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2001 Chevrolet Malibu Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 721 complaints with NHTSA about the 2001 Chevrolet Malibu, most often about the electrical (40% of complaints, typically around 88,000 miles). It is 13th of 26 Malibu model years by number of complaints and has 2 recalls.
Most common 2001 Chevrolet Malibu problems
Electrical
285 complaints · 40%Half of these problems showed up before 88,000 miles. Parts named most often: ignition, horn, wiring, starter assembly.
2001 Malibu, auto theft that was installed by chevy keeps preventing my car from starting and it has to be towed this has happen 5 times in the last month. This car has had the fuel pump replace, ignition replace, it wear my tires down unevenly. 2 days after I got the car I returned for 2 weeks due to the fact that…
Car have problems starting and continuously acts as if the battery is dead. Battery was checked and cleaned the problem still exists. On a normal basis when the key is turned, car won't start, which happens several times in a few minutes until it finally starts successfully. This incident happens about every three…
Engine
175 complaints · 24%Half of these problems showed up before 60,000 miles. Parts named most often: engine, exhaust system, cooling system.
We were told this is becoming a common problem that we lose the coolant intake on the engine of our 01 Malibu resulting in a $1000 repair - this dealer has experienced multiple failures on this particular engine.
There was a rear collision that occured a week after purchasing the vehicle. The car was fixed with no frontal damge at all. The rear damage was minor. A week after receiving the vehicle the car would not start. The car was towed to the dealership and it was determined that the car needed a new ignition(600.00) that…
Lights
109 complaints · 15%Half of these problems showed up before 63,500 miles. Parts named most often: turn signal, hazard flashing warning lights, tail lights, headlights.
Hazard switch malfunctioned and was replaced in 2005 under recall # 03v327000. Hazard switch malfunctioned again in march 2008. Dealer and manufacturer state the policy that switch cannot be replaced more than once under the recall, and second replacement was at customer expense for a known and recalled issue.
Dt: consumer's vehicle turn signal would operate intermittently. It worked some times, and some times it would not work. Consumer fixed, it was an open circuit in the hazard switch. Which failed. Consumer knew of NHTSA recall 03v327000 on same make/ model, and year, but consumer's vehicle was not included in the…
Brakes
89 complaints · 12%Half of these problems showed up before 38,500 miles. Parts named most often: foundation components, antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip, disc, antilock.
When we would just start the car it would rev up to between 3000 to 4000 RPM and it would stay that way. This was only one way that it would act up. The other ways were when you were just driving along and the car would start to accelerate on it's own. Both ways you had to ride the brake and ride it hard in order not…
It appears that the brake caliper and brake system have some defects. I've had brakes replaces 3 times since february of this year (2003). Checked the fluid level, hoses and lines. Brakes failed once at slow speed 30 MPH. Haven't had a failure since, however, the system is eating up brake pads mostly on the left side.
Steering
41 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 94,000 miles. Parts named most often: hydraulic power assist system, rack and pinion, steering wheel/handle bar, column.
Steering became stiff to turn when making a right turn. Upon investigating the problem, we discovered that a thin mounting tab on the front cross member where the steering box was attached to had rusted away leaving the steering box hanging free. I have seen many internet complaints with this same problem.
Car suddenly began steering hard to the right and made clunking noises when the steering wheel was turned. Discovered that the left side mounting bolt of the steering rack ripped through the rusted out frame cradle, leaving the rack attached by only one bolt. This allows the rack to pivot upwards instead of properly…
Fuel system
40 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 69,500 miles. Parts named most often: delivery, storage, fuel injection system.
Fuel gauge reading 1/4 tank remaining and ran out of gas on highway. Filled up with gas and gauge would read full, then empty, then full again. Gauge has been inaccurate and need to use trip meter to determine when to fill tank.
Anti-theft system prevents car from starting. Falsely detects that ignition key is not the correct key for this automobile, even thou this key has been used to start the car thousands of times. To overcome the problem driver must turn off ignition, turn key to on position and wait approximately 10 minutes for the…
Speed control
25 complaints · 4%Half of these problems showed up before 82,000 miles. Parts named most often: accelerator pedal, cables.
The contact owns a 2001 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that the vehicle abnormally accelerated to 80 MPH as the engine rpms increased to 4,000. The contact had to coast onto the shoulder and turned the engine off in order to stop the vehicle. The contact then noticed smoke being emitted from the engine area. The…
Dt: the contact stated the vehicle continued to accelerate after releasing the gas pedal. The first time when the problem occurred the vehicle worked properly after tapping the gas pedal. After the third time the vehicle was taken to a dealership, who determined that the problem was the throttle sticking. The vehicle…
Air bags
21 complaints · 3%Half of these problems showed up before 117,000 miles. Parts named most often: frontal.
