Problems · NHTSA complaints

2006 Chevrolet Malibu Maxx problems

Owners filed 1,389 complaints about the 2006 Chevrolet Malibu Maxx with NHTSA between Apr 2006 and Nov 2026. The most-cited component is steering (1,019).

Complaints
1,389
Filed with NHTSA
Crashes
54
Reported by owners
Fires
7
Reported by owners
Injuries
31
People reported injured
Deaths
0
Reported to NHTSA
01 —By component

Complaints by component

One complaint can cite several components
  1. Steering1,019
  2. Electrical system170
  3. Exterior lighting71
  4. Service brakes63
  5. Power train60
  6. Fuel/propulsion system56
  7. Fuel system, gasoline45
  8. Vehicle speed control43
  9. Electronic stability control (esc)41
  10. Engine40
  11. Air bags37
  12. Engine and engine cooling26
  13. Service brakes, hydraulic25
  14. Suspension16

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.

Data from NHTSA Complaints API · synced Nov 9, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
02 —Trend

When complaints were filed

Does it get worse with age? Complaints per calendar year filed
View as table
Model yearComplaints filed per calendar year
200610
200724
200850
200980
2010200
2011120
201266
201385
2014243
2015137
201664
201759
201877
201947
202027
202122
202223
202323
202411
202513
20268

Mileage at failure isn’t a structured field in NHTSA complaint data, so we don’t chart it. Some owners mention it in their reports below.

03 —Owner reports

Top problems in owners’ words

Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first

Steering

1,019 reports31 crashes2 fires2 related recalls
“I was driving at a busy time of the day and my steering wheel became almost impossible to turn, and it felt as though my whole car turned off but I gave it gas and went to nearest place I could pull over and noticed my radio was showing that steering fluid or something like that was on the digital part of my radio, so I googled what could the problem be and it said the steering is being recalled or something like that for steering problems, I am driving the car as little as possible because that was very scary especially driving through main street in my town, thank god i was only going 25 miles an hour or this could have really caused major problems. Please let me know what to do next [XXX] [XXX] thank you”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Oct 26, 2026SteeringODI 11773598

Electrical system

170 reports4 crashes2 fires1 related recall
“My power steering goes in and out as I'm driving depending on the speed. I have trouble swerving if needed because the power steering is not working correctly all the time.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Dec 5, 2025Steering, Electrical systemODI 11703181

Exterior lighting

71 reports1 crash
“The rack and pinion needs to be replaced at the speed of 65 the steering feels loose and I was told that the rack and pinion is out, so I am having to replace the entire thing, I dont have a receipt yet because it's going to the shop next week, it seems odd that a car with only 75k miles would need a new rack and pinion. Also the high mount brake light is out..which seems crazy on a car with low miles, I understand that the car is old but to me it's a new car, I only just purchased it in October 2020.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jun 28, 2021Steering, Exterior lightingODI 11422563

Service brakes

63 reports6 crashes
“No incident yet but will happen if not recalled and fixed. My EPS keeps going out while driving and will yank the steering wheel hard in either direction at any given time. Uncontrollable”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Mar 18, 2025Steering, Electrical system, Service brakesODI 11649053

Power train

60 reports1 related recall
“Sent the car to fix recalls and they said it has another problem and want to charge to fix the steering recall N140772 problem. They said is not free.... Do not know if the other recalls were repaired.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Aug 20, 2024Steering, Power train, Service brakesODI 11609683

Fuel/propulsion system

56 reports2 crashes
“Electric Power Steering - 10/2020 Suddenly went out while driving. No warnings beforehand. This made sharp turns extremely difficult. It says that my car is not part of the recall, but is still as dangerous as the vehicles that were part of the recall. From the research that I have done, the motor seems to be in good working order. The sensor is what seems to be the issue. Cruise Control - 08/2023 Goes out randomly. I was on the freeway when it turned off by itself. If I was not paying attention, this could've caused an accident. No warning beforehand. Brake Switch - 06/2023 Seems to be something wrong with the switch. The brake light stays on after braking. Turn Signal Switch - 10/2020 Does not cancel after turning right. This can potentially confuse other drivers. Fuel Pump - 10/2020 The float of the fuel pump is not working. It says it is empty, even after filling it up. It will occasionally show that the tank is all of the way filled during rapid acceleration. This could make me run out of fuel while driving if I lose track of mileage; which could result in an accident. None of the components have been inspected by a dealer or manufacturer. The Electric…”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Sep 18, 2023Steering, Vehicle speed control, Fuel/propulsion systemODI 11545161
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 9, 2026

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.