This 1999 chevrolet malibu was purchased in july 2001 in had a water leaking problem took 3 tries before they found it needed thermostat gasket didn't even have one in it they sold it to me .this way with a promise it had been fixed. Within the first year I had the car they had to replace both front wheel bearings & strut bushings. Then the alternator went out & it cause my battery to go bad overcharged it they replaced alternator but refused to re-emburse me for the battery. Then ignition switch caused problem with anti-theft system would not start. Had that replaced in march 2002. Then anti-lock brake system went out had to have it replaced window switch very slow had to be cleaned another one not working at all now, not covered under warranty, at this time also had to have anti theft system fixed again light on all the time another bad ignition switch. Also had blower motor & relay switch for heater to go out over the summer most of the interior lights have long ago burnt out & had to be replaced lock out for trunk lid also broke not covered on warranty. Hub caps have lug nuts made in them that screw onto your lug bolts stripped out when took for repairs by dealer refused to replace them because they cost $500.00 for a new set. So I purchased the lug nut part & repalced it myself at a dealership for $10.00 set of 5. November of 2002 brakes & rotors were replaced in jan. 2003 brake pads replaced again in march 2003 pads replaced again in july 2003 pads replaced once again then in sept. 2003 master cylinder replaced in oct. 2003 master cylinder replaced again now it's nov 2003 & master cylinder being replaced again tomorrow.these cars have a real brake problem that needs to be fixed it's costing a fortune.
1999 Chevrolet Malibu engine complaints
Page 4 of 6: complaints 71 to 100 of 143, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Plastic intake manifold gaskets developed cracks which let the engine coolant leak inside engine. *mr general motors did admit there was a problem and there was a recall, however it did not apply to the consumer vehicle. *scc
I don't know where to begin with the complaints that I have for my '99 malibu. The brake system on this car is the worst. I can't count the number of times that I have replaced my brakes. I was reading the complaint board and could not believe the number of people that had similar brake problems. You would think that the government would see some kind of pattern and make gm do something about this. I think car manufacturers should take some responsibility for the products they put out and someone should make sure that they do. I am now going to have to replace my intake gaskets because of anti-freeze leaking into the engine. I have seen over 50 complaints about this on the complaint board. I will never again buy a gm made vehicle. From now on I'm buying nothing but foreign made cars. My car is still sitting in my driveway waiting go get fixed because right now I can't afford the $400+ it's going to take to fix it.
Faulty cooling situation with 1999 chevy malibu. It has been getting warm, two bars above middle, on the temperature gauge. The mechanic said it was a faulty head gasket, so he replaced it. Two months later, we were on a trip in the middle of the southern utah desert region coming home from lake powell when the engine started to get hot again. We were able to bring it down by turning off the A/C and running the heat. However, we were in the middle of nowhere and close to breaking down. Had it just been my wife in the car, she would not have known what to do and the car would have over-heated. She drives it just to work now, 4 miles away and it gets hot in the process. It uses dex-cool coolant and also has the gm 3.1 liter v-6 engine, both have inherent problems. It has cost us more money than we have to get it fixed and cannot sell it because of this problem. I appreciate any inspection you can do regarding the gasket and the dex-cool coolant. Thanks.
Intake manifold gasket leaking coolant after only 25,000 miles. Numerous other complaints regarding this issue. All gm mechanics know about this issue but gm will not take responsiblity for this design flaw.
