2019 Chevrolet Malibu
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Power train is the leading concern among 191 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 21st highest complaint count among 26 Malibu model years with reports.
Of the 2019 reports, 8 involved a crash and 1 involved a fire. 7 people were injured.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Seat belts, critical fastenersAug 20, 2021
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2016-2021 Chevrolet Malibu and 2019-2021 Cadillac XT4 vehicles. The rear seat belt retractors may be improperly secured with loose or missing fasteners.
An improperly secured seat belt retractor may not function properly in a crash, increasing the risk of injury.
Dealers will inspect and tighten the rear seat belt retractors, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on September 17, 2021. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 and Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006. GM's number for this recall is N212333380.
Campaign 21V649000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints
191 reports, newest first.
Electrical system, Other or unspecified, Engine, Apr 5, 2023
GM 2019 Chevrolet Malibu - Report Shift to Park Issue - Mileage 13,784. I would like to report a Shift-to-Park problem I had with my 2019 Chevrolet Malibu. Approximately two weeks prior to this service call I started experiencing a problem with Engine Start/Stop button and “shift to park” message on instrument panel. Pressing Start/Stop button would not turn off engine. It took several attempts to completely turn off engine. Two weeks and issue was getting progressively worse. Finally on Wednesday, March 29th and having started driving errands, I could not turn off engine at all. I could not get out of the car without warning beeps going off. I immediately drove to Dealer Service as I felt unsafe to drive. Dealer Service performed and I picked up car on Thursday, March 30, 2023. They replaced shifter switch and installed jumper harness. Again, I do want to report issue as this car has only 13,784 miles. Thank you,
Steering, Service brakes, Mar 30, 2023
The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated while driving approximately 30 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the "stability track" symbol illuminated. The contact depressed the brake pedal, and the brakes started to grab, causing the vehicle to shudder. The contact stated that the vehicle jerked to the left which she corrected by turning to the right. The contact stated that additional warning lights for the power steering and ESC illuminated. The contact drove the vehicle to her residence, placed the vehicle in park (P) and turned off the vehicle. The contact had not taken the vehicle to a local dealer or independent mechanic. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 71,000.
Electrical system, Other or unspecified, Service brakes, Mar 24, 2023
Vehicle cuts off daily. This has been going on for months. A message shows up saying put the car in neutral to restart. Battery and alternator have been tested more than once and they are not the issue. The car cut off while I was in traffic driving across a bridge! I had to get help pushing the car to the side of the road. This particular time the car would not start back up without a jump. Majority of the time while at a red light, it cuts off. After replacing rotors, brake pads, and brake pump, braking is still rough with screeching and grinding leaving lots of brake dust on the wheels. At times the brakes go all the way down.
Power train, Electrical system, Mar 18, 2023
2nd time putting car in shop to fix the parking sensor. When you place the vehicle in park get a alert to place vehicle in park. Had it repaired once and problem is back. Have to shift to park several times before it will work properly. Already paid once to repair it and the dealer said it's a common problem. I think a recall is needed. I called the dealer and the service advisor said a new support bracket is needed. I called GM to complain and they said they issued a service alert to it's dealers on how to fix it. But refuse to cover the cost of repair. I feel a recall is a fair solution. I can not safely park the car with out worrying if it truly is in park.
Power train, Mar 15, 2023
The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that after shifting to the park position the massage "shift to park" had displayed and the vehicle could not be turn completely off. Also and the doors could not be locked and the vehicle would roll. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer and manufacturer were notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 18,700.
Power train, Feb 26, 2023
Gear shift does not register the vehicle is in park. Intermittent “Shift to Park” warning displays - the car will not shut off. It drains the battery. Jiggling the shift knob and button can help to get the car to register it is in park, but this is unreliable.
Power train, Feb 24, 2023
The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated while parking the vehicle and shifting into park(P), the shift into park warning light illuminated. The contact stated she exited the vehicle but was unable to lock the doors. The contact stated she restarted the vehicle and continued to shift the gear shifter to park until the transmission and gear shift indicator properly recognized that the vehicle was in park. The contact stated she had experienced the failure several times. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 6,012.
Power train, Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Feb 20, 2023
Vehicle lost power while driving without warning which could have caused an accident. Dealer says the ECM failed.
