Chevrolet News:Revealed! 2014 Chevrolet Malibu

[hyperv6]

Tell that to all the 21-22

The 1 MPG improvement is welcome but still not enough. GM didn't go far enough with the MPG improvements. This car needed a weight loss of about 100-150 LBS across the board and maybe the aero tweaks and grille shutter treatment like the Cruze Eco uses. A little sanity with the tire sizes would sure help here too. 19" wheels are heavier and also affect your final drive which requires the engine to spin higher thus reducing mileage. They also suck horribly in the snow! Notice that most competitors use 16, 17 and 18's on the highest end models. That is plenty large enough for a car this size. The parking brake is in response to consumer feed back. I'm not sure about the new center console. Where is the armrest? I don't even see it in the picture unless it's mounted way back in which case only your elbow is going to contact it. The loss of HP and torque sucks even though it is nominal. The taillights should have been what was changed, not the front end. They took the wood grain trim off the steering wheel which is good.

Hopefully GM gets a clue about packaging and trim levels with this car. It is really silly that they have no less than 8 different trim levels of this car. Is that really necessary? Just offer a basic Malibu with 2.5, push button start, 16' alloys, 6 way power seat and the current std equipment for $21595. Then offer an LT with the same engine, dual chrome exhaust, 17" alloys and leather wheel with steering controls, leather shifter, 8 way power seat, remote start, backup camera, Mylink and upgraded interior materials and color choices for 23595. Then they can have the Eco for 24595 and a top LTZ trim level with leather, 18' alloys, dual power heated seats, Zenon headlights for 26595. The turbo motor can be a 995 option on both LT and LTZ and a few option packages can gives buyers options on those models. I would also offer a Sport package for both the LT and LTZ that includes the turbo engine, 18" alloys for the LT, monotone exterior trim, specific wheels, carbon fiber interior trim and a sport steering wheel with paddle shifters, sport suspension and a unique grille a rear spoiler.

They have this already and it is called the Cruze.

The Malibu is going to be a more expensive car and many of the things that need fixed will come but not till the next gen arrives. The issue is the last Malibu was a better Fusion and the new Fusion became a better Malibu. The Bu is not a bad car just a good car in a tough segment.

The bottom line is you are not going to get much of a Malibu for less than $25,000 and most will cost you over $30K as this is the price range this segment is in.

Tell that to all the Altimas, Camry's, Accords, Sonatas and Optimas I see being sold out the door for 20-22K. Also the Cruze is not big enough for many buyers including myself, especially in the horribly cramped rear seat. Nor does it offer a 16.3 cu.ft. trunk, a std 196 HP engine with a 259 Hp engine optional.

With the 1.25 increase in rear seat knee room the 2014 Malibu will be spacious out back compared to the cramped Cruze. I had both a 2012 Cruze 2LT with leather and a 2014 Malibu 2LT for rentals while my Impala was having collision work done. The Cruze sounded, drove and felt like an economy car with the one surprise being fairly quiet road noise. The Malibu felt wider and more spacious to me, was more comfortable, quieter and larger car feeling and the 2.5 flat out was a superior drive train compared to the Cruze's buzzy always revvy but not very powerful 1.4T. Even with all the griping about rear seat legroom my folks could sit comfortably in the Malibu's back seat but felt cramped in the Cruze. Even the combined average fuel mileage wasn't all that different between the two vehicles. 26 overall for the Bu and 27.2 for the Cruze. The Malibu also had a roomier wider center storage console, overhead sun glasses holder which the Cruze lacked, fog lamps which the Cruze lacked and the headlights worked better on the Bu.

It always amazes me how so many complain and gripe that the Cruze is the same size as the Malibu and that the Malibu shouldn't even exist yet here we have 3 Nissan products with very similar interior and trunk volumes selling along side each other with not a word said. The new Vera sedan, the new Sentra and the new Altima are all very close in size inside and trunk space with the only real distinction being engine sizes and power output. The Versa in fact actually seems to have more back seat leg room compared to the Sentra and Altima. There interior volumes are 90.2 for the Versa, 95 for the Versa and 100.5 for the Altima. The Cruze is 94 and the Malibu is 101.3. I didn't bring up the noticeably smaller Sonic because it is very obviously not mistaken for a mid size like the Cruze often is and Malibu and is not brought up in that argument.

