More 'Morty' Than 'Maxx' but Still a Good Car

On a recent business trip to one of those rectangular western states, I rented a 2005 Chevy Malibu Maxx. I was impressed with several aspects of this car, although it disappointed in a couple other areas. However, my experience is that it is a good choice for families and it looks to be an excellent soccer mom shuttle vehicle.

My rental car started out with 9,100 miles on it.

What It Is

The 2005 Malibu Maxx is a wagon design that looks like a stretched hatchback. It has a higher-than-normal beltline, giving it a slab-sided and angular look. It reminded me of Saabs from 10 years ago or so, only bigger. It is clearly intended for someone who considers the typical sedan or wagon boring and wants something more “youthful.” The “Maxx” name is a giveaway that this vehicle will be marketed to the 25-35 year old age group. However, the car will probably look dated in a couple years, as most attempts at youth usually do.

The model I rented was equipped with the 3.5-liter 200 hp V6 engine (220 ft-lbs of torque at 3,200 rpm), which I found exceptionally smooth and quiet. In fact the quietness of the Maxx was a surprise; this was among the quietest cars I’ve ever been in. The V6 engine is mated to a four-speed automatic transmission, which likewise shifted smoothly during routine driving. Mashing the throttle could get a powerful lurch into a lower gear as the Maxx leaped forward but the car was not particularly willing to go into performance mode. I’ll have more on this shortly.

There was a nice array of toys in the Maxx I drove, including alloy wheels, A/C, cruise control, traction control, power windows and locks, a fine-sounding stereo, a nifty information readout in the dashboard, interval wipers (front and rear), tilt steering wheel, automatic headlights, map lights, and sun visors with lighted mirrors and little extensions to block those annoying gaps that the sun always seems to find. Overall, the car looked and felt solid. Doors closed with a rewarding thud and there were no buzzes or rattles to mar the quiet interior.

Accomodations

When I say that the car is stretched, I mean that the 2005 Malibu Maxx has a real back seat with lots of leg room for adults, not to mention growing kids. With the driver’s seat positioned where I like it, there was LOTS of room in the back seat. Even cooler is the fact that the rear seats can recline somewhat; there are recline controls for the two rear seatbacks. The seat cushions in back are firm and a bit short but will probably work fine for most kids on family trips. Another interesting kid-friendly feature in back are the two non-opening skylights, each with a sunshade. There are four cupholders in back, too.

Behind the back seat is a real usable cargo space, complete with a hard cover that can be set for a couple different heights. This could be useful to hide valuables under the cover, while still providing a firm surface to carry other stuff. There are a couple odd cubbyholes in back that could be used for odds and ends. Under the floor in back is a limited-service spare tire.

Up front, there are two cloth bucket seats that are firm and moderately bolstered. The seatback felt great to me, with a nice push right where I like it in the lower back. However, the cushion might have been a little too firm for me, and I generally like a firm seat.

Behind the Wheel

The vinyl steering wheel was comfortable to grip but seemed a little further away than I’d like. I did enjoy the nice cruise control buttons on the steering wheel, however. I was able to adjust the wheel to get a perfect view of the instruments, which consisted of a tachometer, speedometer, temperature gauge and fuel gauge. All were easy to see, day or night.

Less easy to see was the nifty information center, which was located on the stereo. This showed time, outside temperature and a variety of other bits of information. I had it set for a trip odometer to show me the distance I drove on this trip (290 miles). The information center is flanked with lots of buttons to display all sorts of things, but I did not take the time to learn how to use it. On the downside, the information readout was hard to see in the sun and almost impossible to see with sunglasses on.

The other controls were generally well placed, except that the turn-signal stalk was a little higher than I’m used to. The wiper stalk seemed a little more complicated than it needed to be and I couldn’t figure out where the rear wiper switch was until it was nearly time to turn the car in. The rear wiper switch is below the heater controls.

The information center, radio and heater controls are all in the same integrated display and it was really more buttons than could easily be operated while driving the car. Although the heater and A/C system worked well (and I needed both!), it was tricky to figure out what I wanted to do when I was driving. I had to take my eyes off the road to figure out which button to push for the A/C, and this was complicated by the tiny LED that lights up to tell you that the A/C is on. It is a very small light and, again, it’s nearly impossible to see in the daylight with sunglasses on.

The dashboard is all plastic but it looks soft and well made. There are lots of heater vents and a few cubbyholes here and there. I particularly liked the little well in front of the shift lever for my sunglasses. A center console storage compartment doubles as an elbow rest.

