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The SUV's came out pretty bad on those tests. The worst ones, the current Chevy Blazer/GMC Envoy/Olds Bravada midsize SUVS...they all got 1 star! (Over 40% chance of roll over). The second closest were the Ford Exploder and the Mercury Mountaineer which received a well deserved 2 star rating. Most cars with high center of gravity received the worst ratings. Vans were so-so and most of them got a 3 star rating.
http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=223638&a=6383123&p=21548295&Sequence=0&res=high
Thanks for the links.
Two very cool cars. The 49er looks a lot more like a "55er" the 1955-56
Ford Skyliner coupes. They had greenish translucent panels on the front half
of the roof. Later Skyliners (1957-59) had retractable metal convertible roofs!
The new T-Bird - sigh! What can I say? It looks like a real T-Bird again.
That upswept head support is a copy of what they did on the 4 seater
convertibles of the early to mid 1960s.
I tend to agree with you on the metric system making sense. Canada went in that direction completely in the 1970s. See the pic of my 1979 Corvette speedo below. But the government did not entirely banish the Imperial system. That may have been a mistake. We still have 2 x 4s, the 454 grams of butter in the fridge is exactly a pound, a 355 ml can of beer is 12 ounces and the supermarkets still advertise t-bones by the pound (and by the kilo as well). As you have seen in my pic album, even GM advertises both mileage and kilometrage. Society resists change and I am one of the holdouts. For example, here is my mental translation for speed:
50kph=30mph
60=40
80=50
100=60
120=70 and so on....a fellow was clocked last week for 200km/h=120mph
A speed of 60mph is still a mile/minute and a 200km journey is ~120 miles. It is difficult to change. Particularly since our major market is the USA.
http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=223638&a=6383123&p=34353177&Sequence=0&res=high
http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=223638&a=10790790
http://www.gmpowertrain.com/engines_cartruck/other/34_main.htm
whuddya mean the bolts in my Chevy truck are metric?? the 13/16" socket fits nicely on those 21mm heads, with a little motivation from my trusty 16oz hammer (that's 454g, right?)
although, I did mount the reciever hitch on my truck... as I recall my hands did get a little dirty that day... ;> and I did use Imperial size tools to do it too!
LRCobra
Chevy could certainly use the Impala platform for this application - include the buckets and floor shifter, lots of glass all around, maybe some chrome inside like that 49er interior - sure would be a great alternative to a Blazer or the like. Use the 3.8L - maybe supercharger option, a throaty exhaust rumble.
Can't you picture a California surfing scene - board on top, bikini babe in the passenger seat, Beach Boys blasting!!!
One can certainly dream!
Ken
If I weren't a grown man I'd cry.
Chevrolet has taken an honored name from the past and completely stripped it of its meaning. This is an Impala? If you believe that, then you probably embrace the notions of Volare-based Road Runners, GTOs sprung off the X-car and Pintos transformed into Mustang IIs through the magic of sheet metal.
But those sins were committed over 20 years ago. This is modem-day blasphemy and I really though we progressed beyond this point.
To be more precise, today's Impala isn't a bad car but it isn't a good one either. That's the problem in fact--it's generic. It's a C-student in a class full of honor roll kids, a hamburger at a steak dinner or a sweater and khakis at a black tie event. In and of itself it's not bad, but put in context it misses the mark.
Chevrolet is in trouble if it thinks that it can sell good names instead of distinctive cars. Sure it handles OK, rides OK and the 3.8L V-6 is a rock. But OK just doesn't cut it anymore. And to put the flagship Impala name on such a "me too" vehicle is icing on the cake.
GM needs to look at what DaimlerChrysler is doing with the Charger nameplate and take notes. A big, beautiful, rear-drive, powerful car that deserves to wear the Charger name. Mark my words, when it comes out it'll sell to the bare walls.
How ironic that it's the same recipe Chevrolet should have followed.
--Gerry Kobe
I can remember a few years back on the boardwalk in Myrtle(before it got all grown up and commercialized) watching the parades of teens driving their customized rods' down the streets blaring their radios and having a blast showing off. Noone was hurting anyone and all that were watching were reminiscing about days gone by.
But enough of that I am going back to the site Teo gave us and dream some more.
LRCobra
Meanwhile, every Chevy dealer in America has new Impalas sitting on the lot for immediate delivery to lucky buyers who will enjoy driving a great road car that's a credit to its name..
