Published:”Friday, December 07, 2007 It takes a certain amount of bravado to pit a brand new model against its key competitor. It takes real nerve, however, to run the newbie against the acknowledged segment leader and the best-selling car in North America. That, however, is exactly what Chevrolet did at the preview of its latest Malibu.

ARTICLE TOOLS Printer friendly E-mail Font: * * * * There were five Malibus (three base four-cylinder models, a hybrid and one range-topping V6) up against five Toyota Camrys (three fours and two V6s). The object of the exercise? To prove that anything Toyota can do, Chevy can do better. This sort of chest beating is not unheard of, but, in many cases, the competition is parked off to the side and away from the spotlight. Not here.

After completing one of a variety of tests in the Malibu, it was then repeated in the Camry. What surprised me most is not so much that the Malibu managed to stay with the Camry but the fact it bettered it in the most meaningful tests, notably Consumer Reports’ famous double lane change. The lane change test calls for the car to start in one lane, move over a full lane and then back into the original lane. It is a testing avoidance manoeuvre that taxes the sportiest of rides.

Pushed to the limit, the Camry managed to negotiate the test at 80 kilometres an hour. At this point, the stability control system basically shut everything down in an attempt to counter the oversteer. The Malibu sailed through at 85 km/h. Now, five km/h does not sound like much of an increase, but at the extreme limit, it is a significant improvement. StabiliTrak, GM’s stability control system, is less intrusive and so does not rattle the driver as much.