Holden Malibu: medium sedan previewed ahead of 2013 launch

By Tim Beissmann
July 24th, 2012

FIND DEALS

The all-new Holden Malibu has been revealed in Australian specification for the first time ahead of its local launch in the second quarter of 2013.

The preview of the Malibu follows the arrival of a number of new engineering prototypes in the country, as Holden continues its local tuning and validation work on the mid-sized sedan.

Initially scheduled to reach local showrooms before the end of this year, Holden’s Kate Lonsdale confirmed the local brand pushed back the Malibu’s launch by a few months to ensure the local engineering work delivers the best possible set-up.

The Holden Malibu will get a unique suspension tune with a ride and handling package developed specifically for Australian roads. Holden engineers are also responsible for fine-tuning the transmission calibrations for the local and global markets.

Work on the Malibu is being undertaken at Holden’s proving ground in Lang Lang and on public roads throughout Victoria.

Despite being officially classified as a medium car, the Malibu is only marginally smaller than the Holden Commodore large car. At 4859mm long, 1854mm wide, 1463mm tall and with a 2738mm wheelbase, the Malibu will be just 35mm shorter, 45mm narrower and 8mm lower than the Commodore, although its wheelbase trails the locally made family car by 177mm.

Holden is yet to confirm the Malibu’s powertrain line-up, although it will almost certainly be offered with an all-new 2.5-litre direct-injection four-cylinder petrol engine that produces 147kW of power and 259Nm of torque.

Other engines available in North America include a 136kW/233Nm 2.4-litre petrol that teams with mild hybrid technology for added fuel efficiency and a 193kW/353Nm 2.0-litre turbocharged motor in the Malibu Turbo, which is under consideration for Australia.

European markets will also get a 2.0-litre diesel option, potentially matching the output of the Cruze diesel at 120kW and 360Nm.

All engines will be paired with a six-speed automatic transmission.

The Malibu will fill the hole in Holden’s range between the small Cruze and large Commodore left by the unpopular Epica sedan that was discontinued in 2011, finally giving Holden a serious competitor to the Toyota Camry, Mazda6, Honda Accord Euro and the Ford Mondeo.

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Crummydore

Bum looks ok… bit individual in looks, but the front end is boring

I looks to similar to the old Epica – and that ain’t a good thing.
- Andrews
  
  Yep, I’m guessing this car is made in Koera aswell. See how well this one sells.
  - Nick01
    
    And what’s wrong with being made in South Korea??? Such outdated thinking!!!!
    - JamesB
      
      There’s still the ghost of Daewoo lurking around non-Commodore Holdens, and that brand was perceived to be notches below Hyundai and Kia.
      - moonie
        
        _Below_ Kia ?! Ha ha ha !
      - Josh
        
        Yes, below…Kia make some amazing vehicles, and Daewoo…well, don’t.
      - Sumpguard
        
        …..daewoo don’t make cars.
        
        Oh and moonie you’re an idiot!
  - Henry Toussaint
    
    I reckon that if the Lights ‘were’ joint, it would probaly look a slight bit better, but even more Conservative…
- Peanut
  
  Epica MkII – Front end looks terrible.
  I would have thought they would have styled the front based on the Volt over this.
- Housecat84
  
  That rear end design is unforgivable. “Oh, the corvette has a nice rear, lets whack that on the front of a Vauxhall Insignia… there.. that looks awesome” .. It’s as contrived as the Cruze Front to Rear Design… but in reverse.
  Seriously Holden-GM. What were you thinking? Must you continue to serve up half baked designs? You have no single design theme amongst your cars other than Restrained with a splash of ugly. Yet again- the Australian public will continue to buy this well marketed mediocre product. Yay for us smart Aussie consumers…
- Shb
  
  I agree,it’s that ugly Holden logo that’s drawing from the look in front!
DanM

I rekon the front and middle is a bit Camry/Aurion and the back screams Kia Cerato…
BP

Gotta say that looks rather attractive, especially that back end!!!!
Gunghrin

Very confused design – looks like it’s got a Korean front and a US rear
- Dudeface
  
  And there aren’t even any pictures above of the god-awful interior. Wasn’t the Eco version of this recently voted the worst car in America?
  
