Front Suspension Coil Spring Problems of Chevrolet Malibu - part 1

Front passenger side coil suspension spring broke without warning severly damaging tire. Heard a loud bang sound and then saw a lot of smoke coming from front passenger side tire. Bottom of front passenger side coil suspension spring broke and lodged into tire without warning.

See all problems of the 1999 Chevrolet Malibu 🔎.

1999 Chevrolet Malibu sedan with about 70,000 miles on odometer. A similar problem to that described in your NHTSA action number pe03031. Within a few hundred yards of starting up the car and leaving my home, there was a audible bang and the passenger side macpherson strut coil spring suddenly fractured and the broken spring end penetrated the front tire inside sidewall leading to a blowout. I did not travel over any kind of bump or pothole. Fortunately I was traveling at a low speed and the loss of control did not cause an accident. It was winter conditions (salted roads) with an air temperature of around 20 deg. F. I feel that this was a design flaw structural failure in the suspension that should never have happened as it could have been extremely dangerous. I am having both front strut assemblies and a tire and rim replaced at considerable expense.

On August 24, 2008 my 1999 Chevrolet Malibu was driven less than a mile and the passenger side front coil spring broke. On August 25, 2008 I took the vehicle to bob sumerel tire CO. For repair. The spring appeared to have broken at the top first ring. The spring was replaced. I have the remainder of the broken spring. The top part that broke off has been lost. I noticed there are at least two other reported instances of this that were previously investigated by the NHTSA but no recall was issued. This could have resulted in severe tire damage and accidental injury.

Coil springs breaking on 1999 Chevrolet Malibu. I was standing outside one morning last year when I heard a large bang. Front coil spring broke and was rubbing up against the tire. Replaced it with a used strut. Last week found a broken spring in the rear while rotating tires. I went on-line and did a search and found that this has happened to many people and what is scary is that it has happened to some while driving, which immediately blows out the tire. Contacted a friend of mine that is a gm service manager, he had just gone through this problem with his nephews 1998 car. He told me that gm had no recalls on this. This is my sons car and I don't want him to become a statistic, to resolve it this safety issue.

Front right coil spring broke on my 1999 chevrolt Malibu wondering if there may be a recall on said part?.

The right front coil spring on our 1999 chevy Malibu broke while we were driving. The strut assembly dropped & punctured the new tire we had gotten less than a month before. The car was not drivable & had to be towed & repaired. I researched this problem online & found that there have been a lot of complaints about this same problem with 1999 Chevrolet Malibus, while Chevrolet has no consequences for having defective parts. This is dangerous & someone could be killed by the defects. We still have the broken coil spring with the part number on it. We should be reimbursed for the cost of the repairs, the new tire that was ruined & the mental anguish of having come so close to a possibly fatal accident. Does someone have to die before defective parts will be recalled & replaced at the manufacturer's expense?.

While moving the car from the garage heard a loud bang from the left front suspension. I found that the spring had broken and was jambed against the tire. I had the car towed to the repair shop. I was informed that the spring had broken and we were lucky we were not traveling fast asuredly we would have lost control of the car and would have been forced into oncomoing traffic. The service manager told me that he has had a rash of spring failures with many gm model cars he atibutes it to poor quality material in the springs. He had to replace both springs and both shock struts. I happened to drop by the dealer where I purchased the car and he asked how it was working I informed him about what had happened, he was very surpised, and then told me he had a 2000 chev Malibu on the lot that had the same thing happen while standing. Of course he could not do anything for me. Out of warranty. The cost for the repair was $847. 59 but we are glad to be alive. No more gm cars made with inferior chinese metal. Americans take heed.

See all problems of the 1998 Chevrolet Malibu 🔎.

The coil spring snapped in half while I was in my car and popped my tire. I was traveling at extremely low speeds, otherwise it could have been terrible. I replaced it with a junk yard spring and strut since I have never heard of this type of failure. Several weeks before the failure there was a low squeak or rub coming from the front wheel well. I thought at the time that it was snow build up, but now I know better.

1999 Chevrolet Malibu front end coil spring failed. Consumer states that the front end of the vehicle fell onto the tire due to the failed coil spring. She states that gm should have recalled this problem.