Ken
Back in the early 60's when Chevy made great looking cars and sold tons of them. with sheets of engine options for their 283's, 327,s & 409,s. Great looking exterior emblems with crossed flags, SS emblazed emblems below the Impala logo, Stainless steel trim, great looking lines. They were the industry leader. Now its plastic everything (to save weight) They could have really made the Impala base and LS stand out if they had used a few cues from the millions of cars they sold back when they were King. Even the current Impala LS. 2 interior colors. Funeral home gray and plastic looking beige. (I know they offer blue in the base model) GM must have warehouses full of this bland gray plastic and seat cover material. It certainly doesn't make the car inviting in my opinion. What ever happened to nice interior colors like reds, blues even black that is offered in the Monte. When current cars that compete with Impala like the Intrepid that at least offers 17" wheels, and a sport package Intrepid Sport or R/T.
Now with Ford making old things new again with their (you've got to admit!) great looking 49 Ford retro, that will be hitting the market before this Chevy SSR truck that we saw sneak previews of 3 years ago.
With GM's share of the market less than 28% (at one time had over 50% of the market) don't you think they should get rid of their current future planners and pay the bucks and get the proper designers to give the GM consumers what they really want.
Hopefully GM will see the success that Chrysler is having with their PT (now also GT) Cruiser & Ford will have with their Ford Focus (that comes in about 89 models) 02 T/Bird and 49 Ford.(GET THEIR HEADS OUT OF THE SAND AND GET RID OF THE BEAN COUNTERS) and retro the 57 Chevy belair, or 63 Impala SS, or at least offer the Impala enthusiasts the 2002 Impala SS with 17's, bold grille, 60's crossed flag emblems with the SS where it belongs below the Impala emblems, and oh yes, did I forget Nice Interior Colors that make the car standout!!
OH HOW I LONG FOR THE OLD DAYS!!!!!!!!!!!
AND TO THOSE who ask for all different types of options be available for the Impala: the Impala, and especially the FULLY loaded LS are the best valued cars available in North America. I checked numerous autos and the options available and the Chevy Impala had the best value bar none. GM can do this because only a few interior options, etc... are available. Storing and installing too many different options would increase the price of the car and then you probably wouldn't have bought even a base model because the average price of the Impala would have been too high. The car uses plastic to keep the weight down and that means the car gets better mileage.
Re the plastic panels below the dash - I might be wrong but doesn't the air bag on the passenger side explode from below the dash because the cost would be too much if the bag blew out from the dash - meaning a new dash would be needed? Perhaps the panels are flimsy for that purpose - to allow the air bag to deploy. Just wondering.
To Platour - hello fellow Canuck - you asked a question about where the 3.4 was made and then someone answered it on another post, well on that post of yours with the engine specs on a page from the net, included the exact info you asked. On one of the lines it read = Ramos Arizpe, Mexico AND Townawanda [ didn't that place burn to the ground?] New York.
To Teo: would you please explain what a 'W' car is as opposed to the other lettered vehicles.
Thanks
http://home.hawaii.rr.com/impala/
I was thinking of replacing the amp, but I can't find a plug that will fit the harness. Radio Shack sells a pin connector that I think will fit, but it's a special order item. =P The spacing between the pins is greater than the typical .100 spacing. Anyone found a plug yet?
The term "W-Body" car is GM's internal lingo to identify the platform type used to build certain sedan/coupe models. The W-Body cars were first launched in 1988 when most of the old intermediate GM rear drive sedans and coupes (Regal, Cutlass, Montecarlo,etc) were switched over to this front wheel drive platform also known as the GN-10 cars. Current W-body cars or GM 'intermediates' are the Impala, Montecarlo, Regal, Grand Prix, Intrigue and Century. Essentially, the Y2K Impala rides on a 'perfected' 13 year old W-body platform. Aside from the exterior styling of the car (And other minor components), main platform and powertrain components have been around for years, so this car is already 'tried and true'.
Our Impala will be the last W-body variant and quite possibly the last car to feature the 3800 Series II V-6 engine as it will replaced in the year 2005 with the all new "Mid-Lux" platform and probably featuring the 3.5L "Shortstar" DOHC V-6 engine borrowed from the Intrigue (To comply with the stringent SULEV emissions). It's likely that the next generation Impala will be a more luxurious, larger RWD sedan (Perhaps a retro 1960's look, who knows?)
Joe::: Where did you read about the cancellation of the '03 Impala SS...can you provide a link to the article?
