2014/2015 Chevrolet Malibu opinions?

['01LS1]

Looking at a new car for Mom & kind of steering her toward a new Malibu. She currently has a 2005 Malibu LTZ with a V6 & over 130,000 miles has only needed brakes, oil changes & tires. Personally think the '05 is in the running for the ugliest car on the planet award, but has turned out to be very good over the last ten years, particularly with getting 33-35 mpg on the highway.

 

So was looking at replacing her old one with a new one, but V6's are no longer in the segment. Know she would hate the base 4 cyl & that only leaves the 2.0L turbo. Any issues with that motor or suggestions would be appreciated. The dealer is offering lifetime warranty in addition to the factory warranty on any oiled parts in the driveline, but know aftermarket warranties do not always live up to the way they are sold.

[SnakeEyeSS]

Sounds like she got lucky with her 05. Before my brother bought his last car he was looking at them and after test driving 3 in a row that were 1-2 years old that interior pieces literally falling off he wrote them off.

 

Here is the thing, I'm just guessing, but is your mom a senior? I experienced the same thing with my grandmother when she was looking at Malibu's.

 

That hate 4cyl, because when they were younger, 4 cyl were piles of garbage not fit for anything. That has stuck in their mind, they learned to hate thw.m(old habits die hard)

 

Today's 4 cylinders have more power that many V8's in those days, and are totally different animals.

 

Get her to drive one and avoid telling her which engine it is. She will be surprised. That new 4cyl is a better engine than her old V6 anyway.

 

 

That said, the 2.0T has only been around a short time, so no known long term issues will he known. I don't believe its the same as the Solstice GXP/Cobalt SS engine, but I could be wrong

 

The dealer will only honor that warranty if your oil is changed there to their intervals. Its kinda like the BG warranty in principle. Its not a manufacturer warranty so the MM act doesn't apply if I'm correct

[MikeNH]

I've driven several Malibus as rentals and all had the base I4. It has plenty of power. If she has her heart set on a V6 you'll be limited to the new 200 (under no circumstances would I even consider a old 200 or Avenger) or a Camry, Accord or Passat. They're all good cars and the imports are substantially bigger inside than the Malibu but if she doesn't need to use the back seat much the Malibu is a great car.

[MD Chevy]

We actually just bought a 2014 Malibu. Prior to this car we had a 2006 Malibu with the v6 and a 2010 Malibu with the 4 cylinder. The current Malibu has the base in-line 4 but reminds us a lot of the power of the 2006. So far we love the car, albeit we only put on a little over 1000 miles.

 

We looked at a lot of the cars in the segment. Even though the Malibu has less room than a lot of them in the back seat, it felt much bigger than the competition in the front seats.

 

I strongly recommend the Malibu with the base 4 cylinder. I cannot comment on the 2.0 turbo.

['01LS1]

Thanks guys for the above info. Have taken her test driving the last two weeks & yes, she is 67 years old that doubles my blood pressure even thinking about trading cars. We do not speak the same language it seems at some points.

 

She has driven the following...

 

2014 Terrain V6 fwd. Liked it, probably would have bought it if the mpg on the V6 had been in the upper 20's vs 24. That scared her off of that one.

 

2014 Lacrosse V6. There were two 2014's left down at Laura, but her opinion of loaded up Lacrosse's were Cadillac price range.

 

2013 Ford Taurus used, liked appearance but it had issues. Also why do these cars drop in half price wise in less than 2 years or 20,000 miles.

(yes I know depreciation, but the Ford Taurus & Volkswagen CC drop like a rock vs other similar makes/models).

 

2014 Impala Same as Lacrosse, BUT she likes the upper end packages with leather sun roof etc. Her friends car has all the blind spot crap, so she wants

all the safety packages, all the LED running/tail lights, the biggest motors & yet the mpg of her old car.

 

2014 Malibu turbo was the best mix of everything with the main concern being a turbo 4. But the dealer is 8 miles from where she lives & did ask about the

oil changes for the warranty. They said the only thing you needed was documentation as she still has it changed out at 3,000-3500 miles vs the recommended 7 or 7500.

Did not read all the details & am sure there are definitely some things they can worm their way out of covering post factory warranty.

 

She has mentioned the Ford Fusion, but am pushing to steer her away from the eco boost deal. Am sure most of the bugs have been worked out of that system.

But never been much a fan of that idea.

 

Anyway, appreciate all the above information & any more to come.

[MikeNH]

The Ecoboost in a Fusion is no different than the 2.0 turbo in the Malibu. It just has a name.

 

As for the Taurus, not impressed by it. Interior room is horrible relative to its size. And MyFord Touch is the worst infotainment system on the market.

['01LS1]

Yeah, had to look up Fords smaller engines. Am not a fan of the twin turbo idea found in the 3.5 & never looked up if any of the smaller displacement motors were single or twin turbo.

[Colossus]

I drove a 2014 Malibu with the 2.5L LCV-I4 as a loaner from the dealer while my Impala was in for some warranty work. That 2.5L did NOT feel like a 4 cylinder at all but more like a 6 Cylinder. Now keep in mind this 2.5L is not turbocharged either. It could defenitly give my 305HP 3.6L Impala a run for the money. I was VERY impressed with the build quality and performance. fuel economy was ok.

[PMattras]

I think the Chevrolet Malibu are nice cars. I had two and the only problems I had is it went through front brakes very fast.

['01LS1]

She bought it this afternoon. Thanks much for the responses. Hope it lasts like the last one did, which coincidentally worked out to be traded at 10 years to the day.

[SnakeEyeSS]

So, which did she get? I see an LTZ, is it a Turbo or NA?

[MD Chevy]

That's beautiful. Congrats to your mom! I think she will be very happy with her choice.

['01LS1]

So, which did she get? I see an LTZ, is it a Turbo or NA?

 

LTZ 2.0 turbo. There was a dressed up LT with the same motor that had a few things she wanted. But with all that was added in options, it was less than a thousand difference to the LTZ that had more standard.

That's beautiful. Congrats to your mom! I think she will be very happy with her choice.

 

Thanks & hope so or I will never hear the end of it.

[Colossus]

That's great! Tell her congrats for us.

['01LS1]

That's great! Tell her congrats for us.

 

She is really liking the car. Have not asked fuel mileage yet.

 

After seeing it the other night with the HID headlights, LED tail lights & the interior lit it up, made my 2013 truck look like crap.