New Malibu to be Offered in Australia as a Holden, will Sit Between the Cruze and the Commodore

Last week, GM released the first teaser photo of its upcoming Chevrolet Malibu ahead of its global debut on Monday, April 18. The next generation of the Malibu is the first Chevy mid-sized model designed for the global market and will be sold in up to 100 countries around the world including Australia where it will be launched under the Holden brand.

The Holden Malibu will arrive in Australia for the first time in 2012 with a range of four cylinder engines, effectively replacing the unpopular Epica, a badge-engineered version of the South Korean Daewoo Tosca, which itself had taken the place of the Vectra.

“The Malibu will play an important role within the Holden line-up, providing a spacious and efficient four-cylinder alternative for Australian customers,” said Holden Chairman and Managing Director Mike Devereux.

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GM Reportedly Readying Buick Version of Opel Ampera

Sure, the Opel Ampera is nothing more than a Chevrolet Volt with some extremely mild cosmetic changes, but doppelgangers have always had a very special place in the wonderful world of General Motors. If Bloomberg’s inside sources are right, GM is currently looking into the development of a Buick-badged version of the plug-in hybrid Opel Ampera. According to people familiar with the project, the Buick model could go on sale in 2013, if the plans goes ahead.

Given that the styling changes over the Chevrolet Volt would be limited to a Buick-specific grille and bumper designs, one of the most significant problems GM faces is how to justify the car and its higher price tag which would be in excess of the Volt’s base MSRP of US$41,000 not including a $7,500 federal tax credit.

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Stunning Chevrolet Mi-ray Roadster Concept Premieres at Seoul Motor Show

GM's Korean subsidiary lifted the wraps off the Mi-ray hybrid roadster concept at the 2011 Seoul Motor Show today, as a tribute to Chevrolet's 100th anniversary this year. The aggressive-looking Mi-ray (which means “future” in Korean) was developed by the GM Advanced Design Studio in Seoul and pays homage to the bow-tie brand's sports car heritage.

The roadster uses styling cues from Chevy's 1963 Monza SS and the 1962 Corvair Super Spyder, but also from aircrafts, with its aerodynamic fuselage being reminiscent of modern jet fighters. Elements like the scissor-doors, the pronounced wheel-arches and the sharp front bumper add further drama to the Mi-ray's appearance.

The car's bodywork is made of lightweight materials such as carbon fiber and carbon fiber reinforced plastics, while the turbine-shaped wheels (20-inch front/21-inch rear) are made of aluminum-carbon fiber composite.

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Chevrolet Teases All-New Global Malibu Sedan, will be Sold in Nearly 100 Countries [with Video]

This is the first official photo of the all-new Chevrolet Malibu show car that will debut simultaneously at the Shanghai Auto Show in China and the New York International Auto Show in mid-April. And if you’re wondering why GM made plans to show it in China, that’s because unlike the current model that’s offered only in North America, the new Malibu will be a global vehicle that will be sold in nearly 100 countries on six continents and built in multiple locations, including China and two facilities in the United States.

“This Malibu takes Chevrolet’s established and award-winning nameplate to new places and introduces it to new audiences around the world,” said Rick Scheidt, vice president of Chevrolet. “Whether the Malibu is sold in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, or Australia, it has been engineered from the ground up to meet the needs of customers around the world.”

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Power to the People: Late Model Racecraft's Twin Turbo Camaro Pushes out 1,810 Horses

The folks over at Late Model Racecraft pride themselves for being “Home of the world's quickest and fastest stock suspended LSX”. In one of their latest tunes, they crafted a twin-turbocharged Chevrolet Camaro for owner Kelly Bise who will race the car at the Texas Mile event this weekend. The insane Camaro was thrown on a dyno to see how much power is sent to the rear wheels. The result? 1,809.6 ponies. Impressive, to say the least. Listen to the sounds of the beast in dyno-testing video after the jump.

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Chevrolet Rolls Out 2011 Cruze BTCC Racer

GM has pulled the wraps off its Silverline Chevrolet team’s 2011 cars, with which it will campaign in the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship [BTCC]. The two Cruze racers enter the 2011 season with a new livery, consistent with that of the WTCC cars, and featuring prominent sponsorship from Silverline, as well as a series of other sponsors including Dunlop, Holiday Inn, Auto Express and Evo.

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VIDEO: Corvette ZR1 ALMS Ad Belittles BMW, Ferrari and Porsche, but Ends up Losing to M3s in Sebring…

Just before the season opener of the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) at the Sebring International Raceway in Florida this past weekend, GM aired an aggressive commercial touting its 638-horsepower-strong Corvette ZR1. The ad claims that the firm’s engineers had to reduce the stock ZR1’s LS9 engine output by 168HP in order to compete in the race and “just to be fair against Porsche, Ferrari and BMW”.

