Page 15 of 15 · complaints 701–705 of 705

2017 Chevrolet Malibu complaints

Owner reports filed with NHTSA about this vehicle, newest first and reproduced as filed. They are unverified accounts: one proves nothing, and a pattern across many is the thing worth reading. Back to the full 2017 record →

Engine
Filed Jul 20, 20172,757 milesTX

THE VEHICLE ENGINE TURNED OFF WHILE DRIVING IN THE CITY. IT THEN CAUSED THE STEERING WHEEL TO STIFFEN AND MAKING IT DIFFICULT TO STEER. THE CAR POWER WENT INTO LOW MODE. THE AC WENT INTO FAN MODE. AND THE CAR STAYED STATIONARY.

Unknown or Other
Filed Jun 24, 201725 milesSC

WHEN STOPPED AT A STOP LIGHT AN ELECTRIC MOTOR KICKS IN FOR ABOUT 30 SECOND AND THEN THE ENGINE MOTOR RESTARTS MAKING THE CAR WHAT TO JUMP FORWARD. IF THE DRIVER HAS ONLY A LIGHT FOOT ON THE BREAK PETAL HE/SHE COULD HIT THE CAR IN FRONT. I HAVE NOTIFIED BOTH ME DEALER AND GM AS I BELIEVE THIS TO BE A SAFETY ISSUE IN IT DESIGN. IT HAPPENS EVERY TIME I DRIVE AND HAVE TO STOP AT A LIGHT AND WAIT FOR ABOUT 30 SECONDS

Power Train
Filed Jun 20, 2017242 milesAZ

I PURCHASED A 2017 CHEVY MALIBU LAST WEEK. I WAS LOOKING OVER THE DATA ON THE CHEVY WEBSITE. CHEVY IS LISTING TWO DIFFERENT HP RATINGS FOR THIS CAR. ONE AREA STATES 163HP & 184 LB-FT TORQUE. THE OTHER SAYS 160HP & 184 LB-FT TORQUE. THE MAIN ISSUE I HAVE IS WITH THE TRANSMISSION. GM SAYS THE CAR COMES WITH A 6T45 TRANSMISSION. THAT TRANSMISSION IS RATED AT 215HP & 232 LB-FT TORQUE. ENOUGH FOR THE RATED ENGINE. THE TRANSMISSION IN THE CAR IS A 6T40. RATED AT 180HP & 177 LB-FT TORQUE. THE TORQUE ON THE MOTOR IS 184 LB-FT AT 2500 RPM TO 3000 RPM. I WORK AND LIVE IN PHOENIX, AZ. 95% OF DRIVING IS CITY DRIVING. I AM PAST THE MAX OF THE TRANSMISSION MOST OF THE TIME. THIS TRANSMISSION WILL FAIL VERY FAST IN THIS HEAT. PLUS THE EPA FUEL RATING I'M SURE WAS CALCULATED WITH THE TRANSMISSION ADVERTISED BY GM NOT IN THE CAR. I OWN A CAR THAT IS NOT AT ALL WHAT I THOUGHT IT WAS.

Power Train
Filed Jun 12, 2017650 milesGA

AFTER MUCH RESEARCH I HAVE FOUND OUT THAT THE TRANSMISSION THAT IS IN THE 2017 MALIBU, WHICH IS THE 6T40, IS NOT RATED TO BE IN THIS VEHICLE. THE 6T40 IS RATED AT 177LB-FT TORQUE, THE MALIBU HAS 184LB-FT. GMAUTHORITY.COM/BLOG/GM/GM-TRANSMISSIONS/MH8/ THIS LINK IS THE PAGE FOR THE 6T40. HOWEVER, THE 6T45 IS WHAT SHOULD BE IN THE CAR, HTTP://GMAUTHORITY.COM/BLOG/GM/GM-TRANSMISSIONS/MH7/ THIS IS THE LINK FOR THAT ONE, AS YOU CAN SEE THE MAX TORQUE IS 232LB-FT. HTTP://MEDIA.CHEVROLET.COM/MEDIA/US/EN/CHEVROLET/VEHICLES/MALIBU/2016.TAB1.HTML THEIR WEBSITE ALSO SAYS THAT THE CAR SHOULD HAVE THE 6T45 TRANSMISSION IN IT. THE CAR IS BRAND NEW SO THE ONLY THING I HAVE NOTICED IS HARD SHIFTING, BUT IN THE FUTURE I FEEL AS IF THIS COULD BECOME A PROBLEM. I HAVE TALKED TO GM AND THEY SAID THEY ARE THE SAME, BUT AS YOU SEE THEY ARE NOT THE SAME. IF THIS POST NEEDS TO GO SOMEWHERE ELSE PLEASE LET ME KNOW, I JUST WANT TO STOP THIS BEFORE IT STARTS.

Seat Belts
Filed May 4, 201715,000 milesWI

ON 27 APRIL, 2017, I WAS RIDING AS A PASSENGER IN A 2017 MALIBU. WE WERE TRAVELLING AT APPROXIMATELY 50 MPH WHEN WE NEEDED TO STOP RAPIDLY, TO AVOID AN ACCIDENT. THE PASSENGER SEAT BELT DID NOT FUNCTION AT ALL. BECAUSE I HAVE ZERO TRUST IN GM, I WAS PROTECTING MYSELF (THE BEST ONE CAN) FOR JUST SUCH AN OCCURRENCE. THIS WAS A RENTAL CAR, UNKNOWN WHICH RENTAL COMPANY, AS I WAS A PASSENGER. BUT THIS SCARES ME BECAUSE IN DECEMBER OF 2000, I WAS DRIVING A RENTED PONTIAC GRAND AM (TRULY THE LAST TIME I HAVE DRIVEN OR RIDDEN IN A GM VEHICLE), AND THE SEAT BELT, NOR THE AIR BAG FUNCTIONED CORRECTLY. SADLY, GM HAD KNOWN ABOUT BOTH PROBLEMS FOR YEARS, BUT REFUSED TO ISSUE A RECALL. I WAS NEARLY KILLED, AND WILL SUFFER FROM A LIFE ALTERING TBI FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE. IT IS NOT SURPRISING (AT LEAST TO ME) THAT GM STILL HAS ISSUES WITH THEIR SEAT BELTS. I JUST DON'T WANT ANYONE TO REPEAT WHAT HAPPEN TO ME. I CAN FIND OUT MORE INFORMATION CONCERNING WHERE THAT RENTAL CAR IS FROM IF NECESSARY.

Reading these

NHTSA publishes every complaint as the owner wrote it and investigates only a fraction. Spelling, capitalisation and judgement are the filer’s own. What carries weight is repetition: the same component failing the same way across many filings, and whether the manufacturer eventually opened a recall for it.

Full record for the 2017 Chevrolet Malibu → · Every Malibu year → · How the figures are calculated →