At about 27000mi (3000mi. Service) I notified dealer of squeaking in front & rear suspension bushings. Dealer sprayed lube on rear (about $100)and notified me that they would have to lower complete front end to lube front, approx $200 more. Extended warranty didn't cover. At 30000 mi service dealer notified me I needed complete brake job. I inspected brakes while on lift. Mechanic said he made mistake! He said that he hadn't pulled wheels of yet. Said there was 80% left, repair invoice said 50% left. A little over a week later there was a puddle of trans fluid on garage floor & air conditioning smelled like urine when on, also switching itself from recirculation to fresh. Took car to dealer, they replaced switch, deductible $se on extended warranty, sprayed something in outside vent (mold they said?), and tightened trans cooling line, their fault! Three days later cooling leak, dealer replaced water pump, deductible $'s on extended warranty. Two weeks later the rear power window actuator (motor & cable assembly) quit! I might have used this window 12 times since I bought 99 malibu ls from champion chevrolet, reno,nv. New in 12/99! All things considered, I feels like they are sabotaging my vehicle to get back at me for discovering they lied about brake job! Also after reading your complaint list, I realize that I am not alone thinking that brakes, steering vibration, and reliability in general is poor on this vehicle.
The intake manifold gasket cracked, and caused coolant to leak onto the engine. *ak the vehicle needed coolant about one year ago. The consumer added coolant in the beginning of 06/03 at approximately 37,500k miles and again one month later at 38,500k mile. Several mechanics said they had seen a lot of these problems around 40k miles. *scc
Manifold gasket replaced on 1999 chevrolet malibu that I paid for and gm has not even got back with me yet after I sent them copies of all my bills. This problem never should have happened and now I see a service bulletin on it and have a 2002 impala that they want to put sealer in instead of fixing the gasket. I think they owe me money for the malibu and they need to replace the gasket on the impala.
Have had many problems with this car! Bought car 2/17/2001.....-8/15/2001 had to replace alternator....2/24/2002 had intake manifold gasket replaced because of coolant leakage, cost was 600.00.....06/20/03 had to replace battery due to leakage and corrosion around positive cable.......7/24/03 had to replace brake pads and have rotors turned for the second time....I think that there should be a recall for some of these things!!!!! Car now has 70,000 miles on it... Thought I was buying a good car!! :)
Altenator replaced at 44500 miles, thought that was the problem but when started up vehicle slams into gear and has no reading on the engine temp, engine warning light continued to stay on odbii testing reads 2 codes both are cooling system input sensor failure, car is now sitting in the garage as repairs are too expensive right now, gm should take responsibility for this failure, as this car is well maintained, I can tell you this I wil never buy another malibu again in my life.
Severe piston slap. Dealership has replaced lifters 3 times, pistons and all other moving parts in engine once. Engine still runs very hot and has significant loss of power (I have to floor it to maintain highway speed while going uphill, etc.)
Defective intake manifold gasket and then the head gaskets blew on me requiring expensive repairs.
1999 chevrolet malibu has engine problems.*mr while the vehicle was being serviced, the technician recommended an engine replacement.*ts
Consumer stated that while driving and without warning the vehicle started to leak coolant.
Leaking coolant through manifold gasket. I was told by mechanic that this has been a problem with chevrolet malibu cars after 30,000 miles. I noticed on your complaint database that there has been several complaints on the same issue but no recall has been issued. Is there a manufacturing problem? What is the threshold for a recall?
All malibu's seem to have the same problems, low miles high miles, ect brakes are replaced at least three to four times a year with minimal miles each time, head gasket leaks, alternator replaced twice, battery twice, electrical shorts twice, ignition switch handles terrible, not safe, car was suppose to have high ratings, lying to get people to buy junk.
This vehicle has several problems. Problem# 1: about a year ago the vehicle had a faulty motor mount gasket which caused coolant to leak.
I have had my rotors reground numerous times over the past one and a half years as well as have had both bearings replaced in the front. I had all valves replaced on the coolant system and it continues to leak still. There is a strong oder that comes in through the airconditioning vents. There is also a strong vibration when braking or traveling at higher speeds which makes the vehicle difficult to control.
1999 malibu with enging cooling problems and fan does not work on position 1 and 2. Had to have intake gasket replaced and one month later entire engine went out and had to be replaced. I really like my malibu, but hate the problems that I have had. I, too, have had brake problems and coolant leakage problems.
