Problems with 2001 Chevrolet Impala EQUIPMENT

Tl* the contact owns a 2001 chevrolet impala. the contact stated that there was a progressing failure in which the radio stayed on when the vehicle was turned off. there was an error message on the radio display panel, indicating "check cd". the vehicle was not taken to a dealer for diagnostic testing. the contact later received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 15v701000 (engine) and was unable to determine when the parts would become available to receive the recall repair. the manufacturer was notified of the failure and was not able to determine a reasonable time frame of when the parts would become available to supply to the dealer. the failure mileage was not available. vin tool confirms parts not available. updated 03/09/16*lj; 05/14/18*jb *tr

My car will not start due to an issue with the passkey/passlock system. it is a anti theft function installed on several of the gm models that when it fails to work it actually keeps the owner from using the vehicle. after going on line to research this issue i noticed that this was a very common and expensive problem to have. in addition to getting the system fixed many owners say that after about 3 or 4 months the problem comes back and have even died on them as they were driving. some try to bypass this system and others attempt to have it fixed, but regardless of how they deal with it, i believe that it is the manufactures responsibility to address common problems with the vehicles they sell; not to mention that honda was having the same issue with their vehicles and issued a recall. *kb

Vehicle will not start at times. security system thinks you're stealing the car. you have to wait ten or so minutes till the bypass security system resets itself leaving you stranded till you get a restart. worn contacts on the ignition switch are not recognizing your key. had ignition switch replaced about a year and a half ago and problem has returned. seems to be extremely common on gm cars '99 to '05. *tr

Headlights, taillights, interior lights were all flashing. the car also would have incidents where it wouldn't start and i'd have to wait for 10 minutes to restart. i was told by the mechanic at the dealership that these problems were well known in gm cars and were caused by the bcm and passlock system. i was told that installing a new bcm for $400 would fix the problem. immediately, i noticed that the flashing lights had stopped. a month later, i was leaving a grocery store when i tried to start my car and it wouldn't start. i had to wait 10 minutes before it would restart. i called the dealership service center and they told me that when this happens, the passlock system is resetting itself and the only remedy is to replace the bcm again. i had a 1 year warranty on the replacement of the bcm, so i took it to the dealer the next day. the car wouldn't do it when they had it, so they weren't able to determine that the bcm was the problem. i was never able to get it replaced because it wouldn't happen while at the dealership. now that it's been over a year, the non-start issue has been happening weekly. gm will not assist with paying for another bcm because of the mileage of my vehicle. *tr

Intake gasket failure. i noticed that the antifreeze in my vehicle was often low, so i took the vehicle to get diagnosed. the mechanic told me that i need to get the intake gasket replaced and that this was a common problem on impala's. he stated that all of these vehicles will need to have the gasket replaced and that gm is aware that this is a problem, but since they haven't been forced to recall the vehicles, then they're going to replace the gaskets. this is quite an expensive repair and i can't afford to costs at this time. i contacted gm for assistance and they stated that the mileage on my car prevents me from being able to be assisted. i'm not sure why this issue hasn't made it as a recall because the cars will overheat and isn't something you normally expect to need to get fixed on a car. *tr

The vehicle doesn't recognize your key and won't start. this issue can happen once a week once a month once a year, you just never know. usually if you wait 20 minutes for the computer to reset it will start, but that is not always the case. the turn signals on the vehicle also do not work 50% of the time. *tr

2001 impala. pressed unlock on vehicle remote at 4:30 am. the headlights were supposed to come on and did not. i tried the headlight switch, and still no headlights. two days later, the headlights came on momentarily, then went out. the headlights haven't worked since. i talked to a mechanic that agreed that the multifunction switch has gone bad and needs replacement. he has replace quite a few. *tr

01 chevy impala fuel pump issues has corrected problem several times in which is a known defect, other nite car shut down on speeding highway without reason or warning. *tr

I bought a 2001 chevy impala 1 week ago and now it will not accelerate over 30 miles an hour plus it cuts off when it reaches those miles. i had new spark plugs installed, wires, coil packs and a new fuel filter installed. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2001 chevrolet impala. the contact stated that when she turned off the vehicle and activated the alarm, the vehicle seemed difficult to restart. the lights and doors would function properly but the vehicle took 10-20 minutes to get it started. the vehicle had not been inspected at the time of the complaint. the vin was unavailable at the time of the complaint. the current and failure mileages were 97,000.

