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2017 Chevrolet Malibu

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

More warning signs than most Malibu years

Owner complaints for the 2017 Chevrolet Malibu are substantially higher than the model-year median of 310.5.

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When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

397 reports with mileage · 305 unknown

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Engine. Review the 253 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 161 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Power Train. Review the 139 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

16 crash reports4 fire reports8 injury reports

Electrical System complaints

161 reports
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60,000 miles · Mar 22, 2021
Electrical SystemEngineFuel/propulsion System

I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE IN 2018 WITH 20,000 MILES ON IT. MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT HAS BEEN ON MORE THAN 7 TIMES IN THE PAST 2 YEARS. I HAD TO HAVE THE FUEL INJECTOR WORKED ON, SOMETIMES IT WON'T SHIFT COMPLETELY INTO PARK, I HAD IT DECREASE IN SPEED FROM 70 ON THE HIGHWAY TO NO MORE THAN 20 MPH WITH OVER $400 IN REPAIRS JUST THAT T…

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I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE IN 2018 WITH 20,000 MILES ON IT. MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT HAS BEEN ON MORE THAN 7 TIMES IN THE PAST 2 YEARS. I HAD TO HAVE THE FUEL INJECTOR WORKED ON, SOMETIMES IT WON'T SHIFT COMPLETELY INTO PARK, I HAD IT DECREASE IN SPEED FROM 70 ON THE HIGHWAY TO NO MORE THAN 20 MPH WITH OVER $400 IN REPAIRS JUST THAT TIME. I DO NOT DRIVE FAST OR DEPRIVE MY CAR OF REGULAR MAINTENANCE. I HAVE NEVER HAD ISSUES LIKE THIS WITH ANY OTHER VEHICLE.

NHTSA ODI #11404256

119,846 miles · Mar 16, 2021
Electrical System

THROTTLE PEDAL SENSOR WENT OUT WHILE DRIVING ON HIGHWAY AND WOULDN'T LET ACCELERATE AND I JUST BOUGHT THE CAR IN OCTOBER

NHTSA ODI #11403416

29,800 miles · Mar 16, 2021
Electrical System

PUTTING THE CAR INTO PARK THE IGNITION WILL NOT SHUT OFF WITH THE MESSAGE NOT IN PARK. 10 MONTHS AGO HAD DEALER FIX. NEW HARNESS FROM TRANS TO SHIFTER. NOW PROBLEM BACK AGAIN IGNITION STAYS ON EVEN WHEN SHIFTER IS IN PARK SAFETY ISSUE IF CAR WILL NOT COMPLETELY SHUT OFF

NHTSA ODI #11403334

66,700 miles · Mar 11, 2021
Electrical SystemEngineExterior Lighting

GOING TO WORK ON A CITY STREET CAR COMPLETELY SHUT OFF. IT BLACKED OUT. NO HAZARDS NO LIGHTS AND THIS WAS AT 3:30 IN THE MORNING. AND IT'S HAPPENING MORE AND MORE. IT HAPPENED TO MY HUSBAND ON A BUSY STREET. ALL WE CAN DO IS WAIT AND TRY TO START IT UNTIL LUCKILY IT DID. BUT BEFORE THIS STARTED, THE CAR KEPT ON SHUTTING OFF ON M…

