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Comments
I must say, the RE910 isn't exactly the quietest tires, but the handling is so superb! I never thougth my Impala can handle sharp cornering, but with these tires, man what a ride!! Furthermore, braking seems to be better with these threads. Of course, there is a tradeoff between quiet ride and cornering/handling. I chose performance ride over quiet ride. These RE910 threads are similar to my low profile tires that I used to have on my Honda Accord.
Anyway, one last thing I have to worry now. Since my car is now completely paid off, I planning on getting my radiator flush, and replace the transmission fluid, as well as replacing with new spark plugs. At first, I thought about selling my Impala, but now decided to keep this car until I hit 100K miles! Oh, if you live in CA, our governor has recently raised the car registration by 300%!! Ouch!
Also, I helped a friend move out of her dorm at UCLA. We were all very suprised as to how much cargo space the Impala has!! We had a fridge, 3 large suit cases, 4 boxes, and misc items all stashed in the Impala. Yet, the car still drives like a dream on the highway....
johnclineii, now at 124k
Even beat out the Honda Civic.
http://www.autosite.com/editoria/asmr/svsedan.asp
http://www.slpeng.com/vehicles/impala/index.shtml
On a slightly related note, I had the carb rebuilt on my '82 F-350, and now get 11MPG vs. 8MPG before!!! Still a gas-guzzler by all measures, but %-wise a hugh increase - I never thought I'd see double-digit MPG figures in that beast!!
Many thanks!
Thanks!
Brad
The set I have now are BF Goodrich Touring T/A VR4. They are made by Michelin. At the time I bought them I had no idea (or really cared) that they are French owned.
I'm not a xenophobe (and I know my Impala is put together in Canada.. at least its still North America, and not all Canadians hate us yet. I know its hard to buy *anything* made in the USA anymore) and I know the french could probably care less that I don't buy another set of their tires. But it makes me feel better to buy American (if not American then at least North American) than to support France in any way.
I can tell you that b4z is right about those Michelin's (based on my experience with BF Goodrich). They are good tires.
I have a few thousand miles to go on the tires I have but I am really looking into those Coopers trying to see how others like them.
BTW my Goodyear GA's are performing well. But I plan to replace them early since Goodyears do not wear well in my experience. Also using a winter tire so snow traction is not an issue.
Is there any other bulb that will give more light
w/o the 'stark white'?
Is driving lights the answere??
t-tookalook
After showing the next house I turned the car on and it flashed for awhile then disappeared.
This is a major safety item for me and I can't be driving this car with out a functioning airbag system.
I also don't want to spend anymore money on this car since it is 6,000 miles out of warranty.
The plastic intake manifold has me spooked as do the warped rotors that GM refused to fix several months ago.
I still have the vibrating exhaust system that buzzes the whole car under acceleration.
The Cadillac CTS is looking awfully good to me.
Thinking I am pretty much over the Impala and it may be gone by October if I can sell a few more houses between now and then.
The air bag light is probably caused by the module connection under the seat needing a cleaning. Mine did that a couple of months ago. Dealer fixed it. Total cost to me: $0.00 Number of miles on odometer at the time: 100,000+ When the light is on, by the way, the airbags do NOT function. I was also told my habit of keeping things under the seat or allowing them to get there (newspapers, magazines, etc.) may have contributed to the problem.
Manifold? I have 125,000 miles now with no problems on a 2000. Vibrating exhaust? Any good shop could fix that in less than an hour.
Brakes? Never had a problem. I am on my third set of pads and second set of rotors, the latter of which were replaced after 100,000 miles. Type of driving I do? Largely the same as you, I am in a type of real estate as well and drive the car on business.
Want to get rid of the car? Fine. But don't be dissing Impalas. The same maker also makes the CTS. Will you be using the CTS in your business? Will it be large enough for that?
As for me, when the new Mazda6 hatches and wagons come out in the first quarter of next year, I will almost certainly be buying one. The niggling little cost cutting items that Lutz has done to the car since 2000 will be driving me away from GM. Yes, I drove a CTS. No, I won't be buying one. I have to have more rear seat headroom than the current Mazda6 sedan. Either the hatch or wagon should do that. A lot of real estate people round these parts drive wagons.
And the Impala may well have 175,000 miles on it by then. I doubt I will have any mechanical problems before then, but if I do I will either fix them or get rid of the car. I can't live with a car that has problems. Not, at least, when I can afford to have them fixed. Back when I was in high school and college the stories were far different, as were the old worn out cars I drove!
I can drive the Camaro, but it is not suitable for clients and has no a/c.
The other thing that bothers me about the car is
the poor paint quality.
I have multiple chips on the hood and front end.
The roof has been etched by tree sap and bird droppings. etc. etc.
