Comments on: 2008 Chevy Malibu Hybrid

By: Ford Fan

Ford Fan — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 04:58:19 +0000

I can’t wait for the day when we see stylish and affordable hybrids here on the roads in Aus. At the moment they are really just for the rich eco friendly types.

By: radon

radon — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 18:07:44 +0000

I like the malibu hybrid but the price does not make up for the milage increase. You can find some great cars for less that get very good milage. I think i would buy the regular malibu first and try to limit the miles i use it instead.
radon´s last blog ..radon test

By: Mary Saunders

Mary Saunders — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 21:03:33 +0000

I have an ‘05 Prius, and I like the quiet and the good brakes in addition to the good mileage. Now that I’m out of warranty I could supposedly add another battery and get 100 mpg, but I think it still costs a lot.

I also rather like it that I am driving around in a generator. If power went out for longer than the local hospital could handle, in theory I could go down there and offer to donate power.

One guy last year did this for his house. I haven’t gotten to a Prius-owners meeting yet, but I’ve referred others to it, and I’ve met some of the guys tabling at Do-It-Better fairs and things like that.

By: amy@black mold

amy@black mold — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 22:08:38 +0000

I can not believe they only get 2 miles more a gallon. I doubt people will pay the extra money for that little more milage. It really is not that good for being a new hybrid so i doubt they will sell alot of them.

By: Paul

Paul — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 20:03:19 +0000

Some people sure have a lot more money than I do. For the extra $10,000 the Prius costs, you can buy all the gas you’ll ever need for the entire life of a similar small car including Toyota’s own Yaris Sedan(Same vehicle Passenger Room and Luggage room-do some research) Ford Focus is even cheaper, has the same room inside and again, for the price difference, you can buy all the gas the Focus would ever use-for the entire life of the car! Also There are strange problems associated with the car that has left numerous owners stranded without any idea what to do.(Gas station mechanics, etc can be of no help) such as I bought a new Toyota
Prius March 15. I was shocked and alarmed to read on page 8: “If you do not use the vehicle for a long time (2 weeks or more), the hybrid
vehicle battery and auxiliary battery will discharge and their condition is liable to decline. ” This is true. It usually is an issue for the elderly or retired who let the car sit for long periods(Two weeks?) Can you imagine what the media would print about American car companies that would sell a new car with these issues?? Therefore, in order to make up for discharging, charge them once in every two weeks for about 30 minutes by starting the hybrid system
with all electrical components turned off.”

I called Toyota. “Joel” informed me that if we did not charge the battery as per the owner’s manual every two weeks as required by the manual and any problem developed, that would be deemed negligence on our part and the warranty would be voided. Frankly, I consider this to be fraud. We were never given a single item to read, there is nothing in the advertising and no salesman disclosed, etc., any information at all relating to the necessity to have the battery on the car charged for at least 1/2 hour every two weeks or the warranty would be voided.

We are about to retire and, hopefully, take many long trips with the intention of leaving this car locked in our garage. One of the things that made us even angrier was that “Joel” told us it was “our fault” for not reading the manual before buying the car. Toyota didn’t give us a manual in advance; and the requirement to charge the battery every two weeks is in none of the brochures or other materials available before purchase.

As strongly as we feel about protecting the environment, we would NOT have purchased a Prius had we known about this problem. I get stopped all the time in parking lots, etc., by people who never saw a hybrid asking how we like it. When I mention not being able to take a two-week vacation without hiring a car sitter, they thank me for letting them know and state they would not buy the car under those circumstances. Not a single person, not one out of at least 15 such encounters.

By: clint

clint — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 19:12:33 +0000

I really like these new hybrids,but the price tag is to high.I think i could buy a camery for 10,000 less and get 37mpg.

Cheers
http://www.promomaker.blogspot.com

By: Anne Florenzano

Anne Florenzano — Sun, 25 May 2008 18:14:48 +0000

Boy, do I agree with Teresa! I’ve been driving my Prius since 2004 and regularly get almost 500 miles per 10 gallon tank-full. Except when it’s really, really cold up here in Minneapolis; then I only get – gasp! – about 35 mpg. GM’s effort is sad, simply sad. It doesn’t measure up to a Prius even in the worst conditions. Wake up, America, and smell the green! If you make it green, as Teresa says, it’ll sell itself and you’ll get the green!

By: Kristine

Kristine — Sat, 24 May 2008 04:21:17 +0000

Very humorous take on a very serious problem! I have written about the audacity of American auto makers myself and this one really takes the cake. No wonder they are not making any money. Ugh. Those GM executives are all making serious coin and are working more for the oil companies than for their own shareholders. Shame on you!

By: Teresa

Teresa — Fri, 23 May 2008 17:39:43 +0000

Once again I was stopped by not 1 but 3 people today (people do this all the time) all of whom wanted details on my Prius, they wanted to sit in it, open the hatch, examine the computer screens, etc. They ooh’d and ahh’d over my incredible gas mileage. On one 10 gallon fill-up I can go 497 miles, yep I said it, almost 500 miles on one fill-up. Now after all this I just want to know where is my dadgum commission check from Toyota? GEEZ GM make the the darn car and it will sell itself or rather its driver’s will. I smell coffee do you?

Teresa