This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
Steering on vehicle became difficult to turn to the right, but a lot of play in the wheel when turning left. Same situation happened off and on for approximately one week. On 7/21/12 while driving the vehicle, the console made a "dinging" sound and indicated that there was a problem with the power steering and simultaneously it lost all ease of steering. It had absolutely no power steering capability. It was very frightening to not have control of the vehicle and having to struggle to get the car to a safe place out of the road that I was driving on.
Power steering goes out during summer months; paid to repair 8/2011; works ok during winter, but power steering goes out in summer months. This is dangerous. Almost had several accidents.
As I drove my wife who was in labor to the hospital, the power steering failed as I began to turn into an intersection. Simultaneous to this, the check engine light came on. Barely made the turn without going into oncoming traffic. Power steering stayed off the rest of the trip. Arrived at hospital and turned car off. Power steering came back on. Power steering then failed on way home from the hospital.
I was driving and I heard a ding, I looked down at my gauges and the steering light was on. After that I noticed the power steering was not there. I then shut off my car and let it sit and then started it. The steering was back on but I don't want my life or any others lives at risk. Updated 07/05/12
When starting my car, there was a warning chime and the message "power steering" appeared on my driver's information center. When I put my vehicle in gear there was a loss of power steering capabilities and it was very difficult to drive without the power steering enabled.
- Orlando, FL, USA
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The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu. While driving approximately 35 mph, the power steering light illuminated on the instrument panel. The contact stated that the steering wheel became difficult to maneuver. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing or repairs. The VIN was not available. The approximate failure mileage was 208,000.
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu. While driving approximately 5 mph, the power steering warning light illuminated but the power steering assist was not affected. The failure recurred intermittently. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for diagnostics. The mechanic advised the contact that the battery could possibly have been causing the failure. The battery was replaced but the failure persisted. The vehicle was not further repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 119,000.
I was driving and the power steering flashed on dashboard. After that my steering wheel locked up. I had to pull over cause I could turn steering wheel at all. I turned my car off and restarted the steering wheel was back to normal. I am understanding why this is not a recall this very much a safety concern.
My wife was driving down the road and all of a sudden there was no power steering. She weighs 110 pounds and could not steer it at all. What if she was going 70 mph" I have read all of the complaints but GMC decides not to recall this year but recall 2005? that is a awful way of doing business. How many people have to be injured or die before they fix this" I want answers because this is not a couple of people that it happens to. This is crap!
This was approximately the first time since we had the problem fixed under the warranty when we first purchased the vehicle. The power steering just went out on my wife while she was making a left turn into a parking lot and didn't have full control of the car and almost got into an accident. It has since happened to my daughter once about three weeks after my wife's experience. Now it just happened to my wife again on 4-10-12 at mileage 144216 approx. This time she was in the parking lot and it went out causing her to not have complete control again just missing getting into an accident. It does come back on after turning off the vehicle and letting it sit. My main concern is that it just goes out without any warning and doesn't allow the driver to have complete control of steering the car because it is extremely hard to steer without the power steering if they can steer it at all.
In the middle of driving, my power steering turned on and I could not turn the wheel. I was in the middle of an intersection, and a car crashed into my back bumper. I just recently got it fixed, and found it was an electrical issue that cost me 700. When speaking to the mechanic, the told me there is a good chance it will happen again if it gets jerked the wrong way.
Power steering warning light appears in dic and car loses electronic assisted steering for a period of 5-10 seconds. This problem occurs at several different speed intervals and is very dangerous.
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that the driver was traveling 55 mph when the power steering failed. The check engine warning light illuminated prior to the failure. The vehicle was taken to a private mechanic and the manufacturer was not contacted. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and the current mileage was 83,500.
As I was slowing down to make a left turn, my vehicle all of a sudden failed to allow any steering and was almost involved in a traffic accident. I was able to brake and avoid the accident, but as soon as I came to a complete stop, the vehicle turned off and would not turn on again. When it did turn on, I was able to steer again, so I parked my vehicle.
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that the power steering would fail without warning. The contact stated that the vehicle would have to be turned off and restarted in order for the power steering to reset. The power steering warning light would then be illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but the dealer advised that they were unable to determine a failure with the vehicle. The failure mileage was unknown, but the current mileage was 155,069. Updated 08-07-12 the consumer stated the vehicle would become difficult to manage, especially when making turns, or simply moving forward. Updated 08/09/12
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving 35 mph, the power steering failed and the vehicle became hard to steer. The contact was able to maintain control of the vehicle. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer and the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and the current mileage was 151,734.
Since last year 3 or 4 times I have the dci warning and message power steering, its hard to drive, stop the car turn off and turn on again and the power came back, the warning comes when I start driving.every day I drive worry because I dont know when it will happend again, specially when im driving in the highway over 50 miles an hour.thank you for recomend me what to do.
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving 5 mph and attempting a left turn, the power steering seized with the illumination on the power steering warning light. The vehicle was then turned off for a few minutes and once restarted the power steering resumed normal operation. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The dealer was contacted and stated to the contact that the steering column needed to be replaced. The failure mileage was 134,985 and the current mileage was 135,011.
While pulling into a shopping mall the power steering stopped working and almost caused an accident. With a great deal of effort I did manage to get the car parked. However it could no longer operate safely so I had to have it towed.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Waterloo, IA, USA