Americans didn’t invent the car, we just made the car better, just like we did with cinema, basketball, and buffets. Henry Ford democratized car ownership with the Model T, and this country experienced a long run of great, gas-powered sedans. That’s over, as GM will finally end production of the last actual internal combustion sedan sold in America by any American car brand.
That’s right, the Chevy Malibu–the 5th best thing you can rent from any Enterprise in the Phoenix area–will see its long production run come to an end this year. Why? To make room for electric crossovers. Welcome to the future.
The future is arguably worse in England, as Ford is threatening to limit the number of gas-powered cars because of EV mandates and a desire to be profitable. That’s still better than the prospect for Chinese cars in the United States, where the government is bandying around the idea of a ban. And, finally, Uncle Sam is looking into Tesla for all matter of serious crimes.
RIP Malibu
I was tempted to write that the death of the Malibu this year marked the death of the gas-powered American car, but there are American cars. Chevy is still building Corvettes, Ford is still building Mustangs, and… oh, actually, that’s it. Huh.
Did you even know the Malibu was still in production? I sort of forgot until I saw a story in the Detroit Free Press pointing this out:
General Motors (GM.N), said Wednesday it will end production of its gasoline-powered Chevrolet Malibu car later this year in order to produce new electric vehicles.
GM has sold more than 10 million Malibus since 1964 worldwide and will end production in November. The Detroit automaker is investing $390 million at its Kansas assembly plant to build next-generation Chevrolet Bolt EVs. GM halted production of the prior generation Bolt in December.
That’s it. No more affordable sedans for the moment. Ford’s abandoned the Focus, Fusion, and Taurus. Buick’s lineup is all crossover. Lincoln’s lineup is all crossover. Stellantis ended production of the Charger and 300C. There’s the Tesla, but the company has unfortunately abandoned its V8-powered Model S-X and that’s hardly affordable. This will make the Cadillac CT4 the most affordable American-built, gas-powered sedan, but at $35k starting it’s $10k more than the starting price of the Malibu.
If you want a reasonably affordable sedan the 2024 Chevy Malibu is it! The car was updated in 2024 and the little graphic really gives away why the car was built at all:
You get a new color and you get rear park assist for “non-fleet models.” How many non-fleet human beings bought a Malibu?
If you miss sedans you don’t need to worry too much because this shall only be but a brief lacuna, a pause, a temporary void. Next year you’ll get the 2025 Dodge Charger, which is an American sedan (well, it’s a fastback type thing). Otherwise, your only options will be electric cars like the Cadillac Celestiq and the Tesla Model S.
Of course, non-American automakers will happily sell you a sedan. So if you can’t get a new Malibu you can console yourself with a 2025 Toyota Camry.
Ford Would Rather Sell Fewer Gas Cars Than Lose Money
Ford Europe came out swinging yesterday amidst the confusing, contradictory signals it’s getting from the UK government.
Here’s what Martin Sander, GM Ford Model e Europe/CEO Ford Werke GmbH, told the Financial Times during a summit they hosted this week:
He told a Financial Times summit that weak sales meant the company’s only option to avoid crippling fines under the UK’s new electric vehicle quota rules was to divert sales to other countries.
“We can’t push EVs into the market against demand. We’re not going to pay penalties. We are not going to sell EVs at huge losses just to buy compliance. The only alternative is to take our shipments of [engine] vehicles to the UK down and sell these vehicles somewhere else,” he told the FT’s Future of the Car Summit in London.
He added: “I don’t know if consumers in the UK would like seeing [engine vehicle] prices going up.”
The current government is a little wishy-washy on the EV thing, but it’s not clear how long this government will be in place. Currently, automakers in England have to sell a certain percentage of EVs (22% this year) or pay a penalty. Rather than sell more EVs, it sounds like Ford is considering just selling fewer gas-powered cars to make up the difference.
Is this an idle threat or a real thing? I’m not sure, but Ford is dramatically reducing its gas-powered offerings in the UK so it does make some sense. The quickest way to get a numerator to do what you want is to change the denominator.
That being said, Sander did say that he still thinks EVs are the end goal, even if it’s going to take a little longer. Or, as Sander put it in a LinkedIn post:
My optimistic message might surprise some: Ford has been in the market for 120 years, and we plan to be in the market in 120 years. So we have to compete and become ever more efficient. Uncertainty is part of the business now. We have to embrace it and enjoy it!
