2000 Chevrolet Malibu LX review from North America

Lower intake manifold gasket failed at 75,000.

We researched purchasing a new car and checked around and found that the earlier Chevy Malibu's had problems and the 2000 was a newer model and that the problems from the previous models were repaired.

Today a puddle of coolant was found under the car after parking and the low coolant light became lit on the dash. The car was taken to a local repair shop to be looked. They said that the lower manifold gasket had started leaking and needed to be repaired. The shop quoted a price of $600.00 to $800.00 dollars to repair the gaskets depending on what else they found wrong with the vehicle.

I have been searching and found other person with the same problem and the repair shop and dealer said it's a common repair. The Dealer and Chevy Customer service were contacted about the technical service bulletins that were issued for the Malibu and said that there was not a specific bulletin issued for failure of the manifold gaskets. GM has even redesigned the original manifold gaskets since they were failing.

The Deal and GM would not assist with repairs. I checked out the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (www.nhtsa.dot.gov) and there are two other complaints regarding the coolant leaks. I think they would look into the problem if more reports were placed with them regarding the issue.

The vehicle is a 2000 Chevy Malibu 4 door, Automatic Transmission, and only 75,000 Miles.