Just saw my 1st Malibu Maxx SS. I'm doing a 180 on this one.

Just sitting at Hobsons on Haight Street in San Francisco getting hammered on whatever cheap Merlot they're dishing out.

Looking out the window when this seemingly blinged out deep blue Malibu Maxx stopped at the stopsign, before driving off. It drove by again about 10 minutes later. Dual chrome tailpipes, chrome "SS" rims, what seemed like chrome accents in the grille and lower intakes. Chrome "SS" logo on the sides.

Call it "bad wine delirium", tell me I walked by too many Haight Street "smokers" on the way to the bar. Say I like the color blue with chrome a little too much. you can even suspect the bar slipped me a hallucination inducement in my wine. But that Malibu looked really hot in the night glow of the street lights, and REALLY stands out.

I don't know how the thing runs, and I don't know if I'll feel the same way when I see it in broad daylight stone sober, but dayemnnnn! that was a good looking ride..... even though it was a Maxx!

Will I respect myself in the morning? :lol:

i guess it looks ok for a wagon...

i guess it looks ok for a wagon...

Antioch? Ah, a local! :D

Funny thing is a couple of years ago, I asked Scott what were the product people thinking putting the SS name on a Maxx of all things. Now here it is, I actually see one (admittedly under the influence of merlot without eating anything all day) and, for the moment, I actually like the d*mn thing!

Go figure. :lol:

Antioch? Ah, a local! :D

Funny thing is a couple of years ago, I asked Scott what were the product people thinking putting the SS name on a Maxx of all things. Now here it is, I actually see one (admittedly under the influence of merlot without eating anything all day) and, for the moment, I actually like the d*mn thing!

Go figure. :lol:
haha yep, what city are you in?

and for some reason the ss looks a lot better than the regular malibu maxx. i'd still rather pay a few (thousand) extra bucks and get the magnum srt-8 over that though. now if the maxx had an LS2...it would be a little different

Antioch? Ah, a local! :D

Funny thing is a couple of years ago, I asked Scott what were the product people thinking putting the SS name on a Maxx of all things. Now here it is, I actually see one (admittedly under the influence of merlot without eating anything all day) and, for the moment, I actually like the d*mn thing!

Go figure. :lol:

Its not just you, nor is it the wine. I haven't had a drink in over two years, but just yesterday, I was at the dealership looking around at the cars on the lot while the Vette got serviced. I found myself returning to the Maxx several times. What's more, I even caught myself thinking about the inevitable day when I have to trade in the Vette for a more practical family car, and considered the Maxx to be a strong possibility. The price is right too.

What is just as interesting is that a regular Malibu was sitting side by side it the Maxx, and I didn't like the Malibu. Never have liked the Malibu(newer incarnation, that is). Yet for some reason, the Maxx really caught my attention.

So was this a standard Maxx SS, or was it blinged out with aftermarket wheels and the like?

I think it's a nice little vehicle. I got to check out a black one recently, of course with chrome and everything also. It looked sharp with all that, 2 sunroof deal, and at like 27 grand, didn't seem like a bad deal (not 100% on the price, just a vague remembrance).
I think the new Impala looks a whole lot better in the night too. Course, I'm just talking profile and rear.

If you ask me, Chevy is putting out some what I like to call "color cars". They have to be the right color to look good. The blue on the Impys is nice whereas the maroonish-red is not.

haha yep, what city are you in?

and for some reason the ss looks a lot better than the regular malibu maxx. i'd still rather pay a few (thousand) extra bucks and get the magnum srt-8 over that though. now if the maxx had an LS2...it would be a little different

I'm up in San Fran where the wife lives for a couple of days (I'm stationed out of Monterey).

You and Greg are right. I'm not a fan of the new Malibu, yet the SS version not only caught my attention, but actually made me walk oyt the bar because at 1st i thought it was just a custom job (you get those alot out here in Cali).

I'm just amazed at how decent chrome trim and the right color completely transforms the thing. I'm still holding judgement till I see one in broad daylight and sober, but the car made an impact.

If Chevy put this trim package on the regular Malibus, I think it would have the same effect on the public.

