wow thats cheap. can you at least step up to a LT one and still get a killer price?

 

Well, tonight, the decision was made.

And the winner is......













The 2009 Chevy Malibu LS.

My fiancee and I went to the Ford dealer, who wouldn't go any lower than their previous offer, $21,300 + tax/title/licensing. It was still too high, but the salesman wouldn't budge, so we walked.

We went to another local Ford dealer, as my fiancee still wanted the Fusion. I wasn't expecting anything different, though. The salesman and sales managers here REALLY wanted to sell us a car, but they kept trying to push us towards the 2009 Fusion, which we really weren't interested in. The salesman offered us $21,000 even + tax/title/licensing on the 2010 Fusion. Still too high. We got up to leave, and one of the sales managers came to work on us. When I mentioned the Malibu, he got agitated. He kept trying to compare the Malibu to the '09 Fusion, to which I responded that the Malibu was the better car, and the 2010 Fusion was more of a fair comparison. He wasn't too happy. The head sales manager, who happens to live the next street over from my house, also talked with us. He seemed to be disappointed in losing a possible sale, but he said it was hard to come down on the price of the 2010 model. Again, he pushed the 2009 model, but that wasn't an option for us. We left.

We went back to the Chevy dealer, and I told them about the supplier discount. They accepted it, and we also got $3250 in rebates. The final discounted price was $18,711. We also had a trade-in, a 2004 Subaru Impreza 2.5RS with 103,000 miles and some minor cosmetic damage. They offered us $1800 for it, which we accepted. A Subaru dealer had recently appraised it at $2000, so the Chevy dealer was close. Total price - $16,911 + tax/title/licensing. The deal was too good to pass up.

The car is Black Granite Metallic with a cocoa/cashmere cloth interior. Really nice-looking car. I wasn't concerned with getting a 6-speed LT model. The 4-speed is fine. I'm not sure when I'm picking up the car. I'm giving the dealer the remaining balance tomorrow, and they'll let me know then when the car will be ready.

 

post some pics when you get it. i'd love to see inside it.

 

Congrats on making a decision!

The Ford dealers are probably trying to clear the lots of 2009 models since they will become harder to push once more 2010 come out. It's understandable they couldnt make a better deal.

Side note: Are you getting a 2010 Camaro as is in your sig?

 

Congrats on the purchase! I doubt you could end up disappointed with either of those cars. The Malibu has proven to be a teriffic product, and the new Fusion also looks very good. The looks are subjective, I agree that both look good. I do enjoy the agressive styling of the Fusion, but in the higher LT and LTZ trims the Malibu looks very high-class to me.

$18k is a steal too. I have a friend who works for GM and bought a 2LT Malibu a month or two ago for around 20k out the door (with a 6speed I think). It sounds like you got at least the same ballpark deal that a GM employee would get.

 

The Ford dealers were definitely trying to get the '09s off the lots. They had a $3000 rebate on the '09 Fusion, but the Malibu, in my mind, is a far better car than that.

And yes, I will be getting a 2010 Camaro. Still saving up money for a down payment, and waiting for the initial rush of customers to die down.

 

Chevrolet dealers are willing to deal on anything.... as long as it's not the Camaro. With price as a main criteria, the Malibu is pretty tough to beat at just about any Chevrolet dealer.

That said....

If I were in the market for that type of car (mid sized, FWD), I'd spend the extra dollars and go with the 2010 Fusion Sport.

I'm a big fan of the new Malibu. GM put alot of effort into the interior styling, and (outside of the nose on the thing) the car actually looks somewhat classy... almost glamourous!

But while the Malibu feels Japanese (as a complement) the Fusion feels European (also as a complement). The Fusion is more aggressive looking outside (the Malibu looks tall and skinny while the Fusion looks like it has a bit wider stance), the Ford "Electric Razor" grille actually works on this car, and the interior both in look and touch feels like it came off a boat that crossed the Atlantic.

Also, unlike Ford's V8s, Ford's V6s and 4s get both impressive performance and impressive fuel economy.... reflecting where Ford's been putting their engine development dollars the past few years.

Having a company being around should not be an issue with either. While unlike GM, Ford actually still has a net value (it's market value exceeds it's debts while GM's debts are up to 30 times it's market value), Chevrolet is simply not going anywhere, even if the rest of General Motors caves in.

The choice between the Fusion is a matter of taste. Both cars are import quality now, and both IMHO are great looking vehicles. Perhaps the best run-of-the-mill, mid size cars the US has produced in the lifetimes of most people on this board.

Although you picked the Malibu and I prefer the Fusion, you simply can't go wrong with either.... congratulations on your purchase!

 

Wonder when Chevy will get around to dropping the 3.0 DI V6 into the Malibu?

 

I just had an evil thought.

As far as I know, the 2.4L Ecotec should share the same mounting points, etc. as the 2.0L LNF, right?

 

I'd purchase a turbo Ecotec Malibu in a minute, however I doubt GM will ever build it.

 

The only problem, from the research I've done, is that the LNF isn't happy outside of the car it was put into. All of the electronics have to be changed over, including the body control module. It ain't gonna be cheap.

There are, however, turbo kits for the LE5 2.4L Ecotec out there. That sounds like a viable alternative.

 

Just got a call from the dealer. They're still waiting on paperwork related to the rebates from GMAC, who apparently is being tight-fisted with the money they owe the dealers and is trying to limit the amount they are paying out at one time. The salesman said the car will be ready for delivery this week, hopefully sooner rather than later.

Part of me sympathizes with the dealer, with the way things are going at GM. The other part of me says "Too bad. That's not my problem. Give me my car."

Should I call back and demand the car be ready tomorrow? It only takes like an hour to PDI the car, and the dealer can worry about the paperwork from GMAC on their own time.

 

just going to say the same... I liked the old fusion even, I would probalby be driving one now, if it "fit" me better. But that was before the malibu came out.

I am not a huge fan of the front of the Malibu but I like the rear. I think it being a 2k9, you have even more room to work with over the 2010 Fusion, as they are trying to push out 2k9s.




EDIT:

Just saw you chose the Malibu but like said before, can't go wrong with both cars, I'd be happy with either.