Problems with 2008 Chevrolet Impala ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet impala. the contact received a recall notification for nhtsa campaign number: 14v355000 (electrical system). the contact stated that the part needed to remedy the vehicle was unavailable. the manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. the contact had not experienced a failure.

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet impala. the contact received a recall notice for nhtsa campaign number: 14v355000 (electrical system), but the part needed to repair the vehicle was unavailable. the manufacturer was not notified. the contact had not experienced a failure.

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet impala. the contact stated that nhtsa campaign number: 14v355000 (electrical system) exceeded a reasonable amount of time for repair. the dealer stated that the part was unavailable for repair. the manufacturer was notified. the vehicle was not repaired. the contact had not experienced a failure. updated 11/17/2014*lj updated 4/29/2015 *js

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet impala. while the vehicle was parked, all the doors failed to unlock electronically. as a result, the contact had to manually unlock the doors. the failure recurred on numerous occasions. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 100,000.

In august 2014 i received a letter from gm stating that there is a recall on my vehicle recall# 14299, the letter stated that there is a problem with the ignition switch where if i happen to go over a speed bump, hit a pothole or off road my key "may unintentionally move the key away from the run position". the letter also states that if this were to occur it would affect my power steering, breaking and air bags due to the fact that the switch is not in the run position resulting in high risk of crash increasing the risk of injury or fatality. i was shocked when i received this information, i followed the directions of the letter and removed anything that added extra weight to my key and called gm immediately. i was told by a gm rep to contact my local dealer to see when parts will arrive to resolve this issue which still to this day they have not. upon doing further research i come to find out that due to this issue there has been multiple crashes even some fatality's!!, now i am terrified to drive my vehicle seeing as how gm does not guarantee that even when only using the ignition key without added weight that the ignition wont be jarred to switch to the off position. i feel these vehicles should not be on the road seeing how they can cause harm to chevy owners and people on the streets, also should be compensate in some way due to the fact that i have been having to find other ways to transport myself where i need to be. i refuse to put my life and the life of my passengers at risk by driving this unsafe vehicle. i am very frustrated and extremely unhappy with sluggish response as well as the disinclined attitude of the reps at gm. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet impala. the contact stated that the door locks malfunctioned. the contact stated that in order to open and close the vehicle they had to manually open the locks through the windows or adjust the seat to manually open the door. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic. the technician confirmed that the locks were defective and needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the issue. the failure mileage was 105,000. ma 09/25 the consumer stated she was locked inside of the vehicle. updated 01/28/16*jb

Had vehicle repaired at fowler chevrolet in tulsa oklahoma and very concerned that vehicle should have been a total loss. vehicle taken in 2nd time for rework. we have some pictures and video. body shop manager was terminated. we need assistance. very concerned about safety issues on vehicle at highway speeds. unsure where to turn. several people with chevrolet involved to cover for dealer. the dealer informed the consumer to remove all the keys from the key ring. updated 12/17/14...updated 06/16/15 *bf updated 08/28/2017*ct

I have been having a problem with the ac vent trying to close when i shut off the car. it makes a loud sputtering clunking sound after the car shuts off. i was told it is the vent trying to close and would have to replace a motor for $2-300 plus labor. anytime i start the car up, it makes a high pitch squealing sound under the hood and stops when i back out of park. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet impala. the contact stated that after turning the vehicle off, the key became lodged in the ignition switch. the key had to be tampered with in order to eject properly. the failure occurred multiple times. the vehicle had not been taken to a mechanic for a diagnosis of the failure. the manufacturer had not been notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 83,000. the vin was not available.

Rear passenger doors will not unlock, trapping passengers after parking vehicle nether of the rear passenger doors could be opened. both rear passenger doors remain locked and could not be unlocked using ether the lock controls located on the drivers side door control or with the key fob. my 90+ year old parent was in rear passenger compartment. due to severe dementia they became panicky and agitated when they were unable to get out of the vehicle. they did not have the ability to open the door using the passenger lock nor could they follow instructions to do so. this would be the same situation as having a small child trapped n the rear. the rear door manual locking mechanism are located to far back to be reached from the drivers compartment. i was only able to free him by entering the truck and pushing one of the rear seats flat to access the passenger area. had this been a crash or vehicle fire any passenger in rear compartment would have perished. a review of impala owner complaints on several web sites indicates there is a common issue with the rear door locks on these impalas but gm has not offered to fix what is an obvious safety hazard. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet impala. while driving 40 mph, smoke appeared from the air conditioning vent. the contact discovered that there was an electrical fire from the air condition vent. an independent mechanic informed the contact that he could wait for the fire to dissolve before notifying the fire department. the fire was able to dissolve and there was no police or fire report filed. there were no injuries reported. the dealer stated that the air condition resistor and connector wiring connection failed. the vehicle was not repaired. in addition, the ignition failed to release. the failure occurred on numerous occasions. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the failures. the approximate failure mileage was 95,000.

