SHUTS DOWN ON ME AND THEY ARE NOW SAYING THAT IT IS AN APP MODULE AND IT NEEDS TO BE RE-PROGRAMMED. I AM TIRED OF PAYING ALL THIS TOW BILLS AND FEES FOR A CAR THAT DOES NOT RUN AND IT NOT SAFE FOR MY KIDS TO RIDE IN. *TR

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I'VE OWNED THE CAR FOR 18 MONTHS. NOVEMBER 2012, I REPORTED TO MY GM DEALER OF LOSS OF POWER WHEN DRIVING. CAR'S RESISTANT TO ACCELERATION ATTEMPTS, LOSES POWER AT VARYING SPEEDS FROM 30 MPH AND UP. VEHICLE BROUGHT IN, DEALER STATED THERE WERE NO PROBLEMS. DECEMBER 2012, WHILE DRIVING AT APPROXIMATELY 30MPH, CAR ENGINE STOPPED RUNNING, CAR CAME TO STOP ON ACTIVE TRAIN TRACKS WITH CHILDREN IN CAR, NO POWER STEERING, NOT ABLE TO SHIFT INTO DRIVE, NEUTRAL OR REVERSE, PARK. ONCE IGNITION WAS TURNED OFF, VEHICLE WOULD NOT START. TOWED VEHICLE IN FOR SERVICE, WAS TOLD TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE REPLACED DUE TO A BAD SOLENOID. VEHICLE STILL HAVING PROBLEMS TWO MONTHS AFTER. JANUARY 2013 BROUGHT VEHICLE IN FOR SAME ISSUE, LOSING POWER, NO ACCELERATION, RPM'S WOULD REV AND THEN RAPIDLY DROP WHILE DRIVING WITHOUT FOOT ON GAS PEDAL. WAS TOLD BY DEALER NOTHING IS WRONG WITH CAR. FEBRUARY 2013, CHANGE OIL LIGHT WAS ONE FOR THREE MONTHS, EVEN AFTER HAVING OIL CHANGED. BROUGHT TO DEALER TO HAVE RESET. MAY 2013, VEHICLE STILL LOSING POWER, RPM'S REVVING AND RAPIDLY DROPPING, DASH LIGHTS RANDOMLY DIMMING WITHOUT TOUCHING DIMMER KNOB, DRIVER'S DOOR WILL NOT OPEN FROM INSIDE AND WILL NOT LOCK/UNLOCK DESPITE MULTIPLE METHODS, ONCE OPEN DOOR WILL NOT LATCH TO CLOSE AND DOOR BOUNCES OPEN AGAIN, AUTO START LAGS AT TIME AND RANDOMLY DOESN'T WORK. I HAVE AN APPOINTMENT TO BRING VEHICLE IN FOR SERVICE NEXT MONDAY, NOT OPTIMISTIC AS THE DEALER KEEPS TELLING ME THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH THE CAR AND THEY ARE UNABLE TO REPLICATE, THEY STATE THEY ARE NOT AWARE OF ANY OTHER KNOWN ISSUES ON THIS VEHICLE, DESPITE THERE BEING MANY MANY TSB'S ONLINE FOR THE SAME ISSUES I'VE BEEN EXPERIENCING. I HAVEN'T OWNED THE CAR FOR EVEN TWO YEARS, TRADED IN A BEAUTIFUL NEW CAMARO FOR IT TO TRANSPORT MY CHILDREN IN A SAFE CAR, YET THIS VEHICLE HAS BEEN NOTHING BUT PROBLEMS AND HEADACHES. *TR

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DROVE INTO GAS STATION AND STOPPED, TURNED OFF CAR, FILLED WITH GAS. UPON STARTING CAR AND PUTTING CAR IN DRIVE THE VEHICLE REFUSED TO SHIFT INTO DRIVE. HAD TO DRIVE CAR APPROXIMATELY 3 BLOCKS IN REVERSE TO GET CAR IN FRONT OF MY HOUSE. *TR

