Turn Signal problems of the 2004 Chevrolet Malibu - part 1

First, the car routinely burns out turn signals, and overheats the turn signal to the point that it melts the housing thta the light bulb snaps into. I have had to replace the headlight housing/lamp wirings harness multiple times along with many light bulbs. Second, there is a recall for the electronic power steering. My particular VIN was recalled for an electronic power steering sensor. The power steering has gone out on me while driving twice, so I brought it to the dealer. They indicated the electronic power steering motor needs to be replaced,and is not covered under and recalls. There appears tobe numerous recalls on gm vehicles related to the electronic power steering, and replacing motors for that matter, but the dealer has indicated there is no such recall related to my particular vehicle/VIN. This seems rather suspect with the number of recalls related to these vehicles, and for me to have the steering go out, but my particular vehicle does not qualify. I was driving on a city street when it went out once. I made it home safely, albeit very hard to turn the wheel, and then the power steering worked after turning off the vehicle and back on again. It went out again in the parking lot of the car dealer when dropping it off the be looked at.

Tl-the contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu maxx. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 5 mph, the turn signal lights on both sides overheated. The failure caused the turn signal housing and socket to melt. The vehicle was taken to dealer and the technician diagnosed the light bulb socket needed to be replaced. No repaires were made to the vehicle. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 280,000. Nw.

The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu classic. The contact stated that the turn signal failed to operate at times or would operate intermittently do to a defective hazard switch. The contact replaced the hazard switch and the defect was remedied. The contact also indicated that while driving exhaust fumes were emitted inside the vehicle due to a defective blend door. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the defect. The failure mileage was 90,000.

My vehicle drivers side light has gone out various times. The daytime running lights on that side have stopped working as well. Turn signals will stop working while merging in traffic. The power windows will stop working as well.

My 16 year old daughter was stopped at a four way intersection. As she proceeded to turn, she lost her ability to steer the car. She was able to avoid hitting another car and get her car to the side of the road. She noticed there was a yellow dash board light that came on when she lost the steering but no prior warning of any issues or warning lights prior to loosing the steering on the vehicle. Once she got to the side of the road, her four way emergency flashers would not work. My husband went to pick her up. He restarted the car and the steering worked fine for him. There was no warning lights indicating any problem on the dash board. We brought the car to our mechanic he could not get the problem to resurface. He did note that the directional turn signals seemed to be "messed up" and he changed the light bulbs. When she lost her steering a second time we had the vehicle towed to a different mechanic who told us this was a chronic defect issue with this make/brand of vehicle and that it needed a new electronic component in the steering column which would cost us $900. 00. I researched this information on the internet and found that there are thousands of complaints for this very issue. It occurs at different amounts of mileage. It occurs on the vehicles when they were purchased brand new and purchased used as in our case. This is not your normal wear and tear type of vehicle issue. This is a significant safety issue which is an engineering/design flaw in the vehicle. I have called the gm customer service line. Our case # is 71-127-262-2441. We now have to bring the car to our local chevy dealer and they have told us that it could cost way more just to diagnose the problem than to repair it. Unbelievable. . . Please help look into this safety issue as my daughter could of been killed herself and or could have caused injury to someone else without any forewarning.

Front headlamps and turn signal bulbs are having to be replaced around every 6 months. Using bulbs specified by the owner's manual. Plastic orange bulb casing has holes melted on the top and warped.

On three seperate occasions over the past year I would hear a loud chime and my power steering would go out in my 2004 Malibu maxx, making it very difficult to drive. Each time this has occured, I would turn the car off and restart it which would resolve the power steering problem. Initially, I took the car to a mechanic who said there were no leaks in the power steering system and it must have been an electronic problem. I chalked it up to old age (for the car) and continued to drive the car with care. My wife has not been able to drive the car since this happened because she could not control the car if the power steering goes out. Recently I heard of a recall on t. V. Regarding my year, make, and model. The recall description fit my experience with this car. I contacted the gm dealer (sweeney Chevrolet in boardman ohio) and was told 'there had not been a recall on my car as of yet'. They went on to say that if I wanted it fixed, to bring it in and pay out of pocket. I would later be reimbursed by gm if, in fact, there was an eventual recal. My complaint is that I don't have $500-$1000 for a repair that I may not get reimbursed for. It is obvious that my car should be covered by this recall that was announced nationally on t. V. Is there anything that can be done so that gm can be made to fix this car before it causes an accident? additionally, I have been brushed off by them regarding the turn signals since this car has been under warranty. I have replaced over 100 bulbs since this car was new. They overheat and melt the surrounding materials. I have already replaced the entire headlamp assembly, to no avail. I now drive this car without a left front turn signal because it will burn out the bulb within a day or two of replacing it. I'm not sure if this has been brought to the attention of gm in the past, but it seems to be a fire hazard.

