2008-2009 Chevrolet Malibu

vanman1

I tried an 09 6-speed 2.4 and it was decent but I knew I had to buy a 3.6L also, but in a Malibu 2LT. Gas prices are still high but I can afford it, even if they go up again. The snarl of the V6 and the power just put too big a smile on my face.

beach15

Sounds like me, now that I'm Malibu shopping to replace my lemon G6 that's being repurchased.

I've driven SO many Malibu's int the past week, color was baffling enough. In the end it came down to a 2LT V6 or an LTZ 4-cyl, and I liked both equally, but despite preferring the LTZ interior and a few details, just felt more at home with the much meatier V6. It loafs along where the 4-cyl is revving, and then if you drop the hammer...hold on. I'm used to the pushrod 3.5L VVT in my G6 so it was kind of hard to train myself back to the 2.4L, in comparison.

That said, after driving 3 of them, I became very impressed with the 2.4L/6-speed and if I hadn't driven a 3.6L car, I'd go for one. I did a back to back with a 2LT V6 and then a 2LT 4-cyl yesterday and it was funny how at light throttle from a stop, the 2.4L seemed peppier and ran quite nicely, just had to work for it.

With the V6--if that's the car I do end up with--I have a feeling I'll do better with mpg's than the sticker anyway. My G6 has the same 17/26 rating, but I get 23-24 in mixed 2 lane, lots of red lights, and accelerating, and cruising on the highway the Instant MPG reads out 29-32 if not better at times. The 3.6L only has more power AND 2 more gears, so with my light foot, I expect similar.

We'll see, depending on what I end up with, given the 2 choices, both oddly equal in my mind after looks & drives. But oy do I like that 6 power and sound... :shades:

vanman1

If I wasn't used to a V6 and had never tried a V6, I would be ok with the 6-speed / 2.4. It's a fine ride and a beatuiful car. That said, I needed to get a V6 and I love it and have zero regrets.

If you are used to a V6 you probably should get one unless you have a long commute.

bohemia1

I did the same but it only took me a back to back 20 minute test drive to select the 2LT V6 with 6 speed. The V6 seemed much smoother than the 4 Cyl. I am getting about 26 mpg now at 4500 miles in my daily 25 mile commute. I preferred the 2LT interior.
I am happy with my decision.

beach15

Exactly. Before ever driving a V6 model, I loved the Ecotec cars and was very impressed with the spunk, both my '07 2.2L rental and our '08 2.4L.

Then I drove my 3.5L G6 and haven't been able to go back. The 2.4L I once thought was spunky and smooth now seems like a slug to me, and the electric steering that's very smooth and sharp feels quite light or loose in comparison to the hydraulic V6 steering.

The 4-cyl models are terrific, as evidenced by sales, but the V6 is one of those things that once you have it...it's hard to have anything different.

What did I end up with? Just got word today...the 2LT V6 is on its way! Will be in tomorrow, from the other dealer, and delivery some time this week. Still today I was considering the LTZ 4-cyl and thought about calling my salesperson and telling her to get that one, but didn't have time, and thankfully so--she told me later "I got your #1, the 2LT V6". Yay! Can't wait.

After roaring around at high speed all weekend and blasting around on my commute today and last week at times, I checked my average tonight. 25.1mpg with a lot of red light time, as always, everyday. From a stop, hold on. Cruising, it's just loafing along getting high mpg. See why I again am glad to have another V6 coming?

Now it will be a comparo of my '09 V6 and our '08 4-cyl to see what we get daily, although my commute is longer and naturally boosts numbers itself.

vanman1

Congrats beach15, any options on the 2LT? 08 or 09?

I have a silver 08 2LT with the ebony interior. Only option is the side moldings. I think you will love the car, I love mine more every day. It's been just shy of 2 weeks now but every day I still look forward to driving it.

bohemia1 : I prefer the 2LT interior to any of the others also. I wanted the LTZ climate control and fog lights but the 2 tone leather/interior was not doing it for me. If I could have got black leather I would have gone with an LTZ.

Oh well, not a big deal. Saved money with a 2LT and have the same power, also prefer the 2LT rims.

guss

for the interior also. I prefered the suede over the leather. I also don't like climate control, I guess its just not a big deal to reach over when I am cold or hot and make a quarter turn on a dial.

The only things I wish I had were the fog lights, but how often do you really get to use them anyway. By dropping down from the LTZ I could also get the sunroof with out any guilt.

Oh, and I was fine with the 4 cylinder\4 speed , it has plenty of power at 170 hp for my commute on mostly 2 lane roads.

