2002 CHEVROLET MALIBU Problems
Real NHTSA owner complaints for the 2002 Chevrolet Malibu. This model year has 596 NHTSA complaints — top issue: Electrical Faults.
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This page shows the model year's reputation. The VIN tells you about the specific car — accidents, title issues, odometer rollbacks, and open recalls.
Worst 2002 Chevrolet Malibu Problems
Top 3 most-reported issues with average mileage at failure.
Electrical Faults
Headlight/Taillight Failures
Engine Problems
Considering a 2002 Chevrolet Malibu?
This page shows the model year's reputation. The VIN tells you about this specific car — accidents, title issues, odometer fraud. Full report just $4.99 (vs. Carfax $44.99).
All Problems by Category
Every NHTSA complaint category for the 2002 Chevrolet Malibu. A single complaint may appear in multiple categories.
| Component | Complaints | Crashes | Fires | Avg Mileage | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electrical Faults | 273 | 3 | — | — | |
| Headlight/Taillight Failures | 148 | 2 | — | — | |
| Engine Problems | 89 | — | — | — | |
| Brake System | 58 | 4 | — | — | |
| Hydraulic | 43 | 2 | — | — | |
| Fuel System | 24 | — | 1 | — | |
| Gasoline | 23 | — | 1 | — | |
| Uncategorized Issues | 21 | 1 | — | — | |
| Airbag Malfunctions | 20 | 13 | — | — | |
| Equipment | 18 | — | — | — | |
| Steering Defects | 15 | 1 | — | — | |
| Suspension Failures | 14 | 1 | — | — | |
| Structural Problems | 12 | 1 | — | — | |
| Visibility | 12 | — | — | — | |
| Tire Issues | 10 | — | — | — | |
| Seat Belt Issues | 9 | 3 | — | — | |
| Transmission / Drivetrain | 8 | — | — | — | |
| Unintended Acceleration | 7 | 2 | — | — | |
| Fuel/Propulsion System | 6 | — | — | — | |
| Air | 4 | — | — | — | |
| Child Seat | 2 | — | — | — | |
| Interior Lighting | 2 | — | — | — | |
| Visibility/Wiper | 1 | — | — | — | |
| Electronic Stability Control (Esc) | 1 | — | — | — | |
| Parking-Brake Issues | 1 | — | — | — | |
| Other | 1 | — | — | — | |
| Door Lock Issues | 1 | — | — | — | |
| Wheel Issues | 1 | — | — | — |
Source: NHTSA Complaints Database. Complaint counts may exceed total complaints because one report can span multiple categories.
Search Owner Complaints
Read what owners actually reported to NHTSA for the 2002 Chevrolet Malibu. Type a keyword (e.g. “transmission”, “stalling”, “brakes”) to filter.
Showing 400 most recent complaints of 596 total. View all on NHTSA ↗
The anti-theft/ passlock system fault in this generation of GM vehicles is very widespread and effects a large percentage of vehicles in this generation. I am sure there have been hundreds if not thousands of complaints about same issue and GM refuses to fix the problem. The prob…
THE TURN SIGNALS WORK SOMETIMES AND SOMETIMES THEY DON'T WORK. I RESEARCHED THIS ON THE INTERNET AND IT SEAMS TO BE A SERIOUS PROBLEM WITH THIS CAR MAKE. IF THERE ARE NO RECALLS ON THIS THERE SHOULD BE. THIS IS A MAJOR SAFETY HAZARD. I JUST BOUGHT THIS CAR FOR MY TEENAGE SON.
THE HYDRAULIC BRAKE LINES BETWEEN THE FRONT AND REAR OF THE CAR CORRODED AND QUICKLY LEAKED FLUID OUT SO THE BRAKES NO LONGER FUNCTIONED. THE FLUID LEAKED OUT WHEN THE CAR WAS PARKED AFTER DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY THE NIGHT BEFORE. IF THIS HAPPENED WHEN I WAS DRIVING THE RESULTS C…
THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PROBLEM ARE AS FOLLOWS: THE ENGINE JUST DIES RANDOMLY. WHEN THE ENGINE DIES, I NOTED THE GAUGES ALL INDICATED THE KEY WAS IN THE OFF POSITION, EVEN THOUGH THE KEY HAD NOT BEEN TOUCHED. THEY BY TURNING THE KEY TO THE OFF POSITION AND WIGGLING IT ONLY AF…
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 CHEVROLET MALIBU. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE ENGINE HESITATED WHEN STARTED. ALSO, THE INSTRUMENT PANEL LIGHTING BECAME VERY DIM AND THE DATA ON THE SCREEN WAS NOT VISIBLE. ALSO, THE PASSENGER DOOR WOULD NOT LOCK AND THE WINDOWS FAILED TO ROLL DOWN. AL…
PASSLOCK CENSOR IN THE IGNITION LOCK CYLINDER FAILING. SECURITY RELEARN NEEDED. VEHICLE WAS STATIONARY.
CAR WOULD NOT START, HAD TO REPLACE ALTERNATOR. ONE WEEK LATER SAME PROBLEM, HAD A MECHANIC CHECK IT NOW SAYING ITS THE BATTERY SO REPLACED THAT. WAS STARTING OK THEN IT WOULDN'T START SO WE WIGGLED KEY AROUND AND IT STARTED. WAS ABLE TO DRIVE SEVERAL DAYS DOING THIS BUT THEN IT …
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 CHEVROLET MALIBU. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE FAILED TO START AND THE KEY FELT HOT WHILE IN THE IGNITION. THE DEALER AND MANUFACTURER HAD NOT BEEN CONTACTED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 92,000.
