2006 Chevrolet Malibu Steering Problems
- 687
- Owner complaint records in our dataset
Records are owner complaints, not a measured failure rate.
Owner complaint recordsComplaint records reflect reports in our dataset and do not measure how frequently the problem occurs across all vehicles.
Among these 687 stored complaint records:
- 20 indicate a crash
- 7 indicate injury
- 1 indicate fire
What owners report
- power steering · 148 records
- steering wheel · 60 records
- failure mileage · 13 records
- loss power · 13 records
- diagnosed repaired · 12 records
- warning indicator · 10 records
Mileage in stored records
| Band | Records |
|---|---|
| 60–100k mi | 209 |
| 100–150k mi | 150 |
| 30–60k mi | 127 |
| 150–400k mi | 79 |
| 1–30k mi | 53 |
Complaint records
Owner-submitted complaint content, presented as stored.
Steering
I have a 2006 chevy malibu ls . Power steering keeps coming on. The wheel turns slightly in idle. Well now power steering is lost while deriving making it hard to move at high speeds. Dangerous. After car is turned off the problem seems to go away until minutes later you hear chimes and it locks again. *tr
ODI 10316019
Steering
Power steering assist fails when turning the steering wheel and accelerating. Usually, this happens after the vehicle has been parked for a couple of days, before the engine has had a chance to warm up. This has happened at least six times in the last two months. Most recently on january 15, 2010. *tr
ODI 10302454
Steering
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 chevrolet malibu. The contact started the ignition and noticed when turing the steering wheel into the left direction a loud noise would emit. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the front swing arm suspension was replaced. The failure recurred and the vehicle was taken to a different technician who stated the defect was contributed to the steering column. The vehicle…
ODI 10478751
Steering
The power steering goes out when making right or left hand turns. Or when the temp in the vehicle is hot the steering won't stay on at all. The dealer told me that there was a special warreny enancement issued but no recall. This means that a milage limit of 100,000 miles is in place. So this will cost me $1200 to fix for something that they know is wrong with this vehicle. I guess someone has to be killed or…
ODI 10444459
Steering
Tl*the contact owns a 2006 chevrolet malibu. The driver stated that his power steering failed whenever he started the vehicle. The driver also stated that his steering wheel began to shake immediately after the vehicle was turned on. When he shifted into drive gear and accelerates, the steering wheel was shaking excessively. The failure mileage was 68,700 and the current mileage was 69,000.
ODI 10316099
Steering
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 chevrolet malibu. The contact noticed that the power steering warning light was illuminated. The dealer made three attempts to duplicate the failure. They replaced the steering column twice and then the steering shaft however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not notified. The current mileage was 42,688 and the approximate failure mileage was 26,000.
ODI 10422680
Steering
Tl*the contact owns a 2006 chevrolet malibu. The vehicle would pull to the left and right excessively which driving approximately 45 mph. The speed also fluctuated when the failure occurred. General motors told the contact that they would send him a $1000 voucher towards the purchase of another vehicle when he asked to be reimbursed for the repair. The failure mileage was approximately 55,000. The current mileage…
ODI 10313974
Steering
I own a 2006 chevy malibu, while i was driving the steering locked up. I was only going about 35 mph i was able to pull over and stop. I was told to cut the car off for about 20 minutes. After the 20 minutes i was able to drive the car with no problems that day, their have been two incidents with the same problem. *tr
ODI 10350681
Steering
Tl* the contact has a 2006 chevrolet malibu. The contact has experienced a loss of power steering. The contact stated that the problem happens randomly. The message box starting flashing and the power steering started going out. The failure mileage was 85000 and the current mileage was 88000.
