What breaks most · 1997 to 2025 model years
Chevrolet Malibu problems by year
Owners have filed 19,311 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Chevrolet Malibu across model years 1997 to 2025. Three years stand out: 2009 for steering complaints, 2010 for steering complaints and 2004 for steering complaints. The quietest years are 2023, 2021 and 2022.
- Years to check closely: 2009, 2010, 2004
- Fewest complaints: 2023, 2021, 2022
- Complaints on file
- 193111997 to 2025, all trims
- Worst year
- 20091509 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 767166 fires · 628 injuries · 23 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 78kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 130Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 443 | 22 | 6 | Brakes (hydraulic) (100) | |
| 976 | 34 | 5 | Brakes (hydraulic) (347) | |
| 789 | 44 | 3 | Brakes (hydraulic) (292) | |
| 922 | 45 | 5 | Exterior lighting (241) | |
| 721 | 36 | 4 | Electrical system (285) | |
| 567 | 18 | 4 | Electrical system (259) | |
| 569 | 35 | 3 | Electrical system (289) | |
| 1147 | 47 | 9 | Steering (798) | |
| 975 | 46 | 6 | Steering (506) | |
| 1115 | 41 | 9 | Steering (810) | |
| 977 | 37 | 6 | Steering (667) | |
| 987 | 30 | 5 | Steering (460) | |
| 1509 | 41 | 6 | Steering (768) | |
| 1359 | 41 | 4 | Steering (454) | |
| 977 | 40 | 4 | Electrical system (235) | |
| 906 | 50 | 3 | Electrical system (290) | |
| 835 | 33 | 10 | Electrical system (375) | |
| 350 | 19 | 6 | Engine (125) | |
| 270 | 18 | 3 | Engine (70) | |
| 836 | 22 | 9 | Engine (302) | |
| 701 | 16 | 4 | Engine (253) | |
| 695 | 23 | 6 | Engine (279) | |
| 189 | 8 | 1 | Powertrain and transmission (66) | |
| 195 | 10 | 1 | Engine (59) | |
| 88 | 0 | 2 | Unknown or other (30) | |
| 96 | 4 | 1 | Electrical system (32) | |
| 68 | 3 | 2 | Backup camera and sensors (16) | |
| 39 | 3 | 2 | Electrical system (17) | |
| 11 | 1 | 1 | Backup camera and sensors (5) |
What fails on the 2009 Chevrolet Malibu
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SteeringPower steering pumps, racks and hoses | 51% |
768 | 13 | Shop steering parts for the 2009 Chevrolet Malibu |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 24% |
368 | 5 | Shop electrical system parts for the 2009 Chevrolet Malibu |
| Stability controlABS and wheel speed sensors | 17% |
255 | 5 | Shop stability control parts for the 2009 Chevrolet Malibu |
| Exterior lightingHeadlights, tail lights and bulbs | 11% |
172 | 0 | Shop exterior lighting parts for the 2009 Chevrolet Malibu |
| BrakesBrake pads, rotors and calipers | 9% |
142 | 3 | Shop brakes parts for the 2009 Chevrolet Malibu |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 8% |
121 | 2 | Shop all powertrain and transmission parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Speed control and throttleThrottle and pedal sensors | 5% |
73 | 0 | Shop speed control and throttle parts for the 2009 Chevrolet Malibu |
| Air bags | 4% |
62 | 23 | Check recalls for air bags on NHTSA.gov |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
-
I was cruise control 80mph and my.power steering went out. Esc power steering warning on dash. Car is incredibly hard to steer. When I turn car off and back on it might go away for a few minutes but then come.back randomly in a scary scenarios. Thing is a death trap.
-
The power steering goes out at times. When I start up or when I am driving my steering will get harder and I get a power steering warning on the dash. If I shut the car off, sometimes it goes away but most of the time it does not.
-
Electric Power Steering has failed on my car. Warning shows up saying power steering. Live in a snowy deer populated area impossible to turn wheel in these situations to avoid a collision. There was no actual accident that occured but there more than likely could be.
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 6, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Chevrolet Malibu years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2009, 2010, 2004 carry the most filings on the Chevrolet Malibu. The 2009 alone has 1509 complaints, led by steering.
What is the most common Chevrolet Malibu problem?
On the 2009 model year, the most-reported component is steering with 768 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Chevrolet Malibu problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Chevrolet Malibu complaints that include mileage is about 78,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.