2006 Chevrolet Impala

dispencer1

I have the small engine and in the city I get 17-20 but we don't have bumper to bumper traffic. Most of the time I'm doing 35-45 with stops only at lights and stop signs. On the road I've gotten as much as 31.7. My '03 Deville gets 15-17 in the city and 29-31 on the road. It is not that much different than the Impala so when I buy another certified Cadillac in '08 the Impala will go as well and I'll cut down one car. It is nice to have nearly 300 hp when you pass other drivers. The Impala is ok but you have to plan a pass carefully.

nosirrahg

I've heard the rumors of a RWD Impala w/retro cues coming for MY 2009...anyone heard anything about a possible wagon coming as well? I went to a local "car wars" event this weekend, and walking through the Dodge area I kept finding myself drawn to the Magnum. I've been leaning towards a small crewcab pickup as my next vehicle, but I'd really rather drive a car. The versatility of a wagon of this size, with the gas mileage of a sedan, would be very attractive to me. Anyone know/heard anything about a wagon joining the mix when the next Impala rolls out?

charts2

The latest I've heard is the current FWD Impala will be made until the end of the 2008 run. This is according to an employee that works at Oshawa. The next Impala sedan will be RWD, longer, wider, some retro 60s features and will offer V6 and V8 performance. The next Malibu due in 2008 will be larger then the current Impala with a 113" wheel base compared to the current Impala's 110 1/2". The 2009 Impala will probably have a wheel base in the 116" range. A very large car. If a wagon comes about it might be a couple/few years down the road from then. Check out the latest pictures of the next Malibu. Nice looking ride.

nosirrahg

I'd heard the Malibu would more or less step up as the primary FWD Chevy, and the Impala would go RWD, but I had no idea the Malibu would wind up being larger than the current Impala! I'll have to go back and look at the Malibu pictures and look at them in a new light now!

steve333

I hope they dont make the malibu bigger than the Impala. The malibu should stay about the same size to better match up with the accord and camry IMHO.
The Impala barely fits in my mothers garage as is!

charts2

Off topic: I believe it was a crew from the car connection or Edmunds that got exclusive video of testing of the 2008 Malibu in Arizona last month. The 2008 Malibu tester stopped at a service centre. Up close to the car the crew indicated the car was much larger and more streamlined then the current Malibu. They got close enough to measured the wheel base and indicated it was longer then the current Impalas. These pictures are all over the web. The 2009 RWD Impala will also move up in size moving it to the large car sector. Exciting times are coming.

steve333

Its exciting if it can fit in the garage. The Impala barely fits now!
I also hope they don't make it so big that it is bulky and not easy to fling around.

I just rented a Malibu Classic, the old style, and while the seat are horrendous and the steering kinda funky this car can fly. Its surprsingly fast, handles bumps very well, and is easy to drive.
However, due to interior design and poor seat comfort I think Chevy is better off killing the Classic and letting people rent the current model.

samchinch

I test drove a Buick Lucerne and then I test drove a 2007 Chevy Impala. I found the Impala to have considerable wind noise and the Lucerne had very little. Is anyone else having trouble with wind noise? I thought all of these cars were supposed to be quiet tuned.

priggly

I have essentially no wind noise in my 2006 Impala SS, even at speeds of 80 mph. I am very pleased indeed with the car. There is also next to no road noise so that the cabin noise level at cruising speeds is excellent.

However, prior to buying this car, I test drove three others and two of the three had some wind noise. So, I guess it just depends on the particular car.

Interestingly, I also test drove a Buick Lucerne and it had some slight but not particularly onerous wind noise. The remainder of the overall cabin noise at cruising speeds was about the same as the Impala which I ended up buying.

Make sure you test more than one car and buy the one with the lowest wind noise.

steve333

brought the car inot Vhevy. 4 TSBs listed on the car inclusing the clacking noise at idel which I have heard myself the first week i drove it.
Chevy has the car for 2 days and decides nothing is wrong and fixes nothing.
2 days for an oil change and nothing else.

