The 2013 Chevrolet Malibu is GM’s first global midsize-sedan. In order to appeal to customers all over the world Chevrolet got a little design help from the Chevy’s in-house moms.

Input from GM’s “Malibu Moms” helped finely tune several parts of the car to make it an extremely family friendly vehicle.

“People spend a lot of time in their vehicles,” said Kara Gordon, the Malibu’s lead acoustic noise engineer and mother of two boys. “It’s really important for me to spend that time with my kids in a positive way. If your car isn’t quiet, you can’t hear your kids talking to you in the background, and you can’t hear how their day went.” Kara Gordon’s comments helped make the Malibu Chevy’s quietest vehicle yet, in terms of interior cabin noise.

Chevrolet’s team of moms also helped make the vehicle more fuel-friendly. “Every dollar I spend on gasoline is a dollar I’m not investing in my boys’ futures,” said Suzanne Cody, the Malibu’s aerodynamics engineer. “So this is personal to me.” GM claims that the Malibu’s 2.5 mpg improvement on the highway is due to reducing aerodynamic drag.

Additionally thanks to Julie Kleinert, Chevrolet’s child safety technical lead, the Malibu features an interior which is designed for easier installation of child seats. “Knowing that the work I do helps protect other people’s children is very rewarding,” said Kleinert, a mother of four and grandmother of two. “I love to be able to tell people what I do, and how much work goes into the safety of every GM vehicle.”

Finally, Tracy Mack-Askew, Chevrolet vehicle line manager and mother of two also provided her thoughts on the Malibu,

“The Malibu is a vehicle that is very kid-friendly, that’s easy for you to use to transport your kids to their activities – whether it is soccer or swimming – and that makes you look good and stylish while doing it,” said Mack-Askew. “So not only are you a mother, but you are mother with pizzazz.”

The 2013 Chevrolet Malibu has been out for a while (read our review here) but for those who have a family, let us know what’s in the perfect family vehicle for you. Whether it’s interior noise, safety or price, we’d love to find out.

Until now, all we have seen from the 2013 Chevrolet Malibu is the Eco model with its eAssist 2.4L four-cylinder. But now we finally have details on the non-hybrid variants of the Malibu, which will come with either a 2.5L naturally aspirated four-cylinder, or a 2.0L turbocharged four-cylinder.

The naturally aspirated 2.5L will have 197-hp and 191 lb-ft of torque, which is 28-hp more than the previous four-cylinder Malibu. In fact, the powerplant only has a mere 3-hp less than the Cadillac ATS. The 2.5L four-cylinder is mated to a six-speed automatic transmission.

The more powerful of the two powerplants is the 2.0L turbocharged four-cylinder that pumps out 259-hp and 260 lb-ft of torque. This is a slight increase over the outgoing V6 Malibu that had 252-hp, but should be fairly quicker thanks to the aid of a turbo. Chevy currently claims that the Malibu turbo will hit 60-mph in just 6.3 seconds. Just like the 2.5L engine, the 2.0L turbo also has a six-speed automatic transmission.

No fuel economy figures have been released, but it’s safe to assume the 2.0L turbocharged four-cylinder will not only be more powerful than the outgoing V6, but have better fuel efficiency.

Read AutoGuide’s 2013 Chevy Malibu Review Here

As Chevrolet continues to expand its lineup into Europe, both the Malibu and Volt received top ratings in the European New Car Assessment crash tests. Both sedans got five stars in all categories and also made the Volt the first U.S.-branded electric car that’s rated with Euro NCAP’s top assessment.

“The Chevy Volt will be sold in Europe as an Opel Ampera and the Malibu’s appearance is its first in the European market.
The results confirm that both vehicles meet today’s highest safety standards. The Volt’s safety performance and propulsion concept highlight the reliability and practicality that is inherent to this outstanding design,” said Wayne Brannon, president and managing director of Chevrolet Europe.

[Source: LeftLane News]

Chevrolet has sold 2.35 million vehicles globally in the first six months of 2011, setting sales records in all the top five markets. The first six months of 2011 was the best half year performance in Chevrolet’s 100-year history. The American automaker sold 286,499 more vehicles in the first half of 2011 than the same time period of 2010, a 14-percent increase year over year.

The automaker set record first-half sales in several countries including Argentina, Brazil, Chile, China, Columbia, Denmark, Ecuador, France, South Africa and Turkey. Chevrolet’s growth has been credited to the new wave of models including the Cruze compact car, Spark mini car, Sonic small car, and Orlando MPV. The Chevy Malibu midsize car and the all-new Colorado compact pickup will soon join the previously mentioned vehicles when they go on sale later this year globally.

Chevrolet has decided to cancel production of its Malibu Hybrid. As shocking as this might seem for a company that claims it is now dedicated to building environmentally-friendly cars, it actually makes a lot of sense.

For starters, while the Malibu itself continues to sell well and has received critical acclaim from auto journos, the hybrid version has never been a popular model – and its about to get less so.

Rated at 24/32 mpg (city/highway) the numbers aren’t all that impressive, due mostly to the car’s “mild” hybrid system. Those numbers aren’t as good as the 33/34 mpg rating for the Toyota Camry Hybrid and are nowhere close to the 41/36 mpg rating of the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid.

The 24/32 rating is even less impressive when you consider the four-cylinder Malibu with a six-speed automatic transmission gets 22/33 mpg and costs significantly less.

General Motors has not commented on if or when a new and improved hybrid system will find its way into the Malibu.

[Source: LeftLaneNews]