2021 CHEVROLET MALIBU Power Train Problems

22 complaints about Power Train

22
Complaints
0
Crashes
0
Fires
0
Deaths

This Problem Across All Years

All Power Train Complaints (22)

Dec 2, 2025

The component is D automatic transmission shift to park switch. The vehicle is and will be available for immediate inspection upon request. Safety was put at risk when the car lost power while they’re celebrating install in the floor of traffic, causing other cars to swerve around and blow horns. The underlying issue with the car was confirmed by independent service center. There was no reason to have your vehicle inspected all by manufacturer , police insurance for others the warning sign once the car installed and attempted to like it was gonna turn off with service ESC and the light stayed on for four hours

Dec 2, 2025

Transmission failed to engage gear properly after backing up. Grinding sounds heard when vehicle was in drive. Problem has been confirmed and inspected by Chevrolet dealership. Vehicle is available for inspection. Occupants safety was at risk because gears could have locked up during commute causing vehicle to be undriveable, leaving driver and passengers stranded. Blind spot feature is unavailable randomly, which can cause a possible side swipe crash. When radio is playing suddenly switches to bluetooth randomly.

Oct 16, 2025

The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed and attempting to accelerate after a stop, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal. In addition, the transmission unexpectedly downshifted before slamming into gear. The contact stated that when the vehicle slammed into gear, the contact was violently pushed into the back of the seat. No warning lights were illuminated, but the message “Shift to Park” was displayed on the instrument panel. The contact stated that during the failure, the brake pedal was depressed to reboot, and the contact had to manually move the leather cover on the shift lever to move the lever. The contact stated that whenever the temperature on the transmission was at 180 degrees, the transmission would downshift. The vehicle was taken to several dealers; however, the dealers were unable to replicate that failure. The solenoid valve was replaced on the vehicle; however, the failure persisted. The contact related the failures to Technical Service Bulletin: PIP5819B. The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 6,300.

Mileage: 6,300

Jul 11, 2025

The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that upon arriving to her destination and shifting the vehicle into park, the message "Shift to Park" was displayed with the gear shifter already in park(P). The contact was able to turn off the vehicle however, the electrical features remained operable. The contact stated that after several attempts, the vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was 54,000.

Mileage: 54,000

May 20, 2025

The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that when the vehicle was shifted into park(P), the message “Shift to Park” was displayed on the instrument panel. The contact stated that during the failure, the contact was unable to turn off the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and confirmed that the VIN was not under recall. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 98,600.

Mileage: 98,600

May 20, 2025

It says that my engine had a problem. It told me to press my brake to start my car. But then it just kept shaking like it was trying to start. I have also had a notification saying to put my car in park when it already was. Today my car just stopped in the middle of the road in heavy traffic. We could have been hit getting out of the car or someone could have hit my car. It was towed to the local Chevrolet dealership to get checked out to see if it could be a recall. I don’t know what is wrong with it yet. There were no warning lamps prior to the failure. They appeared right when it happened.

May 7, 2025

SHIFTER ERROR - SCREEN READS SHIFT TO PARK ONCE CAR IS TURNED OFF ALREADY THE CAR TAKES TIME TO TURN OFF EVEN WHEN ITS OFF. IN AN EMERGENCY YOU CAN'T GET OUT OF YOUR CAR TO LOCK IT NO NO THE CHECK ENGIN LIGHT IS ON BUT IT READS FOR A FILTER

Apr 15, 2025

The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked, the "Shift to Park" message was intermittently displayed on the instrument panel and the vehicle intermittently failed to completely shut off or lock. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer to be diagnosed; however, the vehicle was not yet diagnosed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 21,000.

Mileage: 21,000

Mar 11, 2025

When you put the car in park and shut the car off a message displays on the dash saying place vehicle in park. You have to wiggle the gear shifter for the message to disappear. It appears the gear shifter has a bad sensor

Jan 24, 2025

Rear differential keeps going out and transmission keeps failing every 10k miles, apple car play doesn’t work and lags out. So hand free doesn’t work

Oct 30, 2024

Placing the car in park, turn off the car and a message appears saying to shift to park. The vehicle is not recognizing when the car is in park not allowing me to turn it off. I have to turn the car on and off multiple times until it decides it wants to finally shut off.

