2008 Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid Revealed...To Bad it Only Gets 2mpg More Than the Normal Version!

OMG, you stupid, stupid Americans!!!

I bet with you put the same tires in the non hybrid you get the same MPG. (maybe even better in the hwy)

A least GM was fair enough to do not lie about the mpg it would get. "... Wanna buy a hybrid and waste your money, go ahead!.."

Why not put a few thousand dollars accesory in a car we sell.. its more money for us and will make some people hapier..

To put this in perspective:
Malibu Hybrid 2.4L 4-cylinder automatic - 24/32mpg
Toyota Camry 2.4L 4-cylinder automatic - 29/43mpg
Toyota Hybrid Camry 2.4L 4-cylinder CVT - 50/50mpg
Toyota Camry 3.5L 6-cylinder automatic - 26/40mpg

"Toyota Camry 2.4L 4-cylinder automatic - 29/43mpg
Toyota Hybrid Camry 2.4L 4-cylinder CVT - 50/50mpg"

That's interesting considering that CVT's actually get worse mpg than automatics. I'd love to see the two tested side by side and the results tallied. You'd probably end up with something like 25/37 for the CVT.

Remy,

Are you sure that's true with modern CVTs? The Audi CVT gets fuel economy practically on par with their manual 6 speed (slightly better in the city and slightly worse on the highway).

Car and Driver was given identical Yaris' from Toyota with one an auto and the other a CVT. They set up a 250 mile loop for driving. The CVT had significantly better acceleration, but about 15% less mpg than the automatic in the same driving conditions. It has to do with the hydraulic pump that changes the ratio on the CVT sucking up more power from the engine.

The US government would like to have Domestic auto makers include alternative fueling options with each car they build. GM is not stupid, they are following the orders of the Bush administration. Our government's president has his stock in oil. He doesn't want to have that stock degraded because GM and Ford want to cater to every american.

Personally, A president should have NO stocks or investment interests for any company in America or else where. The president should be able to make decisions based on what is good for the country not his pocket!

So when people like omg make those stupid comments, we can honestly say they are stupid.

Will GM sell these cars, heck yeah, in fact NY and CA will purchase them for fleet vehicles and taxis.

LOL, you stupid, stupid Andrew!!!

"Will GM sell these cars, heck yeah, in fact NY and CA will purchase them for fleet vehicles and taxis."

And all it will do is give GM more money while the customer gains nothing over buying the regular model. Why would Americans do that you ask? It's simple. They're a bunch of morons.

So I guess all GM did was add low resistance tires and a stack of rechargeable batteries. Then they connected the batteries to nothing.....

A 4 Speed Auto.....wow now thats cutting edge.
I think a 6 speed might save just as much fuel on the petrol model.

Wow, an extra 2mpg with a bill in the thousand$$$ to replace the batteries every several years. Fuel economy that can't match a normal V6 Camry. How do the GM engineering and marketing staff keep their jobs? Oh right, it comes in red.

This is the biggest joke I've heard this year. To bad it isn't funny. A whole 2 mpg increase? Almost everyone can increase their gas mileage by 2 mpg by keeping the proper air pressure in their tires and by changing driving habits. The only think GM is doing is adding expense to the purchase price and later when it comes time to service the vehicle. What a waste. Hasn't GM taken any notice of the prius and what it needs to do in order to accomplish great fuel economy? What about that 4 speed? Even my VW has a 6 speed in it. Come on GM. You used to be a superpower in the auto manufacturing world. Now you are not worthy even to shine my shoes.

Japan.com - It's an 08 model, my friend. You should be using the new EPA numbers for those Toyotas as well. I have the new EPA estimates for you, straight from fueleconomy.gov. I've thrown in a couple of other vehicles out of curiousity.