Uncertainty! A thing all business owners enjoy.
No American Government Is Going To Let Chinese Cars Happen
Americans have been buying and driving Chinese-built cars for a while. Chinese parts seep into everything. But a Chinese brand? That is a bridge too far, apparently.
The Trump Administration put in a 27.5% tariff on Chinese cars and President Joe Biden was happy to keep that going. Back in February, the Biden Administration doubled down on the growing anti-Chinese car sentiment by saying it would do, uh, something.
Courtesy of Reuters, we’ve got a slightly better idea of what that might mean:
The U.S. could take “extreme action” and ban Chinese connected vehicles or impose restrictions on them, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said on Wednesday, in the first indication a ban could be on the table after a national security investigation.
The Commerce Department is reviewing public comments that were due by April 30, Raimondo told Reuters, on a probe the Biden administration launched in February into whether Chinese vehicle imports pose national security risks.
“We have to digest all the data and then figure out what action that we want to take,” Raimondo said without detailing a timeline. “We could take extreme action, which is to say no Chinese connected vehicles in the United States or look for mitigation” including safeguards, guardrails or other requirements.
There’s a bit of realpolitik here as we’ve already seen with Chinese-made cars in Europe. America’s relationship with China isn’t great at the moment, but it’s not terrible, and I could see a Biden administration merely putting in ‘guardrails’ in exchange for some help isolating Russia.
Federal Prosecutors Looking Into Whether Or Not Tesla Did A Wire Fraud
Even I get a little mixed up over the various legal actions that Tesla is mixed up in at any moment. The company’s got more probes than a ’90s Ford dealer.
This time it’s the Justice Department looking into whether or not Tesla “committed wire fraud, which involves deception in interstate communications, by misleading consumers about its driver-assistance systems, the sources said. They are also examining whether Tesla committed securities fraud by deceiving investors, two of the sources said.”
In case you were curious, the Justice Department’s investigation shouldn’t be confused with the Securities and Exchange Commission’s investigation over similar issues.
What I’m Listening To While Writing TMD
This game on the radio this morning and I got to explain The Blue Album to my daughter, which was fun. Also, fun fact, drummer Patrick Wilson is a car guy!
The Big Question
What was the last American sedan you owned? Would you buy another one? If you’ve never owned an American sedan have you owned… any sedan?
If Tesla is found to have committed wire fraud under the direction of Musk as CEO, would that finally be enough for the Tesla Board of Directors to finally eject launch Musk out? Tesla also quietly pulled nearly all job listings down, and rescinded internships and co-ops for nearly every undergrad. Hugely terrible looks all around while Elongated Muskrat is asking for $56 Billion in compensation.
It would have to depend on the penalties, I’d suspect. Even if he’s found to have committed that fraud, if there’s just a slap on the wrist, he may live to see another day as CEO.
It almost seems to me like Musk is intentionally hurting Tesla, perhaps in retaliation for losing the $56B salary. I’m sure this isn’t the case, but if you look at the timing of some of the recent decisions, it certainly leads one to speculate.
If the board wanted to get rid of Musk they would’ve already. They clearly are on his side for whatever stupid reasons, so I wouldn’t hold my breath.
I had an Oldsmobile Alero from 2001 – 2009. Growing up our family had a 79 Caprice Classic, an 81 Pontiac Phoenix, and an 85 Delta 88. All were terrible to meh, and now that I’ve thought about this collection of unmissed Detroit rust I’m not all that sad about the demise of the American sedan.
The last “American” sedan I owned was … wow … an ’84 Escort I drove in college.
They’ve all been crossovers, SUVs or foreign-coded since … including my current Acura, which while an American-built sedan (Ohio!) presents as an Asian brand.
I was on a Chevy dealer site the other day looking at a Camaro after the Camaro article here, and saw there were some Malibus available.
Those things are listed for around $25k. Which is cheap in the big scheme of things, but you can still get a new Camry for $25k (the 2024 model). Maybe it has a few less features for the money, but Camry is always beating Malibu for me.
The whole thought banning of Chinese cars really irks me regardless of which political party is trying.
It reeks of big government taking choice away from the consumer to protect the interest of big business.
If the Chinese companies can make cars that are as good as or better than the competition (not saying they are ATM) but cost less, then free market should dictate how well they do.
If your brand can’t compete without government intervention to block a new competitor, then you deserve to go out of business.
Funny thing, if it wasn’t for government intervention, Chinese made crap wouldn’t even be in the conversation.
