Complaint volume
679 consumer-submitted complaints are matched to this model year. Treat the count as a research signal, then read the actual summaries for repeated symptoms.
Complaint records
2018 Chevrolet Malibu Complaints
679 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2018 Chevrolet Malibu, grouped by component category.
679 Total complaints
23 Crash reports
4 Fire reports
14 Injury reports
Complaint data reflects consumer-submitted reports. A complaint is not proof
of a defect, recall, or manufacturer fault. Enriched severity fields come
from official bulk records when the complaint can be matched by ODI number.
Buyer interpretation
How to use these complaints before buying
Complaint records are most useful when they turn into inspection points, seller questions, and comparison checks against nearby model years.
Pattern to inspect
The most common categories are engine, unknown or other, power train. Use those categories as a test-drive checklist instead of judging the vehicle from the total count alone.
Severity flags
Enriched records include 23 crash reports, 4 fire reports, 14 injury reports, and 0 fatality reports. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 303 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 47,477 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Questions to ask the seller
- Have you had any problems related to engine, unknown or other, power train?
- Can I see recent maintenance and repair records?
- Has the vehicle ever been towed, involved in a crash, or repaired for the same issue twice?
- Can we also check the recall record for this 2018 Chevrolet Malibu?
Used-car checklist
Use these complaints before the test drive.
Build a buyer checklist to turn these issues into questions and inspection points.
2018 Chevrolet Malibu
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2018 Chevrolet Malibu complaints?
23 Crash
4 Fire
14 Injury
0 Fatality
32 Towed
10 Medical attention
What are the most common 2018 Chevrolet Malibu complaint categories?
ENGINE 74
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 70
POWER TRAIN 57
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 31
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 30
POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 18
STEERING 17
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE 17
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE 16
POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE 16
679 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 2021 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | WHILE DRIVING ENGINE POWER REDUCED MESSAGE COMES ON AND SPEED IS CUT TO BELOW 35 MPH. | Crash: No Fire: No | 15,000 |
| Mar 2021 | SUSPENSION,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | WHILE DRIVING THE CAR WILL SLOW DOWN AND SAY SLOW ENGINE POWER | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2021 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | WHILE DRIVING THE ERROR MESSAGE " POWER REDUCED" AND WILL ONLY DO ABOUT 30 MPH. I HAVE LOOKED ON LINE AND AT LEAST A COUPLE OF LAW FIRMS HAVE CLIENTS FOR THE LEMON MALIBU 2018 MODEL. FIRST TIME THIS OCCURED, I WAS GOING UP A HILL WITH A TRUCK BEHIND MEAND NEARLY REAR ENDED ME. | Crash: No Fire: No | 45,000 |
| Mar 2021 | ENGINE | CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AND POWER REDUCTION LIGHT CAME ON AND CAR SLOWED DOWN WITH NO POWER. THIS ALSO HAPPENED 2 WEEKS AGO. LOCAL MECHANIC SAID IT WAS A RECALL ITEM, BUT I HAVENT SEEN ANY. | Crash: No Fire: No | 20,000 |
