Nothing has gone wrong with this car.
This car was a replacement for my lemon 2004 Malibu. To date, I have had no problems with this car, granted the miles are low as I only drive it on the weekends and long trips.
It is a smooth riding car, well isolated from the outside world, a quality that I like.
The base engine gives more than adequate acceleration for around town driving and highway merging and passing.
The brakes are very effective on this car, providing smooth, consistent stops each time. The only downfall is the car nosedives on hard braking.
The air conditioning could be a little more effective here in South Florida. It does not compare at all to the wonderful A/C in my 94 Tempo.
It does have 9 fan settings and driver/passenger temperature controls, which is a plus.
All controls are very well placed, though the turn signal control stalk is a bit busy with both the wiper controls and the cruise control on/off switch. The other controls for the cruise are located on the steering wheel itself, sort of an odd arrangement. The headlight switch is the pull switch type. However, it is not needed as the headlamps come on automatically at night.
The interior is very comfortable. This car has the very rare "Regal Blue" interior. Most cars these days have either gray or tan, so the blue was a refreshing change and looks sharp with the Silver exterior. The seats are the 60/40 full bench arrangement, with the gear selector on the steering wheel, where it belongs:)
The optional 200 watt CD player is nice, though better midrange control would be a welcome addition.
Gas mileage around town leaves much to be desired, right around 20MPG. I have measured as high as 33 MPG on the highway with the cruise control set on 77.
Overall, I am very satisfied with this car. To me, it is a throwback to the strong, comfortable cars GM built in the late 70s/early 80s.
Most people consider the Impala an old folks car. but I have always loved large American cars. I am in my 30's and I hate the fact the the full size American car is fast becoming a thing of the past.
Yes, I definitely have to agree with you on the fact that the Auto Makers are downsizing our big cars. I loved those big steel boats from the 1980's and down. I was driving through a gas station parking lot yesterday in my 98 Lumina, and I noticed a little old lady filling up a 1980's Caprice or possibly Impala coupe, and the car looked great. Even though that model wasn't as large as some of the 1960's and 1970's cars, it was close. It made my Lumina (which I refer to as large) look rather small and whimpy! My favorite "big boats" from the past days were the coupes. I think they looked great!
The Impala and Lumina today are Chevrolet's biggest cars I guess. What a shame! My mother owns an '04 Impala and it's nice, all except for the poor, shoddy, cheap interior plastics and other cons. I was driving her new Impala and I lost my brakes and almost had an accident. Also, the steering is poor.
What ever happened to those big boats from the past! Wish they still made em'.
What happened to those big boats from the past?
You can still get them today, but the choice is more limited.
Smaller, cheaper, front-drive cars became available so most people switched.
They found them better-handling as well.
And gas prices continued to rise.
It's nice to run a big, spacious car if you can afford it.
But women, in particular, don't feel the need to show off in a large car and want something more manageable.
Me, I still prefer the big cars, but I can't afford them.
I really agree with your comment that the gearshift belongs on the steering column. It makes the front seat area seem roomier and frankly looks better n my opinion. Many of these plastic center consoles with gear shifts, cup holders, coin holders, armrests, and everything else they can fit look really terrible and definitely make the car seem smaller.
I don't care for the gear-shift in the column. A console shift is a lot more sporty.
I feel better with a true emergency brake in the console. I lost my brakes in my Ford, and hit someone. If I had the console, I'm sure I could have stopped. By the time I get my left leg up to the pedal type parking brake, it's too late.
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