Was driving on busy one lane road, reduced speed, check traction control, check engine light came on and car slowed down to 45 and would not go any faster, was able to pull off of road and shut car off started about 5 minutes later no indication of the problem. two days later the problem came back. went to internet to check problem seems like there have been 100,000 s of these problems many resulting in accidents. it does not show that there has been a recall. this is very serious if i would have been on a freeway with trucks traveling at high speed i could have been killed. what has the vehicle safety board done to protect owners of faulty vehicles? *tr

I have had the ignition switch repaired under the recall thinking this might help the problem. i will be driving down the road when the steering will lock up and the car slows and cuts off. i have had several near miss accidents with other cars and am literally afraid to drive the car anymore. i have taken the car to several other dealers and they claim they are unable to determine what is wrong or how to fix it. it is only a mater of time before i have an accident and injure myself or others . *tr

While driving to work on 29 may 2014 i hit a small pothole. the pothole is 10" across, 3-4" deep, and i hit it head on. this caused my car to shut off, which i didn't realize until i tried to accelerate. i then realized i had no power steering or breaks and had to pull off to the side of the road to restart the car. luckily there were no cars behind me, so other than having to pull off the road on a curve i was lucky. i called both my local gm dealer (ressler of bozeman, mt) and gm customer support to tell them about the issue. the local dealer told me there was no issue with the car, no recalls, and nothing to worry about. the technician told me to "avoid hitting potholes". given the state of the roads that may be hard to do. the gm support told me there was no recall at the moment but there might be one down the road and to watch the news. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet impala. the contact heard an extremely loud noise when the ignition was started. the noise lasted for five minutes and occurred whenever the vehicle was in operation. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was not notified. the approximate failure mileage was 99,732.

Started the car, drove about a mile and a half to my destination. parked, turned key to turn car off. engine turned off but key no longer switches completely off in order for me to take the key out of the ignition. *tr

Our 2008 impala ls, with 100,000 miles, is having the same problem i am seeing at this web site and all across the internet. last month, may, 2014, and this month, june, 2014, there was a sudden reduced power alert on the dashboard and the check engine light came on. the speed immediately dropped to no more than 35 mph. before i could get it to advance to have them check to see if any codes had been dropped by the computer, the check engine light went off. there was no reduced power message either, and the speed returned to normal. i was told to try fuel injector cleaner, which i did. all went well for almost a month, when the same thing happened again this month. this time i was able to get it to advance with the check engine light still on. the computer had dropped 2 codes, both related to the accelerator pedal position sensor. advance did not have the part, nor did autozone. fortunately, napa did, for $90, including tax. our local chevy dealership wanted $50 more. since it is a very easy part to replace even for an amateur like me, i replaced it. there are only 2 10 mm bolts to remove and an electrical connection to unplug. so it was pretty simple, and so far, this has done the trick, but it's only been 24 hours. this apparently is a job that the dealerships want to charge $300 to $400 to do. as i said, this is a widespread problem for gm, and they have not and will not, so far, do a recall. they should. i'm only out $90 so far, but other people are out much more. if i have the dreaded, follow-up problem with the throttle body, i will be out a whole lot more. i sent an e-mail to chevrolet after the first instance, and did get a response back. i told him i didn't want to take any further action unless this happens again. i will be contacting him again now about this latest incident. *tr

I have had many problems with the engine power being reduced due to code 2135, it's a throttle position problem that has happened maybe 50-100 times over the past year. i can clean the throttle plate and it'll be fine for a few days, but is getting progressively worse. it is very dangerous when the car's power is reduced so quickly, especially on freeways. i've nearly been rearended a few times now. i've complained to chevrolet and they only say there isn't a recall and to take it to the dealer for service. i've contacted the dealer and was told they'd clean the throttle body, which is what i am doing. there needs to be a recall for safety's sake, this is a very deadly problem that they need to address. it's not the consumer's fault at all. thank you. *tr

