2005 and Earlier Chevrolet Impala

b4z

More stats. This week 5,675 cars. Total for August is an amazing 23,553 cars.

I guess you guys already new this but the last Camaro rolled off the line on Tuesday.

[Deleted User]

...the last Camaro rolled off the line on Tuesday.

And one of the wheels fell off.

atbear

....and what does that mean graypen?

b4z

The thing you gotta realize about garypen is that if you give him an opening he will take it.
He is predictable and consistent.

Obviously, he is commenting on the quality of the car which is not that great. I have owned 5 of the things and they have their weaknesses.

Can't wait for the replacement.

b4z

I thought the supercharged Impala SS was coming out in late 2003 as a 2004 model car.
Motor Trend just wrote that it was coming out mid year 2003.
Does anybody have confirmation on this?
Hoping that it has the 2004 GP's 250 hp and not the current 240 hp.

charts2

I find it hard to believe that Chevy is going to use the supercharged version of the 3800 engine. When the Impala hit the market back in 99' I read so many articles about the Police package they were offering. That the Impala was designed around Police work. During the past 3 years Chevy has made its way into many Police departments with a obvious price advantage over the current Crown Vic.

I believe it would be a hard sell to Police departments to spend an extra $2 to $3 grand or so on a supercharged engine that I believe is not designed for heavy duty police work. I thought for sure they would use the new Chevy 4.2 in line six that delivers over 270 hp. Much smoother, very economical and less pricy then a supercharged engine. The Impala finished 3rd in performance testing last year at the state police testing behind the Current Crown Vic and the new Dodge Intrepid. It was noted The 3800 Police Impala lacks acceleration power from 60 to 100+ mph finished several seconds behind the Crown Vic and Intrepid.

Our Police department just recently purchased about 20 new Impalas for the first time. I spoke to my nephew (police officer) and a couple cop friends and they say the same thing, Impala runs out of steam getting up to top speed. I do believe that the Police especially highway cars need the extra performance, but I just can't see Police budgets allowing to spend big bucks for this supercharged 3800. Just my opinion...

b4z

I never mentioned that the supercharged 3800 would be offered for police use.
Nor have I seen anything that said it would.
My question pertains to the when the supercharged IMpala SS will be available.
This year or next?

bsapp

Can some of you that have had your Impalas for a while now comment on the durability of the cloth seats, specifically the LS cloth? My Impala now has a little over 5,000 miles on it and I'm rather concerned about the way the driver's seat is already looking. Now mind you I'm not a big person and I'm very careful about getting in and sitting directly on the seat instead of sliding across it each time I get in, but still my seat is already looking more "used" than I would expect in such a short period of time. Makes me wonder if I should have gotten leather but then the "comfort wrinkles" set in with leather.
By the way, I've just had my first mishap with my car. I hit a piece of debris in the road and it flew up and marred the left front fender and door. I'm going to take it in next week and have the dealer's body shop repaint the lower edges on both sides. Its already picked up some stone chips on the lower body edge because I had to park in a gravel parking lot at work. Since I have a new office location and have left the gravel parking lot behind, I'm going to have it fixed right now and hope I don't sustain any more damage like that. Has anyone seen an Impala with mud guards? Do they look ok with them? I have some reservations about installing them......

Bill

johnclineii

98,900 miles and the gray cloth seats on my 2000 Impala LS look like those on a car with 15,000 miles, max. Yes, the interior looks cheap. But it has held up well.

This fall, I will either be buying a V-6 Mazda6 or I will wait for one of two GM cars: the next Impala with the supercharger like my 98 Grand Prix GTP had, or the 2004 Grand Prix, which is due in spring (as is the Supercharged Impala, according to my sources, who ask that they remain nameless).

I understand this particular Impala SS will be a short run, only to be around until the underlying Impala is replaced in a couple of years. The next one may be rear wheel drive, but that decision has apparently not been finalized.

charts2

Your quote "I never mentioned that the 3800 supercharged would be offered for Police use" etc.....

