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Comments
It seems to me your dealer is shooting in the dark....
Are W-Cars unibody constructionor a mix (powertrain sub frame attached to a unibody)?
This is the best "tax relief" anyone can ask for!!
Or, it could be our new bestest buddies, the Russians! Go Big Bear!
Hahahah
Too bad it is not a fully loaded LS. I could probably sell the wheels/tires, spoiler, sway bars and make a $1000.
sales figures up and the results are good.
November 2000: 12,556
November 2001: 15,051
YTD 2000: 161,676
YTD 2001: 193,311
That means Impala is on track for over 200,000 sales this year!
Sales should be even higher, but the inventory is not there.
Most of the dealerships in my area have almost no cars.
They always get their inventory after the first of the year in anticipation for the Spring.
Impala ranks #7 this year ahead of the Buick Lesabre at #10.
We got about 2 inches of the stuff in just a couple of hours, right in the middle of rush hour on a Friday afternoon. Driving to my office christmas party, it was obvious that people weren't prepared at all, which made me feel better that I bought my winter tires two weeks beforehand. It made me feel really good when some guy making a left turn in front of me went slip sliding right into the curb! In the short amount of driving we did, I was pretty impressed. Even on packed snow, the car was absolutely glued to the road. In spots where others took it really slow, I could plow through with ease - even around icy corners! The thing that amazes me most about these tires is how quiet they are on dry pavement. Even on the freeway, the car glides along silently. I think these tires are quieter than the OEM Uniroyal Tigerpaw tires!
I didn't think I would like the traction control, but I was wrong. It definitely makes it absurdly easy to keep my lead foot under control and the front end pointing straight. My only fear is that I'll forget how to drive a car without it!
The Impala ABS has a very different feel to the Lumina I had the last few years. The ABS "pushes back" a lot harder in the Impala. Makes it REALLY easy to tell when ABS is active. Sometimes with the Lumina the ABS pedal feedback was hard to feel. I like the Impala much better on this. I'm always impressed with how well the ABS system can keep you pointing straight under hard braking on slippery surfaces.
The heated mirrors are AWESOME! I've never had these before and after last night's ice/snow mix on the drive home I can tell they're going to be a welcome addition.
Overall impression - very stable and confidence inspiring, even in those nasty drifts that grab and try to pull you into the ditch. I bet the car would be incredible with real snow tires!
Brad
If you took fleet sales out of the Taurus totals, they wouldn't come close to the Toyonda Camcord sales, even though they're always grouped together in the top three spots.
Yup. Fleet sales account for huge numbers of certain domestic models.
Could it be that a lot of people seem to like the car enough to by pass such pills as the Camcord and the Taurus?
It is possible, don't you think?
But the trend is upward and i don't know if Chevy was expecting the impala to be such a sucess.
The downside to the fleet and program cars is that the rarely have a CD player. The guy in my office who was searching for a used LS could not find one. He bought a beautiful silver Lesabre program car. But it doesn't have a CD player.
The program car resales don't seem to be hurting the used car values on the LS's. Their prices are holding up quite well.
Unlike the intrigue, which seems to be in every used car lot in America.
Full size cars have a fuddy-duddy fleet image, and scare many customers off. VOILA, our Impala is MID-Size. Except when we want to call it full size.
The Impala is smaller outside, larger inside, a heck of a lot more fun to drive than the Fords, easier to control, FAR easier to park, more durable (from what I have seen so far) and, so far, doesn't have the reputation of being a car just for companies and taxis and cops. On the other hand, no V-8 is available, nor is full climate control, nor rear wheel drive. Some would argue it is missing an asset: body on frame construction.
Could it be that GM wanted to keep best selling full size car title for the Buick LeSabre? After all, that car sells for more than 8 thousand bucks more money when comparably equipped. Has to be more profit for GM in there. (Still, though, no V8 and no rear wheel drive. Anybody wanna bet a Buick with those two things will replace the Park Avenue?)
Just imagine what an Impala SS would be like and what GM would charge for it. Will we find out soon? Anyone know?
Body on frame's advantage is in trucks only.
Personally, I find huge sales to be a negative attribute. We specifically avoided popular cars when we chose the Impala and CL. Who wants to drive the same thing as everyone else? It's like wearing the same prom dress, especially when all the others at the prom have rented that dress.