Power train, Feb 16, 2023
Put car in Park but Message center says Shift to Park. Also engine tuns off but car switch is still on. Contacted Chevy but advisors basically said sorry. Only 28500 miles on vehicle and one owner
Air bags, Engine, Feb 8, 2023
The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle was stalling. The contact stated that she needed to restart the vehicle after taking off from a stop light. The air bag, check engine, and ABS warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic however, the failure could not be duplicated. The contact stated that she received messages from the mobile App informing her to check the air bags. The vehicle was then taken to a local dealer however, the failure could not be duplicated. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.
Power train, Jan 30, 2023
The contact's daughter owns a 2019 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while the vehicle was in park(P), the shift to park warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 71,000.
Electrical system, Jan 26, 2023
all gauges shut off and turn back on while driving tire says it is flat and it is not car shuts off completely, resets, and turns back on while driving braking system not working code steering wheel jerks off to the side aggressively on its own while foot is on brake car hesitates to start up and hesitates to accelerate sometimes there are warning messages sometimes no warning steer assist turns off and shows message and jerks my wheel sideways AC control board only works half the time entertainment and GPS system blacks out randomly and doesn't turn back on the unpredictability is dangerous. the performance of this vehicle is unacceptable. having not one chevy service center properly repair this issue poses a extreme safety risk as the car's power toggles randomly and has to be restarted Multiple Chevy service centers have not given me definitive diagnostic. no one has fixed the issues. they only get worse daily. the service centers charge me money to "grease wires" and send me home every time.
Service brakes, Engine, Jan 10, 2023
The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH, the “Engine Power Reduced” message was displayed. The contact attempted to depress the brake pedal, but the brake pedal was firm and hard to depress, causing the vehicle not to stop as needed. The vehicle eventually came to a stop and lost motive power and stalled. The contact attempted to restart the vehicle but the vehicle would not restart. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and the mechanic stated that the brake vacuum pump and the engine needed to be replaced. The brake vacuum pump was replaced but the engine was not repaired or replaced. The manufacturer was contacted and stated that the vehicle needed to be diagnosed by a dealer. The failure mileage was 87,370.
Electrical system, Air bags, Seat belts, Dec 12, 2022, crash
I bought the car from Variety Auto in Abingdon VA, and then I had the accident on May 3rd 2022 I took it to the collision center and then after they repaired the body they noticed the airbag lights and the restraint system lights came on also, and when Ramey’s started doing the work for the air, module and wiring harness and air bag they noticed that the wiring harness was not working properly and the air bag was cut completely out they put diodes in the wiring to keep the lights off, they sold me the car saying that there was no airbag deployed but we later found out that it was, and also when I had the accident it didn’t deploy and that’s why is because there wasn’t a airbag in it to start with, if you need anything else we have all the proof of deception by someone and if you need anything else here is my phone number [XXX] you can call me anytime, thank you!!! I tried to up load all the pages and everything but it would only let me do the first Paige, so if need these let me know and I can probably get them faxed to you, thank you!!! INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
Service brakes, Hydraulic, Dec 7, 2022
The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH and slowing for a traffic signal, the brake pedal was stiff and could not be depressed. The contact stated he heard a grinding noise coming from the front tires. The contact stated that he was able to slow the vehicle by shifting to low(L) and using the parking brake. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact had not taken the vehicle to a local dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The contact had an independent mechanic diagnose the vehicle. The mechanic retrieved DTC: P0556 (Brake Booster Pressure Sensor) failure. The mechanic also determined that the brake vacuum booster pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 84,697.
Electrical system, Dec 2, 2022
The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while using the Auto START/STOP feature, the vehicle would sputter before accelerating as needed. The contact stated that the failure only occurred during hot weather conditions with the vehicle on an incline. The contact had taken the vehicle to the dealer who stated that the battery and the battery terminal had failed. The contact stated that the battery was replaced; however, the contact was unaware if the battery terminal had been replaced. The failure had increased in frequency despite road or weather conditions. The contact stated that occasionally while driving, the vehicle shuddered and lost motive power and stalled. The contact was able to restart the vehicle and continue driving. The vehicle also displayed a driving assist reduced power message. The contact had returned the vehicle to the dealer. The vehicle had not been repaired a second time. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 1,500.
Power train, Electrical system, Nov 24, 2022
The electrical system was refusing to acknowledge that my car was in Park & kept giving me a “Shift to Park” message on my dashboard. Took 3 or 4 tries of starting & shutting off the car for it to go away. Took the car to the Dealer & turns out that a faulty shifter was the problem. The gear shifter had to be replaced, but not the shifter harness underneath the shifter.
