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2011 Chevrolet Malibu Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 978 complaints with NHTSA about the 2011 Chevrolet Malibu, most often about the electrical (24% of complaints, typically around 80,000 miles). It is 6th of 26 Malibu model years by number of complaints and has 3 recalls.
Most common 2011 Chevrolet Malibu problems
Electrical
235 complaints · 24%Half of these problems showed up before 80,000 miles. Parts named most often: 12v/24v/48v battery, wiring, ignition.
At random when driving down the road the radio will switch to aux. You can touch the dash on the side or around the radio and it will go back to radio. It will also switch sometimes when you put the car in drive, or turn on windshield wipers. You have to bump the side of the dash or the area around the radio for it to…
The engine light appears the light comes on and says engine power reduced, service traction, service ESC this appears at random speeds and even when im setting at the bank with my car in park it has occurred. This immediately reduces your cars power and you can only run about 30 MPH which is very dangerous. This used…
Steering
214 complaints · 22%Half of these problems showed up before 89,500 miles. Parts named most often: electric power assist system.
Received messages of: service ESC, service traction, service power steering, eng pwr reduced, engine disabled this morning while driving to work. Engine lost all power, went into limp mode, had to pull to side of road to try and turn the engine off and on to try to reset. Nearly caused accident from oncoming and…
Being a second owner of this vehicle I noticed that at times the power steering would become ineffective and steering wheel was very difficult to move, along with a lot of clunking in the steering column...especially at lower speeds. After owning this vehicle for two months, I was backing out of my driveway and the…
Stability control
174 complaints · 18%Half of these problems showed up before 84,500 miles.
The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving at 60 MPH, the service ESC and the traction control warning lights illuminated. The contact mentioned that there was a sudden increase of engine rpms. However, the vehicle failed to accelerate. The vehicle was able to restart but the…
Was idling at a drive thru window and the car dash lights started coming on. Ecs off notification, transaction system off warning light . Car engine was stuttering, than revving up to faster speed. Had car brake on, tried putting it into neutral and it still did the slow down/speed up engine speed. Very dangerous…
Engine
172 complaints · 18%Half of these problems showed up before 73,000 miles. Parts named most often: engine.
The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Malibu. While driving approximately 70 MPH, the power engine reduced sensor light illuminated and the speed suddenly reduced to approximately 40 MPH. The vehicle was merged to the side of the road where it was turned off and restarted. The vehicle resumed normal operation, but the…
I was driving home from being out of town on 10/15/13 while driving on the freeway while driving about 80mph when out of no where the car started to shake and vibrate then the "traction light ,service ESC,engine power turning off and car went from going 80mph to 10mph on the freeway, while a big diesel truck was…
Lights
130 complaints · 13%Half of these problems showed up before 103,000 miles. Parts named most often: headlights, brake lights.
The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Malibu. While driving various speeds at night, the passenger side headlights failed to illuminate each time the vehicle was driven. The contact had to use the high beam headlights to view the roadway. The failure recurred numerous times. On four occasions, the contact took the vehicle…
I have had to change my passenger low beam bulb 3 times in 2 years, drivers side twice and my drivers side just burnt out after two months. After researching numerous forms this seems to be a problem from 2008-2012 malibus
Transmission
112 complaints · 12%Half of these problems showed up before 78,000 miles. Parts named most often: automatic transmission.
I was driving on the highway and out of no where the check engine light came on. My car than started to jerk like it was running out of oxygen, the car felt like it didn't want to shift in gear.. Took to have check and come to find out its the (TCM) transmission control module which isn't covered under warranty for…
The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Malibu. While driving 50 MPH, the vehicle decelerated and the electronic stability control warning indicator illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified. The VIN was unavailable. The failure mileage was 80,000.
Air bags
93 complaints · 10%Half of these problems showed up before 61,000 miles.
