Problems with 2004 Chevrolet Impala ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

2004 chevy impala ss cluster malfunction. speedometer not working, unable to know how fast i am going. no recall as of yet. seems to be a common problem with chevy vehicles. *tr

I was driving my car down the road and all of the sudden my speedometer and water gauge stopped working. it said i was going 120 mph but i was only going about 30 mph. the next day i went out to the car and started it while it was parked and it was stuck on 30 mph and the temp gauge showed the needle in the red, but it was not started for more than a minute. i have read many complaints about this and this seems to be a familiar complaint. *tr

I own a 2004 chevy impala and the instrument cluster has failed. my speedometer does not work and the temperature gauge shows that my car is running hot even though it is not. apparently this is a common issue with gm and gmc vehicles. in 2007 a class action lawsuit was filed against his company in regards to their trucks with failed instrument clusters. the plaintiffs did win and there was a recall implemented. these are websites that i found that pertain to failure in the instrument cluster in 2004 chevy impalas. http://www.allworldauto.com/comments/2004_chevrolet_impala_comments_and_complaints_c8-91-2004-409-1.html http://www.carcomplaints.com/chevrolet/impala/2004/electrical/electronic_gauge_cluster_malfunction.shtml http://www.automotix.net/autorepair/car_problems/474044-complaint/ http://www.instrumentclusters.com/. *tr

2004 chevy impala my wife and kids are driving to florida and the speedometer goes out. now if you are driving from michigan to florida and have no idea at midnight how fast you are going- that is a huge safety problem. from looking on the web this seems to be a very common problem with these vehicles. recall on this would be great! *tr

2004 chevrolet impala speedometer quit working. it started registering a higher speed than the speed i was actually driving. it showed 90 mph when i was stopped. the speedometer then began to climb as i drove a few city blocks. it finally came to a stop at the neutral letter. i called my local dealer and he said they have been seeing this problem. he said that the cluster was defective and it would cost approx. $500 to replace it. *tr

Speedometer does not work! shows that i am going 130mph, then 60 when parked. dealer say no recall even though my husbands truck had the same problem and they recalled the part in the silverado. $500 to fix. this needs to be recalled!!! i am reading hundreds of complaints on the impala for the same thing. my 21 year old daughter is driving this car on the highway every day..very dangerous!!! *tr

My car has had a problem with periodic not starting, this has been going on for years off and on. the other day was when i finally realized my car had put me in a dangerous situation. i went to the store late right before it was about to close. went and made my purchase. when i came out my car would not start. i have been reading about a passlock issue on certain gm models and mine falls within the make and year of vehicle with this issue. there were a group of men whom kept lingering around the store after it had closed, and here i am a female alone stranded due to a vehicle that wouldn't start. because of a passlock defect. thank goodness the police came by wondering why there was a car in the parking lot of a closed store. he sat and waiting for my car to reset so that it would start. i guess it is gonna take someone to lose their life or be severely injured for gm to feel they need to fix this. i don't think anyone should have to spend their own money on a issue that gm is fully aware exists. someone may not be so lucky next time being stranded and having their car not start. death wont wait 10 minutes for a reset. *tr

I just had my second multi-function switch (headlight dimmer, turn signal, cruise, wiper/washer) fail on this car for the same reason resulting in complete loss of headlights. this is a very common issue as seen by numerous bulletin board postings. i dissected the original switch to determine if this could be fixed. it became quite obvious what was happening. the contacts on the hi/lo beam portion of the switch foul and overheat. this switch had melted plastic from the switch housing that had flowed over the contacts and prevented proper switch operation. this is an incredibly dangerous situation that manifests itself with little or no warning. this overheating is obviously due to poor engineering that has resulted in undersized contacts that foul due to relatively high load currents in the headlight circuit. *tr

