2003 Chevrolet Malibu

CAR FAILED TO START. A LOCAL MECHANIC WAS AWARE OF THE PROBLEM THAT GM WAS HAVING WITH THE MALIBU'S. HE SHOWED ME HOW TO TURN THE KEY TO ON FOR 10 MINUTES AND THEN THE THEFT LIGHT WOULD STOP BLINKING AND YOU COULD THEN START THE CAR. THIS PAST YEAR IT HAS BEEN HAPPENING ABOUT DAILY OR EVERY 5 TO 6 TIMES THAT YOU GO TO START THE CAR. MOSTLY ON SHORT TRIPS OF LESS THAN 2 MILES. I CONTACTED 2 LOCAL CHEVY DEALERS AND THEY CLAIM TO KNOW NOTHING ABOUT THE PROBLEM! I HAVE BEEN TOLD TO BRING IT IN AND THEY WOULD CHECK IT OUT - AT A CHARGE. WHAT IF THIS HAPPENED IN AN AREA THAT WAS NOT SAFE FOR MY FAMILY OR ME - WE COULD NOT START THE CAR AND WOULD HAVE TO JUST SIT THERE FOR 10 MINUTES!

THIS IS THE SECOND TIME I AM HAVING THIS PROBLEM...THE SAME PROBLEM EVERYONE ELSE IS HAVING....CAR WONT START DUE TO ANTI THEFT ISSUE....LUCKILY MY CAR WAS IN A PARKING LOT AT A GROCERY STORE. THIS REALLY NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED BY GM BECAUSE EVERYONE I KNOW IS AWARE AND IF I AM INJURED IN AN ACCIDENT BECAUSE THIS FAILS WHILE DRIVING - I WILL FIND A VERY GOOD LAWYER AND COLLECT ALL THE OTHER COMPLAINERS ONLINE FOR THIS SAME ISSUE AND FILE A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT - THERE ARE PLENTY ENOUGH TO DO SO....THIS IS GETTING REDICULOUS. HOW MANY PEOPLE HAVE TO DIE BEFORE GM STEPS UP AND ACTUALLY FIXES THE PROBLEM? THEY RECALLED FOR THE CRUISE CONTROL ACCELERATOR AND WHILE I DID RESPOND AND TAKE MY CAR IN THEY TOLD ME MINE WAS NOT AN ISSUE...ONLY TO DISCOVER A YEAR LATER IT IS AN ISSUE...I JUST DEAL WITH IT LIKE I WILL THIS ONE I GUESS....UNBELIEVABLE THAT NO ONE CARES EXCEPT THE FAMILY MEMBERS OF THE PEOPLE DRIVING THESE 23K DOLLAR VEHICLES....I CANT SELL THE CAR BECAUSE EVERYONE OUT THERE KNOWS ABOUT THIS PROBLEM AND I WOULD BE SELLING A LEMON....NOW WHAT?

CAR WILL NOT START FUEL PUMP SHUTS DOWN, CAR THINKS IT IS BEING BROKEN INTO. HAVE TO SIT IN CAR FOR 10 MINUTES WITH KEY IN IGNITION TO OVERRIDE SYSTEM. HAS HAPPENED 4 TIMES IN LAST MONTH. ALSO, FUEL PUMP SHUT DOWN WHILE DRIVING ON PARKWAY- LUCKY TO GET TO SIDE OF ROAD WITHOUT AN ACCIDENT. BY THE WAY, NEW FUEL PUMP AND MODULE REPLACED AT 60,000 SO THAT IS NOT THE ISSUE.. HOW MANY PEOPLE NEED TO GET INTO ACCIDENTS OR DIE BEFORE THE NHTSA GETS INVOLVED AND MAKES CHEVY DO THE RIGHT THING AND REPLACE THIS IGNITIONS AND PASSLOCK PARTS THAT ARE DEFECTIVE!!!! OH, AND THEY GOT A BAIL OUT- BUT THE CONSUMERS DON'T GET ANY AND HAVE TO CONTINUE TO PAY THEM FOR REPAIRS THAT THEY CAUSED IN THE FIRST PLACE GM MAKES AN ASTRONOMICAL AMOUNT OF MONEY ON THESE REPAIRS. I HOPE THE NHTSA GETS A SHARE OF THAT MONEY BECAUSE YOU CERTAINLY AREN'T INTERESTED IN CORRECTING THE SITUATION. HOW MANY YEARS AND TENS OF THOUSANDS OF COMPLAINTS DOES IT TAKE??????? *TR

