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Chevrolet Malibu door locks problems

305 of the 19,367 owner complaints about the Chevrolet Malibu describe doors won't lock, open or latch, most of them for the 2008 model year.

owner complaints
305
worst model year
2008
typical repair cost reported
$550
typical mileage
65,000
Is there a fix? No recall or service bulletin covers this area of the car yet.

By model year

What owners say

Filed Sep 28, 2026 · Body, Electrical · TX

My Malibu has numerous electrical problems. Often involving the start stop feature. The door locks have locked and unlocked themselves The engine and battery warning light will come on but we don't know why. A metal piece of the front frame broke off and went through the condenser. I had to have the car towed causing more damage to the hood. I cannot drive it. The check battery light is also on. At times the button to power on car will not work. Then it will a few min later. .yes, car is available for inspection. It is unsafe to drive and has too many problems for a newer cat

Filed Aug 20, 2026 · Electrical · MI

This complaint relates to the federal safety agency Campaign 26V212 / GM Recall N262551720, covering the rearview camera defect on 2023–2025 Chevrolet Malibu vehicles. I own a 2024 Chevrolet Malibu. On XXX, the rearview camera began intermittently failing. On XXX, the camera failed completely while I was backing out of a space in a parking garage in [XXX]. With no rear visibility, I caused damage to the vehicle's passenger-side door handle. I contacted my dealership around XXX, and was told the camera issue was part of a known recall with a parts backorder. I received an official GM recall notification letter around XXX, confirming the camera required replacement. On XXX, my first day at a new job, I scratched the passenger side mirror against a building while attempting to parallel park without the rearview camera. On XXX, at approximately 5:15 PM, I nearly backed into a pregnant coworker's vehicle while she was seated inside it, in my employer's parking lot. I did not see her car in my path; the collision was avoided only because of her quick reaction, not mine. I have not been involved in a collision, but this defect has directly caused property damage on two occasions and a serious near-miss with another person within the past three months, all while awaiting the recall remedy. I'm submitting this report to document the real-world safety impact of this defect. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed Jul 31, 2026 · Electrical, Fuel system · TX

Power door locks stopped working. Took to local dealer. Left car with them for a week and a 1/2 the first time. Dlr replaced BCM module stating this would fix issue. Picked up car and fix lasted 20 seconds. Took back to dlr they could not resolve issue. So I have been without power door locks for more than a year. No way to manually lock the door. Homeless people have opened the door at a stop light.

Filed Jan 23, 2026 · Acceleration, Brakes · TX

Car started shaking in the middle of driving it about 30 mph and all the electrical like door locks were going up and down car wasn’t accelerating and an alert came up for stabilizing wheels i believe. It happened for about a couple seconds and then everything went back to normal and randomly happens while I’m driving.Check engine appeared and went to the mechanic shop i usually go to and found out I had ebcm and ecm modules bad. Do some research on the car and noticed it had a recall back in 2014 for EBCM. The problem has resurfaced

Filed Aug 12, 2024 · Electrical · GA

When I turn my vehicle off, it displays “shift to park” I am trapped in my car because it does not turn off all the way and the door will not lock. I have to wiggle and re-crank several times to attempt to get my vehicle to shut off. My battery has gone dead several times because I simply couldn’t turn the car off with the shift to park displaying.

Filed Aug 8, 2024 · FL

The front doors on the car lock and unlock them selves and often you have to climb into the backseat from the front seat to exit the car. This is a serious danger if you were in an accident or the car was on fire. Hi I am [XXX] and it’s almost impossible for me to climb over the seats the way the cockpit is made. When the car locks itself it’s impossible to unlock the car using the door locks inside by pulling them up or using the key in the drivers door nothing works. The car can be completely locked and hours later maybe the next day the drivers door will be open on its own. This is happened several times in the rain soaking the driver seat. The only way to unlock the doors if they lock on their own it’s to play with a key fob pressing lock unlock maybe 100 times and you might get lucky and it unlocks. I spent three days once before I could enter my car using the key fob as I explained earlier. The door came open one time while the car was going forward and luckily I was in a Walmart parking lot or there’s no telling what would’ve happened. When the car was shifted into drive the door locks clicked down but that still did not stop the door from opening. I purchased the car two months ago for $7000 and the dealer is going to do nothing they stressed as is. I have read online there are thousands of these complaints for the same thing and GM has not acknowledged the problem to date. Complaints I have read also stated they have done different repairs to the doors which are quite costly but they were to no avail. This seems like a very serious and dangerous problem being trapped inside a car especially in Florida where I live and the temperatures in a car can reach 140 degrees. If the car is running you can’t even exit the back doors once you crawl over the seats it has to be shut off. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed Oct 16, 2023 · Acceleration, Electrical · PA

I'm having a problem with the car going into park. When it's in park, the doors will not lock in the vehicle will Just drain the battery.

Filed Aug 15, 2023 · MD

I bought the car brand new. Periodically the doors will not lock or unlock, only one at a time. I have had it in the shop on numerous occasions to get it repaired. It's fine for a while then it does it again, it changes from door to door. Now I can not get the driver's side back door to lock. My dash lights up to let me know the door is unlocked. I am afraid when i go to a public place, that someone will get into my car. I am so aggervated with this. I have an appointment AGAIN with the dealership for 8/16/23 for them to look at it and try to solve the problem. I have no idea when this started as it's been ongoing. The dealership is Wantz Chevrolet in Taneytown MD

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 Jun 12, 2023 · Electrical · FL

Driver door will not unlock from outside of car when car is sitting out in the heat and sun. Yes car Is available for inspection If I need to get in car while out somewhere I can’t in a hurry. I went to dealership in November 2022 when it happened 3 times it was hot outside. No warning message or symptoms before failure. Hot weather when sitting in sun lock will not work. Now that it is very hot lock is not working again June12, 2023 happened 2 times today

Related recalls

No recalls on record for this model year.

Questions about the Chevrolet Malibu door locks

Which Chevrolet Malibu years have doors won't lock, open or latch problems?

The model years with the most reports are 2008 (92 complaints), 2009 (85 complaints) and 2010 (47 complaints).

How much does it cost to fix doors won't lock, open or latch on the Chevrolet Malibu?

Owners who mentioned a price put the repair at about $550 (median of 26 complaints that include a dollar amount). Costs vary with mileage, warranty and where the work is done.

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