I hope you realize that it was Chinese government intervention that made the Chinese companies competitive.
So, I guess you’re saying the US Market should be open to all with no government intervention to support US companies but it’s OK if China subsidizes its companies that sell stuff in the US?
If you are all for free economies, then you can’t seriously mention China.
China does heavily subsidize it’s industry, which ironically passes the savings to the consumer.
Maybe the US should try making their industries competitive via subsidies in the same way instead of banning competitors.
But that would require our government to actually make decisions that benefit the people and not the business they serve like the military industrial complex.
The US has plenty of money to make things happen, the problem is every politician is bought and we have a budget that’s 90% pork.
The USD is the top currency because we do not manipulate it like the Chinese do with everything. The Chinese are so non-transparent no one knows the true health of their economic system. From all outside observations they are not doing anywhere close to how great they claim. You want to follow them down that path? Yeah, you can keep your China.
Fine, as long as you admit you can’t seriously mention the US economy or the economy of any country I am aware of for that matter as a ‘free’ economy. I’m getting seriously annoyed at all this whining about China subsidizing it’s electric car industry when that is *exactly* what the US and any other country that can does with any industry it deems strategically or politically important. Is China doing it more? Frankly I’m not convinced. They certainly seem to be doing it better where EVs are concerned though.
I’m not whining. Talk to the OP.
True, the whining part was not meant to be directed at you but at the commentariat in general. If we’re going to talk about China subsidizing things, we need to talk about our own governments subsidizing things and not act like this is something only China does.
OP was implying that the US does but China does not. I was merely pointing out that China does as well. So we are, therefore, talking about both.
“If you are all for free economies, then you can’t seriously mention China”
Nor the US
yes, of course.
My issue with arguments like yours is that Chinese car companies are heavily (heeeeaaavily) subsidized by their government. So how is it unfair for the US government to counter that?
It’s unfair to consumers. The Chinese government is subsidizing (potential) US consumers. If US consumers can buy cars for less, they can spend more on other things. Why should US consumers pay more for products produced by protected companies that aren’t incented to be efficient or produce products consumers want?
Because the major corporations can afford politicians.
Politicians will run, not walk, to ensure corporations have everything they need saved ignore the needs of the average person, and blab on about personal responsibility, too big to fail, etc.
It’s one reason why I’m just disenfranchised with our government and wouldn’t lift a finger to protect it.
Careful what you wish for. Despite the many flaws with American government and democracy, its replacement or overflow would make things much worse.
Could things be better? Absolutely. But they could also be much, much, much worse.
Those same US consumers are the ones benefiting from the subsidy. How else does the US auto industry pay their workers?
It’s not as simple as you seem to think it is. It’s a balancing act.
“There’s the Tesla, but the company has unfortunately abandoned its V8-powered Model S-X and that’s hardly affordable.”
Er–what? Is this some alternate-universe Tesla?
Not sure why you are talking about Tesla in an article about gasoline-powered American sedans, but, if you are just talking about sedans, you appear to have forgotten about the Model 3.
I think it was a joke. There was a V8 Tesla made once, but it was converted, not sold that way from the factory.
I took this as a joke and found it very funny. It’s nice when there’s some humor interjected in otherwise dull and depressing information.
They didn’t forget the Model 3–it’s just not affordable the way the Malibu is.
The Malibu’s I run across seem to have a lot of Big Altima Energy.
Good riddance. The Big Three did this to themselves. You know why Honda and Toyota still sell affordable sedans? Because they don’t suck. American automakers half assed their sedans for decades, and only the strong survived. Nobody is going to cry that the Malibu, 200, or Fusion are gone.
It’s a concept that the big 3 never has grasped. If you make a good product, people will buy it.
Or you can just keep making trash and get government bailouts.
Exactly like the Chinese do with their entire auto manufacturers?
And 1 bailout for 2 of the big 3 does not make a pattern.
Chrysler has had two government bailouts.
I sometimes cry that my Fusion is gone. It really was a great car in my opinion. I pretty much got all the options for about $40k and I would put it on par with the Mercedes I currently own that cost me significantly more.
I bought my 2020 Fusion a few weeks before the pandemic shut downs. Ford had a $2000 incentive on the hood plus 0% financing. Within a month the incentives all went away and for the next two years I could have sold it for more than I paid. Now, four years later, it’s paid off, has just under 30k miles and has had zero issues. The right side of my brains keeps looking to trade it in while the left side keeps asking why.