The Impala is an excellent highway car and is very comfortable.
I will keep it until the family vacations are over
(we are all very tall).
If I take clients in the CTS I will just have to pull the seat up until my knees touch the dashboard.
My other choices are Avalanche(without body hardware) for 28K out the door and Marauder also at 28K out the door.
The CTS will be about 32K with discount.
But the '04s with the 255hp engine are a revelation.
Ford has not seen foot to put any money into the development to get more low end torque.
The 5 speed auto from the Aviator would solve the low end torque issues but it has a completely differnet computer system, harnesses, etc.
'94 production was limited by wheel manufacturer.
'96 production went to December '96.
The Imapla SS was a huge hit and dealers sold every one they could get their hands on.
That is why I am looking at the CTS.
That has got to be a record.
Check engine light now on the Impala.
One more thing for me to check.
http://www.russauto.com/ncinv/RC4338.jpg
The new coolants do break down and cause problems with engine interiors but it's with metal parts and seals. The Dexcool should be changed every 24 months to avoid that problem.
My '01 LS is pushing 55k miles, no squeeks, rattles or any other signs of age. It looks great and runs even better!
As a layman it is hard for me to understand that the largest auto company in the World can't design a proper front suspension.
Mine now bangs away on bumpy roads.
Just like my Intrigue did.
Please advise.
Thanks,
Mike
Synthetic and lowest octane gas seem to be working for me. Good luck with your car.
Sold it for $13,500. I think I did really well on the sale. These cars are retailing in my area between $13K and $14.3K. I was asking $13.9K so I gave them a nice $500 break for them to take it right away. I will be signing over the certificate of title over to them this week to complete the deal (Car was already fully paid off).
I really enjoyed my Impala and had troublefree service from it. This car has not a single squeak and rattle...tight as a drum!.
I am looking forward to my next car, a '04 MINI Cooper S.
I'll be around from time to time to answer questions about the Impala as I had a fare share of experience with these wonderful cars.
Thanks to all. This discussion thread has been great and informative.
Best of luck to the rest of you holding onto their Impalas.
My Impala LS car history:
1) About 2K miles, engine had a slight hestitation. Had the ECM software upgraded at 13K miles. Problem fixed.
2) At about 31K miles, had my ISS lubed. Problem fixed.
3) At 32K miles, had my front brakes replaced
4) At 36.7K miles, had my battery replaced.
Overall, I"m still very satisfied with my Impala!!
Also, Chevy's Nova was unibody, and it was a successful (in performance, at least, maybe not by sales volume) police car.
I think you mean front drive cars, given your later points (which are correct). You can and did have unibody RWD cars. The FWD cars are also unibody, but have other problems (as stated)--the whole drivetrain is out front and can be damaged more easily. Ford had a lot of problems with this very issue in the police Taurus--ask the city of Baltimore. They dropped the police package with the redesign for 1996. Chevy's had more luck with the Lumina and Impala, though there are still some problems.
Suitability often depends on use. One department may find Impalas or Intrepids to be the perfect car, while others need and want the Crown Victoria.
One note on the Impala--apparently the transmissions are not holding up on the cop versions. The Greater Boston Police Council (which coordinates buys of equipment) went with some 2000 and 2001 Impalas. They were well-received, and one department gave a glowing report to the Impalas, and another department bought 5 based on that. In the time it took to deliver the cars, the first department's Impalas hit 60,000 miles and beyond, and the bottom fell out. When the second department asked again, the first said they were sorry that the second had ordered the cars--the first department had so many problems that put cars out of service that they'd had to put unmarked detective cars on patrol, and they'd since ordered all new Crown Vics. These are now in service and they have no Impalas any more.
The second department is now having the same troubles now that their 5 Impalas have over 60,000 miles. The main trouble is transmissions, not front ends though. The department mechanic says they are constantly having problems that take them out of service. He said they are much more troublesome than the department's older Crown Vics, with close to double the mileage on the Impalas. He even commented that one unmarked (former patrol) '89 Crown Vic seemed less troublesome, and it had over 120,000 miles.
I'd post a link to the newspaper article where I got this info, but it's no longer there and they don't archive. It was in the Medford Transcript, at www.townonline.com/medford
Just food for thought, since the civilian transmissions are generally considered quite good.
The first town mentioned is suburban to rural and the second is much more urban (more traffic lights, more traffic, more stop and go, more idling, more calls to respond to), which makes it even tougher to say what's going on, since they aren't quite using the cars the same way.
The writer did contact NYPD, since they have a huge fleet of Impalas, but he was unable to get in touch with anyone who could comment in time for the article's deadline. I'd have been interested to hear what their experiences have been.
I would hope that GM used a beefier version of the transaxle for the cop package Impalas, but I can't say that for sure.