I Don't know were you shop but I see stickers at the same as the BU with comparible modes. The low ball prices are generally on models with less features and options then even the cheapest Malibu. In othert words even the lowest gutted Bu has more in it than the lowest priced $20K Accord.

The next Cruze will shrink in size but have similar interior while I expect the next BU to grow a little since GM needs adjust the sizes to the other in segment.

As cars shrink automakers really are stepping all over their own models anymore as there is becoming smaller differences between them anymore in size and engines.

[ehaase]

The next Cruze will shrink in size but have similar interior while I expect the next BU to grow a little since GM needs adjust the sizes to the other in segment.

Other message boards say the next Cruze will be even slightly larger than the current model.

[Z-06]

It is going to be a long 4/5 years for GM with this duckling.

[balthazar]

MALIBU = why the hell is the MSRP so high when I see altimas and camrys advertised at 21k with all sorts of stuff on them.

Malibu :: MSRP 21995 / average trans 19927

altima :: MSRP 21760 / average trans 21123

camry :: MSRP 22235 / average trans 21038

[regfootball]

it should come with legroom at those prices......it used to have it...

[hyperv6]

Now the Impala has grown a new platform with a Longer wheel base would be so much better now.

I do have to say my 08 feels more like the new Impala in back vs. the new Malibu.

[regfootball]

i stopped by a dealer today (tested a volt) but every time i slip into a new malibu it is more and obvious how flawed it is.

To me, it's not a big deal, the car drives really well, and i like the center stack. But there are from a market perspective so many goofs.

And perhaps the biggest one. Go sit in the back seat of a cruze and then go sit in the back seat of the Malibu right after.......it's almost the same.......

GM is so behind the curve still. New platforms all around for nearly all their products should be the order of the day ASAP.

[regfootball]

2014 Nissan Versa Note rear leg room. Compare to 2013/14 Malibu

[NeonLX]

Bleh. Looked at a new Malibu over the weekend. I'd rather have my '07 Maxx with lots more legroom and cargo volume, not to mention the smooth & torquey 3.5L V6. I swear, nobody is producing a car that I'd actually want now.

[Robert Hall]

Now the Impala has grown a new platform with a Longer wheel base would be so much better now.

I do have to say my 08 feels more like the new Impala in back vs. the new Malibu.

The 08 Malibu actually has a longer wheelbase than the new Impala...GM really dropped the ball w/ the Epsilons when they shortened the wheelbases...

[G. David Felt]

2014 Nissan Versa Note rear leg room. Compare to 2013/14 Malibu

That rear leg room is funny as I have only ever seen that on this car with people being under 5'6" tall driving, get taller people or people with long legs short body and you have very little leg room.

[balthazar]

Again reg, the published numbers don't seem to bolster your criticism of the Malibu.

Versa leg room :: FRT : 41.8, RR: 37.0, aggregate: 78.8

Malibu leg room :: FRT : 42.1, RR: 36.8, aggregate: 78.9

Not sure how you are seeing 0.2" in your pic.

Yes, the Malibu has 5" more wheelbase than the versa. But sitting inside & criticizing the (identical) legroom seems misplaced when really you are addressing packaging, no?

I ask this, never having sat in a versa OR the current 'bu; there may be other room constrictions that don't show up in the absolute numbers.

Or look at it this way (and ask yourself what's wrong with just about ALL modern vehicle packaging) :

The mercedes s-class has a 17 inch longer wheelbase than the Malibu, yet it's legroom numbers are 41.9 & 42.3, aggregate: 84.2.

It has a 17-in longer WB but only gives 5" more legroom than a Malibu. :shrug:

Edited July 23, 2013 by balthazar

[regfootball]

well yeah its about packaging. the malibu is terrible. the leg room specs flat out lie in terms of real leg room.

what is missing is the pic of the malibu underhood and 9 inches of open air space between the motor and bumper. that would have been useful leg room.

[balthazar]

Like I said- where did mercedes waste the FULL FOOT of wheelbase vs. the Malibu??

I will have to sit in a current Malibu, because I doubt the figures are lying and there's no way one is "terrible" and the other isn't in terms of interior space.