I’d definitely keep it if I were you. With only 30K miles on it, it’s still practically new and really, the competition isn’t better.
The post facelift first generation was a favorite rental whenever we needed one. Great car.
The first and last American sedan I owned was a 1991 Chevy Corsica. Other than a pathological dislike for GM cars courtesy of my father’s 1982 Chevy Caprice Estate with the GM diesel, I have nothing bad to say about the Corsica. It was perfectly fine until my wife put it into a ditch.
Other sedans include:
1991 Honda Accord
1998 Honda Accord
2008 Honda Civic (The trifecta in my bad luck with Honda’s led me to swear them off from future consideration. I reserve the right to reverse myself if an S2000 successor ever arrives and doesn’t look like a melted Zagnut bar. The most likely scenario is an S2000-Cross and I’ll yawn and forget it exists)
2017 Mazda Mazda6
A 79 Cutlass Calais some 30ish years ago was the last (only American sedan I believe I ever titled in my name). The 05 Stratus was in my ex’s name though I maintained it. I didn’t like the Stratus, but respect it, as it lasted our daughter through college & 2 Masters degrees before going on to survive her foster brother’s madcap teenage years
I’ve never owned an American sedan. The one sedan I owned was Japanese. What I have owned is American coupes, trucks, and station wagons (and briefly a 4 door hatchback).
I keep waiting for automakers to get their heads out of their nether regions and start releasing (relatively) light weight aerodynamic coupes, sedans, and station wagons as their EV’s and hybrids in order to deliver the range customers demand with less battery.
FYI, that Malibu mentioned in this article just so happens to be one of the lightest new vehicles on sale today – its curb weight is just 3125 pounds, according to EPA cert data. That data is freely available to download from EPA’s website and gives a lot of good information on every car certified for sale in the US – a lot of it which is very hard to find elsewhere.
Honestly thought the Malibu died off years ago. I had one as a rental in…2018? and can’t recall a single thing that made it stand out.
As for sedan ownership, I’ve owned both the NA and supercharged Mazda millenia and briefly a B9 Audi A4, which I hated.
I generally like hatches and wagons because it’s clear where the car ends when you’re parking. That said, I saw the latest Mazda3 the other day and the sedan is so much nicer looking than the hatch. That’s what I’d get if I had to have a sedan.
Oh man the parking. We owned a Dodge Intrepid about 20 years ago and I absolutely flattened that thing’s snout on parking garage walls.
I’ve only owned 1, a 2002 Buick Century that I bought as a winter beater. It was fine for that job. Heat and AC were excellent. For sedans I’ve also owned an Accord and an Altima (first gen, before big Altima energy was a a thing). Otherwise its been hatches and coupes.
My Tesla Model 3 is a sedan built in America by an American company, so I suppose it technically is an American sedan?
I would buy another one, although it wouldn’t be my first choice since I strongly prefer pickup trucks. If Ford ever makes an EV Maverick or Ranger, I probably wouldn’t have a reason to own a sedan anymore.
Take a bow for this one (chef’s kiss)
Cadillac will still sell you a CT4 or CT5 in various configurations. They’re built on the alpha platform and are low key very, very good sedans that people sleep on. Anyway, I’ve never owned one but would like to own a CT4V Blackwing. It’s essentially my attainable dream car right now and honestly I feel good about my odds of getting one in the future, but who knows. My car obsessions are constantly changing and there’s a good chance I’ll be interested in something else by the time I need to buy a car again.
Anyway, I can’t even keep track of all the Tesla/Musk lawsuit stuff either, but I strongly doubt there will be any accountability. There hasn’t been so far, our legal system is literally designed to protect the interests of the wealthy, and here in Murica we aren’t too keen on holding corporations accountable. I’m not holding my breath. I think if Tesla winds up in serious trouble it’ll be because of Musk’s ketamine fueled delusions and not because of the gubment.
Also, the Blue Album is great! No skips. I wouldn’t say it’s a top 10 album for me necessarily but it’s definitely top 25. Rivers is one of the best alternative rock songwriters of all time. I think Surf Wax America and My Name Is Jonas are my favorites off that record, but I have fond memories associated with Say It Ain’t So because it was always on the rotation at parties in college and my buddy’s band (who I occasionally did some lead work for) used to cover it.
