What 720 owners told NHTSA about the 2017 Chevrolet Malibu Hev

Reduced Engine Power while driving on highway. Car does not go over 20 MPH.

NHTSA ODI 11429607

There needs to be a recall on the third brake light on the Chevy Malibu. Everyone that I speak with that has a Malibu has had to replace the third brake light because of it breaking and when it rains water leaks into the car.

NHTSA ODI 11429629

I was going 70mph on the highway, when I got a sudden alarm from the car saying "reduced power". The car would not accelerate and started slowing rapidly, almost resulting in a collision. The car would not go more than 20mph. I had to pull off to the shoulder, restart the car several times, and then was able to get the power to come back, but the check engine light remained on.

NHTSA ODI 11427437

Throttle Position Sensor is falfuctioning. Class action law suit against this already. Chevy Malibu Class Action Lawsuit is Hutchinson v. General Motors LLC, Case No. 8:19-­cv­-01551, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland. Vehicle decelerates at highway speeds down to 20 mph and engine power reduce comes across the screen. Has almost caused me to be in three accidents. Need to recall all malibus and have this part replaced before someone is killed.

NHTSA ODI 11425329

The contact owns a 2017 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at an undisclosed speed going downhill, the brakes failed to engage when the brake pedal was depressed, almost causing a collision. The vehicle struck a curb however, the driver was able to maneuver the steering wheel to go uphill and park the vehicle. The dealer was made aware of the failure but informed the contact to not take the vehicle in for diagnosis. The dealer instead referred the contact to the manufacturer for assistance. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that he would be contacted after reviewing the information that was provided. The failure mileage was 70,000.

NHTSA ODI 11424956

I was driving on the interstate and the dashboard said Engine loss of power. It was very dangerous because it reduced my speed drastically in the middle of traffic! My whole family was in the car and this is the 3rd time this has happened to me since purchasing the car. And now my check engine light is on. I don’t understand why this happens, but defective parts that create this problem put our lives in danger! Why is there not a recall on this? This is very important and should be fixed immediately! I almost wasn’t here to write this so please show me and other owners of these cars in these model years how to not die in your vehicles please?!

NHTSA ODI 11424213

2017 Malibu with less than 36000 miles, complete shutdown of all power. Engine auto stop shuts down engine but does not restart. Have sat in traffic for 15 minutes or longer before the engine would start. When restarted there is no volume on the radio. Has happened 10 to 12 times in the last 2 months. Dealership said they could not recreate issue and gave a load bull as to why it may happen...

NHTSA ODI 11424257

The contact owned a 2017 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while her husband was driving at undisclosed speeds, without warning as the brake pedal was depressed the vehicle accelerated forward independently. The contact depressed the brake pedal again the vehicle failed to stop causing, the vehicle to crash into the other vehicle in front. No airbag deployed. No police report was filed. The contact and the passenger sustained severe whiplash, 1 week later the contact and his wife sought medical attention and checked in a hospital. The insurance company was contacted and towed the vehicle to the collision shop where it was deemed a total loss. The contact mentioned that the other vehicle was totaled as well. The dealer nor the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 56,000. The VIN was not available.

NHTSA ODI 11423834

Error message on dash "shift to park". The car will not shut off completely with message on. I did some research, and it seems to be happening with a lot of Malibus and GMs. This is the second time it happens on my 2017 Chevrolet Malibu. My car is still fairly new with only 35k miles. The first time warranty covered it (shifter was replaced), but I'm not so sure if they will cover this second time. This is a manufacturer error and we should not have to pay the price every time this happens.

NHTSA ODI 11423206

Unknown. Anytime I go in reverse, then put it in drive, hit the breaks, let off the breaks and turn you can hear this popping noise coming from the rear. A lot of group forums for 2016-2019 Malibu’s are complaining about this. I have 3 kids and was told this is a safety issue and should be a recall as there are a lot of them out there with same problems! Could possibly get in an accident from this. A lot of forums are saying ball joints, axles, rear arm bushings, suspension knuckles and other things. Chevrolet should really look into this and make it as a recall as someone’s life could be in danger from these issues.

NHTSA ODI 11422509

Brak Vacuum pump broke when on freeway making pedal very hard to push I am 200 hundred pounds and took alot to get the car to stop warning light did not come on tell I pumped the brakes .took pump off to find something that looked like Carbon build-up in the oil Screen on the pump took pump apart to find the inside Is broken in many places and the out side gear or shaft broken too I do

NHTSA ODI 11421773

At engine shutdown and shifting transmission to PARK, I got "Shift to Park" message on DIC. If vehicle left in this state, the battery will eventually run down and leave driver stranded. Seems to be a common failure mode of the PARK indicator switch.

