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Chevrolet · NHTSA safety record

2012 Chevrolet Malibu

Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government holds on this vehicle.

Owners have filed 907 safety complaints about the 2012 Chevrolet Malibu with the US government. Of those, 50 describe a crash, 13 mention a fire, 35 people were injured and no death is recorded. 2 recall campaigns are open against it, covering the seat belts and the electrical system.

The most complained-about system is the electrical system, named in 291 complaints, 32% of the total. The typical failure was reported at 86,000 miles, the median across the 646 complaints that gave an odometer reading.

Compiled from NHTSA's complaint, recall and investigation files · Covers December 2011 to September 2026 · How this is counted

What is on file

907 complaints on file

907

Complaints

50

Describe a crash

13

Mention fire

35

People injured

0

Deaths

A complaint is an unverified account by the person who filed it, not a finding of fault. One complaint is one ODI number, which is how NHTSA counts them.

Complaints halved year on year: 11 in the twelve months to 2026-Q2, against 22 in the twelve before.

A recall is the manufacturer conceding a defect, and the repair is free. Whether one covers your particular car is a question only its VIN can answer, because a campaign covers a production range rather than a model year.

Which system owners named

Complaints naming each system
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 291 · 32%
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 202 · 22%
STEERING 191 · 21%
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 129 · 14%
AIR BAGS 101 · 11%
ENGINE 99 · 11%
SERVICE BRAKES 66 · 7%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 52 · 6%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 51 · 6%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 51 · 6%
POWER TRAIN 49 · 5%
SEAT BELTS 47 · 5%
0 119 238

Red marks a system with a recall campaign against it. One complaint can name several systems, so these add up to more than 907.

When the complaints arrived

By the year NHTSA received them

By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures happened. They peaked in 2019 at 167.

176 132 88 44
11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26

This is the year the complaint was filed, not the year the failure happened. The range runs from 2011 to 2026, the last of them a part year, which is why its column is drawn faint.

Crash test ratings

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program

NHTSA crashes a car into a barrier and a pole and measures what happens to the dummies inside. This is what it awarded the 2012 Chevrolet MALIBU, and it is a separate question from what owners report going wrong later.

Test 4 DR FWD
Overall
Frontal crash
Frontal, driver
Frontal, passenger
Side crash
Side barrier
Side pole
Rollover
Chance of rollover 10.9%
Stability control standard Forward collision warning standard Lane departure warning standard

A dash means NHTSA did not rate that test for this vehicle.

Recall campaigns

2 on file

SEAT BELTS

15V269000 · May 8, 2015

The defect
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2011-2012 Chevrolet Malibu vehicles manufactured April 8, 2010, to October 11, 2012. In the affected vehicles, the flexible steel cables that connect the seat belts to the vehicle at the outside of the driver seat and the front passenger seat may be bent from being sat on while entering the vehicle. This repeated bending may result in the cable breaking.
The risk
If the cable breaks, the seat occupant may not be properly restrained in the event of a crash, increasing their risk of injury.
The remedy
GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the outboard lap anchor mounting bracket and inspect the flexible steel cable, replacing it as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on November 16, 2015. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 15031.

General Motors LLC · up to 437,045 vehicles across all model years covered

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING

14V252000 · May 14, 2014

The defect
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2004-2012 Chevrolet Malibu vehicles manufactured May 16, 2003, through October 11, 2012, 2004-2007 Malibu Maxx vehicles manufactured June 25, 2003, through April 5, 2007, 2005-2010 Pontiac G6 vehicles manufactured May 26, 2004, through January 4, 2010, and 2007-2010 Saturn Aura vehicles manufactured April 24, 2006, through May 26, 2009. In the affected vehicles, increased resistance in the Body Control Module (BCM) connection may result in voltage fluctuations in the Brake Apply Sensor (BAS) circuit. These fluctuations can cause one or more of these conditions: the brake lights to illuminate without the brake pedal being pushed; the brake lights to not illuminate when the pedal is pushed; difficulty disengaging the cruise control; moving the gear shifter out of the 'PARK' position without pushing the brake; and disablement of crash avoidance features such as traction control, electronic stability control, and panic braking assist features.
The risk
Any of the above failure conditions increases the risk of a crash.
The remedy
GM will notify owners, and dealers will attach the wiring harness to the BCM with a spacer, apply dielectric lubricant to both the BCM and harness connector and the BAS and harness connector, and will relearn the brake pedal home position, free of charge. The manufacturer distributed an Interim letter to customers on July 14, 2014. The recall began on August 18, 2014. Owners may contact General Motors customer service at 1-800-222-1020 (Chevrolet), 1-800-762-2737 (Pontiac), 1-800-553-6000 (Saturn). GM's number for this recall is 13036.

General Motors LLC · up to 2,440,524 vehicles across all model years covered

In owners’ own words

Quoted from the complaint file

Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the people who filed them, not findings of fault.

AIR BAGS

3 injured · crash · 15,000 miles

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 CHEVROLET MALIBU. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE SITTING AT A COMPLETE STOP, ANOTHER VEHICLE CRASHED INTO THE CONTACT'S VEHICLE WHILE TRAVELING 47 MPH. THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY AND THE SEAT BELTS DID NOT TIGHTEN AROUND THE PASSENGERS. THE VEHICLE WAS DESTROYED. THE CONTACT SUSTAINED NECK AND BACK INJURIES. THE FRONT PASSENGER SUSTAINED NECK, BACK AND HIP INJURIES. THE REAR DRIVER'S SIDE PASSENGER SUSTAINED NECK, BACK AND ANKLE INJURIES. THE VEHICLE WAS INSPECTED BY THE MANUFACTURER HOWEVER, THE SEATBELT AND AIR BAG FAILURE COULD NOT BE DIAGNOSED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 15,000. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE.

