Owner-reported complaints naming the powertrain system, filed with NHTSA
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Powertrain reports that are not specifically the engine or transmission — driveshafts, axles, transfer cases and differentials. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 2013 Chevrolet Malibu Eco submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 8 reports on file name it.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Shown in the owner’s own words, exactly as filed
I WAS DRIVING AND STARTED HEARING A LOUD ALTER HE AND THEN THE CAR SEEMED TO HAVE SHUT OFF AND STARTED BACK UP THE ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON I PULLED OVER TURNED THE CAR OFF TO SEE IF THE ENGINE LIGHT WOULD GO BACK OFF IT DIDN'T NOW IT KEEPS MAKING THE SKREECHING SOUND AND STILL SHUTS OFF WHILE DRIVING AND ON A STOP
WAS DRIVING DOWN INTERSTATE GOING 70 MPH WHEN ELECTRICAL SYSTEM WENT HAYWIRE. THE ENGINE ENGINE STALLED AND LOST POWER STEERING. VERY DANGEROUS!
EASSIST RECALL FOR MALIBU ECO. MY VEHICLE HAS THE SAME PROBLEMS AS THE RECALL, BUT MY VIN NUMBER IS NOT ON THE RECALL LIST. THE VEHICLE MAKE AND MODEL MATCH. ALL OF MY MAINTENANCE IS UP TO DATE. I WOULD LIKE SOMEONE TO FROM THIS COMPANY TO LOOK INTO MY VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE WILL NOT START, I HAVE BROUGHT 4 NEW BATTERIES IN THE LAST 2 YEARS. THE MALFUNCTION INDICATOR LIGHT IS ON. IT HAS BEEN ON FOR A YEAR NOW. THERE IS A BURNING SMELL WHEN I DRIVE IT SOMETIMES. I HAVE HAD THE VEHICLE DIAGNOSED SEVERAL TIMES BY A DEALERSHIP AND NOW BY AN OUTSIDE MECHANIC, WHO INFORMED ME ABOUT THE RECALL. I WAS TOLD IF THIS DOESN'T GET FIT SOON MY VEHICLE COULD CATCH FIRE. I WOULD LIKE HELP IN RESOLVING THIS SITUATION.
WHILE DRIVING ACROSS A BRIDGE AT ABOUT 50MPH, THE ENGINE LIGHT, POWER STEERING, ABS AND BATTERY CHARGING SYSTEM WARNING LIGHTS ALL CAME ON AND THEN THE CAR COMPLETELY LOST ALL POWER. I HAD LITTLE CONTROL OF THE CAR BUT WAS ABLE TO SAFELY PULL ONTO THE SHOULDER. I COULD HAVE CRASHED ONTO THE MEDIAN OR ANOTHER FASTER CAR COULD HAVE HIT ME, I COULD HAVE DIED. TRIED TO GET A JUMP BUT IT WOULD NOT STAY ON ONCE CABLES WERE REMOVED. TOWED TO THE DEALER WHERE 2 BUSINESS DAYS LATER I'M TOLD THE TIMING CHAINS, CAM SHAFT AND FUEL PUMP NEED REPLACING. CAR IS UNDER 38,000 MILES. I HAVE WITNESSED MY DASHBOARD AND RADIO LIGHT UP WHEN NO ONE IS IN IT AND ALL DOORS ARE LOCKED. CAR TURNED OFF ONCE LAST WEEK WHILE I WAS DRIVING UNDER 20MPH BUT IMMEDIATELY TURNED BACK ON BY ITSELF. JUST THOUGHT MAYBE I USED BAD GASOLINE. HAVE TO WAIT 2-3 MORE DAYS JUST FOR THEM TO START WORKING ON IT AND CANNOT GET AN ESTIMATE ON HOW LONG THE WORK WILL TAKE. CHEVY REFUSES A LOANER/RENTAL CAR UNTIL THE CAR IS BEING WORKED ON EVEN THOUGH THEY ALREADY RENDERED IT INOPERABLE. I DO NOT FEEL SAFE DRIVING THIS CAR AND HAVEN'T HAD THIS PREOWNED VEHICLE EVEN A YEAR YET. I AM VERY DISAPPOINTED WITH THIS CAR AND EVEN MORE DISAPPOINTED WITH THE SERVICE AND LACK OF HELP AND ACCOMMODATIONS FROM CHEVROLET. ALSO DISAPPOINTED THAT THE WARRANTY DOESN'T TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION THE INCONVENIENCE THE CUSTOMER FACES WHEN THEIR CAR IS DOWN.
