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What 689 owners told NHTSA about the 2018 Chevrolet Malibu Eco

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (689)Crash / fire / injury (29)Engine (275)Electrical system (190)Transmission & drivetrain (168)Speed control (110)Fuel system (99)Brakes (67)Steering (40)Electronic Stability Control (esc) (21)Airbags (14)Suspension (13)

1 of 689 complaints match · Steering · crash/fire/injury only · clear filters

Nov 16, 2023SteeringSpeed controlEngine1 injury

The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that a "shift to park turn the vehicle off" message was displayed while the vehicle was in the park position. While driving at unknown speeds, the vehicle stalled. The steering wheel was tight. After slowing down, the driver depressed the start/stop button, and the vehicle shut off and restarted. The vehicle was randomly shut down. After waiting, the vehicle restarted. While depressing the brake pedal, there was an abnormal, unidentifiable noise detected, and the vehicle came to a sudden halt. While driving at 55 mph, the vehicle suddenly stopped, and she hit her head on the steering wheel but medical attention was not provided. The vehicle was pulsating while driving. There was a sound of water going through the vehicle. The vehicle was slow to accelerate and then moved violently. All the instrument warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, who was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or reported. The vehicle was taken to another dealer, Capital Chevrolet, at 9820 Capital Blvd., Wake Forest, NC 27587, where it was diagnosed that the vehicle was not safe to be on the road. The oil throttle body and vacuum pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V668000 ( Power Train), and NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V642000 (Electrical System Fuel System, Gasoline, Engine). The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 50,000.

NHTSA ODI 11555469

Working with the data? Download all 689 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 24, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2018 Chevrolet Malibu Eco verdict →