IllustrationTHE TOP OF THE REAR WINDOW NEAR THE THIRD BREAK LIGHT STARTING LEAKING. I REVIEWED ONLINE CHEVROLET FORUMS WITH COMMON COMPLAINTS AND READ THE DEFECT COULD BE RELATED TO RECENT RECALLS WITH THE VEHICLE. ALSO, THE LEAK IS CAUSE DAMAGE TO MY VEHICLES INTERIOR PANELS. *TR
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.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Malibu years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
870–25K
12025–50K
11050–75K
5275–100K
22100–150K
6150K+
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
Unknown Or Other complaints
147 reportsMY 2017 CHEVY MALIBU HAD THE ENGINE POWER REDUCED COME ON..IT WAS THE THROTTLE POSITION SENSOR..I GOT IT FIXED PAID ALMOST 400$..NOT EVEN 2 WEEKS LATER IT'S DOING IT AGAIN
VEHICLE STUCK IN REVERSE SHIFT LOCK HAD AN INTERNAL FAILURE AND WAS REPLACED BY THE CHEVY DEALERSHIP. REPLACED SHIFTER DUE TO STUCK LOCK. PULLED UP TO CAR WASH PUT CAR IN REVERSE SHIFTER LOCKED AND WAS UNABLE TO MOVE OUT OF REVERSE. TOLL TRUCK CAME AND DRIVER WAS ABLE TO MANUALLY MOVE CABLE UNDER THE HOOD SO I COULD PUT CAR IN N…
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VEHICLE STUCK IN REVERSE SHIFT LOCK HAD AN INTERNAL FAILURE AND WAS REPLACED BY THE CHEVY DEALERSHIP. REPLACED SHIFTER DUE TO STUCK LOCK. PULLED UP TO CAR WASH PUT CAR IN REVERSE SHIFTER LOCKED AND WAS UNABLE TO MOVE OUT OF REVERSE. TOLL TRUCK CAME AND DRIVER WAS ABLE TO MANUALLY MOVE CABLE UNDER THE HOOD SO I COULD PUT CAR IN NEUTRAL. *TR
INTERMITTENTLY WHEN THE CAR HAS BEEN SHIFTED INTO PARK AND TURNED OFF A MESSAGE ON THE DRIVER CONTROL SCREEN STATES TO SHIFT TO PARK AND WILL LEAVE THE CAR BATTERY ON AND WILL BEEP THE DOORS ARE OPEN. HAPPENS 70 PERCENT OF THE TIME. TYPICALLY TO GET THE MESSAGE TO GO AWAY I HAVE TO TURN THE CAR ON AND SHIFT OUT OF PARK, SHIFT BA…
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INTERMITTENTLY WHEN THE CAR HAS BEEN SHIFTED INTO PARK AND TURNED OFF A MESSAGE ON THE DRIVER CONTROL SCREEN STATES TO SHIFT TO PARK AND WILL LEAVE THE CAR BATTERY ON AND WILL BEEP THE DOORS ARE OPEN. HAPPENS 70 PERCENT OF THE TIME. TYPICALLY TO GET THE MESSAGE TO GO AWAY I HAVE TO TURN THE CAR ON AND SHIFT OUT OF PARK, SHIFT BACK INTO PARK AND TURN OFF AGAIN SOMETIMES I HAVE TO DO THIS SEVERAL TIMES. *TR
WHEN I PUSH THE BUTTON TO TURN OFF THE VEHICLE WHILE HAVING MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE IT DISPLAYS A MESSAGE SAYING 'SHIFT TO PARK'. IT WILL NOT LET YOU TURN OFF THE CAR. I HAVE TO PUSH THE BUTTON TO 'RESTART THE ENGINE' THEN SLAM IT INTO PARK. IT TYPICALLY TAKES 3 REPEATS OF THIS BEFORE THE CAR FINALLY ALLOWS ME TO SHUT IT OFF. IT'S …
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WHEN I PUSH THE BUTTON TO TURN OFF THE VEHICLE WHILE HAVING MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE IT DISPLAYS A MESSAGE SAYING 'SHIFT TO PARK'. IT WILL NOT LET YOU TURN OFF THE CAR. I HAVE TO PUSH THE BUTTON TO 'RESTART THE ENGINE' THEN SLAM IT INTO PARK. IT TYPICALLY TAKES 3 REPEATS OF THIS BEFORE THE CAR FINALLY ALLOWS ME TO SHUT IT OFF. IT'S FRUSTRATING, TIME CONSUMING AND NOISY AS IF YOU DO NOT SEE THE MESSAGE AND GO TO OPEN THE DOOR, IT BEEPS NOISILY NOTIFYING YOU THAT THE CAR IS NOT OFF. APPARENTLY QUITE A FEW DRIVERS HAVE THIS ISSUE, AS I HAVE READ THE COMPLAINTS LISTED. MY LOCAL DEALERSHIP QUOTED ME AT REPAIR COSTS OF OVER $700 TO FIX THIS. THIS SEEMS UNFAIR SINCE CLEARLY IT IS A MANUFACTURER ISSUE. *TR
WHEN I PUT MY CAR IN PARK AND TURN THE ENGINE OFF I AM GETTING A MESSAGE THAT SAYS SHIFT TO PARK. THIS APPEARS TO BE A KNOWN ISSUE.
