NHTSA Owner Complaint Log
This page lists owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2016 Chevrolet Malibu. Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA and do not by themselves prove a defect or defect rate.
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that after parking the vehicle, an error message on the instrument panel indicated that the vehicle was not in PARK. The vehicle was restarted, shifted to DRIVE, and back to PARK, and the vehicle operate as designed. The contact called the local dealer and made them aware of the failure. The contact stated she had experienced the failure several times. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 55,000.
Drove home from work and grocery shopping, killed the engine and noticed the fan was still running. Got back in the car and pressed to start the engine again. The engine stumbled to start but did start. I killed the engine again and everything went off (including the fan) as it should have. I decided to start the car again to see if it would repeat what happened. The car started, but no lights came on on the dashboard or radio. I had to press the start button again before any lights would come on. But the engine would die about 3 seconds after the lights came on. The light on the start button was green the entire time until I pressed it a third time. (I have video of this). After this the car wouldn't start at all. I left the car alone for the evening. The next morning I attempted to start the car and it wouldn't start at all, it was as if the battery was dead. I drove my daughter's car to work. The battery was purchased in early 2019 and was still under warranty, but the dealership wouldn't check the battery back unless it was in the car, which wouldn't start. I purchased a battery tester and the battery was dead. I recharged the battery and the car still stumbled to start but would eventually start after several tries. The car appears to drive ok, but won't start without charging the battery or getting a jump start. And once it starts, it's very hard to get it to start again immediately. This has been going on for 2 months now. I haven't been driving the car because I have an hour one way commute to work and can't chance the car giving me any issues. I periodically jump start the car and drive it for 5-10 miles. Yesterday, I jump started the car and when I killed the engine, the fan didn't go off again. It took about 6 tries to start the car again, once it started and I killed the engine the fan finally stopped. The check engine light has been on and off during these past 2 months with these current issues.
Shift to park message appears on dash screen when car is attempting to shut off ignition when shifter is in park position. Can't turn off car.
After driving, the car will not shift into park. The battery is still on. Jiggling the shifter knob, turning the car off and back on, and shifting from another gear to park does not resolve this issue. The battery stays on. I have 20,000 miles on a 2016 model.
While I was pulling into a parking spot, my 2016 Chevrolet Malibu suddenly accelerated without any prior warning. The sudden unintended acceleration caused the vehicle to somehow jump the curb, hit a sign, and go airborne landing on two park cars which, resulted in damage to the front end and passenger side fender, front grill, left tire and other parts. The car was leaning to one side and I had to pry open the driver side door to get out. One of the other cars was totaled and the other had hood damage. It took two tow trucks to remove the car off of the other cars, it was towed to a repair shop and repaired by my insurance company but I no longer have possession of it. I was too terrified of it to keep it. It is still unknown what caused the vehicle to malfunction.
Car suddenly lost power slowing to 20mph on highway slowing to the point I was an obstacle in the lane so had to abruptly drive on to shoulder and out of traffic to prevent a collision from behind me as I had a close call. Car showed reduced engine power message. I wait until late at night when there was no traffic to drive the car home safely. The next day I had code read and it was a P2138. From what I have now learned online this is a wide spread problem that GM is very aware of.
I have a 2016 Chevrolet Malibu and while driving on the highway, my engine light came on and my speed decelerated from 65 mph to 40. I took my car for a diagnostic test and the results were Trouble Codes: P2138, U0401-71 and C0242-00. I have done my research and from what I have found so far, is that several people have made Youtube videos about these codes, complaints and complaints on this website as well, and it has come to my understanding, that if enough people complain that this can be a safety issue, then maybe the "POWERS THAT BE", will help with this issue and possibly resolve it. This is and can be dangerous for an individual to drive at the average speed on most U.S. highways, 65, and they decelerate without warning down to 40 mph. I'm not sure why anyone does not se the dangers in this situation, especially with other motorists on the road driving at speeds of up to 70 mph, sometimes 75 mph. If I have vehicles behind me driving 65 or more and my vehicle decides to decelerate because of a sensor failure, the vehicle behind me is not going to know that there is a problem and may not have enough time to react before causing an accident. I am adding my concern not only to many individuals who have reported the same or similar experience , but in hopes that this issue would gain more attention.