WHILE DRIVING INTO CHICAGO ON A BUSY INTERSTATE HWY A WARNING DISPLAYED ON THE DASH "SERVICE GENERATOR CONTROL MODULE," BEFORE I COULD REACH A SERVICE CENTER THE VOLTAGE BEGAN TO DROP AND ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS FAILED (LIGHTS, STEERING & BRAKE ASSIST, ETC. THE ENGINE SUBSEQUENTLY STOPPED. FORTUNATELY I WAS ABLE TO MANEUVER TO THE SHOULDER. THE BATTERY WAS COMPLETELY DEAD, NO ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS WORKED, E.G. EMERGENCY FLASHERS, COULDN'T REMOVE IGNITION KEY. AFTER WAITING 4 HOURS FOR TOW TRUCK, TOWED TO ROGERS CHEVROLET IN CHICAGO. VEHICLE SAT ON THE LOT TWO DAYS, THEN SERVICE TECH SAID VEHICLE STARTED AND RAN NORMALLY WITH NO FAULT INDICATIONS. VEHICLE CONTINUES TO OPERATE NORMALLY. DEALER ADVISES TO BRING VEHICLE BACK WHEN IT FAILS. CHEVROLET CUSTOMER SERVICE SAYS PERHAPS THE COMPUTER INITIATED A FALSE ERROR REPORT AND THEN SHUTS DOWN THE GCM CAUSING THE ENGINE TO STOP AND THAT'S WHY MY VEHICLE IS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL FOR THE GCM PROBLEM. IT WOULD APPEAR FURTHER INVESTIGATION IS WARRANTED. FORTUNATELY NO PERSONAL INJURIES WERE SUSTAINED, BUT MY DOG LEAPED FROM THE STRANDED VEHICLE INTO TRAFFIC RESULTING ON OVER $6,600 IN MEDICAL EXPENSE SO FAR. I'M NOT SURE WHAT THE DEATH/INJURY THRESHOLD IS UNTIL GM WILL REPAIR THEIR OWN FAULTY VEHICLES.
DRIVING UP HILL HAVING TO DECELERATE, THERE IS A HARD JERK AS IF THE BRAKES WERE APPLIED-THIS IS DANGEROUS DUE TO HUMAN REACTION TO ALSO QUICKLY TO APPLY THE BRAKES. THIS ISSUE HAPPENS RANDOMLY AND THE FIRST TIME I THOUGHT THAT THE VEHICLE HAD STRUCK SOMETHING OR HAD A MAJOR MALFUNCTION. IT ONLY LAST FOR A SECOND OF TIME. THE DEALER EXPLAINED THAT IT WAS JUST CHARACTERISTICS OF A 6 SPEED TRANSMISSION. THIS IS MY THIRD GM WITH A 6 SPEED AND THE OTHERS DID NOT DO THIS. *TR
AROUND THE TIME I BOUGHT THE CAR, ON 11/30/12 AT 5812 MILES, UNKNOWN TO ME THE CAR HAD A CONCERN OF LOSS OF BATTERY CHARGE WHICH CALLED FOR AN INSPECTION OF THE GENERATOR CONTROL MODULE. SO A GEN CONTROL MODULE PERFORMANCE TEST PER RECALL WAS PERFORMED. IN MAY OF 2013, I STOPPED AT RED TRAFFIC LIGHT AND THE ENGINE WAS IDLING, WHEN I PROCEEDED TO ACCELERATE BY PLACING MY FOOT ON THE GAS PEDAL AT THE GREEN LIGHT, THE VEHICLE SHUT OFF ON ME. THIS HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH THE AUTOMATIC SHUT-OFF THAT CONSERVES ENERGY. ON 6/24/13 AT 14006 MILES, I TRIED TO GET THEM TO DO A DIAGNOSTICS AND I DON'T THINK THEY DID A DIAGNOSTICS EVEN THOUGH I WAS STILL UNDER BUMPER-TO-BUMPER AND POWERTRAIN WARRANTY. THEY SUGGESTED A TEST DRIVE WITH A MECHANIC FOREMAN TO SEE IF THE ISSUE WOULD PRESENT ITSELF AGAIN. THE ISSUE