Chevrolet Malibu Forums banner

2013 Malibu 2LT Electrical system shutting down while driving

81K views 87 replies 32 participants last post by  Mbutz93 
#1 · (Edited)
Alright, well it's been about 6 years since I've posted a new thread on a Chevrolet forum, this was my life before I joined the military and had a family, a little pre-occupied. Anyway, I have searched with no results on my issues so I'm posting this new thread in hopes to get some different views on this. Alright, just got home here in Middle Tennessee from Eastern North Carolina and had a crazy amount of issues with my car.

As I mentioned I have a 2013 Malibu 2LT with 40,000 miles, just purchased it a few months ago from a dealership here and it had 36,000 miles. So no issues with the trip out to NC, but on the way back a whole nother issues. So basically the first time I found out there was a problem was when I used my turn signal (left or right) and the gauges, the radio, and the electrically assisted steering, and all stopped working (seemingly reset itself) and then came back to life. The engine functions normally and staying running and doesn't die while on the freeway.

Now, I am an electrical systems repairer in the Army, I work on a very complicated helicopter so this is the troubleshooting in me that wants to figure this out. So I made some videos with my phone showing exactly what the car is doing because I know from experience that when I take this car to the dealership it will function as advertised and have no faults,, just my luck. So in making these videos (while driving 80mph) I noticed that if you turn the fog lights on, or flash the high beams, or hit the rear defrost, all of these actions will cause my issues with the gauges,, radio, and the steering. I was driving through heavy rain, but when it dried up issues still continued. When I pulled over at a rest stop and turned off the car and restarted it, all the problems went away and the car functioned as advertised. It then starts having issues after about an hour of driving, only way I know is the Bluetooth will cut out randomly, or I hit the turn signal and everything cuts out.

So the entire drive home I'm troubleshooting in my head what could be causing these faults. I pull into my driveway, my headlights are projected onto my garage door, I set the electric ebrake, lights dim ALOT, then I hit the rear defrost to see what would happen, then the engine completely dies, stalled out! So I restart the engine and a fault appears and says "service emergency brake", so I disengaged it, then reengaged it, fault went away. Also, sorry there is a lot to this story and I like to be detailed, when I hit some traffic and was at a crawl (5mph) the gauges, steering, and radio were cutting out on their own, and then randomly said "service stabilitrac system" or something to that affect, and also when I had to go full throttle merging onto another freeway the car had said "service power steering" and this was only under the load of Wide open throttle.

So even as I'm typing all of this I've been troubleshooting. What I'm thinking because in my experience it's easy to think it's some complex fault like a computer needing reflashed, or rain getting into connectors or wires are frayed or arcing out, because in Army Aviation that is often the case, but this is a fairly new car. So, call me crazy because I do have a lot of automotive experience, with this car being so "electrical" and having electric ebrake, and ambient lighting, and Bluetooth, and the bells and whistles and what not, could a cell in the battery going out cause this. I've really been thinking it's a computer this whole time, but I went back to the simplest fix first which is a smarter move. I'm thinking I am going to drive over to autozone and have the battery bench tested, I'm willing to bet there is a bad cell. Now stay with me, when the car first starts there are no issues, but after running for a while (that one cell) is draining and causing all these issues.

I do have a warranty, powertrain only, and I think batteries are covered under that, but I like to do all the troubleshooting myself, it's just force of habbit and the Soldier in me. I will try and attach some of the videos, not sure if I can do that or not, but either way. Let me know what ya'll think, I'm going tonight to get the battery tested, and depending on what the results are from that will determine wether I go to dealership or not for further troubleshooting. Thank you for you time, and any comments pertaining to this issue would be greatly appreciated. I apologize if I don't have a "signature" if that's what they still call it, I literally just signed up to the forum.
 
See less See more
#2 · (Edited)
It would be a lot easier to read your post if you edited it to add paragraphs or something to break up all the words.

I am pretty sure the battery would not be covered under the powertrain warranty.
 
  • Like
Reactions: SilverSport
#4 ·
Much easier to read now that it's broken up a bit. Thanks!

I think you're doing the right thing by having the battery tested. There have been a number of members who've experienced some really weird stuff only to find out it was a weak battery.
 
#5 ·
Well, the results of the battery test were confirmed! battery is bad. It really does make sense, typing it up on the forum helped me with troubleshooting in my mind. With all the electrical components on these new cars it makes sense a bad cell causes all sorts of crazy issues.
 
