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More Malibu
by
Edward Niedermeyer
(IC: employee)
Published: April 16th, 2011
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It’s promising to be a bit of a slow weekend, with the entire auto media preparing for a week of madness at either the New York Auto Show, or on the other side of the world, the Shanghai Auto Show. So here, to add to the building sense of anticipation, is yet another image of Chevy’s forthcoming 2013 Malibu. Enjoy… but just be sure to save some enthusiasm for next week.
Edward Niedermeyer
More by Edward Niedermeyer
Published April 16th, 2011 12:40 PM
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About what I expected overall with plain sides, Camaro like taillights and a more funky interior. The 4 cylinder only powertrains will be a bummer as will the lack of a real stick, the curbweight has yet to be announced but if this car is based on the chunky Regal, I'm expecting a 3600 LB Malibu for starters with fuel economy no better than todays car if were lucky. Expect the 2.4 182 HP DI L-4, a new optional 2.5 L-4 with 200 plus HP and the 2.0 liter T with around 220-225 HP. The V6 is history after the current 2012's abbreviated short year run.
Ah yes. The tried and trus "must be fleet sales" angle of the B&B...
There seems to be a lot of ignorance to the reality that "fleet sales", command the same dealer prices as any other sale. In fact, they are processed through dealers who typically take a small margin to handle the transaction. On the "front end", they are just as good as any other business. Does anyone have any idea what sort of residual value guarantee, if any, car makers give to fleet companies these days? It is the "back end" that was so costly in the past. I expect residual value guarentee is less generous than in the past as GM & Ford have consciously decided to reduce fleet sales. That does not mean they turn the business away! GM's fleet sales were down from the 30%'s to 26% in Q1. In years past, many returned fleet cars commanded nearly as much, or more than original dealer prices when sold at auction. I believe the years of huge subsidy of residual value to move fleet deals are past. Even so, GM's hot new products seem to be enjoying higher residual values than in the past. The bottom line is that fleet sales should not automatically be assumed to be bad business, though concerns about brand image are valid. Did it occur to anyone that the fleets get to choose who they buy from? Don't you think they want to buy what their customers or clients want, and, most importantly, what gives them the most value?
"MaliBuick"? "MaLacrosse"? "EpiBu"? Rentibu?