I bought my 2001 chevy impala ls in 2004, until decemeber 2009 the car was running great. it started with my cars "traction active" light coming on on whenever i accelerated then after a couple of weeks of this light coming on more and more often (4-6 times daily) i experienced an incedent in where my brakes jammed up the brake pedal got hard and i almost hit a car infront of me. i went to get my brakes checked and they told me they where fine (i figured they where fine a i had just recently changed them) well the issue with the brakes started hapoening more and more often at least once or twice daily not evrytime but 1-2 times a day and then the abs light coming on. i took the car to the auto shop and they told me impala's are known to have problems with the abs module. after researching online, i found a lot of complaints from impala owners all over the u.s having the same issue with the traction active and the abs lights coming on. it seems to be a defective abs module. this module and the repair cost me a total of about $1,000.00

2001 chevorlet/impala purchased new, current miles 51,000. intermittant loss of directionals. **now complete loss of directionals and emergency signals. failed recent car inspection. additional failures include: complete brake loss at 38,000. resulting in replacement of entire brake system. firestone tire, west roxbury, ma stated on documents that "rotors were thinned down to size of sheet of paper &/or completely gone." two tire blowouts at 35,000, also replaced by above repair shop, with 4 new tires. battery leak with corrosion to extent of need of connection cables to be rebuilt for attachment. battery replaced with new connections at 40,000 by sears auto body in dedham, ma. passengar side wiper fixed and replaced after failure. worked for 3 months and has failed again, has not at present been replaced/repaired. care of car was updated and maintained according to all requirements/recommendations by manufacturer. no history of accidents. this including, oil changes, wiper blade changes, tire rotations with evey other oil change, which was done every 3 monts, etc. brake inspection and pads changed on car 1 year before complete failure. brake loss was thankfully uneventful only due to time of night and low traffic, only able to stop car with gliding to stop. then towed to service station. on average my present yearly milage is probably less than 3000. i am the only driver/operator to this car and althogh mentioned #1 owner, my father originally purchased the car, (howard chevorlet, west roxbury, ma) but did not drive it. i currently am the title holder. please feel free to contact me anytime if you have any recommendations that could help me. i feel that there is major failure that beyond my control and is dangerous to myself, others and most important to me, my 4 y/o daughter. thank you for your time. i hope to hear from you (someone) soon. teresa corrigan *tr

2001 chevy impala i went outside to start the vehicle and the battery was dead, it had enough power to power up the lights etc. however, it did not have enough power to start the engine. i than moved another vehicle up next to it and connected jumper cables. i waited for it to charge and turned the key. when i turned the key over, the plastic intake manifold violently exploded. i had a huge fire under my hood. the explosion shot parts across my yard. i had to use the water hose to put the fire out, the car was less than 10 feet from my home. i left it alone and contacted a dealership mechanic the very next day. i was told that they had recently had 2 of the same vehicles come in with the same problem, and that it was due to a faulty fuel pressure regulator and the fact that the manifold is made of plastic. this explosion could have very well killed someone. i have researched this issue, and found that there was a recall done on over 900,000 of these vehicles, however, when i contacted general motors, my vin # was not included in the recall list according to general motors!!!!!!!!!!!!! *tr

The passlock system on my 2001 impala is not working properly and will cause the car not to start for 10-20 minutes. this happens randomly and always after the car is started for the first time in the day, so i have been stranded at the gym, restaurants, gas stations, work, etc. most of the time, this happens at night after i make a stop in between work and coming home. this could be very dangerous for single women who are stranded in a parking lot in the middle of the night waiting for 20 minutes for their car to start. *tr

This car has been a electrical/mechanical nightmare and i'm finding many, many, reports on the internet of owners having the same problem(s). 1) intake manifold gasket leaks causing catalytic converter and egr valve to clog. the result of this is exhaust gases can't escape , backing up and burning/blowing a hole in the intake manifold itself. all above items had to be replaced at a very substantial cost. 2) blinkers intermittently work. mostly they don't work. this is caused by a defective (flasher) module located in the dash behind the 'flasher" button. this ia very,very common. 3) a/c heater blower fan stops working on speeds 1,2 then 3 resulting. this is due to resistors burning up on a module mounted behind the dash and in front of the blower motor. my question here is, at what point does someone hold the manufacturer responsible for these obvious factory defects. all you have to do is google any of the above complaints and see how many people are affected. help !!! *tr

I have had issues with my 2001 chevrolet impala regarding the passlock sensor, which is part of the ignition switch. there's a service bulletin out on the part. i've contacted gm and they out right told me that they weren't going to do anything about my problem because my car has too many miles on it. i had the part replaced within the first 6 months of purchasing the car brand new. i had it replaced again on 11-10-05, which took a year and a half to diagnose the problem. now i am having the problem again. i contacted chevrolet today and they refused to even help...wouldn't even open a complaint for me. they're saying that no one else is having this problem, but i've researched forums and it appears that several people are having this problem. i don't feel that i should have to pay to have this repair done again since it was done 11 months ago. i'm irritated and i would like a response from someone as to what will be done. *nm

The traction system was activating for no reason. service abs light came on in vehicle. dealer replaced left wheel hub, including sensor. problem recurred the day after and the wrong assembly was installed, the correct assembly was installed. one month later problem recurred. dealer claimed it was a loose connection on wheel hub assembly. seven months later problem recurred. dealer now says the right hub assembly needed replacing, as well as the transmission solenoid. repairs have not been done for the latter because we want dealership to repair free of charge.*ak