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GOING TO WORK ON A CITY STREET CAR COMPLETELY SHUT OFF. IT BLACKED OUT. NO HAZARDS NO LIGHTS AND THIS WAS AT 3:30 IN THE MORNING. AND IT'S HAPPENING MORE AND MORE. IT HAPPENED TO MY HUSBAND ON A BUSY STREET. ALL WE CAN DO IS WAIT AND TRY TO START IT UNTIL LUCKILY IT DID. BUT BEFORE THIS STARTED, THE CAR KEPT ON SHUTTING OFF ON ME WHEN I COME TO A STOP. IT'S HAPPENED AT LEAST 6 TIMES IN THE LAST 3 WEEKS. AND TODAY IT STATED ON THE DASHBOARD THAT IT WAS REDUCING ITS SPEED. WHAT'S NEXT?! IT'S DANGEROUS BECAUSE I HAVE MY KIDS WITH ME AND I'M AFRAID SOMEONE MIGHT REAR END ME ONE DAY. OR IF IT COMPLETELY BLACKS OUT ON ME ON MY WAY TO WORK AND I HAVE NO ONE TO HELP ME AND I GET STRANDED. I WISH THEY WOULD DO A RECALL. I'VE SEEN ONLINE HOW IT'S BEEN HAPPENING TO A LOT OF PEOPLE.

NHTSA ODI #11402508

Mileage unknown · Mar 11, 2021
Electrical System

WHEN I SHIFT TO PARK AND ATTEMPT TO TURN THE VEHICLE OFF A WARNING COMES UP TELLING ME TO PUT THE CAR IN PARK AND I THEN HAVE TO TURN THE VEHICLE BACK ON MOVE THE SHIFTER DOWN TO DRIVE AND SLOWLY MOVE THROUGH EACH GEAR UNTIL THE PARKING SENSOR WILL RECOGNIZE THE SHIFTER IS IN PARK THIS HAS ALSO HAPPENS TO OTHER PEOPLE I HAVE TO …

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WHEN I SHIFT TO PARK AND ATTEMPT TO TURN THE VEHICLE OFF A WARNING COMES UP TELLING ME TO PUT THE CAR IN PARK AND I THEN HAVE TO TURN THE VEHICLE BACK ON MOVE THE SHIFTER DOWN TO DRIVE AND SLOWLY MOVE THROUGH EACH GEAR UNTIL THE PARKING SENSOR WILL RECOGNIZE THE SHIFTER IS IN PARK THIS HAS ALSO HAPPENS TO OTHER PEOPLE I HAVE TO ALLIED TO WITH THE SAME MODEL

NHTSA ODI #11400337

82,000 miles · Feb 26, 2021
Electrical SystemEngine

DRIVING AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS CAR SUDDENLY SLOWED DOWN AND REDUCED ENGINE POWER POPPED UP ON THE SCREEN. THE CAR WOULDN'T ACCELERATE MORE THAN 20 MPH. LUCKILY I WAS NEAR THE SHOULDER, BUT IF I WASN'T I COULD'VE EASILY GOTTEN INTO AN ACCIDENT. THIS HAS HAPPENED TO MANY OTHER VEHICLES AND NEEDS TO BE LOOKED INTO. IT'S EXTREMELY DANGER…

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DRIVING AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS CAR SUDDENLY SLOWED DOWN AND REDUCED ENGINE POWER POPPED UP ON THE SCREEN. THE CAR WOULDN'T ACCELERATE MORE THAN 20 MPH. LUCKILY I WAS NEAR THE SHOULDER, BUT IF I WASN'T I COULD'VE EASILY GOTTEN INTO AN ACCIDENT. THIS HAS HAPPENED TO MANY OTHER VEHICLES AND NEEDS TO BE LOOKED INTO. IT'S EXTREMELY DANGEROUS AND COULD GET SOMEONE KILLED.

NHTSA ODI #11398035

Mileage unknown · Jan 23, 2021
Air BagsElectrical SystemFuel/propulsion System

VEHICLE HAS SEVERAL RECALLS

NHTSA ODI #11389614

86,000 miles · Jan 15, 2021
Electrical SystemEnginePower Train

THE VEHICLE HAS SHUT OFF MORE THAN 5 TIMES WHILE DRIVING REQUIRING A TOW AND WORK DONE TO THE VEHICLE. THE ALTERNATOR, BATTERY, AND SENSORS HAVE BEEN REPLACED BUT THE VEHICLE STILL TURNS OFF WHILE DRIVING.

