How many people in here like or hate their 2000-2005 impala?

[ooscgt]

I have two GM cars and so far I have not had major problems.

I like my 03 Impala LS with appearance package. It has 54 K and I have only replaced the brakes once. I resurfaced the rotors and did not need to buy new ones. I went with the expensive ceramic brakes and so far so good.

My other car is a 99 sunfire and no major problems even at 110,000 miles (just maint. and two sets of front brakes.)

After the bad cars of the early FWD 80's cars; I am slowly trusting american cars again. They are getting more reliable. I think all makes have their good and "bad" cars.

[shifty1 69]

Originally Posted by elitemp1984

I just bought a 2000 LS and I've already poured $400.00 dollars into it. I've only had it a week. Go figure that the $400.00 dollars that I have poured into it didn't even fix the problem. The engine seems like it is running out of gas no matter how much is in the tank and sometimes it will stall out at red lights or when idling in park. One week and I wish I would have never bought the dang thing. Next time I'm buying a Nissan or Toyota.

You bought a car that someone else was having problems with (if you only had it a week, then the problem was there when you bought it). Then when the crackpot you took it to misdiagnoses the problem.... you are buying a Nissan or Toyota, hahahahahaha. Good thing you are patient and rational.. why dont you sell it and buy yourself an import (for twice as much for the same year and mileage).

For the record, I have had a Nissan Altima 2.5s for the last month ('05 with 18000km on it) and I HATE the thing. Decent off the line... till 20km/h when instead of kicking down it kinda dies for a second or two then revs like a mofo cause its underpowered (useless little 4 banger) . Extremely uncomfortable, seemingly worse mileage with this 4 cyl Nissan then I am getting in my 3.8l Impala (I dont have actual "#'s" to back this claim up, but I do know that the Nissan has been ridiculous for a 4cyl. A shimmy in the steering while breaking, generally crappy interior aesthetics (sp?) even the freakin' gas cover release doesnt work, I have to pry it with the key everytime.

Enjoy that $400 repair job on the GM turning into a $1200 job on your new Honda. "ummm, sir we are gonna have to lift the motor to change the rad, not enough room under the hood to get it out otherwise". )

I should have my buddy with his lemon Prelude post on here with the insane amount he has had to put into his car (I thank him for the lifting the motor to remove the rad reference ). I am in no way saying that Preludes are bad cars, but his is... some cars just are lemons regardless of maker/model.

I had a '94 Cavalier z22 that I bought at 100K finally sold at 345,000 km. It was still running great, the only thing was the clutch starting to go. The only thing I ever really had to do to that thing was brakes, and 2 or 3 starters and alternators (but I generally used starters and alts from the wreckers hence the frequency), the tensioner pulley and a new positive battery cable cause of corrosion at the solenoid.
I am sure that you wont see all "good" stuff on the cavalier sites either.

[Marsal420]

We'll after getting the main intake gasket replaced my 02 Impala is a great car. I like how it looks and runs and how for a bigger car it's actually pretty quick. I have actually raced it befor i had a big sterio in it and beat a z28 Camaro V8. SO i mean they have there problems but what car doesn't?

Great Car

Gonna b nicer with rims =)

[marknsn]

2000 LS with 155k miles on it, and until the last 5000 it's been an awesome car. Now that my window regulators are failing at an incredible rate my opinion may be shifting somewhat. I'm on my third. But I still love it!

[sassygramma]

Originally Posted by MaximusGTR

Has anybody else had this starting issues that I've been speaking on? I took it to 3 mechanics and no one can figure out why the car starts sometimes and other times it takes like 17 tries before it starts. Then sometimes I'm driving, I'll stop at a light and the car will die. i then have to start it up right there again. I'm gonna give it like 4 months or so and if anything else goes wrong or the starting issue can't be fixed I'm gonna burn that bitch and go back to Nissan's. BTW this is my second Chevy I've owned and the second to be a F@#$ up. My chevy Beretta took me up to 169,000 miles. My Impala has only 90,000 miles on it.

i cant say this will help , but i had the same problem with my '01 imapala , at only 11272 miles . luckily i was still under warranty for this problem . i just found the paperwork on it and this is what dealer replaced : fuel pump assembly , fuel return line , and master cylinder bracket . i have not had any starting or quitting problems since , and have 57000 miles as of today . all the other things i have had to fix and new problems is ANOTHER story .

[1995JimmyLT]

I am very satisfied with my 2001 Impala LS 3.8L

Highs - Ride, comfort, ample power, looks great, incredible highway mileage

Lows - Brakes a bit squeaky for the first few brakes in the morning, but I've checked them out multiple times they are ok and they stop the car very well. So it's not really an issue.

Also I love the rims, but why did GM put plastic center caps that get damaged so easily?!?!? I went to the dealer and they are $80 each?!?!? At that price I can live with a few nicks on the caps, the rest of the rim look sweet.

[adamace1]

I like my car alot, I just worry that it might not be worth my money in the long run. I have had one recall for the bolts on the brake calipers. Oil pan gaskit was leaking, Cig lighter shorted out twice, Moonroof doesn't want to close or open when i use it but every time i'm at the dealer it works just fine. There a clunking in the steering wheel right now, I'm thinking it's the steering shaft. The front rotors warped, The Ac rec. wasn't working, but it has never has left me stranded. I like to fill the tires to 34psi min because there to soft at 30 for me. If i corner hard you can see on the tires that most of the sidewall was rubbing the ground. I wish you could turn the traction control off or on forever not just untill you shut the car off. I have a dumb reason for that but still a reason. But over all i love it. If it gets me to 150,000+miles without any major reapairs i will always have good things to say about it. But I'm worried at this point.

