10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
26 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
12 / 0
Average Mileage:
72,654 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.

Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2004 Chevrolet Malibu:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #509

Mar 112014

Malibu

  • 100 miles
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated while driving approximately 50 mph, the vehicle exhibited a loud banging noise and stalled as the mil warning light illuminated. The contact was able to restart the vehicle after several attempts with limited power steering assist. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed that the steering column needed to be replaced. The vehicle scheduled for repairs. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 100. The VIN was unavailable.

- Laurel, MD, USA

problem #508

Apr 292013

Malibu

  • 100,000 miles
I was living in Pennsylvania at the time and as I was coming home from work I was traveling at approximately 25 to 30 mph while coming around a curve the steering went out there was no way I could steer the car and I hit 2 cars and bounced off of them into a high curb my ribs were broken and I have been having severe pain in my hip. Right before the accident there was an alert tone I thought I was low on gas when I looked at my radio (this is where it tells you things) it said no power steering when I looked at my dash panel there was a wrench in a car I was trying to correct my direction but there was no way I could steer the car at all when the crash happened I was hospitalized I didn't know what to do I have tried to contact several attorneys but after all this happened I had to sell my home and move because I was unable to work. With the loss of the car I was unable to go to the hospital for follow ups as my doctor wanted. My nephew told me to write to you my vehicle was a total loss.

- Cookeville , TN, USA

problem #507

Mar 042014

Malibu 6-cyl

  • 5,000 miles
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that the steering wheel failed without warning. The check engine warning light did not illuminate until after the failure occurred. The steering wheel returned to normal function when the engine was turned off and restarted. The contact stated that the dealer replaced the power steering system but the failure was not corrected. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 5,000 and the current mileage was 133,000. Updated 7/14/14 updated 07/18/2014

- Chestnut Ridge , NY, USA

problem #506

Mar 022014

Malibu

  • 112,000 miles
While driving, the check engine light randomly came on, and then about 30 seconds later I lost power steering. Power steering came back on its own about 40 minutes later, after letting the car sit.

- Winter Springs, FL, USA

problem #505

Mar 012014

Malibu 6-cyl

  • 72,000 miles
Bought car on 2-6-14. Within I months time, sensors registered 4 times power steering problems. GM has recalled this model from 2005 and up. But not the 2004 models with the same problems. The kelly blue book still holds the car at $5300. Just wondering if someone can help me out of this jam. Bought the car for my 23 year old daughter and afraid that she might get hurt or killed.

- Erie , PA, USA

problem #504

Aug 282013

Malibu

  • 57,756 miles
Steering failed as I was making a left hand turn. The steering warning system has been giving false indication that something is wrong with the car until it did fail. Also please check out the following www.edmunds.com/Chevrolet/Malibu/2004/consumer-discussions.html

- Port Aransas, TX, USA

problem #503

Feb 242014

Malibu

  • 146,000 miles
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while traveling various speeds, the steering suddenly seized. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was found that the electronic power steering had failed. The vehicle not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted about the failure. The failure mileage was 146,000.

- Washington, PA, USA

problem #502

Feb 172014

Malibu 6-cyl

  • 119,000 miles
Randomly while driving down the road my power steering has gone out multiple times. I listed the most recent date. Now they say it will cost around 1000 to fix. If multiple people have complained about this shouldn't their be a recall? if the roads were icy I could've crashed and killed someone.

- Waukesha, WI, USA

problem #501

Feb 102014

Malibu

  • 175,000 miles
As I was driving, the power in the steering began to lock, causing me temporarily loss of control of the steering. Luckily I was only going about 10-15 mph at the time, but I could hear clicking sounds under the steering wheel and a few lights flashed on the dashboard. I was not able to see which lights because by the time I applied the brakes and tried to avoid hitting the curb, the lights flashed off and I was able to continue driving.

- Port Wentworth, GA, USA

problem #500

Feb 072014

Malibu 6-cyl

  • 149,000 miles
My 16 year old daughter was stopped at a four way intersection. As she proceeded to turn, she lost her ability to steer the car. She was able to avoid hitting another car and get her car to the side of the road. She noticed there was a yellow dash board light that came on when she lost the steering but no prior warning of any issues or warning lights prior to loosing the steering on the vehicle. Once she got to the side of the road, her four way emergency flashers would not work. My husband went to pick her up. He restarted the car and the steering worked fine for him. There was no warning lights indicating any problem on the dash board. We brought the car to our mechanic he could not get the problem to resurface. He did note that the directional turn signals seemed to be "messed up" and he changed the light bulbs. When she lost her steering a second time we had the vehicle towed to a different mechanic who told us this was a chronic defect issue with this make/brand of vehicle and that it needed a new electronic component in the steering column which would cost us $900. I researched this information on the internet and found that there are thousands of complaints for this very issue. It occurs at different amounts of mileage. It occurs on the vehicles when they were purchased brand new and purchased used as in our case. This is not your normal wear and tear type of vehicle issue. This is a significant safety issue which is an engineering/design flaw in the vehicle. I have called the GM customer service line. Our case # is 71-127-262-2441. We now have to bring the car to our local Chevy dealer and they have told us that it could cost way more just to diagnose the problem than to repair it. Unbelievable...please help look into this safety issue as my daughter could of been killed herself and or could have caused injury to someone else without any forewarning.