  Even so it will probably sell plenty due to the Holden drones that think they are being patriotic… idiotic more like it
  - Legnab
    
    Correct dude voted most disliked new car in USA , just the epica all over again , love the bit about tuned to OZ road conditions , why wasn’t the epica’s sloppy handling tuned to OZ roads .
    - Shak
      
      It wasn’t ’voted’ anything. One opinionated Journo from Forbes, who has a clear history of disliking GM product declared it the most disliked car because he read a few negative reviews. Name me one car that hasn’t ever received a negative review.
      
      If you would present the facts, as you often do not, then you would see most reviews are disappointed mainly about the pricing of the Eco model, and the lack or rear legroom. Thats really about it.
      - matt
        
        bad reviews on valid points heres a snippet
        
        What’s more, the 2013 Malibu’s little brother Cruze is actually larger in some dimensions, less expensive, and gets better gas mileage”
      - moonie
        
        And of course, ‘”size = quality” ?
  - MichaelLock
    
    No that was the Cruze Eco I’m pretty sure, also the same car that catches fire in the engine bay.
Ima_Hogg

Very weird design. The back has like the camaro lights and the front a cruze face. Bit confused if it looks any good or not but because it is holden people won’t care what is looks like.
horsie

another nail in fords coffin.
- Guest
  
  And Commodore’s…
- Aus_poppa
  
  What this car really makes redundant is the Commodore. Who needs it? And before we get the chorus of ” what about those who need to tow caravans or boats” just think about the real world – most vans and boats in Australia sit on the back of SUVs. Looking at a mass market dominated by the new large cars – Malibu, Mondeo and Camry makes perfect logic, except that only Camry is Australian made, but maybe the Malibu and Cruze can be produced on the same production line.
  - Dave S
    
    There is no reason why Holden should not offer a medium size car too. This is a Medium size car, like the Mondeo, Camry, 6 ect.. The Commodore is safe, the Malibo could never be a V8, RWD, ute, Sportswagon or and LWB Luxury model.
  - Andrew M
    
    It doesnt make the commodore redundant to those that appreciate a car thats good to drive.
    Ill put quite a few dollars that this wont be as well engineered as the commodore and hence less enjoyable to drive.
    
    Ill go out on a limb and assume the Mondeo is a better vehicle than this, and with a chorous of people constantly saying the mondeo will soon dominate the Falcon it still hasnt proven to be the case. Falcon sales may be on the slide, but it still sells less than half of the Falcon.
  - Jez
    
    The Commodore has probably got the strongest following of any car in Australia. You think people are going to switch to a 4cyl FWD, Korean made car with only a sedan body style overnight? Don’t think so.
    
    That’s not to say the Malibu is a bad car, but it’s hardly a Commodore killer.
    - Phil
      
      People already switched to a Korean FWD sedan only car (albeit now Oz assembled with a hatch).
      The Crude has been outselling Crummer for quite some time now.
  - sam123
    
    I agree with first bit of your statement. This car is another nail in the coffin for Commodore. Malibu will cannabilise much of what is left of Commodore sales.
- Gubbut
  
  Surely u jest?
- Housecat84
  
  Mondeo, will walk all over this in design, engine options and handling.
  - birdie
    
    You got that right : )
- birdie
  
  The way this thing looks , i doubt it very much . If people do go out and buy it , i would say that nail you talk about would go into the dunnydores coffin . give me the new mondeo any day
Amlohac

Yawn…
Unhostile

It looks like two completely different front and rear cars have been attached together..
- simonsez
  
  That’s only going to ever be a problem if you’re able to look at it from the front and the rear simultaneously.
- Shak
  
  I agree but i still think the design is attractive enough in its own right. Its certainly not as good looking as say an i40 or an Optima, but its not ugly.
dsuhiti

