
Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-
16273584) - 2023 - CRC - 9/28/22
Keys, Doors, and Windows 21
How to Detect a Tamper Condition
IfKis pressed on the RKE transmitter and
the horn chirps and the lights flash three
times, an alarm occurred previously while
the alarm system was armed.
If the alarm has been activated, a message
will appear on the Driver Information
Center (DIC).
Immobilizer
See Radio Frequency Statement 0308.
Immobilizer Operation
This vehicle has a passive theft-deterrent
system.
The system does not have to be manually
armed or disarmed.
The vehicle is automatically immobilized
when the remote key leaves the vehicle.
The immobilization system is disarmed
when the ignition button is pushed in and a
valid remote key is in the vehicle.
The security light on the instrument cluster
comes on when there is a problem with
arming or disarming the theft-deterrent
system.
The system has one or more remote keys
matched to an immobilizer control unit in
the vehicle. Only a correctly matched
remote key will start the vehicle. If the
remote key is ever damaged, you may not
be able to start your vehicle.
When trying to start the vehicle, the
security light comes on briefly when the
ignition is turned on.
If the vehicle does not start and the security
light stays on, there is a problem with the
system. Turn the vehicle off and try again.
If the remote key appears to be undamaged,
try another remote key, or place the remote
key in the remote key pocket. See “Starting
the Vehicle with a Low Remote Key” under
Remote Key Operation 07. If the vehicle does not start with the other
remote key or when the remote key is in
the remote key pocket, the vehicle needs
service. See your dealer who can service the
theft-deterrent system and have a new
remote key programmed to the vehicle.
Do not leave the key or device that disarms
or deactivates the theft-deterrent system in
the vehicle.
Exterior Mirrors
Convex Mirrors
{Warning
A convex mirror can make things, like
other vehicles, look farther away than
they really are. If you cut too sharply
into the right lane, you could hit a
vehicle on the right. Check the inside
mirror or glance over your shoulder
before changing lanes.
The passenger side mirror is convex shaped.
A convex mirror surface is curved so more
can be seen from the driver seat.

Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-
16273584) - 2023 - CRC - 9/28/22
74 Instruments and Controls
Instruments and Controls
Controls
Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Heated Steering Wheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Wireless Charging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Warning Lights, Gauges, and Indicators
Warning Lights, Gauges, andIndicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Instrument Cluster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Trip Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Tachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Fuel Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Engine Coolant Temperature Gauge . . . . 84
Voltmeter Gauge (Uplevel Cluster Only) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Seat Belt Reminders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Airbag Readiness Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Passenger Airbag Status Indicator . . . . . . 87
Charging System Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87 Malfunction Indicator Lamp (Check
Engine Light) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Brake System Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Electric Parking Brake Light . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Service Electric Parking Brake Light . . . . . 90
Antilock Brake System (ABS) Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Lane Keep Assist (LKA) Light . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Vehicle Ahead Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Pedestrian Ahead Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Traction Off Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
StabiliTrak OFF Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Traction Control System (TCS)/StabiliTrak Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Engine Coolant Temperature Warning Light (Uplevel Cluster Only) . . . . . . . . . . 92
Tire Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Engine Oil Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Low Fuel Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Security Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Lamps On Reminder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Cruise Control Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Door Ajar Light (Uplevel) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Information Displays
Driver Information Center (DIC) (Base Level) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Driver Information Center (DIC) (Uplevel) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Vehicle Messages
Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Engine Power Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Vehicle Speed Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-
16273584) - 2023 - CRC - 9/28/22
80 Instruments and Controls
Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators
Warning lights and gauges can signal that
something is wrong before it becomes
serious enough to cause an expensive repair
or replacement. Paying attention to the
warning lights and gauges could prevent
injury.
Some warning lights come on briefly when
the engine is started to indicate they are
working. When one of the warning lights
comes on and stays on while driving,
or when one of the gauges shows there
may be a problem, check the section that
explains what to do. Waiting to do repairs
can be costly and even dangerous.
Instrument Cluster
English Base Level Shown, Metric Similar
1.Tachometer 083
2. Fuel Gauge 083
3. Engine Coolant Temperature Gauge
084
4. Speedometer 082 5.
Driver Information Center (DIC) (Base
Level) 095 or
Driver Information Center (DIC)
(Uplevel) 098

Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-
16273584) - 2023 - CRC - 9/28/22
Instruments and Controls 87
Passenger Airbag Status Indicator
The vehicle has a passenger sensing system.
SeePassenger Sensing System 050 for
important safety information. The overhead
console has a passenger airbag status
indicator.
When the vehicle is started, the passenger
airbag status indicator will light ON and OFF,
and the symbols for on and off, for several
seconds as a system check. Then, after
several more seconds, the status indicator
will light either ON or OFF, and either the
on or off symbol, to let you know the
status of the front outboard passenger
frontal airbag and knee airbag.
If the word ON, and the on symbol, are lit
on the passenger airbag status indicator, it
means that the front outboard passenger
frontal airbag and knee airbag are allowed
to inflate. If the word OFF, and the off symbol, are lit
on the airbag status indicator, it means that
the passenger sensing system has turned off
the front outboard passenger frontal airbag
and knee airbag.
If, after several seconds, both status
indicator lights remain on, or if there are no
lights at all, there may be a problem with
the lights or the passenger sensing system.
See your dealer for service.
{Warning
If the airbag readiness light ever comes
on and stays on, it means that
something may be wrong with the airbag
system. To help avoid injury to yourself
or others, have the vehicle serviced right
away. See
Airbag Readiness Light 086
for more information, including important
safety information.
Charging System Light
The charging system light comes on briefly
when the ignition is turned on, but the
engine is not running, as a check to show
the light is working. It should go out when
the engine is started.
If the light stays on, or comes on while
driving, there may be a problem with the
electrical charging system. Have it checked
by your dealer. Driving while this light is on
could drain the battery.
When this light comes on, or is flashing, the
Driver Information Center (DIC) also displays
a message.
If a short distance must be driven with the
light on, be sure to turn off all accessories,
such as the radio and air conditioner. Find a
safe place to stop the vehicle.

Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-
16273584) - 2023 - CRC - 9/28/22
102 Lighting
Lighting
Exterior Lighting
Exterior Lamp Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Exterior Lamps Off Reminder . . . . . . . . . . 103
Headlamp High/Low-Beam Changer . . . 103
Flash-to-Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL) . . . . . . . . 104
Automatic Headlamp System . . . . . . . . . . 104
Hazard Warning Flashers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Turn and Lane-Change Signals . . . . . . . . . 105
Interior Lighting
Instrument Panel IlluminationControl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Courtesy Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Dome Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Reading Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Lighting Features
Entry Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Exit Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Battery Load Management . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Battery Power Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Exterior Lighting Battery Saver . . . . . . . . 108
Exterior Lighting
Exterior Lamp Controls
The exterior lamp control is on the
instrument panel to the left of the steering
column.
O: Turns the exterior lamps off and
deactivates the AUTO mode. Turn to
O
again to reactivate the AUTO mode.
In Canada, the headlamps will automatically
reactivate when the vehicle is shifted out of
P (Park).
AUTO : Turns the exterior lamps on and off
automatically depending on outside lighting.
;: Turns on the parking lamps including
all lamps, except the headlamps.
5: Turns on the headlamps together with
the parking lamps and instrument panel
lights.
IntelliBeam System
If equipped, this system turns the vehicle's
high-beam headlamps on and off according
to surrounding traffic conditions.
The system turns the high-beam headlamps
on when it is dark enough and there is no
other traffic present.
This light
bcomes on in the instrument
cluster when the IntelliBeam system is
enabled.
Turning On and Enabling IntelliBeam

Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-
16273584) - 2023 - CRC - 9/28/22
104 Lighting
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL)
DRL can make it easier for others to see the
front of your vehicle during the day. Fully
functional DRL are required on all vehicles
first sold in Canada.
The DRL system comes on in daylight when
the following conditions are met:
.The ignition is on.
.The exterior lamp control is in AUTO,
if equipped.
.The light sensor determines it is daytime.
.The vehicle is not in P (Park).
When the DRL are on, the taillamps,
sidemarker lamps, instrument panel lights,
and other lamps will not be on.
The DRLs turn off if the Exterior Lamp
control is placed out of AUTO. For vehicles
first sold in Canada, the DRL can only be
turned off when the vehicle is parked.
Automatic Headlamp System
The headlamps come on automatically when
the exterior lamp control is set to AUTO and
it is dark enough outside.
There is a light sensor on top of the
instrument panel. Do not cover the sensor,
otherwise the headlamps will come on when
they are not needed.
The system may also turn on the headlamps
when driving through a parking garage or
tunnel.
When it is bright enough outside, the
headlamps will turn off or may change to
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL).
The automatic headlamp system turns off
when the exterior lamp control is turned to
Oor the ignition is off.
Lights On with Wipers
If the windshield wipers are activated in
daylight with the engine on, and the
exterior lamp control is in AUTO, the
headlamps, parking lamps, and other
exterior lamps come on. The transition time
for the lamps coming on varies based on
wiper speed. When the wipers are not
operating, these lamps turn off. Move the
exterior lamp control to
Oor;to disable
this feature.
Hazard Warning Flashers
|: Press this button to make the front
and rear turn signal lamps flash on and off.
Press again to turn the flashers off.

Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-
16273584) - 2023 - CRC - 9/28/22
Lighting 105
The hazard warning flashers turn on
automatically if the airbags deploy.
Turn and Lane-Change Signals
Move the lever all the way up or down to
signal a turn.
An arrow on the instrument cluster flashes
in the direction of the turn or lane change.
Raise or lower the lever until the arrow
starts to flash to signal a lane change. Hold
it there until the lane change is completed.
If the lever is briefly pressed and released,
the turn signal flashes three times.
The turn and lane-change signal can be
turned off manually by moving the lever
back to its original position.
If after signaling a turn or lane change, the
arrow flashes rapidly or does not come on, a
signal bulb may be burned out.Replace any burned out bulbs. If a bulb is
not burned out, check the fuse. See
Fuses
and Circuit Breakers 0244.
Interior Lighting
Instrument Panel Illumination
Control
This feature adjusts the brightness of all
illuminated controls. The instrument panel
illumination control is next to the exterior
lamp control.
Push the knob in all the way until it extends
out and then turn the knob clockwise or
counterclockwise to brighten or dim the
lights. Push the knob back in when finished.
The knob is functional at night, or when the
headlamps or parking lamps are ON.
Courtesy Lamps
The courtesy lamps come on when any door
is opened unless the dome lamp override is
activated. To deactivate the dome lamp
override, press
jOFF and the indicator
light on the button will turn off.
Dome Lamps
Dome Lamp Controls

Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-
16273584) - 2023 - CRC - 9/28/22
176 Driving and Operating
Stopping the Engine/LOCK/OFF (No Indicator
Lights) :When the vehicle is stopped, press
ENGINE START/STOP once to turn the
engine off.
If the vehicle is in P (Park), the ignition will
turn off, and Retained Accessory Power (RAP)
will remain active. See Retained Accessory
Power (RAP) 0179.
If the vehicle is not in P (Park), the ignition
will return to accessory mode and display
the message SHIFT TO PARK in the Driver
Information Center (DIC). When the vehicle is
shifted into P (Park), the ignition will
turn off.
Do not turn the engine off when the vehicle
is moving. This will cause a loss of power
assist in the brake and steering systems and
disable the airbags.
If the vehicle must be shut off in an
emergency: 1. Brake using a firm and steady pressure. Do not pump the brakes repeatedly. This
may deplete power assist, requiring
increased brake pedal force. 2. Shift the vehicle to N (Neutral). This can
be done while the vehicle is moving.
After shifting to N (Neutral), firmly apply
the brakes and steer the vehicle to a
safe location.
3. Come to a complete stop, shift to P (Park), and turn the ignition off. The
shift lever must be in P (Park) to turn the
ignition off.
4. Set the parking brake. See Electric
Parking Brake 0185.
{Warning
Turning off the vehicle while moving may
cause loss of power assist in the brake
and steering systems and disable the
airbags. While driving, only shut the
vehicle off in an emergency.
If the vehicle cannot be pulled over and
must be shut off while driving, press and
hold ENGINE START/STOP for longer than
two seconds, or press twice in five seconds.
Accessory (Amber Indicator Light) : This
mode allows you to use some electrical
accessories when the engine is off. With the ignition off, pressing the button
one time without the brake pedal applied
will place the ignition system in
accessory mode.
The ignition will switch from accessory
mode to off after five minutes to prevent
battery run down.
ON/RUN/START (Green Indicator Light) :
This
mode is for driving and starting. With the
ignition off, and the brake pedal applied,
pressing the button once will turn the
ignition on. Once engine cranking begins,
release the button. Engine cranking will
continue until the engine starts. See Starting
the Engine 0177. The ignition will then
remain on.
Service Mode
This power mode is available for service and
diagnostics, and to verify the proper
operation of the malfunction indicator lamp
as may be required for emission inspection
purposes. With the vehicle off, and the
brake pedal not applied, pressing and
holding the button for more than
five seconds will place the vehicle in Service
Mode. The instruments and audio systems
will operate as they do with the ignition on,
but the vehicle will not be able to be driven.