Edmunds.com Readers Compare Chevy Malibu, Honda Accord and Toyota Camry in Professional Road Tests
December 18, 2007
SANTA MONICA, Calif. -- Edmunds.com recently selected six applicants from the “Editor for a Day” 
submissions to experience and write about a professional comparison test of three midsize family sedans: 2008 Chevrolet Malibu, 2008 Honda Accord and 2007 Toyota Camry.
The winners were flown to Los Angeles, given appropriate accommodations and training, then encouraged to put the comparison test vehicles through a series of driving exercises at Willow Springs International Raceway on November 29. The winners carefully evaluated the vehicles and their commentary was published on Edmunds.com.
“This is the first time we invited real consumers from around the country to work with us on an actual road test,” said Kevin Smith, editorial director for Edmunds.com.
In the end, three of the demographically and geographically diverse group were split: three (including the two women in the group) chose the Malibu as their favorite; three chose the Accord.
Here is a summary of the “Editor for a Day” winner profiles and their comparison test experiences:
Rob has three children and resides in Monroe, Connecticut. Entering the comparison test, he declared he was 
mainly considering an import when purchasing his next vehicle. After the test, his favorite vehicle was the Honda Accord.
Scott has three children and resides in Red Lion, Pennsylvania. Entering the comparison test, he declared he was mainly considering an domestic when purchasing his next vehicle. After the test, his favorite vehicle was the Honda Accord.
Romona does not have any children and resides in Sagamore Hills, Ohio. Entering the comparison test, she declared she was considering both domestics and imports when purchasing her next vehicle. After the test, her favorite vehicle was the Chevrolet Malibu. “The Malibu is hands-down the best-looking 
car in this comparison," wrote the registered nurse. "The Malibu is the most fun to drive and feels the most alive during cornering.”
Deena has three children and resides in Roanoke, Texas. Entering the comparison test, she declared she was considering both domestics and imports when purchasing her next vehicle. After the test, her favorite vehicle was the Chevrolet Malibu.
Philip has three children and resides in Eagle River, Wisconsin. Entering the comparison test, he declared he was considering both imports and domestics when purchasing his next vehicle. After the test, his favorite vehicle was the Honda Accord. “The [Accord] does everything extremely well,” wrote the retired airline pilot. “It looks great, appears to be the roomiest, is well appointed and keeps its value. It’s darn near bulletproof.”
Frederick does not have any children and resides in Lyman, Maine. Entering the comparison test, he declared he was considering a used car with his next vehicle purchase. After the test, his favorite vehicle was the Chevrolet Malibu.
“Edmunds.com is Web site-built for consumers, and we have known since launching our Forums in 1996 that consumers really appreciate hearing from each other,” said Edmunds.com’s Smith. “We fully expect that the results of our first Editor for a Day will help consumers feel even better about their next vehicle purchase.”
“The [Accord] does everything extremely well,” said Philip. “It looks great, appears to be the roomiest, is well appointed and keeps its value. It’s darn near bulletproof.”
“The Camry’s exterior and interior styling is attractive,” said Deena. “It drove well, the features were fine and had plenty of room.”
Posted by Michelle Krebs at 11:37 AM under Commentary , GM , Toyota | Comments (5) | digg this | Seed Newsvine
I thought the consumers did a great (and thoughtful) job of evaluating the vehicles. I've always enjoyed the perspective of the Editors' since it gives a comparison of everything in the class / price range. The consumer perspective is different as people normally don't get to drive everything in the class or price range and can only draw on their personal vehicle history and lifestyle needs.
Posted by: Sylvia | December 19, 2007 at 7:01 AM
It is interesting that GM had three votes for the Malibu but got no final positive comments. Deena thought the Malibu was the best yet you quoted her comments about the Camry which did not get any votes.
Posted by: Don | December 19, 2007 at 11:16 AM
Agree with Don. Any answer from the editor yet ?
Posted by: Niros | December 19, 2007 at 12:00 PM
The entire exercise was a very interesting one. These readers took their jobs very seriously. We find that readers not only want the Editors' opinions but also their peers'.
Posted by: Michelle | December 19, 2007 at 12:23 PM
An interesting exercise. I wouldn't be surprised to see it more.
The one I really like though is a few years ago one of the big magazines (can't remember if it was Road & Track, Motor Trend, or Car & Driver) where they asked the editors what they actually drove.
I'll never forget the response - one even had a '93 Isuzu Pickup. The editor that had the Isuzu said that he drove great cars all day and he had kids in college. So he just cared about cheap, reliable tranportation that didn't depreciate. I thought to myself - that should show in his reviews.
My point - these editors are in somewhat of a dream world. When it comes to what they really buy - it's often used cars that are cheap to operate and don't depreciate. This exercise by Edmunds is refreshing - get some real-world decision makers opinions.
Posted by: Double Wishbone | December 19, 2007 at 5:03 PM