7th Nov 2003, 20:48
I bought my first Chev Impala LS in April 2001 from the dealer who had put 11000 on it before I bought it. I love it for the ride, handling, roomy, audio system, power and economy. It also looks great. I see more and more on the road every day. The only complaint is the same as many who drive GM products. The brakes don't last. The rotors are cheap and rust earlier than other cars ie; Ford, Honda. I had a 1993 Chev Lumina and a 1996 Olds Cutlass Supreme before and the brakes were garbage on both cars. It is a GM problem that they should do something about, but don't seem to care. I have always been a Chevy man and I am loyal even if the manufacture doesn't care about this problem. I suggest they obtain another rotor supplier as it appears the competition has better brakes.
Brian.
23rd Apr 2008, 06:32
I currently own a 2001 Impala LS, and I love the car. However, I as well am having multiple problems with the car itself.
I have been there and done that with the rotors. I as well found that if you purchase Bendix rotors they tend to last a little longer. Prior to getting the Bendix rotors, I was changing them at a rate of 2 times a year. That's way too much and too expensive (also use the Bendix brake pads as well). I've called GM and they don't' want to know anything or help out with repair costs.
I've gone through having problems with EVAP system and the BCM. The BCM was changed back in November of 2006 and already it's showing signs of going again. At vehicle start the driver information center doesn't come on, the sunroof won't open during this intermittent interval, the heat will not work, rear defogger won't work and when everything decides to finally come on, oh probably after about 10-15 minutes, the current radio stations blanks out and I need to change the radio station and go back to get it to come back in. This is crazy. Going to the dealer today to have it looked at. Will keep everyone posted if interested.
18th Jun 2008, 16:45
My wife has a 2001 Chevrolet LS Impala with the 3.8 V-6 engine, it only has 76,000 miles.
The battery has been replaced, however recently the battery has been going dead, something is drained the battery. I thought the Battery Rundown Protection was to prevent this from happening.
Any suggestions as to what the problem could be.
13th Jul 2008, 18:24
I have a 2001 Impala LS and about a year ago I went out to start it up and it wouldn't start. Everything else worked. After waiting a half hour, I tried again and it started up. My husband replaced the battery and the starter. The car did great for 3 weeks and then it happened again. We had the alarm removed but that didn't work. The car continued to do this in 2 or 3 week intervals. We could drive it but there was no guarantee it would start when we got back in it. We would have to wait 15 to 30 minutes before it would start. We finally took it to the dealer and because it started each time, they where unable to diagnose it but said it COULD be the BCM or it COULD be the Ignition cylinder. Can anyone help?
29th Jul 2008, 15:44
My 2001 chevy impala had the same problem not starting sometimes. Took it to the dealer, they replaced a sensor under the driver side seat. Haven't had a problem since. This was about a year ago.
28th May 2009, 08:26
I bought a 2001 Chevrolet (chevrocrap) Impala LS, and it is by far the worst car I have ever purchased. I have made multiple inquiries with GM to stand behind their product. No success with that! They don't care about what they make or the customer. What most of you guys on this blog don't know is that most of the starting problems are from coolant leaking into your intake from faulty, cheap seals, WHICH CHEVY KNEW ABOUT AND WOULDN'T Warranty.
I will never buy a GM car again, worst experience of my life.
A little background, bought the car in 2003 with 45,0000 miles. It is now 2009 with 145,000 and barely running, and I take very good care of my cars and do not run it hard, but with a Honda I could drive it hard and it wouldn't matter. Think about that GM, you suck and your stupid UAW workers.
Tom - 26 years old and an engineering student at PURDUE.
28th May 2009, 23:21
"It is now 2009 with 145,000 and barely running... 26 years old and an engineering student at PURDUE"
Twenty years ago, when I was in engineering school I took a course in Engineering Reliability and Statistics. It seemed like kind of a nothing little course at the time. But over the years I have found it really stuck with me because it was useful. I learned about things like design lifetimes, bath tub failure curves, accelerated aging tests, hazard rates of components, increased failure rates of other components in a system once other components have failed, mean time to failure, mean time between failure, cost benefit analysis of repair versus preventative maintenance, determination of when to scrap something, total cost of ownership and so on. Most people eventually learn this stuff the hard way via experience, but you can learn it a lot quicker in the real world with some educational background.
The real benefit of the course was for communication. There are always lots of people in an organization that complain about management ignoring the obvious. But it is another thing entirely to be able to collect and present information in a way that compels others to act. A course in reliability will give you a few tools for that.
I would think Purdue would have such a course too and I would recommend you avail yourself of the opportunity.
3rd Aug 2010, 10:59
I have a 2001 Impala LS, this car has been a money pit. Never again will I buy Chevy/GMC. I can't think of one original part left including the engine. The electrical system sucks as well. By the way, I am the original owner of this vehicle and always did routine maintenance and a whole lot more. Recommend this car? Absolutely not!
18th Sep 2010, 00:54
I totally agree that the 2001 Chevy Impala is a money pit is no exaggeration. I have had nothing but problems with my car, and I am the original owner and only have approx. 97,000 miles, and have been having trouble with starting my car for over a year, and now I am having trouble with the battery draining after just one day of sitting, and I just put in a new battery in 5 months ago. I will never buy a Chevy again!!!
11th Apr 2003, 17:29
Both myself and the President of my Company purchased new, 2001 Impalas, mine an LS and his a base model. I agree with the reviewer who recommended saving money for repairs and the awful brake system. We are counselling our employees not to purchase Chevrolet products since GM will not do anything about their substandard components. I have had my rotors turned twice and the pulsation is almost unbearable again, at 70,000 km. Feather edging of tires and front end component replacement are deemed by GM to be unrelated, so owner is on his/her own. I can hardly wait to trade for a Toyota, Honda or Mazda. My colleague is going to do the same. Do not purchase this vehicle.