GMI Long Term Review: 2008 Chevy Malibu LTZ

[TaHoE]

GMI Long Term Review: 2008 Chevy Malibu LTZ One Year Update
The sun sets on our one year in Malibu
By: Jordan T. Marmara

The sun sets over the water, as you hear the rush of the waves crash onto the beautiful sandy beach. It’s a description that we have heard in everything from movies to our very own day dreams. There is a city where the roughly 13,000 residents actually get to enjoy this beautiful lifestyle every day; this city is Malibu, California. Originally settled by a Native American tribe called the Chumash, Malibu was all about the beauty. The beauty of the landscape, of the sunsets and the surf all make Malibu charming. Surely Chevrolet envisioned this when it first showed up in the marketplace with the beautiful all new 1964 model; after all, it’s all about the beauty, or is it? Spending a year with one will help you find out.

Details, Details, Details
Before we get to how our year long date has gone, we need to get past the details, a necessary chore when talking about a love interest which seems to be based solely on her gorgeous looks. We have racked up over 11,000 miles in our Malibu, including two road trips to opposite ends of the eastern seaboard. We selected the LTZ model which in 2008 was only offered with a V6. Today this might sound strange because of fluctuating gas prices; in 2009 you may of course want to get the LTZ with the standard 4 cylinder which is capable of up to 33MPG. Well not this man, he wants some muscle behind those good looks, and man she’s got some muscle. The 3.6L LY7 V6 in our 2008 example produces a healthy 252HP and 251 lb-ft of torque and is mated to a 6-Speed automatic transmission with manual shift mode. In addition to all the mechanical stuff, our Malibu came with a 6-Disc CD changer with auxiliary input, 3 months of XM Radio, 1 year of OnStar, driver information center, power driver seat, power mirrors, adjustable pedals, automatic climate control, two-tone leather seating surfaces which are heated in the front row, fog lights and a very useful 110V outlet in the center console. As far as safety is concerned our Malibu came standard with dual front, front side impact and side curtain airbags and of course traction control, antilock brakes and four wheel disc brakes. So it seems there are some brains to go with this beauty.

Everyday isn't a winding road, sadly.
Now that we have gotten past those silly details let’s talk about how our relationship has been this year. In the beginning, we started off slow, with trips to the grocery store and malls on the weekends, and she seemed to enjoy them. The Malibu’s V6 makes trips to the grocery store actually fun, instead of a chore. I found myself coming up with excuses to go out, that reminds me I forgot to pickup those fish heads for Ghrankenstein, oh well I guess another trip is needed. The beauty helps here too. When you pull into a parking spot at a grocery store and people actually stop to look at your car, you have a good idea you’ve chosen a good looking car. When people ask you if it’s a Chevy, then you’re positive. However it’s not all tulips and daisies here today, there are some drawbacks when taking the Malibu on errand runs. Firstly, the 6-speed automatic, while it may help garner better fuel economy ratings with its tall gear ratios really is a bit slow to change gears, especially in city type driving. To be honest, it almost gets annoying I would almost rather have the 4-speed automatic back. Don’t tell her this though; because she may nag me about how I snore and I have terrible road rage and how that is so much worse than some lazy shifting pattern, ugh it’s exhausting. Thankfully, GM did provide me with paddle shifters, which have proven to be very useful. So if you don’t mind shifting your own gears some times, then don’t let the automatic scare you away. My other nitpicking problem is the trunk. The trunk is rather large but I wouldn’t say it is huge. It will fit a good amount of stuff, easily swallowing your entire load of groceries for example. However if you take a trip to a home improvement store and you want to fit something larger than a grocery bag in the trunk, good luck. Beauty does have its drawbacks and in order to give the car that short-deck, long hood appearance, the trunk opening is no larger than your average milk crate. Luckily, the rear seats do fold down 60/40, so you can use the rear seat area for cargo room. In all honestly though, it is a sedan and you may actually have people with you when you go to stores. In the future this is a design element I personally would love to see fixed. I feel like it is a movement in automotive design right now, and all car makers are doing it, but it really would be great to actually use the trunk from the actual trunk opening.

