2011 Chevrolet Malibu Exterior Lighting
Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.
Complaint Timeline
Chronological view of owner reports
Passenger headlight keeps going out. Have had to replace 4 times in 3 years. Difficult taking off entire bumper
I purchased this 2011 Cheverolet Malibu brand new. A few years prior to me giving it to my daughter, I had to get the headlights replaced several times, one would go out a month or so after I had the other one fixed. I gave it to her in 2019 and lately every other week one or even BOTH of the front headlights have gone out. Also, the third brake lamp randomly goes out and now one of the rear brake lamps has gone out. There’s already over 100 complaints about these issues with this particular model but GM has yet to do a recall! WHY?? It’s clearly an issue with the vehicle and the fact that the ENTIRE front bumper has to come off to get to it is the dumbest thing I’ve ever seen!!! Headlights, of all things, randomly going out on a vehicle is not safe at all! There are people out here who have children in these faulty vehicles and clearly neither GM nor the NHTSA cares. What is it going to take for someone to do something about this, deaths???
Headlights fail. I have had to replace my headlights several times. I have also had to replace the entire headlight assembly.
The headlights have went out over 10 times. The wiring keeps burning. This is a known issues. Why is there not a recall? It’s extremely expensive and hard to get the front end of the car off to replace the bulb to find out it’s not the bulb. It goes out every few months. Even the dealership service department has told me it’s a known issue!
The contact owns a 2011 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that the front headlights failed to illuminate without warning at start-up. The contact had taken the vehicle to a relative who was able to replace both headlights. Two months after the repair, the passenger’s side headlight failed to operate and had the headlight was replaced again by her relative. Despite the replacement of the headlight, the new headlight failed to operate as needed. The contact then purchased a third headlight and the headlight also failed to operate. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer had been notified of the failure. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 155,000
THE LOW BEAM PORTION OF HEADLIGHTS STARTED GOING OUT AND BACK ON PERIODICALLY WHILE DRIVING I'VE REPLACED THE BULBS TWICE WITHIN 6 MONTHS AND IT CONTINUES TO REPEAT ISSUE THE BULBS ARE NOT BLOWN. MULTIPLE REPORTS ONLINE OF THIS ISSUE BUT NO RECALL. IF HEADLIGHTS FAIL DURING DARK DRIVING CONDITIONS COULD CAUSE SERIOUS OR EVEN FATAL ACCIDENTS.THE INFORMATION ONLINE SUGGESTS WIRING HARNESS ISSUES
PASSENGER SIDE LOW BEAM HEADLIGHT GOES OUT RANDOMLY. WIRING AND HEADLIGHT HAVE BEEN REPLACED, AND DOES NOT SEEM TO SOLVE THIS ISSUE. THIS HAPPENS APPROX.EVERY 6 MONTHS IF NOT MORE. YOU HAVE TO REMOVE THE FRONT BUMPER TO GET TO THE HEADLIGHT WHICH IS A PAIN IF DONE YOURSELF. VERY EXPENSIVE IF YOU PAY A MECHANIC.
PASSENGER SIDE LOW-BEAM HEAD LIGHT KEEPS GOING OUT, AND HAVE TO REPLACE EVERY SIX MONTHS OR LESS. VERY COSTLY DUE TO DESIGN. FRONT BUMPER NEEDS TO BE REMOVED TO GET TO HEADLIGHT. HAVE HAD DIFFERENT MECHANICS CHANGE AND ISSUE CONTINUES TO BE THE SAME.
MY DIM LIGHTS DO NOT WORK, IT IS NOT THE BULB OR ANYTHING CONNECTED WITH THE LIGHT, IT HAS ALL BEEN CHECKED OUT! BRIGHTS WORK, BUT IT IS TOO DANGEROUS FOR ME TO HAVE TO DRIVE WITH MY BRIGHTS ON. I NEED TO BE ABLE TO DRIVE AT NIGHT!
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 CHEVROLET MALIBU. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE LOW BEAM HEADLIGHTS SUDDENLY FAILED WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT REPLACED THE LOW BEAM BULBS OVER 10 TIMES WITHIN THE PAST 4 YEARS. THE FAILURE OCCURRED ON THE PASSENGER'S AND DRIVER'S SIDE OF THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT CONTACTED THE DEALER MCCARTHY CHEVROLET LEE'S SUMMIT (945 SE OLDHAM PKWY, LEE'S SUMMIT, MO 64081, (816) 356-6610) HOWEVER, THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSE NOR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE ISSUE AND INFORMED THE CONTACT THAT THE REPAIR WAS NOT COVERED UNDER RECALL. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS UNKNOWN.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 CHEVROLET MALIBU. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE THIRD BRAKE LIGHT WAS INOPERABLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE THIRD BRAKE LIGHT FUNCTIONED INTERMITTENTLY. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE MILLER BROTHERS CHEVROLET OF ELLICOTT CITY, LOCATED AT 9035 BALTIMORE NATIONAL PIKE, ELLICOTT CITY, MD 21042, WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE THIRD BRAKE LIGHT ASSEMBLY NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS UNKNOWN.
