'Great resale value',,,,give me a break. Dealers go by the age of the vehicle and in this case the 2003 Malibu is a wholesale vehicle.
 This gentleman should negotiate the price of the new vehicle (discounts, rebates, whatever) and then haggle over the REAL trade-in value of the Malibu. That's the only way he'll find out what he is really getting for the Malibu. (I used to sit 'on the other side of table' in the automotive field). If there aren't any mobility issues I guess holding on to a well maintained 2003 Malibu is the way to go however I have to agree that $25000 should deliver a car with the newest and latest safety features