#8 ·
Alright, I called the dealership today and they said that the battery is not covered under the powertrain warranty, only the 3 year 36,000 mile warranty. So now that I'm going to have to purchase a battery, where would you guys suggest getting a battery for a good deal. While I was at Autozone their prices were an average of $160.00. Is that what batteries are going for now a days? Also, should I buy an extended warranty and invest that money towards that? Any suggestions?
 
#9 · (Edited)
Was the $160 price quote for a flooded lead acid battery or an AGM battery? Chevy started putting the more expense AGM battery in the 2014 models with the 2.5L engine. $160 sounds way high for a flooded battery but not for an AGM battery. If it is an AGM and it works for the 2013, I would spend the extra money and go that route.

Johnson Control makes many of the batteries out there but with different brand labels stuck on them. For example, Interstate is a battery marketing company and many of there batteries are manufactured for them by Johnson Control.

Over the more recent years, Johnson Control has been shifting manufacturing to Mexico and I have experienced problems with the Mexico batteries. This has been true for their Optimas, 6V golf cart and 12v automotive. I now make a point to see where the battery was made.

I have not checked in a couple of years, but East Penn batteries had good reviews and were made in the USA. They market under there own name and manufacture for other battery marketers. Some Car Quest batreries are East Penn. I put a couple of East Penn AGM batteries in my diesel truck three years ago and have not had any issues. Actually they were cosmetic blems and I got them for $80 each, but it only had a 1 year warranty from the retailer.

http://www.eastpennmanufacturing.com/applications/automotive/

I would also check out AC Delco. They did have problems several years ago with cracking cases but I do not hear of the problem anymore. My brother's diesel truck went through two sets of Costco Interstate (Johnson Control) Mexico batteries lasting less than a year each. He went back to the AC Delco. They have been trouble free for over two years now.

Please post on what battery you end up getting and if a new battery resolved the electrical issue.
 
#10 ·
Was the $160 price quote for a flooded lead acid battery or an AGM battery? Chevy started putting the more expense AGM battery in the 2014 models with the 2.5L engine. $160 sounds way high for a flooded battery but not for an AGM battery. If it is an AGM and it works for the 2013, I would spend the extra money and go that route.
First off thank you very much for that detailed reply. I have always worked on my own cars my whole life, but I honestly do not know what an AGM battery is. Now that you mentioned whatever the AGM is, now I'm wondering if I should go with the more expensive battery if that is what the car requires. I'll look and see what is currently installed in the car, but maybe that's why the Walmart battery was considerably less. Also now I'm concerned about using a "memory saver" for the car when I do decide to replace it. The cigarette light is not a "hot all the time" lighter socket so I'd have to go with the OBDII style, or just risk it and replace the battery like we used to back in the day.
 
#11 · (Edited)
You can get an AGM battery for your car from Advanced Auto for about $125plus tax.
http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/p/autocraft-platinum-agm-btry-platm-agm-atocf-h5-agm/10700670-P

It is listed as $174.99 but use code WD52 when checking out online and it will drop $50 off. You can then go to your local store if it is in stock and pick it up. 3 year replacement warranty.

Sams Club also has an AGM battery for your car for $134.72 with a 3 year warranty and seems to have more CCA
http://www.samsclub.com/sams/auto-group-47-h5-agm-36-mo-free/prod9510084.ip?navAction=

According to this page http://www.eastpennmanufacturing.com/east-penn-releases-new-duracell-automotive-batteries/ and this Duracell flyer http://www.driveduracell.com/assets/duracell/image/1692.pdf
Duracell batteries like at Sams Club are made by East Penn.

I'd go with the Sams battery if you have a membership.
 
#15 ·
Alright, so to sum up this issue with my car which has since been resolved. I purchased an AC Delco battery which is pretty much what the car came with and replaced it. It's been 2 days since I replaced the battery with no more issues. Just as I thought, it must have been a bad cell within the old battery. Thank you to all who posted and gave me very informative information which just confirmed my original suspicions of the battery causing all the issues. Thank you to BruceH for your information, and thank you to nutcrunch. It was a good deal on the standard battery from GM, came with a good warranty, next battery will probably be an AGM but for now all I needed was just a good replacement so I went with one the car came with, that way if there are any more issues down the road GM is tracking that there has only been a "stock" battery in the car.

Again, thank you for everyone help, the issue has been resolved. The voltage guage on the car is now reading approx. 14.8-15.0V, where as before it was approx. 14.1-14.3V. Lights don't dim as much when engaging different things on the car, car seems to just really like that new battery.
 
