This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Impala. While driving 54 mph, the speedometer worked intermittently for two months until it finally failed. A friend of the contact, who owned the same year, make, and model vehicle, was experiencing the same failures. The speedometer has not been repaired. The VIN was unknown. The failure mileage was 54,000 and current mileage was 55,000.
Driving at night with high beams on, all lights went out, approx. 10 mins later started functioning again but did it twice more in 10 miles. Since that time speedometer and tachometer are erratic, if they function at all. Repair shop stated that dash computer, replaced it but did not correct problem. Been running w/O high beams since and have to use gps for speed.
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Impala. The contact was experiencing difficulty turning the key in the ignition. He eventually could not get it to turn at all, which prevented him from starting the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence and will be towed to the dealer soon. The VIN was unknown. The current and failure mileages were 95,000.
I have a 2004 Impala that has an erratic speedometer movement. I haven't had an accident as a result of this problem, but it has caused me to become confused and anxious about my exact speed. I am concerned about the possibility of having an accident as a result of this problem. I have contacted GM's customers service about this problem and requested they correct it under warranty. They refused to comply with my request. I know this is a problem with other GM vehicles that is being corrected under a recall. I believe it to be the same part failure, only different type vehicle. If I should have an accident as a result of this situation I believe GM will be liable. Sometimes the speedometer appears to be working correctly and this only adds to the confusion when it isn't correct. My wife has driven at excessive speeds not knowing the speedometer wasn't correct. We first reported this problem to a chevorlet dealership Oct. 2007 although we had first noticed a problem months earlier. The problem progressively worsened. Now it's become a real problem, not knowing how fast I'm going and especially in heavy traffic at unknown speeds.
Speedometer and tachometer are acting erratic. Gauges are all over the place, either not working at all or is giving me a false reading. If I am driving at 35mph the speedometer might be reading either 15 or 35 or 75, it changes all the time.
- Oviedo, FL, USA
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Instrument panel we noticed that the temp gauge was reading that the car was overheating when it shouldn't. it was intermittent at first, so we checked fluid levels and everything checked out. Then we realized that meter wasn't resetting when we turned off the car. It was operating as though wherever the needle left off was 0, so the car read as overheating. A few months later it spread to the speedometer. Sometimes the needle would stick at 10mph and sometimes it would remain at 0. sometimes it would work fine. Then one day it also stopped all together and remained at 0.
We have a Chevy Impala and the speedometer doesn't work properly. Sometimes it stays at 0 and other times it says some ridiculous speed. It happens every time we drive the car. The problem hasn't been fixed yet.
I have a 2004 Chevy Impala and have been having problems with it from the day I bought it. When I got the "new" car I was not informed that the car had been wrecked, yeah, a "new" car. Then for the past few years we have had trouble with it cranking. Sometimes it will take up to 2 hours to get it to crank. We had heard that it could be something with the started and the dealer said there isn't anything that we can do because you are over your mileage. This is a very known issue and something needs to be done about it. I have been without my for 24 hours as of 7/26/2008 at 10:23 am because it now will not crank. We have tried all the little secrets that have been working in the past. I am taking it to the shop on Monday and hopefully it is not going to cost my both of my legs and arms. I think that GM should do something about these well known problems if they want people to keep buying their cars. I can tell you that I will never buy another GM car if something in the near future isn't done about this problem and I will spread the word all over the internet and here in town. Word of mouth can make or break a company. I know I am just one right now but soon I will be many and something will be done.
The ignition stopped working. The key would not turn. The car only has 19,000 miles. This is going to cost $600 to fix. The car was purchased new in 2004.
My Impala 2004 has about 41,000 miles on it. The temperature gauge needle went right over to hot, I immediately brought my vehicle in and for a half an hour had it on a machine to let me know if it was serious. The result from this test was, I could get away with driving the vehicle as is and just watch my vehicle for any signs of overheating or get the problem fixed. A month or so later my security light came on and after shutting the vehicle off it was fine. This has happened on a number of occasions now and I called Chevrolet and the first mechanic of course told me it was serious and bring it right in and the second Chevrolet mechanic told me that it was okay to drive, just turn the vehicle off and wait about 20 min and the vehicle should start. Was informed that it will be expensive to get these electrical problems repaired. After reading this sight and speaking with other Impala owners I realized that my vehicle is not the only one having this type of problems and perhaps Chevrolet should look into this and do the right thing and issue a recall.
The speedometer started getting stuck about six months ago. For about eight months I have noticed that when I turn the steering wheel I hear a noise in the front of the car, like a knock or something. Also within the last couple of months I have also smelled gas when I first start the car, my husband could not see any leakage or anything until last week. It was leaking from the fuel regulator valve. Now the transmission is starting to shift hard sometimes. I haven't had the money to get it all checked out by the manufacturer but I was wondering if there have been any complaints on any of these things. Also I can hear a whistling sound when I press the accelerator. And my husband just informed me that he bought a regulator valve for it and some O rings because something is leaking antifreeze slightly. Can you help please!!!!!!!!
The temperature gauge on my 2004 Chevy Impala does not work and now my speedometer is not working properly. Know I have no idea how fast I am going (a safety hazard in school zones) nor do I know if my engine is overheating which could cause some other serious problems.
Speedometer failure, gives me false readings, GM said I had T opay $600 to fix it, car only has 70,000 miles, many others having this same problem, it is a major safety issue, we all can't afford to pay for this issue, which is faulty from the factory, GM should recall the vehicle to fix.
There were no events leading up to the failure. My wife was driving the car and the speedometer just stopped working. The speedometer would not show the correct speed. The needle would point directly down (not at 0) and then move counter clockwise when the car accelerated.
The speedometer gauge is not reading correctly. First, it was showing your speed as 120mph, when you were stopped. It was never accurate. Then one day, it just stayed at 0mph, even when you were moving. I had it fixed through a GM dealership, and they fixed the cluster. This part should be recalled. I have seen a lot of people with the same car, and same problem. GM needs to realize the danger with this defect. It is not a cheap fix either. I am saving my receipt in hopes that GM will realize the hazards with driving a car this way.
For two years the passive security system malfunctions and the vehicle wont start. We have to sit and wait for 20 minutes for the system resets itself. Chevrolet denies there is a problem and wants thousands of dollars to fix it. This is a common problem for this model vehicle. At first the problem happened only once a month. Now it is happening weekly. Please help..
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Lowell, IN, USA