When driving through st. louis around midnight on i-270 on may 3, the "engine power is reduced" message came on and the car slowed dramatically right in the middle lane of the interstate. quite scary indeed, not to mention the lurching. after being nearly run over on both sides, i pulled off in a very dark part of town and the police came by to check on me. initially the car wouldn't start with the message, "starting is disabled, service throttle." after about an hour, the thing allowed me to start it, but still with the "power is reduced" message. i actually drove that thing home (over 90 miles) with semis bearing down on me, alternating flashers and watching over my shoulder. anyway, the next day, it still wouldn't run normally, but i limped over to an autozone and i replaced the throttle assembly and the throttle body (the engine code said p0651, but that was a waste of $300). no help, same message. i let the car sit. when it first started up, still had the message. but about 5 minutes later, the car started normally!!! the check engine light is on now, but those codes haven't been accurate so far. while the car was running normally, i went out and jiggled all the wiring both under the dash and above the throttle, but could not find a loose wire or get the car to shift into the "engine power reduced" message. i also tapped on and jiggled the air box (because i was told that's where the ecm is located). still couldn't get it to go bad. came back out the next time and the car had the "engine power is reduced" message and running horribly. i was fortunate not to be killed, these cars are moving chicanes. i am totally at a loss as to what is going on. gm service reps say "go to the dealer" but online shows this only results in a bunch of expensive replaced parts that didn't fix the problem. i only suffered a backache but this car is an accident waiting to happen. *tr

On friday may 2, 2014, i went and bought $72 worth of groceries, all but $10 were frozen or cold and it was about 80 degrees outside. when i got home and went to take the groceries out of the trunk the trunk would not open. i then took it to the shop to see if they could get it open they could not. they told me that they looked the problem up online and said it was a factory defect/recall and that if i took it to an actual chevy dealership or manufacture that they would have to pay for it. when i took it to a chevy dealership, saturday may 3, 2014, they said that i was going to have to pay for it because my car isn't under warranty any more. i feel like chevy should still pay for it and reimburse me for my groceries that i lost. it was not my fault that the trunk would not open and it is also not my fault that the previous owner either 1) did not turn the recall in or 2) didn't bother to tell anyone about it. *tr

This vehicle has been recalled due to air bags, and in a year no one has been able to get the repairs done to the vehicle. but furthermore the car has several other mechanical issues that i am showing as a trend with impalas being that my sister and cousin have one also in different years, the car makes a ticking noise when the air or heat is turned on the passenger side delivers opposite temp as the driver so if air is on the passenger will deliver heat and vice versa. if the car goes over a speed bump the engine reduces power and service stabilitrak appears across the lighting as well as the car dropping out of gear if i go over any bump. this is very dangerous especially being that my children and i were in this car and it decided to do this on the interstate at night in 70 mph traffic. after doing research on the vehicle i am showing that i am not the only person with all of these problems listed, and it bothers me that none of these issues have been recalled just as the air bags were even though i think the recall, is just to save face because no one is actually doing the work to get them fixed. at first i thought these things were just mechanical problems with age of car but after research these are issues that are in cars made in this time frame and warrants a recall for the safety of consumers.

The key is stuck in the ignition switch and won't come out. *tr

Letter from constituent who experienced problems with her 2008 impala, seeking reimbursement for the repairs she believes were all part of a recall. *smd the consumer stated on april 1, 2014, she had just exited the interstate highway, when suddenly the engine shut off. the vehicle would not re-start and a message appeared on the dash that read throttle control system. the vehicle was towed to a service station. the throttle body was replaced. on april 19, 2014. the check engine light illuminated as she was driving. she pulled into a parking lot, and turned off the engine. the vehicle did not re-start, once again, the vehicle had to be towed. the power train control module had to be replaced and the computer was re-programmed.*jb

The left rear door started to stay locked when put in park and the remote would not open it. now all four doors are doing it. one might unlock or two but it's never the same doors. now they are popping halfway up and unlocking when you put it in drive. a severe safety issue especially when kids are in my car.

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet impala. the contact stated that the key could be removed from the ignition when the ignition was in the on position. the failure recurred intermittently. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 118,000.

