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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

Steering complaints

47 reports
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Mileage unknown · Aug 26, 2026
Steering

I have a 2017 Chevy Malibu that in 2022 had a shift malfunction causing it to become stuck in reverse and roll backwards. It ended up having to be towed and was repaired in May 2022. On August 25 and 26, 2026 the car is now experiencing another SHIFT TO PARK malfunction whereby the vehicle DOES NOT detect that the shifter is i…

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I have a 2017 Chevy Malibu that in 2022 had a shift malfunction causing it to become stuck in reverse and roll backwards. It ended up having to be towed and was repaired in May 2022. On August 25 and 26, 2026 the car is now experiencing another SHIFT TO PARK malfunction whereby the vehicle DOES NOT detect that the shifter is in the park position. It shows a "shift to park" error on the car's dashboard and will not let me turn the car off until it detects it is in park which takes multiple times of shifting and cycling the car through the gears or repeatedly jiggling the gear selector. This is a temporary workaround and NOT a safe or satisfactory solution as this can cause a serious or even fatal accident! This Malibu seems to have a continuing problem with the shift malfunctioning and GM needs to recognize this is a continual problem and resolve it by recalling this issue AGAIN before someone is hurt or killed. I am requesting GM repair this at their expense or replace my vehicle as it seems to be a LEMON!

NHTSA ODI #11759708

Mileage unknown · Dec 14, 2025
Service BrakesSteeringUnknown Or OtherCrash

Was driving on highway and starting to exit and my engine light came on and it alerted reduced engine power. I had to slam on my brakes but they were very hard to press and almost non existent and steering was also difficult. Managed to get car to side of road but due to very hard to non existent brakes I did graze a truck and d…

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Was driving on highway and starting to exit and my engine light came on and it alerted reduced engine power. I had to slam on my brakes but they were very hard to press and almost non existent and steering was also difficult. Managed to get car to side of road but due to very hard to non existent brakes I did graze a truck and damaged my rear drivers side fender. I am very lucky I didn’t get injured and was able to mostly miss the cars stopped in front of me. I also have the shift to park issue happen at least 4 times a week.

NHTSA ODI #11704980

125,544 miles · Jan 31, 2024
Steering

The contact owns a 2017 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the power steering was inoperable. The contact stated that the steering wheel seized, and the steering wheel was extremely difficult to turn. The “Service Power Steering” soon warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was no…

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The contact owns a 2017 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the power steering was inoperable. The contact stated that the steering wheel seized, and the steering wheel was extremely difficult to turn. The “Service Power Steering” soon warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 125,544.

NHTSA ODI #11569133

87,000 miles · Nov 7, 2023
Steering

The contact owns a 2017 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the Steering Assist Reduced message was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, the vehicle was not yet diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to file a …

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The contact owns a 2017 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the Steering Assist Reduced message was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, the vehicle was not yet diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to file a complaint with the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 87,000.

NHTSA ODI #11554008

Mileage unknown · Mar 15, 2023
SteeringUnknown Or OtherVehicle Speed Control

I was driving at 70 MPH on the freeway when off a sudden my car haulted back and said engine power reduced. I had my kids in the car and traffic behind me when my car went into an auto decline in MPH reaching 30 MPH before I could quickly pull over. I called the company I bought my car at the next day. They told me I needed an i…

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I was driving at 70 MPH on the freeway when off a sudden my car haulted back and said engine power reduced. I had my kids in the car and traffic behind me when my car went into an auto decline in MPH reaching 30 MPH before I could quickly pull over. I called the company I bought my car at the next day. They told me I needed an inspection but my check engine light only stayed on overnight and was off by the time I went in. In the last year this has happened over 10x. It’s manageable but incredibly dangerous if going at a fast speed. The weird part is if you turn your car off for 1-2 minutes, you turn it back on the there is no longer a power reduction and all is back to normal.

