[DHChevy]

My daughter has a 2007 Chevy Malibu with a 3.5L engine. Last two weeks she's been having an issue of the power steering not working. I've discovered they went to an electrical motor instead of the standard hydraulic pump. (or that's my understanding from afar) It seems like the issue occurs when it gets very cold out, which if electrical, I wouldn't think that should matter - maybe a coincidence. She lives about an hour away and I'm debating what to do.

This past weekend Friday/Saturday/Sunday she was driving the car and the power steering was fine. Now she had an issue then of the FUEL gauge jumping around from FULL to empty. That issue started a few weeks back and occurred this weekend. The Power Steering operated fine and the weather Omaha, NE was mainly above freezing.

This morning we had mid-teens for temps and when she went to start the car she gets three warning messages - Low Oil, Low Fuel, Power steering

Oil may be a bit low but is in the safe range. Low Fuel I'm assuming is because the gauge sometimes is on empty. And then the Power Steering means the steering is not working at that point so she is without a car.

A few weeks back with the fuel gauge issue, I thought maybe water from melting snow or a bad ground was causing that as a few days later it would be ok. Now with this steering I'm wondering if we have multiple issues, bad wiring, or a bad ground.

She in college and I'm wondering how to proceed.
Can I drive this car WITHOUT the steering assist if I was do take her a spare car?
My concern is tracking this issue down could lead to a very large labor bill that she really isn't in a position to afford. Any and all help is appreciated!

 

[Darthz]

I have a 2006 3.5l exact same issues. My gas guage has been doing this for a year now.... BUT the steering only failed once. It was at least minus 20 C out. While driveing it failed..... so i pulled over, shut the car off. It was fine after and, haven't had a problem since. The gas guage is another issue though....I am sure you will be seing a code soon enough (if not already) mine is po3035 if i remember correctly.

 

[Darthz]

Also i will add....when cool out i get a low coolant level warning.... just on startup when cold out

 

[Colt Hero]

My parents had a 2005 Malibu with the electric steering. It failed one day while my mother was driving it, taking a left turn. My understanding was - there was no warning ... other than the idiot light appearing at the very instant power steering failed. Wonderful! So what happened? She wasn't ready for the considerable extra effort it took to make her left turn, so the vehicle ended up making a *very wide* left turn. Fortunately, there were no cars parked on that side of the street, and also that it was only a one-lane turn, or there would've been a collision. The electric motor was replaced and no more problems with *that*, but they ended up getting rid of the vehicle because it had a problem with the electric locks, and before that it was the fuel level sensor failing, and it just seemed like it was going to be one of those vehicles that was going to have chronic electrical issues. I used to think the problems were due to it being bought used (as a 2nd car), but now reading your post I'm thinking these generation Malibus just have chronic electrical issues.

Personally, I don't like electric steering. It's like digital TV: it's either working, or it isn't. And if it fails during a turn - like it did with my mother, you could be in big trouble! When I bought my 2011 Equinox I went with the V6 and the time-tested hydraulic steering (GM put the electric steering on the ill-fated 2.4L I-4 model). And yeah - hydraulic steering can fail, too (with a leaking hose or a failing pump), but it's been pretty darn reliable for a LONG time now. My mother had never experienced a power steering failure for 50+ years of driving many, many different vehicles (and that included some with no power steering *at all*) ... but the first time she drove one with electric steering, it failed on her. Hmmmm. I think these electric systems need some kind of built-in redundancy. Steering is just too important to be suddenly failing without warning.

 

[DrivenDaily]

@Colt Hero

I wish I could like that post a dozen times! My Gen7 has hydraulic as a consequence of having the V6. I have the same feelings about PS as I do about brakes: they should be robust systems that are designed to NOT fail, and if a primary component fails, there needs to be a secondary.

With brakes, there are 2 circuits coming out of the master cylinder, and with ABS there are 4 lines. In years gone by, I drove a '64 Mercury Park Lane with manual drum brakes on a single master cylinder.

For EPS, I think another issue is that the level of assistance is too high, so when it fails it is much harder than if my hydraulic system were to fail. I hope I never get to the point that I drive another vehicle with EPS!

 

[Colt Hero]

@Colt Hero

I wish I could like that post a dozen times! My Gen7 has hydraulic as a consequence of having the V6. I have the same feelings about PS as I do about brakes: they should be robust systems that are designed to NOT fail, and if a primary component fails, there needs to be a secondary.

With brakes, there are 2 circuits coming out of the master cylinder, and with ABS there are 4 lines. In years gone by, I drove a '64 Mercury Park Lane with manual drum brakes on a single master cylinder.

For EPS, I think another issue is that the level of assistance is too high, so when it fails it is much harder than if my hydraulic system were to fail. I hope I never get to the point that I drive another vehicle with EPS!

Sadly, I think eventually they’ll all be electric steering. I wish my Dad would’ve consulted with me prior to buying the 2008 (2.4L) Malibu to replace the 2005 (2nd car). I would’ve told him to buy the V6 like you did!