The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that the service air bag warning light remained illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer. The technician diagnosed that the sensing diagnostic module needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure.…
The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Malibu. While driving 20 MPH, the contact's vehicle was rear ended by another vehicle. The air bags did not deploy and the seat belt did not properly restrain the contact. The contact sustained a head injury that required medical attention. A police report was filed and the vehicle…
Speed control
87 complaints · 9%Half of these problems showed up before 72,000 miles. Parts named most often: accelerator pedal, throttle.
The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Malibu. While driving 30 MPH, the vehicle began to decrease in speed when the accelerator pedal was depressed. The vehicle shook violently and all the warning lights illuminated on the instrument panel. The failure occurred once. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The…
I was driving home from being out of town on 10/15/13 while driving on the freeway while driving about 80mph when out of no where the car started to shake and vibrate then the "traction light ,service ESC,engine power turning off and car went from going 80mph to 10mph on the freeway, while a big diesel truck was…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2011 Chevrolet Malibu recalls
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: If the inflator explodes, sharp metal fragments may strike the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Gm has notified owners, and dealers will replace the front driver air bag module, free of charge. The recall began february 25, 2019. Owners may contact gm customer service at 1-800-522-9559. Gm's number for this recall is n182206630.
Full defect summary
General motors llc (gm) is recalling certain 2010-2011 chevrolet malibu vehicles. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver frontal air bag, the air bag inflator may explode due to being overpressurized.
Seat belts
Risk: If the cable breaks, the seat occupant may not be properly restrained in the event of a crash, increasing their risk of injury.
Fix: Gm will notify owners, and dealers will replace the outboard lap anchor mounting bracket and inspect the flexible steel cable, replacing it as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on november 16, 2015. Owners may contact chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. Gm's number for this recall is 15031.
Full defect summary
General motors llc (gm) is recalling certain model year 2011-2012 chevrolet malibu vehicles manufactured april 8, 2010, to october 11, 2012. In the affected vehicles, the flexible steel cables that connect the seat belts to the vehicle at the outside of the driver seat and the front passenger seat may be bent from being sat on while entering the vehicle. This repeated bending may result in the cable breaking.
Stability control: electronic stability control (esc)
Risk: Any of the above failure conditions increases the risk of a crash.
Fix: Gm will notify owners, and dealers will attach the wiring harness to the BCM with a spacer, apply dielectric lubricant to both the BCM and harness connector and the bas and harness connector, and will relearn the brake pedal home position, free of charge. The manufacturer distributed an interim letter to customers on july 14, 2014. The recall began on august 18, 2014. Owners may contact general motors customer service at 1-800-222-1020 (chevrolet), 1-800-762-2737 (pontiac), 1-800-553-6000 (saturn). Gm's number for this recall is 13036.
Full defect summary
General motors llc (gm) is recalling certain model year 2004-2012 chevrolet malibu vehicles manufactured may 16, 2003, through october 11, 2012, 2004-2007 malibu maxx vehicles manufactured june 25, 2003, through april 5, 2007, 2005-2010 pontiac g6 vehicles manufactured may 26, 2004, through january 4, 2010, and 2007-2010 saturn aura vehicles manufactured april 24, 2006, through may 26, 2009. In the affected vehicles, increased resistance in the body control module (BCM) connection may result in voltage fluctuations in the brake apply sensor (bas) circuit. These fluctuations can cause one or more of these conditions: the brake lights to illuminate without the brake pedal being pushed; the brake lights to not illuminate when the pedal is pushed; difficulty disengaging the cruise control; moving the gear shifter out of the 'park' position without pushing the brake; and disablement of crash
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.
Questions about the 2011 Chevrolet Malibu
- What are the most common problems with the 2011 Chevrolet Malibu?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: electrical (235 complaints, typically around 80,000 miles); steering (214 complaints, typically around 89,500 miles); stability control (174 complaints, typically around 84,500 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2011 Chevrolet Malibu have?
- 3 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from January 16, 2019 (air bags). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2011 a bad year for the Chevrolet Malibu?
- It is 6th of 26 Malibu model years by number of complaints, with 978 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.