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10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
4 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
4 / 0
Average Mileage:
48,968 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

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.

2012 Chevrolet Malibu engine problems

engine problem

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2012 Chevrolet Malibu Owner Comments (Page 1 of 3)

problem #48

Mar 152022

Malibu

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The electric power steering and ESC systems. It is or was under recall for this type of vehicle. The steering becomes hard and vehicle shakes the tire rotation is being read wrong by computer. It doesn't want to stay 9n the road...the stability of vehicle is compromised.

- Montrose, MN, USA

problem #47

Mar 202022

Malibu

  • miles
ESC reduced power reads across my monitor's screen. It could be numerous of these that cause this. I've done what I can afford, but no luck. I've done research & it's very common for this to happen among these. Please help me out with at least pinpointing the problem, thanks!

- Forest, MS, USA

problem #46

Apr 242021

Malibu

  • 144,000 miles
I brought my vehicle into a Chevrolet center near me to have a 'manufacturers warranty fix' done to my vehicle on 04/17/2021, as the power steering had failed and I was able to get this fixed for free. When I turned my vehicle on and noticed the power steering notification on my dash, I tried to back my car out of where I was parked and move my wheel, but could not move the wheel. When the part was replaced, I was told that there were still sensors on my dash indicating that I needed the ESC and stability traction control serviced for my car. According to the Chevrolet dealership, this had 'nothing to do with the special policy fix' and not something they would be fixing for me. After checking the NHTSA.gov for any recalls on my 2012 Chevy Malibu, I found one from May 2014 that described exactly the problem I was having with my vehicle: Loss of vehicle stability traction control, cruise control and random illumination of brake lights. I contacted Chevy once again about this recall, to which they said there 'was no recall for the vehicle, and if there was it was already fixed'. not only was this completely unprofessional and lacking concern of safety for my child and I, I do not know where to turn to for this to be remedied. Attached is the ticket for the initial fix I had done.

- Richmond, VA, USA

problem #45

Aug 112020

Malibu

  • 33,136 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The car had GM service bulletin 13036 (recall campaign 14V252) performed on September 19, 2014 and the car is experiencing the exact same conditions as described in the service bulletin[1] so the "fix" didn't resolve what is now an on going safety issue. It should be noted in the recall "why" section to owners the use of "...over time...". therefore, the issue is known to be time dependent and the fix doesn't appear to fully resolve the issue into the future. 1: we are currently seeing the following conditions: - service brake lamps may not illuminate when the service brakes are being applied. - if cruise control is engaged, additional service brake pedal travel may be required to disengage it. - traction control, electronic stability control, and panic braking assist features, if equipped, may be disabled. - service ESC and/or traction control tell-tales may illuminate with this condition.

- Kalamazoo, MI, USA

problem #44

Dec 162020

Malibu

  • miles
The ESC service light came on, while I was driving then the steering wheel locked up.

- Saint Louis, MO, USA

problem #43

Oct 192020

Malibu

  • 98,000 miles
While driving passenger side low beam stopped working, then came back on after a few days. Now both passenger and driver low beams are not working. High beams are fine. I always used the automatic lighting to have them turn on/off for anytime I drive. Low beams required new headlamps and melted relay, replaced that as well. Service ESC and traction control lights come on dash, then turn off, then come back on. It is intermittent and won't ever stay on long enough to have checked. Usually it happens when stopped at a stoplight and then when you start to accelerate again it goes off.

- Ogden, UT, USA

problem #42

Sep 112020

Malibu

  • 90,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I was driving to town and everything stop working. It scard the crap out of me. I took it to smith Chevy in turlock ca they said they didnt know what was wrong with it and charaged me $489. Lucky it didnt kill me. GM motors need to do a recall on it before someone gets hurt or lose there life.

- Stevinson, CA, USA

problem #41

May 022020

Malibu

  • 220,000 miles
Was driving on the interstate and car message center displayed engine speed reduced then it displayed within 5 minutes of the first message engine disabled. Car while not start.

- Atlanta, GA, USA

problem #40

Dec 062019

Malibu

  • 231,518 miles
Car was running on freeway and lights started flashing and then car so stalled and car doesnt start anymore

- Maywood, CA, USA

problem #39

Dec 092019

Malibu

  • 78,000 miles
Car suddenly failed to accelerate as I pulled on the the interstate. Car filled with a burning smell. Dealer said the rear defrost malfunctioned and melted the fuse block located in the trunk damaging all wiring on the fuse block. I'm concerned that this bypassed the fuse and the relay with such a surge that it was hot enough to melt the entire fuse block. This could have led to a very serious fire where I was trapped in the car. I was fortunate to be able to pull off the interstate, but if I were in the far lane, I could have been stuck in a high speed lane resulting in injury to myself or others. The car is very low mileage and garage stored, so it is in very good condition and maintained regularly. Was just in to the dealer less than 10 days prior (power steering ESC recall) with no indication that there was a problem. This is a very serious safety issue. Car currently at phillips Chevy in frankfort, il.

