Home · 2019 Chevrolet Malibu Eco · Complaints

What 188 owners told NHTSA about the 2019 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 (188)Crash / fire / injury (9)Transmission & drivetrain (65)Electrical system (61)Engine (61)Brakes (24)Fuel system (18)Speed control (12)Airbags (6)Lights (4)Driver assistance (3)Body & structure (2)

65 of 188 complaints match · Transmission & drivetrain · clear filters · page 3 of 3

Jul 25, 2022Transmission & drivetrain

I get a warning saying that the car is not in park when it is in park, when I am driving or stopped at a stop sign or red light the engine will shut completely off as if the car was in park. When I take my foot off the break it will start back up as if the car had just been started by pushing the engine start/ stop button. It’s really scary when I have my kids I. The car with me

NHTSA ODI 11475824

Jul 14, 2022Transmission & drivetrain

I can’t get car to go into park, I continuously get a “shift to park” error..This seems dangerous and from what I read online this is a chronic problem with this year malibu

NHTSA ODI 11473823

Jul 12, 2022Transmission & drivetrain

Control modules are malfunctioning

NHTSA ODI 11473619

Jun 1, 2022Transmission & drivetrain

Vehicles stuck in park. Unable to move vehicle. Waiting for dealer to call me back for repair. No info center messages. The white piece for the gear selector keeps coming loose. This is the second occurrence in two weeks since I’ve owned the vehicle.

NHTSA ODI 11466897

Apr 5, 2022EngineTransmission & drivetrainElectronic Stability Control (esc)

The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH and accelerating, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled in the middle of the roadway. The ESC, traction control, check engine, and powertrain malfunction control warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the local mechanic to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The engine was replaced; however, the failure reoccurred. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 52,000

NHTSA ODI 11459745

Feb 7, 2022Transmission & drivetrain

The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while the gear shifter was placed in Park, the "Shift to Park" warning message was displayed while turning off the vehicle with the push to start/stop button. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and diagnosed that the sensor and gear shifter needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that she had to pay out of pocket for the repair. The failure mileage was approximately 48,000.

NHTSA ODI 11450834

Sep 27, 2021Transmission & drivetrain

I bought this 2019 Chevy Malibu with 40,000 miles on it the second day I had it the transmission completely lost power and would not accelerate it barley moves ford it takes about 5 whole seconds for it to get power and move this has happend pretty much every day when I drive this vehicle it has put me and my family’s life in danger so many times it’s ridicules I have took it to the dealership and they said that they can not find a problem on the tcm/ transmission control module so I told them to take it for a test drive and right when they pulled out of the dealership they almost got hit because the car would not accelerate they said there is defiantly a problem with the cvt transmission in the car but sadly there is nothing they can do until Chevrolet puts out a recall they said I am not the first one to bring back a 2019 chevy Malibu with this issue this needs to be fixed immediately it’s putting peoples life’s in danger

NHTSA ODI 11434595

Sep 20, 2021Transmission & drivetrain

The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact states that the Auto STOP/START feature that caused the vehicle to turn off while idling however, the vehicle would fail to immediately start-up. The contact stated that the instrument panel would independently reset, and the vehicle would jolt forward before restarting. The contact had taken the vehicle to the dealer however, the vehicle was not yet repaired. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 39,737.

NHTSA ODI 11433626

Aug 16, 2021Transmission & drivetrainSpeed controlEngine

While driving on the highway my car started loosing power. A warning light came on stating Engine Power is reduced. I could not excelerate had to pull over on side of road. This is the first time this has happened to me but I just purchased this vehicle on 7/15/21 with 51,000 miles.

NHTSA ODI 11429238

Apr 3, 2021Transmission & drivetrainSpeed control

I'M NOT SURE WHAT'S WRONG, BUT WHEN I STOP AND START MY VEHICLE BACK UP WITH THE AUTO START I CAN HEAR SOMETHING LIKE WATER FLUSHING OR RUNNING THROUGH MY DASHBOARD. MOST OF THE TIME MY VEHICLE WILL STALL OUT WHEN I PRESS THE GAS, IS DRIVING OR TURNING MOST OF THE TIME IT DON'T WON'T TO GO. I ALMOST GOT HIT ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS BECAUSE I WOULD TRY TO TURN AND THE CAR WILL STALL BARLEY GOING. THIS HAS CAUSE A LOT OF FRUSTRATIONS. I HAVE HAD MY CAR SINCE AUGUST OF 2020 AND IT HAS BEEN DOING THIS SINCE 2-3 WEEKS AFTER PURCHASING IT. I HAVE NOT HAD TIME TO TAKE IT TO THE DEALERSHIP FOR INSPECTION BECAUSE I HAVE LUPUS AND I'M TRIED AND HAVE RANDOM FLARES.