For one, the Corvette ALMS racers are actually powered by a V8 loosely based on the Z06’s LS7 engine (see the second video after the jump). Perhaps most importantly, the Corvettes finished third and fourth in the GT class in Sebring behind two BMW M3 GTs… Videos follow after the break.

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GM Renames Camaro to 'Ke Mai Luo' in China, Priced from $76,400!

At next month’s Auto Shanghai in China, General Motors will launch the local market version of its flamboyant pony car, the latest generation of the Chevrolet Camaro - but with a twist; it will carry a different name in China. “The Camaro will have a sonorous Chinese name — 科迈罗 (Ke Mai Luo),” said GM in a statement today without giving any further explanations. And yes, just for the fun of it, we tried Google translate but nothing interesting came other than this (if you separate the words): ‘Section Main Luo.’

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New Chevrolet Colorado Show Truck Unveiled Ahead of Bangkok Premiere

General Motors has lifted the wraps off the pre-production version of its next generation Chevrolet Colorado pickup truck in advance of the Bangkok International Auto Show on March 25, where it is making its global public debut. The Colorado Show truck will lead to a toned down production model that will be revealed within the next few months and first go on sale in Thailand later this year. The Detroit automaker is keeping mum about whether or not the Colorado will come to the States.

“Although this is a show vehicle, the basic proportions and form convey the vision for the next-generation Colorado that we will bring to market,” said Brad Merkel, GM's global vehicle line executive.

“It reflects a stylized version of the new truck, one that takes into account rugged dependable truck capabilities for commercial use as well as sophisticated refinement for personal-use needs.”

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Caught on Tape: SUV Rear-Ends Sports Reporter During Live TV Shot

We can think of many things going wrong during a live TV show, but an SUV backing up straight on a reporter isn’t one them. The indecent happened when ‘10News’ sports director Ben Higgins was reporting live from Tucson, Arizona on the NCAA basketball tournament. Fortunately for Higgins, his cameraman stepped in and stopped the Chevy driver before anything worse happened. Watch the video after the break.

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GM Suspends Production of Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon in Louisiana Due to Lack of Parts from Japan

In yet another stark reminder of how intertwined today’s automotive business is, General Motors announced on Thursday that is suspending production at its Shreveport Assembly in Louisiana for the week of March 21 because of a parts shortage resulting from the crisis in Japan that started with last week’s tremendous earthquake and tsunami.

“We will resume production at Shreveport as soon as possible, and at this point, we have sufficient vehicles to meet customer demand,” General Motors said in a written statement.

The Shreveport Assembly in Louisiana produces the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon compact pickup trucks.

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Saturn Vue Comes Back to Life as the Chevrolet Captiva Sport for Rental Fleets

Meet General Motor’s newest offering in the world of rental vehicles; the Chevrolet Captiva Sport. Even though GM makes no word of the Saturn brand in the press release, most of you will probably see the Vue hiding behind the Chevy bow-tie on the grille. And that’s about the only difference between the Vue and the 2012MY Captiva Sport, which is also sold under various nameplates in more than 50 markets across Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, the Middle East and South America.

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1989 Chevy Caprice Side-Step Proves Cute Utes Can Still Be Cool

Okay, you got me. “Cute utes” are not really my thing. I’m more of a Dodge Ram SRT-10 or an HSV Maloo man myself. Yes, they’re affordable and sure if you’re on a budget and need a reliable vehicle that can carry a whole lot of work gear and tools there’s really nothing better.

So here’s a “step-side” style ute pickup based on a 1989 Chevrolet Caprice. Step-side pickups have a step moulded into the body, typically between the passenger doors and rear wheel arch. They were popular in the 1950s though are somewhat rarer these days.

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This Chevy Really Sticks to the Road: Meet the World’s Biggest Play-Doh Sculpture

If you’re looking for the most creative marketing campaigns, be that a pair of car-shaped roller skaters or a parade of seemingly nude commuters, then London is the place for you. This time it’s Chevrolet that has caught our attention with its life-size replica of the new Orlando MPV made from 1.5 tonnes of Play-Doh parked up in a London street today.

Crafted by a team of eight model makers over a two-week period to mark the UK launch of Chevy’s new seven-seater minivan, the world’s biggest Play-Doh sculpture measures 4.6 metres long and 1.8 metres wide.

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Chevrolet Teases New Colorado Mid-Size Pickup Truck, Debuts at Bangkok Auto Show

Less than a week after the 2011 Geneva Motor Show press days and automakers are already getting ready for the next round of auto shows. Today, GM’s Chevrolet division issued a teaser sketch of its next-generation Colorado mid-size pickup truck that will be unwrapped in pre-production form at the 32nd Bangkok International Motor Show, which begins March 25.

