Does the 2016 Chevy Malibu Live Up to the Hype?
Perhaps you’ve seen the few TV and many YouTube Chevy Malibu commercials, though if you haven’t, don’t worry, you’ve been spared the pain.
The 2016 Chevy Malibu arrived into dealerships earlier this year with much fanfare, not only because a complete redesign was long overdue, but also because Chevrolet promised for the new generation mid-size to be a game changer for the American nameplate. Well, game changer it is, but in a good way?
I recently spent a whole week behind the wheel of the Chevy Malibu, and I can tell you that not once did I confuse it with an Audi, a Lexus, or thought it should cost $60 grand like many people on the commercials did. Nope, I was always very aware I was behind the wheel of a Malibu.
Now, that’s not a bad thing. The Malibu surprised me with a modern and clean interior design, and with useful technology like Apple CarPlay and intuitive and well laid-out controls on the center console. It’s by far the nicest interior a Malibu has ever featured.
The exterior is certainly the car’s best attribute, and Chevy is more than justified in exploiting the heck out of it in all kinds of advertising campaigns. It’s simply a good looking car.
Unfortunately, the smaller of the two internal combustion engines, the 1.5 liter turbocharged 4-cylinder engine doesn’t really back up the Malibu’s sleek looks with potency, but it does award fuel-efficiency.
The 250 horsepower 2.0 liter turbo would be my engine of choice. There’s also a Hybrid model if that’s of your interest.
In the end, the 2016 Chevy Malibu commercials are plain silly and cheesy, but if that’s what it takes to lay fresh eye balls on this new model, then I’m totally okay with that.
For a full review click HERE.