#16 ·
bump

So I wanted to give an update on my issue. I'm not sure if it was this thread or another thread that I mentioned that a new battery resolved my issue. Well I'm back on here to state that the batter DID NOT fix my issue, it's back. So if you read the original post you'll get an idea of what is going on.

Approximately after 10 miles or so of driving, I noticed the little LCD screen between the two gauges starts to flicker, and then as I use windshield wires, rear defrost, turn signals, basically usual use of different components, the result of using these will cause the gauges, radio, and other electrical systems shut down momentarily, as well as the electrical power steering. The steering is so completely dangerous it's not even funny. When the electric steering goes out, it obviously reverts to manual steering, I'm sure you all remember back in the day when we didn't have power steering. But anyway, it feels like it hits a bump stop, or the limit when you crank the wheel.

Also, when you turn the car off, and restart, the issues almost seem to "reset" and you have to drive it another 10 or 15 miles to get the fault to return. I replaced the battery approximately 2 months ago, so that's brand new, the only thing I can think of at this point is the alternator. Let me know what ya'll think.
 
#88 ·
bump

So I wanted to give an update on my issue. I'm not sure if it was this thread or another thread that I mentioned that a new battery resolved my issue. Well I'm back on here to state that the batter DID NOT fix my issue, it's back. So if you read the original post you'll get an idea of what is going on.

Approximately after 10 miles or so of driving, I noticed the little LCD screen between the two gauges starts to flicker, and then as I use windshield wires, rear defrost, turn signals, basically usual use of different components, the result of using these will cause the gauges, radio, and other electrical systems shut down momentarily, as well as the electrical power steering. The steering is so completely dangerous it's not even funny. When the electric steering goes out, it obviously reverts to manual steering, I'm sure you all remember back in the day when we didn't have power steering. But anyway, it feels like it hits a bump stop, or the limit when you crank the wheel.

Also, when you turn the car off, and restart, the issues almost seem to "reset" and you have to drive it another 10 or 15 miles to get the fault to return. I replaced the battery approximately 2 months ago, so that's brand new, the only thing I can think of at this point is the alternator. Let me know what ya'll think.
I have the same issues. I replaced the battery and about 7 months later I replaced the alternator cause I was getting the low voltage issues again. Two weeks later still acting up. Chevy dealer says there’s a back up accessory battery in the trunk. I have tore the trunk completely apart down to the metal. Even pulled the inner fenders from the wheel wells. Still no back up battery. Another guy told me to replace battery cables. I’m going to the dealer tomorrow and get some answers. If you have any please let me know. Thanks.
 
#19 ·
it does sound like you have a battery drain somewhere...not sure that it's the alternator...when you had the battery replaced, did you take it to the dealer or change the battery yourself???...my indy shop always checks the whole charging system before deciding it's the battery...

since a fully charged battery seemed to fix the problem...can you fully charge your battery (with a battery tender or something similar) to see if your issues go away again???

Is there anything that could have been added to your car that is causing a parasitic drain on your battery when you're not in the car or does it sit unused for long periods of time???

Bill
 
#20 ·
Thank you for the response bill. With all the symptoms, I thought for sure it was the battery a couple of months ago, but I guess I was wrong. I have taken it to autozone multiple times to have them check the charging system and they said it passed, and I looked at the computer screen and it was passing in all tests.

Funny thing is the car starts and runs just fine, even when it's cold out. But I drove the car all yesterday and it ran perfect all day, then I make a late night run to the store and it was horrible, obviously the exterior lights, the interior lights were on, so there is more of a draw on the electrical system.

I changed the battery myself, wasn't too difficult, and it has lasted about 2 months, which told me that the alternator just hasn't been charging the battery correctly and the new batter is finally giving out from lack of a correct charge.

I watched a YOUTUBE video on a guy changing an alternator on a Malibu, granted it wasn't a 2013 but it was close, irregardless. He mentioned that when he first started his car it would run fine, but after driving if for a few miles the alternator just couldn't produce the amount voltage and keep up with the electrical draw after a little bit of run time, and he also mentioned that everytime he took it to a shop to test the electrical system, they called it out good.

So I'm very confused, I think it is in fact an alternator. The car is absolutely stock, no modifications what so ever. I've never had to jump start the car, it starts just fine, it's just after it runs for a little bit where the issue lies.
 