MY 2003 CHEVY MALIBU WOULD NOT START. I LEARNED THAT THE REASON IT WOULD NOT START WAS DUE TO THE THEFT SYSTEM PASS LOCK. SOMEHOW THE THEFT SYSTEM WAS TRIGGERED AND CUT THE FUEL SUPPLY TO THE ENGINE. I DID WHAT THE MANUAL SAID AND WAITED 10 MINUTES WITH THE KEY IN THE ON POSITION. THE CAR STARTED AFTER THAT; HOWEVER TWO WEEKS LATER, THE CAR DOES THE SAME THING. THE PROCESS IS REPEATED TO RESET THE THEFT SYSTEM. BUT NOW I WONDER HOW MANY MORE TIMES THIS PROBLEM WILL OCCUR AND WHY HASN'T ANYTHING BEEN DONE ABOUT A RECALL. OVER 30 INCIDENTS HAVE REPORTED ONLINE AT HTTP://WWW.CARCOMPLAINTS.COM/CHEVROLET/MALIBU/2003/ SO WHY HASN'T THERE BE A RECALL FOR THIS PROBLEM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I AM SURE THAT MORE PEOPLE HAVE HAD PROBLEMS WITH THIS THEY JUST HAVE NOT REPORTED IT. THIS PROBLEM IS VERY INCONVENIENT AND YOU NEVER KNOW WHEN YOUR CAR IS ACTUALLY GOING TO START. SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *TR

AFTER A YEAR THE LIGHTS ON THE DASHBOAD/RADIO AND WINDOW WOULDN'T COME ON RIGHT AWAY. THEN THE ENGINE LIGHT WOULD COME ON BUT THERE'S WAS NOTHING WRONG WITH IT. THEN THE SERVICE LIGHT WOULD COME ON MONTH AFTER I HAD A OIL CHANGE DONE. WHILE I WAS DRIVING, THE CAR JUST SLOWED UP AND STOP. TOLD BY MY MECHANIC IT WAS THE FUEL PUMP BUT WHILE HE HAD IT FOR HALF THE DAY; THE CAR STARTED RIGHT UP WITH NO PROBLEM. ALSO SOMETIMES THERE'S A CLICKING NOISE LIKE MY SIGNAL IS ON BUT ITS NOT. I WAS TOLD IT WAS MY ALARM KEY. EVERY TIME THERE IS A INCIDENT COMPUTER SHOWS IT BUT CAN'T EXPLAIN THE PROBLEM AND IT STOP FOR AWHILE BUT COMES BACK. BEEN LIKE THIS SINCE I HAD IT AND I HAVE TAKEN IT TO THE DEALER THEY KEEP IT OVER NIGHT SAME THING.

PASSLOCK SYSTEM IS DEFECTIVE DUE TO NICKEL PLATING ON STARTER TUMBLER CAUSING OXIDATION. DEALERS ARE ABLE TO MAKE A KILLING ON THIS DEFECTIVE CONNECTOR BECAUSE THEY HAVE TO TROUBLESHOOT A FULL FUEL PUMP SYSTEM AND WIRING HARNESS BEFORE THEY WILL REPLACE THE PASSLOCK SYSTEM. OCCURS ONCE EVERY FEW MONTHS INTERMITTENTLY AND BECOMES MORE SERIOUS AS THE OXIDATION WORSENS. POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS SITUATIONS OCCUR WHEN VEHICLE WOULD STALL IN AN UNSAFE LOCATION (IE: RAILROAD TRACKS OR HIGHWAY) AND VEHICLE WILL NOT RESTART. COUPLED WITH THE RECALL THESE VEHICLES HAD WITH THE ACCELERATOR STICKING (WHICH MINE DID ON A HIGHWAY) THIS COULD BE A VERY DANGEROUS PROBLEM. I HAVE RESEARCHED THE PROBLEM ONLINE (ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS GOOGLE "PASSLOCK PROBLEM" AND YOU WILL GET THOUSANDS OF RESULTS AND CONSUMER FIXES COMPLAINING ABOUT HOW GM IGNORES EVERY SERVICE REQUEST FOR A SOLUTION THAT DOESN'T GOUGE CUSTOMERS. THERE IS PRACTICALLY AN UNDERGROUND CLUB DESIGNED TO HANDLE THIS PROBLEM.) ACCORDING TO THE SHOP FOREMAN AT COLONIAL CHEVROLET IN NORFOLK, VA, AFTER HIS 14 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE WITH SERVICE THIS IS A PROBLEM HE IS INTIMATELY ACQUAINTED WITH AND RECOMMENDS REPLACING THE KEY TUMBLER (PASSLOCK CHIP INTEGRATED INSIDE) AND THE CONNECTOR THAT LEADS TO THE BODY CONTROL MODULE. *TR

