Holden Malibu CDX

 

 

   

The Malibu replaces the unloved Epica in Holden's mid sized vehicle lineup.

While the Epica was quite a good, roomy, attractively priced car, it never really caught on with buyers.

Epica and Malibu are poles apart in equipment levels and driveability.

Holden is trying to recapture a share of this market with a car named after a California beachside town. The Malibu however is born and bred in South Korea, and that's not a bad thing. Imports from GM's plants there, are fine vehicles, well made, with plenty of today's wanted features.

In fact they make up a goodly percentage of all Holdens sold in Australia.

The only Australian built Holdens, are Commodore, Statesman and Cruze.

The Malibu is a good looking car with sweeping lines, and seems almost as big inside and out as a Commodore, and from certain angles even looks like its larger sibling.

The boot is cavernous and houses a full sized spare wheel.



  



The Malibu is powered by either the 2.4 litre petrol four cylinder (from the Captiva range,) or a 2.0 litre turbo diesel with 117kw and 350 nm.. an uprated engine used in the Cruze.

The petrol engine CDX ,is a good, quiet performer, but when pushed you will know it's working hard. It's not as torquey as I would have liked, just 225 nm and 123 kw.

In a week of mixed urban/ open road driving the average fuel consumption never dropped below 10 litres per 100 k. The factory claim is eight.

Not to worry though, because there's a 73 litre fuel tank.

 

 

The diesel variant is not the quietest under acceleration, but it's a workmanlike sound and not overpoweringly noisy. There's enough grunt to shove you back in the seat under full throttle.

At steady throttle around town it's inaudible, and on the open road is remarkably civilised and does not intrude.

The spread of torque enables effortless acceleration and overtaking, while delivering excellent fuel economy. On a highway trip you'll easily travel well over a thousand kilometres from one tankful. In purely city driving, expect more than 800 kilometres from a tankful.

The six speed auto gearbox is good, holding a lower gear all by itself for downhill braking, although in manual mode, the up/ down buttons on the top of the gearshift lever, are not exactly intuitive to operate.

I found it awkward, but owners would most likely get used to it.

Keyless entry and start are convenience features that will appeal.

There are warning chimes and beeps aplenty in the Malibu.

You will never forget to turn off the indicators, the insistent clicking, sounds like a loud metronome.

Nor will you be able to resist the seat belt reminder chime and its ear piercing call to buckle up.

You will also know when the electric parking brake is engaging/releasing, it's much noisier than similar systems on other cars.

Despite the aural groaning from the rear, the brake holds the car well and disengages itself when you move off.

 
There's lots that will be familiar inside the Malibu. The steering wheel and indicator/ wiper stalks are standard GM fare, also found on other Holden models such as Commodore and Cruze.

 I like the curved sweep of the dashboard into the front doors. Highlighting that attractive architecture, is a thin blue led lighting feature that follows the chrome trim line running from door to fascia. Dials, buttons and gauges are easy to read and use.
The central MYLINK screen flips up to reveal a deep cubby for odds and ends and there are plenty of door pockets and a drop down stowage compartment near the drivers knee to satisfy most storage issues. A deep compartment also lies beneath the padded console armrest.
The CDX comes with heated leather front seats, auto lights and rain sensing wipers, as well as cruise control and reversing camera. Seats are firm but comfortable and the cabin is quiet on the move. Rear seat legroom is compromised by tall occupants up front, but it's satisfactory. Doors open wide for easy entry and exit.
The ride is comparable to a larger car, absorbing most suburban bumps in a civilised fashion.
At speed through corners the Malibu handles well, the equal to many others in its class and spirited driving won't have you clenching the wheel for dear life.
The steering feel on the CDX is light and the small turning circle is useful in the city.
 

 

The headlights however are disappointing, on low or high beam, they don't have enough spread or brilliance for confident night time driving. Aftermarket globes would be a useful expense.

There are four Malibu variants, priced from just over 28K to just under 36K for the diesel CDX.
There's no doubt the Malibu is well built and equipped and excellent value for money.

So the dilemma for buyers, is do they buy the locally built product, or go for the quality import with similar features at a marginally cheaper price? Time will tell.

Peter Sellen