![]() ![]() The VT40 does on occasion cause the Malibu’s engine to drone, especially during lighter acceleration. There are some conventional automatics that could take behavior lessons from GM’s CVT. Each of the seven steps can also be selected manually with the switch on top of the gearshift lever, and the transmission holds that ratio until the driver chooses another one, just as it should. During full-throttle acceleration, the transmission changes the ratio without fail when the engine speed hits 5500 rpm, and the revs drop in a familiar and reassuring way before a higher ratio is selected. A simulated shift program with seven set ratios does a good impression of a step-gear transmission, which is about all you can ask of a CVT from behind the wheel. Out in the real world, most drivers will find it difficult to tell a VT40-equipped Malibu from one with a conventional automatic. It has a relatively wide ratio spread of 7.0:1-for comparison, the six-speed’s ratio is 6.1:1, and the nine-speed automatic in top-spec Malibus has a ratio of 7.6:1. The VT40 has a chain-drive design for front-wheel-drive vehicles GM declined to specify its maximum torque capacity, but we can conclude from its initial appearances that it’s not going to find its way into anything too heavy or powerful. (The more powerful turbocharged 2.0-liter Malibu uses a nine-speed automatic, while the hybrid uses a power-split device to combine its electrical and piston-engine power sources that we also categorize as a CVT, but that's a completely different animal.) The Malibu is the new CVT's first retail application, although it is also paired with a turbocharged 1.4-liter four in the Chevrolet Cruze for fleet customers only. Every 2019 Malibu with the entry-level 160-hp turbocharged 1.5-liter inline-four will get the VT40, which is being produced in GM’s facility in Ramos Arizpe, Mexico. ![]()
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