I have taken my vehicle multiple time and still the problem not fixed. Had a reduced engine problem at first and now there's a message that comes Battery charging system. replaced battery twice and replaced the alternator twice. I spent at least $2,000 trying to get my car fixed. The Charging system battery, the battery drains until it goes dead. The car stopped on a busy interstate with me in it. I had to wait on a tow truck,(while working) on the interstate while watching the trucks and cars pass by hoping that they wont hit me. After charging the battery and putting it back into the car the battery light comes on. and while the car is crank and sitting still the battery charging light comes on. the battery quickly looses power. GM realyl need to do a recall on these vehicles. Please help.
Okay so I’ve been getting this “engine power reduced” sign on my dash off and on for the past half year. I take it to the shops to get fix. They do some temporary fix and it’s good for a month or two then the problem persists. I’ve dodged very close attempts at death due to this. Driving on the highway or interstate (at respected speed) and then suddenly the car just slows down abruptly. Scared me half to death due to the fact that I’m on busy roadways. I’ve managed to get over on the shoulder or nearest exit without collision. One time is happened on a turnpike and I came like inches away from hitting the wall. For all of those times I was able to cut the engine off for a bit and then worked good enough to get home or to a shop. For this last time though was the worst. I was in the turning lane of busy intersection and the car like pulled as I was making the turn and then it just cut off. Causing cars to have to swerve around me which could’ve caused other incidents. I turned the car on and off many times but I still could not regain normal speed. It wouldn’t pass 18 then 27 and finally 36. I had to ride with the hazards on and what was supposed to be a 20 minute drive ended up being a 60 minute drive (after sitting in a parking lot for hours). I have lost one job due to the fact that I had to call off so many days. I have lost privileges at other jobs that effects how I’m able to provide for my family. So this is really hitting me hard. Most mechanics seem to know what the problem is but no one has actually fixed it directly. I hope GM does something about this please. This is my first and only car and I’m proud of it, but far as the performance. It’s a death trap. That’s why I don’t allow anyone to ride with me or drive it, because I just never know. I would rather be in the car when something bad happens than someone else. It’s feels like a stick shift/like a sticky clutch or something of that nature when I drive.I don’t know much about cars but that’s not right
Second issue with brakes on 2016 Chevy Malibu. First issue fixed in September 2020 by replacing vacuum pump and sensor. The pump failed and pieces of the pump break off and fall into the engine. The exact same issue happened again June 2021. The brakes are very hard and a loud thumping noise was coming from under the hood when you pressed the brakes. It was very hard to stop the car. I knew it was the same issue from September 2020. The vacuum pump was removed and returned to the dealership where the I purchased it from in September 2020 when the original part failed. The part I returned in June 2021 was still under warranty. When I returned it and told them it failed the exact same way in 2020, the man in parts said "They PROBABLY won't warranty the part again since it failed twice. So there's probably something else wrong with your car" REALLY!!! I did notice that the part had been redesigned and the part that breaks off in the engine is no longer there. This proves Chevrolet knows this is an issue, but refuses to recall these vehicles. Thankfully I was on a country road, not driving fast when it failed this time. We live at the bottom of 2 hills, so I had to drive partially in the ditch to help the car slow down enough to safely pull into my driveway with no brakes.
When I go to shut the engine off it sometime still runs and after pressing the off button I have to go thru this off cycle many times before everything shuts down. The screen behind the steering wheel says to put it in "park" but it is already in "park". This could be a real safety problem because someone could drive the car into the garage, shut the door and not even know the engine is running!
My vehicle, a 2016 Chevy Malibu, has started receiving the *known* GM "Shift to Park" error message. This error message occurs when the vehicle is in park, but the driver information center (in the dashboard) alerts to "Shift to Park" before you can shut off the vehicle. If you try to exit the vehicle with the error message, all electronic systems (screen, lights, dash, etc) will stay on, draining down the car battery, putting me at risk of being stranded due to a known issue in my car and/or me having to leave my car running, putting my car at risk of being broken into, stolen, or worse. I have wasted countless hours already, in the very short time the error has occurred, having to shift out of park, reverse, drive, back into park, and keep trying over and over and over and over and over and over and over, until it finally might register. One evening, it took over two hours for this to work. This is a HUGE risk to me, especially in the city I live in, as a single woman. Furthermore, the fact that GM and NHTSA have a service bulletin on this, and it is a *known* issue in my year, make, and model, on top of the thousands and thousands of online forums reporting this same issue, tells me that this is much, much larger than anyone (especially GM) would like to admit, and that my car needs to be included in the recall for this.