 

[Darthz]

Yup my 2006 v6 has the dreaded electric steering. ... it has failed once...while on the highway. ...restarted the car ,hasnt come back. Yup fuel guage shot on mine aswell.... 160000km . This has been the worst car in all my familly history also its the most i payed for amused car and lowest km when purchased ?

 

[Keyyruizzz]

i have a 2006 Malibu maxx with a 3.5L engine. I’ve been having issues with power steering and it BURNS through gas. The power steering started slowly when I was moving slowly and turning the wheels was difficult. Then it started sounding worse, and now it takes so much muscle to be able to drive my car. The power steering is completely out. I’ll pour power steering fluid in it before I go anywhere just to make it easier at first, but it only lasts a few minutes or so and I can SMELL the PS fluid burning!

 

[3/4 Rim Job]

Having the same error code on the odometer and powersteering, low fuel, and transmission problems. I believe it is something electronic, i.e. a wiring shorted somewhere or bad connection. My buddy was able to connect to vehicle, after a few attempts with no communication, when I jiggled the bundle of wires coming from the ECU, across the front/middle of motor and down towards the starter, he stated that my vehicle regained normal behavior. i.e. gas gauge displayed correctly, power steering indictor went away. He had gotten error code relating to the transmission. He mentioned the transmission wiring could have gotten spliced or burnt up.

Has anyone had any success with this ERROR on the odometer problem. Im going to trace out wiring and hopefully find something that is not connected correctly or a wire needing attention and hopefully that fixes problem. But in the meantime, if anyone has had success or figured out a cause of the Error on the odometer situation, some feedback would be greatly appreciated!?

Thanks

 

[medicffsc19]

i have a 2006 Malibu maxx with a 3.5L engine. I’ve been having issues with power steering and it BURNS through gas. The power steering started slowly when I was moving slowly and turning the wheels was difficult. Then it started sounding worse, and now it takes so much muscle to be able to drive my car. The power steering is completely out. I’ll pour power steering fluid in it before I go anywhere just to make it easier at first, but it only lasts a few minutes or so and I can SMELL the PS fluid burning!

Power steering fluid is combustible so be careful, idiots ran the lines half inch away from the exhaust manifold!! Mine caught fire and thank God I was a block from home and a fire fighter so I put it out had I been farther from home meaning another block or two the car would be burnt to the ground!! I fixed the power steering hose myself in that one burn through but the white puff of smoke was an indicator for me so I called the tow truck before it caught fire!! Now it sits a replace the hoses but it's still in the same place so I need to get it to a shop and have them figure out a better way to run those hoses!

 

[mortten]

i have a 2006 Malibu maxx with a 3.5L engine. I’ve been having issues with power steering and it BURNS through gas. The power steering started slowly when I was moving slowly and turning the wheels was difficult. Then it started sounding worse, and now it takes so much muscle to be able to drive my car. The power steering is completely out. I’ll pour power steering fluid in it before I go anywhere just to make it easier at first, but it only lasts a few minutes or so and I can SMELL the PS fluid burning!

A 2006 Max should have electronic power steering if it has a 3.5. No fluid. An SS with a 3.9 would have hydraulic power steering.

 

[Megah3rtz]

My code was p0463.
The wonky fuel indicator is more than likely a corroded contact on the outside of the fuel pump. The floating sender arm on your fuel pump floats up and down based on how full the tank is. However up or down it is, gets measured by the electrical contact that the sender is attached to. Then it communicates the amount of fuel to your system. 6th gen Malibus are notorious for this issue because of the OEM pump metals corroding.

Some mechanics or people suggest replacing the sender arm, but it does not fix this for long. I bought an entire pump from RockAuto and did it myself. If your car is pushing high mileage it's a good idea anyway. I drove mine 400mi from full and got started. No fancy tools, but very long(6hrs), and had to take the fuel tank off to get inside; detaching and reattaching all hoses and fuel lines as needed.

If you have time and need a cheap fix, I think the fuel pump contact can be polished, if you're careful, but the material is going to eventually corrode again. If it's not worth bothering and the engine light or faulty gauge does not concern you, just keep driving and fill up every 300mi. Consider keeping some spare gas in the trunk to avoid an embarrassing tow.

My mechanic quoted $850 or so for parts & labour, so I think doing it yourself is worth it if you're mechanically inclined. It's not super complicated so much as it is just labour intensive. Pumps can be $150-$400 but most mechanics charge triple that range because of labour.

 

[Ashtonbruff]

2007 Malibu 3.5 LZ4Codes C0475-00 Electronic Motor Steering Circuit and ABS code C0561-71 Invalid Serial Data Received. My power steering works to an extent, a little play in steering wheel, I get the TC light on dash erratically and says Service Traction: Traction off, messes with my transmission when light is on, when light is off it runs fine. I replaced torque sensor and now will be replacing the motor. Any advice on code Diag? Should I save myself the money on the new motor and check for a bad ground? Or put money on a new motor?

 

[sunbiz1]

To the above post, replace the motor?
I had these issues a number of years ago, and it was body control module related; there is an old recall on this.
I had traction control issues as well, sometimes the steering simply froze upon hitting the gas pedal.
I did replace the electronic power steering unit power steering as well, on my 05' LS.