| Mar 2021 | ENGINE | THROTTLE/PEDAL POSITION SENSOR/ WITCH D/E | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2021 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | WHEN I PUT MY CAR IN PARK. THEN TURN ENGINE OFF. THE CAR SAYS I NEED TO PUT IN PARK | Crash: No Fire: No | 28,000 |
| Feb 2021 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE | I WAS DRIVING AT APPROXIMATELY 55MPH ON A HIGHWAY WHEN THE VEHICLE GAVE A WARNING OF 'ENGINE POWER IS REDUCED'. MY CAR QUICKLY DROPPED TO 20MPH AND I WAS UNABLE ACCELERATE. THIS HAPPENED WHILE THERE WAS ANOTHER VEHICLE BEHIND ME AND I WAS SCARED I WAS GOING TO BE REAR ENDED. I PUT MY HAZARD LIGHTS ON AND PARKED MY VEHICLE. I SHUT THE VEHICLE OFF AND TURNED IT BACK ON WHICH ALLOWED ME TO OPERATE THE VEHICLE AGAIN BUT ONLY AT A CAPACITY OF 40MPH. I HAD THE VEHICLE REPAIRED LATER THAT DAY IT NEEDED SOMETHING WITH AN ELECTRONIC THROTTLE CONTROL AND PEDAL SENSOR REPLACED. I ALSO LEARNED THAT THIS IS AN ISSUE THAT GM IS WELL AWARE OF AND FEEL THAT THEY NEED TO RECALL VEHICLES AFFECTED BY THIS ISSUE. THERE'S NO REASON A VEHICLE SHOULD BE DROPPING TO 20 MPH UNEXPECTEDLY ON A HIGHWAY. | Crash: No Fire: No | 65,000 |
| Feb 2021 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | WHILE DRIVING MY ENGINE AND TRACTION LIGHT CAME ON AND A SENSOR POPPED UP THAT READ 'ENGINE POWER IS REDUCED'. I WAS DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY AND MY SPEED WAS REDUCED. I CAN'T AND COULD NOT SPEED UP. | Crash: No Fire: No | 51,123 |
| Feb 2021 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE | AFTER PULLING OUT OF A CONVENIENT STORE, ONTO A MAIN ROAD FOR ABOUT A HALF A MILE MY CAR IMMEDIATELY LOST SPEED AND A DISPLAY APPEARED IN MY DASH ENGINE POWER REDUCED , CHECK ENGINE LIGHT AND TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT APPEARED. I COULDN'T DRIVE NO MORE THAN 20 MILES PER HOUR .. SCARY MOMENT, SO GLAD NOTHING WAS COMING BEHIND ME. CAR IN SHOP! THIS NEED TO BE FIX IT'S A MANY PEOPLE HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM WITH THIS YEAR KIND OF CAR SOMEBODY IS GOING TO GET KILLED FIX THE PROBLEM FOR FREE GMC | Crash: No Fire: No | 69,387 |
| Feb 2021 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SEATS | DRIVERS SEAT WILL NOT MOVE FORWARD OR BACKWARDS. SEAT IS LOCKED IN THE FORWARD POSITION AND WILL NOT MOVE BACKWARDS. | Crash: No Fire: No | 14,000 |
| Feb 2021 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | WHILE DRIVING 65 MPH CAR ISSUED WARNING REDUCED ENGINE POWER AND CHECK ENGINE LIGHT POPPED ON. CAR THEN WOULD NOT DRIVE FASTER THAN 30 MPH. VERY SUDDEN AND WITH NO PREVIOUS WARNING THIS HAPPENED. TOOK TO REPAIR SHOP AND AFTER DIAGNOSTIC WAS TOLD ACCELERATION PEDAL SENSOR WAS BAD. THIS IS NOT A COVERED REPAIR AND COST $800. THIS SUDDEN REDUCTION OF POWER IS VERY DANGEROUS AND A SAFETY HAZARD TO ME AND OTHER CARS ON THE ROAD | Crash: No Fire: No | 52,224 |
| Feb 2021 | POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE | CAR DIED IN THE MIDDLE OF A BUSY INTERSECTION AND WOULDN'T RESTART FOR APPROXIMATELY 2 MINUTES. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AND REDUCED ENGINE POWER ON DASH CLUSTER WAS VISIBLE WHEN IT RESTARTED. DEALERSHIP PLACED NEW BATTERY & IT WENT AWAY FOR ABOUT A WEEK THEN RETURNED WHILE DRIVING IN THE 45 MPH RANGE, REDUCED ENGINE POWER, THEN SLOW ACCELERATION FROM A STOP SIGN. SEEMS THERE HAVE BEEN MULTIPLE CLASS ACTION LAWSUITS FOR THIS ISSUE WITH NO RECALL IN PLACE AT THIS TIME. | Crash: No Fire: No | 51,000 |