NHTSA ODI 11421474

Shift to park error. Micro switch inside shifter not making contact. Dealership replaced shifter control assembly in June 2019 with 9,393 miles on vehicle, Issue repeating June 2021. Same part being replaced by dealership again with 15,000 miles on vehicle. Lots of online complaints. Why no recall?

NHTSA ODI 11420606

While driving received recurring check engine light for p2127/p2138 code. Has been to Quirk Chevrolet twice previously for same issue, drives fine for a week or two and light comes back. Third service appointment scheduled for Monday 6/7/21. Recurring issue has made vehicle unusable while effected as car goes into limp mode while in motion limiting speeds to 25mph which was interesting to say the least as it happens while in motion.

NHTSA ODI 11419781

OBD2 codes ran on vehicle show: P0138 ("O2 sensor circuit High voltage bank 1 sensor 2") P013E (unknown) P2138 ("Throttle/Pedal Position Sensor Switch D/E Voltage Correlation") Vehicle is getting poor fuel mileage and has a drastic delay in acceleration after pressing the gas pedal, putting driver in immediate danger in traffic.

NHTSA ODI 11419336

2017 CHEVY MALIBU SHIFT TO PARK NOTIFICATION MESSAGE COMES ON AFTER CAR IS IN PARK AND TURNED OFF. SEEMS TO BE A COMMON ISSUE IN THIS VEHICLE. MY VEHICLE HAS 33, 304 MILES AND IS A NEW USED PURCHASE. ISSUE BEGAN 4 DAYS AFTER PURCHASE AND SEEMS TO BE ONGOING ISSUE WITH GM MOTORS HOWEVER NO RECALL.

NHTSA ODI 11416808

THIS IS MY SECOND COMPLAINT AND POSSIBLY THE LAST, IN MY FIRST COMPLAINT I REPORTED THE PROBLEM WITH THE CAR AFTER SHOWING A STABILITY TRACK WARNING LIGHT THEN SLOWING TO A 20 MPH VELOCITY IN A SNOW STORM , THEN MY ADVENTURE WITH THE VACUUM PUMP SHATTERING , THUS NO VACUUM, NO BRAKES, ON THE HIGHWAY GOING 70 MPH. AFTER THAT SCARE , IT HAD A CRANK NO START PROBLEM. THAT'S WHERE I ENDED MY FIRST COMPLAINT . PART 2, I COLLECTED MY STIMULUS MONEY AND HAD MY 2017 CHEVY MALIBU LS TOWED TO A CHEVY DEALERSHIP. AFTER THE SERVICE MANAGER ASKED ME FOR THE SPARE FOB, I ASKED HIM COULD THAT BE THE PROBLEM THE BATTERIES WENT LOW AND THE FOB KEYS HAD TO BE RE-PROGRAMED. HE STATED PROBABLY, I WENT HOME HOPING IT WOULD BE SOMETHING MINOR. 3 WEEKS LATER I GET A CALL FROM THE SERVICE MANAGER THAT HE WANTED TO GO THROUGH THE DIAGNOSTIC INSPECTION RESULTS WITH ME, I ASK HIM WAS IT SOMETHING MINOR, HE SAID WE HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO WORK ON THE CRANK, NO START PROBLEM CAUSE YOU HAVE LOW COMPRESSION ON ONE OF YOU ENGINE CYLINDERS YOU NEED A NEW ENGINE, THAT'S NOT MINOR 72,365 MILES, NEW ENGINE , ESTIMATE $8,224.80. STILL PAYING THE BANK FOR IT..THIS GENERATION MALIBU'S ARE NOT EVEN CLOSE TO GOOD. I OWN A 1994 CHEVROLET SILVERADO WITH 135,000 MILES BOUGHT IT BRAND NEW, RUNS GREAT, THE COST CUTTING IS BEING SACRIFICED FOR QUALITY, AND US CONSUMERS ARE GETTING THE LOW END.

NHTSA ODI 11416053

AFTER GETTING MY 2017 CHEVY MALIBU MINOR SERVICE A FEW WEEKS LATER AS I WAS DRIVING AND CAME TO A STOP LIGHT WHEN THE LIGHT TURNED GREEN AS I LIFT MY FOOT OFF THE BRAKE I NOTICED THE STEERING WHEEL DID A JET AND THE A MESSAGE APPEARED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL THAT SAID SOMETHING LIKE "STEERING ASSIST REDUCED USE CAUTION WHILE DRIVING. THAT WAS THE FIRST TIME NOW I'VE SEEN THE MESSAGE MULTIPLE TIMES AND IT ALWAYS HAPPENS AFTER I'VE COME TO A COMPLETE STOP AND THEN RELEASE MY FOOT FROM THE BRAKE PEDAL TO START BACK DRIVING

NHTSA ODI 11415621

SPEED REDUCED ON FREEWAY TO 20MPH, SPEED REDUCED WARNING WITH CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ON.

