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Chevrolet Impala: Problems & Solutions
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Of course, the next day was the "Ides of March", and St. Patrick's Day was that Friday; so maybe it was just a bad week in general.
*SIGH*
"Pressure tested cooling system and found uppper intake manifold leaking coolant. Replaced upper intake manifold and transfer components."
FP Number Description
17113136 Manifold 3.265 R
I asked the guy again as I walked out if it was truly the newly designed manifold and he said yes.
BTW, I have always seemed to have good luck with my repairs. Seems everything has stayed fixed and was fixed on the first attempt with the exception of the trunk leak. But the ISS and the front end clicking have all been repaired first time out and so far have not re-occured. I seem to be on the later end of getting all these repairs done, maybe lessons learned?
Take care
Nicole
The FM is acceptable for me though. My tint is not metalic but like I say, I didn't get really great reception before the tint.
I'm not sure what the back of the radio looks like but I do know that they sell AM antennas that are very small they might even fit under the dash.
I guess all I'm trying to say is that I don't think your problem is just limited to you and I, I think that AM reception is just overlooked now days when they design these things.
BTW, anyone remember the early 70's when GM had the antenna in the windshield? My father had a 73 Buick Apollo and the reception was bad no matter what station you were tuning in or if you were across the street from the transmitter!
Deke
My Impala was sitting in a parking lot of a certain group *COUGHFIREDEPARTMENTCOUGH*, when someone stuck a magnet attenna on my roof to see how well it'd hold. When they removed it, instead of lifting it up and off, they dragged it. Now I have this like 2 foot scratch section in my roof.
Suggestions?
Does anyone know if there is a final fix to the ISS problem? If you have the lube added, does that solve the problem, or does it have to be re-lubed on occasion (and if so, is this something one could do themselves with a standard grease gun, or is it something that would require subsequent dealership visits to do)?
I have no idea how the lube is actually added to the steering shaft.
Brad
As for the wheel bearing-type sound, that could be the intermediate steering shaft (ISS). If you feel a clunking when turning (or going over speed bumps) in both the steering wheel and the brakes, it's probably the ISS.
I am a 2000 Chevrolet Impala LS owner with 84000 km. I live in Canada. My whole transmission is broken (inside), and the torque converter is discolored (perhaps because of metal contamination) and swollen. Everything is either damaged or burnt inside. I have to pay thousands of dollars to replace a new one.
During the process, I have found a valuable document published by GM Fleet that they have already acknowledged that there may be a design defect in all Impala's 4T65-E transmissions production prior August 2001. Most importantly, they are fixing it under warranty repair for their fleet customers. Perhaps I am not a fleet customer or whatsoever, I have to pay my own repair costs and have had the worst dealer experience you could have imagined.
So what I am trying to do here is to recommend all Impala owners to do the following: Check if there's metal contamination in the automatic transmission fluid. If the automatic transmission fluid is black, there's sign of metal contamination inside your transmission. You could check that by using the dipstick, or even ask a technician to open the fluid tank (or whatever that calls which hold the transmission fluid). If you find the color is black, you could contact me by e-mail. khpchan@myrealbox.com
If you don't do it immediately, you could feel sorry for yourself and perhaps you family. It is because the transmission could break down completely without any hints when you are driving 60 mph (100 km/hr) and your family is abroad. The best case scenario is that you pay only thousands of dollars to replace a new one. I am very serious, and I urge you to act immediately because it is about your safety, your money and most importantly the safety of those who you love.
My name is Mr. Chan. My e-mail address is khpchan@myrealbox.com.
The link of the document is:
http://www.nafa.org/Content/NavigationMenu/Education_and_Events1/- Education_and_Events2/Law_Enforcement_Group_Conference/Manufactur- er_Presentations/GMLEG.ppt
After I got home, I opened up my car and checked the fuses. They were fine and reinstalled them. When I turned the car on, the cruise light had stopped flashing, but every time I turn on my cruise, there is a loud 'CLICK' from under the dash.
Thoughts?
As to the flashing light - I have no idea.
Brad
Does anyone know if the motor is supplied different voltages by the switch, or are there separate windings in the motor for the various speeds?
Thanks, Doug
I was charged $65 for labor and $18.15 for parts (lubricant) to fix the steering; $83.15 total plus tax. Made a HUGE difference in the feel of the car - steering is tight again, and I didn't realize how much noise it caused before. I thought I had a brake caliper problem because of a rattle I'd been hearing, but it's gone now. Don't know if this lube will be the long-term fix, or if it's something I can figure out how to do myself down the road or not; but I wish I'd had it done sooner.
For the airbag light, they ran a diagnostic test, which led them to "repair and clean connection to LT side seat air bag"; which cost me $65 in labor (plus tax). I was also advised if the light comes on again, they will need to replace the air bag.
