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7.9

pretty bad
Typical Repair Cost:
$820
Average Mileage:
89,500 miles
Total Complaints:
142 complaints

Most Common Solutions:

  1. class action law suit pending, get on the list (55 reports)
  2. pay to replace the intake manifold gasket (54 reports)
  3. not sure (20 reports)
  4. replacing it myself (7 reports)
  5. replace gasket, flush radiator and engine (3 reports)
  6. general motors sells a stop leak (2 reports)
2002 Chevrolet Impala engine problems

engine problem

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2002 Chevrolet Impala Owner Comments (Page 3 of 8)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #102

Jun 012009

Impala LX V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 140,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Add me to the lawsuit PLEASE!O( right now my 2002 impala is not drive-able -I'm still paying a car note and still paying for car repairs -my low coolant light & check engine light is on That's being going on since 2005-I have a recall for "AN UNDER HOOD FIRE THAT MAY BE CAUSED BY DROPS OF ENGINE OIL,FROM SEEPAGE OR SPILLAGE,BEING DEPOSITED ON THE EXHAUST MANIFOLD THROUGH HARD BRAKING IF THE MANIFOLD IS HOT ENOUGH."I can't get to work or to the repair shop. I spend at least $30 a week on Dex-cool -from 2006 til now my repair bill has been $600 or more -I will not be purchasing another GM again.!!!!!!!

- jval, Decatur, GA, US

problem #101

Aug 132008

Impala

  • Automatic transmission
  • 73,000 miles

I will never buy another Chevy as long as i live first problem i had was my regulator went out on my window that cost$250.00 then my switch went bad and my intake then my compressor that's another$1950.00 now thats alot of money for someone who on layoff for almost a year.

- gregorym5315, Union, SC, US

problem #100

Jun 012009

Impala Sedan 3.4L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 112,800 miles

at 112,000+ miles the upper and lower manifold intake gaskets were replaced again. A definite pain and inconvenience. Only plus factor was the cost was less at a non-dealer location.

- rbozeman, Wesley Chapel, FL, US

problem #99

Apr 082008

Impala LS 3800 Series Ii

  • Automatic transmission
  • 141,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

it won't stop, rebuilt transmission....$1300.00, front hubs ....$800.00.... water pump $700.00.... NOW intake manifold gasket is leaking.... another $1300.00.... This has a real barnyard smell to it.... just can't tell if it's poultry or bovine.. we're all skrewed. F*#& GM.............HELLO TOYOTA

- oldcodgercars, Maumelle, AR, US

problem #98

Jan 222007

(reported on)

Impala 3.4

  • Automatic transmission
  • 78,218 miles

I originally purchase my Chev Impala in 2002 from a dealership. I paid extra for the extended warranty and have religiously taken my vehicle back for every service check. Which is approx. every 3000 miles. At no time did anyone mention anything about this lower intake value problem. The warranty ran out ran out during the summer of 2006 (60,000 miles). I did not find out about the problem with the lower intake manifold until now. All the service checks since 2002 have indicated no problems with the coolant system.

What I particularly find annoying is the fact the GM knew about this problem but never advised the owners.

I am considering purchasing a new vehicle this year but it won't be a GM product.

- Brian W., Langley, B. C, Canada

problem #97

Apr 042007

(reported on)

Impala 3.4L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 45,551 miles

Too bad GM will not own up to a manufacturing defect. The more research I do the more problems I find with Dexcool damaging the gaskets. I actually had my cooling system flushed and refilled at 42K to be proactive with my maintenance. Two months later problem with the intake gasket failing. Why does GM not make a recall here, since they already know about this from thousands of complaints and have a TSB evidencing problem.

- irelandshamrock, Lake Worth, FL, US

problem #96

Jun 232008

Impala 3.4L V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 83,090 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I had my Intake Manifold Gasket replaced in June of 2008 because of a leak, and the coolant light coming on and not getting much heat, and have the same problem again. I can't afford to get this fixed again so at this point I am just dealing with it. Wow, this is ridiculous if there are this many complaints on this web site about the same problem then I can't imagine the number of complaints as a whole that are not on this site. Why is there not a recall for this? Unfortunately I own 3 other Chevrolet's but like others on this site, once I sell these I will never buy another Chevrolet again. I have had nothing but problems with these cars as a whole.

