MT Slams New Malibu In COTY Testing; "A Consistent Disappointment."

[Perian]

Motor Trend

November 12, 2012

Article Quotes:

Contender: Chevrolet Malibu
By: Carlos Lago

2013 Chevrolet Malibu

We Like: Clean exterior.

We Don't Like: Overworked powertrain, numb steering, tight back seat, problematic interior design.

Neither fun to drive nor particularly good with fuel, with a cramped back seat and a questionable interior design, the Malibu was a consistent disappointment. Lieberman even categorized it as "not so much a car as it is a collection of things I hate about rentals."

The problems? The judges' notes go on about "lifeless" steering feel and a "thrashy" 2.5-liter inline-four. The automatic six-speed, eager to serve some kind of fuel economy deity, not only shifts to top gear as soon as it can, but also offers a huge gap between second and third gear that "lets the engine torque fall off a cliff," said Markus. And despite these sacrifices, the Malibu's 22/34-mpg city/hwy rating is, at best, average in class.

The rear seat was tight for staffers of average height and weight, and it offered "rock hard" leather with "no support at all." Our LTZ tester came bathed in burnt orange leather that received mixed acceptance, but the swathes of chrome merging with high-gloss woodgrain got no praise. Particularly distasteful was an odd and out-of-place chrome trim surrounding the driver-side power window controls. As a final insult, the small infotainment screen washed out in the sun.

On the road, judges complained about a "nervous" sensation on the oval at freeway speeds, an "overwhelmed" engine, and "weak" brakes. The word "average" was used five times in one judge's notes. "Average" used to define midsize economy sedans, but in recent years, the Fusion, Accord, and Passat have made large strides in refinement, driver enjoyment, interior space, design, and fuel economy. This Malibu has not.

To be fair, its asking price is modest and its exterior is sharp, though Markus noted, "The decklid is chafing the bumper fascia paint." Reynolds summed it up: "GM is really in danger if it thinks it can drop back into its old mediocre quality rental car habits. This car is worrying."

Full article, and winner (no spoils here) at link.

[Perian]

Ouch.

Safe to say that the 2013 Chevy Mailbu is not the Motor Trend Car of The Year.

Let's go GM, you have work to do.

If Honda can MCE a brand new Civic months after introduction, so you must follow with some kind of quick Malibu update. I don't know what you can do about the back seat, but judging by the comments above, that may be the least of your problems.

[spd98]

Sounds like GM needs a quick "redo". The sad thing is that Honda has potentially pulled one off with the Civic. GM should take a page out of thier book and make some adjustments.

[Elvisuperman]

1step forward with the previous gen Malibu, 2steps back with this generation! Ugh.

[gopedxr7]

Shame I love the 2010 Malibu we have. Nice rice and decent power on the 4cyl. Interior of the 2010 was my favorite among mid sized cars at the time. And was why we chose it over the fusion.

[EJD1984]

General Motors must not be buying enough advertising with MT.

[darryl32v]

General Motors must not be buying enough advertising with MT.

Or here is an idea. Maybe its just not that good! No wait that isnt possible its GM. Forget I said anything.

[Elvisuperman]

General Motors must not be buying enough advertising with MT.

...or it could just be that the new Malibu is a sub-par effort from Chevrolet/GM. Just because we want to like it, doesn't mean it's good!

[Smellhound]

Ouch.

Safe to say that the 2013 Chevy Mailbu is not the Motor Trend Car of The Year.

Let's go GM, you have work to do.

If Honda can MCE a brand new Civic months after introduction, so you must follow with some kind of quick Malibu update. I don't know what you can do about the back seat, but judging by the comments above, that may be the least of your problems.

I agree 100%. This is ONE time GM should not sit back and wait 3-4 years for a refresh like they usually do.

It is not just a matter of chance that many of the major publications are slamming this car. My personal experience with the new Malibu is that it is a let down, and we are hearing it from more and more places. And, AND, some of these very same publications don't just 'have something against GM', as they have reviewed many other GM cars in the past couple years without being so disapointed in them. GM should not just sit back with this and tell buyers "If you don't like this, then check out the Impala", they should refresh this thing next year, and push up a full redesign to only 3 years from now.

[osbornk]

General Motors must not be buying enough advertising with MT.

Have you noticed that MT pretty much agrees with almost every other review? Sticking your head in the sand is a recipe for failure.

Honda realized their mistake with the Civic quickly and made changes. It appears GM is still in denial.

[Evo69]

Wow. Motor Trend finds nearly everything wrong with this car. From the brakes, steering feel, interior design, rear seats and leg room, the automatic transmission, engine sound under heavy use, even the chrome surround on the drivers side windows control get mentioned as a problem. Jeez is it that bad? I want to hear from people who have already bought the car and what they have to say.

Still GM shouldnt over react to what Motor Trend have to say about the new Malibu, some of their criticisms are over the top in my opinion. However they should consider Motor Trend's comments and compare them to real world consumer experience.

[All Star]

How does a car even get nominated if it is so bad? I don't understand.

[poncho1982]

I've said it from the first time I saw it. It's a mess!

I can't blame Motor Trend for once, they're right.

[Jkujo]

Ouch.

Safe to say that the 2013 Chevy Mailbu is not the Motor Trend Car of The Year.

Let's go GM, you have work to do.

If Honda can MCE a brand new Civic months after introduction, so you must follow with some kind of quick Malibu update. I don't know what you can do about the back seat, but judging by the comments above, that may be the least of your problems.

Unless Mark Ruess has god powers GM will wait the 4 frickin' years it takes to do a refresh. Why? Because the arrogant screwballs at GM HQ won't do anything to fix this vehicles' obvious shortcommings that each and every news/motor agency has pointed out. HELLO GM YOU SCREWED UP! They'll tell us for years that this thing is gold! It isn't! It isn't competitive at all with the competition when it comes to FE, interior space, interior fit and finish. The only thing it does have going for it is that it has a somewhat larger trunk. When has it ever been more important to have more trunk space than interior space on a mid-sized C-Class sedan? The Fusion gets 10 MPG better than anything GM has in its lineup outside of the Volt. Someone please tell me they have some kind of clue as to how to get this thing fixed and fixed fast. I don't like Dan Akerson but maybe he is right when he says that the vehicles are not competitive!

[Perian]

Unless Mark Ruess has god powers GM will wait the 4 frickin' years it takes to do a refresh. Why? Because the arrogant screwballs at GM HQ won't do anything to fix this vehicles' obvious shortcommings that each and every news/motor agency has pointed out. HELLO GM YOU SCREWED UP! They'll tell us for years that this thing is gold! It isn't! It isn't competitive at all with the competition when it comes to FE, interior space, interior fit and finish. The only thing it does have going for it is that it has a somewhat larger trunk. When has it ever been more important to have more trunk space than interior space on a mid-sized C-Class sedan? The Fusion gets 10 MPG better than anything GM has in its lineup outside of the Volt. Someone please tell me they have some kind of clue as to how to get this thing fixed and fixed fast. I don't like Dan Akerson but maybe he is right when he says that the vehicles are not competitive!

Check out what's going on at Microsoft this morning with regard to the new Windows 8 operating system.

You screw up, you "resign".