The contact owns a 1998 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that the front struts that hold up the vehicle with the coil springs were defective. He stated that the coil springs are not heavy enough. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and they stated that they are aware of the defect. They also stated that there are no current recalls for this particular year, make, and model of vehicle. The contact stated that the front right and left coil springs were damaged. The struts have not been repaired because the part that the vehicle needs must come from another general motors vehicle. The current mileage was 87,742 and failure mileage was 87,727. Updated 02-01-08.

Front suspension coil spring broke, puncturing the tire causing blowout.

Left side, rear coil spring broken. One month later, right front coil spring breaks causing coil spring to rub on inside of tire resulting in tire damage.

Passenger side front coil spring broke, followed by driver's side front coil spring. Passenger side spring began rubbing into tire, melted side wall of tire. Tire destroyed. Replaced springs and tire.

The contact owns a 1998 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact drove the vehicle approximately 150 yards when a popping noise was heard. While driving 10 mph the driver's side of the vehicle collapsed to the ground. The contact discovered that the front coil spring failed and cut the tire from the wheel. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, and the coil spring was replaced. The consumer stated that the cause of failure was due to a batch of coil springs that were improperly heat treated. There was a defect investigation for this failure , pe 03031. The contact still possessed the failed coil spring and tire. The current and failure mileages were 98,000. The consumer has provided pictures of the defect. Update 05/04/tr updated 06/20/07.

Right front coil spring broke damaging strut and damaging tire. Break was due to rust. Vehicle was making a turn when break occurred causing wheel to be "stuck" in the turn position due to parts rubbing on tire. Mechanic says many of gm products are and have experienced said problem.

While driving 30 mph on christmas day, my right tire burst. After investigating I learned the right front suspension coil ring had fractured and punctured the tire. I had to have the entire front suspension replaced, as well as purchase a new tire.

: the contact stated that while backing out of a parking space at 5 mph, the front passenger side shock absorber detached and punctured the tire causing the vehicle to stop completely. The detachment also broke the tie rod and the strut on the passenger side. The vehicle was taken to a service dealer, where it was determined that the cause of the detachment was due to hitting a pothole in the parking lot. The contact did not observe any potholes in the vicinity. Updated 7/18/2006 -.

See all problems of the 2002 Chevrolet Malibu 🔎.

Front driver side coil springs failed causing vehicle control to be reduced. The spring failed after its first winding down from the top, it appears during compression the spring end contacts the winding below which probably induced a crack and ultimately propagated a stress failure. The part failed while backing out of a driveway with the steering wheel near full right turn. During the turn the spring failed. The passenger spring was also replaced and looked as failure was immanent based on a marks in nearly the same spot as the failed spring. The failed spring is currently in my possession.

I was driving on the highway to work in the morning on a clear and dry day. All of a sudden my vehicle jerked to the left and it was out of control. I managed to pull off to the side of the highway and my tire was ruptured. After getting the car towed, the dealer let me known now that the left front spring broke and punctured the tire. Not only was this a very dangerous situation, but the repair is very costly, not to mention I had just gotten new tires a few thousand miles prior to the incident. I have heard this complaint before and now wonder if this could or should be a recall item??.

The driver side front coil spring broke while I was backing up on my driveway. I took it to a trusted local mechanic who replaced both front suspension units which included the strut, coil spring and mounting plate. According to the mechanic, it's safer to replace both sides at the same time. I agreed with him, who knows if I did not replace the right side it could have broken while driving down the highway causing a serious accident. The results could be detrimental to the driver and others. My 1998 Chevrolet Malibu has less than 57,000 miles on it and the coil spring should not break in half in such low mileage. That said, I am thinking if thereã‚s any defect in the design and/or build material of the coil spring. I spent $634 to fix it and it could have cost much more, including my life, loved ones and others. I strongly urge NHTSA to take actions, inform gm and begin a recall campaign immediately before someone gets killed. Regards, scott shyu shyuscott@aol. Com.

While pulling out of my car port, I heard a loud noise. All of a sudden the front passenger side of my car fell. I proceeded to go to a auto repair shop not too far from my home to have the problem checked. While in route, right around the corner from where I live, my tire blew out. There was a weird smell and smoke coming from the front right tire. I was able to pull into a parking lot to wait for aaa to tow my car to a repair facility. Thank the lord, I wasn't on the freeway when this happened. The right passenger spring broke and caused the tire to blow out. Had to replace the coil springs, a tie rod and struts.

