1997 Chevrolet Malibu Article at Automotive.com

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1997 Chevy Malibu

Below is an enthusiast article written by the automotive experts at Motor Trend. Check out our 1997 Motor Trend Car of the Year-the Chevy Malibu!

1997 Chevrolet Malibu Costs of Ownership

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IntelliChoice Value Rating

The chart above shows the purchase price versus ownership cost for each car from a specific vehicle class. The cars with better than average ownership cost/purchase price correlations are the best values, and these best value cars are represented by the dots below the curve. (i.e. the cars that have a lower ownership cost compared to its purchase price.) Those cars, which are worse than average or poor values, appear above the curve.

One way to view the graph is to draw a vertical line through any purchase price. You may see several dots that fall on this line - each of which is a car with a similar purchase price. However, notice the difference in ownership costs of each car represented by the vertical position of the dot. Two cars with the same purchase price can have thousands of dollars difference in ownership costs. This is what separates "good value" cars from "poor value" cars.

What is a good car value?

A "good car value" is one whose cost to own and operate is less than expected. The lower the cost to own and operate a car compared to what is expected, the better the value of that car.

But how do we know a car's "expected cost"?

For each car in the class, IntelliChoice plots the car's purchase price against the total five-year cost to own and operate it as determined by IntelliChoice research. Each dot on the above chart represents a specific car. Generally, we find that as the purchase price of the car increases, the cost to own and operate that car increases. This is why the dots on the graph tend to rise upward and to the right. This phenomenon also makes intuitive sense - as the purchase price rises, financing costs tend to rise, as do insurance, depreciation, taxes, and most other car ownership costs.

This is an important concept. It's normal for car ownership costs to rise as purchase price rises. Therefore, we can't just establish one "average" ownership cost number for each class, since cars in the class have different purchase prices. (This is why the "Relative" shown on each chart is different for cars in the same car class.)

Using statistical techniques, IntelliChoice "connects the dots" to form a curve that defines, for this car class, the relationship between the car's purchase price and car's ownership costs. This curve is our "expected cost" curve. The curve defines, for any car in the class, the five-year ownership cost that we would expect to see at each possible purchase price. If every car in the class were an average value, then all the dots would fall exactly on the curve. However, it's rare that any dot is exactly on the curve. Some dots are a little higher or lower, and some are a lot higher or lower. The dots that are a little lower are better than average car values, while the dots that are a lot lower are excellent car values (A dot that is a lot lower than the curve has ownership costs much lower than expected for a car of its purchase price). Conversely, a dot a little higher than the curve is a poorer than average car value, while a dot that is much higher than the curve is a poor car value.

Value is a relative term, not an absolute term. It is performing better than the logical expectation.

So is a Mercedes-Benz E320 expensive to own and operate? Certainly in an absolute sense. Most other cars cost less. But, when its cost to own and operate is plotted against cars with comparable invoice prices, the E320 costs less. So the E320 is not expensive to own and operate - it is a good car value. The Mercedes does not have low ownership costs, but it has low ownership costs for its invoice price.

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Article From Motor Trend Magazine

1997 Chevy Malibu - Car Of The Year

Article provided by: Motor Trend Magazine

All that notwithstanding, everyone knows that long-term comfort and convenience mean more than large, raw numbers. Smaller drivers of previous-generation large General Motors sedans frequently felt shortchanged when attempting to find a comfortable seating position, read the instruments, and reach various controls. With the adjustable steering column, the Malibu's elliptically shaped analog instrument cluster, featuring big needles and wide gauge faces, is a snap to read for drivers of all sizes and shapes. Another thoughtful interior-design item is the left-side position of the glovebox door handle, where it's easily reached by the driver. The cruise-control switches are located on the steering-wheel spokes, and the ignition switch has found its way back to the old handy spot just to the right of the column. There it's easy to eyeball the cylinder and target the slot for a quick start.

The Malibu's nicely contoured standard reclining cloth buckets hold riders comfortably in place for everything but racetrack workouts. In the Malibu LS, these seats feature six-way power adjustment. The standard LS rear bench is a split-folding type, allowing long items to stretch through from the trunk.

Responsive Power-In Four-Cylinder Or V-6 StyleToday's sedan buyer wants performance, and Chevrolet delivers responsive powertrains for the Malibu. The standard engine is an eager 2.4-liter/150-horsepower DOHC four-cylinder. And with the car's low curb weight and this engine's low- and midrange gusto, the base-level Malibu is a great performer. Zero to 60 mph zips by in 9.3 seconds, and the quarter mile passes in 16.9 seconds at 81.9 mph.

There's also considerable refinement in the four-cylinder. One noise and vibration attenuation strategy was to mount the air-conditioner compressor and alternator directly on the block. (Normally mounted on long brackets that can flex, these heavy rotating components often result in noticeable vibrations at idle and at high rpm.) Other smoothness and idle-stability secrets include an engine-driven counter-rotating balance shaft spooling inside the oil pan, hydraulic engine mounts, sequential multipoint fuel injection, and some downright clever ignition electronics. All this may be enough to send some competitors back to the drawing board.

Standard in the Malibu LS and optional in the base-level Malibu is a 3.1-liter OHV V-6. Unquestionably, its pushrod design means fewer parts and lower manufacturing costs, relative to the overhead cam V-6 engines found in the Malibu's import competition. That definitely helps Chevy provide its price advantage. Mechanical simplicity doesn't put you in second place in power or quietness, however: With a 9.0-second sprint to 60 mph and strong part-throttle torque delivery, the Malibu has no trouble keeping up with traffic or pulling a long, steep grade with four adults on board. Fuel economy is another Malibu strong suit, with 24/38 city/highway mpg for the four-cylinder, and 22/36 mpg for the V-6. Combined with its 15-gallon fuel tank, the V-6 Malibu up to 540 miles of highway cruising range.

Both the four-cylinder and the V-6 are mated exclusively with the corporation's 4T40-E electronic automatic transaxle. This is a new-generation transmission designed exclusively for use in light, front-drive GM cars. We found gear shifts to be nearly seamless, thanks to a powertrain computer that monitors the engine, transaxle, and environmental conditions to provide precise control of the various functions and help reduce harshness.

The Malibu's good power-to-weight ratio-with either the four-cylinder or V-6 engine-and well-tuned suspension endow this slick four-door with a well-rounded dynamic personality. It offers solid proof that "family sedan" and "fun to drive" need not be mutually exclusive targets.

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