Hello, i have a 2004 chevy. impala. a large number of the speedometers on these cars are defective, as is mine. the speedometer goes berserk and you have no idea what your speed is. for example. you may be taking a 35 mph curve at 50 when the speedometer says 35 or other. this is a serious safety concern. gm has had hundreds if not thousands of complaints (just one example: http://www.carcomplaints.com/chevrolet/impala/2004/accessories-interior/speedometer_gone_haywire.shtml) on this and chose not to own up to it. the problem is not only with my model/year, the problem is with the speedometers which have been used in many models over several years. there needs to be a recall on this before people are killed. *tr

Traveling on a dangerous stretch of highway, my speedometer malfunctioned. it registered me as going 90 miles per hour. after several close calls, as conditions were icy, i judged a safe speed and pulled over at the next safest spot on the road. my speed gauge did not reset to 0 mph as normal, but stopped at 50 mph. now my gas gauge and temp gauge malfunction as well, leaving me no way of knowing how much fuel is in my vehicle. researching this problem, i noticed many other complaints to this issue. contacting the manufacturer, i was informed my warranty is expired and they have no obligation to fix the safety problem. *tr

I was driving down the street and saw that my speedometer says about going 110 miles an hour when i knew that i was only going about 25 i was in a residential area. the issue started slowly i would only happened once in a while but here we are 2 years later and my actual speedometer needle faces down towards the steering wheel .no my service tag agent going on the frayed of my gas gauge is gonna stop working also the blinkers only work when i want to . . *tr

I have a 2004 impala. it only has 41,000 miles on it. i have kept it maintained. recently the gauges on the control panel began going crazy-flicking back and forth and the check engine lite would come on. now the speedometer is whacked out. it reads 100 when i'm guessing 40 or 50 mph or 10 when i'm around 35 or the total opposite. i called the local chevy dealer, serviceman and told them of the numerous complaints i had read on this problem. he informed me there was no recall and the cost to repair it would be around $550. i believe this is a total rip off! this is not an isolated problem, considering the mounted number of complaints i have already read. this was my 1st chevrolet, i will never buy another one! *tr

Instrument cluster on 2004 chevy impala gives incorrect readings to include speed which could result in driving at excessive speeds without proper indication and resulting in unjust speeding fines. *tr

2004 impala, 80,000 miles. cold winter day. consequences( having to purchase new speedometer ) nothing done to correct as of yet. speedometer not working properly, says going 90 mph when going 60. when vehicle shut off say 30mph. inherent flaw noted by chevrolet vehicles (common symptoms include: speedometer displays incorrectly speedometer stops working tachometer needle sticks, jumps, or pegs fuel gauge flutters entire instrument panel fails the common cause for all these issues is a faulty stepper motor. the motor was used throughout gm?s entire production line from 2003 to 2007.) i think there should be a recall on all vehicles with which people have had problems with incorrect reading speedometers as gm used faulty parts in manufacturing. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2004 chevrolet impala. the contact stated the speedometer failed which made it impossible for him to see the speed he was driving. the vehicle also had water penetrate the front passenger floor. the vehicle will be taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing. the vin was not available. the failure and the current mileage was 80,000.

My speedometer runs wildly up and down. it doesn't work well at all. i think i'm driving 55 and it shows 100. i want chevrolet to have a recall on this. i have a 04 chevy impala. i have read over 100 complaints on the computer. *tr

