Never let it be said that the General has lost its touch for whimsy. Other manufacturers may simply introduce a new mid-sized sedan… but where’s the fun in that? Far better to build both the old car and the new car at the same time, sell them side-by-side, and make sure customers can only buy the new one in a highly-specialized trim level. That way, all that pesky new-car fever is thoroughly dissipated and the public has completely lost interest by the time the mainstream models are available.
Without further ado, then, here’s your 2013 Malibu, available solely in “eAssist” form for the first half of 2012.
The new car will sell for $25,995 including destination and is projected to achieve fuel-economy ratings of 26city/38hwy. It’s claimed to be 130 pounds lighter than the standard model, which won’t be built until the summer. There are a few surprise-and-delights in the standard features list, including keyless entry, 17-inch alloy wheels, auto headlamps, and a 7-inch touchscreen for the innovatively-named “Chevrolet MyLink”. Apparently “MyChevyTouch” was taken or something.
Chevrolet’s far from the first manufacturer to introduce a new model on a split-availability system, but normally it’s done for vehicles where there is an established, conservative buyer base which may prefer the older model. (The last two major F-Series introductions were examples of this, particularly the 1996/1997 run which saw very strong sales from the old truck.) The Camcord market doesn’t work this way. The Eco models will simply make the other Malibus on the showroom floor look like used cars, albeit used cars which are significantly more handsome than their successors. When the current Malibu was introduced, the old car was renamed “Classic” and sold exclusively to rental fleets. It wasn’t a super-brilliant idea, and it’s less so now.
The 2013 Chevrolet Malibu: Appearing in a rental fleet near you… next to a 2012 Malibu!
they already did it with the Cruze Eco and Ford does it with their Econetic models and such
dunno what’s the point as they aren’t hybrids so… shouldn’t they all be ‘Eco’?
The eAssist is a hybrid system, though it’s similar to the old Malibu Hybrid’s belt-assist system. It’s about three times more powerful (both assist and regen), though still milder than say Honda’s hybrid systems.
Perhaps I’m showing my age here, but does anybody else recall how many different shapes of Oldsmobile “Cutlass” were sold at one time? I’ll give you a hint…it was back when the collective varieties of Cutlass made it “America’s Best Selling Car.”
I remember. It was almost as many different shapes as Toyota sold the Corolla in.
Or as many shapes as Toyota will sell the Prius in.
1988 – four.
Cutlass Ciera (A-Body)
Cutlass Supreme (W-Body)
Cutlass Supreme Classic (G-Body)
Cutlass Calais (N-Body)
Don’t forget the Lumina! do you remember how ridiculous the workings of that name was?
There was the Lumina sedan, the Lumina minivan (which was a rebadged Olds Silhouette), and the 5th gen. Monte Carlo, which was really just a Lumina coupe.
GM has a solid string of losses in the hybrid space. It could be that they intend to capitalize on interest in the new model in order to get a win for at least one hybrid model.
Want a 2013 Malibu? This is what you get and GM puts a win in the “hybrid” column.
Is it really an hybrid?
No it is not a hybrid, that is why it is called e-assist and the electric motor helps the gas engine. That is why it gets reasonable fuel economy but doesn`t cost $30K like the Fusion hybrid. It is called the middle ground – whether it works or not will be seen. Buick is doing it with the LaCrosse and Regal.
They are sometimes called “mild hybrids.”
The original Malibu BAS cars are about as scarce as hen’s teeth but I did happen to see one this summer. I asked the woman who owned it if she liked it.
“It’s OK but the gas mileage isn’t there. For the money, I oculd have bought a Prius.”
Mike, it is a hybrid, but a mild one. That is why GM isn’t calling it a hybrid and instead calling it e-assist. That way people don’t think it should get more mainstream hybrid mileage when it doesn’t.
I think GM is almost trying to “trick” people into buying their mild hybrid system i.e. e-assist.
Sounds to me more like GM is trying to launch the Malibu with the best foot forward. And compared to other mid-size, high fuel economy sedans, the Malibu Eco seems like a pretty good bargain to me starting at $26k.
I think this is the car people are going to want…whereas they might “settle” for the lesser Malibu’s when they come out. But this way, GM can get these e-Assist cars out on the road, so when the next customer comes in, he/she is asking about ECO, not base models.
GM is only launching with the “Eco” model because the new 190hp 4 cylinder engine is not ready until the summer (when it will then go into the Regal, Verano and other models). So GM could have waited until next fall to introduce the new Malibu and wait whilst the competition gets tougher (new Camry, Fusion and Passat) or they could launch what they have now.
BMW did this with the previous 3 series in 2006, come 2007 they changed engines to the 328 and 335 – should they have waited a year until the engines were ready?
As for saying the Camcord market doesn`t work this way – Jack may be right but the rules can be changed. Just like when Hyundai and Kia didn`t bring out a V6 model. Up until that point all manufacturers had a I4 and a V6. The rules changed!
@mike 978: you beat me to it: Hyundai changed the rules about the midsized cars. When reading about the Malibu e-assist in Car and Driver, they seemed to think it was risky not to offer a V6 in the 13 Malibu, never mind that others won’t be offering a six cylinder model, either.
FWIW, GM’s marketing arm is going a long way to avoid the “H” word with this car. Even though it is similar in concept to Honda’s IMA hybrid system, I think with the reputation of the previous Malibu’s (and Aura’s) hybrid model, it is the right thing to do.
Toyota defined what a hybrid is to most people, and (I think correctly) GM is avoiding head to head competition with that. Of course, if you want a Chevy that takes on the Toyota concept of hybrid, here’s a nice new Volt.
If I were in the position of looking at a new car for myself, this would be one of the contenders. There’s a lot of utility in a mid-sized car, and at this point in time, a ’13 model would be quite the novelty. But I am interested to see if a Malibu SS model will ever show up again…
Hyundai didn’t boldly change the rules. CAFE, $100 oil, and the Obama economy did. Hyundai was first to market by luck of where they were in their redesign cycle when those conditions lined up.
Dan, you make some good points, but other manufacturers who have introduced new mid-size cars (or significant refreshing) since the Sonata and Optima came out have not followed (yet) such as the Camry. Ford and GM though do seem to be following the lead of Hyundai/Kia. Also wouldn`t the decisions as to exclude a V6 and all the engineering changes that entails have meant they started work in say 2006/7 – well before $100 a barrel oil or President Obama being in office.
The 2012 Camry is a refresh on the old platform. The 2009 Sonata was all new.
Re: V6 vs. I4: I have a 2009 Pontiac G6 with the 2.4 I4/6 auto combination. My oldest child has a 2007 Saturn Aura with the 3.6 V6/6 auto drivetrain. While her car is faster from a stop, mine has better city fuel mileage. But, we both drive our cars in city-type of traffic the vast majority of the time.
This is the reason why I bought a 4 cylinder mid size car, the vast majority of my driving is city conditions, the higher city fuel mileage gives me a better return on my ‘investment’ (in the smaller engine), so to speak. The Aura is rated at 17 MPG in town, the G6 is rated 22 MPG in town (EPA figures). That 5 MPG will make a big difference over the lifespan of the car.
Ultimately, that’s where Hyundai and the others are headed. Most 2.5L 4 cylinder engines make more power than V8’s from 20 years ago, combined with 6 speed transmissions, get good acceleration and very good fuel mileage. In order to meet ever tightening fuel mileage mandates, and if the price of fuel goes drastically up again in the US, to meet market demand.
The summer of 2008 still resonates with me. I can remember filling up three cars with $4.25/gallon gasoline (as my Canadian and European friends laugh at me for complaining about the prices), it was not fun.
This is why the Turbo Regal gives me hope for a SS level Malibu. We know the chassis/engine combination exists and works well. Now I’d like to see that combo ‘trickle down’ to the Chevy line.