- Mokena, IL, USA

problem #38

Apr 012019

Malibu

  • 112,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The car struggles to pick up speed. The rpms go up to between 4 and 5 and it doesnt shift when it should. It struggles accelerating to go up hills. The same RPM issue happens no matter if car was just started or had been running for long time. The check engine light wont shut off. Mechanic hooked it up to diagnose it, result showed it was solenoid. Replaced solenoids and light remained on. Reset check engine light. Light came back on. Hooked it up to diagnose, still reported solenoid.

- Millbury, MA, USA

problem #37

Aug 112019

Malibu

  • 102,000 miles
This has happened multiple times while driving down the interstate. The cruise control is being used and when you go to apply the brakes the car does not slow down but revs the motor up and will not let you slow down. It is frightening to have this happen. If you tap the brakes but doesn't always work or hit the cruise off button it will finally stop. This could be putting us in a really bad situation if you cant get it stopped. Also the ESC light comes on for no reason while driving on dry roads. I called my Chevy dealer and was told the recall 13036 was already done in Aug 2014 if this is the same issue as recall. If so it did not take care of the problem and needs to be taken care of before it costs someone their life.

- Holyoke, CO, USA

problem #36

Dec 062018

Malibu

  • 223,000 miles
Service ESC, traction control inactive, loss of power/sluggish when driving or stopped at a light. Code 13036

- Urich, MO, USA

problem #35

Jun 122018

Malibu

  • 73,000 miles
Takata recall. My vehicle have had this system pop on a few times. As of September the light has been on abd and has not gone off. It also affect the ESC system.

- Lansing, IL, USA

problem #34

Aug 242017

Malibu

  • 94,600 miles
Takata recall for a Chevrolet Chevy Malibu 2012, you cant tell how fast your going the head light electrical fuse needs replacement, driver pedals need to be replaced also.

- Laurinburg, NC, USA

problem #33

Jan 082017

Malibu 4-cyl

  • 60 miles
I was driving to work and the service traction light control illuminates and then it also read engine power control. The roads were clear and there were no issues with the drive. I was the only person on the highway and no issues. I had to then drive 30-40 miles per hour on the road, even when I drove into town there were cars passing me. Uphill the car went as low as 23 miles per hour. When the car was idle at a stop sign or intersection the car would shake but it stayed on. As I pushed on the gas to speed up the vehicle would jerk.

- Shiprock, NM, USA

problem #32

May 162016

Malibu

  • 111,100 miles
I was driving at 60 mph in cruise control on a straight road. An ambulance was heading towards me so I stepped on the brakes to slow down and pull over and the car accelerated very quickly. This was a very dangerous situation because I was moving towards the shoulder of the road because of the oncoming ambulance. I had to turn off cruise control to be able to apply the brakes. The brake lights are also not coming on when I apply the brakes. The problem with the lighting happened previously and was repaired on 04/28/2015. I thought the problem was included in recall #13036 but I was told that it was a problem with the brake switch and was not part of the recall however when I look up the recall numbers on my vehicle this recall number does not show up as still needing to be done. I paid for the repair and I am now having the serious problem of the brake lights not working again plus the even more serious problem of the brakes not working when I am in cruise control. I do not know how to proceed with having this problem corrected. The recall problem has not been repaired correctly or there is another problem that is occurring. I have attached a copy of my receipt of the repair that was done on 04/28/15.

- Ellenburg Depot, NY, USA

problem #31

Apr 152016

Malibu

  • 107,000 miles
The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Malibu. While driving 40 mph, the vehicle failed to accelerate when the accelerator pedal was depressed. The traction warning light illuminated briefly. In addition, the vehicle stalled without warning and would require multiple attempts to restart. The failure recurred intermittently. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed, but the cause of the failures was not found. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failures. The VIN was unknown. The failure mileage was 107,000.

- Fogelsville, PA, USA

problem #30

Dec 072015

Malibu

  • 92,000 miles
Hard to shift out of park and the traction control disable comes on and the brakes lights will quit working and the stability control shuts off while driving down the road. I researched and I see there was a recall for all this. Recall # 14V252000 is all the same symptoms I am experiencing and I called the dealer and they said my VIN is not listed. This needs to be taken care of I was almost rear ended twice due to the brake lights not working when it acts

- Onalaska, WI, USA

problem #29

Nov 222013

Malibu

  • miles
The contact owns a 2012 Chevrolet Malibu. While driving at approximately 25 mph, the accelerator pedal was depressed and traveled to the floorboard and caused the cruise control to malfunction. In addition, the seat belts did not latch and the vehicle crashed into a tree. The air bags failed to deploy. The contact sustained head, back, and legs injuries that required medical attention. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic and repaired. The vehicle was included in a manufacturer recall. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

- Martin, TN, USA

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