DETROIT – General Motors plans to add another engine option, a 2.0L Ecotec turbo four-cylinder, in the fall of 2012, to its 2013-MY Chevrolet Malibu. According to GM, the Ecotec 2.0L turbo is SAE-certified at 259 horsepower (193 kW) and 260 lb.-ft. of torque (353 Nm). Its peak torque is sustained from 1,700 to 5,500 rpm and helps produce 0-60 performance in 6.3 seconds. The automaker didn’t provide MPG figures for this new engine as of this writing.

The standard engine offered with the Chevrolet Malibu is the all-new Ecotec 2.5L four-cylinder engine. The Malibu’s Ecotec 2.5L produces an SAE-certified 197 horsepower (147 kW) and 191 lb.-ft. of torque (259 Nm).

For the Malibu Eco, the vehicle comes with eAssist technology, which combines start-stop technology with regenerative braking and a lightweight lithium-ion battery that can provide an electric boost in certain driving conditions, delivering a GM-estimated 25 mpg in the city 37 mpg on the highway.

The Chevrolet Malibu Eco is on sale now, with a suggested retail price of $25,995, including a $760 destination charge. Additional models go on sale this summer, followed by the Malibu Turbo this fall.