I'm at @ 54,500 miles now after 3 years of ownership. Planning to drive it into the ground (at least 5-7 more years). Despite the various problems I've had with the car (intake manifold, ISS, loose seat back, etc.), I still enjoy driving it, and haven't wished I'd bought anything else. Granted, I have wished I'd waited and bought an '01 when they had a few more bugs worked out, but that's about it.
My mother has a 2000 Chevy Impala. Yesterday she picked it up from the dealer after they worked on the brakes, and drove it home. She felt the brakes weren't quite right and asked my brother to test drive the car for her and let her know his opinion (he has operated the car before so his opinion is of some value compared to, for example, mine).
Upon backing it out of the garage, my brother discovered that the steering wheel turned freely. It has become "disconnected" from the rest of the steering assembly.
They (my mother and brother) called AAA, and the truck driver mentioned that there seemed to be a part missing. He said that it was either a knuckle or part of the knuckle. I need to speak to the truck driver more. But, he said he had never seen suck a thing before.
The car has been towed to a different dealership to have them examine the problem, but I'm wondering if this is a typical issue. The previous dealer has disassembled the steering column at least once (last November) for some issue, I'm hoping my mom can find the paperwork.
I'm thankful my brother didn't make it to the expressway, but I'm thinking that I'd like my mom to trade the car in on something that doesn't have any steering column issues. Am I over-reacting?
And, is there anything I should specifically ask the dealerships about the condition of the steering column? Andthing I need to know to speak with them intelligently?
Thanks,
Phil
As luck would have it, I live in Finland and the local shop gave a $800 price for the part. That's somewhat too much, considering gmpartsdirect.com sells it for less than $200.
Now, I _think_ the part I want is GM part# 26093873. I've been unable to really find any information or pictures on it anywhere. I wonder if someone could help me and say whether this is the right part for a 2001 Impala LS.
Another PM often overlooked is changing brake fluid. Brake fluid attracts moisture. Modern braking systems can't handle the corrosion set up with moisture in the system. Better to flush the brake system every couple of years than replace a $1500 ABS computer.
3.8. This engine may develope a coolant leak at
the upper intake maniford to throttle body gasket or the lower intake to upper intake gasket.
They replace about 3 fasteners, takes about 1/2 hour.
Also two of my 'buddies' and myself had to have the emergency brake adjusted. Anyone else?
Rodger
If this has happened to you, could you please let me know who the dealer or you fixed it. My car is not under warrenty anymore and I'll fix it myself if possible.
Thanks,
Jon
I recently had the recall work done on my manifold which fixed the problem with leaking coolant. However, since I've had the car back, my coolant light keeps going off and on. My levels are fine and the car is running cool at a cucumber. Anyone have an idea how to get the Gremlin out of my coolant light?
Thanks!
BRAD
Get this, I took it in to get fixed, and they only replaced the sensor; 3 days later, the old DexCool ate the new sensor too.
The dealer finally gave in, and replaced the both the sensor and the Dexcool. I haven’t had a problem since.
I assume the engine cradle is what the engine sits on in the engine compartment. I can't picture using adhesive here, but I read that it is done. Has anyone done this himself? How, where? What adhesive? Then let the car sit for 24 hours after applying?
Turned on the car when I was leaving work and cranked up the AC. AS the car cooled off I lowered the switch from 4 to 2. Eventually 2 was too much so I switched to 1. I noticed it was a bit more quiet than normal, in fact there was almost no air flow from the vents. I fooled with every control for a while, but can't seem to figure it out.
My question is this, is it the motor or the switch? I'll have to check voltage to see....
Thanks
My friends comments were:
"Get it done now. If the coolant leak did happen, it could go into the engine and seriously damage it. The coolant is so corrosive to an engine that it can eat the bearings and screw it up permanently. No real way of knowing whether coolant is leaking into your engine until it's too late. By then the serious engine damage has occurred and you will then have to get a new
engine. What happens a lot of the time is the coolant will leak slowly and then GM will stop the leak by fixing it, but some engine damage may already have occurred. You will never know until your car dies at 50,000 miles because the bearings went out. That's not something to fool with. I'm familiar with this cause Saturn used to have the same problem. People kept driving their cars, damaging them without even knowing it. GM would only replace the engine if it seized."
Here's the kicker. My extended warranty does not cover air bag components (apparently this is farily common). I have AutoGuard for 5 years/165,000km purchased form the dealer when I bought the car. The service advisor at my dealer tried to get it past them under a different part name, but they didn't fall for it. Cost? $330 parts and $200 labour plus taxes!!!!!
I'm going to push GM on this one. I don't think it's appropriate for a 27 month old car to have this type of important safety feature fail. I'll keep everyone posted on what happens.
Overall I still really love my Impala!
Brad
I replaced the fuse and everything was fine again. The the fuse blew again within a couple of minutes of me leaving my driveway.
Off to the dealer again in the morning I guess. Has anyone else had this problem?
Brad