A car introduced in 1964 will be no more as General Motors confirmed it will stop producing the Chevrolet Malibu.
The Associated Press called the Malibu the last midsize car made by GM.
The Malibu had been one of the most popular sedans in the U.S., but sales declined in the early 2000s when drivers opted for SUVs and pickup trucks. It was introduced as a more luxurious model of the Chevrolet Chevelle and was originally called the Chevelle Malibu. In the 1970s, it was its own model, not an upgraded Chevelle. The model line stopped production in 1983, but was bought back in 1997, CNN reported.
Full-sized pickups made by Ford, Chevrolet and Ram are the biggest sellers across the country. The top non-truck is Toyota’s RAV4 small SUV, the AP reported.
The New York Times reported that GM’s rivals Stellantis and Ford have also steered away from cars, opting to produce SUVs and trucks, while Toyota, Honda and Hyundai continue to produce sedans and compact cars.
Ford stopped making the Taurus and Fusion sedans. It only produces the Mustang as a car. Chevrolet stopped production on the Mustang’s competitor, the Camaro, in 2023, CNN reported.
Cox Automotive said that cars make up less than 20% of U.S. auto sales, according to CNN.
The Malibu was redesigned for the 2016 model year and brought with it 230,000 sales, but many were purchased by rental car companies, the AP reported.
GM sold about 130,000 Malibus in 2023.
The Malibu currently has a starting manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $25.100. It has three different special editions: the Midnight Edition, Sport Edition and Redline Edition.
A factory in Kansas City, Kansas, currently builds the Malibu and will continue to do so until later this year, when the factory is adapted to make the Chevrolet Bolt and the Cadillac XT4.
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