Chevrolet Malibu - 2o6 Review

[2o6]

Sonic is in the shop, so I have a new loaner. I didn't want to chance a "Cruze Limited" (last gen's car) as a loaner, so I took the Malibu they offered me.



I don't have much of a base line for this type of car, since I generally don't care about midsized cars since they're all kinda big. However, I have driven the past FOUR generations extensively, and the car is leaps and bounds better than what we got in 1997.



+ There's a real competitive back seat this time around. The old car had an unnaturally tight rear seat.
+ The 1.5T gets good real world economy, while still being both workable on the freeway and around town. Good low-end torque, but it runs out of steam by like 5300RPM.
+ The handling is pretty good. The steering and ride are def firmer than the old 2012-2015 car.
+ Apple Car play + GM MYlink works well

- Less compliant ride. The old car had a really gushy and soft ride. This car is notably worse, despite having more wheelbase.
- Interior not as nice, IMO. It fits better, but it's all hard plastics. but then again, Honda puts hard plastics everywhere and has been doing it for years, with no real backlash.
- The old car did feel more "rich", but this car makes more room for the Buick variants of this platform.

[280Z Turbo]

I think it looks pretty good. I'd recommend it to a sedan buyer.

[giant_mtb]

The vents are weird and make the whole dash look derrrrrp.  Other than that, I've been waiting for someone with one of these newer Malibus or Impalas to call me and let me detail it.  I'm curious to drive/touch them everywhere.

[CaminoRacer]

We had a 2014 or 2015 rental back in December and I quite liked it. Since my brother works for GM I'd almost recommend it to my mom as her next car, but I'm not sure if she'd be happy with the overall size of the car. It seems quite a bit bigger than her current Mazda6.

[68_427]

My local dealer is already advertising these for like $135/mo

[ifcar]

Would it have been so difficult for GM to address the old car's flaws (style, interior space, fuel economy) without getting rid of the good things about it??

[12,000 RPM]

I'm still not crazy about the C pillar... just a lil off... but it looks like a solid effort

[MrH]

You know what would benefit Chevy the most?  Getting rid of that bow tie emblem.  The gold looks so out of date.  I instinctively cringe when I see it because it reminds me of so many shitty cars.

They have the option now on Silverados and Camaros to get it in black instead.  It looks so much better.

[2o6]

You know what would benefit Chevy the most?  Getting rid of that bow tie emblem.  The gold looks so out of date.  I instinctively cringe when I see it because it reminds me of so many shitty cars.

They have the option now on Silverados and Camaros to get it in black instead.  It looks so much better.

I hate how it looks in black.

[12,000 RPM]

They should give every model its own emblem like the Corvette. Remember those cool emblems they made for each Toyota back in the day?

[MrH]

I hate how it looks in black.

You like the gold better?  It's the worst.

Maybe they just need to scrap the whole thing and start fresh   Or even a chrome bow tie outline badge would be better.

[Rich]

Or even a chrome bow tie outline badge would be better.

This, but it'd be nice if they let the customer choose which finish.  Outline in black, chrome, or brushed aluminum....

[MrH]

Yeah.  I'm not a big fan of chrome emblems to begin with, but it's worlds better than gold.

[ifcar]

They should give every model its own emblem like the Corvette. Remember those cool emblems they made for each Toyota back in the day?

[MrH]

  Totally forgot about that.  That looks like garbage too.

[2o6]

I think all the fuss over a logo that's been around for 100+ years is dumb. Changing it now would be stupid - I mean look how stupid the wreath-less Cadillac badge looks.

[2o6]

Would it have been so difficult for GM to address the old car's flaws (style, interior space, fuel economy) without getting rid of the good things about it??

Eh, the good things we both liked went largely ignored. The good ride, and richer materials no one seemed to give a fuck about, so why keep them? Besides, you'll probably be able to get something nicer in Regal II.

[MX793]

You know what would benefit Chevy the most?  Getting rid of that bow tie emblem.  The gold looks so out of date.  I instinctively cringe when I see it because it reminds me of so many shitty cars.

They have the option now on Silverados and Camaros to get it in black instead.  It looks so much better.

Baby steps.  Chevy has finally backed off of chrome/polished wheels which haven't been in style since 2005.

[2o6]

Baby steps.  Chevy has finally backed off of chrome/polished wheels which haven't been in style since 2005.

Their clientele LOVED that shit. When the 2012+ Malibu came out, no dealer would trade for the old model. People still loved the old model because it had "more chrome" despite it being a worse car.

[MrH]

Baby steps.  Chevy has finally backed off of chrome/polished wheels which haven't been in style since 2005.

You say that, but I drive up 75 north from work every day.  I regularly see big rigs carrying Corvettes from the Bowling Green plant.  No joke, every single one of them except for one, had hideous obnoxious chrome wheels.