#23 ·
so after the second video I couldn't get the car to duplicate the fault. I would like to know if anyone, and I mean ANYONE has had any issues like this at all. If there is a GM Technician on this forum that might be able to chime in that would be nice. I went to the dealer today to get an oil change, told them about it, and they told me to make some videos, or bring it in when it is messing up like it does.
 
#78 ·
Yes; I'm having them, all the same things happening and always on the freeway. My 2013 Malibu is at the dealer for the fifth time and they,for the fifth time, even with all my video footage on dark freeways "can't get it to act up," and are sending me home again. I did get an all new display for $1200 last time, but all the same issues started up again before I left the lot, and that happened to be right as Service closed, locked up and disappeared at 6:01pm. So here we are again, and I'm just supposed to go pick up my electrically bunk Malibu and spend another week driving to and from work in thirty degree weather with no heater, and bluetooth repeatedly disconnecting and rear camera/radio display randomly going black until the rains pummel us and the power steering goes out - yay, said no one ever.
 
#27 · (Edited by Moderator)
Well I'm glad to hear finally that someone is having the exact same issues, I'm sorry about that btw. So, I had gotten an oil change about a week ago, my steering gave out momentarily as I was pulling into the dealership. I had accidentally turned the car off so I couldn't show the dealer. but since then I haven't had 1 SINGLE issue at all, and I've driven a lot since then. So I'm not sure what to do. I gave my VIN number to a gentleman on here and he is a GM Tech and he said there are no recalls or service bulletins. So I just am at a loss.

From what I'm hearing and reading from google, for what it's worth, it's possibly a ground wire terminal at the BCM, but it seems it's mostly on Chevrolet Cruze's. I'm sure a lot of the components are the same from a cruze to a Malibu though. So I mentioned that on here I believe and nobody seems to agree, but at this point I really do think it is the BCM. The BCM is in the electrical/charging system, and has a lot to do with the rear defrost, and turn signals and all that which cause the faults.
 
#29 ·
It's such a weird issue, and it's been very frustrating. I'm almost positive it's a BCM issue, not sure if it's a bad wire, or if it's the BCM itself. But my car has been great for over a week now. I need to rip apart my center consol and see if i can find the ground wire that is possibly in question.
 
#30 ·
I called chevy corporate and they gave me a free 3 hr diagnosis. I told them I am posting these issues on every forum I have about the steering cutting out. They put me on hold and said please take it to your nearest dealer and use the case number provided. Once they figure out the issues they told me to call them back.
 
#32 ·
I've had the same problem late spring. Just out of the blue (but I think also might be related to turn signals?), the power flashes, cuts out, the computer screen goes blank, and power stops. Once, the car stayed running (but all power was lost. Was in traffic, so i could not immediately pull over, but then the power returned). This last time, the car stalled.

Had it checked at the dealer. Of course, they could not replicate the problem and said there were no error codes. Since it rained earlier & there were puddles, they blamed it on going through a puddle (which didn't happen). We did get a GM case # though.

I agree, that since this is a fairly new model (I bought used w/40,000 miles, less than a year ago), I shouldn't be having these problems.

We'll check the battery next.... Thanks for the information. (Wish I would have seen this earlier this year when it happened the first time!)
 
#33 · (Edited)
I have the same problem. My steering wheel gets stiff, the head lights get very dim, my head unit shuts off completely then turns back on momentarily, when playing the radio loud the problem gets worst. Driving at night everything electronic shut down momentarily then come back on due to the headlights being on, but the car runs normal.

My mechanic thought it was the power steering motor untill he actually drove my car, and seen how the power flickers while driving, and how when the brakes are applied everything would shut off. Tomorrow he is going to put my car on a steering diagnostic to make sure it's not the steering assist motor. My battery is currently at 13.1 volts however, when I bought the car back last month the volts were at 14.0. I will definitely keep you guy updated. Hopefully we can find the problem.

This should definitely be a recall issue but it's not.
 
#34 · (Edited)
Ok guys, it wasn't my power steering motor. I drove all day today with my volt meter on. It's located in the menu on the screen in the instrument cluster.. When I started my 2013 Malibu 2LT this morning the battery was at 14.0 volts as I drove, it lowered all the way down. It went from 13.9, 13.8, 13.7, 13.6 ect.... All the way down to 12.5 volts then everything turns off while the car is still running. Steering gets stiff, all lights turn off for about 10 seconds then come back on... I called the dealer and they said the 2013 Chevy Captiva had the same issue due to a faulty ground wire. It's the ground wire that runs to the battery post. I'm going to purchase and install one tomorrow... Hopefully it works
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top