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Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid
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Comments
"The Honda also has some additional safety features such the three point seat belts, with automatic tensioning system, standard adjustable front seat belt anchors, standards driver and passenger seat belt reminders, standard vehicle stability assist with traction control, standard brake assist, tire pressure monitoring system, standard anti lock braking system, side impact door beams, child seat tether anchor."
Aren't most of these things required by law? What is the last car you saw that didn't remind you to put on the seat belt?
"When it comes to torque@RPM however there is a difference. The Malibu is 160@4500, the Camry is 161@4000, and the accord is 161@4300."
Some difference, 1 foot pound. Renee, Renee, Renee... I hope they didn't pay you to write this review.
Come on Chevy. You enter the hybrid scene with something this stupid. Why waste the resources and money of R&D on something that provides the consumer with no gain? Plain stupidity. No wonder they are having financial troubles.
If I'm going to spend the money on a hybrid, it's going to get significantly better gas mileage. It would just be a waste of money to buy a Malibu Hybrid. They should just remove the line and move on.
I agree that the Prius, though slightly smaller in all dimensions than the 2008 Malibu, makes more sense...both dollar-wise and environmentally. However, from what I've seen the Prius models on local dealer lots tend to be optioned up to the point that their prices fall more in the $25k+ window instead of closer to $22k, which begins to erode the financial benefits of the Prius. Probably smart on Chevy's part to limit the options on the Malibu hybrid, since it's price becomes more or less static.
Availability of the Saturn Aura Hybrid has been limited, and I suspect the Malibu Hybrid will be the same...whether that's a marketing, production, or demand decision I don't know; but I'd guess they're offering the hybrid to have something out there, but they really won't ramp up production and push the hybrid models until they get a plug-in and/or two-mode hybrid out in a couple of years.
They should have spent the money on a true hybrid that was better than what is out there from the other manufacturers.
Spending it to simply say "Hey look, we have a hybrid" is dumb.
From what I've read the 2008 Saturn Vue will have the same basic setup as the Aura/Malibu, but I think I read that by the next year they may offer a true dual-mode hybrid, and the year after that they may offer a plug-in hybrid version (albeit one that will only deliver about 10 miles of driving on a charge). I'm hopeful something similar is coming for sedans as well; my commute one-way to work is about 12 miles, so if I could cover almost half that with electric alone and cut my gas consumption in half that'd be pretty impressive. Still not as good as what the Volt promises, but every little bit helps.
I guess you may not have seen the dash on the Prius.It reminds of a Christmas tree.Dont misunderstand,I actually like it,but I doubt it was designed with function in mind.
As to the Chevy Hybrid...it it gets an honest 24 MPG in city driving,it might be worth it,but 32 Hwy is pretty low.I get better than that on my very conventional KIA Optima with the 2.4 engine and 5 speed Auto.
I'll give credit where credit is due; the new Malibu is a worthy competitor to the Accord and Camry and that's quite an accomplishement for GM. But putting a hybrid option out there with a 10% gain in fuel effeciency is rediculous.
hybrid pro: better fuel economy (not much to cheer about here)
hybrid cons: added weight and less room in vehicle. added up front cost. added maintenence down the road. added uncertainty with a technology that GM hasn't had much experience in.
Although i do not agree with people doing 80 miles an hour on the Chicago toll roads in heavy traffic either. Yes, it can be done by flying down the shoulder to avoid traffic and it happens much too often! Not that i have ever done that of course, well maybe once.... :shades:
We are probably going to be paying $5.00/gal within 2 years. Why would I buy Malibu when a Prius will best its mileage by 50% to 75% (if you are a typical urban freeway crawler).
Pointless. I wouldn't even take a first look at a Malibu.
I agree that 32MPG Hwy is nothing special...but I wonder how is the real world city mileage is...
Since the 2008 Malibu hybrid is a hybrid assist, doesn't do much, but does do something measurable, it needs to be a cheap option. It is . Back when the Prius was a new choice, I calculated that the payoff time for me was 10 years if the Prius delivered 50 mpg. At 45 or thereabouts mpg, the Prius battery pack can't last long enough for the Prius to ever break even in the Corolla comparison. The Malibu might not impress the eco-purists with it's technological whiz-banginess, but for the green eye shades crowd its a more realistic choice than a Prius. The Malibu hybrid assist actually can deliver tangible $ benefits if you keep it for a realistic number of years of $3 and $4 gasoline. As the market has developed, it's become obvious that other than a small part of the population which wants to pay too much for too little economic benefit, the market really wants cars that look good and go fast. The market is telling the manufacturers that some people will buy a hybrid if it looks better and goes faster than a Prius. For people who want a car that gets good gas mileage in 2008, there is the 40 mpg cheap Corolla or the even better choice of a 38 mpg cheaper Aveo.