I never said you did. This wasn't even directed to you. Where did I mention your name that you said that? The information that I typed in my post was information that I have read in magazines or on the internet where most get there information. I can't believe that Chevy would offer a different engine entirely just for Police work. I think you read too much into it. Your post was about SS cars mine was about Police packages. If we have heard so much about this 3800 supercharged option in the future SS in the past 2 months why haven't we heard that the Police would be getting a different engine entirely. I doubt very much that they will.... again my opinion.

charts2

Pictures of the 2004 Grand Prix are already out and the car has been freshened considerably. More aggressive styling. No 2 door version will be offered. The engine will be the standard 3800 and the 3800 supercharged series II as an option. I would imagine standard on the GTP like it is now. Horsepower increased from the current 240 S/C. It Will be made in Oshawa.

I believe the 2004 Impala SS car will probably not look much different then the current 2003 LS except.

17" wheels
supercharged.
SS badging
newer dashboard
a couple new colors
freshened back lights
probably the grille from the Concept SS car that was at the Oshawa plant last year.
leather bucket seats only.
and about $5000 more......

I haven't seen any pictures yet but I doubt the sheet metal is changing much at all if any. I am sure we will know within a few months.

b4z

I am hopeful that they will keep it under 30K but the Sport is over 28K and I am sure the Supercharged engine will add $2000.
If they go to 32K I might as well get the marauder. Even though it has LESS room than the Impala.

johnclineii

You might want to drive one first. I thought I wanted one. Unfortunately for FOMOCO, I now have driven a Ford lately. No, thanks.

Much slower handling than my Impala, lousy braking, big turning circle, wallows...

Other than power (and much heavier car), what's to like?

charts2

I believe the difference in price between a 2003 Pontiac Grand Prix GT and the GTP is nearly $3,000 most of it attributed to the Supercharged engine and a few other components that have to be upgraded to handle the extra performance.

The next generation Impala SS would probably be in the same ball park with a supercharged engine, but add another $1,000+ for 17" wheels and higher rated tires. $1,000+ for beefier suspension. Another $1,000 + or so for special SS badging, other cosmetics and other upgrades (hopefully a better interior) I recently read the edmunds article the new 2004 Grand Prix G force will be using a new Supercharger to boost power to the 280 HP range. (thats gotta cost more.)

If you do the math the next generation Impala SS ain't going to be cheap, and the Pontiac will be even more...Don't get me wrong, I am not knocking the Impala SS, (I have driven nothing but Chevys for 33 years) but it will be cost prohibitive for most.

PS I drove a 96 Impala SS last year and was very disappointed with the too firm suspension and very loud tire roar from the fat 17" tires. The car had a lot of get up. If the future SS is anything like the previous SS with heavy duty stiff suspension I would not like to spend 99,999.9 miles in it like Johnclineii, would be too much for me. My comfortable 2001 Impala LS suits me just fine..

b4z

I think they may have downrated the '04 280 hp 3800 to 250 hp. There are concerns about the transmission holding up with all of the torque.
The GTP does 0-60 in about 6.6 seconds so it is probably putting out more than it's rated power anyway.
They could put the tranny from the Aurora in it but I doubt GM will go to that expense.
Also the 4t65E does not have a limited slip differential from the factory so the car's performance is limited by wheelspin .

charts2

No wonder they dropped plans for the LS1 V8, as you say too much torque for the current front wheel set up. 250 hp from the 3800 isn't too shabby, but the car could not compete with the current Nissan Altima or Maxima. Maybe many of us worry too much about horsepower and not the comfort and reliability that we have with our current Impala's. I would be happy if they just freshened the interior and dashboard and took out some of the plainess of the rear of the car maybe a chrome strip along the trunk opening.

