Midsize Sedans

Back in 1964, Chevrolet introduced the Malibu name on the Chevelle, a coupe and sedan that filled the gap between the full-size Chevy and the smaller Chevy II of the time. Measuring 193.9 inches long and weighing 3060 pounds, the $2635 body-on-frame Chevelle Malibu SS, powered by a 220-horse V-8, achieved 0 to 60 in 9.7 seconds and the quarter mile in 17.4 at 80 mph. No dragstrip diva, the Malibu was nonetheless a solid family car, especially when it came to cruising the blacktop of the red, white, and blue. See the USA in your Chevrolet? Heck, Dinah Shore would've gladly jumped into the driver's seat.

Today, though, the Malibu's original big and thirsty V-8, body-on-frame construction, and live rear axle are all history, replaced with clean and efficient four- and six-cylinder engines, a squeak-free unibody structure, and an independent rear suspension. But one thing that hasn't changed, and evidenced by this month's feature in which our editors saw over 11,300 miles of the USA in Chevy's new midsize sedan, is that the Malibu is more adept than ever at cruising America's highways and byways, be they in Maine, Florida, Washington, or California. With a quiet and lush interior, and newfound levels of refinement and style, the Malibu is a legitimate contender for best-in-class bragging rights. But is it actually the best in class? Has America finally built the preeminent midsize family sedan, trumping Japan's big three?

To get the answer, we assembled the best from the Pacific brands-the all-new, eighth-generation Honda Accord; the Toyota Camry, our 2007 Car of the Year; and the fresh-for-2007, fourth-generation Nissan Altima-and threw them in the ring with the new Chevy. These three Malibu rivals, through October 2007, combined for sales of nearly one million units. Formidable? Seeing that the previous-generation Malibu found only 108,930 buyers during that period, terribly intimidating is more like it.

Truth is, each of these family sedans is intimidating, at least when looking back 20 years at our "Top-Speed 10" test from September 1988, in which we pushed 10 of the day's fastest sports cars to the limit. Turns out every one of these household heroes is quicker to 60 and the quarter mile than seven of those sports cars, including the Nissan 300ZX Turbo, BMW M6, and Chevy Camaro IROC-Z. Want more? The Altima and Camry outpace the Porsche 928 S4 and the Ferrari Testarossa, respectively, to 60. So when Dad says, "Hold on," he means it.