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By Holly R.
Pros:
- Decent mileage
- Acceleration is reasonable at speed
- Pretty stylish looking
- Looks roomy
- XM® Satellite Radio
- OnStar (Standard for ONE YEAR)
Cons:
- Not a lot of storage in the main cabin
- Battery takes up too much room when the seats are folded down for trunk over-spill
- Little noise reduction (despite what’s advertised)
- The switch from gas engine to battery mode and back again is not seamless
- The mileage was decent, but not what I’d expect from a hybrid (some non-hybrid cars get better mileage)
Introduction:
The 2008 Malibu Hybrid is a really sharp-looking sedan. The car’s lines are really nice and it actually looks like it has a decent amount of room. I was excited to drive it, and compare it to the only other hybrid I’ve driven – a Prius. Plus, the Malibu was voted the 2008 North American Car of the Year.
Driving Impressions:
I didn’t expect the vehicle to have much in the way of “bling” or horsepower. But I honestly thought that it was a decent ride. Definitely not plush, but not a rough ride either. It was somewhere in the middle. The most impressive thing about the ride was its stability. I’ve driven a Prius in the wind and rain, and was absolutely terrified. I’d give the Malibu a much-higher rating for stability at any speed. I felt very safe, and very stable in this car.
Build:
The seats and trunk seemed a bit flimsy. I had to be extra firm when closing the trunk, else it didn’t latch. Even though I felt the seats were a bit flimsy, they made up for it with the fact that they were reasonably comfortable. The doors seemed very light and wispy, but I didn’t have any issues in closing them. The windows rolled up and down easily, but the soundproofing was sub-par. It was noisy in there! Bottles rattled in the bottle holders, as the holders seemed a bit big for a standard water bottle.
(Continued on page 2 – Interior Comfort | Performance | Handling)
(Continued on page 3 – Styling | Value | Conclusion and Ratings )
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Malibu is good car and save my money to buy fuel.
I own the Mailbu hybrid and I think for the money it is a good car. I took it on a trip last week end and averaged 35 Mpg. I get 26 in town.Over all for not being a full hybrid I think GM has done a good job.The 09 model will get 26 in the city and 34 on the highway. That is 2 cents worth.
OMG, Bob, you’re right. I swore I put the MPG in the review, but I forgot it. Point taken.
The Malibu got 28.5 mpg while I was driving it. The mileage is decent, given the mileage of most standard cars on the road today. But I was a bit disappointed that I couldn’t get the mileage up into the 30′s. I’m pretty easy on the gas pedal, and this was the best I could do…
Did I miss something here? What about fuel economy? This is a hybrid right? You don’t mention anything about the biggest topic most potential hybrid drivers consider. Instead, you focus on cupholders, CD holders and trunk space.