2003 Chevrolet Malibu

I BOUGHT A CHEVY MALIBU NEW IN 2003. I NEVER KNEW IT HAD ANY ANTI THEFT DEVICE. THREE WEEKS AGO THE ANTI THEFT LIGHT CAME ON. I IGNORED IT. AFTER A FEW DAYS THE CAR WOULD NOT START. THE ENGINE STARTED TO RUN BUT SPUTTERED OUT. I LOOKED IN THE INSTRUCTION MANUAL THAT CAME WITH THE CAR. IT SAYS IF THE ANTI THEFT LIGHT COMES ON (FOR NO REASON) TURN IGNITION TO ON POSITION WAIT TEN MINUTES TURN CAR OFF AND THE CAR WILL START. I FOLLOWED INSTRUCTIONS AND CAR STARTED. SAME THING HAPPENED AGAIN YESTERDAY. I FOLLOWED INSTRUCTIONS AND CAR RUNS AGAIN. PROBLEM I HAVE IS WHY WOULD THE ANTI THEFT SYSTEM BE ACTIVATED FOR NO REASON? CHEVY KNEW THIS HAPPENS AND THIS IS WHY THEY HAVE IT WRITTEN UP IN THE INSTRUCTION MANUAL. IF THE ANTI THEFT SYSTEM IS FAULTY IE COMES ON FOR NO REASON AND PROHIBITS THE CAR FROM STARTING, CHEVY SHOULD NOT HAVE INSTALLED IT IN THE FIRST PLACE. *TR

THE POWER STEERING HAS FAILED 5 TIMES WHILE DRIVING THE VEHICLE. EACH TIME,MY DAUGHTER HAS PULLED OVER, TURNED OFF AND RESTARTED THE ENGINE, AND THE POWER STEERING OPERATED CORRECTLY AGAIN. I HAVE HAD THE POWER STEERING SYSTEM CHECKED BY CERTIFIED GM MECHANICS AT THE LOCAL GM DEALERSHIP; THEY WERE AWARE OF THIS COMMON PROBLEM BUT THEY DID KNOW OF A REMEDY. THE DEALERSHIP CHECKED THE STEERING SYSTEM EACH TIME, AND DID NOT FIND ANY PROBLEMS. I AM SELLING THIS VEHICLE...IT IS NOT SAFE ENOUGH FOR MY DAUGHTER TO DRIVE. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 CHEVROLET MALIBU. THE CONTACT ATTEMPTED TO START THE IGNITION BUT THE ENGINE FAILED TO OPERATE WITH THE ILLUMINATION OF THE ANTI-THEFT SECURITY SYSTEM WARNING INDICATOR. THE ENGINE WAS RESTARTED AFTER TEN TO FIFTEEN MINUTES. IN ADDITION, THE SAME FAILURE WOULD OCCUR WHILE DRIVING AND RESULT IN THE VEHICLE STALLING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER WHO ADVISED THAT THE IGNITION SYSTEM AND COMPUTER MODULE WOULD NEED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE PROBLEM. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 36,000. UPDATED 01/03/12*LJ UPDATED 01/04/12

AT LEAST ONCE A WEEK SINCE PURCHASING THE CAR I AM UNABLE TO START IT BECAUSE THE ANTI-THEFT SYSTEM WILL BLOCK THE CAR FROM STARTING. I WILL PUT THE KEY IN THE IGNITION AND THE SENSOR LIGHT WILL FLASH. I HAVE TO WAIT EXACTLY 10 MINUTES WITH THE KEY TURNED TO "ON" BEFORE THE LIGHT STOPS FLASHING AND I CAN TURN THE CAR OFF AND BACK ON AGAIN. ON A FEW OCCASIONS THIS HAS OCCURRED BACK TO BACK RESULTING IN HAVING TO WAIT AT LEAST 20 MINUTES TO START MY CAR. I HAVE SEEN THAT THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM FOR THIS CAR, WHICH SEEMS TO DEFEAT THE PURPOSE OF A SAFETY FEATURE IF YOU HAVE TO WAIT IN A DARK PARKING LOT ALONE FOR 10 MINUTES BECAUSE OF FAULTY CONSTRUCTION. *TR

