1994 Chevrolet Impala ss 5.7 from North America

Summary:

This car is an affordable luxury for anyone who loves to drive.

Faults:

Suspect alternator replaced at 166006 miles, replaced as a precaution- but since the alternator light is still coming on I suspect dirty connections.

Distributor replaced at 155000 miles.

Battery Cable Failure at 128000. (This stalled the car motion.)

Rear Brakes replaced at 155000 miles, as a convenience, rear brakes could probably go another 20,000.

Batteries, which last exactly 24 month no longer. at approximately 35000,76000,102000,138000,160000, miles.

Front Brake Pads at, 76000, 106000 and at 110000 miles (I had to double check invoices, but this is the truth!)

Radio replaced under warranty at 4000 miles with cassette stuck inside.

Dealer add on Smart Lock was recalled in 1996 and replaced. This feature has not worked at all since. (This feature actually drained the batttery when I used it before the replacement.)

All four power window tracks broke when the dealer drove the car on the donut spare tire... after I towed the car in for a blow out tire repair!

General Comments:

I love to drive, and overall, this car is extremely reliable.

The 1994 Motor Trend was right on and this was best car I could ever have bought it suits me perfectly.

I still take long road trips in it and appreciate every inch of the spacious cabin and trunk.

The driver's seat is very comfortable, easy to adjust and the center beverage console holds just about anything.

The leather seats and interior have held up well and the only interior problem is heat damaged roof insulation.

Tire replacements have been painful, and make the car more expensive than average to drive. Originally the tires were hard to find and I had to wait weeks for a full set. Recently however more options are available and the price as actually decreased some ten percent.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 26th October, 2002