Every month my car will randomly say engine power reduced and will go no higher than 30mph. Which has happened on the highway and is super dangerous! I have seen many reports of the same problem but nothing being done about it. I took it to the dealership I got it from and I paid $100 dollars for diagnostics and the mechanic said the car computer needed updated...alright, the next day the message came back up and car couldn’t go higher than 30. I haven’t had this car for a year, and the shocks have popping noises, and whenever I put the car in park a message will appear saying shift car to park. And I have to literally roughly giggle the lever for it to read it’s in park or my car won’t turn off. I truly love this car but it has to many issues that shouldn’t be happening.
Transmission problems
The 3rd brake light broke(high mount stop lamp) which caused water leakage into the trunk and filled the compartment where the spare tire goes.
A power reduced engine light came on and slowed the car down to 20 miles per hour very abruptly, it was very dangerous. It keeps doing this, the engine light turns off so it can't be detected, and now we can't take it into a dealership because its out of warranty.
MY CAR WON'T SHIFT INTO PARK SOMETIMES AND THE SUSPENSION IS MAKING A POPPIN NOISE AND MY CRUISE CONTROL IS NOT WORKING
FROM TIME TO TIME, THE VEHICLE DOES NOT REGISTER THE CAR IS IN PARK AND EXHIBITS A "SHIFT TO PARK" MESSAGE. IT CAN TAKE RESTARTING THE CAR UPWARDS OF 10 - 15 TIMES TO GET THE MESSAGE TO DISAPPEAR. THE CAR CANNOT BE LEFT IN THIS CONDITION AS THERE IS NO ASSURANCE THE CAR IS PARKED PROPERLY NOR WILL IT TURN OFF, WHICH COULD DRAIN THE BATTERY. IT IS A KNOWN ISSUE FOR YEARS, AND GM HAS ISSUED TSB 19-NA-206 (REV DEC 11, 2020). THIS IS WELL KNOWN AND PERVASIVE, YET GM HAS NOT ISSUED A RECALL, OR BEEN PROACTIVE ABOUT THE FIX, AND IS NOT COVERING IT OUTSIDE OF WARRANTY.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 CHEVROLET MALIBU. THE CONTACT STATED WHILE DRIVING 40 MPH, THE VEHICLE OVERHEATED. THE CONTACT STATED NO WARNING LIGHT WAS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED WITH THE HEAD GASKET NEEDING TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT YET REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER HAD BEEN INFORMED OF THE FAILURE AND REFERRED THE CONTACT TO NHTSA TO FILE A COMPLAINT. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 100,000.
I WAS DRIVING IN THE RAIN ON A STREET HEADING TOWARDS THE HIGHWAY AT 40 MPH AND SUDDENLY ENGINE REDUCED POWER NOTIFICATION CAME UP AND I WAS UNABLE TO DRIVE FASTER THAN 20 MPH.
WE GOT A CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ON. CHECKED FOR CODES AND P2097 CAME UP. VEHICLE HAS SOME HESITATION WHEN ACCELERATING.
REDUCE ENGINE POWER LIGHT APPEARS WHILE DRIVING ON HIGHWAY. THE CAR SLOWED DOWN LIGHTS FLASHED THEN IT STATED SOMETHING ABOUT 25 MPH. IT FLASHED SO FAST
WAS DRIVING IN 45MPH STREET WHEN I GOT A 'ENGINE POWER REDUCED' MESSAGE AND DROPPED SPEED TO 10MPH. THIS IS CLEARLY A SAFETY ISSUE AND CAN VERY WELL CAUSE AN ACCIDENT IF I'M DRIVING ON HIGHWAY OR UPHILL FOR THE MATTER.