- Fairfield, ME, USA

problem #499

Jan 242014

Malibu 6-cyl

  • 119,000 miles
Driving at 55mph out of nowhere powersteering lost power. Had no control of steering as well as the vehicle. Finally power steering returned to normal and I was able to pull the car off the road. Checked for error codes and found out the code is for a sensor for the electronic steering for this vehicle. Many complaints about this issue. Why has no recall been put in place for this known problem. Will be going to see an attorney too file a lawsuit. You would think that the steering of the car would be a number 1 priority for any car maker.

- Tyler, TX, USA

problem #498

Jan 202014

Malibu 6-cyl

  • 96,000 miles
Backing out of driveway steering light came on and steering wheel very hard to turn, next time vehicle started problem was not there, happened again two days later at stop sign, almost turned into on coming traffic. Very dangerous problem. 2005 and up recalled why not 2004?

- Spring Hill, FL, USA

problem #497

Dec 262013

Malibu

  • 130,000 miles
First of all I don't really expect this issue to be fixed as it has been going on for 10 years now with nothing happening to remedy the situation from either the government or Chevrolet, im doing this like others im sure to bring the problem to the front door and to make myself feel a little better, this car was meant to be a first car for my daughter and still is.what needs to be done is at least notify buyers that the Malibu has a very dangerous problem with the power steering before they buy it and that expect to pay at least $700 dollars once if your lucky.but most likely at least three times that amount according to owners and that Chevrolet has created a power steering system that will fail and hopefully not only kill the person driving it but others as well, and nobody seems to care or do anything, what's really bad is even if its fixed, the problem will likely occur again as this problem isn't even fixable by the same company that created it well I hope someone reads this but I doubt it and hopefully there's someone with morals still out there that has more power to do something than the average consumer can who knows this problem is the most obvious case of corporate greed and larceny I have ever seen in my life yet they are still getting away with it.go usa.

- Peoria, IL, USA

problem #496

Dec 282013

Malibu

  • 200,000 miles
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that the driver was traveling approximately 55 mph when the steering wheel seized. The front wheels would not respond or turn in response to steering attempts. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 200,000.

- Custer , MI, USA

problem #495

Jun 202013

Malibu

  • 150,000 miles
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact was driving 55 mph when the power steering assist malfunctioned and the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact stated that the power steering warning light was also illuminated. The vehicle was diagnosed and the contact was informed that the power steering column was defective. The manufacturer was not notified of the defect. The failure mileage was 150,000.

- Thibodaux, LA, USA

problem #494

Dec 172013

Malibu

  • 140,500 miles
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving approximately 50 mph and changing lanes, the power steering assist failed without warning. The vehicle was driven to the contact's residence and was not taken for inspection or repairs. The manufacturer was not made aware of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 140,500.

- Troy, IL, USA

problem #493

Jun 152012

Malibu

  • 65,000 miles
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving approximately 55 mph, the steering wheel became stiff and difficult to maneuver. The power steering warning light also illuminated. The failure was recurring. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for diagnosis where the mechanic stated that the steering column would need to be replaced. The manufacturer was not made aware if the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 65,000.

- Taylorsville, UT, USA

problem #492

Oct 012013

Malibu 6-cyl

  • 155,000 miles
When driving down the road my cars power steering suddenly went out and the alarm came on, on the radio "power steering". sometimes it goes out just by putting my car reverse or drive. It also will go out while turning! this is a very serious issue as I have two small children and this can cause a wreck. This is my only way of going I can't afford to fix gms mistake!

- Bowdon, GA, USA

problem #491

Nov 062013

Malibu 6-cyl

  • 156,000 miles
I was traveling on the interstate and went to make an exit, turn and lost the power steering after the wrench displayed on the dashboard. Per the dealer they advised the sensor is bad/faulty. I reviewed the other complaints similar to my experience per Chevy my VIN was not included in the investigation # PE04031 I would like to see the matter further researched if im having the exact issues as the other Malibu im not understanding why GM would repair the issue especially considering the safety issue.

- Fort Carson , CO, USA

problem #490

Jul 062011

Malibu

  • miles
Power steering went out in my 2004 Chevy Malibu. Contacted dealer - they wouldn't do anything. Very dangerous the power steering is very intermittent, locks up and stays frozen/locked up until you cut the car off. When I cut the car back on it is unfrozen/unlocked and the steering works - however it goes out intermittently and always happens while driving. Multiple complaints on this vehicles steering, which is very expensive to replace. I have heard that there were recalls on some of the 04 Malibu, but not all of them for the power steering motor.

- Gordonsville, VA, USA

Read the next 20 complaints »