Im not a happy camper and I believe I will be buying a mazda 3, not a cobalt.

quietpro

Similar experience to Priggly...I drove an Impala SS with wind noise coming through the front doors. All the LTs and the SS I bought were super quiet. It's either a seal that needs to be adjusted or possibly just crosswinds. That's MOSTLY a joke but both cars should be very quiet.

deminin

I have an '06 LTZ, and coming back from Colorado this past Spring, I noticed wind noise at higher speeds. I was running between 85 and 90 for a couple of hundred miles across eastern Colo., and Western Kansas. It wasn't real bad, but it was there. During one of our major hot spells in late June, I spent a couple of hours rubbing some good Silicone Grease into all the door and window weatherstripping, and then left the car sitting outdoors in the hot sun for several hours. A couple of weeks ago, we were driving in central Missouri on good 4 lane, with almost no traffic, so I turned the LTZ loose again for about 50 miles. The wind noise was virtually gone...just a very slight hissing sound when I got above 90.
Silicone Grease will do a real good job of conditioning rubber, without causing any damage. I'm sure that the combination of softening the seals with silicone, and letting them get good and hot, helped form them to the metal better, and seems to have helped seal the car up nicely.

steve333

I have wind noise at 30-40MPH. I drove the car home after the dealer decided not to do any of the TSB's and told me there was no wind noise at 65! Apparently they use deaf mechanics.

carl10219

We just got our new Impala SS and having read these discussions shortly after putting the money down on it I was a little concerned about whether we had made a mistake or not.So first thing I tried the remote start at 200 feet it worked fine,then I ran it up to 80 mph no wind noise,no clicking,no hissing from Bose Speakers.
The car was built in May of this year and could be the last of the 06 run.I wonder if GM reads these forums and came up with fixes or did I just get lucky?
2006 Impala SS
Sport Red Metallic
Every Option

quietpro

carl,
I have read posts in these forums regarding the clicking dash that appeared to have been written by someone in the maintenance or quality control fields at Chevy or GM so I think at least SOME of what we write about is getting through.
Aside from that, a lot of us complained about the Bose stereos here and at the dealers and corporate phone lines. I think the key is to let them know in force that we want issues addressed. Along with that comes the responsibility to be fair and reasonable. So far, it seems the participants in this forum get that and so does GM. Some of the dealerships/service reps may still need some work, though.
Good to hear you are happy with your new SS. I love mine as well.

06fasst

CARL

what state did u purchase your vehicle in, when i was at the dealer getting survice there was someone there getting an ss same color and everything and i was wondering if it was you....small world!

carl10219

I'm from Wisconsin Rapids Wisconsin

carl10219

150 miles and counting I Love this Car but it seems like the gas pedal goes down really hard and I have a hard time controling my speed I keep going slower and slower does anybody else have this problem?

06fasst

have not heard of any gas pedal issues, but it was not you i saw at the dealership but nice shot at it anyhow, that means atleast 2 impala ss's were sold on sat! same color and all, hope u keep enjoying and it you want more pick up k and n has just realeased a cold air intake for under 300 dollars!

mars57

I just installed a Hidden Hitch on my 2006 Impala LT.
The retailer sold me a 4-way car end #30503 and told me to hook up this wiring color to color on my Impala, but unfortunately I was unsuccessful in locating these wires. Can someone help me with this wiring please? thank You!

dispencer1

Those of you (like me) who have suffered the screeching power window and have had the rubber strip replaced several times without solving the problem (The noise returns after several days in the hot sun), can solve the problem without making another trip to the dealer and waiting several weeks till the strip comes in . By the way, it is the top chrome strip with rubber on the inside just outside the driver and passenger window. What I did was spray Armor-all all along the inside of the strip then wipe it off after a few minutes. The windows will smear a couple of times when rising and lowering but you can clean them off and the noise will stop. It has been gone for several months on my car.