I WAS DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD AT 55MPH - 2-LANE ROAD (4 DAYS AGO) WHEN A WARNING CAME ACROSS MY DASH THAT STATED "REDUCING ENGINE POWER". IT SLOWED MY VEHICLE DOWN A MININUM OF 20MPH AND WOULDN'T PICK UP SPEED. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. I PULLED OVER AND TURNED OFF MY VEHICLE. I RESTARTED IT AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT STAYED ON. I WAS ABLE TO MAKE IT TO AN AUTO SHOP AND THEY HOOKED IT UP. IT READ A P2138 CODE. IF I HAD BEEN ON THE HIGHWAY, THIS COULD'VE CAUSED A DEVISTATING CRASH. I FOUND WHERE GM EXTENDED THE WARRANTY AND THIS FIX SHOULD NOT COST ME ANYTHING - I WILL SEE WHEN I TAKE IT IN TOMORROW.
AS I ACCELERATED FROM A STOP, THE VEHICLE LOST POWER AND THE REDUCED POWER WARNING CAME ON ALONG WITH MY ENGINE LIGHT. I COULD NOT GO OVER 30MPH UNTIL I PULLED OVER AND RESTARTED THE VEHICLE. I WAS THEN ABLE TO PROCEED HOME AT NORMAL SPEED THE CHECK GNOME LIGHT IS STILL ON.
CRACKING IS STARTING ON THE DRIVE SIDE PANEL WHERE THE FRAME OF THE SEAT
SERVICE STABILITRAK AND ABS. IT PREVIOUSLY HAPPENED LAST YEAR AND THE VEHICLE WAS IN PARK. SINCE IT'S BEEN HAPPENING WHEN VEHICLE IS AT A SLOW CRAWL OR IN REVERSE. SOMETIMES THE LIGHT WILL COME ON HOWEVER THE JUST OF THE TIMES, WHEN BRAKING, THE CAR WILL GRIND AND STUTTER WHEN BRAKING
I WAS DRIVING ON A SECONDARY ROAD GOING ABOUT 45 MPH WHEN ALL OF A SUDDEN MY CAR DECELERATED TO 20 MPH IN A MATTER OF SECONDS. THE DASH SHOWED ME AN "ENGINE POWER IS REDUCED" MESSAGE AND MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. I WAS ABLE TO SAFELY PULL OFF THE ROAD AND WAS ABLE TO GET HOME SAFELY. I TURNED THE CAR OFF FOR ABOUT 10 MINUTES AND RESTARTED IT AND IT SEEMINGLY IS FINE NOW BUT THIS IS TERRIBLY UNSAFE. TO MY KNOWLEDGE THERE IS NO RECALL OR ANY WORD ON THIS FROM GM.
The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would not accelerate above 60 mph, with the accelerator pedal depressed. The contact stated that the engine power reduced warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed with the accelerator pedal sensor needing to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure but offered no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 26,000.
SHIFT TO PARK FAILURE AT 40,000 MILES.. MARCH 6, 2018 DIAGNOSED AS SHIFTER ASSEMBLY FAILURE..IN PARK.. ALERT ON DASHBOARD "SHIFT TO PARK"..IF ALERT ON DASHBOARD, AND RADIO AND OR WIPERS ON.. THEY STAY ON WITH CAR OFF. REOCCURED AT ADDITIONAL 50, 000 MILES. ON MARCH 19, 2021 .CORPORATE CHEVROLET AWARE..ISSUED REPAIR BULLETIN #18-NA-297, WHICH WAS REVISED TO 19-NA-206..MALIBU OWERS FORUM REPORT ISSUE WITH YEAR 2016-2019.. ALSO WITH OTHER MODELS..DANGEROUS...EXHAUSTS BATTERY..NOT SURE IF CAR IN PARK OR NOT ? ROLL RISK..CHEVROLET REFUSES TO FIX AS NO RECALL EXISTS..I BELIEVE WITH FREQUENT. ISSUE NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED AND PARTS RECALLED..I HAVE GRAND CHILDREN IN MY VEHICLE AND AM CONCERNED FOR THEIR SAFETY.
WHEN I WAS DRIVING HOME FROM WORK TONIGHT. I WAS TAKING THE RAMP TO GET ON TO THE HIGHWAY AND MY CAR GAVE ME A WARNING THAT THE ENGINE POWER WAS REDUCED AND MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AND MY CAR WAS IMMEDIATELY RESERVED TO ONLY GOING 20 MPH. THIS IS VERY UNSAFE AS I WAS TRYING TO MERGE ONTO THE HIGHWAY.