I am sure when the SS car comes out I will go to the dealers and look at it but I doubt it will be a car of my future.

b4z

And they need to do something with the grey plastic body side moulding.
The 3800 supercharged motor does have 280 ft. lbs of torque. Which is a bunch. More than the Aurora V8, Altima, G35, etc. I think it's closest competitor has 260 ft. lbs of torque and it occurs higher in the rev range than the 3800.

jsylvester

For $5,000 less, I'd take the LS with the base 3.8. If the difference was only $1-2 k, I'd consider it.

gasoline

Ever wonder why the Impala 3.8L engine isn't any more fuel efficient? The Corvette with a 5.7L engine which is almost 2L bigger gets 18mpg city and 27 mpg highway which is only a tad worst than our impalas. The most impressive is the 3.4L engine in the impala being just as efficient as a 2.2L ecotec engine in a Oldsmobile Alero. Why even make smaller engines?

b4z

It has mostly to due with cruising rpms.
The Corvette's final drive is 1.72 vs. 2.13 in the Impala.
provided the tires are about the same in height(?),
the Corvette's engine is turning about 20% slower.
To put this in perspective if the Impala's engine was turning 2000rpms then the Corvette's would be at about 1600 rpms. A huge difference when it comes to highway economy.
Factor in the Corvette's lighter weight (almost 300lbs) better .cd and smaller frontal area (but wider tires). And it is understandable.
I have heard of corvette's getting 30 mpg and my Impala has done 34 mpg on several occasions.
The advantage of a smaller engine is mostly around town.
They don't have enough torque to run low rpms on the highway so they are geared more agressively.

larryfl

I agree with b4z. There are so many factors in a particular car's gas mileage that a simple displacement comparison really isn't valid. My '95 Aurora, for example, get's no better than 25 miles to the gallon (75-80MPH) with it's 4.0L V8 - and my driving habits :-), while in my wife's 2002 Impala LS (3800) I get closer to 28+ at the same speed.

Another example: Years ago, I bought new a 1984 Nissan Maxima (2.4 inline 6). It got better mileage than the '88 Nissan Stanza (2L 4)I replaced it with.

Actually, I think the LS does pretty good w/ it's 30MPH (+or-).

b4z

The Aurora is a pretty heavy car and has a 3.71 axle ratio. Put a 3.05 or 3.29 in it and you would probably see a 2-3 mpg increase in hwy mileage.

dgonzalez13

took it to the dealer for "egr"? replacement. I was seeing some white puffy smoke from tailpipe and lots of condensation dripping, no matter what time of day, temp of engine, or temp of air. Someone had told me it might be the catalytic converter, but the dealer says EGR. Anyone know what an EGR is or does? or approx how much they cost? dealer says approx $390 for service. Thanks! That has been the only problem with my 2000 Base Impala, other than my car stereo person crimping a cable incorrectly causing a short in my radio.

[Deleted User]

Exhaust Gas Recirculation. It does what it's name implies, it receirculates exhaust gases back into the engine to be burned a second time, instead of into the atmosphere. It is supposed to do this only at higher RPM's. At low RPM's it would cause very rough idling, even stalling.

Do you get rough idling, hesiitation, and sta/or stalling? Your symptoms sound more like a bad gasket, causing coolant to get into the engine, hence the white smoke and excessive condensation. Other signs of coolant getting into the engine is a milky substance in the engine oil, check the dipstick and under the fill cap. You also may find oil in the coolant overflow bottle.

Oil might be making their way into your cylinders when parked, due to worn or faulty valve guides or seals. That would cause a slightly bluish, but mostly white smoke at startup. It would stink something awful though. Heavy burnt chemical smell.

If it actually is a bad EGR valve that's causing your trouble, the dealer should fix it for free as part of the Federally mandated emissions warranty, which is 3 years/50K miles for an EGR valve in California. NY may have a different emissions warranty period.

It's certainly covered under the original 36/36 warranty, that's for sure. If it's past your warranty, an EGR valve usually costs about $70 at a parts store, and generally bolts on to the side of an engine. An easy do-it-yourself job. A good private shop would definitely charge less than $390. Why go to a dealer, if your car is out of warranty?

oil_mutt

In response to Post 10127 from sweigard: I called several GM dealers here in St. Louis in an effort to find a bottle of Silicone Emulsion GM Part #10953014. None of the dealers could find such a part number in their computer system or their log books. Will you please double-check and see if the Part No. is correct. If so, then give me the name, address and phone number of the GM dealer in Canada that you purchased the product from. Thank you.