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 CHEVROLET MALIBU. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE ELECTRONIC FUEL PUMP HAD TO BE REPLACED IN HIS VEHICLE. WHILE DRIVING 25 MPH, THE VEHICLE SHUT OFF IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD. THERE WERE NO WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL OTHER THAN THE BATTERY INDICATOR, WHICH REMAINED ILLUMINATED. HE STATED THAT THIS FAILURE HAS BEEN OCCURRING FOR QUITE SOME TIME. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED BY A MECHANIC AND THEN REPAIRED. THE DEALER STATED THAT THERE WERE NO RECALLS FOR HIS VEHICLE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 94,000. UPDATED 6/8/09 *CN UPDATED 06/11/09.*JB

IN OUR CASE, WHAT COULD HAVE HAPPENED IS MORE EXTREME! AFTER RUNNING TO AND FROM THE STORE, OUR CAR WOULD NOT RESTART. IT HAPPENED IN OUR OWN DRIVEWAY--- THANK GOD!!! FROM WHAT I HAVE READ AS TO SIMILAR COMPLAINTS ON OUR EXACT VEHICLE'S DEFECT, WE COULD HAVE BEEN IN TRAFFIC! SEVERAL OTHER COMPLAINTS WERE IN LIFE-THREATENING POSITIONS WHEN THEIR CAR BROKE DOWN! WE WERE FORTUNATE!! WE HAVE SINCE HAD IT LOOKED AT BY A FRIEND WHO KNOWS CARS AND IS A MECHANIC, AND HE TELLS US THAT IT IS A DEFECTIVE FUEL PUMP. HE ALSO TELLS US THAT IT MAY ALSO INCLUDE REPLACING THE FUEL RELAY, BUT WILL DEFINITELY INCLUDE REPLACING THE FUEL FILTER! WITH HIS LABOR COST AND PARTS, WE ARE LOOKING AT A COST (MINIMUM--- BARRING NO FURTHER COMPLICATIONS) OF AROUND $400.00!! THE DEALERSHIP WOULD BE MUCH MORE!!! AT THIS TIME, DUE TO FINANCIAL DISTRESS, WE CANNOT AFFORD TO GET IT FIXED! MY WIFE WORKS 20+ MILES AWAY, AND I AM OUT OF WORK DUE TO A HEART CONDITION! THIS COULD NOT HAVE HAPPENED AT A WORSE TIME FINANCIALLY FOR US!! *TR

THE ANTI-THEFT SYSTEM IN MY 2003 CHEVROLET MALIBU IS DEFECTIVE, APPARENTLY THIS IS A PROBLEM FOR JUST ABOUT EVERY OWNER OF A CHEVY MALIBU. THIS NEEDS TO BE RECALLED BY GM!!!! ABOUT ONCE OR TWICE A WEEK WHEN I ATTEMPT TO START MY CAR I PRAY THE ANTI-THEFT SYSTEM DOES NOT BLINK, BECAUSE WHEN IT BLINKS THAT MEANS THE CAR ISN'T GOING TO START. THE OWNER'S MANUAL STATES THAT IF THIS OCCURS THEN TURN THE KEY TO THE "ON" POSITION AND LET IT SIT FOR 10 MINUTES AND THEN TURN THE KEY TO "OFF" AND START THE CAR AS NORMAL. WELL FOR ABOUT 1 YEAR THIS WORKED, IT WAS A HASSLE, BUT IT WORKED. NOW AFTER ABOUT A YEAR OF THIS PAIN IN THE BUTT ROUTINE TWICE A WEEK TO START MY CAR, FINALLY IT DIED ON ME WHILE DRIVING AND WILL NO LONGER START. GM IS OBVIOUSLY AWARE OF THIS MALFUNCTION BECAUSE THEY HAVE GIVEN INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO DEAL WITH IT IN THE OWNER'S MANUAL, THE PROBLEM IS THEY HAVEN'T DONE ANYTHING TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM, AFTER THEIR SUGGESTION FAILS TO START THE CAR. THIS MALFUNCTION NEEDS TO BE RECALLED!!!!!!! *TR

TL*THE CONTACT'S SPOUSE OWNS A 2003 CHEVROLET MALIBU. THE VEHICLE SHUT OFF WITHOUT WARNING, FAILED TO RESTART, AND HAD TO BE TOWED TO THE CONTACT'S RESIDENCE. THE CONTACT SUSPECTED THAT THE FUEL PUMP FAILED. THERE IS AN OPEN INVESTIGATION (PE07033) REGARDING THE FUEL PUMP. THE SPEED WAS UNKNOWN. THE CURRENT AND FAILURE MILEAGES WERE 117,000.