2nd May 2008, 09:31

I work at a Chevrolet Dealership in Lake Orion, Michigan and I see which cars are in Service a lot and which cars aren't.

I can't say I've seen any 08 Malibus in the service department for anything other than oil changes and tire rotations.

These are great cars. In fact, we can't even keep them on the lot they sell so well.

This guy is probably just another plastic loving, Toyota fan that just wants to see American cars dissolve.

10th May 2008, 12:24

I'll give you $100 for the Mailbu since you don't like it.

11th May 2008, 16:35

Agree. This car sucks. I had a 2003 Malibu that was problematic from the beginning. My wife insisted that we try this new one because it was Motor Trends "Car of the year." I mean, The car is FAR better than the previous model in EVERY aspect, but still needs some work. We had it for a month and it was at the dealer six different times for a popping sound in the engine that the dealer couldn't duplicate. I've driven Dodge for most of my life and never had this many problems. However, we ended up trading it on a Ford Fusion, after telling myself I would never own a Ford. Seriously, a much better car for the money; I couldn't be happier.

13th May 2008, 20:47

OK, the old Malibu's were crap.. it is the best in initial quality and is right now GM's top selling vehicle.

20th May 2008, 13:12

We just purchased a 2008 Malibu 2 liter 4 cyl. Love the style of the car, the ride is great, great mileage. BUT headed to Fl last week and 400 miles into the trip got a severe shake in the right front wheel. So bad had to pull off the road. On Star ran their tests; all negative. It was 4:00 am so continued on. Same thing again. On Star got us set up with a local dealer. Geesss what a start to a vacation.

After driving our car a 100 plus miles on our gas, they replaced the chip that controls the steering, said we were good to go. Headed back home; approx 400 miles into the trip, same problem again. Just so happened the dealer we bought it from called my cell. He said get it back to us and they would take care of it, so limped it back home and had same problem once more.

Today my local dealer got with GM and came up with the tilt steering wheel when in the down position is touching the brake pedal arm and putting pressure onto the brakes, and that is causing the problem. GM at this time has NO FIX. I am waiting to hear back later this week what/how they are going to address the problem. Anybody else heard of this? Might add our Fl. vacation was shot to heck.

25th May 2008, 08:12

This is an update from whitlocktp@yahoo.com 5-19-08

The car has been back to the dealer and they had a technician from Chevrolet look at it. He said "They are aware of this concern, it is a calibration issue and HAS NO FIX FOR THE ISSUE AT THE TIME" Chevy customer service has closed this case admitting it can't be fixed!

3rd Jun 2008, 19:09

To the commenter about the Malibu with the tilt steering contacting the brake arm. That doesn't sound like it could be the real problem. Why would partially pushing the brake cause a shake in the right front? How can tilt steering in any position contact the brake arm? Why would replacing the steering chip seem to fix the problem for 400 miles? No wonder GM doesn't have a fix. Your dealer's explanation is probably bogus!

15th Jun 2008, 16:53

Having dealt with INCREDIBLY inept FORD service technicians, I can sympathize with anyone having stupid people try to repair your cars.

We now own one new Ford and two older GM vehicles. I have never had ANY serious issues with Ford (thankfully) in the 30 years we've driven them, nor with GM either, but I did thoroughly research our local GM dealership before buying our last GM, and found that it employed very well-trained and competent mechanics who are certified in computer analysis (VERY important on new cars).

Our local Ford dealer hires escaped gorillas from the local zoo. It sounds like this reviewer's GM dealership must have hired some former Ford mechanics.

I don't buy that having the steering wheel in a lower position would apply the BRAKES, unless it was farther down than it should be able to go. Even if that WAS the case, it should be a VERY easy fix (install a stop to prevent it from hitting the brake control lever).

24th Jun 2008, 19:03

I purchased this 2008 Chevy "upgraded version" and have had nothing but trouble with it. At first the gas tank leaked. The car started burning oil after that. I had less than 1200 miles on it when part of the front end fell off. I am now driving my 1998 Sentra again with 178000 miles. I am real mad. This 2008 Chevy looks silly parked on the tree lawn doing nothing but costing me big money each month.

4th Jul 2008, 11:59

Yes, some comments may be bogus (that can be true of ANY of the reviews and comments). Some people DO have trouble with ANY make of car.

I do not own a new Malibu and am not qualified as an owner to comment from that perspective. I have, however, driven the new V-6 Malibu and found it to be one of the best cars from GM in a very long time.

Two friends have bought Malibus and are very happy with them. We own 2 GM vehicles now and have been blessed to have virtually NO problems in the past 8 years with either.

I do know that various dealerships can be very uncooperative in dealing with problems. People need to be more pro-active in going to the manufacturer or the state's Better Business Bureau or Attorney General when a dealership refuses to repair a car.

Way back in 1981 I bought a new car and it had a defective carburetor. I'm a mechanic and I KNEW it had a defective carburetor. After 5 visits to the dealership it STILL had not been fixed, and in addition the mechanics had succeeded in breaking the A/C line AND the oil dipstick tube. Those were promptly fixed, but I kept insisting on a NEW carburetor.

Finally, before we were to leave on a long vacation trip, the car acted up again. I took the car to the dealer, then went to my office (in the luxury car loaner they gave me) and called the company's corporate headquarters. I informed them that I was preparing to take my family on a trip and that if my carburetor was not replaced with a new one, and I had trouble, I was going to demand all expenses for towing, meals, lodging, incidental expenses, a rental car and punitive damages for causing a delay in our trip. In 20 minutes I received a call from my dealership informing me that the NEW carburetor was being installed. I never had another seconds trouble with that car.

You ARE entitled, legally, to have a vehicle under warranty repaired AS WELL AS getting any expenses incurred reimbursed if you have gone on record with the problem before. DON'T let an unconcerned dealership push you around.