LOW-BEAM HEADLAMPS CONTINUALLY BURN OUT OR QUIT WORKING, REQUIRING FREQUENT REPLACEMENT OF HEADLAMP BULBS AND HEADLAMP ASSEMBLY PIECES. REPAIRS ARE EXPENSIVE BECAUSE THE VEHICLE'S ENTIRE FRONT END MUST BE REMOVED EACH TIME TO ACCESS HEADLAMPS AND RELATED WIRING. ONE OR BOTH HEADLAMPS HAVE GONE OUT AT LEAST FOUR TIMES IN THE PAST 18 MONTHS.
THE LOW BEAM HEADLIGHTS ON MY VEHICLE BURN OUT AND NEED TO BE REPLACED EVERY 3-4 MONTHS (3-4 TIMES PER YEAR FOR THE LAST 6 YEARS I HAVE OWNED THE VEHICLE). THIS IS NOT ONLY AN EXPENSIVE REPAIR (BECAUSE MY MECHANIC NEEDS TO REMOVE THE BUMPER IN ORDER TO COMPLETE IT), BUT EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. MULTIPLE TIMES MY HEADLIGHTS HAVE SUDDENLY STOPPED WORKING AT NIGHT WITHOUT WARNING. SOMETIMES PULLING OVER AND HITTING THE HEADLIGHT ASSEMBLY WILL CAUSE IT TO HAVE A BETTER CONNECTION AGAIN, CAUSING THE LIGHTS TO WORK, BUT THIS FIX IS ONLY TEMPORARY. THE CONNECTORS KEEP MELTING, MY MECHANIC AND I NOW BELIEVE, DUE TO THE HIGH AMPERAGE CAUSED BY THE 70% REDUCTION IN POWER DURING THE VEHICLE'S DAYTIME RUNNING LIGHT MODE. MY COMPLAINTS TO THE MANUFACTURER HAVE GONE UNHEARD. IT IS CLEAR THAT THE MANUFACTURER NEEDS TO PROVIDE FOR A HEAVIER CONNECTOR THAN THE OEM PART, AND PERHAPS DIFFERENT BULBS, TO REMEDY THIS SAFETY ISSUE. IN THE YEAR 2020 IT SHOULD NOT BE SO DIFFICULT TO KEEP BOTH LOW BEAM HEADLIGHTS RUNNING! I CAN GET AROUND THE ISSUE BY USING MY HIGH BEAM LIGHTS, BUT THIS IS HAZARDOUS TO OTHER MOTORISTS. IT IS A POOR DESIGN, AND I AM CONVINCED THAT THERE WILL NOT BE A SATISFACTORY FIX FOR THIS SAFETY ISSUE UNTIL NHTSA COMPELS GM TO ISSUE A RECALL.
ONGOING PROBLEM WITH HEADLAMPS BURNING OUT. I HAVE HAD THE CAR FOR 2 YEARS AND HAVE TO HAVE THEM REPLACED EVERY 3 MO.OR SO THE LAST BURN OUT HAPPENED ON 5/12/2020. *TR
MY LOW BEAM LIGHTS KEEP GOING OUT REPEATEDLY. IT STARTS WITH THE PASSENGER LIGHT THEN BOTH AND AFTER A FEW DAYS I HAVE NO LIGHTS. THEY BEEN GOING OUT EVERY 2 MONTHS AND THIS IS THE 4TH TIME I REPLACED THEM. NO SPECIFIC TIME WHEN THEY GO OUT I JUST NOTICE IT WHEN I TURN THE LIGHTS ON. THEY HAVE NOT LASTED LONGER THAN TWO MONTHS.
RIGHT FRONT LOW BEAM HEADLIGHT KEEPS GOING OUT. HARNESS AND BULB HAS BEEN CHANGED. SAME HAS HAPPENED 3TIMES. SAFETY CONCERN!!! LAST CHEVROLET FOR ME!!! THIS HAS HAPPENED THREE TIMES THIS YEAR. GETTING EXPENSIVE!!!!