Sporting intentions
Well how about those long trips you say, does she get sick on those twisty mountain roads, or maybe she’s a bit of a laggard when she gets on to the highway. Does she drink a lot, because it is a bad habit? (To me it just makes her fun, but hey to each his own). It seems the Malibu is happiest on those twisty mountain roads; it is by far the best handling car I have driven since my short stint in a Mazda 3 this year. Some reviewers have called the cars steering numb in initial reviews, but I have to disagree. My suggestion is to take your gloves off and actually, I don’t know, “feel the wheel”. The Malibu gives you great feedback when it comes to what is going on with those two very important front wheels. I am not going to compare it to an M3, but it does more than asked of it in a family sedan. If the Malibu were tuned for the M3 crowd, it would scare away traditional sedan buyers, which is not something Chevrolet will want to do in their mainstream offering. There is minimal body roll when changing direction, admirable in such a relatively large and heavy vehicle. When you enter a corner you feel the immediate grip of the tires trying to power through a corner and it actually doesn’t feel like a chore, it feels fun. The ride is firm, but polite. It allows you to for example, sing “Eye of the Tiger” without sounding like your very own vocal CD is skipping, not that I have tried that or anything. The seats are also firm, but very comfortable with nice amount of bolstering on the sides to keep you planted in the twisties. However since this chassis is now slightly behind the times, you do feel that the cabin is a bit narrow when sitting inside, hopefully this is something that is fixed for the Epsilon II based models coming out. Then there’s the drinking problem. This is to be expected in a heavy car with a massive 3.6L V6 under its hood, I know, but I would have thought the 6-speed automatic would have solved the issue. It took us two and a half tanks to get to Long Island, NY from Charlotte, NC. This really in the scheme of things isn’t much. It took only one and a half to get to Orlando, FL from Charlotte. Again, not bad. The real bad part is driving around the city. Day to day driving drains the Malibu’s gas tank faster than Heidi Klum would refuse my marriage proposal. However if you do mostly mixed driving, we have been getting roughly 21.5 MPG which beats EPA estimates of 20MPG combined. So in the end, this is not a negative just something to look out for. All this drinking becomes a non issue when you actually hit the gas and make her move. She tears off the line quick, with minimal torque steer and the transmission suddenly wakes up and shifts (still not quick enough, so use those paddles). I would describe the acceleration as easily “push you back in your seat”, but not nearly “neck-snapping”. With Pontiac gone, Chevrolet really is the only place at GM where value-based performance can take hold. Ford has a sporty version of the Fusion, why not a sporty Malibu “RS”? We wouldn’t want to massacre the SS name again, but I think there is definitely room for a sport-biased Malibu with improved transmission shift patterns, or perhaps a manual transmission.

Where's the catch?
So she’s fun, good looking, and smart. Where's the catch? There is always a catch with cars from GM, right? By catch, people usually mean its reliability is probably worse than a 60’s era Ferrari. I would answer, no. There is no big catch with the Malibu. We haven’t had a single issue this year, and I hope this stellar reliability continues. For the most part, craftsmanship and reliability have been excellent for the 2008, and should no doubt improve as the model years go on. Some may say that this is a good sign coming from a first year vehicle from GM. I am a little more cautious however. This is the second iteration of the Malibu on the same general architecture, with two other cars (G6 and Aura) who were guinea pigs for the LWB version of this chassis before this generation Malibu arrived. It is a great platform, and I am glad to see that GM continues to improve it with Epsilon II.

As a whole, our Malibu has done everything we asked it to do this year. It’s given me smiles when I look at it, smiles when I drive it, and smiles when I only need to bring it in for routine maintenance. I have been stopped numerous times by people asking me "Is that a Chevy?", "How do you like it?", "How much does it cost?", usually ending with "That's a really impressive car!". If you are in the market for a well equipped midsize sedan, and your major concerns are either style, reliability, driving manners or affordability, you would be an absolute fool not to take one on a test drive. Keep this up GM, and this relationship may be eternal, not just a one lease stand.

Full Photo Gallery: Here

www.gminsidenews.com - GMInsidenews 2009

[FenwickHockey65]

Good review. Glad to hear you like it.

[boblutzfan]

So many reviewers complain about the six speed transmission shifting pattern in just about every application. GM needs to fix this. As we get ready to close out the first 10 year of the 21st century...still producing vehicles with transmissions that "frustrate" drivers is just not acceptable. Funny that you say you would almost rather have the four speed. My dad has a 2008 Aura XE with the four speed and 3.5L combination and he gets about 33MPG average on the highway. It is a fine car (with the exception of the horrible quality of the interior the leather in the Aura is some of the worst I have ever seen...and the door panels do not line up with the dash - which some parts of are so hard you could bruise your needs if you bump them too hard.) It seems that in an effort to leap frog the competition GM pass up on developing a rock solid five speed in favor of this forever hunting and frustrating six speed. That was a big miss in my opinion.

Still - this is the best Malibu ever made. Too bad it is missing the items that the competion has offered for years...dual zone climate control, DVD navigation, folding center armrest, key less ignition, HID headlamps, etc. Hopefully GM gets it right for the next go round.

[troy201]

This is coming from my observations of selling Chevy's for the past six years. It seems to me the only reason GM put the 3.6 in the Malibu was to keep up with Honda and Toyota to say hey we have x amount of horsepower too. That's all well and good but the MPG is not there with the 3.6 on a day to day basis. The 3.5 with the 6 speed would have been the smart move in my opinion. It has plenty of power for the everyday person and very good if not excellent fuel economy. I dove them for demos and never had a issue with them at all. On top of that it would have cut the cost of the car down by 500 so, don't have the actual numbers in front of me here. Of course it would be nice if Chevy utilizes the new 2.4 DDI for the Malibu, that would be very smart on their part. I'm not holding my breathe just yet.

[Jay]

"We wouldn’t want to massacre the SS name again, but I think there is definitely room for a sport-biased Malibu with improved transmission shift patterns, or perhaps a manual transmission."