nosirrahg

I installed a Hidden Hitch on my 2000 Impala last year. No major trouble installing the actual hitch, but I was stumped on the wiring, and figured if I even attempted it I'd screw it up. So, I made an appointment with my nearest U-Haul center one morning and let them install the wiring, and as I recall they charged me very little (like maybe $20) and were done in less than 15 minutes. I'd have wasted much more time/money trying to do it myself. Just an option you might want to consider.

spider_350

I have the same odor from time to time and did a little research. Apparently that is possibly caused by the engine burning to rich and the catalytic converter not working properly. You should also be feeling excess heat from your vehicle and a loss of gas mileage which could explain the concern many people have with the EPA.

spider_350

I received that message about 2 days after I bought the car. Thus far I have had my impala for about 3 weeks and it has spent more time at the dealership than in my posession. First for flaws in the paint, then for the tire monitoring system, and now for the keyless entry and remote start. I just got it back yesterday and they replaced 2 sensors in the wheels and reprogrammed the remotes. So far I haven't received the same "service tire monitoring system" display but the remote still doesn't work from more than 20 feet away and doesn't work at all from the rear of the vehicle. I don't even have tinted windows so I don't think the tint is the problem.

steve333

Yes, the mileage has been poor, less than 15MPG. I also did notice a lot of heat after I turn off the car and pass the hood.
Do you know of any fixes or TSB's?

charts2

GM has extended their warranty on faulty catalytic conveters on many GM cars including the Impala. 7 year 160,000 miles.

Hopefully Chevy has corrected on their 2007 Impalas many of the issues that people are having with their 2006 cars.

steve333

Does this warranty apply to the 2006 model and does it need to be replaced? Thanks.

kw5kw

Spedometer is at best the median of a value.

The value is a relationship of how many times the tire rotates in a mile to how many times the sensor (old type spedo cable) rotates for a mile. It's done by gearing, 5, 6, 7, 8 gears on the output shaft of the transmisssion and 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20 or 21 teeth on the sensor.

Tire rotation per mile is multiplied by the final drive ratio times the gear on the ouptut shaft divided by the teeth of the sensor gear.

The trick is to get that mathmatical number to come as close to 1000 (one thousand) as possible with 4% being an accepted error factor.

Russ

charts2

I just checked and my information was incorrect that I posted regarding the catayltic converter. GM sent letters to 2000 and 2001 Impala owners and the extended warranty for catalytic converters on those model years is 10 years or 120,000 miles and includes 3.4 and 3.8 engines for Impala, Monte Carlo, Pontiac GP, Buick Century and Regal models. This extended warranty does not include 2006 models but your basic 3 year 36,000 mile warranty should cover it if there is a defect with your converter. Check with the service manager at your chevy dealership.

evandro

IIRC, emissions equipment has to be guaranteed by law for 60000mls or something like that, much longer than the regular warranty.

steve333

Thanks for the update.
According to my service manager there is nothing wrong with the car, even things I know are wrong with the car. They are minor things, such as the parking brake not holding the car very well, but when I brought the car in for this, the TSB on the clacking engine noise, and wind noise, they did absolutely nothing.
Oh, they did scratch the heck out the side of the previously pristine Impala. Luckily they did not just deny it, they managed to buff most of it out, but I was major pissed!

carl10219

I was looking at my tires and saw max pressure was 44 psi and from the dealer they were inflated to 28 psi this seems rather low and I know that low pressure will result in lower gas mileage.I'm sure they under inflate them for a better ride but is this costing us in mileage? Any thoughts on this?

steve333

That is the maximum pressure the tire can handle.
Your proper tire pressure will be listed on the inside of the drivers door, in the door jam somewhere.

tacoman1

I have had my car for 6 months now. In response to the tinting, I had my car tinted 3 days after purchasing. My remotes work just fine from farther than is needed. However,my first glitch in 6 months and 16k miles is the tire monitor system. It just showed up about 2 weeks ago. Shows up intermittently when I drive the car. Obviously has nothing to do with the tint on the windows. I do have the scraping window strips too. I will try the armor all and see if that works. Passenger side door handle paint is chipping just to the left of the handle for no apparent reason. Otherwise I love the car. Want some Michelins put on and the NEW K&N filtercharger, but other than that a very fine automobile that has had fewer problems than the last Accord we owned.

quietpro

Thanks for the follow-up. To clarify, is your window tinting metallic? I believe they called mine semi-metallic but I'm not sure.