Passenger side front coil spring broke and punctured tire causing immediate flat tire. Car was traveling at slow speed and driver did not lose control.

Front passenger coil strut broke while driving. Rubbed up against tire. Left my car in the parking lot until I could afford to replace it. I took the car to a trusted local mechanic who fixed my car. Front passenger coil was replaced as well as the two front struts. Also two new tires were replaced up front.

(1) front passenger shock spring broke in two places, I began to hear a slight grinding noise (2) spring broke puncturing the tire and forcing the weight of the car on the frame and tire rim (3) car was towed to a gm dealer, the spring was replaced. Tow truck driver advised that this is the fourth incident for this defect that he has seen.

The front driver side strut spring sheared off yesterday and was flushed against the tire. Backing out of the driveway at about 8:45 pm heard a loud noise and the car locked u for a second. Tried to pull it off the road, and could smell the tire burning. Got it to a side road, and drove it a little while to see what was wrong. Finally got it to the house garage and noticed the coil spring pressed against the tire.

Right front coil spring broke while getting into the car.

Both front coil springs have broke since owning this 1999 chev Malibu. Purchased the car new in 1999. Left front spring failed within 36 months of purchase. The right front spring recently failed and penetrated the right front tire and ripping it open causing the tire to rupture.

We drove our car to our camp which is 60 miles away. The next day we went to move our car when the front end on the passenger side went down with a hard and loud bang. At first, we thought it was the tire since it was flat, but when we looked under the car it looked like the spring had broken off and punctured the tire. We had to have it towed to our dealership. They told us that the spring was broken and the strut and the mount were also blown out. They replaced the right front strut, mount and the spring. They also replaced the left front spring to the vehicle to even it out. Both front tires also had to be replaced. The total cost was $1171. 43 we could have been seriously injured, if this had happened on the highway. We had taken our two grandsons to camp with us. (ages 2 & 4) it is scary to think what could have happened to them, if we had been in a crash. Fortunately, we were just moving the car a few feet.

I was backing out of my garage when the front end of the car dropped down with a hard bang. It felt like the wheel fell off. There was a terrible noise when I tried to back out of the garage. I left the car in my driveway. The next day I called for a flat bed tow to take the car to the dealer. The dealer informed me that the front spring had broken in half and damage the strut. The dealer suggested that I have both springs and both struts replaced at a cost of $1391. 64 which was paid to the dealer when the car was ready for pickup on June 24, 2005. On June 22, 2005 I filed a complaint with general motors. I contended that I could have been seriously injured or worse if this happened on a high speed highway which is where I was going at the time. Fortunately, this happened while backing out of my garage. I explained to general motors rep. That the springs should never break in half and that general motors should accept responsibility for the cost of the repairs. After 2 weeks, general motors would only give me a $500 credit towards a new car. I told them that I am not planning to buy a new car and that I would like some financial relief for the costs of the repairs. They refused.

One of the coil springs on front driver' s side punctured the tire. The consumer did not contact the dealer or the manufacturer. There was a big boom sound. This happened on June 14, 2005. The consumer did contact the manufacturer, however it was not the response she hoped for.

I pulled out into the street when I heard a pop. Thinking it was my power steering I drove on and within a mile my tire blew. Upon removal of the tire, the coil spring on the front right side had snapped. There was no rust, only a complete break in the coil spring.

Coil spring broke twice. The first time it broke on the front and now the front one broke again.

Both coil springs failed within a 2 month period.

Dt consumer stated her son was driving the vehicle when he heard a grinding noise coming from the right front of the vehicle. There was a loud bang. When the vehicle was inspected it was found that the coil spring snapped, the front right strut broke and caused the coil spring to slit the tire which lead to a blow out of the tire.

Dt: the consumer indicated that he heard a loud thud while driving about 20 mph. A couple minutes later after going probably 50 ft he heard something rolling under his vehicle. He pulled over and exited the vehicle. He saw what looked like a piece of coil spring and picked it up. He looked under the car and saw were the coil spring slipped off from the drivers side of the vehicle. He called the mechanic but has not had any work done to the vehicle. He also took the actual piece of the coil spring to his dealer. The dealer indicated that he had sold several coil springs to different people. The road was brick paved road and there was no warning prior to the failure except for the noise.