Problems with 2004 Chevrolet Malibu POWER TRAIN

Axle seals broken - leaking transmission oil. no way to check the level. *tr

On saturday, august 18, 2007 my wife and i were traveling at 60 mph along a windy, hilly stretch of road. at the top of the third hill, the transmission dropped to zero. after coasting down the hill, i was able to continue in first gear only. after stopping for 15 minutes, i was able to continue driving in low gears. however, if i tried to accelerate quickly (such as to merge with interstate traffic, or to make a legal u-turn) then the transmission failed again. on sunday, august 19, i took the vehicle to a service station and had the transmission flushed and filled. my hope was to avoid any mechanical problems. however, this service did not resolve the problem. on tuesday, august 21, i took the vehicle to my local chevy dealer who told me the clutch was completely burned out. they asked me why i waited so long to have the transmission serviced. i pointed out to them that the owner's manual states that it is a "maintenance free" transmission that should never need servicing. *tr

The power steering goes out intermittently on my 2004 chevy malibu. this tends to happen during summer months, particularly july-september when the weather is more humid than any other time of the year. i took the vehicle to a trusted auto mechanic who told me that when he connected the car to his diagnostic computer there was a reading stating that the power steering needed to be replaced. i have done nothing since that time which was around the summer of 2007. *tr

Tl* - the contact has a 2004 chevrolet malibu ls. the contact stated that when she turned the ignition on the enhanced traction system warning light, the engine light, and the service light came on. the car would start and all of the dashboard features would work, but the car would not shift into the reverse or drive gears. the contact stated she could put the car in the drive gear and it would not drive. the car began to jerk and shake without the contact adding pressure to the accelerator pedal, and the rpm level increased. the contact stated that the vehicle has never done this before. the weather was really cold and there were snow flurries, but no accumulation.

I have 3 recall letters and each states the parts aren't available. those recalls are:14116,14152;13036. these recall repairs state that they affect the safety of this vehicle and yet we are forced to drive a vehicle with possible life threatening issues while the parts are not available. the safety issues aside, the recalls affect the value of this product by the implication it's defective. these issues should be dealt with swiftly as to minimize possible fatalities and if no parts are available, then a safe rental vehicle of like kind should be available at no cost to the owners. *tr

Dt*: the contact stated that the front axle seals were leaking. the issue has gradually worsened. new axle seals were installed on the vehicle but the problem is still persists. . *ak

Tl*the contact owns a 2004 chevrolet malibu. the contact stated that the power steering failed continuously. when the power steering failed, the wheel would make a clicking sound when the contact made a turn. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealership where the dealer greased the steering column; however, the problem persisted. the failure mileage was approximately 9,500. the current mileage was approximately 60,400. the first time, the stabilizer link bushing were replaced, the second time, the intermediate shaft was replaced and the third time, the steering column was replaced. the right front axle seal was leaking. updated 05/24/10*jb

My 2004 chevrolet malibu was parked legally in front of my house. the street was covered with black ice. the driver of a 1999 ford ranger truck slipped on the ice and hit the front of my car. his auto insurance, state farm, paid for a rental car for 40 days and paid $5,338.10 in body repairs, including replacing the radiator. however, when it came time to pay $527.18 to replace the steering shaft and the gear shifter, they refused. the reason given was that these parts in the 2004 chevrolet malibu have a history of wearing out prematurely. the car ran fine before the accident. however, after reading the complaints on your web site, i would also like to add my complaint. i bought this car as a gm certified used vehicle on august 2, 2007, 17 months before the accident. the car had 31,720 miles on it when i bought it and 34,517 miles at the time of the accident, a difference of 2,797 miles i think people should know that insurance companies do not pay for certain components on the 2004 chevrolet malibu. this car is still being sold all over the country. i found 7 gm certified used vehicles, chevrolet 2004 malibu's for sale within a radius of 250 miles ranging in price from $9,500 to $14,000. people think they are safe when they buy these 2004 malibu's; they are not. is there some way they can be taken off the road? *tr the intermediate shaft needed to be replaced. updated 03/18/09.*jb the consumer was also informed the brakes and gear shift needed to be replaced. updated 04/09/09. *jb

