2010 Chevrolet Malibu – Competitive Midsize Sedan

Auto Gurus’ Words:

The midsize sedan segment is one of the highly competitive categories in the auto market today, and every auto maker offers their best in this segment. The 2010 Chevrolet Malibu is the offering from Chevrolet, although it’s a decent option to consider, but still we would recommend you to drive some of its contenders before making your decision.

Ups:

The 2010 Chevrolet Malibu:

• Delivers brawny performance from its V6 engine
• Offers decent four-cylinder fuel economy
• Outstanding handling and ride balance
• Contented seats
• Simple controls
• And high crash test scores.

Downs:

The 2010 Chevrolet Malibu:

• Suffers from average back seat space
• No back center armrest
• Mediocre cabin construction and material
• Unavailability of certain features

What 2010 Chevrolet Malibu Has?

For the model year 2010 the Chevrolet Malibu gets very small changes. Most outstandingly, the six-speed automatic transmission is standard now on the entire base LS model, thus enhancing the fuel economy. There also is standard driver power-adjustable lumbar available on all the models and for the 2.4-liter engine of the car is now compatible with E85 fuel.

Preface:

Now that GM has removed Saturn and Pontiac from their portfolio, the 2010 Chevrolet Malibu stands as GMs only foot forward in the direction of midsize family sedan segment. On top of everything, the good news here is that the Malibu also is as strongly packaged as the earlier models, which have been removed. Also, the Chevrolet Malibu offers equally capable ride, handling, style and engines. Certainly, the Chevrolet Malibu is an enormous improvement over its previous editions and surely deserves a closers look from you, despite the fact that it’s not the class leader.

Ergonomics:

The 2010 Chevrolet Malibu comes in a single body style of a four-door sedan, with the seating capacity of five-passengers.

Available Trim Levels:

The four-passenger sedan the 2010 Chevrolet Malibu is available in four trim levels of LS, 1LT, 2LT and LTZ.

Standard Equipments Offered:

The standard equipments for the base LS trim of 2010 Chevrolet Malibu includes 17-inch steel wheels, keyless entry, automatic headlights, air-conditioning, cruise control, lumbar adjustment, power driver seat height, OnStar and a six-speaker stereo with CD player, a tilt-telescoping steering column, an auxiliary audio jack and satellite radio.

The 1LT trim adds color-keyed moldings and side mirrors, steering-wheel-mounted audio controls and a six-speed transmission. While the 2LT trim gets 17-inch chrome-clad alloy wheels, an auto-dimming rearview mirror, Bluetooth, premium faux-suede, vinyl upholstery, remote engine start, a six-way power driver seat (physical back adjustment), heated front seats and a leather-draped steering wheel.

The top of the range LTZ trim includes 18-inch alloy wheels, LED taillights, heated side mirrors with driver-side auto-dimming, eight-way driver and six-way passenger power seats, automatic climate control, improved gauges, leather upholstery and an eight-speaker stereo together with a USB audio jack and two subwoofers.

Optional Equipments Available:

The optional equipments for 2010 Chevrolet Malibu are grouped into a handful of packages which gets you a wide array of features found in “higher trims” in the “lower trims”. There is a Rear Power package, which gets manual rear sunshade and a 110-volt AC outlet.

Powertrain:

The 2010 Chevrolet Malibu is powered by a 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine, which is the standard engine option and is capable of generating 169 horsepower of maximum power and 158 pound-feet of maximum torque. The standard transmission on all trims except for LS is a six-speed automatic transmission. While on the LS trim you get a four-speed automatic transmission.

Malibu sprinted from 0 to 60 mph min 9.5 secs, which is comparatively slow for its class. There also is an optional 3.6 liter V6 engine pumping maximum power of 252 hp and maximum torque of 251 lb-ft, on the 2LT and LTZ trims. This engine delivered even better performance and comes with six-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters.

Safety:

The safety equipments in 2010 Chevrolet Malibu includes antilock disc brakes, side curtain and front side airbags and stability and traction control. There also is OnStar emergency telematics.

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