Chevy Malibu hybrid delivers stylish sports car looks and good gas mileage

Chevrolet set out to make a stylish, functional midsize car when it produced the latest Malibu. It succeeded, and for the hybrid version of that car, you can add great fuel economy.

The refined design of the Malibu can be attributed to improvements in the global midsized car platform used by General Motors. The new Malibu gains 3 inches in overall length and 6 inches in wheelbase length.


It has some sports-car lines that suggest strong road performance. You might not be blown away by its performance ability, but for a family car, it holds its own. The fact that this is a hybrid is well advertised with badges on the rear and sides.

Fuel economy, which is important to just about everybody today, is aided by the hybrid system, which turns off the engine when the car stops and starts it up again when it’s time to accelerate. It also cuts off the fuel supply when the car is slowing down, and also takes other measures to boost fuel efficiency.

The Malibu Hybrid has an electric motor that’s linked to a 2.4-liter, four-cylinder engine and four-speed automatic transmission. Its EPA ratings are an impressive 24 mpg city, 32 mpg highway, but our tester got close to 34 mpg in a mix of highway and stop-and-go driving.

Our week spent with the car gave us a nice respite from hitting the gas station every couple of days. It’s fun to watch the Eco gauge light up when you are driving at maximum fuel efficiency, and you can try to keep it lit as long as you can just to amuse yourself. Oh, and because it’s good for the environment and for cutting fuel consumption.

Interior design is pretty nice, befitting a significantly more expensive car.

The instrument panel flowed nicely and the blue lighting of the gauges is easy on the eyes. Also, there’s just enough subtle lighting elsewhere in the cabin to make it feel classy but not overly illuminated.

The Malibu Hybrid is backed by a five-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty. The test drive model had a sticker price of $22,790.