Or make me another Maxx…
This is a perfect illustration of why CAFE must be stopped. The Hyundai Sonata turbo is only 0.2 seconds quicker from 0-60 than the hybrid Camry while getting 1.4 less mpg than the V6 Camry that is 1.2 seconds quicker from 0-60. At least it drives like a bodge while the Camry is doing its best Mercedes 500E immitation.
On a 22/34 EPA figure, the Sonata turbo returned 23.3 mpg
On a 21/30 EPA figure, the Camry V6 returned 24.7 mpg
On a 25/35 EPA figure, the Camry I4 base returned 34.1 mpg
On a 35/40 EPA figure, the Sonata Hybrid returned 27.0 mpg
From Motor Trend 12/11, all driven in the same conditions which must have been rural based on the Camry I4 mileage figure.
People who still believe in the government deserve what they get.
Am I missing something here? Who cares about e-assist if the car looks like a half assed refresh. Man that thing is disappointment. I expected better out of the General, especially since the last malibu was such a evolutionary step for their brand’s design.
The last was revolutionary, this is evolutionary.
Agree. It will be hard to draw attention to GM’s fuel-saving technology when the styling is already so generic.
I can already see the progression:
1. Chevy ads tout the all-new Malibu, capable of 38mpg! No mention of “hybrid” or the pricing.
2. GM sells some of these cars.
3. In 6 months, the non-eco versions become available, and Chevy ads start screaming “All-new Malibu, starting at $19,995”
4. Shoppers arrive at dealerships expecting to see 38mpg midsize cars selling in the low $20s. Instead, they see 32mpg cars in the low $20s, or a 38mpg car optioned up to almost $30K.
5. Shoppers are disappointed.
Now I’m no sales expert, but I don’t think disappointment is what you want showroom visitors to experience.
Isn’t this how all halo vehicles work?
Get people in the door so the salesman has a chance to sell them something. (Yes, I know this doesn’t work on us enthusiasts, but I’d say the average member of the car-buying public is uninformed)
This strategy is working well in the Volt/Cruze relationship and should work with the Malibu Eco/LT (like it does in most large manufacturers showrooms.)
The high-end, low-profit vehicle gets them interested and in the building, but they move on to a more middle-of-the-road, higher profit trim level when it comes time to sign the dotted line.
Plan makes sense to me. That’s why automakers have been doing this for decades.
GM has never rolled out a large volume vehicle in one massive fell swoop. Toyota shows us pictures of a 2013 Camry and within a few months there’s a million of them on the lots, in all guises, available for immediate purchase. That speaks volumes of their confidence in their quality. GM shows you a picture of a car, rolls it out in limited volume on a specific model (often years after you’ve seen the design, i.e. Volt/Camaro), then trickle feeds the inventory, all the while decontenting the existing model and whoring the hell out of it to the fleets, thus destroying the value of the cars their existing clientele own. Either that or they launch a new car in foreign markets first so they can work the kinks out for a few years before the US launch (see Cruze). If they could learn how to launch a car like their competitors do I’m sure it would do magic for their sales volumes.
There’s always been explanations for “strategies” of why GM is doing it this way, but it’s all bunk…after seeing every major launch go this way it’s clear that it is a quality control step. In other words, they don’t have the confidence in launching en masse like other manufacturers do so they trickle them out and let the public be the guinea pigs.
I do own a 2010 Malibu which I think is a very nice car–I like it much better than what I see here of the 2013. However I have a few rules about a GM purchase–one being that I won’t buy one of their “newest” offerings, I’ll wait until they’ve been out a couple years as I think it makes a major difference in the car’s quality and durability. It does piss me off that they’re now pushing my model to the fleets as much as they’ve always done before…I guess it was a false sense of hope that the 2008+ model would signal a new emphasis on fostering a majority retail ownership. Boy do they run their business like a bunch of amateurs.
I agree with some of what you have said (such as they should be aiming for majority retail sales) but I don’t think you are being completely fair when you say “That speaks volumes of their confidence in their quality. GM shows you a picture of a car, rolls it out in limited volume on a specific model”. The Cruze was rolled out all in one. The Volt is a specific, low volume and market driven car. The Camaro was a halo car and at the time of bankruptcies was being held for publicity reasons as something positive to hold onto. I completely agree Honda and Toyota are much better at showing a car and then selling it within a few weeks to months (like the new Civic) and I wish Gm and others (like Ford – Escape) would follow them.