Oct 28, 2024

The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that after parking the vehicle and pressing the START/STOP button, the vehicle did not immediately turn off with the message "Shift to Park" displayed. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer was notified of the failure. The manufacturer was not yet contacted. The failure mileage was 34,200.

Mileage: 34,200

Oct 4, 2024

The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that on several occasions while attempting to park the vehicle, the gear shifter was shifted to park(P); however, the vehicle did not recognize the gear selected. The contact stated that the "Shift to Park" message was displayed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 15,000.

Mileage: 15,000

Aug 26, 2024

The vehicle display states to "Shift to Park" when the vehicle has been put in park and the ignition turned off. I have seen model years from 2022 through 2025 have been recalled in California for the same issue. It also can affect the cars ability to start. it first appeared two weeks ago and i have tried all recommended suggestions of putting your foot on the brake when turning it off, letting is sit a minute before turning it off and those have not changed the situation.

Aug 15, 2024

The transmission is not working in first gear. The dealership says it needs to be replaced and they have at least 2 other cars with the same problem of the same model and year. This problem has stranded us multiple times.

Jun 16, 2024

The computer was not recognizing my car being in the correct gear shift. It did this for a few days until finally, I couldn't drive it. The car would not recognize any part of the gear being in the correct position. The car would not move forward or reverse, resulting in a tow. The mechanic at Reed Lallier Chevrolet in Fayetteville NC was even able to guess my car make and model from the symptoms I reported (which was later discovered, in my case, the gear shift link had loosened), and confirmed that if this happened while in motion, it would have been very dangerous. He also said they had 3 other cars that SAME DAY that had different causes but the same exact faulty gear recognition, with all of them being recent-year Malibu Chevrolet models AND the following day when I was doing my follow-up call concerning my car, 2 more were brought in with the faulty gear recognition issue.

Apr 29, 2024

Had the car for less than a year and it started jerking badly on the highway almost caused an accident. Took it to the Chevy dealer and was told I need a new transmission on a 2021 vehicle because of a STRETCHED DRIVE CHAIN CAUSING WEAK DRIVE AND CAUSED METAL DEBRIS TO GET SENT THROUGH THE TRANSMISSION SETTING DTC'S .

Apr 17, 2024

Warning light appears on dash "Shift to Park". Car is in park. Engine will turn off, but ignition stays in accessory mode and will run down battery if ignored. Have to wiggle shifter back and forth repeatedly to get the warning light to go away and the ignition to completely shut off. Started as a once in a while occurrence 3 months ago. Now doing this almost every time. Car is a 2021, has 100k miles, so out of warranty. No active recall. There was a recall for 2016-2019 models, and a class action lawsuit but no recall on 2021 model.

Mar 6, 2024

When trying to park shift disappears . Parking feature unavailable. Have to try several times to or wait until parking shift appears. System glitch trying to park. Afraid car will run off by itself and hit other cars and crash. Family of four very concerned for our safety. It has been a known issue on several Chevrolet Malibu since 2015 This should have been on a recall since 2015. Why haven’t there been any recalls on this vehicle for this problem. This problem needs to get resolved and if we have to pay out of pocket money reimbursed for everyone. Fear for our safety using this car now.

Mar 1, 2024

Every time I shift my car into park and try to power it off I get a warning saying shift car to park when already in park. Now I’m afraid that one day the car will display the shift gear improperly and the car will start to move on it own causing the safety anyone around it.

Mar 1, 2024

“Shift to Park” message appears in the car's Driver Information Center, even when it is already in Park. It doesn't recognize that the vehicle is in park. I have to wiggle the gear several times before the message clears. It doesn't allow me to lock my vehicle when this happens, I believe the vehicle stays on while this message is on the DIC, making it very unsafe. I see that there are several complaints about this issue but no recall has been made. The dealer refuses to do a free diagnostic test knowing that these vehicles have had issues. My vehicle is no longer under warranty at 54,000 miles, I will be out of pocket the expense but it's definitely unfair that this has not been an issue recalled by GM.

Nov 27, 2023

The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Malibu. The contact stated that when the gear shifter was shifted into park(P), the vehicle started to roll. The contact stated that the shift to park message was then illuminated. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer but was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 66,000.

Mileage: 66,000