NHTSA ODI 11415526

WHILE PARKING, A "PARK TO SHIFT" WARNING COMES ON AND WILL NOT TURN OFF UNLESS I JIGGLE THE SHIFTER OR SHIFT THROUGH SEVERAL TIMES. LIGHTS AND RADIO WILL NOT TURN OFF UNTIL WARNING GOES AWAY.

NHTSA ODI 11414585

AS WE WERE GOING 75MPH DOWN THE HIGHWAY THE VEHICLE STARTED DEACCELERATING WITH THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WITH THE FOLLOWING MESSAGE APPEARING ON THE SCREEN 'ENGINE POWER REDUCED' WE HAD TO QUICKLY PULL OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD TO AVOID HAVING A WRECK. AFTER SHUTTING THE CAR OFF FOR A LITTLE BIT THE MESSAGE DISAPPEARED. AFTER LOOKING INTO THIS THERE A MULTIPLE PEOPLE WITH THE SAME CAR AND SAME ISSUES, BUT NO RECALL OR INVESTIGATION HAS BEEN STARTED.

NHTSA ODI 11413830

VEHICLE RANDOMLY PRESENTS AN ENGINE FAILURE MAKING IMPOSSIBLE ANY ACCELERATION. ENGINE LIGHT COMES ON AS WELL AS THE TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT. IT DISPLAYS A MESSAGE 'ENGINE POWER IS REDUCED'. THIS FORCES THE DRIVER TO HAVE TO PULL OVER REGARDLESS OF TRAFFIC OR UNSAFE CONDITIONS. THE CAR HAS TO BE TURNED OFF AND BACK ON AFTER APPROXIMATELY 20 SECONDS IN ORDER TO RESET THE TRACTION LIGHT ONLY TO OFF, TO BE ABLE TO CONTINUE DRIVING.

NHTSA ODI 11413709

MY VECHILE SHUT OFF. AND IT WAS SAYING STERRING ASSIST REDUCED. PLEASE BE CAREFUL. THEN THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME.

NHTSA ODI 11413620

AUGUST 31, 2019 - PURCHASED A 2017 CHEVY MALIBU AT THE DEALERSHIP APRIL 4TH, 2021 - MY CAR HAD A ROUGH RUNNING ENGINE WITH THE INDICATOR LAMP ON. I IMMEDIATELY TOOK MY CAR TO BE INSPECTED (ATTACHED BELOW), A TECHNICIAN FOUND DTC P0300 SET ALONG WITH A MISFIRE LOW COMPRESSION IN ONE OR MORE CYLINDERS. HE CONCLUDED THE CONDITION WAS CAUSED BY A DAMAGED PISTON. MY MECHANIC SHOWED ME A BULLETIN FROM GM DESCRIBING THIS EXACT ISSUE AND THEN RECOMMEND ME TO GET IN TOUCH WITH THE DEALERSHIP THAT I BOUGHT THE CAR AND OR THE MANUFACTURER. APRIL 5TH, 2021 - THE GM REPS THAT I TALKED TO CONCLUDED THAT MY WARRANTY ENDED AND DENIED ANY ASSISTANCE FROM THE MANUFACTURE. THEY CLAIMED TO NOT FIND THE BULLETINS THAT I ATTACHED TO THIS FORM.

NHTSA ODI 11413118

AS I WAS TURNING LEFT FROM A STOP LIGHT ACCELERATING ON THE INTERSTATE ON RAMP FROM 20 TO 40 MPH (APPROXIMATELY) THE "CHECK ENGINE LIGHT" CAME ON, THE ENGINE SLOWED DOWN AND LOST POWER, AND "TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT" CAME ON EVEN THOUGH IT WAS NOT ENGAGED. MY SPEED CONTROL DISENGAGED AND WOULD NOT WORK ON CRUISE CONTROL. WHEN I PULLED IN MY GARAGE (APPROXIMATELY 8 MI) SHUT THE ENGINE OFF AND RESTARTED ALL WARNING LIGHTS CLEARED AND EVERYTHING RESET. THIS CONDITION HAPPENED TO ME TWICW IN THE SAME DAY. THE SUDEEN LOSS OF POWER IS A SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE.

NHTSA ODI 11408081