| Feb 2021 | ENGINE | ENGINE POWER REDUCED | Crash: No Fire: No | 73,206 |
| Feb 2021 | ENGINE | CUT CAR OFF WOULDNT START UP REPLACED VVT SOLENOIDS AND CAMSHAFT SENSORS HAD BATTERY TESTED HAD IT TESTED ON COMPUTER ALL CODES CLEAR AND BEING TOLD IT MAY BE ONE OR MORE CRACKED PISTONS CAR WAS IDLEING NORMAL IN PARK | Crash: No Fire: No | 97,000 |
| Feb 2021 | POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE | I STARTED TO ACCELERATE AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AND REDUCED ENGINE POWER WAS ON MY INFORMATION DISPLAY AND MY CAR WOULD NOT GO OVER 30 MPH. JUST HAPPENED OUT OF THE BLUE. I HAVE APPROXIMATELY 64,000 MILES ON MY MALIBU. THIS HAPPENED ON A CITY STREET AND NOT IN HEAVY TRAFFIC, BUT COULD HAVE BEEN VERY DANGEROUS, IF I WAS ON A HIGHWAY. THEN AFTER I LIMPED THE CAR HOME I TURNED IT OFF AND TURNED IT BACK ON AND IT SEEMED NORMAL, BUT CHECK ENGINE LIGHT IS STILL ON. I AM GETTING RID OF THIS CAR HAS HAD 5 RECALLS OF VARIOUS PROBLEMS SO FAR. ON ONE OCCASION THE DEALERSHIP HAD MY CAR FOR 2 WEEKS...TRYING TO FIX A PROBLEM WITH THE ACCELERATOR. | Crash: No Fire: No | 64,000 |
| Feb 2021 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | THE ONSTAR SYSTEM SHOCKED MY HUSBAND. THE CAR WON'T START SOMETIMES. THE DASH BOARD READS DIFFERENT THINGS WHEN ATTEMPTING TO START CAR. THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED IN THE YARD WITH NOTHING PLUGGED UP TO DRAIN THE BATTERY. | Crash: No Fire: No | 46,407 |
| Feb 2021 | FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | MY 2018 MALIBU HAS A FEATURE THAT WHEN THE CAR STOPS THE ENGINE WILL SHUT DOWN WHEN YOU APPLY THE BRAKES AND ENGINE WILL START BACK WHEN YOU RELEASE THE BRAKE MY CAR HAS SHUT COMPLETELY DOWN WHEN I'VE COME TO A STOP ALL POWER SHUTS DOWN THE HEAT THE RADIO EVERYTHING | Crash: No Fire: No | 76,000 |
| Feb 2021 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | ON JANUARY 11 2021 WHILE DRIVING MY 2018 CHEVY MALIBU TO WORK I RECEIVED A CHECK ENGINE WARNING ON MY DASH, MY MESSAGE STATING "REDUCED ENGINE POWER" CAME ON AND MY CAR SUDDENLY AND SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED SPEED FROM 50 TO 20MPH. I WAS ALMOST HIT FROM BEHIND BY ANOTHER MOTORIST AND HAD TO MANUEVER MY CAR TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. I TURNED THE CAR OFF, REESTARTED IT AND WAS ABLE TO CONTINUE DRIVING. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT REMAINED ON. I CALLED THE CHEVY DEALER AND BROUGHT IT IN FOR SERVICE THE NEXT MORNING. I WAS TOLD IT WAS A SENSOR ISSUE AND IT WAS COVERED UNDER WARRANTY. I RECEIVED THE CAR BACK ON JANUARY 13TH 2020.TODAY, FEBRUARY 1ST 2020 WHILE DRIVING TO WORK MY CAR EXPERIENCED THE SAME PROBLEM. I WAS ABLE TO AVOID BEING HIT AGAIN AND STOPPED ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. MY CAR IS NOW BACK AT THE CHEVY DEALERSHIP. AFTER EXPECTING THE ISSUE WAS FIXED AND WOULDNT HAPPEN AGAIN, I AM EXTREMELY FEARFUL FOR MY SAFETY (AND THOSE AROUND ME) IN THIS CAR. I AM A WORKING MOTHER AND NEED TO RELY ON MY CAR TO GET MY FAMILY TO WORK AND SCHOOL. | Crash: No Fire: No | 59,690 |
| Jan 2021 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | WHEN I DRIVE I'M LOSING ENGINE POWER WHERE MY SPEED IS REDUCED SIGNIFICANTLY. THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS. I'VE LOOKED UP THIS ISSUE AND THERE IS A RECALL ON MALIBU'S 2016-2018. I HAVEN'T GOT A RECALL ON MY CAR YET BUT THIS DEFECT IN THESE CARS ARE RIDICULOUS. SOMEONE NEEDS TO GET IN TOUCH WITH ME ASAP ABOUT THIS DEFECT. THIS IS VERY SERIOUS AND DANGEROUS ON THE ROADS. MY SPEED IS REDUCED WHILE I'M DRIVING. | Crash: No Fire: No | 80,000 |