ODI 10317005
Engine And Engine Cooling · Steering
Steering wheel locks up while driving - happens at random - at all different times. Dealer acted like it was no big deal and of course they want me to pay for it when i have now found out that i am not the only one complaining about this problem. It is dangerous, and it could cause fatality. Problem seems to go away for a while after i change out the spark plugs. But i am at 160,000 miles and on my 8th set of spark…
ODI 10371853
Steering
My steering system is failing and my rack and pinion needs replacing at 65,000 miles. My mechanic says it's not safe to drive in the long term with the clunking sounds i hear and the rack could fail and cause me to crash. Gm chevy malibu v6 engine. *tr
ODI 10317432
Steering
Power steering goes out without warning. Happens intermittently and shop cannot determine what causes it. *tr
ODI 10296491
Steering
Tl*the contact owns a 2006 chevrolet malibu. The contact stated that the power steering light would illuminate on the dashboard and the power steering would fail within minutes. The failure occurred 8 times. When the vehicle was turned off and restarted, the failure seemed to correct itself. He had not taken the vehicle to the dealership to-date. He called the manufacturer and was instructed to take the vehicle to…
ODI 10316150
Steering
Tl*the contact owns a 2006 chevy malibu. The steering wheel failed while driving between 15 and 55 mph on two occasions. The contact had to turn the vehicle off and back on before the steering system reset itself and began driving normally. The input torque sensor was replaced by the dealer. The contact is concerned about the safety risk. . The failure mileage was 48000. The current mileage was 51000. *cn updated…
ODI 10299092
Steering
Power steering fails while driving. Wheel turns suddenly to the left and then there is no power steering. I looked online and saw that several people have had the same problem. *tr
ODI 10315780
Steering
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 chevrolet malibu. While driving approximately 30 mph into a parking lot, the steering wheel became extremely hard to turn. The power steering warning light illuminated on the warning panel and he attempted to shut off and restart the engine several times, until the poser steering reset itself. He confirmed he experienced the failure several times over a course of one month. The…
ODI 10318076
Steering
Steering pops and snaps. Sometimes feels like it has a "catch" in it or about to lock up. I know you have had many complaints about 06 malibus. Are you going to wait until it's a fiasco and more people die like the current cobalt and hhr mess? This malibu problem should have been recalled years ago. I have talked, networked with many other malibu owners. You need to stop coddling and snuggling with gm and get these…
ODI 10568948
Steering
I was driving to work, made a right turn and my power steering just went out. There was no where to pull over on side of the road, i struggled to steer the car into a parking lot which was almost impossible. I was almost hit from behind twice too many times because of this. The dealership has diagnosed this as the power steering system. This exact incident is starting to happen more frequently. This problem happened…
ODI 10291346
Steering
STEERING PROBLEM. *TR
ODI 10330649
Steering
I was driving on the freeway in my 2006 malibu lt, when the steering wheel locked up, the steering got really tight and i was unable to control the car on the freeway, after a few seconds the steering went back to normal, and a few seconds later it locked up again. A power steering warning came up on the dash. I took it to a local chevy dealership. They ran diagnostics and said that the power steering motor had gone…
ODI 10291030
Steering
Chevrolet malibu 2006 lt 3.5 v6 steering when driving at hghway speeds locks up. Creates a feeling like emergency braking with abs. Has happened on several occasions while turning in town and while traveling on the highway. Lakeside dealership in rockwall, tx when i contacted them said there was not a fix gm was aware of problems with the electronic steering in the malibu, implala and full size trucks. Crashed on a…
Crash reported
ODI 10307187
Steering
Under normal driving conditions the steering become difficult when turning to the right. Occasionally you can feel "pulsing" while turning. Happens at all speeds. Corrects itself when the vehicle is shut off. Problem began within the last month as a slight pressure whiling turning. Last 2 days the steering has become very difficult. Yesterday problems developed while turning right onto the interstate. No warning…
ODI 10290109
Steering
Bought a new chevy malibu in july of 2006--we have fought tires on it since day 1 and no one would stand behind them--the rims won't seal around the tires. We have replaced the tires and no luck. We have had to "air them up" every other day since we purchased it. Yesterday while driving--my power steering just decided to quit working. If i shut the car off and wait 15 minutes--it will be fine again--until the car…
ODI 10290094
Steering
1. Intermittent power steering alert on driver information center 2. Power steering alert comes on and then the power steering turns off while driving. (intermittent). 3. Was brought to repair place, and it is currently being repaired. *tr
ODI 10289842
Steering
POWER STEERING CUT OUT AT RANDOM TIMES. *TR
ODI 10287256