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BACKED OUT OF DRIVEWAY AND DROVE TO THE END OF STREET AND VEHICLE WAS SLUGGISH TO MOVE INTO GEAR BY THE END OF THE STREET WHICH IS ROUGHLY 4 HOUSE DOWN FROM DRIVEWAY I BACKED OUT OF IT WOULD NO LONGER GO FORWARD SO I HAD TO BACK UP ALL THE WAY TO MY DRIVEWAY AND CAL DEALERSHIP TO TOW IN. MONDAY MORNING DEALER SERVICE DEPT SAID IT WAS DIAGNOSED AS A SENSOR IN TRANSMISSION AND IT WAS ORDERED AND CAR WAS BACK TO ME WITHIN TWO DAYS. I AM WORRIED THIS WILL BE A CONTINUING PROBLEM AS I HAD A SIMILAR SITUATION WITH PREVIOUS 2009 FORD TAURUS X THAT JUST KEPT HAPPENING WITH AND NOTHING WAS DONE TO RESOLVE THE SITUATION. WHEN YOU BUY A NEW CAR YOU DO NOT EXPECT THESE ISSUES. BUT, MORE IMPORTANTLY, I DO NOT WANT THIS TO OCCUR WHEN I AM DRIVING ON A HIGHWAY SINCE THIS HAPPENS WITH NO WARNING. *TR

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I PURCHASED THIS VEHICLE IN MARCH 2010 FROM MANGINO CHEVROLET. IT HAS HAD A PROBLEM WITH (I BELIEVE) THE TRANSMISSION FROM THE VERY BEGINNING. THE PROBLEM IS VERY INTERMITTENT, THAT IS TO SAY IT DOESN'T DO IT ALL THE TIME AND APPEARS TO DO IT VERY REGULARLY IF THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN ON THE ROAD FOR SEVERAL HOURS OR IT IS HOT(OVER 85 DEGREES) OUT. IT IS ALWAYS THE SAME THOUGH; IT BEGINS BY NOT SHIFTING FROM 2ND TO 3RD GEAR SMOOTHLY. WHAT IT DOES IS IT TAKES SEVERAL SECONDS TO GET TO 3RD GEAR. IT IS ALMOST LIKE IT GOES INTO NEUTRAL FOR SECONDS BEFORE IT SLAMS INTO 3RD GEAR. THIS HAS LEFT ME IN A DANGEROUS SPOT WHILE CHANGING LANES ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS. ONCE THE PROBLEM BEGINS, IT THEN WILL BUCK AND CLUNK WHEN IT IS SHIFTING. I HAVE BROUGHT THE CAR IN TO THE DEALER SEVERAL TIMES & EVEN CALLED ONSTAR WHILE THE PROBLEM WAS OCCURRING (AT THE DEALER'S RECOMMENDATION). I AM CURRENTLY VACATIONING IN MYRTLE BEACH SC & WAS WITHOUT MY CAR FOR 2 DAYS WHILE THE LOCAL DEALER (JUD KUHN CHEVROLET) TRIED TO DIAGNOSE THIS PROBLEM. WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO DATE IS NO PARTS WERE CHANGED & ALL I GET IS THE SAME STORY THAT THERE IS NO "CODE" SHOWING UP & THEY CAN'T REPLICATE THE PROBLEM. WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE IS FOR THE DEALER TO FIX THE PROBLEM. IF THAT INVOLVES SWAPPING OUT PARTS (TRANSMISSION, TORQUE CONVERTER, DRIVE MODULE ETC) UNTIL THE PROBLEM GOES AWAY. I HAVE ALSO NOTICED (SEARCHED ONLINE) OTHER PEOPLE ARE HAVING SIMILAR PROBLEMS WITH THIS VEHICLE. IT IS UNACCEPTABLE THAT THE DEALER CAN'T REPAIR THIS WITHOUT THE COMPUTER TELLING HIM HOW. I OTHERWISE AM VERY PLEASED WITH MY VEHICLE. PLEASE HELP ME TO RESOLVE THIS PROBLEM. I HAVE BEEN A LOYAL GM CUSTOMER FOR OVER 30 YEARS. *TR

