Compare the2023 Honda CivicVS 2023 Chevrolet Malibu

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Ergonomics
Model Availability
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Honda Civic have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Chevrolet Malibu doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Honda Civic are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The Chevrolet Malibu doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the Civic deploy with different levels of force or don’t deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. The Civic’s side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The Malibu’s side airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Civic Touring/Sport Touring has a standard Low Speed Braking Control that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Malibu doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

The Civic Touring/Sport Touring has standard parking sensors to help warn the driver about vehicles, pedestrians or other obstacles behind or in front of their vehicle. The Malibu doesn’t offer a front parking aid.

The Civic’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Malibu doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Civic and the Malibu have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front wheel drive, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available blind spot warning systems and rear cross-path warning.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Honda Civic is safer than the Chevrolet Malibu:

	Civic	Malibu
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Neck Compression	23 lbs.	29 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Honda Civic is safer than the Chevrolet Malibu:

	Civic	Malibu
OVERALL STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
Chest Movement	.7 inches	1.3 inches
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	3 Stars
HIC	268	365
Hip Force	516 lbs.	1117 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	12 inches	12 inches
HIC	260	279

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4180-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the Honda Civic Sedan is much safer than the Malibu:

	Civic	Malibu
Overall Evaluation	ACCEPTABLE	POOR
Structure	ACCEPTABLE	POOR
	Driver Injury Measures
Head/Neck	GOOD	POOR
Head Injury Criterion	205	1178
Head Peak Forces	no contact	142 G’s
Neck Tension	268 lbs.	402 lbs.
Neck Compression	67 lbs.	89 lbs.
Torso	ACCEPTABLE	MARGINAL
Shoulder Deflection	1.26 in	2.17 in
Shoulder Force	268 lbs.	402 lbs.
Head Protection	GOOD	MARGINAL
	Passenger Injury Measures
Head/Neck	GOOD	GOOD
Head Injury Criterion	162	335
Head Peak Forces	no contact	74 G’s
Neck Tension	89 lbs.	469 lbs.
Torso	ACCEPTABLE	ACCEPTABLE
Shoulder Deflection	1.89 in	1.93 in
Shoulder Force	379 lbs.	892 lbs.
Torso Max Deflection	1.61 in	1.81 in
Torso Deflection Rate	5 MPH	9 MPH
Pelvis	GOOD	GOOD
Pelvis Force	580 lbs.	870 lbs.
Head Protection	GOOD	MARGINAL

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, and daytime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Civic the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2023, a rating granted to only 53 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Malibu last would have qualified as a “Top Safety Pick” in 2017.

Warranty

The Civic’s corrosion warranty is unlimited miles longer than the Malibu’s (unlimited vs. 100,000 miles).

Honda pays for scheduled maintenance on the Civic for 2 years and 24,000 miles. Honda will pay for oil changes, lubrication and any other required maintenance. Chevrolet only pays for the first scheduled maintenance visit on the Malibu.

Reliability

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Civic’s reliability 38 points higher than the Malibu.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Honda vehicles are more reliable than Chevrolet vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Honda 15 places higher in reliability than Chevrolet.

Engine

The Civic EX/EX-L/Touring’s standard 1.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 20 more horsepower (180 vs. 160) than the Malibu’s 1.5 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Civic EX/EX-L/Touring 1.5 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Chevrolet Malibu:

	Civic	Malibu
Zero to 60 MPH	7.4 sec	8.5 sec
Quarter Mile	15.7 sec	16.5 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	91.4 MPH	84.6 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Civic Sedan gets better mileage than the Malibu:

			MPG
Civic Sedan
	Auto	EX 1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	33 city/42 hwy
		Touring 1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	31 city/38 hwy
		2.0 4-cyl.	30 city/37 hwy
Malibu
	Auto	1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	27 city/35 hwy

On the EPA test cycle the Civic Hatchback gets better mileage than the Malibu:

			MPG
Civic Hatchback
	Manual	1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	28 city/37 hwy
	Auto	EX-L 1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	31 city/39 hwy
		Sport Touring 1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	30 city/37 hwy
		2.0 4-cyl.	29 city/37 hwy
Malibu
	Auto	1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	27 city/35 hwy

Brakes and Stopping

The Civic stops much shorter than the Malibu:

	Civic	Malibu
70 to 0 MPH	170 feet	171 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	114 feet	127 feet	Motor Trend
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	137 feet	149 feet	Consumer Reports

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Civic has larger standard tires than the Malibu (215/50R17 vs. 205/65R16).

The Civic EX/EX-L’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 50 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Malibu LS’ standard 65 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Civic EX/EX-L has standard 17-inch wheels. Smaller 16-inch wheels are standard on the Malibu LS.

Suspension and Handling

The Civic has vehicle speed sensitive variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Malibu doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

The Civic Touring Sedan handles at .88 G’s, while the Malibu LT pulls only .84 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Civic Touring Sedan executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Malibu LT (26.7 seconds @ .64 average G’s vs. 27.4 seconds @ .63 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Civic EX/EX-L’s turning circle is .9 feet tighter than the Malibu’s (36.1 feet vs. 37 feet).

Chassis

The Honda Civic may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 50 to 200 pounds less than the Chevrolet Malibu.

The Civic Sedan is 1 foot, 3.2 inches shorter than the Malibu, making the Civic easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

As tested by Car and Driver while at idle, the interior of the Civic Touring Sedan is quieter than the Malibu LT (36 vs. 42 dB).

Passenger Space

The Civic has .2 inches more front headroom, .8 inches more front legroom and .2 inches more front hip room than the Malibu.

Ergonomics

The Civic’s front power windows open or close with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside of the car. The Malibu’s standard power window switches have to be held the entire time to close them fully. The Malibu LT’s front passenger window doesn’t close automatically.

The Civic has a standard locking fuel door with a remote release located convenient to the driver. A locking fuel door helps prevent fuel theft and vandalism, such as sugar in the tank. The Malibu doesn’t offer a locking fuel door.

The Civic EX/EX-L’s standard wipers speed up when the vehicle does, so that the driver doesn’t have to continually adjust the speed of the wipers and the Civic Touring/Sport Touring’s standard wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically according to the amount of rainfall on the windshield. The Malibu’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

The Civic’s LED headlights produce a whiter, brighter light (up to 3x) using five times less power than the Malibu’s standard projector halogen headlights and light instantly. LED lights also last over twenty times longer than halogen.

Model Availability

The Honda Civic comes in sedan and four door hatchback bodystyles; the Chevrolet Malibu isn’t available as a four door hatchback.

Economic Advantages

Insurance will cost less for the Civic owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Civic will cost $865 less than the Malibu over a five-year period.

The Civic will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Civic will retain 47.45% to 51.94% of its original price after five years, while the Malibu only retains 45.49% to 46.05%.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Honda Civic will be $3818 to $7473 less than for the Chevrolet Malibu.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends the Honda Civic, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Chevrolet Malibu isn't recommended.

A group of representative automotive journalists from North America selected the Civic as the 2022 North American Car of the Year. The Malibu has never been chosen.

The Honda Civic outsold the Chevrolet Malibu by 16% during 2022.