2008 Malibu Hybrid: worth it?

Roomy mid-sized sedan among best on market, but fuel consumption is similar to gas version

Nov 29, 2008

Special to The Star

It's not often that I sit in traffic and get a thumbs up from a cyclist for my vehicle.

But this man apparently considered me a kindred spirit, since my Chevrolet Malibu, fresh from a special display at the local mall, was festooned with huge decals on its flanks announcing that it is a hybrid.

With the plug-in Chevrolet Volt still in the future, the Malibu is one of two hybrid sedans currently on the General Motors roster, along with its mechanically identical Saturn Aura sibling.

My 2008 tester had an MSRP of $26,995; for the 2009 model, it rises to $27,995, but GM has also tweaked the system so fuel economy for 2009 is better, at 7.9 L/100 km in the city and 5.8 on the highway. My 2008 tester has a published rating of 8.5 and 6.2, while I got a combined 7.9, mostly in highway driving.

That's somewhat better, but not overwhelmingly so, than the conventional four-cylinder Malibu, which gets 9.4 and 5.9 in city and highway, respectively. Malibu Hybrid's simple system uses the 2.4 L four-cylinder gasoline engine found in the regular Malibu, and mates it to an electric motor, a nickel metal hydride (NiMH) battery pack mounted in the trunk, and a four-speed automatic transmission.

It's what's known as a "mild" hybrid, meaning that unlike competitors such as the Nissan Altima Hybrid, Honda Civic Hybrid, and Toyota Prius and Camry Hybrid, it won't run solely on its battery. If you're accelerating, you're using gasoline.

Like the other hybrids, though, the electric motor assists the gas engine on hard acceleration, such as highway passing, and it has an "auto stop" function: come to a complete stop and the gasoline engine shuts off, so you sit there using no fuel and emitting no emissions (to a maximum of two minutes, according to the owner's manual).

Other tricks include an "eco light," which illuminates to tell you that your featherweight foot is helping the car achieve its best economy, and a special "hybrid a/c" feature that cools the car, but doesn't chill it (there's also standard a/c that will).

Alongside the regular warranty of three years/60,000 km on everything and 5/160 on the powertrain, the hybrid components are covered up to eight years or 160,000 km.

Overall, the car works well, with the electric assist coming in seamlessly, and with brakes that don't have the hard, artificial feel that some hybrids exhibit (energy from braking charges the battery).

But I suspect the system's simplicity works against it with many buyers: it just feels so damn satisfying to drive a hybrid on battery power alone, silently and completely fuel-free, and that doesn't happen with this one.

And while that was initially offset by a price tag that considerably undercut the competition, Toyota has fought back by tagging the 2009 Prius at a base of $27,400.

Not only is it $595 less, but it includes some items missing on the Malibu: heated mirrors, fog lamps, cargo net, illuminated vanity mirrors, auto-dimming rear-view mirror and garage door opener.

(In its favour, Malibu's electronic stability control is standard; on Prius, it's only available as part of a $3,260 package that also adds a premium stereo, Bluetooth, proximity key and backup camera.)

Among other hybrids, the smaller Civic Hybrid is less expensive, at $26,350, while the more expensive but more luxuriously equipped Camry Hybrid is $30,660, and the Altima Hybrid is $32,298.

Lacking the ability to run fuel-free, the Chevy also doesn't come near the competition's fuel economy.

For 2009, the Malibu's published city rate of 7.9 L/100 km is up against 5.7 for Altima and Camry, 4.7 for Civic, and 4.0 for Prius.

Measured on its home turf, Malibu Hybrid is based on a model that I think is one of the best midsize sedans on the market – roomy, well-built, stylish and with an attractive and comfortable interior.

Its features are roughly equivalent to the non-hybrid Malibu 1LT trim line, which costs $25,350, or $2,645 less than its electrified sibling.

Both models include six airbags, OnStar with a year of downloadable navigation directions, cruise control and driver's seat power height adjuster, while the hybrid adds automatic climate control and XM satellite radio.

This is a very good midsize sedan, but for the price premium over the regular Malibu, the fuel savings aren't that spectacular – you'll notice the most benefit if you spend a lot of time sitting in traffic, when the engine will shut off.

Against the competition, it costs more than Prius or Civic, but it's larger. Against the similarly sized Camry and Altima, it's cheaper.

As with any hybrid, you've got to assess where, how and how much you drive, and determine if it's the right car for you.

Toronto Star