2020 Chevrolet Malibu problems: recalls, complaints and whether this is a year to avoid

Is 2020 a good year for the Chevrolet Malibu?

The spread across this nameplate is wide: the 2015 draws 4 times the complaints of the 2023. On a run like that the model year you buy matters more than the badge, and 2020 sits in the middle of it.

Older years have been on the road longer and collect more complaints for that reason alone, and a year that sold in higher volume collects more while being no worse.

This retrieval holds 3 of the nameplate’s model years. 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022 are absent, which means no records came back for them — not that they were clean. The ranking above is among the years shown.

The 2020 accounts for 37% of every complaint filed against the Chevrolet Malibu in this retrieval, which works out to 33.0 complaints per year on the road across the 6 years since it was sold new — the figure to compare against other years, because it removes the advantage a newer car gets simply from having had less time to accumulate reports.

Complaint volume is broadly flat against the 2015 (0.7×), so on this measure the two years are interchangeable and the choice between them comes down to condition and price rather than the model year.

Which recalls cover the 2020?

Take the campaign number to any franchised Chevrolet dealer. Recall repairs are free with no mileage or ownership limit, and they follow the car rather than the owner, so a used 2020 with an unrepaired campaign is a free repair you can claim. How recalls work.

Recall text is abridged from the NHTSA record. Search the campaign number at nhtsa.gov/recalls for the full notice and affected VIN ranges.

What do owners report on the Chevrolet Malibu?

Across every Chevrolet Malibu year, not the 2020 alone — NHTSA does not split component totals by model year.

• Electrical System — 106 reports
• Power Train — 88 reports
• Unknown or Other — 58 reports
• Air Bags — 53 reports

If your 2020 is doing something now, these are the guides for that system — each opens with whether it is safe to keep driving:

• Won't start — clicking
• Won't start — silence
• Battery light on

Which other Chevrolet Malibu years should you compare?

← 2015 Chevrolet Malibu · 2023 Chevrolet Malibu → · All Chevrolet Malibu years

If you are deciding between years, the table above is the short answer and the Chevrolet Malibu page carries the full run with the component breakdown. Before money changes hands, run the VIN for open recalls and read the inspection checklist — ten minutes in the seller’s driveway finds most of what matters.