2004 CHEVROLET MALIBU MAXX Complaints

POWER STEERING SIMPLY WENT OUT AND AT SUCH A SLOW SPEED, IT WAS VERY DIFFICULT TO MANEUVER CAR... ALL THE BELLS AND WHISTLES DID GO OFF, A SECOND OR TWO BEFORE IT FAILED. NOT SURE WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF I WAS ON THE HIGHWAY - NOT SURE I WANT TO FIND OUT. TURNED OFF THE CAR, THEN BACK ON AND STEERING RETURNED TO NORMAL. WENT TO CHEVY DEALER AND WAS TOLD IT IS OUT OF WARRANTY AND THEY WILL NOT COVER THE COST OF REPAIR, AND WANTS AN ADDITIONAL $100 JUST TO TELL ME WHAT IS WRONG.... NOT SURE WHY THERE IS NO RECALL ON THIS CRITICAL ELEMENT OF THE CAR. IT SEEMS GM AND THE NHTSA ARE PLAYING "RUSSIAN ROULETTE" WITH OUR LIVES.... *TR

I TURNED MY CAR ON, AND THE POWER STEERING LIGHT CAME ON. COULDN'T STEER. TURNED CAR OFF AND ON, THEN MY STEERING WHEEL JERKS LIKE CRAZY FOR A WEEK. NOW DRIVING HOME FROM WORK MY STEERING DIED COMPLETELY. READING ABOUT THIS AND I SEE THIS IS A HUGE PROBLEM FOR THE MALIBU AND MALIBU MAXX. CHEVY NEEDS TO DO A RECALL!!! *TR

A SLIGHT PULL TO THE RIGHT ON THE STEERING WHEEL CAUSES THE POWER STEERING TO PULL BACK TO THE LEFT IN A RANDOM PATTERN. IT CLEARLY HAPPENS AT A STOP IF YOU PULL SLIGHTLY TO THE RIGHT ON THE WHEEL. YOU CAN FEEL THE STEERING FIGHT YOU RANDOMLY (MULTIPLE PULLS WITHIN A FEW SECONDS) WHEN DRIVING AT SPEED ON A ROAD THAT HAS A CROWN TO THE LEFT. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 CHEVROLET MALIBU MAXX. THE CONTACT STATED WHILE DRIVING IN VARIOUS WEATHER CONDITIONS, SPEED AND WITH OUT WARNING HIS VEHICLE LOST ALL POWER STEERING. WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS RESTARTED THE VEHICLE RESUMED NORMAL FUNCTION UNTIL THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE DEALER WAS NOTIFIED AND STATED THAT THE STEERING COLUMN NEEDED TO BE REPLACED AT THE CONTACTS EXPENSE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT CONTACTED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE 46,000 MILES.

I'VE HAD MY CAR FOR FIVE YEARS AND THE POWER STEERING HAS WENT OUT AND REPLACE 4 TIMES!! I AM A MOTHER WITH THREE KIDS DRIVING IS VERY DIFFICULT I CANNOT AFFORD TO PAY TO REPLACE THE SAME PART OVER AND OVER THERE NEEDS TO BE A RECALL ON THIS STEERING PROBLEM THERE ARE TO MANY COMPLAINTS FOR IS NOT TO BE AN ISSUE! *TR

I WAS DRIVING MY CAR TO WORK WHEN THE POWER STEERING WENT OUT. IT WAS EXTREMELY HARD TO TURN THE VEHICLE. I WAS DRIVING THE CAR AT APPROXIMATELY 70 MPH ON THE INTERSTATE WHEN THIS OCCURRED. THERE WAS A SUDDEN LOSS OF POWER. THE WRENCH LIGHT CAME ON AFTER THE POWER STEERING WENT OUT. THERE WAS NO WARNING BEFORE THE POWER STEERING WENT OUT. LUCKILY, I WAS NOT IN A CURVE AND WAS ON THE INTERSTATE GOING STRAIGHT. DUE TO THE INABILITY TO EASILY TURN THE VEHICLE, GETTING OFF THE INTERSTATE RAMP SAFELY WAS CLOSE TO IMPOSSIBLE. THIS MAKES THE SECOND TIME THIS HAS HAPPENED TO ME. THE FIRST TIME WAS IN 2009. THE SAME THING HAPPENED. I WAS DRIVING TO WORK WHEN THE POWER STEERING WENT OUT. I HAD A NEW STEERING COLUMN PUT IN ON 7/14/2009 (AT 69,000 MILES AND OUT OF MY OWN POCKET). IT WAS PRE-OWNED WHEN I BOUGHT IT, SO I HAVE NO IDEA HOW MANY TIMES THIS HAS BEEN REPLACED SINCE 2004, BUT I AM GUESSING THIS IS WHY IT WAS TRADED IN. *TR

