general problems of the 2009 Chevrolet Malibu - part 1

While driving the car, the power steering suddenly goes out and a message displays saying something like "service esc power steering". It seems completely random. Some days, power steering works all day and other days it is completely intermittent. There is a recall for this exact car, recall 14v153000 from 3-31-2014 but somehow according to the VIN this car is not in that group. It needs to be expanded. I have researched this problem extensively, and it is identical to the symptoms described in recall 14v153000. I do not know why this car is not included in the recall. It is the identical electrical power steering system, and clearly it is faulty.

My power steering stops working. I have to shut the car off and on several times and it will come back on. There is a recall for the 2009 Malibu, although my VIN is showing it’s not part of the recall. The air conditioner works some days, but other days not at all. It also shows that this is under recall, although my VIN shows not affected by this recall either. The air conditioner is inconvenient, but the steering is a safety issue. My wheel will barely turn when it stops working.

Electric power steering goes out while driving. Very hard to steer!!!! major safety concern. Traction control and esc don't work while this problem occurs.

It’s going on with a lot of Malibu’s with the starting issue with the whole fuse box the copper in the fuse box is making a hairline split in the copper in the fuse box one the car heats up enough to make the plastic fuse box hot there no engine light for this so people would go threw thousands of dollars and never find the issue this really needs a recall because it’s happening to mys and if you take the fuse box apart and don’t see a split in the copper your going have to have a hot gun to warm it it up to show I did what many people did I change the starter I change the starter relay and a few other fuses and still have a starting problem sometimes my car starts up fine then other times it won’t start after trying aleast 6 times then I got wait 20 to 30 mins then it will start this is a major problem for these models and for a mechanic to find unless you explain the situation this need to be recall for the fuse boxes with it over heating in splitting the wire inside to cause starting problems and power problems and sometimes throwing out faulty codes please resolve this issue so I can bring my car in for new fuse box are a recall to shouldering the wire as they call it this is major.

My transmission is slipping when there was a recall and my car went in to get fixed for both my power steering and my transmission and my power steering does not work and my transmission is slipping.

This VIN number shows recall number 14v252. We called a Chevrolet new car dealership and they tell us there is no recall on this VIN number. Can you help us please ? we don’t want to sell this car with this recall notice. Please call us at our business 814-942-8338. We want to get this resolved for our customer.

Steering affected, unable to control direction of vehicle. Luckily I was not on highway driving at high speed . . . . It very well had caused a serious accident. Warning lights on : dashboard monitor messaged " power steering " traction control light first time it happened was on December 22, 2021 . The most recent time was on February 21, 2022.

Power steering and esc both failed at the same time randomly, no warning lights or signals until after the incident. Can get it to turn back on by starting car and jerking wheel, steering wheel shakes back and forth, power steering and esc goes back out once wheel is turned even slightly. Electronic power steering is constant, so I am fighting my car just to drive it, and I have no electronic stability control in snow/ice. Impossible to react/turn quickly enough to prevent an accident in the worst case scenario. Most likely torque sensor, extremely common issue with 09 Malibu’s, no recall issued.

Steering failed when driving on freeway, abruptly stopped and had to restart on the road to can control of steering. Spent several hundred dollars, replacing breaks and to fix the check engine light error. Despite service, abs, service tire pressure, service + passenger air bag and other controls flash in and out when driving at various speeds/times. Breaks seem not to work right when stopping and speeding up is strained. Now cruise control is not disengaging consistently. And power steering issues are returning this winter. Dashboard lights are in and out and I can't read speed. Do not purchase!.

Power steering failed when turning from a stop and/or low speed into traffic. Steering was nearly impossible and required great effort from driver. A brief message flashed on the driver information center and a unique chime was heard. The safety of the driver was affected by oncoming traffic. The failure has not been inspected by a mechanic as of yet, but the vehicle is available for inspection at any time.

Have plms for electric power steering it littl hard turn and it not safe.

I was driving on the parkway my vehicle started making a loud sound idling high then it made a loud pop sound then began to smoke by the time I pulled over smoke was coming through the vents and fire was coming from the hood I was able to get my two small boys out before it completely went up in flames.

The power steering just goes out, the esc light comes on and it will just go out. Ive seen this is a know issue with this car. Also the door locks quit on most of the cars.

Car shuts off while driving problems electrical.

I went to the store came back out an it wouldn't trun over I got a new battery an got the same result.

I am having issues associated with recall number 14v252000, but I don't know if my vehicle was ever recalled and/or repaired.

Power steering service ecs light loss of power shut the steering on mid road very dangerous it's a shame we don't have a recall yet and I read over 100 complaints of the same problems on these cars most on the 2009 chevy Malibu.

Purchased vehicle on 8/8/19 and still have not received out plate or title have went there 2 time told me it was sent in, called dmv and they said paperwork was not sent in until Nov 4 and they did not send all the money, still nothing, my car is parked with an expired temporary plare.

Takata recall passenger air bag is sunken in to the dashboard.

Brake lights stay on while driving but shut off when actually put on brakes. . . . Very dangerous.