sweigard

#10953014 Lubricant SPS 088000 $4.75

This is the invoice description from;

Jim MacDonald Motors
1324 King's Highway
Fort Frances ON P9A 2X6
(807)-274-5321
1-800-465-7765 (maybe not applicable to USA)

Larry

b4z

On every 2003 GM car or truck. Or you can take the rebate.
A guy in the CTS thread has posted the link detailing the 2002 and 2003 incentives.
I tried to copy and paste it but it didn't work for some reason.

b4z

If I can take advantage of the incentives I may just dump my '01 with 29,000 miles and order a 2003.
I never did like the spoiler so I would delete that, and probably onstar too.

[Deleted User]

Doesn't OnStar come standard in the LS?

hvan3

I think OnStar is optional for 2003.

With 2003 0% financing, I think I'll wait for the new Pontiac GTO. Is that the 2003 or 2004 model that is coming out?

I also like the idea of getting the new C6 (Vette) for 0% financing.

Dang, if only I can get my stock portfolio to perform 500% ROI and be able to break even. LOL

[Deleted User]

I got my seat fixed. I got my seat fixed. Nyah nyah nyah nyah nyah.

The service dept. at Billings Chevrolet in Milpitas is so much better than at Courtesy Chevy in San Jose. Words could not begin to describe it.

BTW, saw a "sport" model in Silver. The body color rear end is definitely better looking than the red plastic, at least it is in silver.

vcjumper

Is funner to say too

charts2

Our Police Department just purchased about 20 new Impalas in the last couple months. Previously they were exclusively Crown Vics, before that Caprices up until 1996 the last year issued. This is from a fleet of about 100+ cars. This morning I was out for breakfast and there were 5 officers at the restaurant having coffee. I was curious about the new Police Impalas that our city purchased so I approached them and ask them what there take was on these cars. Most were neutral comments. They generally indicated both the Crown Vic and the Impala had there negatives.

Overwhelmingly the main complaints of the Impala were: #1 the turning radius of the cars. when they have to stop and go in the other direction in an emergency most often they have to do a three point turn. They were surprised with this because the car is much smaller then a Crown Vic. #2 When two officers ride together they feel cramped inside. With each having a holstered gun and billy club there is not much space left for the computer and writing board in the console area. They said the Crown Vic has much more shoulder and hip room, also the prisoner area in the back seat is very tight in the Impala. Anyone over 6'3" or so can hardly get their legs in the back with protection screen. #3 Backing up. Very frustrating one cop said. You can't see the back of the car using the outside mirrors, or inside rear view mirror. If you are on a small hill and you have to back up looking through the rear view mirror all you see is the sky because the back of the car sits very high. The front pillars are very thick at the front that run down along the windshield and are blind spots. Most indicated that the best cars they had were the older square style caprices that ended with the 1990 model year. Lots of room lots of power more adapted to 12 hour shifts in a police vehicle. One officer indicated that the city purchased these cars because of the gas tank problems with the Crown Vics and the cost factor. Impalas are cheaper. Most agreed that over time the front wheel drive would not hold up as well as the Crown Vic's do. One officer indicated that the department was looking into the purchase of Dodge Intrepids for the next order. Interesting comments......

b4z

GMinsidenews.com has heard rumors that there may be a V8 put into the Impala/Monte Carlo afterall.
According to the article the tooling has been installed for the 4.8L V8.
He also believes that the GP may get the 4T80E to cope with the extra power of the supercharged engine. If the Gp gets it then the Impala could get it also.
Go to GMinsidenews.com and click on the Monte Carlo SS link. You have to register to read the article but it only takes 30 seconds.

b4z

My dealer just got one in today and it was filthy but I will try to give you guys an idea what it looks like.
If you took a while Impala and a Galaxy Silver Impala and mixed them together it would be pretty close.
The car looks like it has just a little bit of grey in it. The most interesting thing about it is there is quite of bit of metallic in the paint.
There was a white car parked next to it and it is noticeably different from it, but if you see the car by itself it appears off white or an incredibly light shade of grey.
I like the color. It makes the car look a little more expensive than the white and galaxy silver, at least as expensive as it can look with the grey plastic body moulding.
The car looks more Frost than it does Capuccino.
I would guess the car looks pretty good all cleaned up and with a coat of wax on it to bring out the metallics in the paint.

