DROVE THE CAR CAME HOME AND CAR WOULD NOT GO INTO PARK THE GEAR SHIFT BUTTON WAS STUCK AND WOULD NOT POP TO COME OUT FOR PARK AND ANTI THEFT LIGHT SYSTEM WENT ON AND DOORS LOCKED. COULD NOT GET OUT AND HAD TO OPEN WINDOWS TO GET OUT , KEY ALSO STUCK WOULD NOT RELEASE DUE TO CAR STUCK IN PARK. I HAVE HAD THIS CAR FOR 6 MONTHS I BOUGHT IT USED AND THIS IS THE 3RD TIME IT HAS DONE THIS, IT IS AT THE DEALER NOW BUT NO UPDATES YET....PRIOR TO THAT STABILITY LIGHT CAME ON AND ENGINE LIGHT THOSE WENT OUT... NOT SURE CAR IS A PIECE F SH*T THOUGH I WANT TO RETURN IT I DO NOT FEEL SAFE IN IT AT ALL.... HOW CAN CHEVY GET AWARDS WHEN THEY BUILD SH*T CARS....

Here is what we wrote to the CEO of GM

Hi Ms. Barra,

I'm writing you in hopes of resolving an issue with our vehicle. My wife and I have been the proud owners of a 2010 Chevy Malibu for six years. We have loved the car from the first test drive and every day since, leading up to this past Friday. As I pulled out from work, I noticed that as the car should have been going into second or third gear, the RPM's just revved. I was heading down a hill at the time, and when it got to around 30-35 mph, the gear caught (thank goodness because it was starting to get a bit scary at that moment) and was able to be driven like normal. I had a few stop lights along the way home, and each time that I came to a complete stop and then started driving, the same thing would occur. As I got home, I called the nearest dealership, David Stanley Chevrolet here in Oklahoma City, to make an appointment to have it looked at. It sat in the garage for the duration of the weekend, and then I took it in this morning (Monday Aug.22nd) for my appointment. As I was driving from my house to the dealership (around 8 miles) I noticed that it had gotten worse. A few times on the trip I did not think that it was going to make it the whole way there and then about a mile or so from the dealership, the check engine light came on. Later, I had to go in reverse after I arrived and found that the car would not shift into reverse. I dropped it off to have them do the diagnostic on it for $120. As I got home, my wife and I did some research on our car, trying to figure out what it might be while the diagnostic was taking place. I have to say that I was shocked by what I found. Website after website with comments from other Chevy Malibu owners ranging from 2000, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011 describing the exact same issues I was having. All describing a "broken 35R wave plate" that results in a "loss of reverse gear, slipping or harsh 3rd or 5th gear shift". My heart sank as I read some of the comments showing what was needed to fix it and then, of course the cost. Even the low end numbers on some of the comments for price were still very high. I was hoping for a miracle but I felt like I already knew before the dealership called back what it would be. Sure enough, as Jason Ludington called back, he told me about the "35R wave plate" and that the transmission would have to be disassembled. He estimated a cost of around $3800 but said that they would only know the actual number when they got it taken apart.

Ma'am, I understand the risk undertaken when you purchase a vehicle new or used. I understand there are going to be certain things in life that cannot be controlled by a dealership or a car company. There are certain things, however, that is a universal understanding (or should be) between a car company and their customers. One of these is the transmission. We did buy the car used but it only had a few thousand miles on it, and it was in the same year it was built. We bought it from a Chevy dealership (Jim Glover Chevrolet in Tulsa). We take care of our vehicles. We remain up to date on servicing and our cars are never driven in a reckless or dangerous manner. Over the course of six years we have driven it around 60,000 miles. It has either been in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Joplin, Missouri or Oklahoma City for the duration of our ownership. We have made about 5 family trips in that time where it was driven over 2+ hours. I do not consider the 70,000 miles it has on it now to be worthy of a broken 35R wave plate or anything else in the transmission. I felt a bit naive reading over the comments related to this model of vehicle apparently dating all the way back to 2000. Through the years, my wife and I have developed a bit of blind trust for Chevrolet. Both of our families had Chevrolets growing up. Our friends had Chevrolets growing up. It was quite natural when we came together that the cars in our family would also be Chevrolet. I have to tell you, had I previously known about these issues you probably would not be receiving this email from me today because I never would have bought the Malibu to begin with. The worst part is for me, and mostly everyone else with the same problems, is that there was absolutely no warning. Thursday the 18th. Fine. Morning of Friday the 19th. Fine. Coming home, for the first time since I've had it, the car scared me. By this evening, I have around a $4,000 problem. Needless to say, I think this should be a recall issue. Seeing the cars I grew up with go for 250,000 + miles without a transmission issue and this 2010 cannot make it to 70,000 without having to be replaced leaves me scratching my head.

We have taken some steps to see what kind of help we can get since we are out of warranty. The initial person that we contacted at GM gave me some hope that this matter would be taken care of. The senior advisor that we spoke to, not as much. She seemed a bit nonchalant about the whole issue and I think it would have helped just a little to know that they actually cared and understood our situation. My wife actually asked if this should be something that we should continue to be sick to our stomachs over or that it is being resolved. We were told we would get a call back Wednesday. The number we called was 1-866-790-5700 ext.------. Our case number is ---------. The VIN# on our vehicle is ---------. The error code in the vehicle is P0776.

The main reason that I am writing to you is because right now, I feel like nobody cares. As I drove the car in to be dropped off, it kind of felt like cattle to the stockyard. Next one up. I'm not going to go into what this will do with the day to day around my house. Suffice it to say that having one vehicle will be difficult. We bought two vehicles for a reason and, up until today, thought we had two reliable vehicles. I cannot pay, at this point, the $4,000 to get my car back up and running. As of right now, it's looking like it will be a nice lawn ornament. I'm hoping this will reach some understanding eyes. I'm hoping that it will also open those eyes to the fact that there is a real issue here. I'm thankful that all of the places the car had issues was something I could control. I cannot imagine going down the highway at 65+ mph and having the transmission blow in traffic. Thank you for your time, and we hope to hear back from you soon.

Very respectfully,

Samuel and Jessica Davis

I just got off the highway picking up my son from college in Michigan. I stopped at a traffic light and accelerated, but the car wouldn’t move. I took it to the dealership and they told me the transmission slips in reverse and 3-5th gears; 35R wave plate was broken. They fixed the car (supposedly) and I drove about 10 miles, stopped at a light and…the same problem. I was furious! I had the dealership tow it back to the shop and made them give me a loaner car! After having my car for a week, I have driven it for 2 days now and it appears to be ok. The good thing was it was covered under warranty.