i have had many problems with my 04 malibu. rough idle, power steering faliure many times took to dealer 3 times could not duplicate, brought in with power steering out at it was duplicated, but could not figure out for a while told me to continue to drive, no safety factor.finally thought they figured out put in a new steering column, 9,000 miles later back to having problems with power steering. also problems with hard shifting,and also with ignition sticking or continuing to turn over after leeting go of the key. i would not recomend this car to anyone and they should all be crushed.my wife is terrified of the car and will not drive.car is at dealer right now we are driving a loaner. *jb ea04018_cat

Steering wheel shakes all by itself and was replaced by dealer. now there is a clunking noise when turning the wheel. front rotors warped, replaced by dealer, now warped again. front axle seal leaking on exhaust, replaced by dealer, now leaking again causing a foul oil burning smell in the car. *nm

Reporting multiple issues. increased problems after recall work performed..items 2 and 3. item 1 from the original purchase and no gm solution on what has been a wide spread part quality problem documented. drivers side seat early on from purchase dealer welded break once. broke again driving with broken seat now leg nerve back problems. concern on safety if in accident a..no recall why no option to get replacement parts or seat why????? while driving vehicle power steering went out reduced acceleration dashboard varying lights random varies off and on able to coast out of traffic. no ability to restart. towed dealer indicated need to replace generator and battery both performed vehicle drains unable to start jump start runs fails again later - no solution problem started after dealership recall work done on ignition switch related to recall work???? sitting in driveway - do we tow back to dealership that had us replace the generator as an unnecessary expense??? selector malfunction not working serviced now no ability to use low gear selection push button. stays on 3 why again related to recall work performed??? some sensations of slippage between gears as well. why?? like the vehicle and want it to be safe to drive and keep in service. loyal gm family member that is considering changing manufacturers. saturn owner - no longer available pontiac owner grand am no loner available pontiac vibe owner chevrolet blazer owner chevrolet camero. chevrolet impala our family list goes on. more difficult to keep the family loyal drop down box on vehicle never displayed.

Vehicle experienced steering and transmission problems. the steering went out, forcing the vehicle to the right side of the road and into an embankment. consumer had the vehicle towed to a service center. transmission will not engage into the interlock. if going into reverse and changing into drive it was difficult to control vehicle. consumer must use about 45 lbs of pressure to get the gear shift to operate smoothly. also, vehicle was having brake problems. consumer was driving on an off ramp and applied the brakes down to the floor. vehicle slowed down but did not stop completely. consumer contacted the manufacturer and the dealership, who told the consumer that there was a brake recall, and that the brake problem was electrical. the brakes were electronically programmed controlled. *ak recall campaign; 04v190000. summary: some of these passenger vehicles have an electronic control unit (ecu) that may calculate a higher than actual vehicle speed because of an erratic rear-wheel speed sensor signal, and cause abs activation where it is not needed or needed abs activation to be extended during braking as the vehicle speed drops to about 3 mph. the trunk release button on the drivers door came apart. the shifter handle broke. the brake pedal went to the floor after being in traffic. *tc

Power steering has failed on 3 separate occasions. the first time, the dealer replaced the cam sensor in the transmission. the power steering failed again 5 days later. the car is still at the dealership, they are trying to figure out what is wrong.*ak pe04031_cat call notes: backed car out of garage. steering was difficult. saw 'power steering' on display. turned car off and restarted, but no power steering. drove car to dealership, who could not duplicate condition, but they did replace cam sensor. after about 4 days, driver was backing out of garage and same situation happened again. shut off car and called dlr. had a commitment so he drove car without power steering. after finishing commitment restarted car and power steering worked. brought to dealer, who kept car for 4-5 days and replaced steering column assembly. as he was driving car out of dealership, felt car pulling to left, but needed car so he drove car and brought back after finishing commitment. dealership kept car for 7 days, calibrated steering, but did not replace any parts. driver just picked up car and things seemed ok. cat 3/25/04 no crash or injuries per consumer call on 3/30/04 cat