I WAS COMING TO A STOP AT A TRAFFIC LIGHT. I RECEIVED AN ALERT ON MY DASH "REDUCED ENGINE POWER" AND MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. MY CAR BECAME MUCH LESS RESPONSIVE TO PRESSING ON THE ACCELERATOR AND SEEMED TO BE HAVING TROUBLE GOING MORE THAN ~30 MPH. AN INSPECTION OF THE PROBLEM GAVE THE ERROR CODE P2138 AS THE SOURCE OF THE ISSUE.
WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY DOING 55 MPH MY VEHICLE BEGAN TO STUTTER AND THEN IMMEDIATELY DROPPED TO A SPEED OF 20 MPH. IT WOULD NOT ACCELERATE ANY FURTHER. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AS WELL AS'REDUCED ENGINE POWER' MESSAGE. I PULLED OVER AND SHUT THE CAR OFF, WAITED A FEW MINUTES AND RESTARTED. IT DROVE THIS TIME AT A SPPED OF 35. MADE IT HOME WITHIN A FEW MINUTES AND LET THE CAR SIT. THE NEXT DAY THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WAS STILL IN BUT THE CAR DRIVE AT REGULAR SPEED.
WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AT ACCELERATED SPEED DASH WILL SAY REDUCE ENGINE SPEED IT WILL DROP TO 30MPH AND WILL NOT INCREASE, MIND YOU I'M ON THE HIGHWAY WITH OTHER CARS AND 18 WHEELERS. FORTUNATELY I WAS ABLE TO PULL OVER AND SIT THIS HAS HAPPENED MORE THAN ONCE, AND READING THE COMPLAINTS I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE. THANKFULLY THIS WAS NOT RESULTING IN A ACCIDENT/ DEATH. MY CONCERN IS WHY HAVEN'T THIS BEEN RECALLED! SOMEONE NEEDS TO LOOK INTO THIS MATTER. DUE TO THE FACT THAT NEXT TIME SOMEONE MAY NOT BE AS FORTUNATE AS THE REST OF US. CHEVY NEEDS TO ADDRESS THIS ISSUE BEFORE IT TURNS TRAGIC. THEY HAVE MULTIPLE COMPLAINTS.
VEHICLE IS PLACED INTO THE PARK POSITION WHILE FOOT IS ON THE BRAKE. ONCE DASH SHOWS THAT IT IS IN PARK, FOOT IS RELEASED FROM THE BRAKE AND ENGINE IS SHUTOFF. AT THIS TIME A MESSAGE DISPLAYS ON THE DASH CONSOLE "ACTION REQUIRED: SHIFT TO PARK". THIS OCCURS THE MOST OFTEN ON AN INCLINE UPON WHICH THE MESSAGE "SWITCH TO PARK" LEADS TO CONCERN OF THE ROLLING BACK OF THE VEHICLE. WHILE THE MESSAGE IS DISPLAYED YOU ARE UNABLE TO TURN THE CAR OFF WHICH WILL EVENTUALLY LEAD TO THE BATTERY BEING DRAINED. THE ONLY RESOLUTION THAT I AM AWARE OF OTHER THAN GOING TO THE DEALER IS TO START THE CAR BACK UP (ENGINE WEAR, ADDITIONAL C02 EMISSIONS) AND ATTEMPT TO PLACE IT IN PARK AGAIN WITH THE HOPE THE MESSAGE WILL DISPLAY. IN PERFORMING RESEARCH THIS ISSUE IS DUE TO A POORLY MANUFACTURED MICROSWITCH WITHIN THE SHIFTER ASSEMBLY, THE PERMANENT FIX IS TO HAVE THE DEALER REPLACE THE ENTIRE SHIFT ASSEMBLY.
REDUCED ENGINE POWER WARNING CAME ON WITH ENGINE LIGHT CAUSING VEHICLE TO SLOW DOWN ABRUPTLY; CODE P2138 READS ON ENGINE DIAGNOSTIC
CAR PAINT COMING OFF. EXPOSING METAL.
