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.
In December, 2014, we purchased a 2007 Chevy Malibu for our teenage daughter. End of February 2015, when in park with the motor running, the power steering light came on and the steering wheel would not turn ( like it is locked up). Shut the vehicle off and restart and then power steering would work. Called GM due to finding numerous complaints and recalls on the Chevy Malibu regarding steering. I was told that my car, according to the VIN, was not under recall. GM agreed to pay for 1 hour of diagnostics.took car to a GM dealer to have two other uncompleted recalls on the Malibu taken care of. I noticed a clunking sound when turning into the dealership. A number of codes came up on the diagnostics relating to power steering and low voltage. Dealer said it would be a long shot but replacing the battery might fix the problem. I did not have the dealer replace the battery. Daughter drove the car a few days later and the car did the same thing numerous times (after starting the car the power steering light comes on and cannot turn the wheel). I will not let my daughter drive this car now as I am afraid the steering will lock up when driving. I drove the car the next day and when parked with the motor running the steering wheel would start turning by itself and make a growling sound. Our local mechanic witnessed the car's steering wheel turning back and forth when the car was idling and in park and no one touching the wheel. I have an appointment at the GM dealer this week for more diagnostics that GM says they will not pay for. GM did advise me to call in from the dealership once the problem is diagnosed and they may or may not reimburse me for part of the cost of repairs. I did replace the battery today and the steering wheel is still turning by itself when idling.
The contact owns a 2007 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving approximately 35 mph, the power steering warning light illuminated and the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The failure recurred on several occasions. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 15V064000 (steering). The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 120,000.
The contact owns a 2007 Chevrolet Malibu. While driving 30 mph, the steering wheel seized and excessive force was required. The contact shut off and restarted the vehicle which resumed normal operation. The failure recurred multiple times. The vehicle was taken to a dealer for a diagnosis of the failure. The technician stated that the steering sensor or the entire steering column needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and they had informed the contact that the VIN was not included in the NHTSA campaign numbers: 15V064000 (steering) or 14E044000(steering). The approximate failure mileage was 106,000.
Friday while driving I noticed an issue with my steering it was harder to turn than usual and a felt like a vibration. Sunday while I was driving the steering went out it felt as though the steering wheel locked mid turn causing me to lose control of my vehicle nearly wrecking luckily there wasn't any other cars close by when I got home I researched the problem only to find that it's a very common issue and that 2007 Malibu is the only year not covered by the recall even though many owners are having this problem. Chevy knows that their power steering is faulty yet they refuse to help 2007 model owners. Had I of been driving on the highway or had I not been lucky enough to be the only car on that road at the time people could have been seriously hurt.
- Rochester, IN, USA
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Power steering is intermittently failing to identical conditions noted in the recent extended recall of Chevy Malibu's, recall number 14772. I called GM and they said my 2007 Malibu is not part of the recall. This is the second recall for this power steering failure from GM where they are now applying it to additional vehicles. They are obviously missing something because my Malibu is failing also.
Driving. Along steering would lock have to cut my car off restart on 3/12/2015 driving home from work had to cut my car off three times to get it home with hazard lights on doing 20 miles got I'm driving will not unlock. This car has same problem 2006 cars does. This us my only transportation. Why is this not in recall for the 2006.my car was manufactured ON09/2006?...
Steering: (2014-2015) the power steering goes out unexpectedly while driving. A power steering notice appears on the radio. Had a mechanic check power steering fluid and found no need, fluid level was fine. Power steering outages continue to happen intermittently and without notice until finally going out completely in March 2015. Power steering is on at start-up of vehicle then goes out in first minute or two of driving. Chevrolet dealer replaced power steering torque sensor @ $470. There is a recall for this same issue in the previous model year but was told my car is not covered. The car only has 55,000 miles. Engine: (2014) engine block cracked after 5 minute drive to work with only 35,000 miles on the car. Mechanic said they had never seen anything like it. All fluid levels were fine and there was no apparent reason for this to happen. Because the vehicle is a 2007 the warranty was expired. Paid $2000 for a used engine to be installed! now paying for the "not covered" power steering issue. Perhaps it's time to buy a different make of vehicle.
My steering wheel started making a grinding noise at a specific position on the wheel. Specifically right where you would keep the wheel to make the car drive straight. After 2 days of this happening, the power steering went out in the middle of my morning commute. I researched this and it is a known issue on Chevy Malibu and has been recalled on the '05, '06 and '08 but for some reason was not recalled on the '07, even with this being a known issue on all other model years surrounding it. I had to replace the steering column entirely which ended up costing $1,300.
The contact owns a 2007 Chevrolet Malibu. While driving at 65 mph, the steering wheel seized and the power steering warning light illuminated. The failure recurred several times. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 90,000.
Power steering failed while driving on the highway. Power steering will engage after restarting vehicle, but will fail seconds later with cabin notification "power steering" on the console and audible ringing.
The contact owns a 2007 Chevrolet Malibu. While driving at various speeds, the power steering suddenly malfunctioned and caused the steering wheel to become very difficult to turn. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed that the steering column and the control module was defective and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The contact was informed that the VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 15V064000 (steering). The failure mileage was 60,000.
Steering became very hard to control. Light flashed on briefly. Steering wheel began to shake. I've looked online and others have complained of a faulty sensor. My wife took it to the dealership today and they refused to repair/replace at no cost.
The contact owns a 2007 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that the steering randomly failed on several occasions. The contact stated that the failure occurred for about a month and the vehicle restarted and ran fine until 2/14/15. The power steering light illuminated on the instrument panel when the failure occurred. The contact did not take the vehicle to the dealer. However, he was made aware of NHTSA campaign number: 15V064000(steering) and was told by the manufacturer that the vehicle was not included in the recall. The vehicle was not been repaired. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 165,000. Updated 4/21/15 updated 9/27/2017
The contact owns a 2007 Chevrolet Malibu. While driving at 38 mph, the steering wheel was difficult to maneuver. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 167,880.
The contact owns a 2007 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that when the engine was started, the power steering ESC warning indicator illuminated and the steering wheel seized. The failure recurred four times. The vehicle was taken to a dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure and the VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 15V064000 (steering). The failure mileage was approximately 105,000.
The contact owns a 2007 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 70 mph, the power steering seized and the warning light illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The contact was made aware of NHTSA campaign number: 15V064000 (steering) however, the VIN was not included. The failure mileage was 104,000.
The contact owns a 2007 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 45 mph, the steering wheel seized without warning. The failure recurred two times. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the steering column needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 89,000. Updated 04/06/15 updated 06/25/2015
I was driving down the road and the power steering went out. I could hardly turn the wheel. Now it happens every time I drive. I'm afraid to drive it now. They did a recall for my car but apparently the VIN on my car is exempt for some unknown reason.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Kennebec, SD, USA