LATELY WHEN I STOP AT A LIGHT OR INTERSECTION MY VEHICLE AUTO STOPS BUT WHEN I TRY TO GO THE VEHICLE SHUTS OFF AND WILL NOT START. I HAVE TO PUT ON MY FLASHERS WHILE IN TRAFFIC AND SHUT THE VEHICLE ON AND OFF UNTIL IT RESTARTS. ONE OF THE WARNINGS READ STABIL AND ANOTHER READS POWER SHUT OFF AS WELL AS BATTERY SAVER ACTIVE. I HA…
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LATELY WHEN I STOP AT A LIGHT OR INTERSECTION MY VEHICLE AUTO STOPS BUT WHEN I TRY TO GO THE VEHICLE SHUTS OFF AND WILL NOT START. I HAVE TO PUT ON MY FLASHERS WHILE IN TRAFFIC AND SHUT THE VEHICLE ON AND OFF UNTIL IT RESTARTS. ONE OF THE WARNINGS READ STABIL AND ANOTHER READS POWER SHUT OFF AS WELL AS BATTERY SAVER ACTIVE. I HAVE TAKEN IT IN BUT HAVE BEEN TOLD THEY DO NOT KNOW WHAT IS WRONG SO THEY RESET THE SYSTEM HOWEVER, THIS DANGEROUS ISSUE REMAINS. THIS STARTED THE BEGINNING OF MARCH AND HAS CONTINUED.
EVERYT I PUT MY CAR IN PARK I GET AN ERROR STATING SHIFT TO PARK AND THE CAR WILL NOT TURN OFF. THE CAR IS IN PARK WHEN I'M TRYING TO TURN THE CAR OFF. TOOK MY CAR TO CHEVY AND THERE IS SOME FAULTY PAPER WORK . I SIGNED OFF ON ONE CONTRACT THEN I WAS CALLED IN AND WAS TOLD SOME OF MY SIGNATURE DIDNT DO THROUGH AND NOW ITS SHOWI…
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EVERYT I PUT MY CAR IN PARK I GET AN ERROR STATING SHIFT TO PARK AND THE CAR WILL NOT TURN OFF. THE CAR IS IN PARK WHEN I'M TRYING TO TURN THE CAR OFF. TOOK MY CAR TO CHEVY AND THERE IS SOME FAULTY PAPER WORK . I SIGNED OFF ON ONE CONTRACT THEN I WAS CALLED IN AND WAS TOLD SOME OF MY SIGNATURE DIDNT DO THROUGH AND NOW ITS SHOWING I CANCELED THE EXTENDED WARRANTY WHICH I NEVER DID. I STILL HAVE THE ORIGINAL PAPERWORK. THEY REVISED MY ORIGINAL CONTRACT WITH GOING OVER THE NEW CONTRACT. NOW IM STUCK WITH AN EXPENSIVE BILL FOR REPAIR BECAUSE I ASSUMED I WAS SIGNING THE SAME CONTRACT. THIS ISSUE NEEDS TO BE ADDED TO THE RECALL LIST FOR REPAIR. ITHIS IS NOT A USER ISSUE THIS IS A GM ISSUE.
REDUCED ENGINE POWER STARTED POPPING UP ON THE DASHBOARD AND FORCEFULLY REDUCES SPEED TO 20MPH. HUNDREDS OF CHEVY OWNERS ARE REPORTING THIS ABNORMALITIES RECENTLY AND CHEVROLET IS CONCEALING THIS MANUFACTURE DEFECT.
ENGINE POWER IS REDUCED APPEARS ON INFO DASH WORD AND CAR SLOWS DOWN TO SLOW SPEED WHILE ON HIGHWAY
Official recalls
421V649000 · 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
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.