This kind of reminds me how gallons of black paint, Buick roadmaster seats & console, and rear wheel cutouts completely changed the funny looking 90s Caprice into the evil looking Impala SS. Absolutley amazing! :)

I myself find the Maxx the better looking of the current Malibu models. I tried to push the bank I work at to get one as a currier vehicle (even though I dont do currier duties). Instead they got a friggen Honda Minivan :(

Good news is the minivan got in a wreck with a Tahoe the other day, and now our Currier is temporarily driving a Magnum :D

Just sitting at Hobsons on Haight Street in San Francisco getting hammered on whatever cheap Merlot they're dishing out.

Looking out the window when this seemingly blinged out deep blue Malibu Maxx stopped at the stopsign, before driving off. It drove by again about 10 minutes later. Dual chrome tailpipes, chrome "SS" rims, what seemed like chrome accents in the grille and lower intakes. Chrome "SS" logo on the sides.

Call it "bad wine delirium", tell me I walked by too many Haight Street "smokers" on the way to the bar. Say I like the color blue with chrome a little too much. you can even suspect the bar slipped me a hallucination inducement in my wine. But that Malibu looked really hot in the night glow of the street lights, and REALLY stands out.

I don't know how the thing runs, and I don't know if I'll feel the same way when I see it in broad daylight stone sober, but dayemnnnn! that was a good looking ride..... even though it was a Maxx!

Will I respect myself in the morning? :lol:

You sure no one dropped a hit of acid in your Merlot?

You in da windy city....go stand in the corner........

I think color has a lot to do with how the MAXX ...and SS in particular comes off. At Anaheim, I believe, we had a dark blue MAXX LTZ and a Malibu LTZ ...same color...and was impressed at how much better they looked with the 'bling' wheels and the color. (omg..did I say 'bling???)

Aso, nite-time brings out the oulines around the grille and the air intakes in the front of the vehicle.........

Also, the Malibu SS (not MAXX) is an alternative for those who don't care for the extended body.....again...color is everything.


(why DO I put all those periods in my sentences? Or.......are they really sentences?????) (I did it again!)

I'm not trying to pee in anybodies cheerios, but if the report by AutoWeek I believe it was is true, then GM is actually going to cancel this vehicle later in the decade. I've been in love with the Maxx even before this transformation. It's just a damn nice vehicle that is proportinally (sp?) done right.

I'm not trying to pee in anybodies cheerios, but if the report by AutoWeek I believe it was is true, then GM is actually going to cancel this vehicle later in the decade. I've been in love with the Maxx even before this transformation. It's just a damn nice vehicle that is proportinally (sp?) done right.

How sure are you of this josh?

(why DO I put all those periods in my sentences? Or.......are they really sentences?????) (I did it again!)

hmmmm......

Your typing out your pause in thought??????????:D

Here's an older post on it from October 28th. I think it was mentioned prior to our 3rd meltdown ;) (& FINAL ONE!) that the Maxx would be canned. It was AutoWeek or AutoNews or something along those lines that announced its cancellation.

http://www.cheersandgears.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=2493&hl=malibu+maxx

(why DO I put all those periods in my sentences? Or.......are they really sentences?????) (I did it again!)LOL, did you just notice that because I brought it up?

There is a blue one on the local lot I drive past everyday. I'm not a car-daily-driver guy, but if I was this would be the car I'd own if I had a family.

Although, everytime I look at it I think that AWD and a turbo ecotec would fit that car perfectly.

You sure no one dropped a hit of acid in your Merlot?

That would explain it, huh? :lol:

You in da windy city....go stand in the corner........

I think color has a lot to do with how the MAXX ...and SS in particular comes off. At Anaheim, I believe, we had a dark blue MAXX LTZ and a Malibu LTZ ...same color...and was impressed at how much better they looked with the 'bling' wheels and the color. (omg..did I say 'bling???)

Aso, nite-time brings out the oulines around the grille and the air intakes in the front of the vehicle.........

Also, the Malibu SS (not MAXX) is an alternative for those who don't care for the extended body.....again...color is everything.