The Malibu’s slow roll-out is to do with the main engine being 6 months later – this is known.
As for the Cruze being rolled out in other countries first that is true but also applies to other manufacturers – like the Ford Fiesta.
dont forget Lt. Dan demanded the new malibu be rolled out sooner, so that has to be a factor in what we’re seeing. They were basically forced to push the car out before the planned date to meet managements requests. Thus limited trims, engines, etc.
There’s always been explanations for “strategies” of why GM is doing it this way, but it’s all bunk…after seeing every major launch go this way it’s clear that it is a quality control step.
My guess is that it’s probably an accounting move, i.e. something to do with amortizing and depreciating the tooling and equipment of the outgoing model.
Agree, Pch101.
Maybe we’re bored of the current Maibu, but that car gets more and more profitable the older it gets.
Yeah Chevy wants to sell the new Malibu, but probably isn’t as upset as you’d think if they move a few of those older models in the process.
NN, you make a lot of points there, but I think we’re are all too uninformed to know why any of these companies do what they do. But please, speculate all you want. That’s what internet commenting sections are for right? And good for you for thinking you car run a multi-billion dollar, international manufacturing company better than current execs.
dan +1. I do find it amusing when some on here think they could run a multi billion dollar, multi million unit global enterprise much better than the current execs (in any company because they all get criticized by someone). It is harder than it looks.
Look!
It’s a Malimpala!
The current Malibu might make some folks incredibly happy, but it was still outsold by the Impala. It might be a better car, but it did not sell as well as the old car.
So, why can’t the next Malibu be more appealing to Impala folks? That is what I see here – a Malimpala.
Aren`t more Malibu’s sold to retail customers than Impal’s are? Impala fleet sales (all fleets) is around 75% with the Malibu under 50% isn`t it?
I think “Impalibu” works better… :)
GM’s channel-stuffing and incentives and “Classics” really killed the value of my mother’s mid-90’s Malibu.
When the current Malibu was introduced, the old car was renamed “Classic” and sold…..”
Classic…the most overused and abused word in the automotive world.
well head on over to europe where they use new, newer and newest. strange, maybe. I will say classic does sound much better than “previous”, “old”, or as a dealer would say “Last years model” cause thats really helping the sale right there.
This is a mid-sized car that gets similar (highway) mileage to a hybrid Camry or Fusion for thousands less. Whether it is any good is unknown, but selling on value is what Chevrolet has done for 80 years.
I wonder if there are buyers who are hostile to hybrids due to cultural reasons but who still want good mileage?
Based on what I see on Craigslist, I am guessing the previous Malibu’s resale is low regardless of whether GM opts to sell both models side-by-side. It will take years to build up the resale and I would wager that selling the old and new together will have little impact on that. Rather, the perceived attractiveness of the newest model is a bigger influence on resale.
26 city MPG is very good for this car, if true. We’ll see how robust the e-assist proves to be.
Camry hybrid LE is $25,900 and gets 43 city, 39 highway. How is the Malibu thousands less? We don’t really have full feature content out yet to see if the Eco is more of an XLE or LE trim, but on base cost alone, the new Camry hybrid is very competitively priced.
Jeez why is everybody taking a dump on this thing? Toyota as shown that people will pay for mileage, and this seems like a pretty good value proposition for midsized mileage. And that interior isn’t half bad, either.
Not that I’d ever buy one, of course.
Everyone’s taking a dump on it because the Camry Hybrid that gets oh…15 friggin’ MPG more than this thing in the city costs less money than it.
“The Eco models will simply make the other Malibus on the showroom floor look like used cars, albeit used cars which are significantly more handsome than their SUCCESSORS.”
So…the newer cars are going to be uglier?
That’s my opinion, yes.
Oddly enough, I kind of like the front end on this thing, but Chevrolet can ditch the bisected grille any day now.