I WAS DRIVING ON THE PARKWAY AND MY CAR SUDDENLY MADE A CLUNKING NOISE WITH A NOTICE THAT POPPED UP SAYING REDUCED ENGINE POWER AND DROPPED DOWN TO 20 MPH. I WAS ABLE TO SAFELY PULL OVER, BUT THIS WAS EXTREMELY DANGEROUS AND I ALMOST GOT HIT ON A 4 LANE ROAD HIGH SPEED ROAD. I WAS NOT ABLE TO ACCELERATE MY CAR PAST 20MPH. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT REMAINED ON EVEN AFTER PULLING OVER AND RESTARTING MY CAR AFTER 30 MINUTES. MY CAR IS OUT OF WARRANTY AND WILL NOT BE COVERED.
PRESSING ON BREAK LOST BREAKING POWER. WAS TOLD BY MY MECHANIC BREAK VACUUM PUMP HAD ISSUE. HE SPECIFICALLY MENTIONED THE ISSUE HE FOUND DOCUMENTED.
WHILE DRIVING AT A HIGH RATE OF SPEED, MY ENGINE REDUCED LIGHT CAME ON AND WOULD NOT ALLOW ME TO DRIVE OVER 32 MPH. THIS COULD HAVE CAUSED AN ACCIDENT WITH SEVERE INJURY CONSIDERING WHERE I WAS DRIVING. I HAVE SEEN MANY OTHERS COMPLAIN ABOUT THIS, WHY HASN'T IT BEEN RECALLED, WHEN WILL IT BE RECALLED?
"SERVICE PARK ASSIST SYSTEM" ALWAYS COMES BACK NO MATTER HOW MANY TIMES I'VE TAKEN IT TO A CHEVY DEALER! NO KNOWN FIX - STRAIGHT FROM GM THERE ISN'T ANY KNOWN FIX. THEY THOUGHT IT'S WHEN YOU USE REMOTE START ... WELL I DIDN'T USE THE REMOTE START AFTER CHEVY "REPROGRAMMED" THE CAR AND THE MESSAGE CAME BACK AND I CANNOT USE THE PARK ASSIST SYSTEM PLUS WHY HAVE A FEATURE THAT CANNOT BE USED. CAR IS BELOW 50,000 MILES AND VERY LIGHTLY DRIVEN - THE AVERAGE SPEED ACCORDING TO THE CAR'S COMPUTER IS 38 MPH. ALSO SERVICE TRANSMISSION COMES UP WITH SOME SOLENOID TROUBLE CODE AND DISPLAYS "SERVICE TRANSMISSION" AT FIRST INTERMITTENTLY, BUT NOW EVERY TIME THE VEHICLE IS STARTED. IT BANGS INTO WHEN SHIFTING FROM 1 TO 2 WHEN DRIVEN. THE BODY PANEL ON THE DOOR BETWEEN THE DOORS IS FLAKING. I'VE GOTTEN A "SHIFT TO PARK" MESSAGE WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS ALREADY IN PARK WHICH DRAINS THE BATTERY.
THE VEHICLE RUNS FINE OTHER THAN WHEN THE PROBLEMS START ACTING UP. IT IS A BCM ISSUE INVOLVING THE STABILITRAK AND ABS. EVERY FEW WEEKS OR SO, I'LL GET 3 SERVICE LIGHT UPS IN MY DASH STATING 'SERVICE VEHICLE SOON, SERVICE STABILITRAK, SERVICE BRAKE ASSIST, REDUCED POWER STEERING DRIVE WITH CARE' AFTER COMING TO A STOP. WHEN I GO TO TAKE OFF THE CAR WILL REV UP AND DOWN THEN THOSE MESSAGES POP UP AS I CANNOT SPEED UP OR DRIVE. ONCE THE VEHICLE COMES TO A STOP IT SHUTS OFF AND WON'T TURN BACK ON UNTIL ABOUT 10 MINUTES LATER. I'VE PUT $700 IN IT REPLACING SPEED SENSORS, VACUUM PUMP AND VACUUM SENSOR AND THE PROBLEM STILL OCCURS. IF IT WERE TO HAPPEN ON THE HIGHWAY THIS COULD BE VERY DANGEROUS AS IT ALREADY OCCURRED AT AN INTERSECTION STOPLIGHT IN COLUMBUS OHIO
POWER STEERING IS LOCKING UP WHEN MAKE A TURNAROUND OR FOR A TURN WHEEL IN MOTION. THE CAR WILL BE ON AND WHEN THE POWER STEERING IS ABOUT TO LOSE THE POWER, MY STEREO SCREEN WILL BLACK OUT ALONG WITH THE STEERING WHEEL LOCKING. IT FEELS AS THOUGH MY POWER STEERING IS OUT WHILE MAKING A TURN. THIS DOES NOT HAPPEN, ONLY HAPPENS RANDOMLY.