(why DO I put all those periods in my sentences? Or.......are they really sentences?????) (I did it again!)

You aren't kidding about night time and dark color. Also it's been raining in the area everyday this week, so being clean and waxed probally played a role too.

To me, the sedan doesn't work because it's an angular body with a rounded greenhouse. The Maxx looks a bit better because it's greenhouse profile is a better fit with the blocky body. I thought the previous front end's oversized "Chevy bar" was too much, and made the car look alot like those small 70s cars that suddenly sprouted thick heavy chrome railroad ties for bumpers. The redesigned Malibu front end goes to the other extreme in looking cheap and unfinished, and did even less for me. With the shiny accents on the SS, the nose looked much better, and split the difference between the 2 noses. About the only thing I think would make it better is going with the "chicken-wire" look that the new Grand Prix grill has. That would really set the car off.


Not sure if you are saying the Maxx doesn't come in an SS version. The car I saw was definately a Maxx and it had all the SS stuff (front, rims, rear bumper & dual tail pipes, logo, etc...). :)

i'd still rather pay a few (thousand) extra bucks and get the magnum srt-8 over that though.

that's not comparing apples to apples. The Malibu SSs base MSRP is $24.6k. The Magnum SRT-8 base MSRP is $38k.

Maxx definitely comes as an SS, guionM. :cool:

My parents have an '04 Maxx, and I have always liked it. Theirs is an LS, with 16" aluminum wheels. The new LTs can have 17" chrome wheels, and look really sharp. Someone at work is driving an '06 Maxx LT in maroon with the chrome wheels, and it is VERY sharp looking.

I think I would like the Maxx even better if it were a true wagon instead of a wagon-ish hatchback ("extended sedan"...:think: ), though it would not look as cool. It would have an even more useable cargo area, though.

If they could've put the G6's 6-speed in there, it'd be a car worth looking at next year.

I deffinatly like the SS treatment on the black one I saw. Very sharp, very high class. Interior looked top notch, and the accents looked great. Good work, now give me one to replace my 04!!

If they could've put the G6's 6-speed in there, it'd be a car worth looking at next year.it would be on my list.

(why DO I put all those periods in my sentences? Or.......are they really sentences?????) (I did it again!)

Don't feel bad, I do the exact same thing, (it makes it easier for me to convey my thoughts I guess). I'm sure it must be irritating for those on the forums that have to read because between every though there is like at least 6 periods, lol. I've been trying to make a concious effort to cut down though :lol:

I had both a regular Malibu and a Maxx (non-SS) for a month each as rentals, and those cars are real winners IMO. They're everything a practical car is, coupled with decent if not attractive styling. The rear ends of those cars = $$. Wouldn't mind renting one again.

You in da windy city....go stand in the corner........

I think color has a lot to do with how the MAXX ...and SS in particular comes off. At Anaheim, I believe, we had a dark blue MAXX LTZ and a Malibu LTZ ...same color...and was impressed at how much better they looked with the 'bling' wheels and the color. (omg..did I say 'bling???)

Aso, nite-time brings out the oulines around the grille and the air intakes in the front of the vehicle.........

Also, the Malibu SS (not MAXX) is an alternative for those who don't care for the extended body.....again...color is everything.


(why DO I put all those periods in my sentences? Or.......are they really sentences?????) (I did it again!)

I do that alot myself.

I'm more thrown off (in a funny humoring way) by your use of terms like "OMG" and "da":lol:. The "bling" was a nice touch. I've been reading your posts for as long as i've posted here (since 00 or 01 under a different SN), and i think that's the first time i've seen you use them:D.

I've always kinda liked the the look of the malibu SS. I haven't seen it in person, but it looks nice in pics imo...as far as family sedans and wagons are concerned, it looks good.

Pic. This is not bad looking at all. With better looking wheels and a slight drop, it would look even better.
http://www.tuningnews.net/news/050328a/chevrolet-malibu-ss-15.jpg

That's a spitting image of the one I saw! :eek:

The rims look really retarded in this picture, but it has an amazingly positive impact on the car in person... especially in chrome.

The thing really stands out at night. :bow: