What 361 owners told NHTSA about the 2014 Chevrolet Malibu Eco

Car started shaking in the middle of driving it about 30 mph and all the electrical like door locks were going up and down car wasn’t accelerating and an alert came up for stabilizing wheels i believe. It happened for about a couple seconds and then everything went back to normal and randomly happens while I’m driving.Check engine appeared and went to the mechanic shop i usually go to and found out I had ebcm and ecm modules bad. Do some research on the car and noticed it had a recall back in 2014 for EBCM. The problem has resurfaced

NHTSA ODI 11712837

Received vehicle at roughly 181,000 miles. Operated fine for about 5,000 miles and then began to show problems. In most cases when pressing down hard on the accelerator pedal, transmission drops into a lower gear and revs up to 5k rpm, cancelling cruise control, and staying there until accelerator is relieved. This makes accelerating more difficult since too much pressure on the accelerator pedal causes the car to get stuck at 5k rpm and stay at the same speed it is already at. This makes passing cars more dangerous as the car gets stuck at 5k rpm and can't pass the other vehicle, increasing the risk of a head on collision. Service engine and ABS lights are on as well as a service Stabilitrak notification in the driver information center. In addition, the outside temperature thermometer is faulty and shows much lower temperatures, such as -14 degrees during an 80 degree day. Vehicle is up to maintenance as far as my knowledge goes. Car has been previously junked twice and has a rebuilt title. There are no fluid leaks, the engine works well when the problem is not encountered, but it gets stuck at 5k rpm under hard acceleration more than it doesn't.

NHTSA ODI 11686600

It started off with just a little jerking when I would be in stop and go traffic then it progressed to whenever I was driving below 35mph, the car would completely cut off and the doors would unlock. The check engine light came on and I took it to be repaired. They stated there was a hole in my exhaust which a GM service employee repaired. Two days later the check engine light came on again and this time they stated I needed a new transmission. So I took it to a transmission company, who installed a rebuilt transmission. A few days after getting my car back, the same issue happened again. The transmission company did a diagnostic and stated it wasn't the transmission so I took it back to a GM service place and they stated it was my manifold. I paid for the repairs and the vehicle worked fine until the beginning of April 2022. Now the vehicle is doing the exact same thing expect this time the doors are not unlocking when the car cuts off. A new thing has started where the car shakes when I sit with my foot on the break for too long such as at a traffic light, once I take my foot off the break to accelerate it will jerk or turn completely off. Today, I was trying to do a U-turn and the car just stopped working almost like it was in neutral then the steering wheel locked up.

NHTSA ODI 11462629

DRIVING ON INTERSTATE AFTER WORK AROUND 12 AM & REDUCED ENGINE POWER APPEARS ON SCREEN, CAR SLOWS DOWN & I COULDN'T ACCELERATE MORE THAN 10MPH & HAD TO KEEP PULLING OVER TO TURN ENGINE ON & OFF. TERRIFYING! READ OTHER COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS JUST NOW & NEEDS TO BE RECALLED ASAP BEFORE SOMEONE IS INJURED OR WORSE ESPECIALLY DRIVING ON A BUSY INTERSTATE/HIGHWAY

NHTSA ODI 11386748

THIS HAS HAPPENED TWICE NOW, ONCE FOR MY WIFE AND THE SECOND TIME I WAS DRIVING. BOTH INCIDENTS HAPPENED WHILE IN MOTION ON THE HIGHWAY AND THE VEHICLE DISPLAY SHOWED REDUCED ENGINE POWER AND THE VEHICLE DE-RATED AND SLOWED AUTOMATICALLY ON THE HIGHWAY. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT DISPLAYED AND AFTER CONNECTING A CODE READER TO THE OBD AND CODE P2138 WAS LOGGED WHICH IS POTENTIALLY A FAULTY THROTTLE POSITION SENSOR/ FOOT GAS PEDAL. I REPLACED THE THROTTLE POSITION SENSOR CLEARED THE STORED CODE AND A COUPLE WEEKS LATER THE VEHICLE AGAIN WENT INTO LIMP MODE AND DE-RATED ON HIGHWAY. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AND THE SAME CODE P2138 WAS LOGGED INDICATING VOLTAGE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN APP SENSOR 1 AND APP SENSOR 2 OF THE THROTTLE POSITIONING SENSOR. AFTER FURTHER RESEARCH ON LINE I FOUND THAT A GM SERVICE BULLETIN WAS ISSUED FOR POTENTIAL MOISTURE INTRUSION OF THE CONNECTORS FROM THE THROTTLE POSITION SENSOR TO THE ECM. (SEE ATTACHED) IT SEEMS LIKE MY VEHICLE IS EXPERIENCING MOISTURE IN THE CONNECTORS AS BOTH INCIDENTS HAPPENED WITHIN MINUTES OF TAKING THE VEHICLE THROUGH AN AUTOMATIC CAR WASH. IN MY OPINION THIS IS A SAFETY CONCERN FOR THIS MODEL VEHICLE TO DE-RATE AND SLOW DOWN SUDDENLY AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS WITH CARS FOLLOWING BEHIND AND HAS BEEN A KNOWN ISSUE BY GM AND SHOULD HAVE A RECALL ISSUED.

NHTSA ODI 11377431

SERVICE ENGINE SIGNAL WON'T COME OFF AND MY CAR WON'T CUT OFF

NHTSA ODI 11354406

WHEN TRYING TO ACCELERATE TO THE SPEED LIMIT WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY, THE CAR DOESN'T PICK UP SPEED AS IT SHOULD. DRIVER HAS TO PRESS DOWN ON THE GAS PEDAL TO EVEN GET UP TO SPEED. AND ONCE CAR IS UP TO SPEED ON THE HIGHWAY, WHEN TRYING TO BRAKE EVEN WITH NEW BRAKES AND ROTORS INSTALLED ON JULY 27, 2019 THE CAR TENDS TO CONTINUE TO ACCELERATE EVEN MORE INSTEAD OF STOPPING. THIS HAS HAPPENED ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS SINCE I'VE GOTTEN THE CAR IN MARCH 2018 PLUS WHEN THE AUTO-STOP IS INITIATED THE CAR ACTUALLY TURNS COMPLETELY OFF TURNING THE RADIO OFF BUT ONCE THE BRAKE IS RELEASED IT THEN RESTARTS. A NEW BATTERY WAS INSTALLED ON MARCH 8, 2019.

NHTSA ODI 11266600

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 CHEVROLET MALIBU. WHEN THE CONTACT ATTEMPTED TO SHIFT FROM PARK INTO DRIVE WHILE ON AN INCLINE, THE VEHICLE FAILED TO ACCELERATE. THE CONTACT HAD TO CONSTANTLY WAIT TO ENSURE THAT THE GEAR PROPERLY CHANGED OVER. BOB BELL CHEVROLET (1 KANE ST, BALTIMORE, MD 21224, (443) 407-1778) INSPECTED THE VEHICLE, BUT WAS UNABLE TO REPLICATE AND DIAGNOSE THE FAILURE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE SHUT OFF INTERMITTENTLY AND THERE WAS A PROGRESSING FALSE START FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO COX CHEVROLET (2900 CORTEZ RD W, BRADENTON, FL 34207, (941) 749-2699) TO BE DIAGNOSED, BUT THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE WAS NOT DETERMINED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT BEING DRIVEN FREQUENTLY DUE TO THE RISK OF THE GEAR NOT SHIFTING AND THE VEHICLE INTERMITTENTLY STALLING. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURES. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS NOT AVAILABLE.