The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated while the cruise control was engaged at 75 mph it suddenly disengaged and caused the vehicle to lose speed. The contact did not apply the brakes in order to disengaged the cruise control system. The contact took the vehicle to a mechanic who stated the brake lights malfunctioned and caused the cruise control to disengaged due to the brake lights illuminating. The mechanic replaced numerous fuses in the vehicle as well as re-calibrating the electrical system; however, that did not remedy the issue. The contact stated the turn signal malfunctioned as well. The failure mileage was 148,000.

Turn signal bulbs are being melted by defective sockets!!! need replacement.

Right front signal bulb socket and bulb over heating (melting) and resulting in inoperative front turn signal. Repeatedly occurring - having to remove melted plastic and replace bulb. 4 times since first occurance.

Rear turn signal bulbs burn too hot and melt bulb connection. Front turn signal bulbs burn too hot and melt lens housing, causing severe discoloration in headlamp assembly. Headlamp becomes very hot to touch, could possibly start a fire. I have read multiple complaints on this issue and cannot understand why this has not been a recall by gm. I am very frustrated.

Hazard/turn signal works intermittenly. Does not appear on the indicator panel when not working. Will work for part of a trip and then stop or not work at all when the vehicle is first started and then work 20 mins. Later. The speed/weather conditions do not seem to have an effect as to when it works. Consequence could be a ticket. The town of amherst has made the news for how much they ticket and a plea down to a parking ticket would cost a person $200+. I have hesitated to replace it as I have read that this is a common problem of chevy Malibu's. These cars need so many repairs that I hate to put more money (yet again) into something that will not work.

2004 Chevrolet Malibu maxx. Consumer seeking reimbursement for previous repairs, prior to recall. The consumer stated the steering wheel was noisy, the wheel was loose, the vehicle pulled to the right. An alignment was performed twice, she experienced steering problems during the entire year of 2013. There was a recall on the steering issue, but she continued to experience problems. The intermediate shaft and rack and pinion were replaced. Also, the turn signals and shifter cable were replaced.

This has been an ongoing incident with one or both turn signals lamps for more than two years. The turn signal lamps themselves do not appear burned out but the lamp socket wire melts the plastic housing from excessive heat and causes a break in the electrical circuit. I have made multiple bulb replacements over the two plus years only to have the turn signal socket plastic housing fail repeatedly. This situation may be a solder joint cracking caused by rapid temperature transitions. If solder joint cracking occurs and results in an open circuit, the turn signals lamps become intermittent or inoperative. Consequences: when the turn signals are inoperative, the driver cannot use them to signal intent to turn that could result in a crash.

I am experiencing problems with both of my turn signals. They are currently not working at 100%. Sometimes they come on and sometimes they do not. Also, they have turned on and immediately stopped working. This has caused great concern because I am not always able to signal to change lanes which may cause an accident. Nothing happened directly before the failure occurred. One night when a friend was following me she noticed that I had "stopped" using my turn signals when in fact I noticed later that they were no longer working. The next day, they worked on and off throughout the day. When I called the dealer and reported that problem and asked about the recall, the dealer stated that my 2004 Malibu was not included in the recall though it was having the same problems as previous models.

Purchased a used 2004 Chevrolet Malibu in April 2009 at a Saturn dealer. A month after the purchase the front left turn signal stopped working. I replaced the bulb with the part number identified in the owners manual. A few weeks later it stopped working. I continued to remove and/or replace the light bulb until it worked for a few days or weeks. After several times of replacing the bulb I took the car to the Saturn dealer in August 2009. They supposedly replaced the entire head light assembly which cost several hundred dollars. The issue seemed to have been resolved until June 1 2010 when the light bulb stopped working. After investigation I noticed the left turn light bulb was mostly white in color and the turn signal amber colored lens was melted with a hole in it. It seems that during the summer months when it is hot the lamp is overheating. My left turn signal light is currently not working. The Saturn dealer went out of business and closed. After research I found this is a common problem with the 2004 Malibu (url below). Please investigate to see if a recall exists for this problem and if this can be permanently fixed by a Chevrolet dealer. . Read more...

Experiencing loss of function of front and rear, turn, stop or daytime running lamps (drl). Have replaced or repositioned bulbs on numerous occasions over the years. Recent examination revealed that front turn signal lens is melting on both sides.

Power steering failure. When I start car and making sharp turns, in addition to just driving down the road. Here clicking in the front right end when going up hill. Told by mechanic that it is a prob with the electric power steering system and rack and pinion. Oddly enough there was and 2006 mailbu in at the same time with the same problem mechanic felt it should be a recall issue. Also have issue with the turn signals failing I have replaced many times. I also have a hole that melted on the front right side in the plastic housing.

