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Owner-Reported Problems · NHTSA

2013 Chevrolet Malibu — Problems & Complaints

NHTSA has 923 owner complaints on file for this vehicle. Every report below was filed by a real owner with the US government's road-safety agency.

923
Complaints
filed with NHTSA
38
Involved a Crash
owner-reported
11
Involved Fire
owner-reported
34
Injuries
across all reports
Years to Avoid

Chevrolet Malibu — Complaints by Model Year

Years flagged AVOID have at least twice this model's average complaint count — the strongest public-data signal of a bad year.

1,365 complaints

978 complaints

907 complaints

923 complaints

363 complaints

270 complaints

863 complaints

725 complaints

700 complaints

192 complaints

198 complaints

Problem Areas

What Owners Complain About Most

Electrical System 425 reports
Engine 226 reports
Steering 197 reports
Unknown Or Other 97 reports
Electronic Stability Control (esc) 84 reports
Air Bags 69 reports
Suspension 65 reports
Power Train 62 reports
In Their Own Words

Recent Owner Reports

Electrical System ODI 11164311 12/31/2018

MULTIPLE TIMES WHILE SINCE I'VE HAD IT IT HAS REDUCED ENGINE POWER ( STABILTRAK) ON ME WHILE DRIVING. JUST RECENTLY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON WITH CODES READING FOR CAMSHAFT ACTUATORS FAILING AND PCM FAILING. THE CAR CHUGS WILL DRIVING AND HAS EVEN DIED WHILE OPERATING.

Electrical System ODI 11499539 12/30/2022

The gauge cluster in my car has intermittently lost power for about two years. It is now almost always off. I have been unable to have this repaired as the parts have been unavailable nationwide since I initially started having problems. I can't see any of my gauges. I have no idea how much gas I have, if my car is overheating, or if my car is having any other sort of prob…

Electronic Stability Control (esc) ODI 11164121 12/30/2018

BATTERY VOLTAGE INDICATOR CAME ON FIRST AND ENGINE LIGHT INDICATOR ON. REPLACED BATTERY AND ALTERNATOR. CAR STALLS WHEN GAS PEDAL NOT APPLIED. CAR TURNS COMPLETELY OFF WHEN BRAKING TO STOP SIGNS, RED LIGHTS, SLOWING DOWN TO TURN. IT'S COMPLETELY UNSAFE. IT HAS TURNED OFF ON ME CROSSING MAJOR HIGHWAYS. MECHANIC REPLACED FUEL PUMP DUE TO P0300 CODE ETC. CAR STILL STALLS AND TURN…

Electrical System ODI 10938705 12/30/2016

USED SWITCH TO ROLL DOWN PASSENGER WINDOW, TOUCH SCREEN WENT BLACK, CAME BACK ON MAYBE AFTER 30 SEC OR SO. WHILE DRIVING TOUCH SCREEN OCC BLACK OUT, ALL ELECTRONIC GO OUT , NO TURN SIGNAL, NO DIGITAL SPEED, POWER STEERING. AFTER FUELING WENT TO START CAR, IT WOULDN'T START, NO LIGHTS NO POWER AT ALL, DID THIS THREE TIMES IN ONE DAY. I HADN'T HAD CAR THIRTY DAYS. *TR

Engine And Engine Cooling ODI 10817069 12/30/2015

WHILE DRIVING HOME, I RECEIVED A WARNING TO SERVICE MY BATTERY CHARGING SYSTEM. EVENTUALLY, THE BATTERY SAVER WAS ACTIVATED. I LOST MY POWER STEERING EVENTUALLY AND MY CAR STOPPED RUNNING. I COULD JUMP THE CAR TO START BUT MY CAR WOULD DIE WHEN PUT IN GEAR. MY VEHICLE HAS 51,000 MILES AND YET THE DRIVE BELT BROKE. WHILE REPAIRING IT, THE TECHNICIAN DISCOVERED THAT THE DRIVE BE…

Same Vehicle

Recalls & Crash Tests

Complaints are one half of the picture — see the official recalls and NHTSA crash-test stars for the 2013 Chevrolet Malibu, or check your exact car by VIN with the free VIN lookup.

Check Another Car

Problems Checker

Any year, make and model: open the Car Problems Checker. Data: NHTSA (US DOT, public domain), cached up to 7 days.

Questions

FAQ

Is the 2013 Chevrolet Malibu reliable?
Owners have filed 923 safety complaints with NHTSA for the 2013 Chevrolet Malibu, most often about electrical system. Compare the complaint counts across model years above — a year with far more complaints than the model's average is the strongest 'avoid' signal in public data.
Which Chevrolet Malibu years should I avoid?
The rule of thumb used by analysts: a model year whose complaint count is well above the model's own average (we flag 2× or more) usually had a real manufacturing or design problem — not just noisy reporting. Use the year-by-year strip on this page.
Where do these complaints come from?
Directly from NHTSA, the US government road-safety agency. Any owner can file a Vehicle Owner Questionnaire; NHTSA publishes them as public domain data. We cache each lookup for up to 7 days.
Do complaints mean a recall is coming?
Sometimes. NHTSA opens defect investigations when complaint patterns emerge, and investigations can end in recalls. Check the recalls page for this vehicle to see what has already been recalled.