Chevrolet Malibu Complaints (2021)

87 consumer complaints on file.

#11758483August 21, 2026
POWER TRAIN
The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving 70 MPH, the vehicle failed to accelerate as needed; however, the RPM was extremely elevated. The vehicle then lost motive power and went into LIMP Mode, and the vehicle failed to exceed 15 MPH. The vehicle was taken to a dealer on three separate occasions. After the first failure, the dealer stated that the failure was caused by an inoperable sensor, and the fuel pump was reprogrammed. The contact stated that after the second failure, which was associated with the turbo, the powertrain module was reprogrammed. The third failure was associated with the turbo seals. The failure reoccurred after all three repairs. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 96,035.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11758225August 20, 2026
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ENGINE
The Chevy Malibu is displaying a “Shift to Park” message even when the gear selector is physically in the Park position. This indicates that the vehicle’s computer may not be recognizing that the vehicle has been placed in Park, which is commonly associated with a faulty or failing internal park-position sensor/switch. The issue is affecting the vehicle’s ability to shut down properly. It is necessary to turn the vehicle off and back on multiple times before the system will recognize that the vehicle is in Park and allow it to shut off completely. If the vehicle does not recognize the Park position, it may remain partially powered on and potentially drain the battery.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11757048August 14, 2026
POWER TRAIN, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Failure - B000A-00 Body Control Module Error code - Shift Lever Position not plausible . Safety - This causes the car to upon attempting to turn off the car say "Shift into Park" on the dashboard and the car refuses to turn fully off. This can cause the battery to drain excessively from repeated constant start/stop attempts and leaves the car in an impossible state. You cannot safely leave the car in this state but you have no choice until you get lucky enough to hope an attempt is recognized as parked and shut off normally. This could jeopardize safety in situations you need to turn your car off Official Bulletin Number: GM TSB 23-NA-119 There is no warning prior to failure, and no way to override it
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11756284August 11, 2026
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, AIR BAGS
I was driving my car my electrical system is throwing all kinds of code.my sftey restrain is coming on to check my seat belt .the car goes blank .it stop in the middle of the road.this car has a lot of issues.can some one help me with this I work at the cardiologist office .
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11756187August 11, 2026
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
I purchased this vehicle in April of 2026, 4 days after bringing it home it began displaying a “Shift To Park” message in the dash, essentially making it so the vehicle will not shut off even when the vehicle is in park. Took it to a shop and they diagnosed it as a common issue across the 2021 Malibus and stated the entire shifter assembly needed replaced. Have not had it replaced yet due to not having the funds to replace the entire assembly, but was informed eventually the problem will progress to a total loss of being able to turn the vehicle off resulting in the vehicle essentially dying and requiring a jump start where the issue will display on the dashboard again until the internal micro switch is replaced. I believe this issue should be brought to GMs attention and a recall should be issued, seeing as they are aware it’s a known issue in malibus. A chevy dealership specifically told me that replacing the entire assembly may likely not even repair the issue itself.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11755166August 6, 2026
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The car has an issue recognizing that the car is in park when trying to turn off the vehicle. A message on the dash will appear “Shift to Park”. The car has not been inspected for this issue, but it does repeatedly happen, not every time I turn off the car, but it happens pretty frequently. If I am unable to get the shifter to fully engage the computer then it won’t let me completely power down the vehicle and drains the battery. I’ve had to get a battery replaced before due to a mechanic moving my car after inspecting it for a different issue and leaving the “Shift to Park” signal on and ignoring it. This left me stranded with no battery and a mechanic denying remediation for the dead battery. Many other similar gmc models have the same issue as me.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11753858July 30, 2026
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
I am reporting a safety concern with my 2021 Chevrolet Malibu that is experiencing a “Shift to Park” failure.The vehicle displays a “Shift to Park” warning message even when the gear selector is fully placed in Park. Because the vehicle incorrectly detects that it is not in Park, it will not allow me to properly turn the vehicle off. This creates a concern because the vehicle may remain powered on when it should be shut down, potentially draining the battery and leaving the vehicle unable to start when needed.This issue appears to be a known problem affecting multiple Chevrolet vehicles, yet owners are still being required to pay out-of-pocket for repairs. My vehicle has just over 54,000 miles, and the repair estimate from Chevrolet is approximately $853.A gear position detection failure is concerning because the vehicle’s ability to recognize Park is an important safety function. I am requesting that NHTSA investigate whether this issue represents a safety defect and whether additional action is needed to protect vehicle owners.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11753430July 29, 2026
