I was driving to work with my son and sister in the car when the steering wheel suddenly got very tight and started jerking when I attempted to make a left or right turn. I then stopped at a gas station and as soon as I came to a complete stop the vehicle shut off before I could turn it off manually. I then attempted to turn the key on and start the vehicle but it would not turn over, it would only make a clicking sound. I called a friend that was close by to come and assist me so when they arrived I asked them to jump my vehicle off via jumper cables which did get my vehicle's engine to finally start. The car sounded very weak as if it was going to shut off again once we disconnected the jumper cables but it didn't shut off. Nothing was working inside the car or outside meaning I had no radio, no interior lights and nothing on my dash was working. The speedometer wasn't working, the rims Guage wasn't working, the temp Guage wasn't working nor was anything else working on my dash. The turn signals were not working for either side and none of my headlights or taillights were working either. And I still did not safely have control of the steering. The only warning lamp, which didn't appear until my friend jumped my car off, was what looked like a symbol of a vehicle with a symbol of a locked lock in front of it. This failure just happened so I have not taken the car to a certified mechanic to inspect it but the car is available for inspection at any time. I can not afford to put my car in the shop, I work part time at a restaurant in my town and I'm also disabled and I also care for my 8 year old son who is severely autistic so I have no extra money to fix these problems. Please I need help.
2004 Chevrolet Malibu lights problems
84 complaints (7% of all complaints for this car). Typical mileage when it fails: 70,000. 1 crash reported.
- owner complaints
- 84
- of this car's complaints
- 7%
- typical mileage
- 70,000
- crashes
- 1
- recalls
- 0
Which part fails
- Turn signal13
- Headlights6
- Turn signal: switch2
- Headlights: concealment devices2
- Brake lights2
- Turn signal: flasher unit1
- Tail lights: switch1
- Tail lights1
At what mileage
Complaints by mileage at the time of the problem.
Chevrolet Malibu lights problems in other years
Specific symptoms reported on the 2004 Chevrolet Malibu lights
Phrases found in the owners' own descriptions, so one complaint can mention several symptoms.
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Related investigations
Turn Signal Lamps
GM designed the MY 2004 and 2005 Chevrolet Malibu and Malibu Maxx vehicles with a daytime running lamp (DRL) system that uses the same filament (the high power filament of a dual filament bulb) as the front turn signals.The high power filament operates at full battery voltage when functioning as a DRL.The DRL is illuminated whenever the headlamps are off, increasing the duty cycle of the front turn signal bulb.The MY 2003 and earlier Malibu vehicles (Malibu Maxx was not manufactured for sale in the U.S. prior to MY 2004) used a headlamp based design, operated at a reduced voltage, for the DRL function; GM reverted back to this design on the MY 2006 and later Malibu and Malibu Maxx vehicles. Filament based bulbs have a finite life (hours of illumination) for any given operating voltage.As a result, increasing the duty cycle of a bulb typically decreases the life span of the bulb.GM identified and addressed two front turn signal/DRL and rear turn signal bulb quality issues early in MY 2004 production, however vehicle warranty claims for failed bulbs continued to occur.To address the high warranty levels of bulb failures (90% of the warranty claims submitted to ODI by GM were bulb failures and 10% were socket failures), GM issued a technical service bulletin in March 2006 advising dealers to use a new specification of bulb when addressing service failures, and to also inspect the electrical sockets for thermal damage and replace if necessary.In June 2006 (after subject vehicle production ended) GM changed the turn signal bulb specification to that of the TSB bulb in vehicle production also.To date, ODI has not identified any allegations of crash, injury, or fire related to the alleged defect even though the subject vehicles have experienced 5 - 6 years of field exposure.ODI's analysis of consumer complaints, both VOQ and manufacturer, shows a declining trend.The warranty rate for turn signal bulb replacement is high however statistical analysis of the warranty data suggests that the majority of the original equipment bulbs have already been replaced.GM conducted a safety recall (06V‑263) for MY 2004-2005 Cadillac XLR to replace the front turn signal/DRL bulbs and the electrical sockets.However GM advised that the turn signal/DRL bulbs/sockets on the subject vehicles differ from those on the recalled XLRs in several respects, including using bulb sockets with four electrical terminals as opposed to three, which improves the electrical connection, allows the bulb to operate at a lower temperature, and adds stability to the bulb in the socket; operating at a lower voltage, which increases vehicle bulb life; using vented headlamps, which allows bulbs to run cooler than those installed in a non-vented XLR headlamp; and using a clear bulb, which runs cooler than the amber bulbs installed on the XLR.Additionally, the warranty claim level related to subject vehicle sockets is unremarkable compared to other defect investigations into defective socket assemblies.A safety-related defect trend has not been identified at this time.Further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted.Accordingly, this investigation is closed.The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by the federal safety agency that a safety-related defect does not exist.The agency will take further action if warranted by the circumstances.See attached report for further information.