I have and remain convinced that GM, putting 2-stage hybrids in pickups and SUV's will sell better at 20 mpg than Toyota or Honda can at 45 mpg. The 20 mpg pickup is a 25% or 30% improvement. The 45 mpg subcompact is only an 12% improvement.
GM probably got some huge credit for doing it and that's the only reason.
It's a worthless piece of junk that's trying to capitalize on people that see hybrid and don't know that GM is ripping them off with something that isn't worth a crap.
You can get more measurable results by just driving a little differently or buying better fuel.
GM is just trying to play people for fools and some will play along with them and buy into it.
It's a scam, just like E85 is.
You can probably get more fuel savings just by walking to the store to get your groceries instead of driving. In addition you will get the health benefit.
I went to the car show here in San Jose. Chevy probably spends more money promoting how "green" they are than they actually do on the technology.
It's like Exon talking about how they "care" about alternative forms of energy.
Mitt Romney says he's going to save Michigan? LOL :sick:
Btw, check the EPA ratings on the GM Tahoe/Yukon/Suburbans and then check the EPA rating on Toyota's new Sequoia and Land Cruiser. You might be surprised about which ones are more efficient.
GM's E85 doesn't count as being green. In fact, it's not green at all when you look at the whole picture of corn based ethanol.
but not everybody sells hybrid vehicles that are worth their weight.
I'm not sure how you can fault Toyota for their effort in being 'green' - there isn't another car maker doing it better than them when it comes to selling hybrids.
which brings me back to the Malibu Hybrid and any other hybrid or "green" product sold by GM - it's just spin with no substance.
I wonder if due to the new CAFE standards if GM is trying to put a little hybrid into everything they do? Even if each only increases mileage marginally, a small gain across the board is probably more beneficial to their bottom-line than having a bunch of gas guzzlers and one knock-out hybrid.
Thing is, if GM is going to spend all that R&D money on bringing a hybrid into existence for GM vehicles, why not do it right instead of the crap they came up with? If they really wanted to be green, it would be a lot better than the junk they have.
It would be MUCH more beneficial to their bottom line if they did it right to begin with.
The government should require hybrids to get xx more mileage than the equivalent gas only version of a vehicle, before they give any kind of credits or be recognized at all. Maybe we need a new category other than hybrid, since GM has proven that just because it is a hybrid, doesn't mean it's green or better.
The Malibu hybrid should be getting 34 or so city mileage at least. Even the Prius is finding it hard to justify the cost of ownership in some cases. The Malibu hybrid would no near be able to justify it's cost of ownership. It puts more of a burden on the consumer instead of helping them.
It's just like E85, just because it uses a different fuel, doesn't make it better. E85 as it is currently isn't that green at all once you look at the big picture of corn based ethanol.
Trying to pull one over on the public and saying you are green doesn't make you green.
Why cant GM come up with a similar system? The 2MPG increase is a joke.
toyota make great small cars. look at prius and assume it is gas-only you would expect it get 30 city, (for its size, functionality, fit, versa all similar), with hybrid it has about 50% boost of fuel economy. Tahoe is the same if not more.
Tahoe's saving of fuel is much more than prius. It has bigger environmental impact than the tiny prius.
PS if the GM system is really all that great...why is it that the AURA and the Chevy hybrids are rated no better than my conventional KIA Optima?
now that's spin
Maybe they should allow the Tahoe to drive in the commuter lane? :confuse:
LOL
Prius, no GM equivalent
Camry hybrid, no GM equivalent (gas mileage wise)
Highlander hybrid, no GM equivalent
and you want to point out Tahoe? LOL
I like GM overall, my last 5 out of 7, including my current vehicle has been GM but, we must face reality here. They are trying to pull a fast one on people big time.
Is this how you measure efficiency without considering vehicle segment? sure you would not understand that a military tank if get 5mpg is more efficient than a prius. a honda crx 20yrs ago without hybrid gets over 40mpg. according to your logic that is very efficient., look at its size and weight. I can not believe how people read a post.
GM does not have a working hybrid that helps with fuel savings, period. They CLAIM 2 MPG more but in reality, it's no better than changing your driving habits and buying better fuel.
Having more numbers does not mean leading. You need to look up what Toyota offers since you don't seem to know what they do offer. Either way, that's not the point.
The point is GM's version of the hybrid is a hack job that's been cobbled together that's nothing but a scam to try and make people think they are green.
"GM does not have a working hybrid that helps with fuel savings, period. They CLAIM 2 MPG more but in reality, it's no better than changing your driving habits and buying better fuel."
