GM waves goodbye to gasoline Malibu, embraces electric vision

On May 8, the American multinational automotive manufacturing company General Motors announced its decision to discontinue production of the gasoline-powered Chevrolet Malibu later this year to focus on manufacturing new electric vehicles. Since 1964, GM has sold over 10 million Malibus globally, but production will cease in November'24. To facilitate this shift, the Detroit automaker is investing $390 million into its Kansas assembly plant to produce the next-generation Chevrolet Bolt EVs, following the production halt for the previous generation Bolt in December.

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For several years, General Motors (GM) has championed the use of aluminium castings. In 2002, GM debuted an all-aluminium engine block for the Cadillac Northstar V8, aimed to trim the engine's weight while enhancing its durability.

In recent years, GM has prioritised the production of crossover and sport utility vehicles over traditional cars. Following the discontinuation of the Chevrolet Camaro last year, the Malibu is the sole Chevrolet car available in the United States, apart from the Corvette.

GM has announced a temporary halt in production for the Cadillac XT4 after January 2025 in Kansas. While this pause will lead to layoffs for production employees, it is a strategic move that will be reversed in late 2025 when production resumes for both the Bolt EV and XT4 on the same assembly line.

Although Malibu sales declined 12.5 per cent in the first three months of this year, they rebounded 13 per cent to reach 130,000 units in 2023.