IMO the current Malibu is the best looking in its class. I haven’t driven any other except the Camry, so can’t comment on driving dynamics, fit and finish and quality. The new Malibu I’m sure would look great in person. Pictures don’t do justice for this car, especially in red like above. The new one takes a formal looking car and tweaks it a little to make it look aggressive. I am glad they fixed the rear, which was my only gripe about the current model.
youtube.com/watch?v=3TOaH951jdM
http://media.gm.com/content/Pages/news/us/en/2011/Oct/1018_koreaMalibu/_jcr_content/rightpar/sectioncontainer_0/par/download_0/file.res/Malibu%20production_1.jpg
Well obviously everyone has thier own opinions on what looks good and what doesnt, but I would guess you are the exception in this case. IMO, very few people will think that the Malibu (old or new) is better looking than the Hyundai or Kia competitors. Regardless of what you think about the cars themselves, its hard to argue that they are very stylish.
For about $4k less, the non-turbo 2012 Hyundai Sonata GLS is rated at 24-35, less than 10% lower, and with a non-compromised trunk. For about a thousand more than the Malibu Eco, and with a slightly more compromised trunk, the Hyundai Sonata Hybrid is rated at 35-40. That’s significantly more on the city side and but only slightly higher on the highway side.
For similar money to the Malibu Eco, you can get a Prius with almost double the city mpg.
Supposedly the 2013 Ford Fusion hybrid will be more of a mainstream car. They have been scarce as hens teeth in the midwest. Even now dealers are gouging $2-3k over sticker.
I heard the Fusion hybrid may get close to Prius numbers for highway,somewhere around 48mpg – will see if that happens.
The Sonata and Optima hybrids have been panned for poor fuel economy, delivering far less than the EPA figures. Especially when the other hybrids – Fusion and Camry are close to their EPA figures.
As for getting a Prius for around the same money and twice the city figure. That is true, but it is true against all mid-sized cars that are not full hybrids.
I am glad to see Hyundai (and now Toyota) have full hybrid models out for mid $20K’s rather than Ford keeping the Fusion close to $30K. I hope the new Fusion has a lower spec model in the mid $20K’s.
They might as well build all the remaining 2012s with V6 power so people who refuse to buy a 4cyl only sedan can snatch them up. A sick little part of me wishes they would be stupid enough to slap “Classic” badges on them. (Although I’m one to talk given that I own a 2004 F150 Heritage edition.)
would the little silver GM badge do? LOL
Reserving judgement on the Malibu Eco until I drive it. However, Jack’s right…putting it on the showroom floor alongside 2012 last-gen models guarantees nothing except a whole lot of cars that could have been sold retail getting wholsaled to whatever rental agency will take them.
This looks like a Ford 500 with a Yaris nose, pretty strange face-lift if you ask me.
The interior looks nice but I doubt that it’ll feel nice.
I think they have taken the expession ‘facelift’ a bit too literally. If you see this car next to the previous Malibus the grille seems to be moving up/back. By 2016 it will be laying flat on the hood of the car.
Other than that, it’s a US market car, we have Opel, so I will never see one…
Now that you mention it, I *think* I saw one of these yesterday behind some velvet ropes at the SF auto show. Feel free to dry hump the ZR1 but hands off the Malibu!
Yeah, it is at the SF show. Hard to remember though, right?
The 43/39 MPG 2012 Toyota Camry Hybrid LE lists for $25,900. $95 less than the 26/38 MPG “e-Assist” Malibu.
One look at their respective interior shots, and I’d gladly pay the extra $95 for the one with the bow tie.
You’re looking at pics of a top of the line Malibu not the base price Malibu ECO. And that “wood” pattern in the Malibu looks like dog poop in person, I have no idea who decided that that would be a good pattern to go with-it doesn’t look like wood in the small pics on the internet and up close it looks like someone tried to draw wood grain with a marker.
Also seriously GM cut it out with the stupid rubberized textures everywhere like the roll-up cover on the center console (behind the shifter)-the last thing I want in my interior is a super sticky rubbery material to suck up every last spec of dust available.