How about the buses? the coming full size suv and pickup truck will have a larger impact than the tiny prius. sure you can get 2mpg gain by changing driving habit, better fuel etc, but that is not a scientific way of measuring. everything being equal, that is the rule, and you can get 10% saving with this bas hybrid on top of what you just mentioned.
As your comments that I do not know lot about toyota's hybrid offerings, where do you get that?
people think toyota is greener, it is true, but not a whole lot, as it is expanding its product line to bigger vehicles. it truck is actually less efficient than gm's. their average fleet MPG is very similar to GM's. surprise?
Overall, GM's green advertising is a scam along with their hybrid offerings.
One day, in the future, when every one else is using hydrogen, GM will come out with these fuel efficient suvs and trucks. The future is not now. Look how many years the Prius has been out and now the Camry and Highlander and Ford's hybrid offerings. GM is YEARS behind and then tries to make the people believe it's green.
Yes, I am a GM owner too.
I just think the Malibu hybrid is a scam. It's definitely not a TRUE hybrid in the way that Toyota has defined it and built it for the last 10+ years (7 years in the U.S.). The Prius and Camry compared to the Malibu, are more than capable of being compared to each other.
I think the word "coming" should say it all when the Prius is not just here and now, but has been here and proved itself for several years with excellent ownership ratings.
Toyota made a powerfull big gas guzzling truck because the market demanded it. They also made the Prius and created the market for the hybrid.
The Volt looks cool, but it's just hype at this point. Being 5 years ahead in the hybrid market is a huge lead. I really don't see anything like the Prius coming from GM on the horizon. :confuse:
If reducing the use of oil and mpg is the ultimate goal, the Tahoe hybrid isn't going to buy much.
I think the Saturn VUE is doing ok for itself. It is bigger than the Escape Hybrid and gets better mileage on the highway. The Malibu is bigger than the Camry and has 50% more trunk space. That tiny trunk in the Camry would be a deal killer for me, if I was interested in a small sedan.
Go read a few issues to see what I mean.
The database at gh.com shows the Vue Hybrid at 26 MPG and the Escape hybrid averaging in at 30.5 (2wd and 4wd included.)
So it's last in it's class, and the most problematic for the owners. If being the worst and more troublesome in the category is "doing OK for itself" then I guess losers rule.......LOL...........
"If reducing the use of oil and mpg is the ultimate goal, the Tahoe hybrid isn't going to buy much."
A double standard is clearly shown here. Toyota doing a big gas guzzler is ok because market demanded it. GM doing a big improvement (hybrid) on the tahoe isn't going to buy much.
Toyota has sold THOUSANDS of great hybrids.
tell me what GM has done? :confuse:
I don't have to look up the numbers - I can tell by driving down the HWY who's selling hybrids.
I see Ford (buying into Toyota's technology) coming up with some decent choices; Honda with the Civic hybrid and Nissan with the Altima. But GM? it's all spin and laughable results up to this point.
just to stay on topic here - the Chevy Malibu (a very nice car by the way), is offering a hybrid version that is not likely to catch on. There just isn't enough mpg for anyone to pay much attention.
tell me what GM has done?"
I am not sure how the total savings of the prius as compared to hundreds of gm hybrid buses in major cities. Only prius drivers care about enviromnent? buses does not count?
GM has the two-mode hybrid technology at hand for suv/pickup truck, which consumes MUCH MORE gas than small cars, making small cars more efficient is FAR LESS important than making gas guzzlers more efficient. Toyota does not have anything for big trucks. If you stay in the small car segment, and laugh at what gm has been doing that is not fair, if you look at all segment, you will find gm is far greener than you think. As a matter of fact. read this ...
"For model year 2003, DaimlerChrysler had the best domestic passenger car mileage at 29.7 mpg, followed by GM at 28.9 mpg and Ford at 27.9 mpg. The "domestic" imports (foreign manufacturer but domestic production) had superior mileage: 34.4 mpg for Honda, 28.9 for Nissan and 28.1 mpg for Toyota. For imports, the leader was Suburu at 33.0 mpg, followed by Suzuki (32.4), GM (31.9), and Honda and Hyundai (30.4). Turning to the light truck category, Suburu again proved outstanding, at 26.3 mpg. It was followed by Honda (24.7), Hyundai (24.4), Isuzu (22.3) and DaimlerChrysler (22.2). Some manufacturers earned CAFE incentives by selling alternative fuel vehicles"
As to 10% saving from malibu hybrid is nothing, 10% price premium is nothing too.
"making small cars more efficient is FAR LESS important than making gas guzzlers more efficient"
What does GM offer to someone who wants to commute to work and back and get 50 miles per gallon? I'm not saying there's not a market for a fuel efficient truck, but a truck is inherrently flawed at becoming "fuel efficient"
If the Malibu Hybrid is an example of GM hybrid technology, what makes you think their hybrid truck will be any better?
