There are 50 owner-reported speed control & cruise complaints for the 2018 Chevrolet Malibuin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving very slowly into a parking space, the brake pedal was pressed to stop the vehicle, but the vehicle experienced unintended acceleration and suddenly accelerated forward at a very high rate of speed and crashed into a furniture store showroom window. During the incident, the front end of the vehicle was severely damaged, but no air bags deployed. No injuries were reported. A police report was taken at the scene, and the vehicle was towed to the local dealer. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer was not yet contacted. The failure mileage was 80,000.
I was informed the vacuum pump went bad and rendered the vehicle inoperable. The vehicle would lose acceleration, shut off during auto stop and caused me to block traffic. The brakes also locked up, which almost caused me to crash in a residential neighborhood. I tried to see if there was a recall on this but I was told the recalls were handled in January of 2020 but I started driving the vehicle between July and August of 2020. This incident I'm reporting just happend 3 weeks ago. I realized there are many other issues regarding this matter and need this addressed because this almost caused bodily harm. The dealership wants me to pay for repairs on a vehicle that seem to have defective parts that jeopardise customer safety and is not being rectified.
While driving th vehicle the component that ruptured was the vehicles vacuum brake booster pump which connected directly to the engine. The ruptured caused shards of metal to be launched into the engine resulting in no brake power and needs an engine swap. There was a recall on this model vehicle for the Pedal sensor malfunction that results in the cars engine going into a reduced power mode abruptly and suddenly while driving. This malfunction has occurred on this vehicle and I was not aware of this vehicle models recall history but it stated that the recall was successfully closed out in 2020. I purchased my 2018 Chevy Malibu in the year 2021 and the issue still persist. I am not confident that the recall on this vehicle was either fully completed or successfully fixed before purchasing. The car is now at the dealer and the repair team explains the vehicle needs a new engine. I questioned about the pedal sensor malfunction and asked if it was possible that this malfunction sending the vehicle into a reduced power mode so suddenly could have effected or cause wear and tear on brake booster pump connected to the engine. The dealers repair team wasn’t confident in saying it wasn’t possible. This is likely a design issue and if a recall was completed and I was sold a vehicle uninformed of this potential issue but the malfunction still persisted I do not believe I should have to cover the full cost of repairs for this chain of events. This malfunctioned put me at danger and if it had occurred while my wife and 3 children were in the car it could have been life threatening not only to us but the other drivers around as well. With the engine reduced you can’t accelerate and with the booster pump ruptures mid drive you lose all brake power. It is hard to understand the faulty design in this but I have read reviews that others have had the same issue so I do not believe I am alone in this.
car pauses after stopping at lights and stop signs and in stop-n-go traffic and won't go as soon as gas pedal is pressed. It hesitates then jerks forward once the gas is activated. Check engine warning is for stop/start transmission accumulator sensor! Cost to repair over $1300 and seems to be the same issue seen in thousands of 2018 malibu's that have been recalled??? My car does not show an active recall??? Chevy rep Andrea at 1-800-222-1020 said sorry no recall for your car and to contact you with complaint? This issue almost caused my wife to have accidents after the car lurched forward after stopping. We were also beeped at many times as cars behind us were frustrated we could not move for 10-20 seconds after stopping! [XXX] [XXX] [XXX] Car is being repaired now by Belise Chevrolet Warwick RI 877-553-0957. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
On Jan 22,2024 while driving on the interstate the speed was unexpectedly instantly reduced, the car would not accelerate over 60 mph and the service engine light came on, the car was safely driven off the highway then towed to the dealership. My safety as well as the safety of other drivers on the highway was at risk when the car suddenly decreased to 60 mph from 75 mph which could have caused a collision. The inspection at the dealership confirmed that the issue was the intercooler for turbo found moisture/oil frozen in charge air cooler causing restriction in induction system, and the part design has been updated to help prevent the issue from happening again. My issue is that if the part has been updated that means that GM is aware of the issue and should be responsible for the cost of the part or there should have been a recall on the part. The consumer should not have to be responsible for the cost of the part or the repair to the vehicle. It is unknown if the part was inspected by an insurance representative but it was inspected by the dealership where the car was purchased. There were no prior warnings, lights or lamps occurring before the date of the incident. I feel like Gm should cover the cost of the repair, the total cost should no fall on the consumer and the vehicle manufacturer should take responsibility for the defective part.
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated while driving approximately 65 MHP, the message "Engine Power Reduced" was displayed and the vehicle decelerated to 30 MPH. The contact stated that the speed would no longer exceed 30 MPH. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The local dealer was not contacted. The contact stated that the failure had also previously occurred but after taking the vehicle to the local dealer no cause of the failure was found. The failure mileage was 110,653.
While I was driving, the entire accelerator pedal mechanism fell to the ground. My mechanic told me it is because the accelerator pedal mechanism is a bad design, including too small of a bolt, and I had to have it reattached to the car. The accelerator pedal functioned, but it was incredibly dangerous because it was on the floor and couldn't be practically used.
The car continuously is throwing a code P2138 and a warning comes up on dash saying reduced engine power. This happened 6 times to me yesterday wherein I was traveling on 1 lane winding roads in my neighborhood so the speed drops from wherever it is down to 10mph instantly. On 1 lane roads in the area where I reside there’s no safe place to pull over. This is extremely dangerous and a massive safety hazard and risk to my life!