NHTSA complaint 10510807. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS

2 injured · crash · towed · 5 miles

THIS IS THE SECOND TIME THAT I PRESSED THE BRAKES AND THE CAR FAILED TO STOP. BOTH TIMES RESULTED IN COLLISIONS. THE FIRST TIME THE CAR WSS REPAIRED AND THEN GIVEN BACK TO ME. THIS TIME I WAS TRAVELING APPROX 45 MPH AND THE PERSON IN FRONT OF ME SLAMMED ON THEIR BRAKES. I WENT TO DO THE SAME AND THE BRAKE PEDAL WENT TO THE FLOOR WITHOUT STOPPING THE CAR AT ALL. I COLLIDED WITH THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME CAUSING MAJOR DAMAGE TO MY CAR AND INJURIES TO MY SHOULDER, NECK AND BACK.

NHTSA complaint 10984656. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS

2 injured · crash · towed · 100,000 miles

The contact called on behalf of her daughter's boyfriend who was driving alongside her daughter in a 2012 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that her daughter's boyfriend was driving on the highway at approximately 75 MPH in the left lane when a tractor-trailer in the right lane veered into their lane and the rear end of the tractor-trailer clipped the front end of their vehicle. The contact vehicle began to spin out of control until it came to a stop on the side of the road. The vehicle was totaled. The air bags were not deployed. The vehicle was towed to a local tow lot. No warning lights were illuminated prior to the crash. A police report was filed. The boyfriend seated in the

NHTSA complaint 11626387, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

SEAT BELTS

2 injured · crash · 15,500 miles

MY HUSBAND AND WERE TRAVELING SOUTHBOUND ON I-95 AROUND WILMINGTON DE. TRAFFIC HAD COME TO A COMPLETE STOP, WE WERE AT A STANDSTILL WHEN WE WERE REAR-ENDED IN A FIVE CAR / TWO TRACTOR TRAILER PILE UP. MY HUSBAND, SEAT BELTED IN THE PASSENGER SEAT, STRUCK HIS HEAD ON THE DASHBOARD CAUSING A CONCUSSION, WHIPLASH, AND BACK PAIN. HIS SEATBELT FAILED TO LOCK INTO PLACE, RESULTING IN HIM BEING THROWN FORWARD INTO THE DASHBOARD AND SUSTAINING THE ABOVE INJURIES. *TR

NHTSA complaint 10610037. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:INSTRUMENT PANEL:SPEEDOMETER/ODOMETER
See attached document for complaint.

NHTSA complaint 11768102. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

SEATS
Car has 161,848 miles and the seat frame broke on the drivers side of my 2012 Chevy Malibu. It had a slight tilt to the right. It was taken to the Chevrolet Dealership and they inspected and verified that the frame welding was broken. I have a video from the service tech showing the broken frame. I took a screen shot of the video and attached it to this incident repot. I would be happy to share the video but it won't allow me to share on this page. I asked the dealership if there was any recall because I find it hard to believe that a seat frame would just break. I have gone online and read that multiple people have had this issue however, Chevrolet has done nothing about it. A few people

NHTSA complaint 11761110, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Electrical system problems that create unsafe driving conditions!! Vehicle has electrical glitches. Internal warning lights flicker on and off. Battery drains. Car randomly will not start. Multiple incidents. Car stalled on roadway without warning and would not crank. Luckily I was in a residential neighborhood with little to no traffic when this happened. I have had crank sensors replaced, fuel pump module replaced, fuses replaced and still problems occur. If this is a common issue with the 2012 Chevrolet Malibu, could you please issue a safety recall? Thank you

NHTSA complaint 11752135. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Rear defrost stopped working. Hasn't worked in years. I took it to GM, they had a print out of a kit that I had to purchase to repair. This stopped working back around 2016.

NHTSA complaint 11727179. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS
My airbag warning light and notification have came on and sometimes seat belt lights come on unexpectedly and will not go off I feel like this is a safety issue

NHTSA complaint 11725989. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STEERING
i was driving and the steering wheel locked, the whole steering column has to be replaced it brought up a code saying torque input sensor i've only put 10,000 miles on this car and have only had it for 11 months

NHTSA complaint 11720451. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the Chevrolet Malibu

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2025 11 1 —
2024 42 2 —
2023 70 2 —
2022 98 1 —
2021 89 2 —
2020 198 1 1
2019 191 1 —
2018 698 6 —
2017 702 4 —
2016 837 9 1
2015 270 3 1
2014 351 6 1
2013 835 9 —
2011 978 3 —
2010 1,361 3 —

Other 2012 Chevrolet models

Cruze 865 Equinox 685 Sonic 354 Traverse 354 Impala 258 Volt 245 Silverado 1500 216 Tahoe 178

Complaints on file, same model year.

Every Chevrolet on this site — 304 vehicles.

If this is your car and a dealer keeps failing to fix it, your state's lemon law may require the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back. How many repair attempts it takes, and how long you have to file, is set by the state you bought in and by nothing on this page.

Where these numbers come from

A complaint is one owner's account and has not been verified by NHTSA or by us. A vehicle with more complaints is not necessarily worse: models that sold in larger numbers collect more of them. How this is counted.

Compiled and maintained by
Independent developer and analyst