2008 Malibu Hybrid Spied

The technology offers a small efficiency gain, but no smog-related emission improvement.

How well has its sibling been selling, the Aura hybrid?

 

I don't know the details of the hybrid Malibu, although I support the concept... but the main reason I chose the Prius is because all the other hybrid vehicles had too much of a price increase (versus their non-hybrid counterparts) for a relatively minor bump in fuel efficiency. I hope future hybrids do better, but a 5 mpg-ish gain just isn't going to excite a lot of consumers.

 

Let me guess, without reading the article or knowing anything about the car itself. A mild hybrid right? All that it really does is shut off at stoplights or when you're in line at the dealership to get the latest defect fixed. Wow, GM takes another giant one-inch leap forward. YAWN!

 

The rear end of this vehicle looks like a strange copy of the Honda Civic. Not so good...

Nothing to see here. No big efficiency gains, and i bet it's still just a LEV II.

 

Looks like Volty is looking for some more hits on his website.

At least it doesn't have a lot of chrome. Still has that "big butt" front end, though.

 

I recently took out the Aura for a test drive, and have to say I was really impressed by how well put together the car was. Honestly, the fit and finish is a step up from the Prius. For example, the door panels didn't flex when my knee rested against it, and there were a lot of thoughtful touches like a telescoping steering wheel.

Unfortunately I'd have to wait for a hybrid. Most of them are going to various taxi companies across the border in NYC, and consumers are stuck waiting. But I suppose they're going to get better use out of them than a regular consumer would.

So bottom line is, do I wait, or do I go with a conventional car instead? They said they'd give me 11K for a Prius trade in, which given the mileage (close to 70K on a 2004) and the condition (f'n Toyota, couldn't you have used a dash material that wouldn't warp) is fair.

 

Nice Passat.



Seriously, the fact that GM is putting more hybrid systems in their vehicles is a plus. I am not a GM guy, but at least this gives buyers more choices.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Family Hybrid @ Jul 4 2007, 09:38 PM) [snapback]473254[/snapback]</div>

The "consumers are stuck waiting" comment leaves you wondering about how serious they really are.

A small number of mild hybrids won't make much of a difference, especially from such a large automaker.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(john1701a @ Jul 4 2007, 10:54 PM) [snapback]473262[/snapback]</div>

Just like the Prius, they're off to a slow start. And just like the Prius, I'm sure there will be more than enough to meet demand.

But on the plus side, at least they're not turning into lot queens, like the HiHy, which I'm sure we both agree is a good thing.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Jonnycat26 @ Jul 4 2007, 10:01 PM) [snapback]473267[/snapback]</div>

15,000 for the first THS model Prius here. 60,000 for the first HSD model Prius here.

How is Aura hybrid just like that ?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(john1701a @ Jul 4 2007, 11:08 PM) [snapback]473271[/snapback]</div>

Why don't you call GM and ask them for figures? We've discussed this before on other forums, and you and I both know that it's just too early to make any conclusions.

Seriously, trying to draw a conclusion based on the fact that they're hard to get in north jersey (which you tried to do before) is just you being... a bit of a tool.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(john1701a @ Jul 4 2007, 10:54 PM) [snapback]473262[/snapback]</div>

That's an interesting thought. So far, when a car manufacturer decides to make a hybrid sku of a vehicle, be it the Aura, the Vue, the Highlander, the Camry, the Escape, or the Civic... it's always a higher priced, lesser known version of the vehicle.

At best, for vehicles like the Highlander, we're talking about 1 out of 4 consumers choosing the hybrid sku. A lot of consumers seem to more or less ignore the hybrid option.

Why doesn't a car manufacturer just come out, and deploy hybrid technology as the ONLY option in a vehicle?

I'm talking about more than a new-segment vehicle like the Prius. Why doesn't GM just bite the bullet and stop making a "conventional" Malibu, and make the 2009 MY Malibu only hybrid?

I thought the principle advantage of GM's BAS assist hybrid was that it had the most bang for the buck, meaning it was extremely cheap to implement?

I may be a little young to remember this, but when fuel injection technology was introduced in cars, car manufacturers weren't making a different sku of the same vehicle using "fuel injection" or "conventional carburetor" to distinguish them, did they?

With the new fuel economy standards about to be passed into law in this country, ALL car manufacturers have to seriously consider making hybrids standard on all cars... Hybrid technology shouldn't be treated as this alien, unproven technology for so long...

 

Just another example of GM showing they're not serious about hybrids or fuel efficient vehicles. It's all about the PR.

 

I look at it as being a defense vehicle. What I mean by that is it is a quick way to counter the currently hot prius so they can say we also have a hybrid. At this point they would rather sell at a loss if only to maintain market share. Plus if their shaky engineering dishes out a piece of crap, they can go on a PR campaign about how awful hybrids are and hydrogen fuel cells are the future. On the other hand at least it is more hybrid competition and ultimately if it does well should lower prices for all hybrids.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Tideland Prius @ Jul 5 2007, 07:12 PM) [snapback]473726[/snapback]</div>

And the plastic console in the prius doesn't move?

Honestly, I was just impressed that the door panels didn't flex, unlike the Prius. And the telescoping steering wheel has just about sealed the deal.

Note to Toyota... how much does a telescoping steering wheel cost anyway, and why are you so cheap about things like that?

 

Isn't the Aura based on an Opel? I heard something about it on a car show, they didn't mention the hybrid, just the v6. The said it had more of a European feel to it. Still, it's a mild hybrid.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(JackDodge @ Jul 4 2007, 05:15 PM) [snapback]473207[/snapback]</div>

Hey, let's not forget that GM has now perfected the technology to glue a "Hybrid" badge onto a car body.

Marketing 101:
If you can't compete on the quality of a new line of products, produce a bunch of cheap knockoffs, use the same generic name (in this case, "Hybrid") and ruin its reputation.

Success is then measured when the word on the street is, "Yeah, I hear Hybrids are a bunch of crap."