Looks OK, but the Vectra from 2005 offered by Holden still looks better.
Edward

Could not see myself in one of these. Not sure about the name ‘Malibu’ either
- Dewpiu
  
  but the question is can a camry driver see themselves in this?
  - Edward
    
    I think they can see themselves in anything, seeing as theyre happy with driving a fridge.
Observer

Front end looks like its been punched in the head several times. Butt ugly when compared to the Mondeo or Mazda
Robin_Graves

2013 Leganza
- Ibc
  
  What an epic car that was…. it was a race to see if the car or the first year’s rego expired first.
- MisterZed
  
  You do realise that the Leganza was designed by Giugiaro, one of the best Italian designers? Who designed the VE Commodore? A nobody most likely.
  - Robin_Graves
    
    You do realise he also ‘designed’ the Matiz and Pinanfarina designed the Tacuma? It’s like rolling a turd in glitter, or maybe a rat with a gold tooth.
PIZZA

i love it~
Mh2408

whats happened to individuality in car design? Looks like a Camry
Leighh

This is obviously the replacement for Commodore…its the same size. Looks just like the Epicrap thing. Oh well, another very very average car from Holden………..they are experts in below average vehicles…..they have one in every class!!! At least its another badge for the engineers to put on…..
- Dave S
  
  You cant replace RWD with a FWD car. No one will buy it.
  - Aus_poppa
    
    Most people have already replaced RWD cars with FWD cars – here, and in every other country mass market cars are pretty much all FWD, especially the USA.
  - Phil
    
    Dave S is obviously stuck in the 1940s.
    
    How are Crapolla sales going? It used to be RWD, yet somehow Toyota have sold several million FWD ones since they made the switch.
  - Legnab
    
    Of course you can, the average holden driver would have no idea which wheels are driving , he only cares about the badge cause grandpa had a brilliant FC .
  - birdie
    
    That might explain way the crummadore and falcon sales are declining .
- Legnab
  
  One US website named it as “the most disliked car of the year ” , cramped rear seats , disappointing handling , poor fuel economy .
  - Captain Nemo®™
    
    Since when do you believed what US websites say Bungle??
    Oh that’s right it’s only fingers in the ears LALALALALA when i comes to your beloved VeeDuddy.
    - Legnab
      
      ZERO ,trade mark are you kidding , this pile of junk is typical DAEWOO regurgitated as holden , even the grave robber would agree the new mondeo/fusion will wipe the floor .
      
      Try autoblog , ROFL ., they canned it , rightly so , and they love VW .
      - Aevion
        
        Ugh gotta love people like this, Daewoo doesn’t even exist anymore! And geez what’s with the dodgy punctuation? LALALALALA indeed.
Zandit75

So we had the “Epicrap”, now we have the “Malipoo”??!!
- Crummydore
  
  Ha!
- 42 = The Answer
  
  More like Epic-Fail
42 = The Answer

The Epica shall forever be referred to as the Holden Epic-Fail
- TG
  
  Holden’s ultimate Epic Fail was the Camira. But most of these Korean turds they super glue Holden badges to fall into the same category pretty much.
Twerpy O’Moron

Why didn’t they just leave the Chevy front on it?
MisterZed

Why would I buy this over an i45?
- Blair Waldorf
  
  Because the i45 is a hideously over-styled droopy mess. Although given the choice i’d buy a Mondeo or Accord Euro…
  - Kejovi
    
    or an i40 sedan
    - Messa
      
      The i40 is ridiculously underpowered.. It will struggle
    - Blair Waldorf
      
      The i40 is another overstyled, fussy, chintzy heap of under-engineered metal. Hyundai’s will and are aging horribly style wise, they’re beyond bland/generally bad to drive and still dont have any badge cred, despite being the darling of sub-par motoring journos and keyboard warriors on forums etc etc. They can no longer rely on their cheapness as they aren’t even cheap compared to superior rivals.
      - Patrick
        
        Keyboard warriors, eh?
  - MisterZed
    
    Are the Mondeo or Accord Euro available with a panoramic moonroof?
    - Phil
      
      Pfffff, as if a panoramic sunroof is going to be a dealbreaker.
      
