Although initially popular, sales of the LTD II declined rapidly due to several factors. As the LTD II made its 1977 debut, Chevrolet introduced downsized versions of the Chevrolet Impala and Caprice; although the LTD II was marketed as a competitor against the Chevrolet Malibu, the intermediate LTD II presented with a larger exterior footprint than the Impala (though with a smaller interior). The downsizing of the General Motors full-size line was met with success, with the Impala/Caprice becoming the best-selling 1977 model line. Also, internal competition from its nearly identical platform mate the newly downsized Thunderbird (with its much lower base price) deflected sales from the LTD II two-door models.