And you know car's aren't packaged like you imply; if addressing the claimed 9" of space in front of the motor, only the nose would shrink- no OEM will shift the powertrain/firewall forward, ESP in a FWD car. Only way to move that is a wheelbase increase.

BTW, the previous gen Malibu legroom numbers :: 42.2 / 37.6. It lost three-quarters of an inch in the rear. Being that the WB decreased by 5 inches, packaging has greatly IMPROVED!

Bah- I don't give a fig about the intangible of 'packaging'. The real issue in this & most other car-based segments is WIDTH- not enough of it.

[G. David Felt]

I agree that the width is an issue, I hate and suspect most hate to be bumping elbows with people as they try to be comfortable driving down the road.

Packaging is an interesting area as a few have pointed out to me that the so called full size CUV triplets have just about the same internal space as the full size Tahoe SUV. Yet I bump elbows and do not have the head room. So while some might feel that these mid size CUV's are equal to a full size SUV, the packaging just does not go with the numbers.

I will have to relook at the Malibu as I do not remember it being that bad as reg seems to state and his versa is clearly not that in the picture. Show us just how close that front seat is to the steering wheel.

[Drew Dowdell]

I agree that the width is an issue, I hate and suspect most hate to be bumping elbows with people as they try to be comfortable driving down the road.

Packaging is an interesting area as a few have pointed out to me that the so called full size CUV triplets have just about the same internal space as the full size Tahoe SUV. Yet I bump elbows and do not have the head room. So while some might feel that these mid size CUV's are equal to a full size SUV, the packaging just does not go with the numbers.

I will have to relook at the Malibu as I do not remember it being that bad as reg seems to state and his versa is clearly not that in the picture. Show us just how close that front seat is to the steering wheel.

Which still doesn't tell the whole story. Cars like the Leaf and Beetle allow for much more upright seating.

[G. David Felt]

I agree that the width is an issue, I hate and suspect most hate to be bumping elbows with people as they try to be comfortable driving down the road.

Packaging is an interesting area as a few have pointed out to me that the so called full size CUV triplets have just about the same internal space as the full size Tahoe SUV. Yet I bump elbows and do not have the head room. So while some might feel that these mid size CUV's are equal to a full size SUV, the packaging just does not go with the numbers.

I will have to relook at the Malibu as I do not remember it being that bad as reg seems to state and his versa is clearly not that in the picture. Show us just how close that front seat is to the steering wheel.

Which still doesn't tell the whole story. Cars like the Leaf and Beetle allow for much more upright seating.

I love Upright Seating. The worst thing for me is being reclined trying to drive. Not sure how select youth can drive being reclined and barely able to see over the dash. Weird in my book.

[Drew Dowdell]

I agree that the width is an issue, I hate and suspect most hate to be bumping elbows with people as they try to be comfortable driving down the road.

Packaging is an interesting area as a few have pointed out to me that the so called full size CUV triplets have just about the same internal space as the full size Tahoe SUV. Yet I bump elbows and do not have the head room. So while some might feel that these mid size CUV's are equal to a full size SUV, the packaging just does not go with the numbers.

I will have to relook at the Malibu as I do not remember it being that bad as reg seems to state and his versa is clearly not that in the picture. Show us just how close that front seat is to the steering wheel.

Which still doesn't tell the whole story. Cars like the Leaf and Beetle allow for much more upright seating.

I love Upright Seating. The worst thing for me is being reclined trying to drive. Not sure how select youth can drive being reclined and barely able to see over the dash. Weird in my book.

..well... not quite what I meant. Driving my '81 Toronado is like driving a very low set couch. My legs are almost straight out in front of me, which is fine because there is plenty of leg room and even if there wasn't no one rides in the back anyway.

In the Beetle, it is closer to an SUV like posture more like sitting in an office chair.

In neither case is the seatback reclined like what you're talking about.

[G. David Felt]

Got it, now I see what your talking about and thinking about this, I do remember select cars that were low seating where your legs are pretty much straight out versus the bench chair style of seating.

[hyperv6]

I agree packaging is how some are better than others.

I believe that some companies take liberties on how they measure. I am sure they are accurate but they may measure ever nook they can. It is like Cam Shafts there is the advertised lift measurements and them there is Lift at 50 that equals all measurements.