Thank you! I love the Malibu's design and in the near future might need the practicality of a 4-door sedan but I simply won't buy an automatic. Why, for the love of driving, does GM refuse to offer manual transmissions in their affordable midsizers?

[mjd1001]

We have a Malibu LT with the 2.4 and 6 speed auto (purchased almost a year ago.) While I know the review is about the V6, ours being so similar I can honestly say we haven't had any problems with our car at all, and our 6 speed auto seems to shift just fine. The Malibu is a car GM seems to have really done their homework with.

I am proud to say that too, because on these boards I sometimes feel I criticize GM more than I praise them. We have a Saturn Vue also with a whole list if quality issues....and I have been probably overaly critical lately about the new 3.0 engine in the new Equinox, SRX, and Lacrosse (yes, I have test driven one, and yes, it is still dissapointing to me.) But with that said, I would have no problem at all recommending a Malibu to anyone who might be considering it.

[BlackGTP]

My V6 LTZ just turned a year - and agree with the write-up. My only real complaint is the laziness of the 6 speed and have difficulties cleaning the interior (I have the cashmere). It seems that the plastic graining scratches easily and is deep enough that it resists cleaning (can't get smudges out of the grain).

Had a few teething problems (horrible squeek in the roof, interior passenger door handle courtesy light out) that were all fixed, just one problem left - the tranny makes a very bad sounding rumbling sound when backing up on an incline when it is cold. Dealer hasn't been able to re-create it.

Love the Malibu! Recommend it to everyone!!!!!!!

[prototype66]

Eppi II Chevelle Malibu 2 door coupe SS V6 3.9 6 spd

[Mr_Pringle]

I've put over 50K miles on my '08 LTZ. Since I drive mostly on the highway, the 6-speed "gear hunting" has not been much of an issue. I have had problems with squeaking in the roof: something that seems to be an issue with many owners. Other than that, I'm still thrilled with the car.

[Patate]

Originally Posted by mjd1001

We have a Malibu LT with the 2.4 and 6 speed auto (purchased almost a year ago.) While I know the review is about the V6, ours being so similar I can honestly say we haven't had any problems with our car at all, and our 6 speed auto seems to shift just fine. The Malibu is a car GM seems to have really done their homework with.

I am proud to say that too, because on these boards I sometimes feel I criticize GM more than I praise them. We have a Saturn Vue also with a whole list if quality issues....and I have been probably overaly critical lately about the new 3.0 engine in the new Equinox, SRX, and Lacrosse (yes, I have test driven one, and yes, it is still dissapointing to me.) But with that said, I would have no problem at all recommending a Malibu to anyone who might be considering it.

I also own a Malibu 2LT 2.4L/6 speed, and I have never experienced anything wrong with the transmission. It's probably a V6 thing.

[63GrandSport001]

Originally Posted by prototype66

Eppi II Chevelle Malibu 2 door coupe SS V6 3.9 6 spd

At this point I do not see them using the 3.9L in the Malibu.....

Maybe they can make a Malibu Coupe (I don't see them doing so because of the Camaro) with AWD and a 3.0L turbo V-6 and call it the Chevelle Malibu SS.

[prototype66]

If they do use the HC 3.0 I hope they figure out the torque thing to improve MPGs and Performance. Sounds like it needs tweaking still. Also I would rather have a Bu sized 2 door than a Cobalt sized (cruze) 2 door but that's just me.

[big swede]

Originally Posted by 63GrandSport001

At this point I do not see them using the 3.9L in the Malibu.....

Maybe they can make a Malibu Coupe (I don't see them doing so because of the Camaro) with AWD and a 3.0L turbo V-6 and call it the Chevelle Malibu SS.

That would be sweet not everyone wants a Camaro. Or make it a turbo Buick Coupe.

[BlackGTP]

Originally Posted by Mr_Pringle

I've put over 50K miles on my '08 LTZ. Since I drive mostly on the highway, the 6-speed "gear hunting" has not been much of an issue. I have had problems with squeaking in the roof: something that seems to be an issue with many owners. Other than that, I'm still thrilled with the car.

I believe my dealer told me there is a TSB out on the roof squeak - they put the recommended spacer in my roof and haven't heard a squeak since! It is actually a testament on how quiet the interior is, probably wouldn't have even noticed the squeek on my old Grand Prix!

[63GrandSport001]

Originally Posted by big swede

That would be sweet not everyone wants a Camaro. Or make it a turbo Buick Coupe.

Its not that everyone wants a Camaro but more of you will have two vehicles in competition with eachother on the same dealer lots. Just like you now have the Chevy Malibu and the Chevy impala competing with eachother for sales on dealer lots. This would mean lower sales for either vehicle if they were offered singularly, which means costs will have to be spread among fewer vehicles which means lower profits.

A Buick Coupe on the other hand would make a ton of sense, they are not on the same dealer lots and it would be more up market. Although a Zeta Buick Coupe would be more beneficial to the Camaro in the long run as they can share chassis and some parts with eachother.