MY VEHICLE IS MESSING UP ON ME AND IT WAS SHUT OFF MY VEHICLE IS MESSING UP ON ME IT WILL SHUT OFF WELL DRIVING ILL PULL OVER AND WAIT A COUPLE MINS AND I WILL PULL OUT THE FUEL FUSE AND WAIT A COUPLE MINS AND WILL PUT IT BACK AND IT WILL START AGAIN AFTER A WEEK IT SHUT OFF ON M…
MY 2002 CHEVROLET CLASSIC HAS A DANGEROUS CONDITION WHERE THE TURN SIGNAL/HAZARD WARNING FLASHERS BECOME INOPERATIVE. THE CONDITION IS COMPLETELY RANDOM AND OCCURS INTERMITTENTLY. THIS HAS CREATED SURPRISE UNSAFE SITUATIONS WHEN MAKING LANE CHANGES AND LEFT AND RIGHT HAND TURNS. …
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 CHEVROLET MALIBU CLASSIC. WHILE DRIVING UNKNOWN SPEEDS, THE TURN SIGNAL AND EMERGENCY LIGHT INDICATORS FAILED TO ILLUMINATE WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO STATED THAT AN UNKNOWN MODULE SWITCH NEEDED TO BE REPLACED…
MY CAR CUTS OFF AND GOES INTO THE ANTI-THEFT SYSTEM WHILE I'M GOING DOWN THE ROAD WHEN THIS HAPPENS MY CAR HAS TO BE PUSHED OFF THE ROADWAY AND THEN I HAVE TO SIT WITH MY DRIVER SIDE DOOR OPEN AND MY KEY TURNED ON FOR 10 MINUTES UNTIL IT RESETS ITSELF THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS AND…
KEY DOES NOT SHUT OFF CAR CAN NOT SHIFT GEARS
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 CHEVROLET MALIBU CLASSIC. WHILE THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED, THE VEHICLE FAILED TO ACCELERATE AND LOST POWER. THE CHECK ENGINE WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE EGR V…
ANTI-THEFT LOCKING DEVICE MAKE CAR STOP AND CAN'T START EVEN IN EMERGENCY SITUATION. HAD GONE TO BANK AND WHEN TRIED TO START VEHICLE AND WOULDN'T START. CLIENT IS 88 YEARS OLD AND HAD TO GO OUT ON STREET SEEKING HELP TO GET CAR FIXED. (FORGOT CELL PHONE AT HOME) WALKED SOME D…
ANTI THEFT DEVICE CAUSED CAR TO BE UNABLE TO START EVEN WITH CORRECT KEY. STATIONARY. COMPUTER HAD TO.BE REPROGRAMMED.
CAR WILL NOT START
MY CAR DIES RUNNING AND IT SOMETIMES DOESN'T WANTS TO START DUE TO A SWITCH PROBLEM THE SAME I HAD IN OTHER MALIBU THAT I HAD AND THE DEALER FIXED FOR ME
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 CHEVROLET MALIBU. WHILE TURNING THE IGNITION SWITCH, THE VEHICLE STALLED AND THE ANTI-THEFT WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC, BUT WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE VIN A…
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 CHEVROLET MALIBU. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE ENGINE WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED AND ANTI-FREEZE WAS LEAKING OUT OF THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT TOOK THE VEHICLE TO AN UNKNOWN DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE HEAD GASKET BLEW OUT AND NEEDED TO BE R…
Source: NHTSA Complaints Database. Real owner reports for the 2002 Chevrolet Malibu.
Recalls for 2002 Chevrolet Malibu
4 campaignsNHTSA recall campaigns for the 2002 Chevrolet Malibu. Recalls are free to fix at any authorized dealer. Run a VIN check below to see if your specific vehicle has open recalls.
2002 Chevrolet Malibu — FAQ
Answers based on real NHTSA complaint and recall data for this specific model year.
Is the 2002 Chevrolet Malibu reliable?▾
Severe Issues. The 2002 Chevrolet Malibu has 596 NHTSA owner complaints, 20 crash-related, and 4 recall campaigns. The most reported issue is Electrical Faults (273 complaints). Source: NHTSA via VinSpector AI.
What are the most common problems with the 2002 Chevrolet Malibu?▾
#1: Electrical Faults (273 complaints). #2: Headlight/Taillight Failures (148 complaints). #3: Engine Problems (89 complaints)
At what mileage do problems start on the 2002 Chevrolet Malibu?▾
Mileage data is not available or insufficient for this model year.
How safe is the 2002 Chevrolet Malibu?▾
The 2002 Chevrolet Malibu has 20 crash-related complaints and 1 fire reports out of 596 total NHTSA complaints. 20 injuries were reported. For NCAP lab crash test star ratings, visit nhtsa.gov/ratings.
Does the 2002 Chevrolet Malibu have any recalls?▾
Yes — 4 NHTSA recall campaigns affect the 2002 Chevrolet Malibu. The largest issue: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION. Check nhtsa.gov/recalls or run a VIN check to see if your specific vehicle has open recalls.
Should I buy a 2002 Chevrolet Malibu?▾
The 2002 Chevrolet Malibu has severe issues — review the top problems before buying. Pay particular attention to Electrical Faults issues. Always run a VIN check on the specific car you're considering to check for accident history, open recalls, and title brands.
Source: NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) complaint and recall databases, aggregated by VinSpector AI.
Wider context: See the full Chevrolet Malibu reliability report with year-by-year comparison.
Check Your Specific 2002 Chevrolet Malibu
Real owner complaints tell you about the model. The VIN tells you about your specific car — accidents, title issues, odometer fraud. Full report just $4.99.