From the logbook: Chevrolet Malibu

There's no question that General Motors' goal was to make the redesigned Chevrolet Malibu's styling more modern and appealing. Chevrolet has gone as far as poking fun of past Malibu styling in its commercials. One even has police officers failing to see a bank robber's getaway car that they've surrounded. (The ad shows an Oldsmobile Cutlass, which was a twin to the concurrent Malibu.)

But focusing on the Malibu's styling, or its past popularity in rental car fleets, is missing the point. The last two generations of the Malibu (introduced in 1997 and 2004, respectively) were decent, practical cars even though they lacked the refinement and performance of class-leaders like the Honda Accord or Toyota Camry. This time around, the Malibu aims higher to better compete with those family sedan juggernauts. The '08 Malibu has already won a stack of awards, being named to several Top-10 or "Best" lists by enthusiast magazines.

What do we think? We're finishing up our test of the two Malibus we bought: a LT four-cylinder and a loaded LTZ V6. Let's flip through the logbooks for an early look:

"Wow. Impressive to drive, even in the four-cylinder version."

"Best normally-aspirated Ecotec (four-cylinder engine) application out there - reasonably quiet most of the time."

"Decent enough seats, but hard to reach seat levers and manual recline sucks [on our LT]."

"Low levels of interior noise for class."

"I would be completely happy with this four-cylinder; plenty of power even for merging and passing."

"My greatest complaint is that I really liked the visibility of the squarer previous version."

"Chrome accents shine distractingly on the windshield."

"Finally a domestic four-cylinder that doesn't sound bad."

"[The LT's] handling seems a step better than the [V6] LTZ, with a lighter, more agile feel."

"Great [V6] powertrain."

"I'm disappointed with the low shoulder belt anchor, poorly placed seat heater switch, and lack of a shifter indicator in the dash. The good news: taut handling; excellent controls; nicely styled exterior and interior (rare in any car); great driving position and seat comfort; roomy rear seat; and loaded with features."

"Distinctive dashboard - definitely not a 'me-too' design."

"I like the terracotta-colored interior [in our LTZ]."

"I do not like the interior trim. The dash has a pink tone to it, whereas the other browns are more orange."   

"This is a heavy hitter that competes head-on with Camry, Accord, and Altima."

"Really no reason for GM to build the G6, Aura, Impala, or LaCrosse anymore - just sell these instead."

So, while our engineers and wanna-be interior designers debate over our Malibu LTZ's "brick"-colored interior, consensus seems to be that the car is shaping up to be very competitive where it really counts. Although the Malibu came out too late for a head-to-head comparison with the redesigned 2008 Honda Accord, we'll have a full test of it in the March issue, as well as posted online soon.

—Tom Mutchler

Comments

[Derrick]

So I'm not the only one who noticed that it was a Cutlass in the commercial, huh? I can just imagine the GM committee meeting where that compromise was decided on. Some things never change. At least seemingly it's only the commercial this time that was done by committee and not the car.

[Sam]

Funny, I have been getting CU for years and decided a few years ago to ignore its advice after I lost my transmission on a 2001 Acura TL at 59,000 (found out later that CU decided to give that a black circle in 2004 due to many owners having the problem, but they still love the car). The car before it, a 1999 Toyota Camry had an oil sludge meldown after two years and 42,000 miles (CU also reported this is a problem, again after it happened to me and I had a $7500 repair). The car after it, a 2003 Honda Accord, CU has now determined that it also has a transmission problem, and yes, I have had that as well - causing another tranmission to be repaired but not rebuilt this time and at no cost to me.

What did I do? I now own as a second car - a GM product, which CU tended to dislike until this past year. I own a 2006 Saab 9-3, a car CU tells me is a Very Good vehicle and completely unreliable according to their April Auto Issue (until revised recently as this past November). In this case, after two years, and 24,000 miles the car is trouble free with zero problems. Better yet, the dealership unlike the Japanese counterparts goes out of its way to ensure I am satisifed in every situation - trying to keep its customer, me. Not that they have had to do much, except change the oil (for free until past 30,000) and other maintenance. They even gave me a free rental for the day for the 20,000 mile maintenance.

Although I have a magazine subscription that lasts until 2010, for now I am looking at CU with careful eyes. So far at least in cars, its reliabiility index has not worked out at all. Cars I buy that are supposedly so terrible I have no problems with, and cars that are so fantastic blow their engines and transmissions. Let reader beware that their reliablity is a generality - why the new Toyota Camry came out the gate with rave reviews and Recommended status only to lose it within 12 months when CU discovered (surprise!) that Toyota's quality has fallen and the transmission fails on that model.

[Ed]

Even when buying a car that has "a black circle" to represent poor reliability in the area of the transmission... you should not be having problems with them at such low milage. True, that some new models will have problems that the warranty will cover, such as the case with your accord. However, that fact that you have had 2 transmissions and a "sludge" problem with three cars all less than 5 years old indicates to me that you drive them rough. No matter what the reliability data says (that is based on thousands of responses) if you treat your car badly, it will return the favor. I have owned the same Nissan Sentra since I bought it new in 1996, with an automatic. The entire car is rated below average because they adjust the scale as time goes on so you know if a 2002 hyundai is more reliable that an older model Sentra. My transmission and in-fact most of the car is considered less reliable than average. However, I do very little other than change the oil and other wear and tear items. All three of the cars that you have had problems with are practically pillars of excellence when it comes to reliability. I think you might want to look within for the problem before you blame CU too much more. Any modern car, even Volkswagens that typically get very low reliability marks, should not be having the sorts of problems you have been describing until well into the life of the car. As CU has said, even the worst cars should last to about 200,000 miles.

[Joe]

Regardless of CU's track record - it's time to notice that GM is pulling out all the stops here.

They have left no stone unturned. The drivetrain features the engine and 6 speed from the Caddy CTS - no slouch. The chassis is rock solid. No scrimping on safety features or conveniences. Wonderful handling and ride. A quiet interior, beautiful styling, and countless little surprises (good ones this time), like the door stops at partial openings, tiny LED's in the trim, rubber lined cubbies.

GM is playing to win, and for a change they deserve to.

[Dominic]

Anyone had any problems with the 6 speed auto when cold (shifts into neutral between 3rd and 4 th when in auto mode and cold)?. This does not happen on paddle shift anytime or when warmed-up?

[Lee]

I bought a new 2008 Chevy malibu LTZ in June 2008 with a 4 cyl 6 speed auto and was expecting good gas mileage (32/24)!! Have driven the car from Boston to Florida I averaged 26 mpg highway and since being in florida have averaged 16 mpg local driving. This does not come close to what I expected for a 4 cyl car. I would not recommend buying this car if your expecting good gas mileage. As the dealer told me the car is under powered with a 4 cyl and will use more gas to accelerate as opposed to a 6 cyl. I guess that says it all!!

[joao simoes]

I am appalled at CU's response to the reader's complaint on his CU recommended cars failing and his Chevy Malibu's good performance despite CU's tendency to review chevrolet's poorly. "Sam | Feb 9, 2008 3:04:24 PM "

Let's see what happens to his Malibu at the mileage his Acura failed? Maybe the domestics can better handle his supposed rough usage?

I owned a 95 Firebird and now an 07 Corvette. Both poo-pooed by CU and I never had a major problem with the Firebird nor any problem whatsoever with the Corvette.

Please treat your readers with some more respect.