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SUNDAY, MAY 27TH 3PM CST DRIVING IN SOUTHWEST MISSOURI, THE TRANSMISSION HESITATED SHIFTING TO A HIGHER GEAR. I PULLED OVER AND PARKED ON A BACK ROAD, TURNED THE CAR OFF AND BACK ON. WHEN I SHIFTED INTO REVERSE, THE TRANSMISSION DID NOT SHIFT, PRESSING THE GAS HAD NO EFFECT. I SHIFTED THE CAR INTO D, THE CAR LURCHED FORWARD BUT MOVED ? INCREASING SPEED IT SHIFTED TO 2ND ROUGHLY AND THEN INTO 3RD WITH HESITATION ? IT WOULD NOT SHIFT INTO A HIGHER GEAR FROM THERE. I DID NOT NOTE A CHECK ENGINE LIGHT AT THAT TIME. BECAUSE THERE WAS NO CELL PHONE SIGNAL I DROVE TO THE NEAREST RELATIVE?S HOUSE IN OKLAHOMA. WHILE DRIVING I SHIFTED INTO NEUTRAL AND BACK TO DRIVE, THE TRANSMISSION HESITATED AND TOOK A GOOD 15-20 SECONDS TO ENGAGE IN 3RD GEAR. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WAS ON BUT THE DISPLAY DID NOT INDICATE WHAT THE ISSUE WAS. SHIFTING TO MANUAL, THE DISPLAY DID NOT INDICATE THE CAR WAS IN MANUAL (SHOULD HAVE READ M3). SHIFTING BACK TO DRIVE HAD NO RESULT. THE CAR MAINTAINED SPEED IN 3RD GEAR. SO I DROVE IN 3RD GEAR WITH MY HAZARDS ON, NORTH ON 43, THROUGH SENECA (NO CHEVY DEALER), TO MY AUNTS HOUSE IN OKLAHOMA. I CONTACTED GM ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE 800-CHEVUSA AND HAD THE CAR TOWED. THE CAR NOW SITS AT A DEALER IN JOPLIN MO AWAITING "DIAGNOSIS" AND THE GM CUSTOMER SERVICE PEOPLE WILL NOT AUTHORIZE A RENTAL CAR UNTIL A "DIAGNOSIS" HAS BEEN DONE. 1ST BUSINESS DAY FOR DEALER IS TUESDAY, MAY 29TH AND THEY STATE THEY HAVE A BACK LOG OF DIAGNOSIS AND CAN NOT GET TO IT UNTIL WEDS OR THURSDAY. IT HAS BEEN A REAL CATCH-22 GETTING SUPPORT SINCE THE DEALER IS TOO BACKLOGGED TO DIAGNOSE I AM RENTING A CAR ON MY OWN DIME, PLUS LIVE 3 HOURS FROM JOPLIN! NOTE THAT OVER THE PAST YEAR THE CAR OCCASIONALLY HAD AUTOMATIC GEAR SHIFT DELAYS THAT WERE NOT CONSISTENT AND WERE TOLERABLE BECAUSE THE TRANSMISSION RECOVERED. *TR

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WHILE PULLING INTO A PARKING LOT, THE CAR SUDDENLY STOPPED GOING FORWARD. WHEN I PRESSED THE ACCELERATOR, THE ENGINE WOULD REV LIKE THE CAR WAS IN NEUTRAL, BUT IT WOULD NOT GO FORWARD. I PUT THE CAR IN PARK AND TURNED THE CAR OFF. STARTED THE CAR AND PUT IT BACK INTO DRIVE, BUT THE SAME THING HAPPENED. THE ONLY THING I WAS ABLE TO DO WAS GO IN REVERSE. I HAD TO DRIVE IN REVERSE DOWN THE STREET TO ANOTHER DRIVE ENTRANCE AND BACK IN AND PARK. THE CAR HAD TO BE TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP. THE TRANSMISSION WAS REPLACED. *TR

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2011 CHEVY MALIBU - . TAKES A LONG TIME FOR CAR TO SHIFT INTO GEAR WHEN ACCELERATING FROM A STOP OR MAKING A TURN. I HAVE ALSO HAD SOME CLOSE CALLS WITH CARS ALMOST HITTING ME, (LIKE ANOTHER PERSON WROTE). BROUGHT IT TO THE DEALER AND HE COULD NOT DUPLICATE IT (OF COURSE). I AM EXPERIENCING IT MORE AND MORE AND WILL TRY ANOTHER DEALER. *TR