[2o6]

I like the chrome brightwork on my Sonic LTZ. 

[ifcar]

Eh, the good things we both liked went largely ignored. The good ride, and richer materials no one seemed to give a fuck about, so why keep them? Besides, you'll probably be able to get something nicer in Regal II.

I didn't think the materials were all that great before, honestly. But who doesn't like a smooth, quiet ride?

Also, when something is good and then takes a step back, previous customers will notice that it's gone. And there are way fewer customers who'll just say "well, if I can't get something good on one GM car, I'll pay more to have it on another GM car" than there used to be.

[2o6]

I didn't think the materials were all that great before, honestly. But who doesn't like a smooth, quiet ride?

Also, when something is good and then takes a step back, previous customers will notice that it's gone. And there are way fewer customers who'll just say "well, if I can't get something good on one GM car, I'll pay more to have it on another GM car" than there used to be.

I mean, it's still markedly quieter than anything Honda makes, and although the ride is less compliant, it's not bad. It's just firmer. And that's probably a penalty because the car lost a substantial amount of weight. I mean, my Sonic rides like a car two class sizes bigger, but I think it's literally the heaviest car in it's class.


Also, I think the poor interior space of the old car was the Malibu's fatal flaw. I mean, why have a midsized car with the same interior space as the Subcompact and Minicar you sell at the same dealer?

[MX793]

You say that, but I drive up 75 north from work every day.  I regularly see big rigs carrying Corvettes from the Bowling Green plant.  No joke, every single one of them except for one, had hideous obnoxious chrome wheels.

I expect half of the buyers of those also have a newer Buick, Caddy, or Impala with a felt or vinyl roof covering.

[ifcar]

I mean, it's still markedly quieter than anything Honda makes, and although the ride is less compliant, it's not bad. It's just firmer. And that's probably a penalty because the car lost a substantial amount of weight. I mean, my Sonic rides like a car two class sizes bigger, but I think it's literally the heaviest car in it's class.


Also, I think the poor interior space of the old car was the Malibu's fatal flaw. I mean, why have a midsized car with the same interior space as the Subcompact and Minicar you sell at the same dealer?

It not only had poor rear seat space, but it was also surprisingly expensive, as many GM products tend to be these days. Even after factoring in the expected incentives. And it was awkward to look at, unlike the previous Malibu, which also wasn't all that roomy.

I guess I'll need to drive it to check out the ride quality for myself.

[TBR]

Oddly, I had one as a rental this week as well.

I thought it was a quite nice car. Agree the interior looks weird, but it does look high quality to me, even if the materials are not actually soft / plush. It just fits together nicely.

I didn't have any problems with the ride personally. I thought it was very well controlled and absorbed bumps nicely. Definitely a better driving model than the prev car, although steering is quite blah. Also thought it had good pep, although I did not get good gas mileage at all (~23 mpg).

One complaint- the wheels looked very small to me.

[2o6]

Oddly, I had one as a rental this week as well.

I thought it was a quite nice car. Agree the interior looks weird, but it does look high quality to me, even if the materials are not actually soft / plush. It just fits together nicely.

I didn't have any problems with the ride personally. I thought it was very well controlled and absorbed bumps nicely. Definitely a better driving model than the prev car, although steering is quite blah. Also thought it had good pep, although I did not get good gas mileage at all (~23 mpg).

One complaint- the wheels looked very small to me.

23??

I'm getting about 28MPG.

[veeman]

My Dad has a last gen Malibu (8th generation) and the previous two cars he had were Malibus as well (both of them the generation before that or 7th generation).  I've driven them.  All of them base models.  I liked the interior styling of the car.  I thought the 7th generation was better looking than the 8th too like ifcar also said.  The 8th has this annoying feature to save gas where it turns off the engine at a stoplight.  It's seamless but I never get used to it.  This new generation seems like they've just shrunken an Impala which I've heard is a great car.  I wish Chevy did something more unique with the Malibu styling.

Oh, and by the way, I loved my big shiny chrome wheels on my Enclave.  Enclaves without those wheels looked plebeian next to it.

[93JC]

You know what would benefit Chevy the most?  Getting rid of that bow tie emblem.  The gold looks so out of date.  I instinctively cringe when I see it because it reminds me of so many shitty cars.

They have the option now on Silverados and Camaros to get it in black instead.  It looks so much better.

The black bowtie emblem is an option? No wonder I've been seeing more of them. I thought it was just the new in-vogue aftermarket accessory for turbodouches' jacked-up Silverados.

The black is fucking hideous in my opinion. I could see them just going chrome, or maybe back to blue.

[CaminoRacer]

My El Camino has a blue emblem which is pretty nice.

Or even a chrome bow tie outline badge would be better.

FLOWTIE