Consumer Guide’s Impressions of the 2012 Chevrolet Malibu

Chevrolet is already redesigning its award-winning midsize car for what looks like a tough decade ahead. Fresh styling, more room and new fuel-efficient powertrains could mean more accolades--and more sales.

What We Know About the 2012 Chevrolet Malibu

Chevrolet execs must be beaming these days. Not only has their midsize Malibu sedan won the 2008 North American Car of the Year award, it outpolled out a key rival, the also-redesigned 2008 Honda Accord. That’s an impressive turnaround from the dishwater-dull Malibus of recent years, considering that the NA COTY is chosen by a select group of hard-headed automotive journalists.

Then again, the 2008 Chevrolet Malibu has been winning rave reviews since it first broke cover, and that’s been very good for sales, which must please bow-tie bigwigs even more. In fact, demand is currently so strong that General Motors is talking about more production to keep up.

But awards and buzz quickly fade from memory, and there’s no time to rest in today’s fast-paced automotive world. That’s why Chevrolet is already working on the next-generation Malibu, which is expected for model-year 2012, possibly 2011. Is Chevy rushing things? Hardly. It still takes four to five years for most vehicle makers to take a new model from first thoughts to final assembly, about three years once the basic design is locked-in. With competition so fierce these days, it’s never too early to start thinking about tomorrow.

What’s the thinking behind the 2012 Chevrolet Malibu? That’s difficult to say, as development is still at an early stage. But we can confirm some major elements and make safe guesses about others.

For example, we know that the 2012 Chevrolet Malibu will share GM’s new “Epsilon 2” (E2) midsize-car platform with the 2010 Buick LaCrosse, slated to bow in early 2009, and a redesigned 2010 Saturn Aura expected later that same calendar year. The current Aura and 2008 Malibu use the original Epsilon platform, as do the Pontiac G6 and GM’s premium-brand Saab 9-3. Exterior sheetmetal will again disguise the common “bones,” but with a key difference. Unlike E1 models, E2 is being engineered so that all versions can be built in the same plants, including overseas facilities. Such “flexible manufacturing” allows GM to more quickly alter the production mix to suit changes in sales demand, which not only saves money but also boosts potential profits. It’s the same approach used by Toyota, Honda, and Nissan, and you know how successful they are.

Spy photographers have already snapped test prototypes of the redesigned Aura and LaCrosse, so it’s logical to infer that the 2012 Chevrolet Malibu will also have an arched roofline and a boxy tail (good for trunk space), plus higher-rise bodysides with more sheetmetal creases for a leaner, less “puffy” look. Equally inevitable is a new version of the current Malibu’s Chevy-brand “face”, but still with a thick horizontal bar bearing the bow-tie logo laid atop a large trapezoidal grille.

Sources say the 2012 Chevrolet Malibu will be somewhat larger than today’s car. That implies an extra inch or two in wheelbase and overall height--but maybe not overall length--which should mean more passenger and cargo space. E2 engineers at GM’s German Opel branch, which have global responsibility for GM midsize cars, will be watching weight with an eye towards boosting fuel economy and reducing emissions. We thus expect the 2012 Chevrolet Malibu and other E2 models to make greater use of lightweight materials, including stronger hydroformed steel for major structural members, which should pay off in cars that are tighter, quieter, and more durable.

The Epsilon 2 platform is engineered to accept both front-wheel-drive and all-wheel-drive powertrains, but we’d be surprised if there’s an AWD option for the 2012 Chevrolet Malibu. That’s a premium feature that doesn’t jibe with Chevy’s role as GM’s “value brand.” But a gasoline/electric hybrid option does fit Chevy’s mission as GM’s global “green” leader, and we expect that option will be the more-sophisticated new Two-Mode system now rolling out in GM’s big SUVs and pickups. The Two Mode Malibu would likely use the same front-drive-based components as the upcoming 2009 Saturn Vue Two Mode compact SUV. That means a 3.6-liter V6, a pair of battery-driven electric motors, and a special dual-range four-speed automatic transmission. As a “pure hybrid”--but not a plug-in--this Two-Mode setup allows low-speed operation on battery power alone. Though GM hasn’t yet released power and torque figures, it says the Two-Mode Vue will get 50 percent better fuel mileage than a conventional V6 model and will go more than 500 miles on a tank of gas. Look for similar thrift in a Two-Mode 2012 Chevrolet Malibu.

Malibu is now available in a “mild hybrid” version, with a single motor acting as a kind of “electric turbocharger” for a 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine. This simpler system saves fuel mainly at stoplights via an automatic engine stop/restart feature. Like some other hybrids, including Two-Mode, it uses coasting/braking energy to recharge the batteries, but does not allow driving on electricity alone. Though GM’s future plans are unclear, this system costs much less to build than Two-Mode, which could keep it around as a more-affordable green alternative for the 2012 Chevrolet Malibu.