DID NOT OCCUR AGAIN. IN JULY OF 2013, I THEN COMPLAINED THAT THE CAR HAD POOR ENGINE ACCELERATION ENTERING ONTO A HIGHWAY AND TOOK IT IN FOR SERVICE AT 14810 MILES. THEY DID A R&R ECM RECALIBRATE CONTROLLER PROGRAM. ON JULY 26, 2014, I DROVE EARLIER IN THE DAY FOR QUITE A FEW HOURS THROUGH THE CITY AND A LITTLE ON THE HIGHWAY. I ACCELERATED ONCE ON THE HIGHWAY AT WHICH THE ISSUE OF ACCELERATION PRESENTED ITSELF AGAIN. AT 38,548 MILES, THE FOLLOWING MESSAGES WAS SHOWN ON MY DASHBOARD: 1. BATTERY SERVICE NEEDED 2. POWER STEERING SERVICE NEEDED I THEN CALLED ONSTAR AND I ASKED THEM TO DO A DIAGNOSTICS AND THEY GAVE ME THE FOLLOWING MESSAGES: 3. ENGINE CONTROL MODULE CRUISE CONTROL SYSTEM NOT PERFORMING AS EXPECTED. (P155A) 4. POWERTRAIN SYSTEM HAS DETECTED MALFUNCTION RELATED TO CRUISE CONTROL SYSTEM. CRUISE CONTROL DISABLED. (C0800) 5. POWERTRAIN SYSTEM HAS DETECTED MALFUNCTION RELATED TO TRANSMISSION. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WILL NOT ILLUMINATE. VEHICLE PERFORMANCE AND SHIFT BEHAVIOR MAY BE AFFECTED. TOP SHIFT FEATURE WILL BE DISABLED IF EQUIPPED. (P0826) *JS
WE BOUGHT THIS VEHICLE USED WITH ONLY 5600 MILES AND HAS BEEN RUNNING FINE EXCEPT FOR SLIGHT SMELL IN REAR AREA. WE DROVE THE NIGHT BEFORE AND IT WAS OK, BUT THE NEXT MORNING THE BATTERY WAS ABSOLUTELY DEAD. NO LIGHTS, HORN, WIPERS, INTERIOR LIGHTS, GOT THE VEHICLE PUSHED OUT OF THE GARAGE BUT NO POWER BRAKES OR STEERING AND TRANSMISSION WAS LOCKED-UP. CALLED GM FOR ROAD ASSISTANCE AND CAR WAS JUMP STARTED. I LOOKED TO SEE PROBLEMS WITH THIS MODEL AND FOUND COMPLAINTS OF THIS SAME PROBLEM AND ALSO GOING DEAD WHILE DRIVING. BLOGS SAID THEY BROUGHT VEHICLES INTO DEALER AND THEY FOUND NOTHING, WHICH IS THE SAME ANSWER I WAS GIVEN OTHER THEN MY WIFE MUST OF LEFT THE DOOR OPEN. I REFUSED TO PICKED THE CAR UP TO THIS DATE AS WILL NOT HAVE MY WIFE DRIVE THIS VEHICLE IN FEAR THAT IT WILL GO DEAD WHILE DRIVING OR WILL NOT START AND BE STRANDED AT NIGHT. BLOGS STATED THAT THE GENERATOR CONTROL MODULE WAS THE CAUSE AND SEVERAL HAD TO HAVE THE MODULE REPLACED AGAIN. MY VEHICLE WAS ON A RECALL LIST AND THE DEALER STATED THE MODULE WAS REPLACED ONCE A YEAR AGO ( BEFORE 5600 MILES). THE DEALER STATED THE GM EXPERT SPECIALIST CHECKED AND FOUND NO CODES AND WOULD NOT AUTHORIZE A REPLACEMENT MODULE. I BET IF IT WERE ANY SENIOR EXECUTIVE AT GM OR THEIR SPOUSE DRIVING THIS CAR THAT IT WOULD BE REPLACED! I DO BELIEVE THERE IS A HISTORY HERE AND GM DOES NOT WANT TO LIVE UP TO ANOTHER ENGINEERING ERROR. *TR
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Categories with enough reports to have a page of their own
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