2001 chevrolet impala ls 3.8l: body control module failure at 60,000 miles and again at 90,000 miles. car will not start; vehicle and driver stranded. *nm

I took my 2001 impala to the gm dealer at 23k miles for a noise in the steering column, at that time they said they had to replace an intermediate steering shaft plus other issues non related. at 73k they removed the shaft and lubed it and replaced left outer tie rod for $510+. at 98k my front wheel hubs were replaced and they replaced the intermediate steering shaft again and charged me $125 for the shaft and another $975+ for the rest. when i took the car back two weeks later for yet another steering problem they said it was my rack and pinion this time and charged me $1083. that was today, tonight on my way home with my wife, the car did the same thing while turning right on an exit ramp. i called 1-800-gm and they said they could not do anything for me except offer me a gm loyalty cert good for some $ off a purchase of a new gm product. i have been faithful returning to the gm dealer each time with steering problems (and other issues not related) expecting a fix and over the almost 5 years and almost 100k miles and many dollars spent i have lost my faith in gm. *nm

Low coolant light stays on - replaced first time low coolant light stays on - replaced second time. *jb

Complaint received via e-mail. recently a coin from the ashtray ended up in the lighter socket. the lighter and the power seats stopped working. my mechanic replaced the power seat circuit breaker. however, the fuse to the lighter had not shorted out. instead, he said, it melted a wire underneath the carpet. the cost to repair it was about $200.00. the 2004 model has a separate section in the ashtray blocked from the socket so that it could not happen on the newer model. i assume the engineering change was made because my problem happened before, and that change was made to reduce those instances. i would have had no problem if the fuse had blown which it did not. i asked my mechanic to remove the fuse because he said that the melted wire might cause a fire. i paid for a new circuit breaker, and i feel that gm should pay for the lighter because of the engineering omission on the earlier model. *ak

While riding down the highway with the windows in the up position, the entire glass on the drivers side fell inside the door. took car to be repaired and discorvered the regulator had broken.

Our 2001 chevy impala has had brake and rotor problems since the car had approximately 15,000 miles. the rotors were cut twice and replaced once while under warranty. the car pulsates when reducing speed and the steering wheel shakes when braking. we just spent $1,449 at the local chevy dealer to have the rotors once again replaced and brakes replaced along with the abs braking system. it is no longer under warranty as the vehicle has 65,000 miles. there is no reason brake rotors should have to be cut or replaced every 6,000 miles. there is no reason that the brakes should have had to be replaced twice. there has to be a manufacturers design defect and the car manufacturer should have to pay for all these expenses. *la

2001 chevrolet impala has a recurring incident of clicking noises at right front steering when the vehicle is turned left or right. this is supplemental to the vehicle developing a uneven wear at the right front tire. when taken to the original dealership, i was told that rotating the tires would solve the problem. as the problem grew worse (including a badly shimmying front end at high speeds),i took the vehicle to another dealership to address the problem. the second dealership found that the vehicle had a cracked weld on it chasis and repaired it. when asked about the tires, the dealership said that i would have to purchase new ones at my own expense. a smooth ride with new tires was short lived, as a badly shimmying front end had developed again (within 24 hours). taking the vehicle back to the second dealership, i was told the problem was a worn tie rod. once the problem was fixed, i periodically heard light clicking noised from the steering when making turns (right & left). taking the vehicle back to the second dealership, i was told it was just a matter of lubrication. once lubricated, the vehicle stopped making clicking noises for about 30 t0 40 days. i noticed that the clicking noises began when the vehicle is driven over uneven areas of a road or parking lot, or when the vehicle negotiates tight left turns (low speeds) and wide/sweeping left curves at high speeds. never the less, i do not believe that the problem concerns lubrication. latest maintenance date as incident date 10/16/03 (complaint: f/e snapping when turning. diagnosis: inadequate lubricants in the steering intermediate shaft. correction: removed shaft - lubricated and re-installed part# [xxx]. the original dealership: rhodes chevrolet of swansboro, nc (now under new name and management). the dealership making repairs: marine chevrolet cadillac oldsmobile. initial thumping/ uneven tire wear is within one month of vehicle purchase 01/18/01. vin [xxx]. *la updated 07/26/2012 *js information redacted pursuant t

Electrical problems causing accelerator to stick and using cruise control does the same. causing wreck with injuries and no airbag deployment upon impact of crash with speed over 55 mph to head on into to tree. could not stop car even when brakes were applied and had to turn key off to stop car from blowing up.

Vehicles stalled in traffic, took vehicle to dealer, and they were not able to look at it at that time. consumer took vehicle to another dealer, and they said that wires under the dash had been cut.*ak also the rear defrogger was inoperative, the overhead console was inaccurate, and the doors that move the airflow from the windshiled to the floor did not move the air to the specified area, the dealer ordered an actuator for the doors and for the airflow, an aftermarket device that was installed in the vehicle caused the vehicle to suddenly stall while driving. *jb