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Car states shift to park when vehicle is already in park. It took multiple times to start car again and wiggling of shifter to get car to turn off. Car was repaired by a mechanic by replacing the transmission control and transmission shifter. Chevy is aware of the problem (which can drain the battery if not caught) but has not issued a recall only a Technical Service Bulletin. Cost to me was $569.00 for repair.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11753429July 29, 2026
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Car states shift to park when vehicle is already in park. It took multiple times to start car again and wiggling of shifter to get car to turn off. Car was repaired by a mechanic by replacing the transmission control and transmission shifter. Chevy is aware of the problem (which can drain the battery if not caught) but has not issued a recall only a Technical Service Bulletin. Cost to me was $569.00 for repair.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11751019July 17, 2026
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:STARTER ASSEMBLY, FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP
The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while starting the vehicle, all the lights on the instrument panel illuminated, and the engine started to choke. The Service Vehicle light remained illuminated after the other lights turned off. The engine started choking again and failed to start. The vehicle was towed to a certified mechanic and was diagnosed with an inoperable fuel pump power control module. The mechanic informed the contact about a recall associated with the failure and referred the contact to the dealer for assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the failure reoccurred the next two days. The dealer was contacted and confirmed that the VIN was not under recall. The manufacturer was informed of the issue and confirmed that the VIN was not under recall. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 72,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11749779July 11, 2026
ENGINE, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
A screen popped up saying “reduced engine power” I was already Omw to the shop to get one thing fixed. When they tried to pull my car in they say they he car wouldn’t drive and it was hard to accelerate and they had to put it in Neutral to get it in the shop. They said they fixed the problem but when I left to go into the main road, my car wouldn’t accelerate to the speed I needed and cars were coming. They were beeping and thank God they were able to slow down because they’ve would’ve hit me. The car does not accelerate and the manias can’t figure out why. Upon doing my research there are 100’s of folks saying the same thing. Right now I am out of a car, I literally just moved on 6/30 and not only do I work DoorDash, I have a day job and an overnight job. My car is how I make my money and this issue is putting a lot of stress and frustration on me because I need to get to and from work to pay bills. I am waiting to hear back from another mechanic which is even more stressful. Waiting, trying to figure out who can fix this issue and what the issue is.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11749481July 10, 2026
POWER TRAIN
Shift to park switch failed.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11749345July 9, 2026
POWER TRAIN
The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that when shifting the gear selector into park (P), the "Shift To Park" warning message was displayed on the instrument panel, even though the vehicle was already parked. The failure was recurrent. A dealer was contacted and informed the contact that the failure was a known condition with pending repairs. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 113,674.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11738610May 18, 2026
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Blower motor area caught fire while sitting in the driveway. Car door was opened about 20 minutes prior to my security camera catching smoke billowing from the vehicle
Crash:
No
Fire:
Yes
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11733506April 24, 2026
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
Took my car for an oil change 4/17/2026 dealership stated I had a recall on the 21 chevy malibu for Fuel injection module, They could not do the recall repair because they did not have the part. So the lady called me. 4/21/2026 to make appointment for recall for 4/23/2026. But later that day on 4/21 my engine light came out and my car started having problems. When ran a diagnostic it gave a code for the fuel injection
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11732355April 20, 2026
AIR BAGS
This vin is most likely affected by the aftermarket DTN inflator wheel airbag. Please let the final owner know of this. This vehicle was sold to Auto Boutique LLC from Jacksonville Florida on January 11, 2023 who then sold it to the current owner.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11732353April 20, 2026
AIR BAGS
This vin is most likely affected by the aftermarket DTN inflator wheel airbag. Please let the final owner know of this. This vehicle was sold to Auto Boutique LLC from Jacksonville Florida on August 31, 2022.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11732352April 20, 2026
AIR BAGS
This vin is most likely affected by the aftermarket DTN inflator wheel airbag. Please let the final owner know of this. This vehicle was sold to Auto Boutique LLC from Jacksonville Florida on November 23, 2022.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11732351April 20, 2026
AIR BAGS
This vin is most likely affected by the aftermarket DTN inflator wheel airbag. Please let the final owner know of this. This vehicle was sold to Bargain Auto Sales Inc from West Palm beach on August 25, 2021.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11732348April 20, 2026
AIR BAGS
This vin is most likely affected by the aftermarket DTN inflator wheel airbag. Please let the final owner know of this. This vehicle was sold to Rightway Automotive credit from Tallmadge Ohio on October 19, 2022 who then sold it to the current owner.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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