Many things affect seating and passenger room the dash shape and placement, Seat shape size and placement and door panel shapes etc. There are ways to open of space and I just do not think it was taken advantage of as much as it could have been in the new BU and it hurt it more since the old one was so much larger.

But with that said with the new Impala coming they could not keep the Malibu the same size. Also I expect the Cruze to see a size adjustment as well as the next Malibu. This BU is not going to be around long as there will be another new platform for it before long.

[Drew Dowdell]

I agree packaging is how some are better than others.

I believe that some companies take liberties on how they measure. I am sure they are accurate but they may measure ever nook they can.

Hyundai is guilty of this in the Sonata at least.... if not others also.

[regfootball]

yes but the sonata back seat and the Azera back seat are nearly equally spacious and both are adequately roomy. Plus on the Sonata, the cushion is reasonably high.

The Malibu packaging is botched in the back in many ways. It's not rocket science. Despite however they tried to manipulate SAE measuring standards to claim they have good space, the reality is the ingress and egress, seating height and knee space and especially foot space all suck balls.

I was able to ride in a relative's 08 malibu recently and was in the front seat. It was tight in width! Plus hard to get in and out of the low window head. Back seat seemed to have SOME leg room though.

So what do they do in 2013? Wider, maybe a BIT. But they butcher the back seat. The roof line comes too low too far forward. The seat bottom is too low. The seats in front are too bulky. The door opening all around is too tight. Worst is the footwell is majorly intrusive and the base of the seat in front is so badly done and bulky you have to wedge your feet in there.

Now go sit in a 13 Passat.

Packaging, when i was selling the Kizashis, some people said they were a bit short of leg room to select competition. But absolutely in a car that is like 10 inches shorter than the 13 malibu, it had livable rear seat space. I could get my feet under the front seat. I had tons of knee room. The seat was high enough and had enough head room. I could take road trips in the back of that car. The Malibu is too tight in back. I look under the hood of the 10 inch shorter Kizashi and there is no wasted space. Why is the Malibu so much longer overall yet less commodious back seat. Answer, too much hood. Too long, too high, tons of empty space under the hood. Why did Chysler go cab forward? SPACE. New fusion is all hood and has a tighter backseat although not as bad as the Malibu. New Mazda6 is tight in back too.

I sold a used Sonata to our detail guy because he needed the extra room beyond the Kizashi. The Sonata is quite large inside, so the argument that the Impala is the big car now and the Malibu has to be much smaller does not wash. Simple truth is the Epsilon disease and decisions GM made on packaging the past epsilon cars hurts their packaging. Even the new Impala is still narrow, that is why the door panels are so thin, to maximize interior width. Impala would benefit from 2" extra girth. Look at how narrow the XTS is.

Why is a new sentra so much better for leg room and rear seat comfort than a Malibu?

[Robert Hall]

Like I said- where did mercedes waste the FULL FOOT of wheelbase vs. the Malibu??

RWD proportions, I would assume...a lot more length between the front axle and firewall w/ RWD vs FWD; more of the wheelbase is used for the interior on a typical FWD....unfortunately, the short axle to firewall distance in a FWD car is what causes the dreadful proportions and styling when viewed in profile..

[riviera74]

Wow. I guess nobody is really impressed with the new Malibu.

[regfootball]

well to be honest, packaging and styling aside, it's not a bad car! in the grand scheme of things it's still a pretty good car but the competition is so stiff.

[vonVeezelsnider]

With reference to the rear seats in the 2013 Fusion vs. the Malibu, I rented one (the Ford that is) at Christmastime in Arizona and found that the front seats have *a lot* of fore/aft travel relative to other midsizers I've sampled/rented recently which makes the rear seem smaller with the seats pushed closer to their limit.

In reality I found that for effective space and comfort along with ingress and egress, the Ford compares very favorably with my mother's Malibu Maxx, only wider- and over the years I've always felt no deficit of rear seat stretch out room in that car desipte its other shortcomings. Fusion's also got longer rear doors and, thus, longer openings than the current 2013 Malibu which creates the impression of space as well.

No one manufacturer's measurements can be reliably compared to others, even across different models from the same manufacturer. These comparisons are best made in person as many on this site have done and posted about from time to time.