Conventional four-cylinder and V6 powertrains won’t be neglected. GM’s corporate 3.6 V6 already offers efficiency-boosting direct fuel injection in some applications, so we expect that feature to migrate to Malibu by 2012, if not before. It’s one tool GM has for meeting the government’s tough new 35-mpg mandate taking effect in 2020. But for that very reason, we think a pair of new high-efficiency engines may be destined for the 2012 Chevrolet Malibu. Executives at GM Powertrain talk of replacing current engines with smaller units that achieve better mileage without sacrificing performance. The next-gen Malibu could thus offer a base four-cylinder of around 2.0-liter displacement and a V6 of, say, 3.0-liter size. Low-pressure turbocharging could be the magic key to doing more with less, but we’ll have to wait and see what develops.

Of course, smaller engines mean less fuel-wasting mass for a car to drag around, but they also mean less front-end weight to spoil handling. We thus expect the 2012 Chevrolet Malibu to be even more agile and fun-to-drive than the already-capable ’08, thanks to more-equal front/rear weight distribution that allows the suspension to be tuned for a better balance between handling and ride comfort.

In other respects, the 2012 Chevrolet Malibu shouldn’t be radically different from the award-winning ’08. Four-wheel independent suspension and antilock brakes are sure to continue, for instance. So, too, the many safety and convenience features we take for granted these days. But the redesign should add a new measure of European sophistication to an all-American family-car package, including greater refinement and still-better fit/finish and workmanship. Add in enhanced eco-efficiency, and the 2012 Chevrolet Malibu could be another award-winner, and that’s good news for consumers.

A Notable Feature of the 2012 Chevrolet Malibu

Electronics keep getting better and cheaper at a very rapid pace, as anyone who’s bought a flat-panel TV in the past five years can attest. Which only means that there’s a good chance the 2012 Chevrolet Malibu will offer fancy features now found only on costly luxury-brand cars. Front/rear obstacle detection? Lane-departure warning? Perimeter-view camera system? Don’t be surprised if they’re on the options list, or maybe even standard on uplevel models. We’d also guess that interior designers have some new ideas for all those “road warriors” who so often use their car as a mobile office. A built-in cell phone charger? A hands-free communications system a la Ford Sync? Portable plug-in GPS navigation? Hey, it could happen.

Buying Advice for the 2012 Chevrolet Malibu

Competition among mainstream midsize cars has always been intense, and should be even more so in coming years. Besides, you just know that Toyota and Honda are going to fight hard to protect their class sales leadership, now that GM has suddenly reemerged as a force to be reckoned with. Yup, we’re just repeating the old saw about the importance of scouting all the choices before you buy, but it’s about all we can do right now at this early point. As for rebates and other deal-sweeteners, we don’t expect any right away. But then, who knows for sure what the economy and new-car market will be like four years from now?

2012 Chevrolet Malibu Release Date: Sales should be underway by spring or fall of calendar 2011, assuming model-year 2012 timing. Bring that forward 12 months if GM slates the next-generation Malibu as a 2011 entry, as some sources believe.

2012 Chevrolet Malibu First Test Drive: Media previews for a 2012 Chevrolet Malibu could be held as early as late 2010. A 2011 model would be likely feted some 12 months before that.

2012 Chevrolet Malibu Prices: We’re taking another wild guess, partly because the on-sale date is so far off, but also because GM has learned how to build better products for less money and still make a profit, and who knows how much more efficient they might be by the new decade. So, gazing hard at the proverbial crystal ball: $22,500 for a base four-cylinder model and up to $30,000 before options for a line-topping Two-Mode Hybrid.

For more inside information on hundreds of new cars of today and tomorrow, check out:

• C­onsumer Guide New Car Reviews and Prices: Road test results, photos, specifications, and prices for hundreds of new cars, trucks, minivans, and SUVs from the Auto Editors of Consumer Guide.
• Chevrolet: Read Consumer Guide's full reports, including ratings, prices, specifications, and fuel economy.
• Midsize Cars: The 2012 Chevrolet Malibu will compete in the midsize car class. Here's Consumer Guide's roundup of all the midsize cars on sale today.
• 2008 Consumer Guide Best Buy and Recommended Award Winners:
  Check out which cars won our Best Buy and Recommended awards for 2008.
• Future Cars: Step into the automotive showroom of tomorrow with reviews, analysis, pictures, prices, and preliminary specifications on scores of vehicles that will be appearing next year and beyond.