      More likely to be a dealbreaker is the way the car drives – in which case, the “149Kw” engine that performs like a 115KW engine combined with bouncy suspension & wobbly handling will turn people off from buying a i45. Of course I know you won’t believe the i45 is selling poorly since you keep claiming it’s a “mistake” when the i45 is left off the sales charts (the reason being that it doesn’tt sell enough to make the top 50).
      - MisterZed
        
        i45/Sonata sales are at their highest level since 1998, so I wouldn’t say it’s doing badly. It just could be doing *a lot* better.
      - Phil
        
        What a stupid statement – most cars are at their highest sales level since 1998. Are you aware that the overall market has increased by %25 since 1998?
        Your not even correct anyway, monthy i45 sales this year are down on 2011 monthy figures.
      - MisterZed
        
        Er, not the medium and large car segments buddy. Since 1998 they’ve either remained stagnant or decreased. Also while i45 sales are down since last year, they’re still higher than any figure the previous NF Sonata ever managed, and they’re still the highest since 1999.
      - Phil
        
        Oh, so now it’s 1999 ballpark not 1998? Yet your also now trying to restrict your comparison to the NF Sonata which actually wasn’t released untill 2004……?
        
        I’d suggest saving your admiration for a car that actually derserves it. That way you don’t have to jump around ,tying yourself in knots, to try and justify a reason for desiring a rather undesirable car.
      - MisterZed
        
        I was going on 2011 figures for the i45. In which case, sales were the highest since 1997, including both NF *and* EF generations.
Sumpguard

After all the teaser hype I am a tad disappointed.

It is more bland than I expected it to be and from that front 3/4 view looks a lot like the epica it is replacing and that isn’t a good thing.
- MisterZed
  
  Are there any cars that *don’t* look bland in silver??
  - Sumpguard
    
    Maybe not? McLaren? But you’re right that most do. This is a better proportioned car than the epica but the headlights let it down and are too similar imo.
Schn

The rear is rather ugly… there’s a bit of Camaro in there, but they’ve designed it so it’s not that pleasant to the eyes. I also feel there’s some Passat CC previous gen in there.
carl

Looks okay, it might sell really well because of the overall handsome design
- Legnab
  
  No it wont sell except to dills who will think its a holden made in OZ , but we all know its a daewoo , the fusion/mondeo kills it for looks .
  - c3vzn
    
    Why does everybody think this car is Korean? I am pretty sure it was designed and engineered in America as a Chevrolet to replace their previous Malibu while also being manufactured in Korea to replace the old Epica.
    - Garrywhopper
      
      It’s made in Korea is why, kinda makes sense made in Korea, it’s Korean
      - Mick Dunn
        
        Is made in Korea really any worse than made in Thailand?
      - Garrywhopper
        
        Allmlooknthe same to me
    - Aevion
      
      It was, just half of these people don’t get it.
LeanneP

carl…are you for real? the design looks 10 years old already and so much like the Epica and a total mimatch of front and rear……..maybe you need glasses??
Don Quay

I think it looks quite nice, not adventurous certainly. But it isn’t boring like a Camry or poxie like an i45 either. The size seems to be pretty similar to a Mondeo and being so close to the Falcon hasn’t hurt its sales and could be the same with this compared to the Commodore. It does make you question why you need a full size car nowadays. I had an Epica hire car in Adelaide once, it was pretty ordinary to drive and uncomfortable to sit in. The Malibu can only be better.