NHTSA ODI 11233813

VERY JERKY ACCELERATION WHILE DRIVING AT SPEED OR TRYING TO SPEED UP, VEHICLE STUTTERS AT ACCELERATION

NHTSA ODI 11221123

I'M DRIVING ON A CITY STREET WITH A PASSENGER IN THE PASSENGER SEAT AND SUDDENLY THE AIR BAG LIGHT COMES ON AND ALL OF THE GAUGES ON THE DASH BOARD STOP WORKING (SPEEDOMETER/GAS) AND RADIO GOES BLACK. IT HAPPENS INTERMITTENTLY AND USUALLY ONLY WHEN SOMEONE IS IN THE PASSENGER SEAT. I'M NOT SURE IF I LOSE MY HEADLIGHTS AS WELL BECAUSE I HAVEN'T HAD IT HAPPEN AT NIGHT YET.

NHTSA ODI 11206302

MY CAR CUTS OFF AT LIGHTS . THESE PROBLEMS ARE IN THE DRIVE SHAFT . THE VVT THING.

NHTSA ODI 11141671

I HAVE BEEN HAVING PROBLEMS WITH MY 14 MALIBU EVERY SINCE I BOUGHT IT CERTIFIED PRE-OWNED FROM THE DEALER. THE CAR RPM WILL GET STUCK AROUND 3000 IF I'M CRUISING AND PRESS THE BRAKES TO DECELERATE WHICH HAS CAUSED ME SEVERAL TIME TO HAVE TO PULL TO THE SIDE OF OFF THE ROAD SO THAT I DON'T HIT ANYTHING. IN ORDER TO MAKE IT STOP I HAVE TO PRESS BRAKES THEN PRESS THE GAS TO MAKE THE RPM ACT RIGHT. IT HAS ALWAYS HAD A BAD JERK WHEN I AM DRIVING AND THE CAR RPM IS NEAR OR AT A STEADY 2000 IT WOULD JERK UNTIL I SPEED UP OR SLOW DOWN. I'VE TAKEN THE CAR TO THE SHOP SEVERAL TIMES AND PAID FOR DIAGNOSTIC AND DIAGNOSTIC AND STILL THERE WAS NO GOOD NEW ALL BECAUSE THEY COULDN'T MAKE THE ISSUE REOCCUR. MY FIRST EXPERIENCE WITH THESE ISSUES WAS ABOUT A MONTH AFTER BUYING THE CAR AND HAS HAPPENED EVERY SINCE WITH MY LAST OCCURRENCE BEING 08/13/2017. I AM ABOUT READY TO GIVE UP ON CHEVY AND CHANGE MAKES BECAUSE THEY SEEM TO NOT WANT TO HELP AT ALL WITH THE ISSUES I'M HAVING.

NHTSA ODI 11015117

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 CHEVROLET MALIBU. WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS STATIONARY, THE TRANSMISSION MALFUNCTIONED. AFTER SHIFTING GEARS TO EITHER THE REVERSE OR DRIVE POSITIONS, THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT ACCELERATE. THE CONTACT DEPRESSED THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL AND THE VEHICLE LUNGED FORWARD ON MORE THAN ONE OCCASION IN THE DIRECTION OF WHICH GEAR WAS ENGAGED. LANGDALE CHEVROLET IN SYLVESTER, GEORGIA WAS CONTACTED ABOUT THE AUTO STOP FEATURE MALFUNCTIONING AS WELL AS THE TRANSMISSION. PRINCE CHEVROLET IN ALBANY, GEORGIA WAS MADE AWARE OF THE ISSUE, BUT WAS UNABLE TO DETERMINE WHY THE CRUISE CONTROL, THE AUTO STOP FEATURE, AND THE TRANSMISSION HAD MALFUNCTIONED. PARKER CHEVROLET IN ASHBURN, GEORGIA WAS MADE AWARE OF THE SERIES OF FAILURES ON MAY 8, 2017 AND STATED THAT THE FAILURES COULD NOT BE DUPLICATED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURES. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 10,785. UPDATED 10/18/17*LJ *JS *CN UPDATED 10/5/18*JB