There are lots of switches on the driver’s door for the windows, mirrors and locks. In addition, the hatchback release button is on the driver’s door, not near anything else; it was a while before I found it. The ignition key goes into the dashboard instead of the steering column.

The multispeaker stereo system (CD and radio) is one of the best I’ve ever heard in a car. The sound quality -- at least at the levels I listened at -- was clean and bright with strong bass. The bass was so strong that I pulled to the side of the road and fiddled with all the radio buttons until I got it adjusted to a somewhat less pounding level that more suited my taste. When I had it adjusted to where I liked it (flat, according to the display), the sound was very good. FM reception was excellent and I listened to the same station for more than 90 miles on a stretch of Interstate. I do not know if the CD player can handle MP3 disks and the stereo does not have an aux jack for an iPod.

Visibility out the front is fine but the Maxx’s small back window really hampers the view behind the car. I had to look, look again and check one more time when I changed lanes in traffic. There is a big blind spot back there.

Driving the Maxx

There are a lot of plusses and minus to driving the Maxx, and I’ll get the plusses out of the way first. This is a very quiet and smooth car. The speed limit where I drove was 75 MPH in spots and I made a point to drive greater than or equal to the speed limit. At these speeds, the Malibu Maxx was amazingly quiet, with no engine noise, almost no road noise and just a bit of wind noise. I thought this was very impressive.

Some of this has to do with the transmission’s gear ratios; the engine was loafing along at 2,300 rpm at 75 MPH. The 215/60-16 Bridgestone Insignia SE tires and the car’s suspension were obviously good at suppressing road noise, and the car was well sealed to hold off the wind noise.

There was plenty of power to keep the car at Interstate speeds, even at the 4,500 to 7,000-foot altitudes that I experienced. There was never a problem climbing hills and the cruise control was generally good at holding the speed where I wanted it. If you enjoy a quiet car that can go the distance without making you buzzy, check out the Malibu Maxx.

On the debit side, the Maxx’s isolated interior mirrored its isolated engine. I’ve never driven another car that felt so disconnected between the gas pedal and the engine. It was the oddest feeling, kind of like I was controlling the engine in the car in front of me and that car was pulling me along by a stretchy rubber band. At least half of the stroke of the gas pedal had this numb feeling; pressing further slammed the car into a lower gear and we headed off to the higher range of the speedometer.

Once at the speed I wanted, the car dropped back to it’s eerily quiet level and I cruised in near silence at speeds that would easily get a Cessna airborne. I enjoyed the silence but didn’t like the disconnect between the throttle and the engine. I think that the transmission is actually the culprit, forcing the engine to loaf along at low rpm for economic reasons. Another gear or two would go along way to reducing the isolation and increasing the “fun” quotient.

Around town, the Malibu Maxx is a well-mannered family car, capable of being driven to the supermarket and soccer practice without a second thought. I detected no torque steer and the brakes (disks at all four corners) were solid and easy to control. On the Interstate, the Maxx felt rather floaty, like GM cars of old. It was definitely not the performance mobile that you might surmise from the angular styling and the “Maxx” name. On the Interstate, it’s more “Morty” than “Maxx,” but that might be just the thing for a family.

What will really bring a smile to a family is the gas mileage I experienced: 31 MPG in my 290 miles of driving. I really squeezed the gas in, too, wanting to get an accurate reading. Considering the size of the car, the V6 engine and the high-altitude driving, I was impressed by this gas mileage. Most of my miles were on the Interstate, although I did a bit of around-town driving at night (no traffic) and was stuck in a 45-minute traffic jam and some sluggish traffic at other times.

In my two days of driving, the car performed flawlessly. Otherwise, I have no experience with its reliability.

Summary

The 2005 Malibu Maxx is not the sporty car I expected, despite its slightly “out-there” looks and marketing. Underneath the trendy look beats the heart of a family wagon, and this is not a bad thing. Families can use wagons and the Maxx is far more appropriate for most smaller families than the SUVs that people have been buying for family cars in recent memory. Really, any family with two kids aged 8 and 11 will be better served by something along the lines of the Malibu Maxx than, say, a Ford Explorer. (Of course, if you really need four-wheel drive and more towing ability, you have my permission to buy it.)

However, if you do battle in the suburban jungle and want something that looks sporty yet serves the needs of a family, I was impressed with the Maxx. The gas mileage alone was excellent and most kids will actually enjoy being in the back seat of the Maxx. If you are expecting something really sporty, the Malibu Maxx is not your car. It is a pretender in the sporty department, even if it has the goods to be a fine family car.

I recommend the 2005 Malibu Maxx.