NHTSA ODI #11512035

Mileage unknown · Nov 8, 2022
Lane DepartureSteeringCrashInjury

Issue 1 Changing lanes at a red light and car steering wheel locked up causing the car to go one lane too many to the right and get struck by another vehicle Issue 2 car shuts off at every stop and hesitates to take off causing unsafe conditions

NHTSA ODI #11492833

Mileage unknown · Oct 11, 2022
Electrical SystemSteeringSuspension

I have a 2017 Malibu and have gotten a message on my MFD (Multi-Function Display) screen on the dash that said Steering Assist Reduce, drive with care. It happens while driving city streets and at a complete stop. Now the doors are unlocking when the message pops up at stops. Also the care is losing power at the stops now and co…

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I have a 2017 Malibu and have gotten a message on my MFD (Multi-Function Display) screen on the dash that said Steering Assist Reduce, drive with care. It happens while driving city streets and at a complete stop. Now the doors are unlocking when the message pops up at stops. Also the care is losing power at the stops now and coming back on. It does not allow me to accelerate. This is very dangerous. I took my car into the dealership a couple months ago for the same error message but they blew it off saying I needed some type of fluid (if I remember correctly). Now, I have the same issue amplified. It wrecks lemon! I filed another complaint months ago, but I’m filing again due to scheduling yet another service appointment at the Chevrolet dealership. (Hence why I put todays date of the incident).

NHTSA ODI #11488738

Mileage unknown · Jul 13, 2022
EngineSteeringVehicle Speed Control

My car has been in and out of the dealership since I purchased it back in 2017. The vehicle shuts off while I am driving it. The first time this happened I was on the highway with my 5 year old son. I completely lost power and had no control being my steering wheel locked. Since then I have repeatedly had the same issue. Each ti…

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My car has been in and out of the dealership since I purchased it back in 2017. The vehicle shuts off while I am driving it. The first time this happened I was on the highway with my 5 year old son. I completely lost power and had no control being my steering wheel locked. Since then I have repeatedly had the same issue. Each time calling the dealership and each time they find either nothing wrong with it. Or say they fixed the issue which I was charged for. For the same issue that was fixed to happen again. This happened yet again today as I was making a left hand turn onto a 4 lane highway. It happens atleast once a day. I lost all power to my car. Steering wheel locked and car refused to start. There is something going on with this car and many others. The dealership I purchased it from agreed and offered to get me into a new Malibu being it’s a safety issue but I want nothing to do with another Chevy after my research. Too many issues with this car. THIS car has already been fixed for the recall involved AND this is still happening. And the car also won’t go into park. It says shift to park which drains the battery because the car never really shuts off. Before the recall I payed for repairs out of pocket for what the dealership “thought” it was which it was not. Clearly because the same thing keeps happening. Nothing different. It’s all the same. This car is a lemon. God forbid my car stops in the middle of a highway and won’t start. I won’t say the rest but if there are any injuries or the worst I have documented everything through my dealership. My family and I will sue.

NHTSA ODI #11473784

Mileage unknown · May 20, 2022
Electrical SystemEngineSteering

Since purchase from dealer at 40,000 miles I have complained numerous times. Dealer can not reproduce and refuses to do anything about it. When driving vehicle with and sometimes with out AC on. The vehicle doesn't want to go. I could have the gas peddle to the floor and it won't accelerate. Does is whenever it wants to seems as…

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Since purchase from dealer at 40,000 miles I have complained numerous times. Dealer can not reproduce and refuses to do anything about it. When driving vehicle with and sometimes with out AC on. The vehicle doesn't want to go. I could have the gas peddle to the floor and it won't accelerate. Does is whenever it wants to seems as if when AC is on it does it the most. This past week the vehicle has thrown a warning steering asist reduced please drive with care. It quickly comes on and then goes back off. The vehicle is also stalling out of no where. I come to a stop light it goes to auto stop then I go to start accelerating and the vehicle will shut down engine light comes on and vehicle will not start back up for a min or 2. Once engine shuts off I put in park and try and start it again it won't. A few mins go by it will start again. I notice if I keep foot on break at a stop light and foot on gas to keep the RPMs up and don't allow it to auto stop it won't shut down. I made a appointment with jud kuhn the dealer I purchased it from. For next week. Hoping they can do somthing about it but chances are they will look at me like I'm crazy like they do every time and tell me no codes or they can't reproduce. I still owe 14,000 on the vehicle I'm livid. My children drive this car and it's extremely unsafe. If dealer doesn't help I'm contacting a lawyer for lemon law please help The acceleration issue started the week I purchased it 2 years ago the stalling started last week. And the steering assist started last week

NHTSA ODI #11465399

Mileage unknown · May 7, 2022
EngineSteering

An alert “Engine power is reduced” came on are 6pm 5/7/22. Never seen it before. My car began to click and wouldn’t go over 40mph. Steering wheel locked up when attempting to turn. I cut the car off to try to restart it and it did allow me to turn but there was immediate smoke released from car.

NHTSA ODI #11463747

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.