Compare the2025 Chevrolet MalibuVS 2024 Honda Accord

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Ergonomics

Safety

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The Malibu’s standard pretensioning seatbelts also sense rear collisions and remove slack from the front seatbelts to help protect the occupants from whiplash and other injuries. The Accord doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

Both the Malibu and the Accord have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, 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.

Warranty

The Malibu’s corrosion warranty is 1 year longer than the Accord’s (6 vs. 5 years).

There are almost 3 times as many Chevrolet dealers as there are Honda dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Malibu’s warranty.

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Malibu third among midsize cars in their 2024 Initial Quality Study. The Accord isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Chevrolet vehicles are better in initial quality than Honda vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Chevrolet second in initial quality, above the industry average. With 21 more problems per 100 vehicles, Honda is ranked 10th.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the statistics that show that Chevrolet vehicles are more reliable than Honda vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Chevrolet fourth in reliability, above the industry average. With 32 more problems per 100 vehicles, Honda is ranked 18th.

Fuel Economy and Range

Both the Malibu and the Accord have a standard automatic start/stop engine feature to stop unnecessary fuel waste and pollution at stoplights and heavy traffic. All Malibu’s have a standard disable switch for the system, so a driver can keep the engine from shutting off when the vehicle stops temporarily. A disable switch for start/stop is only offered on the Accord 1.5T.

The Malibu has 3 gallons more fuel capacity than the Accord Hybrid’s standard fuel tank (15.8 vs. 12.8 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The Malibu has a gallon more fuel capacity than the Accord’s standard fuel tank (15.8 vs. 14.8 gallons).

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Malibu’s standard brake rotors are larger than those on the Accord:

	Malibu	Accord
Front Rotors	11.8 inches	11.5 inches
Rear Rotors	11.3 inches	11.1 inches

The Malibu stops much shorter than the Accord:

	Malibu	Accord
70 to 0 MPH	167 feet	184 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	117 feet	133 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Malibu RS’ tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Accord (245/45R18 vs. 235/40R19).

Suspension and Handling

The Malibu handles at .88 G’s, while the Accord EX pulls only .81 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Malibu executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.5 seconds quicker than the Accord Sport-L Hybrid (26.4 seconds @ .68 average G’s vs. 27.9 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Malibu’s turning circle is 1.4 feet tighter than the Accord’s (37 feet vs. 38.4 feet).

Chassis

As tested by Car and Driver, the interior of the Malibu LT is quieter than the Accord EX:

	Malibu	Accord
Full-Throttle	71 dB	76 dB
70 MPH Cruising	65 dB	69 dB

Passenger Space

The Malibu has .6 inches more front shoulder room, .2 inches more rear headroom and .6 inches more rear shoulder room than the Accord.

Cargo Capacity

The Malibu’s standard folding rear seats are split to accommodate bulky cargo. The Accord’s standard single piece folding rear seat is not as flexible; long cargo and a passenger can’t share the rear seat.

Towing

The Malibu has a 1000 lbs. towing capacity. The Accord has no towing capacity.

Ergonomics

The Malibu’s instruments include an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge - which could save your engine! Often ‘idiot lights’ don’t warn you until damage has been done. The Accord does not have an oil pressure gauge.

The power windows standard on both the Malibu and the Accord have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the Malibu is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The Accord prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

The Malibu’s standard front and rear power windows all lower 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 Accord’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open them fully.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Malibu LS/LT’s available exterior PIN entry system. The Accord doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its HondaLink Assist can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

Consumer Reports rated the Malibu’s headlight performance “Very Good,” a higher rating than the Accord’s headlights, which were rated “Good.”

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the Malibu to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Accord doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

On extremely cold winter days, the Malibu LT’s optional heated steering wheel provides comfort, allowing the driver to steer safely and comfortably before the car heater warms up. The Accord doesn’t offer a heated steering wheel.

Both the Malibu and the Accord offer rear vents. For greater rear passenger comfort, the Malibu LT has standard rear air conditioning vents to keep rear occupants cool in summer or warm in winter. The Accord doesn’t offer rear air conditioning vents, only heat vents.

The Malibu LT offers an optional 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The Accord doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

The Malibu LT’s optional Automatic Parking Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, with the driver only controlling speed with the brake pedal. The Accord doesn’t offer an automated parking system.