General Motors said that Thailand was chosen as the site of the global debut of the Colorado because of the “popularity of pickup trucks and the growing importance of the Thai market to Chevrolet”. The company noted that in 2010, the truck segment accounted for a whopping 43 percent of all vehicles sold in Thailand.

“Trucks play a key role in most Southeast Asian markets,” said Susan Docherty, vice president, GMIO Sales, Marketing and Aftersales. “Nowhere is this more evident than in Thailand, where trucks like the Colorado are ingrained in the local lifestyle. Thailand was a natural place to give the public a first glimpse of our all-new Colorado.”

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Chevrolet to Sell Volt in Europe, Priced from €41,950 or €1,000 Less than the Opel Ampera

Chevrolet announced at the Geneva Motor Show that it will sell the Volt in Europe, with prices in Germany starting from €41,950 (US$58,560). It will be similarly priced in other European markets, where it will arrive in November 2011.

The Volt's sister car, the Opel Ampera, will also go on sale this year in Europe, at a slightly higher starting price. Unveiled in final production form at the Geneva Show, the Ampera will cost €42,900 ($59,885), but prices can vary in different countries depending on the standard equipment.

Chevrolet said the Volt would be fully equipped with all the usual safety and convenience features, plus leather seats. As in the US, European buyers will have an 8-year/160,000 km warranty (100,000 miles) on the powertrain and the lithium-ion battery.

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Geneva 2011: Chevrolet Expands Cruze Range with Hatchback Model

The final production version of the new Cruze hatchback is the highlight of Chevrolet's 2011 Geneva Motor Show booth. With the addition of the five-door version, Chevrolet hopes to boost sales of the Cruze as hatchbacks represent approximately 65% of all compact segment sales in Europe.

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2012 Chevrolet Cruze Hatchback: First Official Photos of Production Model Released Ahead of Geneva Show

What you see in these pictures is the production version of the thinly disguised Chevrolet Cruze 5-door hatchback study, which was presented at the 2010 Paris Motor Show. The more compact sized, hatchback version of the Cruze has lost some of the cool features of the concept car like the LED strips on the front bumper, the blue-tinted headlamps and the clear crystal tail lights, but other than that, nothing else has changed.

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Chevy Launches MyLink Infotainment System in Response to Ford's SYNC

The 2012 Chevrolet Volt and Equinox models will be the first to offer Chevy MyLink, an in-car infotainment equipment that integrates internet radio, hands-free, voice and touch-screen controls, all of which can be accessed via Bluetooth connectivity.

Three years ago, Ford introduced a similar system, called SYNC, whose aim was to reunite in a friendly and efficient way the various in-car controls that a driver can access while driving. Now Chevy is ready with its own technology, developed together with GM's subsidiary OnStar.

MyLink provides drivers with stereo audio streaming, wireless control of smartphones, voice-activated commands and a full-color 7-inch touch screen display that centralizes media sources. For example, the driver can initiate phone calls, select radio stations or stored media only by using his voice.

Other features are Pandora internet radio, which allows users to personalize their radio experience, or Gracenote, which identifies the user's music collection and presents information such as artist name, genres and album cover art on the MyLink screen.

Basically, MyLink does everything that SYNC does, plus the future integration of the Powermat wireless cell-phone charging system that eliminates cords. The MyLink infotainment system will expand to other Chevrolet models in the next 18 months.

SLP Performance Receives GM's "Blessings" for Tuned 2011 Camaro ZL1

With its 550HP 6.2-liter supercharged V8, the upcoming 2012 Camaro ZL1 is Chevrolet’s wildest pony car yet. However, it won't be available for sale for another year, and here's where SLP Performance steps in. The U.S.-based company is running a ZL1 tuning program for the current 2011 Camaro SS.In regards of the copyright issues for the Z1 nameplate, SLP has shared a press release from GM stating that the Detroit automaker has no objections with the use of the name until production of the tuning project runs out this year.

Here the statement from GM: "Chevrolet is aware that SLP, a past upfitter of Chevrolet's 4th generation (1996-2002) Camaro vehicle, has been marketing its own limited edition (69) ZL1 upfit package for the 2011 Camaro model year only. Chevrolet and SLP have discussed SLP's ZL1 upfit package, an offering honoring the heritage and legacy of Chevrolet's original 1969 Camaro ZL1. Chevrolet has no objection to SLP continuing its marketing and build-out efforts to complete the run of its 2011 ZL1 upfit package."

SLP Performance’s ZL1 take on the Camaro will be available in a limited run of 69 units for 2011.

Using a 2011 Camaro SS as a base, the tuning firm takes the factory recipe and simply throws it out the window, starting with the engine. The massive 7.0-liter V8 is a custom built unit, fitted among other things, with a high capacity radiator, SLP TVS 2300 Supercharger with 10 PSI boost, cold-air induction system and carbon fiber finish engine covers.