IN JUNE THE DRIVERS SEAT BEGAN LISTING TO THE RIGHT AND ROCKING. THE DEALER LOOKED AT IT AND SAID IT IS A BROKEN WELD AND QUOTED ME $800.00 TO FIX IT. THEN IN SEPT OF 2012 I WAS TRYING TO MANEUVER OUT OF A PARKING LOT AND THE POWER STEERING LOCKED UP. IT WAS REALLY SCARY, IT TOOK ALL MY MIGHT TO GET TO A SAFE PLACE TO STOP WITHOUT HITTING ANYONE. WHEN I RESTARTED IT WAS OKAY AND MY MECHANIC DID NOT SEE ANY OBVIOUS PROBLEM WITH IT. ALSO THE CD PLAYER NO LONGER WILL LOAD UP CDS ALTHOUGH THE OTHER FUNCTIONS AND INFO ON THE LITTLE SCREEN WORK. ALSO THE SIDE MIRRORS NO LONGER CAN BE ADJUSTED IN THE VERTICAL PLANE ALTHOUGH THEY STILL MOVE HORIZONTALLY. *TR

I HAD JUST GOTTEN INTO TOWN AND PASSED MY ROAD I NEEDED SO I PULLED INTO THE NEXT ROAD TO TURN AROUND AND IT WAS EXTREMELY HARD TO TURN. I THOUGHT I LOST MY POWER STEERING SO I TURNED THE CAR OFF ONLY TO REALIZE IT WAS STILL RUNNING. I STARTED IT BACK UP AND IT SEEMED TO LOOSEN UP SO I PULLED BACK OUT ON THE MAIN ROAD AND AGAIN COULD NOT GET THE WHEEL TO TURN EITHER WAY AT ALL. IF THIS HAD HAPPENED AT A SPEED HIGHER THAN 20MPH, THERE WOULD BE NO WAY TO AVOID A WRECK. I WAS STUCK ON THE MAIN ROAD WITH NOWHERE TO GO AND WAS COMPLETELY BLOCKING TRAFFIC IN NOT GREAT ROAD CONDITIONS. IF THIS HAD HAPPENED ON MY WAY TO THE DESTINATION, I WOULD HAVE HAD NO CONTROL AND WOULD HAVE WENT OFF THE ROAD AND PROBABLE DEATH ON THE ROAD I WAS TRAVELING. AFTER REVIEWING SEVERAL SITES ONLINE, THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THIS CAR. I FEEL IT SHOULD BE A PRIORITY 1 RECALL. THERE WERE A COUPLE OF PEOPLE WHO WRECKED BECAUSE OF IT. IF THIS CANNOT BE FIXED, WE WILL HAVE NO OTHER OPTION THAN TO GET RID OF THE CAR AND WARN OTHERS OF THIS SAFETY RISK. PLEASE CONSIDER LOOKING INTO THIS AS I REALLY DO LIKE MY CAR BUT I HAVE A FAMILY OF 4 TO CONSIDER AND ONE CHILD THAT WILL BE GETTING HIS LICENSE IN A FEW MONTHS. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 CHEVROLET MALIBU MAXX. THE CONTACT WAS DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 15 MPH AND COMPLETING A TURN WHEN THE POWER STEERING ASSIST SUDDENLY MALFUNCTIONED, MAKING THE STEERING WHEEL EXTREMELY DIFFICULT TO MANEUVER. THE CONTACT INDICATED THAT THE POWER STEERING FAILURE SENSOR WAS ALSO ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED AND NO SOLUTION WAS OFFERED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 101,000.

THE DRIVERS SEAT UPON ADJUSTING SAGGED TO THE LEFT AND THE SEAT BASE MOVED UNEVENLY CAUSING THE SEAT TO ROCK. THE SEAT WAS PREVIOUSLY REPAIRED FOR THE SAME PROBLEM APPROXIMATELY 4 YRS AGO. I BELIEVE THAT THIS IS A DEFINITE SAFETY ISSUE I BELIEVE THE SEAT WOULD NOT HOLD UP TO EVEN A SMALL CRASH. *TR