WHEN VEHICLE IS PLACED IN PARK, GET "PLACE IN PARK" MESSAGE ON DASH. IF NOT CLEARED, DASH LIGHTS STAY ON AND DRAIN BATTERY LEAVING DRIVER STRANDED. THIS COULD LEAD TO A VERY UNSAFE CONDITION, DEPENDING ON WHERE THIS OCCURS. DOING A SEARCH OF THE FIRST 70 CLAIMS ON YOUR SITE; 30% OF THEM ADDRESSED THIS ISSUE. WHY HAS NOTHING BEEN DONE TO RECTIFY THIS UNSAFE CONDITION? CLAIM #'S LOOKED AT: 11385598, 113384695, 11377868, 11377077,11373245, 11372867, 11367012, 11365172, 11363789. 11363275, 11361450, 11360384, 11360062, 11355051, 11353844, 11352179, 11351612, 11351422, 11350951, 11349692, 11348857. THERE IS A SERVICE BULLETIN # 19-NA-206 BY GM (SEE ATTACHMENT) ON THIS ISSUE, BUT IT DOES NOT COVER THE REPAIR UNDER WARRANTY, EVEN THOUGH IT EFFECTS SEVERAL YEARS AND MAKES. THIS WOULD SEEM TO BE A MANUFACTURER DEFECT OR QC PROBLEM, NOT SOMETHING INDUCED BY THE OPERATOR. THOUGH NO DEATHS OR INJURIES HAVE BEEN REPORTED BY THIS PROBLEM, ONE COULD SPECULATE THERE MAY HAVE BEEN SOME OR COULD BE. USUALLY THE QUESTION OF YOUR BATTERY BEING DEAD IS NOT ASKED AT THE DEATH OR INJURY SITE. THIS ISSUE CAN NOT ALWAYS BE DUPLICATED AT THE DEALERSHIP, SO IS OFTEN TURNED AWAY. THIS PARTICULAR VEHICLE WILL DO THIS MULTIPLE TIMES AND THAN STOP FOR AWHILE, THAN ACT UP AGAIN. EACH TIME IT HAS BEEN TAKEN IN TO BE LOOKED AT, THERE ARE NO CODES, AND THE SYMPTOM CAN NOT BE DUPLICATED. DRIVE IT HOME AND IT WILL HAPPEN AGAIN, OR NOT. LAST TIME IT TOOK TWENTY MINUTES OF TURNING CAR ON AND OFF, SHIFTING IN AND OUT OF PARK, ETC TO GET CAR TO SENSE IT WAS INDEED IN PARK. I AM SUBMITTING THIS REPORT FOR A FRIEND BUT WOULD LIKE ALL FOLLOW-UP INFORMATION TO PASS ONTO HIM.
AS I WAS DRIVING AT A HIGH SPEED MY ENGINE POWER REDUCED LIGHT CAME ON AND MY CAR SPEED SLOWED DOWN DRASTICALLY. WHEN DIAGNOSED IT SAID IT WAS THE ACCELERATOR POSITION PEDAL. THIS IS VERY UNSAFE AND ALMOST CAUSED A WRECK. FROM WHAT I HEAR THIS IS COMMON WITH THE MABILU AND NEEDS TO BE RECALLED SEEING THAT SOMEONE COULD LOSE THEIR LIFE.