2004 chevy impala, 35,000 miles. was driving down the interstate and noticed that temperature gauge was reading in the red, pulled into a mcdonald's to see what was going on (normally the impala has an alarm that goes off when overheating, this did not happen) as i decelerated, i noticed that the speedometer did not move, but rather stayed at 60mph, and the temperature gauge also did not move. upon turning the car off, the speedometer moved back to 0, the temperature gauge stayed in the red. turning the car back on did not reset the temp gauge, but as i accelerated, the speedometer stayed at 0 for the rest of the trip (i had to use gps to get speed). the speedometer has not worked correctly since. doing some inspection later, i found this is an extremely common problem in impalas of most 2000-2010 impalas. our local police force drives impalas, and the speedometers fail on roughly 60% at between 30k and 60k miles. a quick search online also revealed that it is a severe problem, and several people have been either pulled over, or had been going much to fast before noticing. dealership says the only way to fix it is a complete replacement of instrument cluster($150 used, $400 new), and several people who have gotten the replacement simply have the problem again. as you can see, this is an extremely severe problem, and while the employees at the dealership say it happens all the time (at least 3 impalas with faulty speedometers per week), chevy as a company does not seem to notice. please help! links to some repair forums about similar problems: http://www.topix.com/forum/autos/chevrolet-impala/tjsmiqpd8j0ft5dk8 http://www.carcomplaints.com/chevrolet/impala/2004/accessories-interior/speedometer_gone_haywire.shtml http://www.automotivehelper.com/topic640920.htm http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/t752665.html. *tr

Chevy impala - speedometer keeps messing up. stops working when i am driving. will going 55 and when i stop the speedometer doesn't always go back to 0. next thing i know i am in a 35 but my speedometer is reading 90mph. an online search has found that many other have the same issue. far to many for the same type of car. *tr

The instrument panel is malfunctioning. first, the tachometer stopped working at all, now the speedometer indicates erroneous speeds. it shows that i am driving very fast when i'm actually much slower than the rest of the traffic. when parked, it shows 15-20 mph. it's very unsafe to drive without knowing your real speed, especially on long trips on the highway. since the problem is quite common, gm should issue a recall to avoid such negative publicity. *tr

2004 chevrolet impala,speedometer works one day and doesn"t work the next day. will be going down the highway shows speed one minute and maybe nothing the next. really have no idea how fast i am going. seems very dangerous. gm has to know that have a safety problem. *tr

2004 chevy impala, problem 1:turn the key on security light blinking, car wont start. car will start after 10 minutes or so. problem 2: speedometer stuck, for example you would be on the freeway doing 60mph even when you park your car or the needle would be stuck on 0 and i know it can't be right. it has been doing this for quite sometime about a year now off and on. problem 3: ac/heater fan control wont turn on. i have taken my car to different shops and they don't know what's going on with it, it's costing me alot of money being ripped off by the shop. i still have to pay them even though they didn't fix the problem. they say they fixed it and same problems still exist. *tr

Problem is speedometer. driving on highway at 60 mph, as sun was setting, speedometer slowly went 60 to zero or a low number (over 5-10 minutes) with no actual change in speed. this happened on several consecutive days. currently, for many months, speedometer is not accurate. e.g. going about 40 mph, reads 20 mph. e.g. going about 35 mph, reads 120 mph, repeat 120 mph. e.g. car at standstill, speedometer reads 120 mph. e.g. going 40 mph, reads zero. often shows correct speed then slowly goes down with no change in actual speed. very dangerous on highway at night not knowing how fast you are going. searched internet, many similar complaints. problem - possibly stepper motors. need recall. *tr

2004 chevy impala. 3 months ago the tachometer stopped working. now the speedometer reads 120 mph when vehicle is not moving. when traveling with traffic on the interstate it is a problem to not know my correct speed. just as going too fast can cause accidents so can going too slow on the interstate. it will cost over $500 to fix at the dealership. the car only has 68,000 miles. *tr

Now at 117,000 kms. or past my five year warranty. since 88,000kms. have complained several times about temp gauge very out of whack on highway trips, lead me to believe severely overheated, but no message from car, just gauge going almost 90 degrees past "danger point " of gauge. in last two years temp gauge replaced three times. obviously not the problem. returns to normal function in city or short haul driving. stop frequently, and under hood check shows no signs of overheating. conclusion- electrical, sensor, problem and dealer keeps coming up with costly new equipment fixes which do not work. now they want to blame a water pump leak and gaskets, although reservoir carefully watched by me. no leaks there. have never had to add fluid, although i keep it always in car-that is the dexcool-water mix. never down lower than recommended, and the dealer wants to give me a new water pump and take 1000-1200 out of my pocket. they have never mentioned the temp sensor, or any other fix. travel on mountain highways 3 times per year, gauge now gone way over the top 6-8 times. always stop. no sign ever of hose, radiator, water, lowered reservoir, or computer messages as per manual. have read of numerous similar problems of this make and model, the 04 chevy impala ls, always gauges. in my case i will not approve another temp gauge "fix" and now speedometer is acting up as well, just like other drivers reported. *tr