PARKED THE CAR, CAME BACK OUT AND IT WOULDN'T START, THOUGH THERE WAS POWER FROM THE BATTERY AND THE ENGINE ACTED LIKE IT WAS TRYING TO TURN OVER (INDICATING THAT IT WASN'T THE ALTERNATOR). HAD TO HAVE CAR TOWED. TURNED OUT THAT THE "THEFT SYSTEM" (PASSLOCK) LOCKED ME OUT. MECHANICS "RESET" IT. IT HAPPENED AGAIN ABOUT 10 DAYS LATER. *TR

NHTSA ACTION NUMBER (PE05055) WAS INITIALLY ISSUED IN 2004 FOR A DEFECTIVE TURN SIGNAL/HAZARD FLASHERS THAT BECOME INOPERATIVE ON MODEL YEAR 1999-2000 MALIBU, ALERO, GRAND AM, AND 1999 CUTLASS. THIS ACTION NUMBER WAS LATER REVISED IN 2005 TO INCLUDE MODEL YEAR 2001-2002 MALIBU, ALERO, AND GRAND AM VEHICLES. THE RESULTING DOCUMENT FROM GM FOR THE INITIAL MODEL YEAR RANGE WAS: SPECIAL POLICY ADJUSTMENT - TURN SIGNALS/HAZARD WARNING FLASHERS #04098 - (DEC 16, 2004) GM DOCUMENT ID# 1578551 AND WHEN THE MODEL YEAR RANGE WAS EXTENDED: SPECIAL POLICY ADJUSTMENT-TURN SIGNAL/HAZARD WARNING FLASHERS #04098A - (JAN 11, 2006) GM DOCUMENT ID# 1750030 - I OWN (BOUGHT IT NEW) A 2003 CHEVY MALIBU THAT HAS EXPERIENCED THE SAME SYMPTOM OF INTERMITTENT TURN SIGNAL FAILURE. BOTH LEFT AND RIGHT TURN SIGNALS SOMETIME WORK AND SOMETIME DO NOT. YOU CAN NEVER KNOW WHEN IT WILL OR WILL NOT WORK. THIS IS A REAL SAFETY RISK. THE SWITCH TYPE IN THE 2003 MALIBU APPEARS TO BE THE SAME AS IN THE PREVIOUS YEARS FOR WHICH GM ISSUED THE SPECIAL POLICIES (NOTED ABOVE). ON OCTOBER 8TH 2011, I REPLACED THE TURN SIGNAL/HAZARD WARNING FLASHER SWITCH THAT WAS IDENTIFIED IN THE GM DOCUMENT. (REPLACED WITH DORMAN PART 924-601). IT HAS BEEN ALMOST 3 WEEKS SINCE THE REPLACEMENT AND I HAVE NOT EXPERIENCED THE PROBLEM. I WOULD HAVE SEEN THE PROBLEM OCCUR DURING THIS 3 WEEK PERIOD. IN CASE IT HELPS IN YOUR INVESTIGATION, THE NUMBER ON THE DEFECTIVE SWITCH I REMOVED FROM MY 2003 MALIBU IS : 22594146 0843 F I WANTED TO REPORT THIS FAILURE AS THERE IS A POSSIBLY THAT THERE WILL BE OTHERS WITH THE MODEL YEAR 2003 MALIBU''S THAT HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS PROBLEM AND WILL ALSO FILE A CLAIM WITH NHTSA. IF THIS IS THE CASE, GM WILL NEED TO ONCE AGAIN EXTEND THE RANGE OF VEHICLES AFFECTED BY THE DEFECTIVE SWITCH/HAZARD FLASHERS AND INCLUDE THIS EXTENDED RANGE IN THEIR SPECIAL POLICY ADJUSTMENT. *TT

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

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 CHEVROLET MALIBU. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE KEY WOULD NOT RELEASE FROM THE IGNITION. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A LOCAL MECHANIC WHERE THE CONTACT WAS ADVISED TO PLACE THE GEAR IN PARK IN ORDER TO RELEASE THE KEY FROM THE IGNITION. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 17,000 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 17,100.