I was driving down a road with the speed limit being 55 MPH which I was doing and hit the edge of the road on the right side and when I turned the wheel slightly to the left the entire car went to the left and the car hit a tree head on at 55 MPH and the neither of the air bags deployed. The car totaled.
Car electrical components don't work when car is started then begin working sometime after the car is running 5-15 minutes. Gauges, radio, AC, fan, do not work and I am worried the airbags are also not working. I see many complaints about this issue on the internet…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2001 Chevrolet Malibu recalls
Electrical: ignition
Risk: If the key is not in the run position, the air bags may not deploy if the vehicle is involved in a crash, increasing the risk of injury.
Fix: Gm will notify owners, and dealers will install two key rings and an insert in the key slot or a cover over the key head on all ignition keys, free of charge. The recall began on september 9, 2014. Gm's number for this recall is 14350.
Full defect summary
This defect can affect the safe operation of the airbag system. Until this recall is performed, customers should remove all items from their key rings, leaving only the ignition key. The key fob (if applicable), should also be removed from the key ring. General motors llc (gm) notified the agency on july 3, 2014, that they are recalling 5,877,718 model year 2000-2005 chevrolet impala and monte carlo, 1997-2003 chevrolet malibu, 2004-2005 malibu classic, 1999-2004 oldsmobile alero, 1998-2002 oldsmobile intrigue, 1999-2005 pontiac grand am and 2004-2008 pontiac grand prix vehicles. In these models, the weight on the key ring and/or road conditions or some other jarring event may cause the ignition switch to move out of the run position, turning off the engine.
Lights: switch
Risk: When the turn signals are inoperative, the driver cannot use them to signal intent to turn that could result in a crash.
Fix: Dealers will replace the hazard warning switch. Owner notification began on february 5, 2004. Owners should contact chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, pontiac at 1-800-620-7668, or oldsmobile at 1-800-630-6537.
Full defect summary
Certain passenger vehicles have hazard warning switches that may experience solder joint cracking caused by rapid temperature transitions and the soldering process. If solder joint cracking occurs and results in an open circuit, the turn signals/hazard lamps become intermittent or inoperative.
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Turn signal failures
Summary
By letter dated august 27, 2003, gm notified the agency that it is conducting a voluntary safety recall (NHTSA recall no. 03v327) involving certain model year (my) 2000-2001 chevrolet malibu, oldsmobile alero, and pontiac grand am.gm's recall covers 670,740 vehicles manufactured beginning february 1, 2000 through may 1, 2001 (alero and grand am) and february 1, 2000 through may 31, 2001 (malibu).gm reports that turn signal failure is due to solder joint cracking in the hazard switch, and has identified rapid temperature transitions of the hazard switch and the soldering process as the cause of cracking.electrical current to the turn signals flows through the hazard switch and an open circuit
Erratic fuel gauge
Summary
Odi opened ea 02-028 to review complaints of consumers reporting that their fuel gauge was incorrectly displaying the amount of fuel in the gas tank.the fuel gauge receives an electrical signal from a fuel tank sending sensor circuit card.a float arm in the tank moves electrical contacts that rub against the card as the level of fuel rises and falls.disruption of the electrical signal (such as caused by corrosion of the circuit card) will cause incorrect readings to register on the fuel gauge.gm reported in their response to odi dated january 13, 2003 that the primary cause of erratic fuel gauge operation is excess elemental sulfur in fuel.gm reported that abnormal levels of sulfur sporadica
Turn signal failure
Summary
Odi opened the investigation based on 9 complaints of turn signals operating sporadically on the 2000-2001 chevrolet malibu.the turn signals quit working without warning and may occur while the vehicle is in motion or standing still.gm identified the hazard switch as the root cause of this problem.electrical current to the turn signal passes through the hazard switch.failure of the hazard switchresults in loss of turn signals and hazard lights.gm reports 318, 184 and 201 consumer complaints for the malibu, alero and grand am respectively.gm also reports the following models have the same design turn signal/hazard switch as the chevrolet malibu: chevrolet corvette, monte carlo, and impala; ol
Erratic fuel gauge
Summary
There is no summary currently available
Questions about the 2001 Chevrolet Malibu
- What are the most common problems with the 2001 Chevrolet Malibu?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: electrical (285 complaints, typically around 88,000 miles); engine (175 complaints, typically around 60,000 miles); lights (109 complaints, typically around 63,500 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2001 Chevrolet Malibu have?
- 2 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from July 3, 2014 (electrical). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2001 a bad year for the Chevrolet Malibu?
- It is 13th of 26 Malibu model years by number of complaints, with 721 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.