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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

Air Bags complaints

14 reports
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20,000 miles · Feb 21, 2019
Air BagsCrashInjury

NOVEMBER 2018, I WAS IN A CAR ACCIDENT WHERE A VEHICLE WAS MAKING AN ILLEGAL U-TURN IN THE MIDDLE OF CLIFTON ROAD, AS I WAS COMING DOWN CLIFTON ROAD IN THE TURNING LANE AND T-BONED MY VEHICLE CAUSING FRONT END DAMAGE TO THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE OF MY VEHICLE. MY VEHICLE WAS TOTALLY SHUT DOWN AND HAD TO BE TOWED AWAY. THE VEHICLE…

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NOVEMBER 2018, I WAS IN A CAR ACCIDENT WHERE A VEHICLE WAS MAKING AN ILLEGAL U-TURN IN THE MIDDLE OF CLIFTON ROAD, AS I WAS COMING DOWN CLIFTON ROAD IN THE TURNING LANE AND T-BONED MY VEHICLE CAUSING FRONT END DAMAGE TO THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE OF MY VEHICLE. MY VEHICLE WAS TOTALLY SHUT DOWN AND HAD TO BE TOWED AWAY. THE VEHICLE WAS DEEMED TOTALED THE FOLLOWING WEEK. ALL AIRBAGS DEPLOYED AND AFTER READING THE REPORT FROM MY INSURANCE COMPANY STATING THAT THERE IS AN AIRBAG RECALL ON MY VEHICLE, WHICH WAS ALLEGEDLY KNOWN AT THE TIME I PURCHASED MY VEHICLE AND NO ONE TOLD ME AND AGAIN BY THE TIME I HAD MY LAST OIL CHANGE AND AGAIN NO ONE EVER TOLD ME. NO, I TOTALLY LOST A VEHICLE AND COULD HAVE LOST MY LIFE OVER AIRBAGS THAT ARE SUPPOSED TO BE ABLE TO SAVE YOUR LIFE.

NHTSA ODI #11181525

35,000 miles · Oct 27, 2018
Air BagsEngineSuspension

MY 2017 CHEVY MALIBU HAS BEEN DOING POWER ENGINE REDUCED FOR AWHILE IT'S BEEN TO THE DEALERSHIP MANY TIMES FOR THIS ISSUE. I HAVE ALMOST BEEN IN TO MULTIPLE CAR ACCIDENTS BECAUSE THE CAR REDUCES SPEED WHILE DRIVING SHOUTING MY CAR DOWN TO GO NO FASTER THEN 20 MPH. THIS IS A MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE THAT CHEVY IS GIVING ME A RUN AROUND…

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MY 2017 CHEVY MALIBU HAS BEEN DOING POWER ENGINE REDUCED FOR AWHILE IT'S BEEN TO THE DEALERSHIP MANY TIMES FOR THIS ISSUE. I HAVE ALMOST BEEN IN TO MULTIPLE CAR ACCIDENTS BECAUSE THE CAR REDUCES SPEED WHILE DRIVING SHOUTING MY CAR DOWN TO GO NO FASTER THEN 20 MPH. THIS IS A MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE THAT CHEVY IS GIVING ME A RUN AROUND ABOUT WHEN OBVIOUS THE CAR WAS SOLD TO ME LIKE THIS. I HAVE WARRANTY ON MY CAR AND THEY STILL HAVE NOT FIXED MY CAR PROPERLY LEAVING ME EVERYDAY AT RISK DRIVING THIS UNSAFE CAR THAT CAN CAUSE A MAJOR CAR ACCIDENT ESPECIALLY WHEN IT DOSE IT WHEN I'M DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY WHICH HAS HAPPENED THREE TIMES ALREADY. I HAVE ALL THE PAPERWORK FOR ALL THE WORK THAT HAS BEEN DONE TO THIS CAR WHICH IS CRAZY SINCE IT'S A NEW CAR. I NEED TO KNOW IS THERE A RECALL ON THIS ENGINE IN THIS CAR SINCE THEY CANNOT FIX THE PROBLEM WITH MY CAR. THE FIRST ISSUE WAS MY AIRBAGS THEN IT WAS THE SUSPENSION WHICH I WAS TOLD AGAIN THE SUSPENSION ARE BAD MEANING THEY PROBABLY NEVER FIXED THEM ALONG WITH THIS ENGINE PROBLEM I'M HAVING.

NHTSA ODI #11143411

4,800 miles · Mar 20, 2018
Air BagsVehicle Speed ControlCrash

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2017 CHEVROLET MALIBU. ON SEVERAL DIFFERENT OCCASIONS, WHILE AT A STOP LIGHT, THE ENGINE RPMS WOULD SUDDENLY INCREASE AND THE VEHICLE ATTEMPTED TO SURGE FORWARD. THE DRIVER HAD TO DEPRESS HARD ON THE BRAKE PEDAL IN ORDER TO STOP THE VEHICLE FROM SURGING FORWARD. ON FEBRUARY 17, 2018, WHILE IN A BANK PARKIN…

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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2017 CHEVROLET MALIBU. ON SEVERAL DIFFERENT OCCASIONS, WHILE AT A STOP LIGHT, THE ENGINE RPMS WOULD SUDDENLY INCREASE AND THE VEHICLE ATTEMPTED TO SURGE FORWARD. THE DRIVER HAD TO DEPRESS HARD ON THE BRAKE PEDAL IN ORDER TO STOP THE VEHICLE FROM SURGING FORWARD. ON FEBRUARY 17, 2018, WHILE IN A BANK PARKING LOT, THE VEHICLE EXPERIENCED UNINTENDED ACCELERATION. THE DRIVER LOST CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE AND CRASHED INTO A TREE. DURING THE FAILURE, THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY ACCELERATED TO APPROXIMATELY 25 MPH. THE FRONT END OF THE VEHICLE WAS SEVERELY DAMAGED; HOWEVER, THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. THERE WERE NO INJURIES AND A POLICE REPORT WAS NOT FILED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TOWED. THE LOCAL DEALER (DAVIS CHEVROLET IN HOUSTON, TX) AND THE MANUFACTURER WERE NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE WAS NOT DETERMINED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 4,800. *TT VIDEO ATTACHED *BF

NHTSA ODI #11080330

5,775 miles · Feb 16, 2018
Air BagsCrash

VEHICLE MOVING SLOWLY AND ALMOST STATIONARY WHEN STRUCK IN DRIVER SIDE REAR DOOR AREA BY FULL SIZE PICKUP TRUCK WITH EXTENSIVE AND SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE AND LIKELY A TOTAL LOSS BUT NO AIR BAG DEPLOYED.

NHTSA ODI #11073220

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.