WITH IN THE LAST 10 TO 12 MONTHS I'VE HAD 5 HEADLIGHTS BURN OUT. ONE THE MODULE HAD MELTED. THE CURRENT LIGHT OUT IS ONCE AGAIN ON THE PASSENGER SIDE THAT BURNT OUT JANUARY 24, 2020. SO FAR TO DATE IT'S BEEN 2 ON THE DRIVER SIDE, 3 ON THE PASSENGER SIDE.
EXTERIOR PASSENGER SIDE HEADLIGHT KEEPS GOING OUT. I HAVE HAD IT REPLACED/REPAIR ABOUT 4 TIMES IN THE LAST 6 MONTHS. IT MAY GO OUT AT ANYTIME.
FOR OVER A YEAR I HAVE HAD ISSUES WITH MY PASSENGERS SIDE LOW BEAM LIGHT GOING OUT. THE ISSUE IS NOT WITH THE LIGHTBULB BUT THE ACTUAL HARNESS AND PIG TAIL. AFTER THREE MECHANICS AND HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS (THIS IS NOT ANY EASY FIX DUE TO THE BUMPER HAVING TO BE REMOVED EVERY TIME THIS HAPPENS) NOT TO MENTION THE COST OF PARTS AND LABOR, I DECIDED TO DO SOME RESEARCH. IT APPEARS THERE ARE THOUSANDS OF CONSUMERS HAVING THIS SAME ISSUE. IT HAS BEEN LESS THAN 2 MONTHS SINCE I HAVE HAD IT REPLACED AND IT HAS BURNT UP AGAIN. I FEEL CHEVROLET SHOULD BE ADDRESSING THIS ISSUE AND DOING SOMETHING ABOUT IT.
LOW BEAM HEADLIGHTS KEEP GOING OUT. WILL TURN ON AND OFF SPORADICALLY. HAVE HAD THE LIGHTS CHANGED MANY TIMES. AND ALSO HAD THE PIGTAILS CHANGED . STILL WILL NOT WORK PROPERLY
PASSENGER SIDE LOW BEAM HEADLIGHT STOPPED WORKING. ALL OTHER LIGHTS WORK FINE. REPLACED BULB AND WIRING HARNESS FOR THE HEADLIGHT ASSEMBLY AND STILL WONT WORK. UPON FURTHER INVESTIGATION MANY OTHER CHEVY MALIBU OWNERS HAVE THE SAME EXACT ISSUE WITH THE SAME EXACT LIGHT. THE LIGHT JUST STOPPED WORKING ONE DAY WHILE STATIONARY.
THE HEADLIGHTS ON MY 2011 CHEVY MALIBU HAVE GONE OUT ABOUT SIX TIMES. I HAVE REPLACED BULBS AND WIRING HARNESSES WHICH INVOLVES THE REMOVAL OF THE COMPLETE FRONT FASCIA OF THE VEHICLE. MY DAUGHTER DRIVES THIS VEHICLE AT COLLEGE AND HAS BEEN PULLED OVER NUMEROUS TIMES. THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE AND A SAFETY HAZARD AT NIGHT.
YEAR 2008-2012 MODELS HAVE A REOCCURRING HEADLIGHT PROBLEM. THE HEADLIGHT BULBS / CONNECTORS TEND TO BURN OUT AT AN ACCELERATED RATE. CAUSING REMOVAL OF FRONT BUMPER JUST TO ACCESS HEADLIGHT HOUSING. PRICING RANGING $100-$150 PER HOUR JUST IN LABOR.
I HAVE CONTINUOUSLY HAD TO CHANGE MY PASSENGER HEADLIGHT BULBS AND THAT IS A HAZARD AND WITHOUT THEM YOU GET A TICKET. THIS HEADLIGHT HAS GONE OUT AT LEAST 3 TIMES A YEAR. I AM DRIVING WHEN IT HAPPENS AND IF I GET OUT AND HIT THE HEADLIGHT IT MAY OR MAY NOT COME BACK ON. THIS STARTED ABOUT 2 YEARS AGO
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 CHEVROLET MALIBU. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE DRIVER'S SIDE HEADLAMP BECAME INOPERABLE. THERE WERE NO WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO STATED THAT THE HEADLAMP NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE CONTACT CHANGED THE BULB TWICE, BUT THE FAILURE CONTINUED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER AND DEALER WERE NOT CONTACTED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 55,000.
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Quick Summary
The 2011 Chevrolet Malibu has 83 Exterior Lighting complaints on file. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.