Chevy Malibu Hybrid 2.4L 4-speed Auto: 24/32 MPG (not yet on EPA site)
Toyota Camry 2.4L 5-speed Auto: 21/30 MPG
Toyota Camry Hybrid CVT: 33/34
Toyota Camry 3.5L 6-speed Auto: 19/28
Honda Accord 2.4L 5-speed Auto: 21/31
Honda Accord Hybrid 3.0L 5-speed Auto: 24/32
Chrysler Sebring 2.4L 4-speed Auto: 21/29
Ford Fusion FWD 2.3L 5-speed Auto: 20/29
Mazda 6 2.3L 5-speed Auto: 21/28
Kia Optima 2.4L 5-speed Auto: 21/31

So there certainly is a MPG advantage, but it is much narrower than old estimates would indicate. With that being said, I like Toyotas, and wouldn't mind owning a model with their 3.5L V6, its a very solid motor and a good balance of power and mileage. Still, it seems more people need to do a little independent and unbiased research. A few out there are probably too busy typing out pre-programmed Down-With-America statements. This is unfortunate, as there are some perfectly nice people here as well who don't possess such hate.

Here's some additional information that may be interesting to some of us. The 6-speed autos (6T40 and 6T70 transmissions) will be in certain 4- and 6-cylinder models. The 4-speed auto (4T45) is likely going to be used in more affordable models, as it is gradually being phased out. They're using the 3.6L DOHC VVT engine for their V6 models.

Their numbers may not be the most impressive in the world, but they're making progress, and MPG isn't the only factor in buying a sedan. It will probably be a pretty good car overall if the Aura is anything to go by. It looks better than the Aura too, in my humble opinion, not that the Aura looks all that bad.

"OMG, you stupid, stupid Americans!!!"

You got us. All 300 million of us got together and decided that a crappy hybrid Malabu was a great idea.

Thank you Alex, I immediately went to FE.GOV and then thought... Wait a minute, someone MUST have called his bluff before me.

Besides, who ever said that Hybrids were good on the Highway. City ratings improve 4 mpg, which for those of you who are bad at math, is 20% for this car.

And although I agree with everybody that says they can improve mileage by driving habits, in hybrids it's even more applicable. If you coast more and brake lightly more, you can significantly improve mileage. The EPA test is still set up in the Speed-up, apply the brakes, speed-up, maintain speed, style. So proper hybrid maximization will improve mileage more than proper gas-only maximization.

I think everyone is forgetting that estimated mileage values are going down across the border. This is because the EPA is changing the method in which gas mileage is calculated in order to better reflect real-world mileage. It's likely that when other models are re-calculated, they will be in the same ballpark.

"I think everyone is forgetting that estimated mileage values are going down across the border."

Which is why I'm glad I live in Ohio and am far away from those mpg stealing Mexicans!

.....I think the word you were looking for was "board", not "border". =)

Great American engineering.
Go on GM and Ford. We European together with the Japanese & Korean Car builders are glad with this progress and performance.
Another few years of increasing oil prices combined with more of these efforts and the market is wide open for us.
Wait till the blue tech diesels will make their debut in the States and you will understand the big diesel dominance in Europe.

WS: Look more closely at the numbers. They are going down across the board, however Hybrids are hit much harder. Previous tests inflated their numbers. In other words, most gas engines only lost 2-3 MPG, while your hybrids dropped in the 5-10 MPG range.

Grumpy: You don't understand this market very well. Diesels are great, but politicians aren't. Let me give you an example. I'm sure you're familiar with E85, and the fact that it has a lower volumetric energy density than pure gasoline. Well they're simultaneously voting to force makers to increase fleet mileage, and they're pushing E85 and E85-capable engines, even though mileage achieved when using E85 is much lower. Why bother with E85 at that point, if mileage is so damned important? The more people that use E85, the less price competitive it will be.

Back onto diesels: Diesel emission standards are incredibly, ridiculously tight here now. To the point that it is difficult to engineer a diesel that is powerful, reliable, and efficient without adding significant cost. However, since you are so curious, you'll be glad to know that the next GM Duramax diesel will be a powerful and efficient option for larger vehicles. Hopefully more manufacturers will bring smaller diesels to the market for cars as well, that can meet the new standards and still be reliable and affordable.

Remy, did you take some funny pills or something? That was great.