Headlights and interior lights went off while driving. *tr

I have a 2004 chevy impala. my speedometer has went crazy!! i can be doing 30 and it says i am doing 105. also when i come to a complete stop it registers 25. this could cause anywhere from a minor speeding ticket to a major accident. this should be a recall. no more gm products for me!!! *tr

2004 chevrolet impala speedometer malfunction. indicates very high speed (90-100 mph) even when barely moving. *tr

My speedometer is out of whack, also the tach doesn't read correctly. you never know how fast you are going. this could lead to a serious accident. going around corners or driving in a school zone. somedays it works for a little while and some days not.. it reads 90 miles an hour while your going slow. *tr

The night of 12/13, my temperature gauge was reading very high. i checked my coolant and did some trouble shooting. my car was not over heating as indicated on the gauge. two days later, this problem resolved, however another problem with the speedometer developed. on 12/15, my speedometer was reading 60mph while i was parked in a parking garage. as i accelerated (going no more than 10mph) my speedometer was reading 120mph. it now rests at 120mph while parked and the needle goes above any readable mph while driving. since dec 15th, i have no idea how fast i am actually driving. *tr

We were on vacation in georgia on dec. 11, 2009 when i noticed the speedometer registering 90 mph when i was only doing approximately 35. it has continued registering the improper speed or not working at all since that date. we feel this a very dangerous defect in the car and should be addressed by gmc. we have been using a garmin gps to register the speed since dec of last year. *tr

Speedometer sticks or shows inaccurate speed. dealership says instrument cluster needs to be replaced. *tr

Vehicle speedometer suddenly quits functioning. speedometer suddenly shows high speed (example 120 mph) when driving highway speeds. speedometer remains stuck in this position. i was able to clear the error after returning home and cycling the ignition from off to on many many times. now the tach just '!@#$% out and stays at 6:00. i been also having transmission issues to where the tranny would occasionally shift hard then be fine for a while then back to shifting hard? *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2004 chevrolet impala. while driving approximately 30 mph on normal road conditions, the speedometer displayed an inaccurate reading regardless of the speed being traveled. the failure occurred intermittently in cold temperatures. the failure was related to the stepper motor. the vehicle has not been repaired at this time. the failure mileage was 30,423. updated 01/29/10 *bf updated 01/29/10.*jb

First noticed a problem over a year ago when the tachometer went to zero while cruising down the interstate highway. the next time i drove the car it was fine. recently i noticed that the coolant temp gauge was reading way past "hot," however the car was not overheating. it continues to read this way. next it was the speedometer reading much faster than actual speed, approximately 50 to 70 mph high. once again the tachometer has gone haywire as well. since this started i have noted that the tach and speedometer are functioning, (they movie higher and lower with changes in engine and vehicle speed) but appear to have lost their "zero" reference. i recalled that they would normally drop to below zero and then snap to zero when the key is first turned on. with the engine off i repeatedly cycled the key on then off, gradually backing the tach and speedometer to zero. they then functioned properly for a short time before wigging out again. it is my guess that the problem lies in the gauges losing their home pulse. so far, the fuel gauge has continued to operate normally. this failure is very dangerous as well as leaving me open to speed related tickets as i can only estimate my speed based on experience. after researching this problem and discovering the high number of complaints already filed with nhtsa it seems to me that this problem should result in a recall of these vehicles. *tr