I am having steering problems folks! I wonder if any of you at any given time has ever experienced the following:
At slow speeds, only when turning the wheel right I feel a very akward 'Clunking' coming thru the steering wheel and if I am braking I also feel this loose 'clunk' in the break pedal. It is a faint noise but when turning the wheel right (No matter how much) the steering shaft suddenly feels loose...very disconcerting.
However, when driving straight or making left turns at any speed, the steering feedback feels perfectly normal and solid the problem only comes up when turning towards the right.
I went back to 'dig up' some of the old Oldsmobile Intrigue forums here in Edmunds and I was shocked to find out that our fellow Intrigue owners have been experiencing massive 'intermediate steering shaft' problems on the '98 and '99 models, usually replaced between 15K and 20K miles on the average. The problem described in there (Faint clunking sounds when turning only right) is amazing to the last detail of the issue I have know in my car.
The Intrigue has a known TSB for that problem, but I doubt the Impala has exhibited a similar steering problem. Furthermore, the Intrigue uses a different Steering shaft than the Impala (Different part numbers) but the basic design could be the same (thus sharing the same defect).
I am taking the car in tomorrow and I will show some of those Intrigue responses to the service writer so their tech can get straight to the root of the problem.
I know is not a brake problem (Brakes were checked last week) and I doubt this is related to the engine cradle, altough I will mention it.
If you ever experience any sort of loose feeling or clunking sounds coming from the front end when turning the car, take it back to the dealer.
I appreciate feedback from anyone that has experienced a weird behavior in the Impala's steering when making right turns.
"Shaft Problem
I posted this back in Sept and am doing a cut and paste. So far the fix is still good:
Had the intermediate shaft replaced this morning. Service sheet says: " Found excessise clearance in intermediate steering shaft, causing clunkning noise when steering. Inspected, tested, and replaced intermediate steering shaft. Reinspected, retested, repair complete.
.5 hours of labor.
part #26078302"
This was the "new" part Harlan mentioned and said there shouldn't be any problems with these. I hope so.
Car feels entirely different (in a good way) since fix. Hope it lasts.
Easiest way for me to reproduce was at a stop, take foot of brake and let car roll, then pump brake while turning. Never going more than 5mph. It would occure at other times but this was the sure way for it to happen on my car.
Hope anyone else having problems can get it resolved.
PS I have a 99 with a 10/98 build date."
I am going to call Chevy Customer service to have a file open up.
I'll keep everyone posted.
Brakes = Has anyone been having a problem with brakes regarding noise when applying the brakes? Maybe they just need cleaning, to much brake dust?
I'm going to have them checked within the week at inspection time.
Intermediate Steering Shaft (Y2K Impala) Part #26079240
Heavenbound::: Brake squaling during braking is normal in these vehicles. The reason is that the brake pads in most new vehicles are metallic or semi-metallic which last longer but tend to be a hecj noiser too. Old brake pads made of Asbestos (Cancer producing material)were quiter but didn't last as long. The dealer can put some 'dressing' to your brakes and silence them for a little while but watch and see after a month the squaling will comeback.
Have the dealer inspect your brake system anyway.
But two sister GM cars, Buick Regal LS and Pontiac Grand Prix GP, were only marginally more expensive. Something like tens to low hundred dollar difference, not thousands.
This is when comparing MSRP. only. After accounting for GM rebates and dealer discounts, they were substantially less expensive, than Impala LS with the same equipment / options.
Likely, the same is true with Oldsmobile Intrigue. Not sure, though: no direct comparison is possible with different engine.
After this comparisons I test-drove a supercharged Buick Regal GS and was sold on its power.
lots of pictures. thought it was neat to see one for sale on ebay.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/aw-cgi/ebayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=537465488&r=0&t=0
p.s. must have been in an accident.
I WILL SCAN A COPY AND POST IT ON THE SITE
http://www.luckyjdr.homestead.com/impala.html
JUST CLICK THE LINK TO THE ARTICLE
Teo - do you think GM really plans to axe all of these front drivers that people are so enamored with? Seems like a hard sell to get them back into RWD after all these years of being told they need at least FWD if not 4WD.
One potential problem with this scenario is that GM would probably downgrade the present great car we know as Impala into a warmed over version of Malibu in order to play up the new RWD car and still have an inexpensive FWD offering.
Thoughts?