Thanks to these modifications, the poweplant churns out 750-horsepower and is capable to catapult the 2011 Camaro ZL1 to an electronically limited top speed of 205 mph (330 km/h).

Power is sent to the rear wheels through a six-speed manual transmission and, to better cope with the extra oomph, the tuned ZL1 also comes with an SLP adjustable coil-over suspension, complete with new sway bars, and larger Brembo GT brakes.

The exterior upgrades include a carbon fiber hood and trunk lid, new front fascia, grille and splitter, rear spoiler and diffuser with integrated polished aluminum exhaust tips. The car rides on 20-inch SLP alloys, shod in 255/40 front and 295/35 rear Michelin XL Sport PS2 tires.

Inside, a numbered dash plaque announces the limited status of the model, accompanied by carbon fiber finish trim pieces, ZL1 floor mats, Katzkin leather upholstery available in 7 colors, and a number of ZL1 and Chevrolet embroidered logos.

SLP Performance Camaro ZL1 [press release]

Includes:

*Redesigned SLP front fascia with heritage-style grille/bowtie emblem and carbon fiber-finish splitter
*ZL1® fender and rear decklid badges
*SLP forged light-weight wheels, Michelin Sport PS2 tires, and Brembo GT front and rear brakes
*Rear 1/4 panel gill insert graphics
*SLP TVS 2300 Supercharger in Red with 10 PSI boost
*SLP all carbon fiber hood with functional scoop
*Carbon fiber-finish dashboard trim, steering wheel trim, and center console accents
*Katzkin® leather interior trim package (w/cloth Hounds Tooth shown) and ZL1 embroidered headrests
*SLP short-throw shifter with leather-wrapped ZL® shift knob
*High-lip rear spoiler with carbon fiber-finish
*SLP carbon fiber-finish rear diffuser with integrated exhaust outlets and polished aluminum tips
2011 ZL1® CONTENT MSRP $80,000 plus cost of a new 1SS or 2SS with manual transmission
Performance Upgrades
ENGINE
* SLP custom built 427 CID engine w/aluminum block and heads, 10.3:1 Compression ratio
* SLP High Capacity Dual Core Aluminum Radiator
* SLP 1.85:1 high-ratio rocker arms
* SLP TVS 2300 Supercharger with 10 PSI boost (E.O.#D-488-15)
* SLP Blackwing® cold-air induction system
* SLP non-adjustable PCM custom tune w/speed limiter increased to 205+ MPH (est. top speed)
* SLP injection molded engine covers with Carbon Fiber finish, 750HP graphics
EXHAUST SYSTEM
* SLP PowerFlo® exhaust system
* SLP long-tube headers w/stock cats
TRANSMISSION/CLUTCH
* GM 6-speed manual
* SLP short throw shifter w/ZL shift knob
* ZR-1 clutch assembly w/SLP flywheel
DRIVELINE
* SLP heavy-duty half shafts
WHEELS
* SLP forged light-weight 9″x20″ front wheels 10.5″ x 20″ rear wheels w/ZL1® center caps.
TIRES
* Michelin 255/40ZR20 XL Sport PS2 front and 295/35ZR20 XL Sport PS2 rear tires
BRAKES
* Brembo GT front and GT rear brakes with 2 piece 16″ front rotors and 6 piston calipers and 15″ rear rotors and 4 piston calipers
SUSPENSION
* SLP adjustable coil-over springs-shocks and sway bars
Exterior Upgrades
* SLP ZL® all carbon fiber hood
* SLP ZL® high lip rear spoiler w/carbon fiber finish that matches the hood
* Trunk lid carbon fiber finish that matches the hood
* SLP front fascia with unique grille assembly
* SLP front splitter with carbon fiber finish
* SLP gill insert graphics
* SLP rear diffuser with carbon fiber finish and unique exhaust tips with polished aluminum tips
* ZL1® fender and rear deck lid badging (heritage styling)
* Factory bowtie badges front and rear with blue inserts (heritage styling)
* Painted Rear Tail Light Black-Out Panel
INTERIOR UPGRADES
* ZL1® sequentially numbered dash plaque and key fobs (1-69)
* ZL1® floor mats
* Katzkin® leather interior trim package for front and rear seats, center console, and arm rests, available in 7 colors that
compliment all available body colors, plus hounds tooth cloth seat
inserts (heritage), with ZL1 embroidered logo in head rests, and bowtie
on seat backs.
Available Katzin Interior Accent Colors
ASH – MEDIUM RED – ORANGE – PACIFIC – VANILLA – SUNRISE RED – HOUNDS TOOTH (CLOTH)
ACCESSORIES
* Faux Leather Bound Portfolio, Owner’s Manual, Window Sticker, Manufacturer’s Certificate of Origin
* ZL1® Car Cover
WARRANTY
* One Year/12,000 Mile (19,000 Kilometer) Limited Warranty
* Not legal for sale or use in California