Electrical system, Nov 12, 2022
When you park the car and shift the car into park a message appears on the dashboard stating "Shift to Park" the car does not think it is in park and is telling you to put it into the Park Gear to turn off the car. You can not shut off the car as long as this message is displayed on the dashboard. Sometimes turning the car on and off 5+ times may get the message to go away but as time has gone on it has been harder to get the message to go away. At times we have been stuck in the car for over 10 minutes trying to shut off the car.
Electrical system, Service brakes, Forward collision avoidance, Nov 11, 2022
I have no Brake Lights when applying the Brakes and cruise control no longer works due to Service ESC message on display. I was advised by replacing the battery this would clear the ESC but it did not. I believe the service ESC message is tied into the brake lights and cruise control not working.
Engine, Nov 2, 2022
CAR IS RUNNING ROUGH, CEL IS ON THROWING CAMSHAFT CODES. Code - P0014 Description - No information returned for Trouble Code - P0014 Code - P0017 Description - No information returned for Trouble Code - P0017 Code - P1101 Description - No information returned for Trouble Code - P1101 Code - P257F Description - No information returned for Trouble Code - P257F EXHAUST CAM PHASER REQUIRED TO CONTINUE DIAG. THERE IS A TSB FOR THE ISSUE AT HAND, REQUIRES A NEW CAMSHAFT AND A LOT OF SPECIAL ORDER PARTS FROM DEALER, TSB WILL NEED TO BE PERFORMED TO CONTINUE DIAG. WILL NEED TO GO TO DEALER TECH FOUND A TSB THAT NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED BEFORE WE CAN REPLACE VCT.
Service brakes, Oct 27, 2022, crash
On September 28th I was driving along the highway, went to take an exit, and the brake pedal was locked. I experienced a loss of braking, hard brake pedal and increased stopping distance. In order to get the car to stop, i had to put the car in neutral and coast into a ditch/grass. Before the brake failure there was no instrument cluster malfunction lights illuminated or any warning of imminent failure of the vehicles braking system. A mechanic has informed me that the vehicles brake vacuum pump is to blame and that it needs to be repaired immediately. This part suddenly failing with no warning caused a complete brake failure within the car and posed a risk of injury or death to me and others.
Service brakes, Engine, Oct 24, 2022
Before my car gave out I was having braking issues and my car wouldn’t accelerate when I pressed the gas. Then later that night I was driving home with my mother and fiancée when my car illuminated “engine power reduced” and my check engine light came on. When I tried pulling over I noticed that my brakes were very hard. So I had to roll from the speed of 45 mph until my car eventually stopped. I was not able to stop at the stop sign so I just had to blow my horn to alert other drivers. Whenever I took it to the dealership they told me my brake vacuum pump exploded and blew shards into my camshaft. The repair was 1700 for the replacement of the brake vacuum pump and the camshaft. I talked to the mechanic afterwards and he said that this problem has a good chance of happening again because the part itself is defective and there are no other aftermarket parts to replace it. Then I go to pick up my car three weeks later, and was told that my engine should be replaced because a cylinder had no compression. The price of that was around 5000.
Service brakes, Hydraulic, Power train, Sep 29, 2022
The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would intermittently fail to accelerate above 55 MPH as the "Engine Power Reduced" message would appear on the instrument panel. The contact also stated that an abnormal grinding noise would emit from the vehicle upon depression of the brake pedal. The contact called the dealer and was informed that she could not be given an appointment for another month. She then contacted an independent mechanic and was informed that unless the failure was persistent, they would not be able to diagnose the failure. The contact attempted to reach the manufacturer but was unable to reach a representative. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 95,000.
Electrical system, Other or unspecified, Service brakes, Sep 28, 2022
This car is displaying a shift to park on the dashboard. I have read several complaints and even lawsuits filed about this matter on the internet. Why hasn't this been recalled to fix on these vehicles it drains the battery and you aren't able to put the vehicle in park or lock the doors or anything
Structure, Sep 26, 2022
The contact owns a 2019 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that water was leaking inside the trunk of the vehicle. The contact stated that he noticed water leaking on both sides of the trunk. The contact stated that the failure reoccurred whenever it rained. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that water was leaking through the rear window. The dealer removed the rear window and headliner and the dealer cleaned the water. The dealer then reinstalled and resealed the rear window on the vehicle. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 29,000.