Now, I'm seeing more Impalas on the road, and it takes away from the uniqueness of mine. Thankfully, the CL is still fairly rare, especially when compared to the TL (or, the Impala for that matter.)
Just kidding, I'm sure you were stunning...
Cavaliers, 142 to choose from, Silverados, 60 to choose, Malibus, 115 etc...No Impalas listed at all in quantity.
The service manager asked me (after I said I might be interested in the LS sport that was coming in 2002)why don't I wait for the Impala SS that is coming for 2003, said it will be getting the SC 3800 that goes in the LeSabre, 265hp. I don't know folks, we have heard so many different things in the last year and a half, I don't know who to believe.
I keep hearing V8, NOT supercharger. Whatever...I just hope it isn't the same one that comes on the LeSabre!
The other guys' dresses were rented, though. They were the "base" dresses, but they looked just like mine.
If I was a woman, this analogy would work much better. :-)
I really hope for a V8. That would be a really cool option for the Impala or Monte. I don't see how they could offer front and rear drive cars at the same time for the same model.
A guy on the Aurora board had mentioned GM is working on an all new V6 pushrod engine. I'll bet you guys have kicked that around here before too.
They usually don't put them out for sale until they reach 25-27K miles. However, I think that if the travel biz stays slumped for awhile, you'll start to see lower mileage LS' on their lots, at very good prices.
My point is that torque from a large pushrod engine is weighted strongly to the low end.
The Northstar may have 300lbs of torque, but a 4.8L or 5.3L Chevy will flat cream it from a dead stop. Even with the 3.71 gear in the STS.
A 3500-3600 Impala with 300 hp and 330 ft. lbs. of torque would be a bear in the rain and just plain scary with the power down coming out of a turn. Lets hope trac control and PCS are mandatory.
I have driven a deville with a Northstar and it felt sluggish to me around town. The only time it came alive is when i REALLY put my foot into it.
One of the car mags just drove a Northstar in Europe and they thought it felt sluggish too.
By the way, my 215 hp intrigue had torque steer big time and would sometimes change lanes when i floored it in the rain.
Time will tell what GM puts under the hood of an Impala SS if the car is ever built and released.
Try this for FWD with a v8. A supercharged 350 chevy hooked to a 1966 Toronado frame section under a 1970 Chevelle. Over 500 hp and plenty of torque steer.
Tony
LeSabres with that treatment are also done after they leave the factory.
"Pushrods" are here to stay!
http://www.exoticar.com/pages/more_info_2.cfm?product_id=2252
Maisto also produces the 1/18 versions of the "Tennesee State Trooper" and "Chicago Yellow Cab" Impalas. Maisto sells a smaller 1/24 scale version of the "Tennesee State Trooper" Impala cruiser.
I already have both of these and will be purchasing the NYPD model to complete my 1/18 2000 Impala "Triplet" collection.
Another diecast model manufacturer, "Welly Diecast" has announced it will be releasing a 1/24 scale version of the 2002 Impala, probably the civilian LS version. I will be in the look for that one.
http://www.wellydiecast.com/coming.htm
If you happen to be interested in the 2000+ Montecarlo SS coupe, another diecast manufacturer, Sunstar, has two very good replicas of the 1/18 SS coupe and the 1/18 Brickyard 400 pace car.
One of my recently purchased 1/18 models, is the 1/18 1981 DeLorean coupe finished in "Stainless Steel" complete with opening hood, trunk and the famous "Gull wing" doors. This model is a showstopper. Sunstar will be releasing the 1/18 "Back to the Future" DeLorean in January 2002. If you are into the diecast precision scale model hobby, I highly recommend to add the 1/18 DeLorean to your collection. This is the first time in 20 years the DeLorean is available as a 1/18 scale model.
The dealer "lubed" my ISS today because of the famous clunking in the steering wheel. It has seemed to help but he told me that it most likely will come back. He said that it would have been better to replace the ISS but GM has a TSB out on this and he has to lube the shaft. Should I try to get the ISS replaced? I have a 2000 and the warranty only has 5,000 miles left on it. Any Ideas would be helpful! Thanks!
Question....does your dealer know of any case where the "Lube" TSB was applied and the clunking actually came back?
Do they know the actual cause of the ISS' losing lubrication overtime?
I doubt it very much...