Two repairs in one week, alternator had to be replaced,dash lights started coming on & guages going crazy! Car wouldn't start after being parked for 1 hr, then when jump started it, died again in few minutes, replaced alternator, battery, then next day ignition failed, key wouldn't turn in ignition, had to be towed to my mechanic (this was the third (3rd) time the ignition switch locked up like this and the key wouldn't turn & the car would not start & entire ignition assembly had to be replaced, 2x earlier it was under warranty...this time it cost me over $400.00 (the part alone cost $289.) I am so frustrated w/ this problem, as dealership repaired it the first 2 times & they didn't seem to understand it. This is the second battery I've had to purchase since I bought the car brand new in january 2000.
Intake manifold is leaking fuel.
1999 chevrolet malibu. "check" engine light has repeatedly come on since march 03. Scan reads code p0420 catalyst system low efficiency. Vehicle is out of emission warranty. Vehicle has been into chevrolet dealer twice for to diagnose this problem. Obdii diagnostic can not find a defective component or cause for code. Through default, dealer diagnosed problem as bad converter. Catalytic converter has been replaced twice with non oem brand since problem first diagnosis in march 03. Obdii code p0420 reappeared again 2 weeks after last converter was replaced. I am beginning to doubt reliability of obdii system. The original and 2 replacement converters can not all be bad. No faults for other emission components have been identified by obdii.
While driving, the engine failed. Dealer notified. Please provide additional information.
Head gaskets all needed to be replaced at 53000 miles. This is a known issue with gm, but they refuse to own up to the problem. Some dealers goodwill the repair costs ($500-900), but others offer nothing more than an apology. Two recent tech. Service bulletins address this very issue. This defect can lead to engine failure and could put other drivers are risk. Gm needs to issue a recall and fix the problem.
There have been issues with this car involving the front driver's side brakes (calipers sticking), the rear brake lights (rusted circuit board and burned out bulbs), rear seat belt (part that locked belt to make it safe for child seat was plastic and broke) and now also the intake & intake gaskets on the cooling system. I'm getting really fed up with having the car in the shop all the time. Now, at 57,000 miles, the intake gaskets need to be replaced at a cost of $600, when they were already replaced at 16,000 miles when the intake was replaced. We thought we were done paying for this car, but I guess not.
Cooling system boils over and reservoir requires frequent filling. Dealer said it was common in 3.1 engines under 75000 miles. 450$ to fix the intake gasket.
I have already sent in a complaint re: my '99 malibu's engine cooling system. I have since found out that wal-mart, the company I work for, has had engine problems on between 30 and 50 of their '98-'99 malibu's, grand am's and grand prix's. I am still trying to get gm to pay for the new engine I had to get because this is my only car. I paid $2000.00 for a used engine to be installed and who's to say that the same thing won't happen again since it's the same type 3.1 engine.
My auto over heats. Coolant leaks around the intake manifold gaskets near the heat sensor. I have to add coolant at least once a week. My auto is a 1999 chevrolet malibu four door sedan,VIN #[xxx]. I didn't recognize this problem for what it really was until warranty expired. High gas consumption. Only 71,000 miles. Town driven by lady. Dealer says this common problem with car. *nlm information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).
My "99 malibu developed engine cooling problems and the fans were not working. It got too hot and trashed the engine. I dealt with gm for about a month and they finally turned me down for help because I took it to an independent mechanic who checked it out and said the transmission gasket was leaking, so they replaced that and when it still leaked they said it was the sensor to the thermostat and by that time it was too late. When I took it to the chevy dealer for a diagnostic, they said it was shot. I have known of quite a few people that had the same problem with gm cars. Now, since I have been without a car for a month, I am going to get a used motor put in it. This is the only car I have.
Engine coolant leakage - warped lower intake manifold gasket causing engine coolant leakage and boil over. This is apparently a frequently occurring problem with general motors v-6 3100cc engines.
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