2021 CHEVROLET MALIBU

What owners reported to NHTSA, ranked by how often and how seriously.

This is complaint data, not a random sample.

It only includes owners who chose to file a federal complaint, so it over-represents dramatic and safety-related problems and under-represents minor issues an owner just had fixed without reporting. Read this as what NHTSA complainants report most, not as this vehicle's true failure rate. Full methodology.

Component ranking

  1. #1

    control module

    3 stranded, 18 unsafe, 7 annoyance

    28
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "The car is constantly displaying the shift to park display on the dash after the car is placed in park. Can turn the car off with the display but the prompt stays on the display and the electrical power does not shut off resulting in battery drain unless you c…"complaint #1906258
    • "Malibu will be in park, engine off, but when exiting the vehicle a message will appear "SHIFT TO PARK", although the vehicle is in park. The electrical will not shut off, which is a hazard, as the vehicle's battery remains on. I am forced to turn the car on, s…"complaint #1912908
    • "When I move my car to park and shut off the vehicle it shows a "shift to park" message. This keeps my car from shutting off on a regular basis."complaint #1926538
    • "When I parked my car and tried to turn off the ignition, a warning buzzer kept beeping and a warning on the dash was telling me to “shift to park”. I moved the shifter numerous times to make sure it was in park, but the warning continued. This happened several…"complaint #1935798
    • "When trying to turn the car off, it will not allow me, warning light comes on saying shift to park. This has happened several times over the past week. I have to continuously turn the car on and off, put in drive then back to park before the message goes away,…"complaint #1940687
  2. #2

    transmission automatic

    1 stranded, 14 unsafe, 1 annoyance

    16
    incidents

    Commonly reported, insufficient mileage data - n=10, median 44,000 mi, no reliable range below 25 reports.

    • "The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed and attempting to accelerate after a stop, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal. In addition, the transmissio…"~6,300 mi, complaint #2140584
    • "The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that when the gear shifter was shifted into park(P), the vehicle started to roll. The contact stated that the shift to park message was then illuminated. The contact turned off and restarted the vehi…"~66,000 mi, complaint #1945769
  3. #3

    other

    6 unsafe

    6
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "When trying to park shift disappears . Parking feature unavailable. Have to try several times to or wait until parking shift appears. System glitch trying to park. Afraid car will run off by itself and hit other cars and crash. Family of four very concerned fo…"complaint #1972907
    • "The year and model of my vehicle has a known issue of shift to park and only selected Vin’s they will repair even though there is a recall and known issue. I can not safely park my car as it’s not reflecting it is in the park position "complaint #2030213
    • "After shifting into park and turning vehicle off -warning beep "place vehicle into park" comes on. It takes several "jerks" of gear shift to turn off. I'm scared its not in park and may roll. "complaint #2120939
    • "Took my car to the dealer for a "shift to park" problem. Vehicle would not turn off and twice it restarted itself without the button being pushed. I checked my VIN number and there was no recall regarding this but Chevy stated that they were aware of the probl…"complaint #2136120
    • "This vin is most likely affected by the aftermarket DTN inflator wheel airbag. Please let the final owner know of this. This vehicle was sold to Rightway Automotive credit from Tallmadge Ohio on October 19, 2022 who then sold it to the current owner."complaint #2198426
  4. #4

    engine stall or no start

    5 unsafe

    5
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=5)

    • "The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that the vehicle lost power and failed to accelerate. After approximately 45 minutes of driving, the vehicle was turned off and restarted without the key fob. Additionally, the vehicle failed to star…"~5,000 mi, complaint #1915328
  5. #5

    acceleration loss or hesitation

    2 unsafe

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "I was driving and car suddenly reduced speed,engine light came on and message came across dash “engine power reduced” and a text was sent to tell me I have a transmission issue. Now car won’t drive past 25-30mph dealership indicated this is a faulty gas pedal…"complaint #2197101
    • "A screen popped up saying “reduced engine power” I was already Omw to the shop to get one thing fixed. When they tried to pull my car in they say they he car wouldn’t drive and it was hard to accelerate and they had to put it in Neutral to get it in the shop.…"complaint #2224750
  6. #6

    brake hydraulics

    1 stranded, 1 unsafe

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "Upper center brake light leaked allowing moisture and mildew to accumulate. Safety issue in how it affects my severe asthma. "complaint #2015091
    • "While driving when coming to a stop, my brakes became stiff causing me to almost hit the vehicle in front of me. Also, the car has been stopping while I am driving and on busy roads when I am at a stop light and press the accelerator to proceed, the vehicle ju…"complaint #2143657
  7. #7

    fuel pump

    2 unsafe

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=2)