[kimsimpala]

I like the way my 01 Impala looks but thats about it. I'm replacing my catalytic converter for the second time, I've replaced my BCM, Headlamp switch, window switch, crank shaft, lower and upper intake gaskets, replaced front wheel bearings but they still dont sound right. I think the check engine light has been on for about 3 out of the 4 years I have had it. And of course GM will do nothing for me. Everything that has gone wrong with it either happened just after the warranty was up or it wasn't covered. I have had much better luck with the ford cars I have had at least the repairs didn't cost as much.

[surrender]

My first post here...

I just bought a used 2002 Impala 3.4L with 109,000 on it 4 months ago and I have put almost 4,000 on it since I bought it. It still felt tight and pretty responsive when I took it out before buying it.

Pro's: The engine is pretty quiet and gets me great gas mileage (best has been 34mpg) yet still has the acceleration I want at times. The transmission shifts fine with no hard shifts and/or noise. It has plenty of room, is comfortable (longest trip has been 400 miles), has a friggin awesome stereo at base level (although there are taped wires hanging down from the amp location), came with consol/floor shift/front buckets, 6 way power driver seat, drivers side impact air bag, HUGE trunk, is very clean, and it looks awesome (besides some rock chips on hood).

Con's: Brake noise. But I put new brakes on right away and went with ceramic on original rotors and have a pretty quiet ride since. Some play in the steering from time to time accompanied by a little noise. Nothing hard or chunky sounding/feeling tho. Overflow tank for radiator is a bit gummy looking but a flush is in the works (Iv'e read that DexCool is sh!te). Already did the oil change and reset the indicator.

My car actually was a rental of all things so I know that at times it was driven hard but I am in love with this car. I carfaxed it and it came back clean with regular service. I still have less than $5,900 in it including the brakes and oil change.

And as a side note... anyone that pays to have a dealership reprogram their Remote is wasting money IMO. My friend owns a 2000 Impala and I reprogramed his remote for him after he replaced the battery, all with the stock radio and the owners manual.

[tractorboy]

Some play in the steering from time to time accompanied by a little noise

that is the intermediate shaft, there are kits to lube it with extra lube. I heard it does not help. Mine has a little play

anyone that pays to have a dealership reprogram their Remote is wasting money IMO. My friend owns a 2000 Impala and I reprogramed his remote for him after he replaced the battery, all with the stock radio and the owners

I know on my 2003 It has to be done with a scan tool .

[surrender]

I know on my 2003 It has to be done with a scan tool .

Have you looked in the owners manual? If its just the transmitter you do not need to have it done with a scan tool. Check out page 2-53 of your owners manual (all customizations begin on 2-45). If you dont have your owners manual you can view or download it from this site...

http://www.analogstereo.com/pdf/om/2003impala.pdf

Dont give the dealer any more of your money, especially for something that anyone can do within 3 minutes. Have a good day tractorboy.

surr

[tractorboy]

Have you looked in the owners manual?

No I did not. Awhile ago I saw how prog the key in the factory manual while i was looking for something else. They used a scan tool, so i assumed that a scan tool was needed. That is good stuff, thanks. Unfortunate as it is I have a lot to read for work. So reading in other areas is limitted and I have to assume that what I read is the most direct approach, I guess not in this case. We just got a Malibu Maxx also that has the theft lock where the key has a chip. If I want a third spare key. Do I have to go to the Dealer for that ?

[surrender]

Originally Posted by tractorboy

No I did not. Awhile ago I saw how prog the key in the factory manual while i was looking for something else. They used a scan tool, so i assumed that a scan tool was needed. That is good stuff, thanks. Unfortunate as it is I have a lot to read for work. So reading in other areas is limitted and I have to assume that what I read is the most direct approach, I guess not in this case. We just got a Malibu Maxx also that has the theft lock where the key has a chip. If I want a third spare key. Do I have to go to the Dealer for that ?

I would assume [i]that[/] would need to be programed at the dealership. And they would have to reset the other keys to have them all work.

[tractorboy]

OK Thats what I thought also

[crazy Jim]

My long term GM cars:
'89 Cav 160K miles, one bad crank sensor $25 and an altenator
'89 Silverado 100K miles not on issue
'93 Z28 100K miles clutch went out the day after I sold it
'99 Grand Am 130K miles ABS sensor, ignition lock and water pump have been replaced has the occasional stuck valve in the tranny, plastic window bracket, plastic lock switch cover, brake rotor pulsates but I keep it at bay by running good pads and hand surfacing the rotors (there're not warped, its an issue with the pad material being induced into the rotor surface by improper breakin or heavy use. (do not keep the brake pedal depressed after a hard stop)

'02 Impala 60K miles I've owned this car for five years and have had the rotor issue, which I have resolved, and the seat heater element go out and now the "hard start" issue which I am currently tracking down. Could be the fuel pressur regulator or a valve in the fuel pump. I'll post up what I figure out. Also could have been somewhat related to carbon build up on the throttle body blades and IAC pintle which I have cleaned. I also had the coolant level sensor issue but I resolved it by taking it out and cleaning it, now it works fine.(hard start fixed, it was the FPR), replaced the BCM the first year.