NHTSA ODI #11388396

82,000 miles · Dec 22, 2020
Electrical SystemEngineFuel/propulsion System

MY POWER STEERING ASSIST POPS UP AND DISAPPEARS. CAR COMPLETELY SHUT OFF ON ME AT A STOP SIGN(TWICE) AND WOULD NOT CRANK BACK UP

NHTSA ODI #11384597

61,000 miles · Dec 15, 2020
Electrical SystemEnginePower Train

I WAS ON THE EWAY AND I WAS GOING 80MPH IN THE LEFT LANE, AND MY CAR JERKED TO DECELERATE TO 20MPH. THE MESSAGE SAID, 'ENGINE POWER REDUCED'.

NHTSA ODI #11383512

Official recalls

4

21V649000 · Seat Belts:critical Fasteners; Seat Belts:rear/other:retractor

Aug 20, 2021

General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2016-2021 Chevrolet Malibu and 2019-2021 Cadillac XT4 vehicles. The rear seat belt retractors may be improperly secured with loose or missing fasteners.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: An improperly secured seat belt retractor may not function properly in a crash, increasing the risk of injury.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect and tighten the rear seat belt retractors, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on September 17, 2021. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 and Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006. GM's number for this recall is N212333380.

Additional source detail variants (2)

Seat Belts:rear/other:retractor

General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2016-2021 Chevrolet Malibu and 2019-2021 Cadillac XT4 vehicles. The rear seat belt retractors may be improperly secured with loose or missing fasteners.

Consequence: An improperly secured seat belt retractor may not function properly in a crash, increasing the risk of injury.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect and tighten the rear seat belt retractors, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on September 17, 2021. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 and Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006. GM's number for this recall is N212333380.

Seat Belts:critical Fasteners

General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2016-2021 Chevrolet Malibu and 2019-2021 Cadillac XT4 vehicles. The rear seat belt retractors may be improperly secured with loose or missing fasteners.

Consequence: An improperly secured seat belt retractor may not function properly in a crash, increasing the risk of injury.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect and tighten the rear seat belt retractors, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on September 17, 2021. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 and Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006. GM's number for this recall is N212333380.

18V400000 · Air Bags:sensor:occupant Classification

Jun 14, 2018

General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Chevrolet Malibu vehicles. During servicing, a Passenger Presence System (PPS) may have been installed that was not correctly calibrated to the vehicle's seat type. As a result, the PPS may not properly identify an adult passenger from a child passenger in the front passenger seat, potentially causing the air bag to not deploy when it should, or causing the air bag to deploy when it shouldn't.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: In the event of a crash, improper air bag deployment can increase the risk of injury.

Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger PPS seat service kit, free of charge. The recall began August 7, 2018. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 18208.

18V358000 · Fuel System, Gasoline:delivery:fuel Pump

May 31, 2018

General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015-2018 GMC Canyon, 2016-2017 Buick Envision, 2016-2018 Chevrolet Colorado and Malibu, 2017-2018 GMC Acadia, 2018 Buick LaCrosse, Cadillac ATS, Chevrolet Equinox, and GMC Terrain vehicles. The high pressure fuel pump may detach from its mounting flange, possibly resulting in the pump damaging the high pressure fuel line.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: A damaged fuel line can create a fuel leak, increasing the risk of a fire.

Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the high pressure fuel pump, and high pressure fuel pipe, free of charge. The recall began July 2, 2018. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 18188.

16V870000 · Air Bags:side/window

Dec 2, 2016

General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2017 Malibu vehicles manufactured on November 10, 2016. The right-hand rear side air bag inflator manifold may have insufficient welds.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: Insufficient welds could cause the inflator to separate and propel air bag debris into the cabin during a crash. Also, the inflator could fail to inflate during a crash, increasing the risk of injury.

Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the rear side air bag modules, free of charge. The recall began on January 25, 2017. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 16146.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.