WHILE RIDING ON THE HIGHWAY AT 70MPH I EXPERIENCED A TOTAL LOSS OF POWER. THE CAR WARNED ME AND THE ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. I COULD NOT ACCELERATE BEYOND 30 MPH. WHEN I HAD IT CHECKED WITH A CODE SENSOR IT TOLD ME THERE WAS AN ISSUE WITH THE THROTTLE POSITION SENSOR. THE CODE WAS P2138. THIS CREATED A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION ON A QUICK MOVING HIGHWAY.
BACK IN DECEMBER OF 2020, EVERY TIME I STOPPED AT A RED LIGHT OR BRAKE (WHEN COMING TO A STOP IN TRAFFIC) THE CAR COMPLETELY SHUTS OFF. I WOULD GET A WARNING THAT THE CAR WAS IN BATTERY SAVE MODE AND THE STABILITRAK LIGHT WOULD COME ON. THE MORNING OF JAN. 12, 2021, IT HAPPENED WHILE DRIVING ON THE INTERSTATE 322. I BLOCKED RUSH HOUR TRAFFIC FOR ABOUT 20 MINUTES BEFORE THE CAR STARTED BACK UP. WHILE THIS WAS HAPPING NOTHING ON THE CAR WORKED. IT BLOW OUT COOL AIR AND THE RADIO AND WINDOWS DIDN'T WORK. THIS IS A BIG PROBLEM AND IS VERY DANGEROUS. NOT JUST FOR ME AND MY FAMILY BUT OTHER DRIVERS ON THE ROAD. I DID TAKE THE CAR TO BE SERVICED UNFORTUNATELY, THEY COULD NOT FIND ANYTHING WRONG WITH THE CAR. INSTEAD OF RESTING ON THE BREAK IN TRAFFIC, WE PUT THE CAR IN PARK. YOU CAN SEE HOW THAT CAN BE PROBLEMATIC. IN ADDITION TO THAT, NOW IT SOUND LIKE SOME SORT OF LIQUID IS PASSING THROUGH WHEN I COME TO A STOP/PARK. FAST FORWARD TO WHAT HAS LEAD ME TO FILING A VEHICLE SAFETY COMPLAINT, THIS EVENING MY SON WAS DRIVING ON US 22 WHEN HE CALLED ME IN A PANIC BECAUSE WHILE DRIVING A WARNING DISPLAYED ON THE DASH ENGIN POWER REDUCED, TRACTION LIGHT AND ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON SIMULTANEOUSLY. THE SPEED REDUCED TO ABOUT 20 AND WOULD NOT ACCELERATE. I TOLD HIM TO PUT ON THE HAZARD LIGHTS AND PULL OVER02 AS SOON AS IT WAS SAFE. HE DID AS I SAID AS I WAITED ON THE PHONE WITH HIM. HE TURNED THE CAR OFF AND LET IT REST FOR ABOUT 5 MINUTES. THE CAR STARTED BACK UP WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS. THE TRACTION LIGHT WENT OFF BUT THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT IS STILL ON. HE MADE IT HOME WITHOUT ANY MORE INCIDENTS. AS I STATED ABOVE YOU CAN SEE HOW THIS IS A SERIOUS PROBLEM. I AM LEARNING THAT I AM NOT THE ONLY ONE WITH A CHEVY MALIBU (2016 64,763 MILES) WITH SAFETY ISSUES. THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE. I HOPE THAT NO ONE HAS TO LOSE THEIR LIFE BEFORE ACTION IS TAKING. THEY NEED TO RECALL AND GIVE A REFUND.
WHEN I'M DRIVING I GET A MESSAGE SAYING 'ENGINE REDUCE POWER' AND I CAN'T GO OVER 25 MPH
CAR SHOWED A "REDUCED ENGINE POWER" NOTIFICATION AND COULD NOT ACCELERATE OVER 15 MPH.
AS I WAS EXITING THE HIGHWAY THE JUST SLOWED TO A CRAWL . THE SCREEN SAID REDUCED ENGINE POWER AND WOULDN'T ALLOW ME TO ACCELERATE PAST 15 - 20 MILES PER HOUR. LUCKILY THERE WERE NO CARS FOLLOWING BEHIND ME AT THE TIME . I PULLED OVER SHUT THE CAR OFF AND ISSUE CONTINUED. I PLUGGED UP A CODE READER AND GOT P2138
Data synced from NHTSA on May 4, 2026