- condoor430, Pickerington, OH, US

problem #95

Mar 112009

Impala 3.4L V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 170,000 miles

OMG! I can't believe GM is not stepping up to the plate! I've sworn for years that GM made the best autos and were always known for having Good Motors(GM). Every used vehicle I've owned were made by GM/Chevy and this has been the worse ever. Thank God my boyfriend knows how to do this painful job. It's been costly and very stressful, let alone time consuming! I called 3 local Chevy dealers and 1 Pontiac dealer and they were all familiar with the problem, which bothers me. They should warn people about this when purchasing the vehicle.

I have 3 car notes left to obtain a free and clear title and needless to say this is my 2nd coolant leak on my engine also. This time it's that LIM gasket and we just replaced the water pump last week. To top it off, my low-coolant light and check engine light have been coming on intermittently for about a year and I was always smelling coolant but never saw any coolant on the ground. I don't know how many bottles of Dex-Cool I purchased over the last year. If anyone knows of a class action lawsuit against Dex-Cool or GM please add me to the list. I won't buy another GM after this one!!!

- G P., Southfield, MI, US

problem #94

Feb 182009

Impala 3.4L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 150,000 miles

I own a 2002 Chevy Impala with the 3.4L engine. I replaced the Intake Manifold Gasket on 11/29/2005 @ 79,700 miles. Now I am faced with the same problem again in 2009. This is ridiculous. I will never buy a Chevy again.

- rfrank, Birnamwood, WI, US

problem #93

Jun 012006

Impala

  • Automatic transmission
  • 100,000 miles

I purchased my Impala in August of 2002 by 2006 I had replaced the "BRAIN" because it would suddenly fail to start for no apparent reason. I took it to the dealership, who had me replace the starter, ignition switch and a few other parts that didn't fix the issue. Finally the dealership said well...maybe you should replace the "BRAIN" but it'll cost you $1,200. Well gees what about the other $1000 or so dollar that I had already replaced.

In the summer of 2006, I noticed there would be a weird smell coming from my car after being driven. There was NEVER any fluid on the ground or garage concrete; apparently it was leaking onto something and it would heat up and smell like it was burning. I took it to the dealership again and they informed me that I had a LEAKING INTAKE VALVE and would cost over $1200 with at least 9 working hours. I am really agitated with CHEVY and what is worse is that they could careless about my dissatisfaction with their vehicle. I now understand why CHEVY is in the shape it is. POOR QUALITY cars. I will never again buy another Chevy.

- haymil, Chiefland, FL, US

problem #92

Jan 012009

Impala 3.4L V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 87,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I had just bought this car, and the low coolant light flashed. I thought it was nothing but a sensor glitch. About a month later I noticed a little puddle of coolant under my car. I had replaced my thermostat and seal. I thought this would have fixed it. To no avail. I just went out side to see where it was leaking from and it's right where the manifold meets the head. I am glad that I caught this leak before major engine failure. I looked around to see how much this would cost if a dealership were to fix it. They quoted around 900 to 1000. I decided to fix it myself. Good thing I have my 84 Fiero to back me up.

- impalaboy, Centuria, WI, US

problem #91

Dec 102007

Impala 3.4L V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 86,000 miles

In December of 2006 I bought a 2002 Chevy Impala from DriveTime.The the problems with the radiator started about Oct 2007. I thought I found peices of "stopleak" in the radiator. It turned out to be gasket material. The motor blew up while my girl friend was driving back to work in May of 2008. I had the car towed back to DriveTime, who are now ready to garnish my wages for $8000.00 USD. Someone please HELP! Where do I find the list for the Class Action Law suit pending?

- rfleming, Richmond, VA, US

problem #90

Dec 132008

Impala 4door 3.4L 3.4L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 58,000 miles

It SEEM LIKE GM WOULD DO THE RIGHT THING ABOUT THIS PROBLEM. WITH AS MANY PROBLEMS THEY ARE HAVING WITH THIS INTAKE MANIFOLD GASKETS. I

WOULD LOVE TO HAVE MY NAME ADDED TO A CLASS ACTION SUIT. IT WAS A

BLESSING THAT I HAD AN EXTENDED WARRANTY OR I WOULD HAVE HAD TO COUGH UP 1100 DOLLARS.

- Dwight W., 2947 West Thrid Street, Jacksonville Fl, US

problem #89

Nov 052008

Impala LS V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 120,000 miles

I was cleaning out my car one day. I removed the floor mat from the passenger side, so that I could vacuum. The floor under the mat was soaked. I am not sure what this is, maybe the coolant leaking. Not sure what to do about this.