I remember being out on a Thursday night (not sure about you all but unless I had an exam the next day Thursday was the first night of the weekend) when they were playing. My buddy was a massive dude and did the vocals and rhythm guitar…but anyway, he was exceptionally drunk that night, spotted me in the front row, and tried to hug me/essentially fell over on me during the WRESTLE WITH JIMMYYYYY line. Whenever the song comes on I always remember that. Fun times.
And while we’re on the topic I genuinely have no idea why people dislike Pinkerton. I think it’s a great album. Honestly pretty much everything they did until they foisted the hell that is Beverly Hills on us was pretty damn good, and while that single sucked Make Believe still had some bangers. We Are All On Drugs is a bop and Perfect Situation is an S tier Weezer song. Maybe my favorite Weezer song of all time, in fact.
Last American sedan is the current one, a 13 Cruze. It’s awful and I hate it. I have no intention to ever buy another but nor did I really intend to buy this one, it just kinda dropped in my lap. Prior to that it was an 88 Olds. That thing was hilarious and insanely comfortable. I think those are the only 2 I have had. I like sedans, would definitely buy a sedan over a crossover, but I usually have 2-3 door cars for myself, and a van for the wife. Sedans don’t fit in well.
Wait, so the Malibu is the last American sedan, but Cadillac still sells America sedans so….do what now?
It’s the last affordable one. the cheapest Cadillac sedan is almost 10k more than a base Malibu.
Ah, missed that qualifier, that’s quite a few qualifiers….
I had a Fusion Sport with the 2.7TT engine a few years ago. I liked it, but it wasn’t really a performance car. It felt like what it was – a family sedan with an overpowered engine. That said it was a pretty good sedan. My biggest gripe was the trunk opening – the fastback roof that they’ve all gone to lately makes a tiny opening in the trunk, too small for stuff like coolers to get it. The trunk itself was plenty big enough, but the short opening was maddening.
It’s a shame all the American sedans are gone, but let’s face it – the Japanese and Koreans just do them better these days. Nissan’s got the value buyers, Honda/Toyota split the practical ones, and Kia/Hyundai have the more stylish options. What would a new Malibu/Fusion/etc. bring to the table that isn’t already out there, other than just an American badge?
Um, we did invent basketball.
Never owned an American sedan, but do currently own an old Volvo 240 DL.
Canada claims James Naismith!
He was born and educated here. Of course we are going to claim him.
Is someone secretly an expert on Canadian history minutes?
I smell burnt toast.
https://www.historicacanada.ca/productions/minutes
That’d be like South Africa claiming Space X rockets as theirs.
Naismith was living, studying and working in the US (Springfield MA, YMCA) when he invented the game (and volleyball) and the first games, players and leagues were in the United States.
*Was going to make a Justin Bieber joke, then realized he is like a model citizen compared to all the bullshit going on in this world*
Hey,
The US lost the hockey game. They have to keep him.
https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/sochi-olympics/loser-keeps-bieber-pop-star-slammed-hockey-billboard-n35386
My current daily driver is a 2019 Cadillac CT6 Platinum (with the 4.2 TT Blackwing engine). It’s my second sedan ever, both American. I love it. Would definitely recommend.
Like BubbaMT pointed out though, did something happen to the currently on sale Caddy sedans that gets them excluded from this list?
Whelp.. Harley Earl be rolling in his grave
Huh, I though Chevy announced the death of the Malibu ages ago and just never went through with it. But I guess this is the end of the road. Shame, it’s not a bad car, and deserved another generation.
The Voyager is the first American vehicle of any kind I’ve ever owned, much less sedan. I’d have to go all the way back to 1996 for an American car that my family owned, the maligned Stratus. No American car has been considered by my parents or siblings ever since.
That Charger is returning with an ICE and in 2 door and 4 door configurations.
Yup, it’s mentioned above.
Sorry I missed it.
In my experience the friends and family that bought malibus hate cars, possibly hate themselves, are horrid drivers and buy them because the will try to only buy American cars and they are cheaper than toyotas and hondas.
This is so spot on. The Malibu is like the American Altima. Just … no with those drivers.
[Ed note: Bubba was right, Matt was wrong, have edited his comment so it doesn’t look like it’s the other way around- MH]
Thank you for saying it for me.
Lol, thanks for saying it to me! We all talked about it this morning and all completely forgot. Honestly, you can tell when TH isn’t around because, like Pepperidge Farm, Thomas remembers.
Gee, thanks. I didn’t get that impression.