I'm about 5'11 and of average build and I was actually very comfortable sitting behind myself in the Fusion, the accomodations seemed nearly cathedrallike compared to the penalty-box that is the rear of my Impala, which doubles as a torture chamber since you can't get your feet under the front seats even with your shoes off and if the front seats are markedly back, requires a contortion routine for ingress and egress due to the huge front seats and small rear doors. The build quality/fit & finish issue is a whole other kettle of fish and the 2013 Malibu kicks the crap out of the Fusion in that contest, but that's another discussion for another time.

The current Malibu already has more foot room and ingress/egress space than the W-Body but it's not great compared to other cars in its class.

Edited July 24, 2013 by vonVeezelsnider

[hyperv6]

To me the Fusion is like they targeted my 08 Malibu and Chevy then changed the car.

I do notice Ford has messes up on the exhaust. The up scale cars have the exhaust in the bumper. the Di is leaving soot running down the bumper and it look horrid on the lighter color cars. It must not take much as the cars are clean and two black stains running down. I noted the Lacrosse is not showing this.

[G. David Felt]

To me the Fusion is like they targeted my 08 Malibu and Chevy then changed the car.

I do notice Ford has messes up on the exhaust. The up scale cars have the exhaust in the bumper. the Di is leaving soot running down the bumper and it look horrid on the lighter color cars. It must not take much as the cars are clean and two black stains running down. I noted the Lacrosse is not showing this.

Would be interesting to see this as I have not noticed this on Fusions around Seattle nor on my Aunts Fusion.

[hyperv6]

To me the Fusion is like they targeted my 08 Malibu and Chevy then changed the car.

I do notice Ford has messes up on the exhaust. The up scale cars have the exhaust in the bumper. the Di is leaving soot running down the bumper and it look horrid on the lighter color cars. It must not take much as the cars are clean and two black stains running down. I noted the Lacrosse is not showing this.

Would be interesting to see this as I have not noticed this on Fusions around Seattle nor on my Aunts Fusion.

Look for the up level package cars with the openings in the rear panel. I have see 5 here like that. Nothing is really wrong but it just does not look good and has that diesel or oil burner stain look about it.

The Lacrosse that have a similar set up have a thinner panel under the pipe and it does not show. Buick either noticed and fixed it or they just got lucky.

[vonVeezelsnider]

To me the Fusion is like they targeted my 08 Malibu and Chevy then changed the car.

I do notice Ford has messes up on the exhaust. The up scale cars have the exhaust in the bumper. the Di is leaving soot running down the bumper and it look horrid on the lighter color cars. It must not take much as the cars are clean and two black stains running down. I noted the Lacrosse is not showing this.

Indeed you are right, I've seen this on a few lighter colored Titanium models up here, but I don't see the same thing on the LaCrosses or Lexuses (Lexiii?) that I also come across.

The Fusion I rented was a rare well-equipped SE Luxury model with the 2.0T Ecoboost and the fascia exhaust and did not observe this over the week I had the car, but it only had about ~2000mi on it when I picked it up and I put about 1400mi on it.

[OhioTom76]

i really didn't care for the design in this most recent Malibu. It seemed like a step backwards to me, the car looked too tame and like something meant for old people to drive around in.

[riviera74]

i really didn't care for the design in this most recent Malibu. It seemed like a step backwards to me, the car looked too tame and like something meant for old people to drive around in.

You would not believe the trend of old people driving midsize cars these days. It used to be LeSabres and Park Avenues, but now a lot of them drive Camrys and Accords (well, Baby Boomers do). Their elder siblings or parents are often in Lucernes.

[regfootball]

http://www.autoblog.com/photos/2014-toyota-corolla-first-drive/med/#photo-852130

2014 corolla leg room, compare to malibu

41.4 inches of rear leg room.

[Drew Dowdell]

It's the platform GM is stuck with for now.

[Robert Hall]

Hopefully they will improve the layout with Epsilon III in a few years.

[Paolino]

Regarding a comment in the thread about the small armrest... if it's anything like mine, it is small. Mine moves fore and aft though... I keep it back only because when you move it forward, it exposes the greased track which can get on things if you're not careful.