Congrats beach15, do you need to finalize the deal today to get the employee pricing ?

beach15

Well, we already have one 2LT, a Dark Gray/Titanium 4-cyl built in January and it's been great. Again, if I hadn't driven a V6 anything, I'd have bought another just like it--I was the one who picked this one out in the first place anyway.

As my G6 is being repurchased by GM, it's an MSRP to MSRP swap with whatever GM vehicle I chose. No discounts are factored in, because it would necessitate starting a deal over again, and having to figure out the chunk knocked off my G6 price in the first place. My G6 stickered at $26,050 and I got it for Supplier minus $1250 in rebates and $1000 down, and then leased it (SmartBuy...financing, technically, with a balloon, like a lease). The Malibu stickers at $27,525 so it's more but it also has more stuff and is a more substantial car, so $1475 is fine by me to upgrade to a 0 mile car that's a year newer, with more stuff, and hopefully problem free this time, and continue on with my same lease payment.

It was supposed to be in today via trading it in from another dealer but I think they got delayed due to things being hectic the last day of the month with the last day of Employee pricing. Not a biggie. It's a weird new car "deal" as I go through most of the same process, but just turn in my G6 and then go over the GM documents and give the check for the difference and am on my way again.

Can't wait! I work less than a mile and one traffic light away from the dealer so--not wanting to bother my salesperson today--drove around 3 times looking for it. Hopefully tomorrow.

As for the 2LT vs. LTZ, I still love the look of the LTZ and the ritzier leather and such inside, BUT for my real world uses and preferences, I'm a cloth fan and the suede is the closest I can get to that while still also having a loaded up car, and we really like it in our current 2LT. Except I'll now have the V6, the power package, and other little things like the new Bluetooth

kplacer

What color combo did you get?

vanman1

I prefer cloth also but I am ok with leather. That said, the 2LT suede-ish seats are very nice to the touch, I just hope my kids don't wreck it.

Unfortunately no "emplyeee pricing" here north of the border, paid C$27650 + freight, admin and tax. They did have 0% for 72 months up until last week however so I took advantage of that and I got a $500 gas card also. Pretty good I think as I had to borrow anyway. The 72 months is longer than I normally would have gone but at 0% how can you say no, payments are like a lease.

Good lick with your pick-up today.

vanman1

The 4 is fine but when you have driven V6's all your life, it's hard to go to an I-4.

I wanted a roof but there was only one 08 left in the area and it was a red car. We already have a red van so I didn't want that color. Fogs would be great but like you say, you only ever use them a few times a year unless you live on the coast or something.

They had a 2LT demo with a roof and the top line stereo but it had whopping 12K kms on it and they were only discounting an extra $500 or so. That's no deal!

beach15

My new Malibu is Summit White with the Cocoa-Cashmere UltraLux.

It's still hard to believe I went with basic white, but my G6 is White Diamond Pearl (the previously Cadillac color) and after this, I had the hardest time figuring out any color I liked as much or could live with. I first decided on Black Granite only to go shopping and actually see some new Summit White ones and fell for it--very clean, crisp, and classy and I won't be tired of it in a week or two.

My car came in today from the other dealer and I stopped by to see it and drive it. AWESOME. I already love it, love the colors, love the options, and the beefy V6 already with less than a 100 miles is doing well on gas--the Average MPG when I got in, from test drives and driving it to the dealer was 22.3mpg and then when I took it for a cruise, doing 60mph on the highway the Instant was reading 35-37mpg.

Yep, SO glad I got the V6 again and didn't stray, despite that very nice 2.4L and its 33mpg highway number. Just like with my G6, I'll be able to loaf along and be getting nice mileage but then also have the power to drop the pedal and blast by anything, without delay or fuss, if the need arises. Love it, and the 3.6L definitely feels and sounds silkier and punchier than my pushrod 3.5L that's quiet and smooth as it is.

Here's the car, sitting beside the G6 it will replace:




And the video:
'09 Malibu 2LT V6 cruising

The sad part is, I can't have it yet, and was told today the GM paperwork needed to complete the deal would be another 7-10 days. Stinky. I'm going to keep calling them to try and get it expedited, if at all possible...but that's hit or miss.

kplacer

Amazing, in that the color combo you chose is exactly what I have been building on the GM web site. For whatever reason the dealers in my area order almost no Malibus with the Cocoa/Cashmere interior, and almost none in white either. I find the Malibu colors to be somewhat limiting. I don't want black, Imperial Blue is too dark, the gray I find muddy-looking, Golden Pewter is an odd shade that doesn't appeal to me, and Sandstone and Silver are everywhere. That leaves red, Antique Bronze or white as the colors that would work well with cocoa/cashmere. There are virtually none of those around here. Regardless of exterior color, 90% of the in-stock Malibus have ebony interiors with the remainder in gray.

