Problems · NHTSA complaints
2006 Chevrolet Malibu problems
Owners filed 1,389 complaints about the 2006 Chevrolet Malibu 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
Complaints by component
One complaint can cite several components
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 10, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
When complaints were filed
Does it get worse with age? Complaints per calendar year filed
10
24
50
80
200
120
66
85
243
137
64
59
77
47
27
22
23
23
11
13
8
View as table
| Model year | Complaints filed per calendar year |
|---|---|
| 2006 | 10 |
| 2007 | 24 |
| 2008 | 50 |
| 2009 | 80 |
| 2010 | 200 |
| 2011 | 120 |
| 2012 | 66 |
| 2013 | 85 |
| 2014 | 243 |
| 2015 | 137 |
| 2016 | 64 |
| 2017 | 59 |
| 2018 | 77 |
| 2019 | 47 |
| 2020 | 27 |
| 2021 | 22 |
| 2022 | 23 |
| 2023 | 23 |
| 2024 | 11 |
| 2025 | 13 |
| 2026 | 8 |
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.
Top problems in owners’ words
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
Steering
1,019 reports31 crashes2 fires3 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”
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.”
Exterior lighting
71 reports1 crash1 related recall
“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.”
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”
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.”
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…”
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 10, 2026
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.