Vehicle stalls out. for example after sitting at a red light and then trying to accelerate the cars stalls and won't pick up speed, it then jerks hard and drive as usual. *tr

Key will not release from ignition. car will not completely turn off, engine not running but electrical still on, drains battery and car only starts with a jump. *tr

While driving i noticed rear window was still covered with ice,the rear defroster was not working although the switch was on and light was illuminated,after that i searched internet sites and found that a connector on the passenger side has commonly burnt up so i checked mine and sure enough it is,another guy at work has the same thing on his impala,currently car is at dealer being insp but they have said so far they won't cover repair,this is a fire hazard inside the passenger compartment of the car. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet impala. the contact stated while driving approximately 35 mph, the vehicle stalled without warning. the vehicle restarted and resumed normally. the failure recurred four times. there was a recall related to the failure under nhtsa campaign id number 14v355000 (electrical system); however, the vin was not included. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the defect. the approximate failure mileage was 58,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet impala. while the vehicle was parked, the ignition key became stuck in the ignition switch. the failure recurred on several occasions until the key was unable to be removed. the vehicle was taken to the dealer and informed that the failure was not related to the recall. the contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 14v355000 (electrical system); however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. the contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 60,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet impala. the contact stated that while exiting a parking lot, the vehicle suddenly stalled without warning. the starter disabled, service throttle and engine power low warning messages displayed on the instrument panel after the failure. the vehicle was restarted after numerous attempts however, the failure progressed into an intermittent occurrence. the vehicle was taken to the dealer , who stated that the engine control module would need to be replaced. the manufacture was alerted about the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was approximately 128,000. updated 06/27/14*lj the consumer stated the vehicle was repaired. an occasional, split second stall or missing out can be detected. if it continues after the oil change and transmission fluid check the consumer will report it to the dealer. updated 07/2/2014 *js

The driver side fan blows only cold air, so no defogging occurs on drivers side, obstructing drivers view. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet impala. the contact stated the electronic key failed to unlock the doors and had to be opened manually. however, the doors automatic lock system activated when the engine was started and when the engine was off the electronic lock system failed to unlock the doors. the contact had to drive with the windows opened in order to open the doors by using the exterior handle. the vehicle was taken to the dealer. the technician advised that the electrical system needed to replace. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 150,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2009 chevrolet impala. the contact stated that while driving 60 mph, the service traction control light illuminated and the vehicle jerked. the contact mentioned that the vehicle decelerated to 20 mph and would not increase. the problem recurred several times. the contact received a notification for recall nhtsa campaign number: 14v355000 (electrical system). the vehicle was taken to a dealer. the diagnosis was unknown. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the failure mileage was unavailable.

My key is stuck in the ignition and will not come out. i can not turn it off completely. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet impala. while driving at an unknown speed, the contact heard a loud clicking noise coming from the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the actuator needed to be replaced. the vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 75,000.

Recently, the car looses power steering when it rains, or i go through a puddle. i took it to the chevrolet dealer (best chevrolet) where i bought it new some years ago. they had no idea what caused it, said they never heard of such a thing. they changed the serpentine belt and tensioner, and it still does it. the power steering goes out for about 10 seconds, and in deep water i also get a dummy light about the electrical system. it's scary to drive; but, i don't want to just sell it cause someone else an injury. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet impala. the contact stated that the heating system failed to emit hot air. the contact mentioned that they were concerned due to the failure occurring during cold weather conditions. the vehicle was taken to the dealer but was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 88,000. updated 04/08/16*lj updated 04/12/16.*jb

Ignition failure and associated power loss occurred while driving on a crowded expressway after hitting a bump in the left lane. a very heavy key chain was in the ignition at the time. with no signals, flashers, or power steering, using only rapidly fading inertia for power, i had to make my way over to the right lane and on to the shoulder through thick, unyielding 70 mph traffic. terrifying; collision narrowly missed.