    • "The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while starting the vehicle, all the lights on the instrument panel illuminated, and the engine started to choke. The Service Vehicle light remained illuminated after the other lights turned off.…"~72,000 mi, complaint #2226600
  8. #8

    differential

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "Rear differential keeps going out and transmission keeps failing every 10k miles, apple car play doesn’t work and lags out. So hand free doesn’t work"complaint #2059272
  9. #9

    engine internal

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "The engine light was on and had my vehicle was stalling while driving in traffic. The service code P1101 was on and had my vehicle fixed. The light stayed off for few months then same service code is back on. I've read that there was a recall for 2019 models w…"complaint #2195491
  10. #10

    fuel injector

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "Took my car for an oil change 4/17/2026 dealership stated I had a recall on the 21 chevy malibu for Fuel injection module, They could not do the recall repair because they did not have the part. So the lady called me. 4/21/2026 to make appointment for recall f…"complaint #2200104
  11. #11

    glass and windshield

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=3)

    • "DRIVING THROUGH A SANDSTORM AT 45MPH( SLOW LANE AND SPEED SURE TO VISIBILITY) ON INTERSTATE 10 FROM RANCHO MIRAGE TO DESERT HOT SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA, THE VEHICLE WINDSHIELD CRACKED NEARLY A FOOT. I WAS CHARGED $400 BY ENTERPRISE RENTALS SINCE THIS WAS A RENTA…"~5,300 mi, complaint #1741325
  12. #12

    key fob and immobilizer

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "THIS WAS A RENTAL CAR, EQUIPPED WITH AN ELECTRONIC KEY FOB AND A STARTER/TURN ENGINE-OFF BUTTON ON THE DASHBOARD. THIS PARTICULAR VEHICLE COULD BE LOCKED REMOTELY FROM OUTSIDE THE VEHICLE, WHILE IT CONTINUED TO RUN. ADDITIONALLY, IT APPERED THAT AN OCCUPANT O…"complaint #1744841
  13. #13

    seat mechanism

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=1)

    • "IN THE CASE OF A HARD BRAKE WHILE IN MOTION, THE VEHICLES SEATS BOTH FRONT AND REAR UN-LATCH AND BECOME FREE IN MOTION. THE FRONT SEATS UN-LATCH FROM THE BASE, MOVING THE SEAT FORWARD AND THE REAR SEATS UN-LATCH AND FALL FORWARD OPENING THE TRUNK FROM THE INSI…"~8,000 mi, complaint #1743454
  14. #14

    stability and traction control

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "I was driving the car on the highway and “SERVICE ESC” popped up on my dash. Engine power reduction kicked in which caused me to have to erratically pull over to the shoulder. Brakes did not engage properly. When the “Service ESC” warning comes on the dash, th…"complaint #2101743
  15. #15

    suspension arms and bushings

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=1)

    • "The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while attempting to reverse(R), there was a loud popping sound coming from the rear of the vehicle. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, the vehi…"~126,000 mi, complaint #2190745
  16. #16

    throttle and pedal

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated. Additionally, the contact stated while attempting to drive from a complete stop, the vehicle hesitated while respond…"complaint #2109769
  17. #17

    tire failure

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=1)

    • " The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Malibu equipped with Firestone FT140. The contact stated while driving during the rain while coming out of a complete stop the tires began to spin not gaining traction on the road. The manufacturer was not contacted. The fail…"~2,000 mi, complaint #1774511
  18. #18

    unknown

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "Unknown. It’s been happening on and off since I took it off the dealership lot. Can’t turn off Malibu because it’s not in park when I have it in park. "complaint #2064336
  19. #19

    wiring harness

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "Blower motor area caught fire while sitting in the driveway. Car door was opened about 20 minutes prior to my security camera catching smoke billowing from the vehicle"complaint #2207756

Search NHTSA's own recall and complaint database for CHEVROLET MALIBU directly.