I have been having trouble with my car almost from the time of purchase. My vehicle is having some transmission problems. It is having problems picking up speed and jerks when gears are shifted. I have also notice that when the button is pushed to roll down the window, the light flickers a bit. My car has numerous recalls on it but everytime I take it to the shop, they tell me they are closed out. That is a safety issue, how can they legally close out a recall of something that is unsafe? he said they put a certain number out of how many vehicles have gotten the recall taken care of. The others are considered lost or stolen. I bought this car used and I did not have it in the time the recalls were issued. My vehicle has never been lost or stolen. I have taken it to bob bell numerous times, only to be told the recalls are closed. I had to get my insurance to pay for one of the recall issues because my steering while locked up while driving and I was unable to turn the wheel. This transmission issue I am having has to do with another recall issue but they tell me it is closed out. There is also an open recall for the takata inflators. When I get into the vehicle and start it then put it in reverse to back out, I can feel it jerk and often hear a pop sound. Sometimes it is extremely difficult to get it to shift into reverse. It seems stuck. The vehicle seem sluggish, like it does not have full power.

The esc light has come on along with several other lights like traction control and air bag on the dash and now it won't start.

I started my car this morning Nov. 05, 2018. It was making this weird shaking noice. After a few minutes it was showing me "service esc" and "esc off" and "service traction". This is weird after 6months driving from CA to va it starts to act up.

When driving the vehicle the service traction service esc & esc off lights come off/on seems to be worse when I turn the vehicle will drive rough at times, also the cruise control will fail to work. Got a recall on this in 2017 took it into a dealer shop who applied gel to connectors said that fixed the problem, it certainly did not. I do not know if this is safe to drive my vehicle since it is the only one I own I do not have a choice. Since this has been going on for more than a year now I can not give an exact date but it does happen daily. . I need the repairs made by gm not me.

I was driving the car and the power steering went out and the esc light , traction light , battery light , air bag light , and all speed went all the way down as I was driving the car down the road. This problem has happened before but it has started again.

Takata recall the airbag light has come on and stays on something with the steering, wheels, drivetrain, and possibly bcm. A lot of vibration when driving and braking. Becoming such an issue to the point I fear to have my 11 month old child in it.

Smell of gas in the car when turned on. After a couple of minutes, the smell goes away. My mechanic looked allover the car and cant find the issue. No warning signs on the dashboard.

I am not sure where to start. Door locks intermittently don't work, bluetooth just stopped working, have had to change headlight bulbs 3 times in 2 years, power steering went out (had that repaired by dealer at not cost), ac/heater/defroster used to shut off intermittently, now it just stopped working, driver's side seat heater stopped working, instrument panel randomly throws up error code (example: service airbag, service engine) OH and the paint is fading on hood roof and trunk. Car has 75,000 miles and I used to love it. No I won't drive it out of town.

Driving the Malibu down the country road and some code flashed on the dash and then said power reduction and now its making a weird noise and car only drives slow, if this happens on a highway their will be a crash as when the power reduction kicked on it turned off traction control and power steering making it hard to move the steering wheel thank goodness I was in the country with little traffic.

A few minutes after I start driving the esc off/service traction light will come on and it keeps flashing back and fourth between error messages. My check engine light is not on, but when I go to accelerate my car jumps kind of. And if I let my foot off the gas it feels like I'm shifting gears and my car will start going slow. I'll push back down on the gas and I will seem like it's trying to get speed but takes a min. They are trying to say I don't have a recall but something is wrong clearly. The error lights will go on no matter if I'm driving or parked.

I made a complaint on around l/17/17 complaining about my car have service esc service traction and trying to stall out with brake lights being on> since that time it has been at dealership more than being driven. It is there now, making this the 7th trip to dealership and once to independent mechanic. This is a common problem with Malibu and needs to be resolved by general motors-not me. You ask for a date when this happened-the space only allows for 1 date. It has been ongoing for over 1 & 1/2 years.

When I turn on the turn signals they both work properly, but when I turn the wheel and make the turn then signal does not turn off !! the problem,as my mechanic claims is a defective (clock spring assembly) in the steering column. I believe this is a safety problem and there should be a recall to correct this problem !! the reason I believe this is a safety issue is I must always look down at the instrument panel to see if the signal is off or on, requiring me to not have my eyes on the road ahead. I hope you can visualize what this entails and the safety issues I experience when I drive my Malibu which I love . Thank you for your understanding !!.

Door locks lock and unlock at random buttons on doors and fob inoperable this is a very large safety hazzard I have come outside to find my car unlocked in the morning after locking it the night before and have found this to be a normal problem with this vehicle meaning it is a manufacturer defeat that should be fixed by the manufacturer the problem even happens when the car is in motion unlocking and locking at random a child could fall out at any speed when door unlocks plus I could come out to someone in my car in the morning with these inoperable.

Car will intermittently not start. While camping in arizona my car wouldn't start. I took it to a repair shop where they replaced the starter and fuel pump. It started fine for a little while and then decided to randomly stop starting again.

My driver's side door will not open. I can't open it from the inside or outside. It is in park and I have to climb through the passenger side door. This is so dangerous!.