Their hybrids are crap, especially the MALIBU HYBRID. Their E85 is a scam.
The main discussion here is the Malibu hybrid junk though and it's being compared to the Prius and Camry hybrid, which is real hybrid technology that saves fuel. It has nothing to do with how this truck or that truck compares or about buses. Just their scam at a hybrid for the Malibu and trying to make people think they are green.
But then the "greenish" Toyota that has opposed any raise on fleet CAFE. In addition, they are making bigger and more powerful engines. Selling 150K of Priuses a year would not make any dent in overall CO2 emission while selling 200K of the Tundra with gas guzzling 5.7L engine. The new HYDRID Highlander only get 26/25 MPG rating. And how about those $100K LS430H that only returns 20 MPG?. We may feel good driving these Hybrid vehicles, but the return for the investment is more than 15 years (with gas price at $3.00/gal) w/o subsidy from government. And who among us keeping 15 years old vehicle?
Toyota, has made the most of its green image. They are not here to save the planet; They are in business to make money. And they are very good at it. Last year, they made $ US 16 Bil (about 1/2 of Exxon Mobil). They are also calling themselves "American" car company by claiming building most of their vehicles in the US. Last time I checked, about only 50% of Toyota/Lexuses sold in this country are made here. The rest is from Japan. It is no different from the tag line from Wal-Mart years ago " We buy American wherever we can".
Car companies should have products for every price range. If one wants to get full hybrid option like the Prius or the new Two-Mode Tahoe, then pay the $5K-$10K premium for it. If the budget is ~$2K, then the mild hybrid like the current Malibu is good enough. If I have my choice, I would go for the clean Turbo Diesel like the M-B BlueTec since it offer the 30% gain in overall fuel efficiency ( in both City and Highway (not in the case of Toyota Hybrid)) and lower cost yet. In addition, it has ton of torque.
jt
GM takes care of big suv/pickup customer first, while toyota takes care small car customer first, and in my opinion, since big suv/pickup customer comsums much more gas than small car customer, the impact gm is doing is much larger than what toyota is doing.
"If the Malibu Hybrid is an example of GM hybrid technology, what makes you think their hybrid truck will be any better? "
This shows how much you know about hybrid, malibu uses a BAS hybrid, tahoe uses a two-mode hybrid, it is very similar to toyota's hybrid yet provide another mode for highway cruise, usually give about 10% saving on highway as well.
If you want to stay in the discussion, it is fine, concluding "GM is WAY behind in automobile technology that saves fuel. " is just too much and the conclusion can not be drew from the discussion of malibu hybrid.
As a matter of FACT, GM sedan fleet average is 28.9 while toyota is 28.1, tell me how come GM is slightly leading with this "WAY behind automotive technology"?
If you want to say malibu hybrid technology is behind prius', that is a valid statement, but you also need to say that malibu hybrid cost much less than prius'. that is a fair and complete statement.
Toyota is ahead in that they have had the Prius for 8+ years here and they have the camry and highlander that been out for years now, while GM's vehicles remained stagnant, and still are when it comes to true hybrid and fuel savings. Heck Prius' 8+ years ahead of them more than make up for the few miles here and there that they do better in regular. Then add in Camry and Highlander.
As far as the cost less on the Malibu hybrid, the whole point is, the hybrid they use was a TOTAL waste of time and money doing R&D and getting it into the car. Of course the POS cost less because it's worthless.
As far as GM's all electric vehicle, well, they shoulda and coulda but they didn't, mute point.
Making small cars more efficient is a lot better than making huge ones better. There are a LOT more of the smaller ones than those gas guzzling tanks, making smaller cars doing more to help.
GM just talks right now, they don't really act. Oh yea, the Volt, well, it's still a to come one of these millennium type cars. They don't have a CAR right now, today, that's a true hybrid getting really great mileage.
There ONLY reason to put out the Malibu Hybrid is to say, hey, look at us, we are green, see, we put out a hybrid. We are green, see, we put out environmentally damaging E85. Yea, look at us, we are green. We making our cars use corn based ethanol so you don't burn as much foreign oil (although we are taking your food supply with us, oh well). Don't worry about all the oil and natural gas we burn making it and transporting it. Don't worry about all the damage to the water supply and ocean from so much fertilizer being used. We gonna make it because the government pays us with your taxes to make it and we get credits.
When GM releases hydrogen and pure electric vehicles that are affordable, to the public, then people can say GM is green.
Yep, I agree, they need to start using the high tech diesels that burn a lot cleaner and can burn biofuel also. They would be better off with those than they would this E85 crap.