If there’s one question that’s bugging Chevrolet and GM, it’s what to do about sales of the newest Malibu.

Long one of Chevy’s most dependable sales generators, the latest generation Malibu has fallen on hard times almost since its rollout early in 2012 even though the refresh greatly improved the car’s looks and the fact the Mlaibu can definitely hold its own with the competition.

The problem is even more painful when sales of the newest Malibu are compared to those of the new Ford Fusion. From the time the Fusion was introduced in 2005 until roughly 2010, the Malibu outsold the Ford. Thereafter, it Chevy was playing catch-up to the Ford. In the most recent two-month period ended February 28, Ford dealers were selling ten Fusions for every six Malibus Chevy dealers could move. Those kind of numbers were bound to attract attention in the upper floors of the Renaissance Center.

The slump is a problem for GM; the company just did the refresh and a slick new Impala is on the way along with a number of other new vehicles. Plus, the Malibu plays in a very competitive segment that also happens to be the largest single segment of the light vehicle market: four-door family sedans.

We tested two of the Malibus, an ECO with GM’s mild hybrid system and a more conventional, but still upscale, 2LTZ. Both were very good cars, with a nod to the ECO for its extra power boost and one to the 2LTZ for the extra trunk and passenger room. We couldn’t really recommend them for the hard-driving enthusiast, but anyone in the market for a comfortable family car should have the Malibu on their short list.

The problem may well lie in the Malibu’s launch. It didn’t get a big media splash and Chevy elected to lead with the higher-priced ECO. The drawback to the ECO is likely one of perception: though it carries a higher sticker price than the standard Malibu, it’s not a true hybrid and won’t deliver the kind of fuel economy the public has come to expect from hybrids like the Toyota Prius. It does offer some benefits, such as more enjoyable driving, but that can be a hard sale to make for the family looking for a vanilla-mobile.

GM has already addressed the price issue, but there may need to be more discounts or some well-promoted incentives.

Truth be told, the Fusion is going to be a tough car to catch and from the data of the past couple of months, it’s a good bet that a fair number of new Fusion owners traded in GM cars.

Incoming marketing chief Tim Mahoney has a big job on his hands and one of his first tasks will be to light a fire under Malibu sales. Considering the competition from without and the competition from within (Impala, SS, Silverado), he’s got a tough assignment.

Two of Roger Penske’s sons were arrested by police, for allegedly breaking into the Nantucket Yacht Club and assaulting two women.

Billionaire Roger Penske started racing in 1958; he later built the truck leasing business which bears his name, and owns numerous car dealerships along with Indy and NASCAR teams. The sons who were arrested are Jay Penske, CEO of digital media company PMC and owner of Dragon Racing, and Mark Penske, 35.

Two women contacted the police and said they had been assaulted by two men in the parking lot; they identified the men as the Penske brothers. The assault was defined as urinating on one of the woman’s boots, then grabbing her and pushing her.

According to the police, Jay Penske was found trying to run away from the club, and Mark Penske was at the employee apartment; he had fallen down the staircase.

The women did not press charges. The brothers were jailed overnight, and were arraigned in the morning on charges of breaking and entering with intent to commit a misdemeanor. (Via Yahoo Sports / thanks, MoparBob.)

General Motors’ Brazilian subsidiary has temporarily closed all eight of its plants, claiming that it feared action by the union. The company also announced that it would invest $833 million in Canada through 2016, including both research and development and production. GM had committed to do so when it took aid from the Canadian government.

Mitsubishi became the latest automaker to export from the United States, decades after being one of the first to build cars here. Its unionized “Diamond-Star” plant in Illinois, once co-owned with Chrysler Corporation, will make around 19,000 Outland Sports for export outside North America.

As Mitsubishi’s fortunes in the United States have fallen, the Diamond Star plant has endured production cuts; once capable of making 200,000 cars per year, last year the factory pushed out a mere 31,000 cars, despite the addition of the Galant to the product mix (it originally made only the Eclipse and Chrysler-branded versions of the sporty, Galant-based car).

Mitsubishi’s press release reported that the company planned to eventually export half the cars produced in Illinois to Russia, Latin America, the Middle East, and other markets. Currently, the plant makes North American versions of the Galant, Eclipse, and Outlander, all of which are closely related. The last Chrysler-branded cars produced there were the Chrysler Sebring Coupe and two-door Dodge Avenger, both restyled versions of the Eclipse; neither sold well in their final years.

As manufacturing costs in Japan have increased and those in the United States have fallen, largely due to exchange rates, companies have been either “re-insourcing” production to the U.S. or making cars here for export to other locations, rather than making them in Japan.

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