NHTSA ODI 11014003

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 CHEVROLET MALIBU. THE CONTACT STATED THAT DUE TO A FAULTY SEAL IN THE TRUNK, THE VEHICLE FLOODED IN FEBRUARY OF 2014. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED; HOWEVER, THE VEHICLE VIOLENTLY ACCELERATED FORWARD OR IN REVERSE. AS A RESULT, THE CONTACT REAR ENDED ANOTHER VEHICLE. THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE CONTACT SUSTAINED A CERVICAL NECK STRAIN THAT REQUIRED MEDICAL ATTENTION. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO A DEALER, BUT WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 46,000.

NHTSA ODI 10906092

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 CHEVROLET MALIBU. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE DRASTICALLY REDUCED SPEED WHILE ON A MAJOR ROADWAY AND TRAVELING OVER 45 MPH. THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL DID NOT RESPOND AND THE SPEED WOULD NOT GO PAST 10 MPH. THE FAILURE RECURRED TWICE. THE CONTACT HAD TO COAST THE VEHICLE OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND TURN OFF AND RESTART THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE AUTHORIZED DEALER TWICE, BUT THEY WERE NOT ABLE TO REPLICATE AND DIAGNOSE THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 17,000.

NHTSA ODI 10721522

FIRST OF ALL THANKS NHTSA FOR RECALLING THE BRAKES ON THIS VEHICLE. WELL ANOTHER PROBLEM HAS AROSE WITH THIS VEHICLE. MY DAUGHTER WAS DRIVING THIS VEHICLE THIS MORNING. WHEN SHE APPLIED THE BRAKES COMING DOWN HILL SHE STATED THE VEHICLE SLOWED THEN SPED UP WHILE PUSHING THE BRAKE PEDAL. SO I THEN ROAD TESTED THE VEHICLE WHEN I GOT HOME FROM WORK. DESCENDING DOWN THE SAME HILL I FELT THE VEHICLE SPEED INCREASE WHILE I HAD THE BRAKE PEDAL PRESSED DOWN. IT SEEMS THAT THE TRANSMISSION IS NOT HELPING THE VEHICLE SLOW DOWN AT TIMES.. MEANING THE TRANSMISSION IS UP SHIFTING INSTEAD OF DOWN SHIFTING TO HELP SLOW THE VEHICLE. THIS IS DEFINITELY A SAFETY CONCERN. I DID SOME RESEARCH ON THIS SITE AND THERE IS A TSB ON THIS ISSUE(VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL NO. PIC-5652-B). I WILL HAVE IT LOOKED AT ASAP. OF COURSE I ALREADY KNOW DAY CENTENNIAL SERVICE DEPT WILL SAY THEY CANT DUPLICATE MY CONCERN. I TRULY BELIEVE THAT THIS WILL BE A SAFETY RECALL. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10593984

I JUST PURCHASED A 2014 MALIBU ON 04- 22 FOR MY DAUGHTER. DUE TO MY DAUGHTER TELLING ME THAT THE BRAKES FELT MUSHY IN HER CAR I DECIDED TO TEST DRIVE IT MYSELF. WHILE DRIVING DOWN MY STREET AT APPROX. 25MPH WITH THE BRAKE SLIGHTLY DEPRESSED, THE TRANSMISSION SHIFTED UNEXPECTEDLY AND THE ENGINE SEEM TO REV UP. THIS MADE THE VEHICLE THAT MUCH HARDER TO CONTROL AND STOP. THIS HAS TO BE LOOKED INTO A.S.A.P. I DO NOT WANT MY DAUGHTER TO CONTINUE DRIVING THIS VEHICLE UNTIL THERE IS A SOLUTION. GOING TO TAKE THIS VEHICLE BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP FIRST THING MONDAY. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10585127