1999 Chevrolet Malibu review from North America
"A comfortable car with reasonable handling and space, but with terrible quality"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
Brake pads changed every 15000 km. Rotors replaced under warranty 3 times.
Intake manifold gasket blew at 70,000 km, after expiry of 60,000 km warranty. Dealer service dept stated that this was because Canada has higher sulphur content in our fuel compared to US and that the gaskets are not designed for this.
Using recommendations from "Lemonade", I called GM Canada and enquired regarding the existence of a "secret warranty". They confirmed that such a warranty existed and covered the cost of the intake manifold replacement, which had been quoted at $1400.
I sold the car back to the dealer for $7200, in 2002.
Chevy's North Vancouver service dept was fairly cheerful through all the trials and tribulations. They acknowledged that the quality was crap, in both the original equipment and replacement parts.
General comments?
GM produced the 1999 Malibu with appalling quality. I am embarrassed to have owned such a car.
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| A nightmare on 4 wheels |
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| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | No |
| Model year | 1999 |
| Year of manufacture | 1999 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2002 |
| Engine and transmission | 3.0 V6 Automatic |
| Performance marks | 4 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 1 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | |
| Dealer Service marks | 5 / 10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 3 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) | |
| Distance when acquired | 30000 kilometres |
| Most recent distance | 80000 kilometres |
| Previous car | Mazda 626 |
| Date of Entry | 12th November, 2005 |