Ken
So, speaking as a family of four with room for only two cars, any suggestions for a good compromise vehicle to go along with the Impala (either currently on the market or on the near horizon)? My garage is also fairly shallow, so the other vehicle can't be any longer than the Impala (and it would be better if it were shorter). I'm thinking the Buick Rendezvous might be the answer, but I don't know how long it will be before it debuts.
Let me disagree.
Other equal, my wife and I always would select the more bland-looking car. This is why we own Malibu and Regal, and not, for example, Eclipse and Grand Prix.
A lot of peoples / families have the same tastes. The peoples why are driving Malibu, Buicks, older Oldsmobile models, Accords, Camry / Avalons, older Volvo models, Cadillac, etc.
The people with conservative tastes constitute a substantial pool of customers, and they tend to be good customers: stable, loyal, creditworthy... It would be huge mistake if GM dumps the customers.
http://www.buick.com/rendezvous/details/specs.html
I believe, it will appear at dealers really soon now, but who knows?
The Pontiac Aztec is already available. It have a lot of common with the Rendezvous. Unusual appearance, a lot of people consider it ugly (I do not, though). But the vehicle was designed exactly for the purpose you described, and, probably, would satisfy your needs.
What bother me, though: is it prudent to buy from the first production batch of a first-year model, even more if it a vehicle of substantially new design? This concerns both Aztec and, especially, Rendezvous.
http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Lane/1378/3611.html
WOW!!!! can't wait to get my hands on one of these!!!!! Don
Sorry .......I forgot a 6 in there...Don
Of course, at 45, I am feeling a bit of mid-life crisis too! I'm ready to shun the 'comfort lounge seats' and landau roof for buckets, a floor shifter and a rear spoiler!! Truth be known - I'm even growing a goatee!
Isn't it great to have such variety offered for consumers? You must be acutely aware of this.
Have a great day - BTW have you driven up into the mountains of NH or Maine yet? There's a nice blanket of snow everywhere now - it's prime winter time here.
Ken
Nosirrahg::: I left my Impala at the dealer's service dept a little over an hour ago. I told my service advisor that based on my Internet research, this problem is very likely caused by a faulty Intermediate steering shaft since owners of the Olds Intrigue and other W-body cousins have also reported the "right turn only" clunking steering noise problem. The problem is kind of tricky and unless you pay close attention on everyday driving, you don't really notice it
until the steering wheel 'loose' feeling begins to worsen as the car racks up miles. At low speeds, while turning the wheel to the right, press the brake pedal...the clunking is also felt there. Once you return the wheel straight or make a left turn, the steering feels solid and no clunks are felt. Even owners of other GM and Non-GM domestic cars and trucks with Intermediate steering shaft problems report clunks only on right turns....why is that? I have no idea.
The Delphi/Saginaw steering systems on GM cars of recent, have had problems with their intermediate steering shafts. The most chronic cases of this issue have been reported by owners of the Olds Intrigue. I am surprised that no more Y2K Impala owners have felt this problem and no TSB are available either.
Now that I think about it, I think my Impala has had a very mild and faint clunk in the steering when making right turns, probably since I first bought it, but again, it is very hard to notice it at first since it doesn't affect steering feel or performance when driving at normal speeds.
Anyway, I'll let you know aht the dealer finds out. My gut feeling is that the shaft has a case of excessive 'play' warranting the need to replace the part...let's wait and see.
My wife and I are considering replacing her reliable but small '97 Mercury Tracer sedan this year when Pontiac releases their practical and very nice looking Pontiac Vibe Hybrid/Sportwagon at the end of the year. The car will also be sold as the new Toyota Matrix and will be based on the all new 2003 Toyota Corolla platform. The crossover vehicle will offer 2 powerplants (With Toyota's VVT-I technology)...one producing 130HP and a Vibe GT version producing 185HP! Both, a 5 speed manual and a 4-speed auto and All Wheel Drive will be offered as options.
I prefer the Pontiac Vibe version to the Toyota Matrix Sibling. Not only the Pontiac will be less costly, it also looks better in my opinion...and you can use your GM Mastercard points to get it. These sport wagons will be built at the Toyota/GM joint venture NUMMI plant in Fremont, California.
Really neat alternative to a bulky SUV or a 'soccer mom' minivan...you get the best of two worlds!
Check them both out:
http://www.autonews.com/html/main/2001detroitshow/gm/index.htm
http://www.autonews.com/html/main/2001detroitshow/toyota/index.htm
teo - I've had my clunking problem for awhile, and while it became noticeable on right-turns only, I can now feel it whether turning left or right (or even when braking at low speeds).