b4z

That sentence should have read, "if you take a white Impala and a galaxy silver Impala...."
Not, "If you took at while Impala..."

b4z

Lutz decontenting not withstanding, I find it interesting that the Impala lacks features that are available on smaller and less expensive cars.
No climate control or even rear vents are the most eggregious. A DOHC cam option is another.
How about 17" wheels?

nosirrahg

We've been shopping for a replacement for my wife's '95 Prizm, and one thing I have noticed in several new cars is the incorporation of rear air vents. A few GM products have them (we test drove a Rendezvous which had them, for instance); looks like it wouldn't be too hard to incorporate them somewhere (especially in the bucket seat models).

Did we ever get an answer as to why there is no passenger side-airbag available on the Impala? Other manufacturers offer them as either standard or options.

[Deleted User]

In dash CD changer. Chrysler and Ford do it. I think I remember hearing that other GM divisions do it. What's up with that?

BTW, I thought the "took-a-while" Impala was the base model with the 3.4L engine.

b4z

The Impala has both driver and passenger front airbags.
The side impact bag that is located on the side of the driver's seat is now optional ('03).
It costs $350.00.

b4z

I was wondering how long it was going to take for you to jump all over that.
It is good to know someone else besides me is on this thread. The last 2 days I feel like I have been posting to myself. Actually the last few weeks have been slow.

crosley4

Lutz says that certain items removed from a car will not alter a "buy or not buy" in a persons thinking about a car.

I believe Lutz's thinking may be flawed.

I looked at a base 2003 Impala yesterday after I dropped off my Silverado for some attention to recall items. Not much different there, but it was 6:15AM when I was looking at the Impala.

[Deleted User]

6:15AM? I'd be seeing two Impalas.

crosley4

Actually there were 2 Impalas. ((-; Nearly the same cars , only difference was the interior.

The dash style / design looked different. But to be honest I have not looked at an Impala since we traded off our problematic 2000 LS last year.

I looked at a 2003 Silverado too. The new Avalanche style front sheet metal on the pickups does not sit well with me. Looks odd, can't put a finger on eggzackly what I do not like.

We are early risers here.... 4:30 AM every weekday. 5:30 on the weekends....LOL

happybooker1

That's what my Impala is!!!! The dealer called it 'pewter' but looking on the GM site I finally identified the color. I LOVE IT!!

Mine is a 2002 model with all the bells & whistles. My previous car was a '99 Lumina with 91K miles on it. I sure hope the Impala's as dependable as the Lumina was. I had NO problems with the Lumina at ALL!

The Impala DOES have more 'get up & go' than the Lumina did, however......

pluto5

Which engine are you comparing, the 3.4 or 3.8 liter?

b4z

I emailed you but it came back as undeliverable.
Drop me a line and let me know how everything is going.

Rutledge

rwebb@prucar.com

hoowa1

complain about the fact that the Henderson Chevrolet has not fixed any of the many problems with my car -- even though they keep giving it back to me saying it is fixed, though it is not!!!!! Tnanks!

pluto5

Sometimes you need to forget the name of the dealer you purchased from and find another one who has the motivation/competence/integrity or whatever to correct a problem. Not all dealers are equal though they may have the same franchise. Some exist primarily as "stores" to sell metal.

impalaboy2001

After taking my car to the dealership 3 times for the engine cradle pop noise, they're deciding to do the shim fix. I asked them why they wont put in a new cradle, and they simple said that GM wont let them, and the popping noise I'm getting is a customer induced problem, since I have 18" aftermarket wheels, which is a bunch of BS. Anyway, does anyone in here have GM/Chevy's phone # for case numbers..I want to talk to these guys directly. I've tried calling they're customer help 800 number, but they said that dealerships usually deal with a different dept. in GM/Chevy and my case will be filed with that dept.

Thanks

Chris

http://members.cox.net/2001impala