| Jan 2021 | POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE | WHILE IN MOTION THE ENGINE POWER IS REDUCED THEN THE CAR SLOWED TO A SPEED OF 20 MPH. UPON STARTING M VEHICLE A WEEK A LATER THE ENGINE REDUCTION WARNING CAME ON AGAIN. THE THROTTLE BODY WAS REPLACED NOW I'M BEING TOLD IT'S THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL POSITION SENSOR . WHY SHOULD I HAVE TO PAY FOR THIS. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2021 | ENGINE | REDUCE ENGINE POWER CAME ON | Crash: No Fire: No | 35,000 |
| Jan 2021 | POWER TRAIN | TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 CHEVROLET MALIBU. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE HIS FIANC WAS DRIVING BETWEEN 30-35 MPH, THE CHECK ENGINE WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE STARTED TO DECELERATE WITH THE ENGINE POWER REDUCED MESSAGE DISPLAYED WHILE THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL WAS BEING DEPRESSED. THE DRIVER COASTED OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROADWAY, TURNED OFF AND RESTARTED THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE RESUMED NORMAL DRIVING HOWEVER, THE CHECK ENGINE WARNING LIGHT AND ENGINE POWER REDUCED WARNING LIGHT REMAINED ILLUMINATED. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE FAILURE RECURRED WHILE HE WAS DRIVING THE VEHICLE ON ANOTHER OCCASION. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO ARMEN CHEVROLET SERVICE & PARTS DEPARTMENT (41 GREENFIELD AVE, ARDMORE, PA 19003) BUT WAS NOT DIAGNOSED NOR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 62,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 62,000 |
| Jan 2021 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | I WAS DRIVING AT HIGHWAY SPEED WHEN SUDDENLY CAR DECELERATED TO 20MPH. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WARNING POPPED UP ALONG WITH A ENGINE POWER REDUCED MESSAGE. I WAS UNABLE TO ACCELERATE AT NORMAL HIGHWAY SPEEDS EVEN AFTER TURNING OFF AND RESTARTING CAR. | Crash: No Fire: No | 61,500 |
| Jan 2021 | POWER TRAIN,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | MY CAR HAS A LITTLE OVER 62,000 MILES AT ABOUT 28,000 MILES THE WARNING WAS COMING ON REDUCED SPEED I'D BE ON THE ROAD AND THE CAR WOULD START SLOWING DOWN AND EVEN SOMETIMES ON THE INTERSTATE AND RECENTLY STARTED COMING ON AGAIN I COULD FEEL A POPPING LIKE IN THE GAS PEDAL. THEN THE OTHER DAY I WAS SITTING IN A PARKING LOT AND THE SHIFT TO PARK MESSAGE CAME ON WHEN I WENT TO PULL OFF IT JUST JUMPED. THERE WAS NO WAY TO PUT THE CAR IN NEUTRAL TO BACK IT UP I WASN'T EVEN ABLE TO TURN THE CAR OFF. I HAD TO LEAVE MY CAR RUNNING IN THE PARKING LOT FOR HOURS UNTIL IT DIED. THEN BEFORE THIS THE CAR MOVED SO SLOW IT HARDLY TOOK OFF. OTHER CARS HAVE TO GO AROUND ME. I HAVE HAD THIS CAR FOR TWO YEARS AND JUST SEEMS LIKE ISSUE AFTER ISSUE. GM SHOULD BE ASHAMED AND REIMBURSE PEOPLE FOR THESE VEHICLES. | Crash: No Fire: No | 62,800 |
| Jan 2021 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AND MY SPEED WAS INSTANTLY REDUCED AS I WAS DRIVING. SOMETIMES IT GOES OFF AFTER TURNING OFF THE IGNITION BUT I COULD BE ON THE HIGHWAY OR CITY STREETS AND IT WILL OCCUR, CAUSING A SUDDEN SLOWER SPEED. | Crash: No Fire: No | 93,000 |