My 2003 Chevy Malibu died a second time in as many weeks. They can’t seem to find any problems when it is plugged into the computer. They drove it for about twenty miles and still could not duplicate the problem. I called the GM regional office and received a problem number. Not only is this problem an inconvenience but it is unsafe. When you stop for no apparent reason on the highway with others doing 70-75 mph you don’t make many friends. It is going in to Chevy Service on Monday. I have been buying Chevys for the past twenty years and have not had this type of problem. I drive 100 miles a day commuting to and from work. It drove fine for the first month using the same gas each time and then boom it dies with no warning. Two weeks after that it dies again without any warning. Anyone out there having a problem like this or can give some sage advice? Any help greatfully appreciated.
In Florida, they have a Lemon Law which says that if a problem cannot be repaired after 3 tries, they must take back the car. Where do you live? Perhaps they have a similar law there.
I live in New York. I don’t know a great deal about the Lemon Law but I would almost bet that New York is covered by the Lemon Law. I am going to have to give myself and education on the Lemon Law.
It wouldn’t hurt to find the district manager of GM and give him/her an earful.
I live in Calif. and we have a “Lemon Law” also. Try Google for “(your state’s name) lemon law” and see what comes up. Genarally the law states that if they can’t repair your car correctly within a certain number of trys within a certain period of time they have to either give you another new car or your money back. I think this choice is at your discretion. I sure hope they are giving you a free loaner or rental car while this is going on, especially because of the safety angle.
At this point, bring this to the attention of the “Service Dept. Manager” and the “General Manager” of the dealership(if you haven’t already). Another call to the GM Rep. is also warranted. If your State has a “Lemon Law”, be sure to mention that you are aware of it. Also stress the “safety angle”.
I have called GM and was given a problem number. They were trying to be helpful but I am so frustrated by them not knowing what the problem is or even could be that I forcefully told the regional manager that I was totally dissatisfied with the inability to find the problem. I really like the car itself and the way it looks and drives. It also got the JD Powers award. Apparently JD Powers was not driving the car when it died twice. If they can’t find the problem this time around I am going to demand a new car. Travelling 500 miles a week I can’t take the risk of being killed by other highway drivers as my car dies. I am going to Google the Lemon Law in New York and educate myself.
A couple of suggestions here.
Every time you take the car in make sure you have a repair order written that properly describes the problem.
Lemon laws usually only count repair attempts for a particular defect. (Things like oil changes don’t count toward repair attempts unless the defect is listed on the repair order)
SAVE the repair orders!
Research the law, so you are familiar with it provisions. Read carefully the parts about charges for usage of the lemon. DO NOT ASSUME THAT THE LAW WILL GIVE YOU A FREE CAR, it probably won’t.
Write a nice polite, but firm letter to GM stating that this is a safety defect, and you must have it fixed. Ask for a GM technical specialist to inspect the car and oversee the repair. Tell them that if the car continues to fail, you will pursue lemon law under the laws of your state. Include your complete VIN, copies of the previous repair orders, and the names of who you dealt with at which dealers. Send a copy to the Service manager(s) of the dealer(s) in question.
If you do not hear back from GM within about 1 week, call them back. Keep notes about each phone call (who, when, what was discussed)
Good luck
Is the lemon law applicable if the dealership can’t reproduce the problem though?? Seems like someone could just make something up to try to get a free car.
Can you be more specific about the problem. When it died, did it sputter, or loose acceleration, or did it just stop running? Did everything else keep running, or did all electronics go out? Did the “check engine” light go on? What were the weather conditions? Night or day?
If this is a brand new car, I’d suspect maybe a faulty alternator or maybe just a bad connection somewhere, so maybe you’ve been riding on just the battery. But that’s just a wild guess based on what you’ve described.
First off it’s not a free car. taxes, usage and some other charges are sometimes the responsibility of the owner.
And yes sometimes car owners do make stuff up in order to get cars bought back.
There was no warning at all before all the dashboard lights came on and car died. The radio continued to play. Both times that this happened it was early morning. The first time that it happened I was on a level roadway. The second time it happened I was accelerating up a steep hill. I am guessing that it either has somehing to do with the computer, fuel system or some combination of both. The really worst part of the this problem is that the dealship can’t find anything wrong. I certainly hope that they find something tomorrow when I bring it in for the second time. I really do like the car but I can’t continue to drive it if it is not realiable or unsafe. The weather was clear and warm both mornings that it died.
You don’t get a free car at all. You get a replacement car, equal to the troublesome one, at no additional cost, and they take the old one back. What that means is that you keep paying, but you now, hopefully, have a trouble-free car. There is, I think, an option to get your money back. Then you can use that money for a down on a Camry. Or something. 
Peace,
mangeorge