NHTSA ODI 11406168

Nov 5, 2020Transmission & drivetrainEngine

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2019 CHEVROLET MALIBU. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 75 MPH, THE VEHICLE DECELERATED TO 15 MPH WITH THE POWER REDUCED MESSAGE DISPLAYED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO CHAPMEN CHEVROLET LOCATED AT 1717 E BASELINE RD, TEMPE, AZ 85283 TO BE DIAGNOSED. THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE TURBO INTAKE WAS DEFECTIVE. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED HOWEVER, THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 22,000.

NHTSA ODI 11373150

Aug 13, 2020Transmission & drivetrain

AT 10,000 MILES MY 2019 CHEVROLET MALIBU STARTED TO SPUTTER AND LOSE POWER. TAKING OFF AT A GREEN LIGHT, DRIVING ON HIGHWAYS, TURNING AT INTERSECTIONS, OR TURNING AGAINST TRAFFIC HAS ALL BECOME DANGEROUS BECAUSE THE CAR WILL NOT GATHER ENOUGH POWER TO GO, LEAVING MY CAR STUCK ON ROADS AND IN THE MIDDLE OF INTERSECTIONS. WE WERE PLACED IN A RENTAL 2019 CHEVROLET MALIBU WITH 11,000 MILES THAT ALSO HAD POWER PROBLEMS AND LEFT US STUCK IN A RUNNING CAR BEING APPROACHED BY ONCOMING TRAFFIC.. THE DEALERSHIP DIAGNOSTIC CAME UP AS TRANSMISSION FAILURE, IN MULTIPLE BRAND NEW 2019 CHEVROLET MALIBU'S. ME, MY FAMILY, AND HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF MOTORISTS ARE IN DANGER BY DRIVING THIS CAR, OR EVEN BEING ON THE ROAD WITH THESE CARS.

NHTSA ODI 11348958

Jun 5, 2020Transmission & drivetrain

WHEN I STOP AT A STOP SIGN OR RED LIGHT, IT SEEMS LIKE MY CAR CUTS OFF AND THEN BACK ON WHEN I HIT THE GAS. I CAN HEAR IT. THERE IS ALSO A SOUND IN MY BRAKES WHEN THIS HAPPENS, THAT SOUNDS AIR. *TR

NHTSA ODI 11327493

Jun 17, 2019Transmission & drivetrain

THE SPRING STEEL C-CLIP HOLDING THE CVT FLUID COOLING LINE IN PLACE AT THE RADIATOR FELL OFF WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION ON INTERSTATE 5. THE TRANSMISSION FLUID DRAINED OUT ONTO THE ROADWAY RESULTING IN COMPLETE LOSS OF POWER TO THE WHEELS. THE ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON BUT THE ENGINE RAN FINE.

NHTSA ODI 11220720

Feb 20, 2019Transmission & drivetrain

THE ENGINE "AUTO STOP" FEATURE CAN HAVE ENOUGH OF A DELAY TO ALLOW THE ACCELERATOR TO BE PRESSED AS THE ENGINE STARTS CAUSING IT TO LURCH FORWARD RATHER THAN ACCELERATE SMOOTHLY. IT ALSO CAN CAUSE A DELAY WHEN PULLING OUT INTO HEAVY TRAFFIC. THERE IS CURRENTLY NO WAY TO TEMPORARILY OR PERMANENTLY DEFEAT THE SYSTEM ON THIS GM MODEL ACCORDING TO GM SERVICE DEPARTMENT. THOUGH I AM SURE IT IS OPERATING AS DESIGNED FOR CERTAIN OWNER DRIVING STYLES AND TRAFFIC CONDITIONS THIS CAN BE A SERIOUS HAZARD. CAR MAKERS SHOULD BE REQUIRED TO EITHER DISABLE THE FEATURE PERMANENTLY BY OWNER REQUEST OR HAVE A METHOD FOR THE OWNER TO BYPASS THE SYSTEM. WITH LESS THAN 250 MILES I HAVE EXPERIENCED 2 INCIDENTS OF ALMOST HITTING THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME FROM A STOP AND 1 OF ALMOST BEING HIT PULLING INTO HEAVY TRAFFIC FROM A STOP. I SEE MANY OTHER SIMILAR COMPLAINTS AND HOPE THIS CAN BE ADDRESSED BEFORE SOMEONE IS HURT OR WORSE DUE TO IT.

NHTSA ODI 11181344

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Working with the data? Download all 188 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 2019 Chevrolet Malibu Eco verdict →