How much headroom does the sunroof cost?

beach15

Now you know what my last week was like...this color? This color? This color with that color? Only to end up with white.

It is odd how, really, the white is not an overly stocked color nor is the Cocoa-Cashmere. With the specs of the one I'm getting, there were I think only 2 White/Cocoa 2LT V6's within a few hundred miles.

I love the look of both colors, especially the Cocoa-Cashmere despite how it shows up in pictures, and it really makes the interior come alive more.

The sunroof up front doesn't make that much of a difference, such that I'm 6'-3" and still have quite a bit of space between my head and the roof. When I drove a car without the sunroof, it only went up that much further and felt like I still had a foot above me. There is a more notable difference in the rear seat, as the space for the sunroof and shade bump the headliner bulge down a bit and as it combines with the roof slope, my head can brush the back edge near the window if I sit tall--but not a problem. I love the open and airy feeling more than just having excess head space, so sunroof it is again for me.

bryan

I bought my 08 2LT Malibu at Lewes Auto Mall! Small world--they take care of all four of my GM cars. Super dealership to work with!

Can you tell me about your wheels? They look different from the 2LT wheels that I have on mine and that appear to be identical to what is shown on Chevy website for 2009. Is it because you got the 6cyl?

guss

I saw that exact color combination with those wheels (they remind me of Audi A4 wheels) and thought it was a great combination. I am not usually a white fan but it works on the Malibu.

Those wheels are specific for the 2LT with the 6 cylinder.

bryan

Thanks guss for the info on the wheels; that's because you can only get 18" tires with the 6cyl? Or could you still do the 17" wheels with the 6cyl? I think I prefer the wheels I have on my '08 to what beach15 got on his white one.

I'm seriously contemplating an '09 2LT to replace a soon to be out of warranty Olds Aurora. Yes, I really like my '08 2LT Malibu that much!

I special ordered by '08 with every option except sunroof. I also spec'd the 4cyl, and could only get the 4-speed tranny (ordered in March 08; delivery May 08).

I'm thinking of doing either the red jewel tintcoat or one of the new colors--I forget the name but it's like a green ice or something like that. The exterior color I finally choose (won't be Imperial blue--got that one already) has to allow for the cocoa/cashmere interior--I really like that combo.

Thoughts anyone?

vanman1

There is simply no comparison between the 3.6L and the 3.5L in your G6. The smoothness and power range of the 3.6L is unreal and it has a beautiful snarl when you take off (though you have to open the windo to really hear it).

I see the power pedals are gone as are the side markers for 09. You probably have the blue tooth though which is nice. Power pedals are useless in my view.

Hopefully you don't have to wait too long now!

vanman1

The 18" wheel you see on beach15's car are the same as mine and they only come on the 2LT with performance package. You can not get them with the 2.4L 2LT and vice versa.

Personally, I think the 18" weels look amazing and are the best available on the Malibu. They are the same design as the Impala SS and really give the car a strong presence.

vanman1

beach15

Hah! Imagine that...go on Edmunds and end up finding someone not only from the area but who bought from the same place

As said, when you get the V6 option on the 2LT, you get these 18" wheels. Otherwise, 2LT's with the 4-cyl have the 17" wheels with thinner spokes and a polished with gray coloring--love those wheels, too. Our Dark Gray 2LT 4-cyl has those.

vanman1 - Oh, of course. The 3.6L is SO much more an impressive piece. My 3.5L has great power and is smooth, but only as much as a less sophisticated pushrod V6 can be. I originally loved the 3.6L on a G6 test drive and wished I could have opted for it, but am even more so glad I can now. So creamy smooth but with unbelievable power, and still economy, at the same time.

Some day over the rainbow I shall have it, if GM can get together the proper paperwork and get it to the dealer sooner rather than later. They didn't disappoint me with my lemon situation, so hoping for a similar--and quick--close to it all.

guss

Funny you mention you have an '01 Aurora, the first time I drove the Malibu I thought it reminded me alot of my '01 Aurora 3.5. Chevy must be on the right track if one of their mainstream cars can equal their flagship in on one of their upscale brands.

Here are 17" wheels that I have on my 4 cyl. 2LT.

vanman1

Funny enough, I just sold my 2000 Olds Intrigue and moved to this Malibu.

