2016 Malibu

[Payman]

Holy shit that's fantastic. 

[Madman]

Oh look, a Chevrolet Camry.

After all the hype, I was expecting something better.

[Eye of the Tiger]

Oh, a Chevy Camry Fusion Accord Altima. How uninteresting.

[SVT666]

Everything but that weird split grille looks fantastic.

[68_427]

300lbs lighter than current model.  Hybrid model with projected 45mpg combined rating.  This looks like it should be competing with tweener luxury makes like Acura/Volvo.  Good job gm.

[2o6]

Oh look, a Chevrolet Camry.

After all the hype, I was expecting something better.

Oh shut the fuck up. It could have a Mars symbol you'd think its the best shit since sliced bread

[SVT32V]

Oh, a Chevy Camry Fusion Accord Altima. How uninteresting.

GM following the ford fusion with the small turbo engines.

[FoMoJo]

GM following the ford fusion with the small turbo engines.

Quite a shock the owners will get when they, suddenly, stop working at 150k.

[hotrodalex]

Grill needs to be a bit narrower, headlights should curl up a bit (too horizontal right now, looks like they're weighed down or something)

The new engines look terrible, both non-hybrids have less HP. That wouldn't be terrible if the MPG was improved a lot, but it's only a 1-2 mpg difference. Do not like.

[GoCougs]

It looks really good. I'm seeing a little Tesla Model S in this side profile pic, particularly around the C pillar. I don't think that's an accident.



Speaking of the C pillar though I'm not crazy about how it bulges at the side. I suppose they did that for headroom.

Nah, the Malibu mold was cast before the Telsa S hit the scene.

But it does look good. Shame about no V6 so it's a bit sucky, and thus one would be nuts to buy one over a Camcord.

[MrH]

Nah, the Malibu mold was cast before the Telsa S hit the scene.

But it does look good. Shame about no V6 so it's a bit sucky, and thus one would be nuts to buy one over a Camcord.

...how long do you think a development cycle is?

[Cookie Monster]

The Model S was launched in 2012...

[12,000 RPM]

Oh look, a Chevrolet Camry.

After all the hype, I was expecting something better.

Like wat... its a mainstream sedan, what in the segment do you feel looks so much better?

This doesn't look like a Camry at all lol. Wat were u expecting, a spaceship?

[GoCougs]

Also looks nothing like a Tesla S...

[Madman]

Like wat... its a mainstream sedan, what in the segment do you feel looks so much better?

Any of these, for starters.....



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[Madman]

Just to clarify, I'm not saying the Malibu is a bad looking car.  In fact, the only thing about it the irritates my aesthetic senses is that upper side crease which starts to awkwardly dip downwards just below the front door handle.  You can see it in this photo...





It would have looked much better if it continued straight through the door handles and joined the other crease bordering the top of the tail lights.

Its just after all the hype, I was hoping for something slightly more daring and original.  Something that really made you stop and say WOW!

I'm just not feeling that wow-factor here.  But, I'll reserve final judgement until I see one in the metal.

[hotrodalex]

Agreed about the crease.

[68_427]

GM President Dan Ammann has announced the 2016 Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid will have an estimated fuel economy rating of 48 mpg city / 45 mpg highway / 47 mpg combined.

Set to go on sale in the spring of 2016, the Malibu Hybrid features a 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine and a two-motor drive unit that is similar to the one used in the Chevrolet Volt. This setup enables the model to produce a combined maximum output of 182 bhp (136 kW).

The car is also equipped with a 1.5 kWh lithium-ion battery which enables it to drive on electricity alone at speed up to 55 mph (88.5 km/h).

[12,000 RPM]

Agreed on the crease. Other than that and the weird C pillar bulge I would put it on equal footing with any of those other cars design wise. The shape is the same for the most part, there's just some details that are different but not bad. It definitely looks way better than the Camry or Accord or Altima or w/e.

[Colin]

It's been 3 years in the making, apparently........... which suggests that as soon as Chevrolet realised that they had screwed up the last one with limited space in the back, they knew the only solution was an all new one with a longer wheelbase, which is what this has.

Apart from the awkward looking grille that seems be being pasted on every Chevy at present (much to their detriment), it is not a bad looking car in a rather generic way. But in this class, being bold is not something any of the volume players are ready to countenance very often. 

[thewizard16]

The bottom grille looked a little Avalon-esque to me (not necessarily a bad thing, just looks like it's going to eat small creatures that happen to wander across the road), but I thought it was a sharp looking car in person.

[12,000 RPM]

It's been 3 years in the making, apparently........... which suggests that as soon as Chevrolet realised that they had screwed up the last one with limited space in the back, they knew the only solution was an all new one with a longer wheelbase, which is what this has.

Apart from the awkward looking grille that seems be being pasted on every Chevy at present (much to their detriment), it is not a bad looking car in a rather generic way. But in this class, being bold is not something any of the volume players are ready to countenance very often.

Worked for Hyundai/Kia which makes their current design trajectory that much more confusing. I'm flat out scared of what they will do to the Elantra, which to me is probably the best looking economy sedan of the last ~10 years

[Madman]

[ifcar]

Bah, the previous Malibu was sucessful. GM just didn't take the lesson with the following generation that style was a selling point.

[12,000 RPM]

Still a great looking car

[GoCougs]

It does look great, and it shows that GM is willing to invest big and change quick - remember the current gen Malibu had/has a shelf life of only three years which is unheard of these days.

Like more than a few cars released in 2011-2012 IMO the current Malibu was likely a reaction/overreaction to the '08 downturn (and also don't forget GM's BR) - IMO the Civic, Camry, Accord and others also fell victim, though they did it "better" by basically sprinkling a bit of window dressing on an existing car and having the gall to call it "all new".

[ifcar]

The Malibu wasn't inexpensive, though. Still isn't. GM just invested in all the wrong places, and the sales decline showed it.

It doesn't really matter if a car is all-new as long as it improves in the right ways. Honda and then eventually Toyota improved in the right ways whether you count it as "window dressing" or not.

[12,000 RPM]

Yep, cars are so good these days that outside of structural changes to reduce weight and increase crash protection they don't need much structural work. B, C and D segments are just about perfectly sized and much more space efficient than they used to be. Like I say often my car or something like a Jetta effectively replaces an old Accord or Passat or Camry or whatever, while weighing 300-500lbs less, getting the same performance and costing the same as an old C segment car when adjusted for inflation.

Dont forget the big body on frame cars were horribly inefficient as well. A SWB Crown Vic was wide AF but didn't have much more legroom than my Civic in my experiences with them.

[Gotta-Qik-C7]

Dont forget the big body on frame cars were horribly inefficient as well. A SWB Crown Vic was wide AF but didn't have much more legroom than my Civic in my experiences with them.

That's because the roll cage takes up so much rear seat legroom!   

[MX793]

That's because the roll cage takes up so much rear seat legroom!   

It's a perp barrier, not a roll cage.