2008 Chevrolet Malibu: doors won't lock, open or latch

Filed Jul 26, 2023 · Electrical · OH

Interior electrical system right left passenger door will not lock, front speakers stop working and signal handle does not work will not turn on when engaged handle to turn left or right. Temperature gages stop working dial stays on C.. causing air conditioner to blow out warm air never get cool.

Filed Feb 3, 2020 · Body, Electrical · IL

My 2008 chevy malibu has door latch issues. When you close the doors, the latch will not connect and the door will fly back open. We need to keep playing with the locks for the door to eventually latch and lock. Then it also sometimes does it from the inside and you cannot open the door from the inside or the outside and you will need to keep playing with it. One day, I had to role the window down to try to open the door from the outside because it wouldn't open from this inside. This is an extreme safety hazard because in the event something catastrophic happens and the door does not open or close they way its supposed to, it can be life threatening. Expecially since I have a small son. This needs to be addressed and fast!

Filed Apr 12, 2018 · Electrical · 68,000 miles · IN

The door lock actuator failed on all doors. This is a common problem and should be a recall with gm. Check the forums to see the number of people with the same problem. The doors will not unlock/lock from key fob or from driver's door panel.

Filed Feb 26, 2018 · Electrical · MD

Started as passenger door sometimes wouldn't unlock with remotes or by either door passenger or drivers door lock control. Gradually door wouldn't lock or unlock other than manually. Then the same happened with passenger bk door, drivers bk door, then driver door. Now only entry is with the key.it doesn't matter if car is running or not. This is a inconvient problem as much as a personal safety issue. My husband is disabled and must wait in rain/snow/cold/heat until I unlock drivers door with key and slide across to manually unlock passenger door. As far as a personal safety issue, doors must sometimes when motor is turned off the back doors will unlock but they don't lock again when car is restarted. I don't like driving with doors unlocked so I have to get into back seat to reach the passenger door to lock it before driving (a safety issue). Also, if I have other passengers I have to get into back to open the door for them. This began about 2 yrs ago and progressed to the current problem about a yr ago. It could be as simple as a bad sensor I suppose but I have talked to other malibu owners and they have the same issues. This is a problem, especially for senior or handicapped drivers.

Filed Jul 20, 2017 · Electrical · IL

The power door locks stopped working on all but the rear, right passenger door. This is a huge safety concern when it involves young children riding in the back seat, or elderly who find it difficult to manually unlock the door. I don't know how many complaints it takes to trigger a recall, but there appears to be several hundred already on file. Please realize that this is a very serious issue.

Filed Jul 3, 2016 · Electrical · 90,000 miles · FL

Doesn't matter if the car is running or turned off - all door locks keep locking and unlocking. Very annoying. Had to remove fuse from under the dashboard to make it stop. Now none of my automatic locks will work without the fuse.

Filed Jul 3, 2016 · Electrical · 35,500 miles · FL

First rear door lock actuator failed. Was replaced under warranty by dealer. About two months out of warranty the other rear door actuator failed. Got a quote of almost $400 to fix. Yeah, right. Then the replaced actuator failed. So we're up to $800 to repair. Then (see my other complaint filed) - the door locks start randomly locking and unlocking whether the car is on or off.

Filed Jun 6, 2016 · Electrical · 45,000 miles · NE

The door lock actuators have failed in the front drivers side door and the rear passenger side door. The door locks do not operate or only operate intermittently when using the electronic door lock/unlock feature on either the key fob or the door switch. The door locks also do not operate when the vehicle is shifted into or out of park, potentially leaving the doors either unlocked while the vehicle is operating or locked after the vehicle is shifted into park. The biggest concern with the locks is in the placement of the manual pull on the rear doors. I have 2 small children in child seats that have been temporarily locked in the vehicle when the rear doors fail to unlock. The rear door lock pull is located near the "c" pillar of the vehicle instead of a more conventional "b" pillar location, making manual access to the door lock pull impossible from the passenger side of the vehicle. If the passenger in incapable of unlocking the door themselves (such as in the case of small children or the disabled) another person has to either climb over the front seats or across the rear seat from the drivers side to access the passenger and/or door lock pull to unlock the door. I feel that this is a safety hazard for certain vehicle occupants as well as for the vehicle operator, who may believe that the vehicles doors are in a locked position while the vehicle is in motion, when in fact, they may not be.

Filed Mar 10, 2016 · Body, Fuel system · 145,000 miles · KY

Purchased a used 2008 chevrolet malibu. Very shortly after I could notice a strong odor of gas coming from the rear of the vehicle after driving it. I took it to a mechanic who removed the fuel tank and discovered that a plastic feed line on top of the fuel pump module had a severe leak. I contacted gm in regard to the fact that this specific issue has been recalled on the exact same year, make, and model as my vehicle. I was told that my VIN was not included in the recall was offered no additional resolution or support. My concern is that the only vehicles covered under the warranty were those bought and sold or registered in "warm weather" states, but kentucky has 100 degrees very humid summers. It's is considered part of the south , a region known for being very hot in the summer. Additionally the driver side door lock actuator and rear passenger door lock actuator do not work under power. The only work manually.

Filed Oct 18, 2015 · Airbags, Electrical · LA

My gas tank started leaking for no reason (no wear and tear-every mechanic said that is almost unheard of), my power windows and lock stopped working 2 years after purchase and was told that I had to pay almost $300 to fix each motor for the door locks and windows, the service airbag light has been on for more than a year, my AC also have issues; the sensor and thermostat has been changed 6 times within the last 4 years. I am sick of all of these issues and have no assistance with it. No matter how many times I called the local dealerships here, coincidentally, my warranty was up on every issue I faced. Gm has really taken a lot of money out of my pockets. I was informed of the power steering issue and was told my vehicle would be in the shop for 1 day, which turned into 5 days, and I was denied to be reimbursed for the rental fees, which were almost $600. Someone needs to do something about these issues, because my car is extremely unsafe for myself and 3 children. The windows will not go up or down at times, whether the vehicle is parked or not. The AC is the same issue, the parts will go out whether I am driving it or not. The gas leak issue is awful, because the car wreaks of gas, and my car burns gas whether it is powered on or not. The door locks have not worked since the end of 2010 and we have to manually lock and unlock. The issues with my car are there 24/7, and happens if the car is in motion or not. Although, the issues I have been having have been going on for a while, except the gas leak issue which is recently, I have no choice but put the start as today's present date, because each issue started at different times and continue to cause issues, even after many attempts to repair with some issues.

Filed Sep 23, 2015 · Airbags, Electrical · 112,500 miles · MI

Electrical and module problems safety hazards with traction control. Tc on when it should not be. Fuel system problems. Car powers off during driving. Gm refused repair without charging 120 to look at. Had to disconnect fuses and had to pull actuators pressure. Sensors fuel and electrical. Door latches going up and down even when car is off. Cannot drive highway. Gm refused vehicle from repair or compensation.

Filed Aug 22, 2015 · Electrical, Locks · 35,000 miles · TN

Owners of chevy malibus have an issue with 2008 - 2010 power door locks that malfunction. This is a safety issue since the doors can lock and unlock at random times, and mine do not lock and unlock unless done manually, since there is only a key way to unlock the drivers door you have to crawl over the front seats to manually un lock the rear doors. Please launch an investigation and order the manufacturer to recall the vehicles affected since its safety related. Thank you