A 2002 Chevy Malibu that is having some surging problems when driving at highway speeds.
Question...
Sir:
I drive a 2002 Chevrolet Malibu and am having problems with its engine "surging" at highway speeds. It gains 200-300 rpm's under no load at all and then returns to the previous rpm's. It happens maybe two or three times in 25-miles.
We have serviced and inspected the plugs and wires. We have serviced all of the fuel injectors and then finally replaced them all. We have replaced the Mass Air Flow sensor. All of this to no avail. It still surges the 200-300 rpm's. There are no codes or service-lights accompanying
this malady.
The 2002 Malibu has the 3.1 liter V-6, automatic transmission, A/C and 69,XXX miles.
Do you have any suggestions as to what we should try next?
Thanks...
Answer...
Let me begin by saying that in this venue the best I can do is offer some of the most likely causes of a problem. The more detailed the information you send me, trouble codes, conditions the problems occur at, speeds, etc..., the more accurate I can be. General questions get general answers.
With that said there can be a number of things that can cause a "surge" or "Chuggle". And yes, "chuggle" is a real term used in the business. I would first start with the basics, spark plugs, ignition wires, air and fuel filters. These things have to be good before any diagnosis can be attempted. Let's assume for the moment that they are good and the problem lies elsewhere.
If the problem manifests itself on the highway at a specific speed between 40 and 55 mph or so, it could be a bad torque convert clutch solenoid. Another possibility is low fuel pressure. A fuel pressure and volume test would have to be done to confirm this possibility.
Another possibility is the throttle body is dirty or gummed up. You can remove the throttle body, strip it down and give it a good cleaning with carburetor cleaner. Quite often the small passages inside the throttle body get restricted or clogged and air entering the engine is cut off or restricted. About 70% of the time cleaning a throttle body will solve many drivability problems.
The copyright of the article 2002 Chevrolet Malibu Problems in Auto Tech & Repair is owned by Vincent Ciulla. Permission to republish 2002 Chevrolet Malibu Problems must be granted by the author in writing.
Comments
Sep 15, 2006 10:28 AM
Anthony Wellinger
:
My air conditioning has a tendency to turn itself off. I turn it on after starting the car and also generally use the air recycle as well. I also usually set it to max cold.
After a few minutes running (and it does run/work), the recycle air option turns off. Next the airconditioning will turn itself off.
By repeatedly pressing the recycle and the airconditioning buttons it will eventually turn on and stay on for awhile. Then after a few minutes it does it again.
After I go through this a few times, it usually calms down and stays on.
Any ideas what could cause this.
Thanks, awellinger
Oct 1, 2006 2:46 PM
ed a
:
I am having the same problem. I have taken my Malibu in every year to get it fixed since it was new (2002). They have replaced components to no avail. The last time I took it in they said they could not duplicate my problem so they could not fix it. My warranty runs out this year so I suposse they are waiting for that.
Jan 28, 2007 4:24 PM
ed a
:
well, right before the warranty expired the dealer had a personel change. The new guy changed out the air conditioning head & it seem to work fine, although I have to wait till it gets hot to really check it out. They gave me a 1 year warranty on thier work so we'll see.
Feb 23, 2007 6:48 AM
Elizabeth
:
Hey there, We have had problems with ours from the get-go. Never had any issues with airconditioning but have redone the brakes every 9-12 months since purchasing it. We addressed this issue when the warranty was no longer covering it and were basically told that it was too bad. It is unreasonable for the brakes to go every 9-12 months (pads, rotors, the whole deal!) unless there is something else wrong with the braking system. They happily took our money each time we took it (dealer maintained at that). Finally after getting so pissed off we STOPPED going to the dealer. Told them to piss up a rope and took it elsewhere. After paying hundreds and hundreds of dollars thinking we were getting premium service we took it to Speedy Muffler and Brake, and it wasn't the brakes at all that were at issue. It was the calipers. Why is it that my tech there was able to find the problem and fix it and GM's finest were not!? He told me that he would stake his job on the fact that he wouldn't see me again until I needed new pads, and I believe him. After our experience dealing with GM I will never purchase another GM product as long as I live on this earth. I will warn every person I meet about their customer service practices as well as that of their technicians. This is bad business. Screw me once, shame on you. Screw me twice, shame on me!
Mar 10, 2007 11:01 AM
LuangTom
:
My original problem was many months ago with the revving/surging/chuggle. I was the original writer of this blurb. Well, no dealer, two of them, could fix it. They both said transmission repair or replace. I took it to an electrical-service. They found a nine-dollar part as the culprit. It was the cruise-control switch under the dash. It was shorting/making poor contact. It was replaced and no problems since. No dealer even thought of checking this.
May 20, 2007 9:23 PM
jeff yaciuk
:
I have a 2002 Malibu LS that seems to surge when I am sitting at a traffic light. It idles alright and when I drive it on hwy or city it runs alright also. Just when I am sitting at the light with breaks on.
May 23, 2007 8:40 PM
art werk
:
While repairing our 2002 Malibu that was in a collision. Dueck shorted out our amp in our radio. The technician either did not disconnect our battery or they hooked up the driver door speaker incorrectly then when we picked up the vehicle the amp in the $1000 factory installed radio was blown. Now when we turn it on the volume goes through the roof and blows out your eardrums then becomes to weak to listen to. We took it back to them three times and they keep saying they did not do it. We explained that it was working when we took it in otherwise we would have told ICBC that it shorted from the accident. Now ICBC and Dueck are believing themselves to avoid replacing our blown radio and we are left out in the cold.
May 29, 2007 7:53 PM
jody andews
:
your problem is a shorted control head
May 29, 2007 8:00 PM
jody andews
:
sir your prolem is not chevrolet its who you let work on your car. From experence i can tell you the car was not at fault only the so called tech.
