04 Impala Speedometer gone haywire.

[Daniel Bowen]

Originally Posted by TEXAS_IMP_RIDA

I I Recieved My Cluster Last Night Guys... If I Can I'll Post A Pic Of How It Looks...

did this help I have a 2000 Impala where the speedometer sits @ 20mph this is the second time it has happened I donot remember what we did to fix it the first time thought it was as simple as disconnecting the battery but it has not worked

[tcmuffler]

i installed a alrm systerm in my impala and after that my car get lot of problem because the gay wosnt a profetional i eliminated the alarm and those problem gone

[04ChevImp]

I recently purchased a 2004 Chevy Impala used (of course) from a local dealership. About 71K. Got a good deal on it, but I assumed and expected to have a few problems with it since it is used. (I test drove several and found this one to be the best/least problems out of all the ones I looked at).

Basically, the speedometer quits on me after sustained freeway driving (+/- about an hour's worth of driving.) Based on all of the research I've done, including reading this AF thread, I've concluded that it's probably the Instrument cluster. As a matter of fact, this problem seems extremely common based on what I've read.

The trans speed sensor, I've been told, is bad if the odometer stops working, which did not happen. So I'm going to roll the perverbial dice, considering a shop is going to want a heck of a lot more than what it will cost to have the cluster repaired.

I did some research and found a place called Mr Whizard Technical services (www.mrwhizard.com). Apparently, they can repair the '04 cluster. (There are other speedo repair shops, maybe some closer in geographic proximity, but this place seemed to be the one that had feedback available elsewhere besides on their own website) -- I called them, and I was quoted at $169 (includes shipping). They offer a 5 year extended warranty on repairs above and beyond 2 years for $50.

I called them yesterday (9/3/08), and they emailed me packing/shipping instructions, and a UPS label. They also have '04 Impala dash removal instructions on their site. And, believe it or not, the cluster wasn't that difficult to remove. I just took my time and followed the instructions. Took me about a half hour.

I expected it to be much worse. Only thing is, it's going to take about 2 weeks to get the thing back from them.

Keep in mind, I am not advertising for them or offering a testimonial. However, so far, they seem legit. I shipped my faulty cluster this morning. I will re-post once it comes back and it's reinstalled -- we'll see how it goes.

Also, as a side note, (and to prove I'm just an average joe and not someone trying to conveniently advertise for one company or the other), I also experienced "non-catastrophic" headlight condensation on the driver's side headlamp assembly. This also seems to be a common issue on the 2004 models -- instead of attempting to re-seal/glue/drilling vent holes, I found a good replacement on www.rockauto.com for around $140. I purchased the OEM Standard model, not the cheaper OEM economy model (not by much, maybe like $10 bucks).

I'm pretty happy with it, and it was easy to replace.