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Sedans Chevrolet Malibu Chevrolet Malibu MPG-Real World Numbers
286 messages, Last post on Nov 26, 2009 at 7:58 PM
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Replying to: phil53 (Sep 02, 2008 8:53 pm) On the first tank with a lot of idling to figure out onstar and play with all the functions, we averaged 28.3 with an average speed of 38 mph. Tire pressure is at recommended 30 PSI. My wife is driving the car and has a heavy foot. Her commute is about 2 miles of stop and go followed by 16 miles of highway(65-80mph) and then another 2 miles of stop and go. She uses no fuel saving techniques. So far on the second tank we are averaging 28.8 with an average speed of 39 MPH. On this tank I drove on hilly/curvy country highways for about 90 miles and the readout was at 32.5 mpg and climbing when we got home. I checked instant mpg at 60 mph with the cruise set on a level road and very little wind and it was between 43 and 46 mpg, I think the car will easily get the advertised 32 mpg highway. On the first fill we had 14.4 gallons and 413 miles for an actual average of 28.68, so a little better than the readout calculated. So overall the readout appears pretty accurate so far. We really like the car so far, it is comfortable, rides and drives very nice and is quiet inside. |
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That was very helpful! That's just the sort of information I was looking for and is very encouraging.  I have been vacillating between the Malibu and a small SUV ('09 Forester). The SUV offers more utility and AWD. It doesn't do too badly on mileage (~25 mpg). But it looks like the Malibu will do quite a bit better, plus it offers a few more creature comforts in LTZ guise. Plus, I know the Chevy dealer and they're close-by. |
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Rented a '08 Malibu 1LT with 4 Cylinder and 4-speed auto during a visit to Florida this weekend. I topped off the tank, ran a round trip between Tampa and Naples, and when I refilled the tank I calculated 28 mpg. That's 2 less than the EPA rating. It's puzzling since it was 99% highway driving. I was doing about 75-80 and noticed the RPMs were around 2800 which seems high. Maybe you have to do 65 or less to get 30mpg? If you do 65 on I-75 in Florida you'll get mowed down by pickup trucks.
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Replying to: kam327 (Sep 07, 2008 5:15 pm) First and foremost, your rental has a 4 speed automatic. The 2LT and LTZ are now available with the 6 speed automatic. I'm guessing the addition of 2 more gears makes a significant difference. Second, while I, myself, have a heavy foot and have been known (frequently) to drive those speeds, the EPA test does not. I suspect if you slowed down to 65 - 70, you might gain 1 to 2 mpg. With a 2.4L 4 cyl and a 4 speed automatic, 2800 rpm at those speeds is probably not out of line. Our VW 1.9L diesel with a 5 speed manual churns nearly that hard at those speeds. FWIW, a bigger engine with a couple more gears will do about as well. My 2003 Corvette with the 5.7L V8 and 6 speed manual would have returned 28 mpg on the trip you described. But, of course, it has enough power and is light enough that it is hardly turning at those speeds. Having said that, I once rented a Buick LeSabre with the 3.8L V6 and 4 speed auto. I drove it from Indianapolis to KC at about 75 mph and it returned right about 28 mpg. So smaller doesn't always equal more economical.
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Replying to: phil53 (Sep 07, 2008 5:55 pm)
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My wife has traveled a total 87,123 miles since 2003. She has used 3,120.577 gallon of gas = 27.919 MPG. This is with a 3.5 V-6 Malibu Yes we have synthetic oil 0W-30 with once per year oil changes. Ken |
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Replying to: kam327 (Sep 12, 2008 12:57 pm) |
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What's the MPG everyone is realizing on the 6 cyl/6 speed auto Malibu? And, at what speeds? Thanks
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Replying to: hjr3 (Sep 17, 2008 9:39 am) Now to my numbers- driven in these (nearly ideal? I always thought flat terrain would be better, but..) conditions, I have been getting anywhere from 28 to 32 mpg, with the overall sitting right at 29. The overall includes the initial break-in of 500 miles where I stayed off the interstate as much as possible (more stop'n'go), kept speeds below 55 where I could, etc. I have noticed while driving around strictly in downtown Asheville that the reading varies between 16's and 22, with the lighter traffic usually being higher, but lots of stop'n'go / accelerating against the hills being closer to 17. Speed zones anywhere from 35 to 50 mph, though sometimes barely getting up to speed before stopping again. Those are my observations. Let me know if there is anything more specific you want to know. |
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Bought my new Malibu 2008 2LT, 4 cyl engine, last week from CarMax. It is almost brand new and has only 1600 miles on it. The DIC currently shows 21.6 mpg for my last 400 miles driving. I drive about 25 miles one way to work, which has about 60 % City/40% Highway. I have been scared to notice the fuel gauge moving down quickly while driving it on highway. I never experienced something like that. I own a honda Civic 96 and Sienna 04, and have never seen the fuel gauge noticeably moving while driving these cars. My Sienna Van has 6 cyls with 54K miles on it and still average 20.5 mpg. I researched this car for the last 4 months and saw many praises on its fuel economy. But I did not expect it this bad. I was hoping for 26-27 mpg average. When I bought the Malibu, I wondered why the last owner would resell the car after just couple of weeks driving it. I remembered to see 16.7mpg when resetting the DIC. I guess that might be the reason he dumped the car to carmax. Now I am wondering I would do the same. I will start measuring the gas manually tomorrow to see exactly what mpg I got. |
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