I’ll reserve my final opinion until I see on in the flesh and the interior too. BTW, can anyone confirm where these are made, is it ROK or USA?
- Shak
  
  Ours are made in Korea along with the Captiva, Barina/Spark and Cruze Wagon. They also produce the Malibu in the US but with specific bits and equipment for their market.
BOSSCR

Not good.
twincharger

Looks good from the rear.Doesnt look any worst than Camry,Mondeo,Puzzat,I40.
- Legnab
  
  Do you mean wurst or worst , more like bung fritz .
  - twincharger
    
    We can agree on one thing legnoddy.The Malibu is better looking than the passh!t.
    - Legnab
      
      HAHAHH take off the beer goggles and start living in the 21st century , i would say, and he would agree that corporal nemo’s skoda octavia RS is miles better looking than the malabore .
    - Gibbut
      
      actually…. its not
http://www.facebook.com/antmindel Anthony Mindel

Give me an Accord Euro,Mazda 6,or VW Jetta anyday over this…
Vins

It makes Camry look great
Par

Camry looks cheap, the Malibu looks classy
- Gibbut
  
  classy??? u mean LOWER CLASSy
Shak

Well it’ll be well equipped, and honestly doesn’t look as bad as half of the people on here are making it out to be (although looks are subjective). Judging from some US reviews it doesn’t have as much legroom as the previous gen, but that will work in Holden’s favour as they wont want this encroaching too much on the Commodore’s territory. It also seems to drive well but no where near class supremacy, again this seems like what the mid sized market wants. All in all another solid effort from GM, and it will inevitably build on the success of Holden’s other Korean offerings.
Hung Low

It has fleet hack written all over it! Even the mid size cars are a dying class thanks to more practical small/mid SUVs.
Cchris

We have the Malibu here in USA and it’s pretty popular, but mainly the rentals & fleets purchase these vehicles

But I wouldn’t get the 2.0 Turbo, the Sonata has the 2.0t with more power (204kw & 365Nm) but it’s pretty damn slow compared to the Camry, which is the benchmark for speed hahhaaaaa

2012 Camry 0-60 in 5.8 second which is fast
JamesB

A V6 should be in the cards so non-V8 Commodores can finally be phased out.
- Mick Dunn
  
  The 2 litre turbo would easily do the job of a V6. And with more usable torque to boot.
  - rentakeyboard
    
    im sure Holden cant wait to drop a 2li turbo into Cdore given the runaway success tht 4cyl falcon has been!
    - Shak
      
      Holden have a marketing department that doesnt hate the Commodore though, so who knows it could actually work.
Basil Exposition

Let’s see it in the flesh before we decide. Based on past GM efforts I’m not confident.
Mad Max

I´ve seen it in the flesh and been driving it here in the US as a rental car the past two days and no, its not too flash. The body styling look a little bit better in metal than the pictures show but the inside… GM need to sack the designers and start again. Its horrendous. The centre stack (sorry for sounding American) slopes on a gradual angle from top to bottom which looks ok but when you drive the car, it allows the sun to reflect onto the stereo and electronic climate control readouts so they cannot be read. The instruments are recessed deeply into two square binicles and these collect dust that then sticks to the clear lenses making them hard to read. The dash has a sort of shelf that runs across it that has the airvents set into it. This collects dust like you would not believe and the grain pattern is very difficult to clean. The vents are a stupid two knob design (one controls flow and up and down position, the other is left and right position) which makes adjustment more difficult than it should be. To mkae sure it is truly ugly, the lines in the airvents are carried across the verticle face of the dash. Its hard to describe, but trust me, its UGLY!
The rear seat has about the same room as the Cruze, maybe a touch more but it would be marginal.
The engine in the car I have is a 2.4 litre and it has a 6 speed auto. The car feels lethargic and the auto is a bit slow to change. In fairness the car has only done 750 kms so its a bit to soon to judge the power. Its reasonably economical but (I hate saying this) I would take a Camry over this. Or a Mazda 6, Accord Euro or a I40 any day.
- Captain Nemo®™
  
  Being a VeeDud fanboy i,am surprised you didn’t ask for a Passh!t rental. Now that is a POS with ice cream container plastics interior & clunk-o-rama DSG.
  - Mad Max
    
    Well I could have but there you are. Thanks for remininding me of my VW´s which are running perfectly with not a single problem. Doing what VW design them to be, faultless and trouble free. Not sure what you drive as you post under so many different names depending on what the car and topic is. My guess you are either a Holden Commodore (probably a VS or VT) with the driving lights on all day to attract attention. Either that or you drive a Camry. To be honest, I don´t really care. Oh the copyright and trademark symbols say a lot. Its just that If I post what they say, this would never be posted. CA would stop it.
    - Captain Nemo®™
      
