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Chevrolet Malibu Maxx Interior and Passenger Comfort Concerns
kurtamaxxxguy
Member Posts: 1,798
Chevrolet trim can be "snapped back" into position if you press it in the right spot.
I've run across loose trim in several Maxxes and it's often because the trim mounted fastener simply wasn't pushed into the metal chassis mount hole underneath the trim.
However if the fastener is missing or damaged then the dealer will have to get involved.
Also, in the Maxx, you may find you get really loud squeaks or buzzes from the hatch trim itself. That's because the hatch trim fasteners squeak against the aluminum the hatch is made of. Only way to fix this (that I know of) is to remove the trim, put heavy fiberglass or other tape over the fasteners (preventing metal-metal contact), and then reassemble the trim to the hatch.
I've run across loose trim in several Maxxes and it's often because the trim mounted fastener simply wasn't pushed into the metal chassis mount hole underneath the trim.
However if the fastener is missing or damaged then the dealer will have to get involved.
Also, in the Maxx, you may find you get really loud squeaks or buzzes from the hatch trim itself. That's because the hatch trim fasteners squeak against the aluminum the hatch is made of. Only way to fix this (that I know of) is to remove the trim, put heavy fiberglass or other tape over the fasteners (preventing metal-metal contact), and then reassemble the trim to the hatch.
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You are right redmaxx...the center trim comes off first. It basically pulls straight off (there's either 3 or 4 plug-style fasteners).
As for that fusebox door, first step is to press in on the round depression of the panel on the left rear side of the hatch compartment (the one just over the left webbed cubbyhole). That will make the trim hatch pop open and down. Once inside, the fuse box is visible and that can be opened by the other instructions posted here earlier.
Is the climate control on a '04 Maxx LS interchangeable with the automatic climate control? I guess the LS is somewhat automatic since it turns on the a/c compressor with the defroster, which made me wonder if they were interchangeable.
Thanks.
If you want details I could provide but likely that answers your question
first remove the side trim pieces (they are held on by "clamp fasteners", and can be pulled loose by pulling them away from the metal and towards the center hatch.)., then pull the top trim straight away from the metal (several metal "prong" fasteners hold this one on).
when removing side trim, be careful to avoid damaging the rear defrost wires and window grid.
The fix for keeping the shades latched to the trim tends to make the shades a little harder to unhook from the trim.
I drove a full size Chevy van for years and have no complaints since I never had any real problems. I normally get a new one after 150,000 miles or so.
Because of the gas price I decided to downsize and was very excited about the Maxx after reading the forum. I found a 2005 with only 15,000 miles and decided to give it a look. The car looked terrific on the outside but when I decided to lower the back seats the plastic lever broke instantly. Granted grace is not my middle name but for a one year old car you would think it would stand a gentle push. Needless to say it was disheartening and I couldn’t convince myself to take the car for a test drive. Chevy might have saved $5 per car to install descent knobs and levers and in the process gain more customers. My question is did anybody experience problems with the interior and how did it affect their opinion of the car.
There have been dome and seat headrest rattles (others have had these). Fixable by gluing plastic to metal holders.
Some mags report plastic flashing all over the place. Who knows where they found it...I did see a little on a couple places of the central console, but not that bad.
I've never had a seat level break. Front ones are not all that sturdy, though.
The power is impressive. I think the Maxx SS is a cool car, but honestly I don't need any more power than the regular one has. It passes effortlessly on two lane roads.
One interesting thing I've noticed that maybe some other owners might be able to shed some light on: About a month after I got my Maxx a friend saw it, liked it, and got one too. His is also an '05, but what's interesting is he gets a little better mileage than I do, but his car does not feel quite as powerful as mine. I wonder if they have the computers programmed differently on some of them, because it just feels like mine runs a little richer than his.
I have no intention of having mine re-programmed or anything like that, because I believe, "If it ain't broke, don't break it," and to me the compromise between economy and power on my Maxx is perfect.
One other question for other Maxx owners: Do you find that in hot weather (90+) you just about have to run the a/c in recirculate mode to get the car cool enough? This is what I find. Also, it seems that the a/c system automatically throttles itself back when the headlights come on. Does anyone else notice this? I figure maybe it's an energy saving feature to limit a/c compressor operation when it's dark out and less cooling is needed.
But what's the relationship between plastics in the car interior and a/c performance?
I find that anytime the outside temp is much greater than 80F it helps to use recir mode. That's especially true in direct sun. My 04 hasn't had the headlight related problem you've described.
Actually, my one complaint with the a/c in this car is the design of the panel vents. They don't allow much vertical adjustment, so you either have to endure cold air blowing directly at your shoulder or just direct it far to either side. And that weird pair of registers on the upper part of the panel doesn't do much good...most of the air comes from the lower center vents and the two outboard ones.
Those are ment to supply warm or cool air to the rear seat passengers.
I think the upper center vents are supposed to "turbo blast" air to the back seat, and the only time they really work is when you close the lower center vent with the rotary thumbwheel control. Rear passengers have said that they can definitely feel air from those upper center vents if I close the lower center vent.
What I said above was wrong. The thumbwheel opens and closes the rear "turbo blast" a/c vent. To get that vent to work, you have to open its thumbwheel and also close the louvers on the two lower center vents.
:confuse:
I don't see how, given that there's absolutely zero air coming out of them...no matter how you position the thumbwheel control that supposedly controls the airflow!
1. Had no heat for a couple of weeks in late April. Was going to take it in at a regular service but it corrected itself.
2. Since then, on about three occasions, I've had the heat on full blast when the heater controller is off. Not pleasant in late June. This has lasted only a minute or two. I suspect the A/C continued to operate but of course it was totally overcome by the heater. All occurances on start-up with a warm engine.
Intermittant problems are always pleasant.
Are you saying in first case that you were not getting heat but air (cold) was coming out and in second case that you wanted cold and you were getting full heat?
No heat for several weeks, even when I cranked the dial. Blasting heat in 90 degree weather even with the dial off. I cranked it up and down and it fixed itself that time. Good, because that would have been a nasty 100 mile drive home.
My guess is that it's in the heater control itself, however I'm always leary about something that happens so intermittantly. I've had little itch and scratch squeak problems with former GM cars, this one's been quiet. Having the dealer dig into the dash on a goose chase is a bit scary.
Has Chevy or some third party come up with a fix for the rear sunshades so that they don't snap open randomly and scare the crap out of me? I had pretty much given up trying to close them because of this. But it's been 95 degrees or more every day for the last few weeks so every little bit of relief helps. If anyone has rigged their own solution I'd also like to hear about it. I have a 2004 Maxx LS.
Has anone done this? thanks in advance D~
I can't believe they would design a lever made of plastic with internal splines like that... I mean it just spun off as it was made of clay. I don't think I've used it more than 3 or 4 times since I've had the car. ~ 24K D~
Does anyone know what car the vent box was originally for? I figure it may have been taken from Saab, as was the Malibu chasis/frame.
Edit: '04 LS. Also now, when I crank the heat up the airflow drops dramatically, but some heat comes out.
Any ideas?