The 2008 Malibu LT

With a nod to my wife, who’s always been a huge Barbie fan, we get to this week’s subject, Chevy’s new Malibu. This could possibly be one of, if not the, most important cars General Motors has put in a showroom in years. Once the world’s largest producer of automobiles, the General is now looking up from the number two spot at rival Toyota.

Who’d-a-thunk it? Some 42 years ago, Chevrolet introduced the mid-sized Chevelle in what was then a new segment of the market. The Malibu was an upscale series within the lineup, just a notch below the Malibu SS. Back when Chevy was introducing the Chevelle, Toyota was showing us the new Corona and Corolla—the Corona being the larger of the two, while the Corolla was initially a subcompact which would eventually (in the Great American Car Tradition) get larger and larger until it replaced the Corona as Toyota’s main compact. Years later would come the even slightly larger Camry, which would, again in the GACT, morph into Toyota’s full-sized family car.

After spending some time on the bottom rung of Chevy’s mid-sized ladder, the Chevelle name disappeared in 1977, when the Malibu name simply took over the entire line. Then, in 1984 the Malibu was replaced by the new front-wheel-drive Celebrity. Never say never, though. The Malibu name returned in 1997 on a new mid-sized sedan, which leads us up to the all-new 2008 model. So far, Chevy has decided to hang on to the Malibu moniker, making it available for 2008 in LS, LT, LTZ and Hybrid models. General Motors, and much of the automotive press, are heralding the new Malibu as a true alternative to Toyota’s top-selling Camry and Honda’s popular Accord. Could it be true? As this is written, the new Malibu is one of the three finalists for the North American Car of the Year Award, the winner of which will be announced at the North American International Automobile Show later this month in Detroit. Not bad for what has been, for the past few years anyway, a rather dull, strange-looking sedan, the front of which reminded me of the Geico gecko who’d just been caught doing something he shouldn’t have been doing. GM describes the front of the new Malibu as “the global face of Chevrolet.” That’s certainly better than a surprised lizard.

The 2008 Malibu started life on a blank sheet of paper. Exterior, interior, drivetrains—they’ve all been redone. When I first saw spy photos of the new Malibu late last summer, I must admit I wasn’t impressed. Then from half a block away I saw one pulling off of an auto transport truck in the fall, and I couldn’t figure at first just what it was. As I got closer I was sure it was a new Lexus; wasn’t I surprised when I finally got close enough to see the gold bowtie emblems! “Wow, it’s a Chevy,” I said out loud to no one in particular. So I guess a picture isn’t necessarily worth a thousand words after all. Seeing though, is believing. Every time.

Engine choices for 2008 are: a 2.4-liter four-cylinder (which will probably seem pretty underpowered), a 3.6-liter V-6 and the Hybrid—which is also the 2.4-liter four mated to an electric motor/generator which GM tells us should get 24/32 miles per gallon city/highway. All engines come with an automatic transmission. The base LS starts at $19,995, and according to Chevy’s Web page, the Hybrid will be the most affordable Hybrid sedan available in America when it goes on sale early this year, starting at $22,790.

We’ll drive one when it becomes available. Meanwhile, I can’t wait to see who wins the Car of the Year Award…stay tuned.

For more info: chevy.com.