I never thought I would ever buy a Bu after driving an Olds but this new generation car is far more luxurious inside than my Intrigue and is pretty close in size surprisingly.

budi

I need to buy a third car for my nanny to drive. I have 3 kids in car seats and was wondering if the Malibu has room to fit 3 front facing seats.

beach15

Though a fantastic car, I wouldn't put the Malibu up to multiple car seat hauling duty. Between the shape that squeezes door openings to the narrower size in general, I would not make that recommendation.

If you're sticking to the general price range but want larger, maybe an Impala (bigger, but still not exactly a huge backseat), maybe Taurus/Sable (very open), or some others you could find.

The Malibu is the best to drive and look at, but not for car seat hauling.

jorghi

Howdy,

This is a problem with other cars that have large wheels as well.
I had the exact same issue with my Nissan Maxima.
In the first 6 moths, I took the car to the dealer 3 times. Every time, they would cut the rotors the third time they replaced them.

So after they replaced rotors, I swapped out the crappy OEM breakpads to something high performance (ceramic or carbon metallic pads, I forget).
Not a single problem for 150K miles after that!

Make sure you bed in the pads after putting them on. This means baking agressively several times going from 60 to 10 miles, without stopping. Allow 2 minutes between the breaking exercises for the rotor to cool down.

The problem is usually not warping, but uneven rotor wear and thickness variations.
A warped rotor could not be fixed by turning (machining) it.
In any case, it probably does not hurt to manually re-torque the lug nuts to the recommended foot pound value.

Good luck!

vanman1

Are you looking at 3 full car seats or are one or more boosters (no back)?

I just have 2 boosters but I think you could get 2 fulls and a booster in no problem. I would go down and try at a chevy dealer. I brought my golf clubs down when I was shopping to make sure they fit across the back of the truck. Glad I did!

beach15

Good clarification--it is worth a try

guss

I have 2 kids in boosters and a 9 year old and all three fit in the back seat. It is a little tight because of the shape of the 2 outside seats tend to push the booster seats in at an angle. The longest trip we have rode with the three kids in the back is about 30 minutes and they were comfortable.

The one downside is that the center position does not have a headrest. With my kids it will not be a factor for at least 4 or 5 years.

bryan

That picture just cemented it for me; red jewel tintcoat for the '09 when I replace the Aurora. I prefer these wheels over the 18" you get with the V6 engine; just my preference, that's all.

I have the '08 version of this pix in imperial blue. One of the posters above stated he thought the color was too dark. It's absolutely beautiful on my car when the car is clean and sparklin' in the sun!

Last road trip in the '08, I got 33.5 mpg, at 2500 miles so far on the odo.

I also have an '07 Malibu--LS version--not one option. Just got back from a weekend trip from Arlington, VA to Rehoboth Beach, DE. I set the DIC in my driveway before I left. It registered 40.2 mpg when I pulled in my driveway at the beach! That's at 11,000 miles on the odo.

So, who needs a stinkin' hybrid???

vanman1

Looking at it all this past weekend, I think even 3 boosters would be tuff in the Malibu. I guess it depends on the brand and size at these kid seats vary a lot.

I think you need an Impala sized car at least to get three seats in a row. Our neighbor does 3 in her Durango.

budi

I am looking at 3 full car seats. I was also thinking about the Impala especially now that a gas station near me is selling E85 for $2.99/gallon. The Impala is a little more than I want to spend. I wish the Impala had a 6spd auto.

vanman1

Actually I was looking at an Impala also but they had no 08's left in the colors I wanted and the Malibu was a bit more modern and had enough space for me. Solid car though, with rebates I am sure you can get one for the same as a Malibu.

guss

has about 5 more inches of hip and shoulder room than the Malibu. Edmunds specs are Impala 57.2 hip and 58.6 shoulder room in the rear seat. The Malibu is 52.1 hip and 53.9 shoulder. Five inches may not sound like alot, but when you are scraping your knuckles to get the kids buckle in, you will appreciate it.

The downside is the Impala is a 10 year old car now. The Malibu has a much better interior and the drive train is much more refined.

In the Malibu's class, I think the Mazda 6 has a bigger back seat and will cost about the same. You may want to check one out also.

vanman1

New Mazda 6 reviews have not been all that great, I was expecting it to be a better car. Some of the zoom zoom has been given up for the increased size apparently.

Impala is getting a bit old, 4-speed and engine combos aren't 2009. It's a lot of car for the money though and it's all reliable.