      Assumptions are the mother of all f****ups. To use a rather clichéd internet meme, OWNED! Don’t own a VS or VT nor do i own a Camry & only ever used one name on Caradvice. I think you’re confusing me with your mate Bungle who has had more names than Liz Taylor.
      BTW i never mentioned VeeDud’s reliability you’re the one bringing it up paranoid much. As for the ®™ symbols just a bit of fun would be a sad world if we couldn’t have fun hey.
    - Rooster
      
      HE drives his mums VK, he dreams about owning a skoda occy RS which being VAG is a complete load of junk .
      
      Jules Verne would like his trade name back .
Pe88lz

Will sell in droves, like it or lump it. Bye bye Falcon.
- Housecat84
  
  Err What? It doesn’t even compete with the Falcon- it compete’s with the Mondeo and that Will stomp all over this. In fact, once again- almost everything in the mid size segment will knock this out of the ball park.
  - Legnab
    
    Correct cat , this is sooo boring looking , mondeo and mazda 6 will cream it .
    
    Why , no complaing from the bogans about the US price and how much cheaper it will be than here , another epic failure from the daewoo car co disguised as a holden .
- Gibbut
  
  lol…. the malibu will be advertised. Falcon will not, falcon will be a much better car, but ford doesnt want to make cars here, and no matter how good falcon is ( and all reviews say the new ecoboost and ecolpi are the best cars made here ) ford wants it to go away and die.
Aus_poppa

Yes it will compete with what will be the other large cars – and these will be Mondeo, Camry, Mazda 6 etc. NOT the Commodore and Falcon, both of which will become redundant here as they have in other countries. It is ironic that in the USA the large RWD class, a tiny part of their market, is served by the Hyundai models, Genisis and Equus (and Chrysler 300).

And Pe88lz is right, it will sell in droves because it is a HOLDEN, and whatever contributors to this site may think, that is still an enormous selling point in this country, both with private buyers and fleets. That is why the Cruze is so successful, and why, when the time comes GMH will be able to pension off the Commodore. For Ford however the end of the Falcon ( and the territory with it) will be the end of Ford as a manufacturer in this country.
- Gibbut
  
  and thats what ford wants.
Therob

this will get destroyed by the opel insignia, similar sized car with stand out design in this category…another fail for holden
HandBrake

front end, to me yells cadillac which is nice, back looks decent. i would like to see this in the flesh
peddy.d

i hate the name of this car, surely holden could of thought of something better than ‘malibu’
http://www.facebook.com/people/Karl-Sass/100000921334936 Karl Sass

No thanks! Since when did an almost 5 metre car become ‘medium’?
filippo

I wonder if the person who designed the front and the person who designed the rear have ever met.
David

Love it…gimme the turbo
Danny W

Seeing what’s coming our way next year in the form of the new Mondeo / Mazda 6 and the Opel Insignia, this “thing” is already looking 2 generations behind. Only a die hard Holden fanboy would say this looks alright. The truth of the matter is it’s simply hidious.
Gibbut

also a tiny and HIGH boot opening. useless! whats with the over sized epica nose???? they could have done so much better! the cruze looks great compared to this.
Gibbut

i dub this car the MALE BOOB!
- TR
  
  sounds like you have got your gibbuts caught in your male boob…
Gibwater

I really don’t see the point of this car,given its not much smaller than Commodore,and then you have Cruze just beneath.If anything,it will cannibalise Cruze and Commodore sales.Why is it needed? Holden will not even be making it themselves. I wish they’d just stop importing Korean hand-me-downs and passing them off as Holdens. Don’t they have any pride as a brand-like they had in the 50′s to 70′s? Just call yourselves ‘Daewoo Australia’ and be done with.You may as well.
horsie

how come everyone keeps harping on about the mondeo . I hardly ever see one on the road. No one in Australia seems to be buying them ?