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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 CHEVROLET MALIBU. THE CONTACT STATED THAT A GROWLING NOISE WOULD BE HEARD COMING FROM THE BRAKES WHENEVER THEY WERE APPLIED AT LOW SPEEDS OF APPROXIMATLEY 5 MPH. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER WHERE THE BRAKE PADS AND ROTORS WERE REPAIRED. APPROXIMATELY TWO MONTHS LATER, THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN BACK TO THE DEALER TO BE REPAIRED. THE CONTACT ALSO STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WOULD EXPERIENCE DIFFICULTY SHIFTING FROM SECOND TO THIRD GEAR. AS A RESULT, THERE WOULD BE AN INCREASE IN ENGINE RPMS, BUT THE VEHICLE WOULD HESITATE BEFORE ACCELERATING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER, WHERE THEY WERE UNABLE TO DUPLICATE THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED, BUT OFFERED NO ASSISTANCE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 1,800 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 5,000.

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2011 CHEVY MALIBU 2LT - TRANSMISSION SLIPPING BETWEEN 1ST AND 2ND GEARS, ALSO 2ND TO 3RD. TAKES A DANGEROUSLY LONG TIME FOR IT TO KICK IN TO THE CORRECT GEAR AND I HAVE HAD SOME CLOSE CALLS PULLING INTO TRAFFIC. ALSO, THIS SIX SPEED TRANSMISSION IS DEFECTIVE WHEN TRYING TO PASS ANOTHER VEHICLE AS ONCE YOU ARE IN 6TH GEAR, IT WILL NOT DROP TO 5TH IN ORDER TO PASS. THE RPMS RACE UP AND NOTHING HAPPENS. ALL OF THIS AND GM SAYS THAT THE VEHICLE IS OPERATING AS NORMAL AND THERE IS NO PROBLEM. OBVIOUSLY THERE IS. THIS IS A DEFECT AND NEEDS TO BE REPLACED. MULTIPLE DISCUSSION FORUMS ONLINE DESCRIBE THE SAME PROBLEM WITH THIS MODEL YEAR AND ALSO 2010 1LT AND 2TL 4CYL AND 6CYL. SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE AND GM IS NOT DOING IT. HELP!! *TR

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I HAVE A 2011 MALIBU, I CHANGED MY TIRES OUT ON MY CAR AND TIRE PRESSURE LOW LIGHT CAME ON, THEN 3 DAYS LATER SERVICE ESC LIGHT CAME ON, AN I INSTANTLY FELT LIKE I WAS IN A WRONG GEAR, POWER AND SPEED REDUCED, THANKFULLY I WASN'T IN HEAVY TRAFFIC, I'M UNDER THE 5 YEAR WARRANTY CAN I GET SERVICE, AND IS IT DANGEROUS FOR ME TO DRIVE. *KB

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I WAS ACCELERATING FROM THE ENTRY LANE OF A MOSTLY EMPTY (THANKFULLY) RURALHIGHWAY WHEN SUDDENLY A WARNING MESSAGE "SERVICE TRACTION" ENGINE POWER REDUCED" SERVICE ESC APPEARED ON THE DASH MONITOR.. I LOST POWER AND COULD NOT GET ABOVE 45 MPH. THE TRANSMISSION APPEARED TO BE LOCKED INTO A GEAR LEVEL. I CONTACTED CHEY AND THEY TOLD ME IT IS A SAFETY FEATURE. HERE'S THE PROBLEM, IF I HAD BEEN DOING A HIGH SPEED MERGE ON A MAJOR HIGHWAY THE POWER LOSS COULD HAVE CAUSED AN ACCIDENT NOT TO MENTION GETTING ME KILLED. I THINK THE FEATURE IS ENGINEERED INTO THE SOFTWARE THAT CONTROLS THE ENGINE/TRANSMISSION. A DETECTED FAULT TRIGGERS THE ACTION. INCIDENTALLY, THERE WAS NO PRIOR NOTICE, WARNING LIGHTS,ETC. THAT WOULD HAVE INDICATED A PROBLEM. THE LACK OF NOTICE EXACERBATES THE DANGER.

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