The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu maxx. The left turn signal was inoperative. Upon further inspection, he noticed that the left turn signal amber cover was burned with a hole in it. The dealer and the manufacturer were notified; however, he has not received a response. The failure mileage was 41, 140 and the current mileage was 41,167.

Exterior lamp socket overheated, melted, resulting in loss of turn signal indicators.

The front drivers side turn signal / park lamp was not working. I removed the headlight assembly to access the turn signal bulb. Before removing the bulb I noticed; a) the old bulb glass was white. B) theouter clear plastic and chrome reflective surface of the head light assembly are discolored, directly above the turn signal bulb, from heat. C) the round amber lens directly around the turn signal bulb was melted at the top and a melted piece of this plastic extended down and was melted to the top of the turn signal bulb. Currently all I have done was to replace the bulb. Note: both front head lamp housings have the same heat discoloration and melting.

The day time running lights/turn signal lights on my 2004 Malibu maxx are melting through the amber colored housing and starting to melt the clear housing that covers the entire headlight. I think at some time this might lead to a fire. The problem was just noticed at a routine oil change and may have been melting for a long time before it was realized.

2004 Chevrolet Malibu maxx lt both front parking light / turn signal light housings are melting, both lamps have failed, both lamp sockets are scorched.

Intermittent turn signal problems. Front and rear bulbs stop working, the bulbs are frequently replaced but the flashers still stop working. When we take the old bulb out the element in the bulb is intact.

Right rear turn signal bulb went out and was replaced. Rear went out a second time and then the front went out as well. Then the back went out a third time, all happening within two months. Now about a month later the left rear bulb has done the same thing. Mechanic looked at it and said was not normal. No parts were retained after repair, however will keep next time replaced.

I bought a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu in 2008, since that time I have had to replace the front turn signals approx. 6 times due to the plastic on the signal bulbs, melting and covering the wire s that go over the plastic that make contact with the plug the bulb goes into.

When using the turn signals the dash blinkers operated very fast. Upon checking the turn signal bulbs, both front bulbs were burned out and the amber lens on each had hole in the top of the lens where they had melted. There appears to be flash burns on the outer lens cover. This is a first occurrence at about 68000 miles. The bulbs have been replaced and now operate ok.

The turn signal on the front of the vehicle (driver's side) is not working properly. It was blinking faster than normal which usually means the bulb needs replaced. I replaced the bulb, but that did not resolve the issue. I took it to the dealer and they said the entire module needs to be replaced. The vehicle has 54000 miles and it is a Chevrolet Malibu LS v6 2004.

Left and right front turn signals/daytime running lights are overheating and causing the yellow plastic lens surrounding the bulb to overheat and melt. The melting plastic is dripping down onto the hot bulb were is it burning. Although I have not seen it smoke or flame the damage and cause is obvious. This is a major fire hazard yet when I contacted gm they refused to do anything about it. Citing the age and mileage on the vehicle. It is a 2004 with 55,000 miles on it. I have checked out many other Malibu's and the problem is occurring on the majority of them. With molten plastic dripping down onto a hot bulb or its metal base it is only a matter of time until a fire occurs. I have the same problem on both sides. This is a design issue that needs to be corrected.

I have owned this car approx. 12 months. . . Recently took a long trip-11 hours driving straight through-upon returning I noticed the left front turn signal not working, I immediately purchased replacement bulb and upon replacing I noticed the internal amber lens cup for the signal had a hole melted/burned through it. Noticing this I immediately checked the right side and it also has a hole starting to come through. I traveled at night, outside temperature was 62-68 degrees fahrenheit for the better part of the travel. The base of the bulb that was replaced shows slight melt, their is no apparent damage to the socket. I have saved the old bulb.

I recently purchased a used 2004 Chevrolet Malibu with 47,000 miles. After 2 weeks of driving the vehicle, the left turn signal went out. After replacing the bulb, I noticed that a hole has burned through the yellow, plastic lens.

Turn signal bulb burning through the plastic casing resulting in ineffective turn signals. Took to gm dealer in November 2007 and they said nothing was wrong. I replaced the headlights in December. Turn signal bulb burning through plastic casing on both headlights yet again resulting in ineffective turn signals.

Multiple problems with this car - left turn signal does not work - car is aligned and still wants to go left (electrical steering issues I am told) - adjustable pedals do not adjust - visor mirror is broken -.

Front left turning signal is not working. I have bought many light bulbs replacing light bulb after bulb. Everytime I change the bulb it would work but as soon as I drive for little and turn the signal it goes out again. Seem as though it may have a shortage.

The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu. Both of the front turn signal lenses have a one half inch hole burned into the top of the plastic. The plastic has completely melted and turned brown. The shiny material has turned a dull white. The dealer stated that nothing could be done because the vehicle was out of warranty. The current and failure mileages were 82,000. Updated 02-14-08.