2018 Chevy Malibu over 5 times this happens since we bought it brand new it has "Reduced Engine Power" error come on and the car can't accelerate over 30 miles per hour. This is a continued problem all the time and very dangerous when we are on the tollway that has a 70-mph speed limit, and you can't get the car to go over 30 mph. This same problem happens on our 2017 Chevy Malibu that we bought brand new since we owned it too and I have already put in a complaint filed today! This is extremely dangerous and takes you a long time to get home when you can only go 30 mph or less because of the "Reduced Engine Power" Limit. GM needs to recall these Malibu's and fix the dangerous "Reduced Engine Power" error because it's dangerous to the driver in rush hour traffic and on the tollway traffic with no ability to go over 30 mph. All these Malibu's need to be fixed properly and its GM's responsibility to ensure safety for their customers lives.
Suddenly loss of power at cruising speeds. Trouble with acceleration and loss of power. Unresponsiveness from the engine. The Check Engine Light illuminate, OBD2 call for code P2138. The speed stuck at 30 m/h on the 65 m/h thruway which cause unsafe situation for me and other drivers on the road. When googling this issue on the internet, reviews show it is common problem in this model. GM refuses to fix this issue at their cost because "according to the VIN number of my car, it is not included in the recall list" which it does not make sense.
I got P2138 code, i replaced the accelerator pedal on my cost because the dealer told me my car VIN is not include in the recall, the code keep coming back even after replacing the pedal. The problem it happen two time were I was driving on thruway "65 mph" the speed suddenly reduced to less than 30 mph which put me and the other drivers safety in dangerous situation
I keep getting a reoccurring message saying Engine Speed reduced, I can be driving going 60+MPH and randomly My car speed is reduced. This is becoming a safety issue as i have noticed this is a ongoing issue wit the 2016-2018 Chevy Malibu's.
As I was driving I was addressed with a speed reduction warning and it followed with a very abrupt problem with speed as it was reduced drastically and almost getting rear-ended in the process I was able to pull over but very unsafely and without warning
Engine power reduced notification came on the dashboard and car deaccelerated down to less than 25 miles an hour on the highway on multiple occasions. On the last occasion about 2 months ago the notification came on again, the car stalled and would not start up again. This was in ongoing traffic and I could have been seriously injured if people behind me were unable to stop in time. I sat in the middle of traffic for 45 minutes until fire and rescue came and pushed my car out of the road and onto the shoulder until the tow truck came.
Car was driving on major highway when the alarm went off and check engine light came on saying reduced engine power. Car dropped down to 20mph at roughly 2,000rpm's on a major interstate. No prior indicators and mechanic said one of the sensors was the issue. Reading up there is apparently a class action lawsuit with GM and nothing has been done about it. NHTSA needs to address this matter ASAP.
The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power with the traction control and check engine warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the accelerator pedal position assembly needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 72,721.
Vehicle won't start and dealership determine it was the battery. Replaced battery now vehicle shuts off completely when making a complete stop. Vehicle will maintain in normal operation if shifted into neutral upon stopping. The vehicle was taken to Harper Motor Dealership where it was determine the starter was bad. After replacing the starter the next the problem remained. Took the vehicle back the next day and after three days it was determined a GM expert was needed to determine the issue. One week later and a proposed bill of $3500 to repair I decided to write this down. This appears to be a major safety issue that could cause harm or death. This has been an issue since 2013 in the Malibu and the issue has still not been corrected.
Reduced engine power occurs while driving and will indicate a traction control issue and the check engine light will engage. The first time it happened, it was during a snowstorm on 2/24/2022, but it has occurred two other times while driving on a highway on sunny days (3/3/2022 and 3/8/2022) with no snow on the ground, road completely dry. Car speed dropped from approximately 55-60 mph to 20. I have to pull the car off the road, turn it off, and let set for at least one minute turned off before it will have engine power restored. Code for car was checked, and it was P2138, throttle/pedal position sensor switch.
As I was driving down the highway at 60 mph the road was clear at the time of any debris my car suddenly had two lights on the dashboard. On the left was the traction control light and the right side was the engine light. On my computer display was the words “reduced engine speed”. My car suddenly slowed from 60 to about 30 mph in a matter of seconds. It was like I had slammed my brakes. This all happened simultaneously I attempted to pull over safety and turn the car off and restart it. The lights remained on. My car was not able to get over 27 mph There was no warning what so ever If anyone would have been behind me I would have been rear ended At this time I took it to a mechanic who put it on the computer it was coded at the pedal position sensor. He was able to save the code, clear it so I was able to drive the car and advised to drive it locally for a while in case it would do it again as it is unsafe. The closest Chevy dealer is over an hour away from my town and at the time of day it was not safe to drive the car to the dealership for confirmation.
Vehicle continually throws reduced engine power code which includes while traveling at high speeds and winter weather. Vehicle resets once powered off to throw a code sometimes again immediately or within a short period of time rendering the vehicle virtually unusable. Difficult to get to a safe spot to turn vehicle off to attempt to re-set. This puts occupants in danger of being rear ended, stuck in snow/mud or hit from behind while pulled over trying to reset vehicle. This has been an ongoing problem since purchasing the car new. Was fixed under warrant once. Fix didn’t last long and have continuously had issues
Showing 1–20 of 50 complaints
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 25, 2026