ChevroletMalibu1964Overview/chevrolet/malibu/1964/base/

1964 Chevrolet Malibu

Factory specifications, fluid capacities, torque values, EPA fuel economy and the federal safety record for the 1964 Malibu.

The 1964 Chevrolet Malibu, as outlined in the overview, recorded a single owner complaint—which was traced to the power train—and suffered no recalls. This minimal complaint record contrasts sharply with the Malibu’s broader complaint history from 1997‑2025, during which the model peaked at 1,697 complaints in 2004 and fell to just 7 in 2025. Consequently, the 1964 model sits at the low‑complaint end of the Malibu reliability spectrum, indicating a notably dependable introduction for the nameplate.

Model year202520242023202220212020201920181964

Reliability & federal safety record

Owner-reported issues, recalls, investigations and service bulletins on record with NHTSA — an unfiltered look at what owners actually experience.

The federal record supplied starts in 1997, so the 1964 Chevrolet Malibu’s model year does not appear among the complaint, recall, investigation, or TSB entries. In the documented years, complaints rose to 1,697 in 2004 and then generally fell, reaching as low as 27 in 2024, while recalls and investigations have also declined over time. The 1964 model’s only recorded complaint category is Power Train, accounting for a single complaint, and it includes one crash and one fire complaint, numbers that are minimal relative to the ranges observed from 1997 onward. Because no earlier or later years in the dataset correspond to 1964, there is no direct before‑or‑after comparison to place this year within the trend arc. Given that the available federal data show only isolated, low‑magnitude issues for this model year, it can be considered a reasonably safe purchase provided a comprehensive vehicle‑specific inspection.

0
Open recalls
NHTSA campaigns
0
Service bulletins
Manufacturer communications
0
ODI investigations
Office of Defects Investigation
1
Owner complaints
1 involved a crash · 1 a fire

Owner complaints filed with NHTSA, by component

All 1 complaints on record, top 1 components.

Power Train1

Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation complaint database.

Recalls NHTSA · verified

No recall campaigns on record with NHTSA for this vehicle as of the last data refresh.

Common OBD-II trouble codes

The most common OBD-II codes for this vehicle's emissions system. These are standardized SAE J2012 definitions, not vehicle-specific fault reports.

P0420
Catalyst system efficiency below threshold — Bank 1
P0300
Random / multiple cylinder misfire detected
P0171
System too lean — Bank 1
P0455
Evaporative emission system leak detected — large leak
P0128
Coolant thermostat below regulating temperature
P0442
Evaporative emission system leak detected — small leak

VIN tools

Decode factory build data for a specific vehicle by VIN.

VIN
Decode a VIN to confirm the transmission and build data for a specific Malibu. OEM
Build data
Plant, GVWR class, engine and body data for any 17-character VIN.
Recalls
Check open recall campaigns against a specific vehicle by VIN.

Reference guides

Cross-vehicle references for the kinds of data on this page.

Frequently asked

Does the 1964 Malibu have open recalls?

NHTSA lists 0 recall campaign(s) for this model year. Check your specific vehicle by VIN.