Alarm/security system is preventing car to start. there have not been any recalls on this vehicle alarm/security system, but multiple of complaints have been posted about this defect. *tr

Driver side rear door lock continues to fail upon depression of unlock button on fob or inside vehicle. *tr

I drive the car and it says engine power reduced stabilatrak it slows down and it feels forced to drive so i pull to the side of the road wait about 10 to 15 minutes and it starts but then it got to the point were it wasn't even drivable with it stating engine power reduced stabilatrak so i called chevy in modesto ca asked if there was a recall they said no and i told them i seen a lot of complaints on line with the same problems i was going through they said you cant believe everything online miss i took the car into the a mechanic i know he diagnosed it as being a throttle sensor and pedal sensor charged me 587$ i thought the problem was solved a week later it did again engine power reduced but this time it started over heating to ive had nothing but problembs with this car ive also changed the tires numerous times the sensor for tires is always lighthing up and saying check left front tire or back tire i take it to the tire shop they say tires are fine but the back ones need to be changed i change the back tires it still says check back tires ive also had the suspension fixed a few times when itswindy i feel the car moving from side to side i also have had engine problems with the transmission was replaced nowit has has 2 blown head gaskets all in all the past 2 to 3 years i have payed 4 to 6,000 in repair and itsstill running like with it stating engine power reduced stabilatrak i need my vehicleto befixed of this problem. *tt

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet impala. the contact stated that the door actuator failed on the rear driver and passenger side doors. the contact also stated that the rear driver and passenger side doors failed to lock when the vehicle was in drive. the doors had to be manually locked and unlocked. the dealer stated that the actuator motor might need to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was not notified. the approximate failure mileage was 70,000. updated 11/19/14*cn updated 8/13/2015*js

This is the third time i had to fix this passlock thing on my impala and im getting so sick and tired of it *tr

Frequently, service traction control and engine power is reduced lights come on. when this happens, car is sluggish and will not accelerate. this is very dangerous because it happens unexpectedly and causes vehicle to decelerate quickly. typically the car will start normally after sitting for 15-30 minutes but check engine light remains on for some time. also, the message engine hot/ac off fires randomly. temperature gauge rests at zero. it will start working again either through manual reset by removing battery cables and reconnecting or randomly start working again on its own. there are numerous reports of both issues on the internet which indicate replacement of sensors/throttle are very expensive and do not fix the issues. *tr

Rear window defrost stopped working. replaced fuses and relay. light comes on but defrost does not work. investigation by owner showed wiring harness under front passenger kick panel burnt badly. further investigation online indicates this has problem has been experienced by a large number of impala owners. due to the badly burn connection, passenger cabin fire could have occurred. local chevy dealer service department denied any knowledge of similar instances. recommend investigation. *tr

Had clicking noise in the dash of the vehicle and according to the local chevrolet dealer it was the air recirculation door actuator and the air temp. door actuator on the vehicle.

Door locks won't unlock. they will lock most of the time when put in gear. they won't unlock except manually. we have grand children in back seat at times. if we got into an accident you can't open rear doors and you can't reach lock lever to release. car has about 65000 miles on it and locks started acting up around 40000 miles. now they are all defective. one was replaced under warranty around 30000 miles. car has been kept in garage since new, i think this should be a safety recall.

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 chevrolet impala. the contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the key failed to eject from the ignition switch and remained in the off position. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the vehicle was then taken to an independent mechanic. the mechanic was able to remove the key from the ignition and stated that the linkage in the gear shift failed. the vehicle was not repaired. in addition, the contact stated that three months later, the contact ejected the key from the ignition while in the on position. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 85,000.

Car was just started, in parking lot, getting ready to drive and electrical system shutdown completely. couldn't take key out, or restart, no lights, no electrical activity at all, but it had just been running. after several minutes, it all came back on and restart, and drove ok. there had been battery problems in the past, corrosion on terminal, which was repaired. the battery cable where the wire enters the positive terminal was not completely tight. the internet has reports from several people reporting this same event on impalas, of several different model years. most of these though, it happened while they were driving down the road, and some reported accidents that resulted. prior to all the modern electronics, if the engine was running and the alternator was working, the engine would never just shut down even if the battery connection was bad. this is a very dangerous situation, where the car can just shut off and the operator loses all power systems. no power steering, extremely difficult braking, and the possibility of the steering wheel locking (though the latter did not happen to us). when operating the car in hilly or mountainous roads, where there are steep drop offs on shoulder side, and semi-trucks coming in opposite direction, surely this has potential as deadly situation. would like to see redundancy, if alternator is producing, don't shut down electrical system. rather, just give warning. also, be sure that no car would ever lock the steering wheel when electrical systems malfunction. i am afraid to have my wife drive the car until a new battery cable is installed. *tr