Malibu could use a few inches of width. It's fine for us but it is one of the most narrow midsizers. That said, amazing leg room and design make up for most of that.

06stang

Like beach15 said, check out the Taurus! Very nice, comfortable car. Not sure where you live, but in my area you can get some pretty good deals on one too. Spacious interior, huge trunk, 6 speed trans. Many standard safety features. Good car for the money.

The Malibu is more fun to drive, but with 3 car seats I'm thinking the Taurus will be a lot more convenient and useful.

bohemia1

I agree on the Taurus. We have the 2005 Freestyle which is the previous name for the present Taurus. The CVT transmission failed at 15k miles, so stay away from the CVT, if it is still offered. We now have about 35k miles. Other than that, it is a great vehicle with plenty of room, but still gets decent mpg, although acceleration in the Freestyle version does suffer a bit. I would definitely consider it.

etcarroll

I thought the Ford 500 is now the Taurus..

guss

The Freestyle is now the TaurusX, the wagon version. You are right the 500(sedan) is now the Taurus. Ford thought they were making it easier to recognize the names.

deckdog

Hi All,
A local dealer has an 08 Malibu LT2 on his used lot with sunroof, BS moldings, and mat pkg. There is 14 miles on the car with factory window sticker still on it. List is $24,570. Sale price $21,997. When I questioned him he said the car came from out of state and had $1150 in hail damage which has been repaired. You can't tell it ever happened. Also saw the repair order for the damage. He said they had to sell it as used because of that. I figured invoice at $23,366. Does this sound like a decent deal or colud I do better? Will be trading in my 05 Malibu LS on it. Any advice is appreciated. Thanks.
the deckdog

vanman1

Given you will get an almost full warranty, it seems like a great deal to me. Hail damage would only be superficial, should have no impact on how the car runs.

kplacer

I'm not sure the deal is that great. There would be a factory allowance on leftover '08s that would take that price down anyway.

guss

I would guess that when Gm had the employee pricing that would have sold new for about $22,500. For a $500 saving I would pass on it, but for another $1000 off I would be interested.

I would check with the dealer about the warranty on the paint. I think the hail damage and repaint will void the paint\corrosion warranty.

rik4

i would do a carfax on the car it might have come from texas and been in the flood.

deckdog

Carfax is clean. The car came from a dealer in Louisville, Kentucky.
the deckdog

Kirstie_H

A reporter is interested in talking with owners of a 2008 or 2009 Chevy Malibu who are also parents. If you are interested in commenting on your experience, please reply to jwahl@edmunds.com no later than Monday, November 3, 2008 and include your city and state of residence, the model year of your vehicle and the age of your child/ren.

bwia

With only 7,900 miles on our 08 LS we are beginning to experience an annoying shrieking noise from the front wheels. This happens when driving off first thing in the morning and the noise goes away soon after drive off. What could be causing this problem, could it be a warped rotor, faulty brake pads or an inherent Malibu problem?

Would like to know if others are having this problem and if there is a secret GM recall on this?

bandit08

I was having the same problems with my LT1. I had it in the shop twice within 5 months. The rotors had to be turned down twice as well. They tried to tell me that all brakes and rotors these days are made cheap and all cars have this problem. My boyfriend did say that Chevy brakes are cheap. I have owned foreign cars up until I bought the Malibu and I had never had this type of problem. I also had the problem of the ESC coming on ALOT.
I traded in my Malibu in a few weeks ago for a Sante Fe. So far so good.

crosbys3

Hello all,,,,,, i ordered mine back in July. Black granite metallic LTZ 4 cyl 6 speed auto, rear power pkg got the rear window shade which is pretty neat when parked in the sun. I can honestly say i love this car plenty of power in the 4 cylinder you really get use of the 6 speed trans at highway speeds. When im traveling at 65-70 mph the tach is under 2000. We have the Brick- Ebony leather inside looks so nice have gotten so many compliments on the look of the car. Also very quite just changed the oil at 2500 miles to put Mobil 1 driver information said oil life was at 80 % but i wanted to change it anyway. One more comment about the oil filter it is so easy to change the nut on the top of the filter housing is either 33mm or 1 1/4 short socket quick and easy change. If you are thinking about this car i would say go for it. But hey i like the Malibu i still have a 99 with 195,000 miles that is running and rides like a top so that was another reason for the Malibu.

wingroot

Has anyne tried to chang the front side marker and rear side marker bulbs that have burned out. 2008 Malibu LT2. Whats the procedure.
Thanks.....