- 352whitney, Spring Hill, FL, US

problem #88

Oct 012008

Impala 3.4L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 37,000 miles

After having the Body Control Module replaced at the tune of $700.00 at 33000 miles, I now find that the Intake manifold gasket i leaking and needs to be replaced for another $700.00 at 37000. I wonder what will happen next.. Just kinda crossed GM off my purchase list from now on.

- Bob M., Cheney, WA, US

problem #87

Sep 242008

Impala 3.4L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 111,247 miles

I wish I had of heard of this site before purchasing this car 2 months ago.

The first two weeks I had no problems at all until the coolant light kept reappearing.

Now I have to put coolant in the rad every week and don't have time to get it fixed.

You can see clearly that the intake manifold is the problem#$%#^@% this lemon car.

I had bought this car to replace my 1990 Dynasty when I should have just kept the old one.

- rbernier, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada

problem #86

Sep 092008

Impala 3.4L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 102,000 miles

My son's car, 2002 Impala, 3.4L started linking antifreeze. Never really saw a leak in the garage but noticed that the coolant light kept coming on. Would ck and the level would be down. After a few months I thought I would tear it apart and start working on repairing it. Everything I read and hear indicated that the lower intake manifold was linking. I decided to do it myself with a friends help. I bought a lower intake manifold gasket set at Autozone for $89.00. We took off the fuel injectors and got down to the lower intake manifold. Chevy made this engine so you don't want to work on it. It seems that you have to take off all of the wiring since it is clipped to the engine in all of the wrong places. Had to remove accellerator cables, alternator, belt, power steering pump, coolant overflow just to remove a bolt from the alternator. After taking out and putting back the rocker arms and push rods, noticed that one of the rocker arms was loose because of a collapse lifter due to water leaking into the motor oil. Tomorrow will be putting in a new lifter to replace the one that is collapsed. Hopefully this will take care of the situation. After talking to a chevy mechanic, he told me I didn't have to remove the rocker arms & rods even though that is part of the chevy instructions manual. Looks like another way Chevy makes money on labor since they go by the computed hrs for repairs instead of quoting the actural short cut hours. That's probably a hour labor charge you pay that they never do. If you have time and patience, you can do this on your own since there wasn't any special tools you had to have. Hope Chevy can resolve this issue since so many people are having it.

- robw, Rohrersville, MD, US

problem #85

Jul 152008

Impala ??

  • Automatic transmission
  • 70,000 miles

Intake Manifold Gasket needed to be replaced, got a decent deal on the work, hopefully someday will be reimbursed.....I am only buying Toyota's or Honda's from now on.

- scottv, Grovetown, GA, US

problem #84

Jun 012008

Impala LS 3.2L V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 90,000 miles

We have had all the same problems; coolant/blinkers/electrical(lights). I have even had my headlights go out at night on the back roads, had to flick back and forth ,bright lights to non to get the lights working again. ATTENTION GM this car is a piece of @#%# are you going to wait for someone to possibly die while they are trying to get their lights to work in the dark before you take notice. My Daddy raised me a Chevy girl and I used to be proud to be one. NO MORE!!! I've went foreign and am raising my girls not to buy GM. SOOO< if your wondering why your sales are down DUH-UNSATISFIED CUSTOMERS WILL DO IT EVERY TIME and I urge everyone on this website to let all your friends, family and co-workers and even strangers in the grocery stores NOT TO BUY GM and lets raise a new generation of kids that knows what a ripoff GM autos are, and how they don't stand behind their inferior products. None of us have the extra money to get all these repairs done. I hope GM rots in the negative karma gutter they are surely headed to!!!!!!

- frankltm, Imperial, MO, US

problem #83

Sep 272008

Impala LS 3.8L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 85,000 miles

Gee thanks GM, I own two Chevy's, this impala nothing but problems. I have replaced the water pump, exhaust converter, window motor, master control switch for the freakin window and now this. Thats what I get for supporting and buying good old american. This car is a sham, I wouldn't even sell it to anyone,, oh but GM sure will. Looks like I will be fixin this my self like all the rest of the problems I have had.. Oh yeah and I will never buy another GM product again,,,ever,,, and I have owned four.

- bellmi, Ypsilanti, MI, US

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