EA09004
Turn signal lamps
The subject vehicles may experience loss of function of one or more of the park, turn, stop or daytime running lamps (drl).failure of the bulb may also include discoloration (heat damage) to the bulb socket.general motors (gm) technical service bulletin (tsb) number 06-08-42-004c instructs technicians to examine the lamp housing for signs of discoloration and to replace the bulbs and or sockets depending on the severity of the discoloration and the condition of the bulbs and sockets.the scope of investigation in the preliminary evaluation (pe08-062) was the 2004 malibu/maxx.however, the agency evaluated gm's warranty data which indicates that the 2005 model year (my) malibu and malibu maxx vehicles are also affected by this condition.this investigation is upgraded to an engineering analysis (ea09-004).
PE08062
What 2004 Chevrolet Malibu owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked and the engine running the contact noticed that their front driver and passenger headlight were very low in both low beam and high beam and that the light eventually burned out. The contact inspected the vehicle and saw that the light bulb sockets for both the front driver side and passenger had melted. The contact stated the cause of the failure is the wiring behind the headlight assembly that is causing the headlight socket to melt. The contact replaced the headlight bulb sockets themselves with aftermarket parts to repair the failure, however, the failure persisted and reoccurred. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.
First, the car routinely burns out turn signals, and overheats the turn signal to the point that it melts the housing thta the light bulb snaps into. I have had to replace the headlight housing/lamp wirings harness multiple times along with many light bulbs. Second, there is a recall for the electronic power steering. My particular VIN was recalled for an electronic power steering sensor. The power steering has gone out on me while driving twice, so I brought it to the dealer. They indicated the electronic power steering motor needs to be replaced,and is not covered under and recalls. There appears tobe numerous recalls on gm vehicles related to the electronic power steering, and replacing motors for that matter, but the dealer has indicated there is no such recall related to my particular vehicle/VIN. This seems rather suspect with the number of recalls related to these vehicles, and for me to have the steering go out, but my particular vehicle does not qualify. I was driving on a city street when it went out once. I made it home safely, albeit very hard to turn the wheel, and then the power steering worked after turning off the vehicle and back on again. It went out again in the parking lot of the car dealer when dropping it off the be looked at.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 chevrolet malibu. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the brake pedal was depressed however, the brake lights failed to illuminate. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The mechanic determined that the brake module needed to be replaced. Porter chevrolet (414 e cleveland ave, newark, de 19711) was contacted and informed that the failure needed to be repaired out of pocket. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact referenced the federal safety agency campaign number: 14v252000 (service brakes, hydraulic, electrical system, exterior lighting, vehicle speed control, electronic stability control) as a possible solution to the failure however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle was not subjected to any recalls. The failure mileage was approximately 169,000.
Had to replace head light bulbs has melted plastic cover dashboard has warning lights that come on and stay on
The dim headlight on passenger side keeps going out. The wires are melted where it plugs in to the light
Takata recall. My radio started displaying a service air bag message and my horn stopped working. The wiring in the car has stopped working. I began to replace lightbulbs thinking they were blown but just will not work. Heard this car was recalled for these exact problems I am having but for some reason my car has no recalls. My steering wheel makes a knocking noise when turning very sharp. Sounds like a piece is broken knocking around
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 chevrolet malibu. The contact stated that the windshield transmission wiper linkage bushing failed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact also stated that the rear passenger side tail lights failed. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent. The contact also stated that removing the key from the ignition was difficult at times. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and offered no assistance. The approximate failure mileage was 53,000.
The backlighting on the main dash (behind the odometer, speedometer, gas gauge and other indicators) fails to illuminate. It started out as only a small part of the backlighting, but has progressively become worse. We just had the car at the dealership for the 3 unrelated recalls and asked them to "give us an estimate to repair". When the car was returned to us, the lighting failed to illuminate nearly the entire dash (worse then before it was in for service). We were told the module would need to be returned to the manufacturer (gm) to be repaired/replaced and then be reinstalled and would cost over $350. No idea how long the car would be out of service either. This a major safety issue for night driving!
2004 chevrolet malibu. Customer states that he has received three recall notices for vehicle in june 2014 and july 2014. All three noticed indicated the parts are not available and hasn't heard any response since.
Questions about the 2004 Chevrolet Malibu lights
Does the 2004 Chevrolet Malibu have lights problems?
Owners have filed 84 complaints about the lights of the 2004 Chevrolet Malibu, 7% of all its complaints.
At what mileage do 2004 Chevrolet Malibu lights problems start?
The typical (median) mileage in owner complaints is 70,000 miles.
Was there a recall on the 2004 Chevrolet Malibu lights?
There is no recall for this problem on this model year.
What year does the Chevrolet Malibu have the most lights problems?
The Chevrolet Malibu model years with the most lights complaints are 2000 (241 complaints), 2012 (202 complaints) and 2010 (195 complaints).
Other 2004 Chevrolet Malibu problems
Steering 799Electrical 151Seats 69Brakes 64Transmission 64Engine 37Suspension 31Fuel system 29Acceleration 27Airbags 26Driver assistance 24Seat belts 14Visibility 9Body 8Locks 8Wheels 8Tires 2
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