I love my car too. Other than the remote range issue and my annoyance with the A/C defaulting to recirc, I have no complaints either.

ub67

What kind of Michelins are you thinking about putting on ? I've had my Impala for 3 months and the factory Goodyears are not for me it does not seem too stable and 30 lbs pressure is too low for the car.

Karen_S

A new discussion has been created, Chevrolet Impala: Key Fob Questions, and posts have been moved. Please continue discussing this issue there.

bugley1

I have Run into the remote issue,the adhesive on the dash issue, the paint issue, and the Tire Monitor. I will be going to the dealer soon to get most of these taken care of but im not sure what they would do about the paint.

66novss

What kind of paint issues are you having?

imidazol97

Watch Ophrah Monday? She and her "friend" Gail took a road tour to Vegas, West Coast and back to East Coast. Their car is a bright red Chevy SS.

It's probably the most photographed road trip.

I think it's next Tuesday they'll do the next part. (Yeah, I don't usually watch but the driving and the pop gossip stories caught my attention.

jcooley

Anyone having trouble with your 2006 impala transmission. Mine seems fine. TSB below.

http://www.alldata.com/tsb/General-Motors/1155711600000_1157007600000_06-07-30-0- 18/index.html

06fasst

mine went in yesterday to see if this issue exists, at times a get the roll from a start jerk but i wonder if the will fix any type of gas milage performance issues as well.

bugley1

I should be getting my 2006 Impala SS Back soon New Paint Fixed tire system cleaned adhesive and reprogramed remotes

06fasst

did any of this work and what exactlly did they do to fix the remotes?

bugley1

I didnt get too much info yet because i havnt picked up the car but i think they reprogramed the remotes and probably replaced the sensor in the wheel

ryster

Hi!

Does anyone know how to tighten the bolts holding the front of the seat rails/tracks down to the floor? They do not have exposed heads (the back bolts do) and I need to try and tighten my driver's side right seat rail at the front of the rail. My seat is creaking horribly when I lean back into the seat. If I hold the seat bottom down and then lean into the seatback, the creaking stops leading me to believe the rail needs to be tightened.

The dealer tried to fix the issue by lubing the seat rails. Yeah, that was a brilliant attempt.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

quietpro

My 06 had creaking seat rails. My service dept replaced them it's totally silent now. Push for the replacement while you're still under warranty.

rjp92

My question is about the rear view mirrors available on the 2006/2007 Impala 3LT, LTZ, and SS. On the 3LT trim level, the onstar rear view mirror is not available with the auto-dimmimg feature, on the LTZ and SS it is available. Is it possible to install a mirror with both features on a 3LT? Is the plug and wiring harness the same? Would it be as simple as unplugging the onstar only mirror and plugging in the new one with the onstar & auto-dimming? Any help would be appreciated, Thanks.

kpevav

I just purchased a used 2006 Impala LTZ two days ago. It has a fair amount of miles -- 26,000+ -- but looks to be in pretty good condition. The sticker said it came with an auto-dimming mirror, but I realized the first night out that it was simply the usual manual day-night mirror, and it had no Onstar controls. (I should have been more observant when I bought the car, but there were so many other things grabbing my attention.)

However, Edmunds says that all 2006 Impalas have Onstar. Since it's not on the mirror, is it accessible through some other control mechanism?

quietpro

Not that I've ever seen. Did you buy a rental? If so, maybe the OnStar-controls mirror was removed. I'd check wiht the seller.