I own a 2004 chevrolet impala sedan which has 123,551 miles on it. i bought it with 108,000. i discovered after i bought it that my speedometer cluster was acting up. i could reset it by turn the key on and off til it reached 0 and both the water temp gauge and speedometer would work for a day or so. now, only the speedometer works by resetting and the water gauge never works. i have seen may other impala complaints for the same reason. they did a recall on the trucks but not on impalas. i feel this should be a recall. 2nd problem. transmission shop diagnosed and replace valve body. still did same jumping in and out of gear so replace again. still does it. was told by another transmission shop who drove my car that it may be control module. it never does it when i take to a transmission shop but my mechanic got it to do it on fri. and said he thought it could either be speedometer cluster related or may a control module. it is an interminent problem and have had since i bought car in dec. 09. another friend said he bought a new 08 and it did same thing. no one ever found out why. *tr

Instrument cluster for speedometer needed to be replaced because speedometer reads 45 mph while stopped and at 30 it reads 80 mph. *tr

While driving my 2004 chevrolet impala at 60 mph, the speedometer suddenly dropped to 0 mph and remained there. the fuel gauge is also stuck reading full continually, and the rpm gauge is also stuck at zero. the car only has 51000 miles on it, and based on my research, this problem is widespread. gm needs to be forced to recall this obvious defect. *tr

Speedometer does not function correctly. speedometer registers erratic speeds, going to speeds of 80, 90, 120+ for no apparent reason. each time the automobile is turned off and turned on again, it usually will go down by about 10 mph. after several days, it will return to normal, but this pattern repeats after a day or so of registering correct mph. this started about a month ago. we have called chevrolet and been advised to have the car checked at a deal for defective equipment, but have not been able to find a dealer who will respond to our call. *tr

2004 impala odometer malfunction in winter cold whether condition most of the time.

My turn signals intermittently don't function for a period of time, and then suddenly start working again. restarting the car fixes the problem sometimes, but isn't very helpful when you're on the highway traveling somewhere. this is a dangerous situation, especially at night on busy streets when you can't signal to turn or merge. also, this has happened only once, but my car would not start as others have stated' the interior lights turned on but the car would not turn over. after twenty minutes the car started fine. this hasn't happened since, but if it did it would be a major inconvenience.. *tr

Speedometer and temp gauge are not working in impala 2004. the speedometer quits working as i drive. it will come back to working state after i have turned off car and restarted it. the temp gauge just doesn't work at all. *tr

First the tachometer quit working then the speedometer became erratic saying i was going slower than i actually was(checked with gps).i was doing 60 on the highway and it speedometer said 45,tachometer is always pegged out !! *tr

I own a 2004 chevrolet impala. i have not been in a accident but i feel my problem could possibly cause one. the speedometer in my car started acting up recently. it is not accurate, it usually reads zero when i am driving but sometimes reads a speed that is clearly inaccurate. i did some research on it and found out it is a common problem with these cars and a very costly repair. at this point in time i cannot afford the repair so i just try to drive slow. this should be a recall. *tr

Just driving down the road no specific road just normal driving and all of a sudden the speedometer either goes up or down does not have correct speed sometimes it will go back to normal after about an hour and sometimes after thirty minutes or after you shut the car off and restart. it happens about twice a week i have not replaced any parts as of yet trying to figure out what the problem is for sure. i am reading online that many people are having this problem and it is the gauges need to be replace and that there is a recall on chevy trucks but mine is a 2004 impala and as of yet there is not one and there are many people very angry online regarding this matter and want a recall as soon as possible because the cost is about 600 - 800 dollars depending on where you go so they are using gps systems for there speed instead of getting it repaired since the cost is so high. *tr

2004 impala, speedometer stops working while driving. mileage continues to work and all other instruments continue but speedometer falls below 0 while driving. *tr

2004 chevrolet impala ls speedometer suddenly started to malfunction. sometimes reads 0 when car is in motion. often reads -0 at stop, jittery movement when the indicator moves at all, sometimes stops @ 20 or 30 mph and will not show higher number even while continuing to accelerate. actual speed can not be determined while operating the vehicle. gm has issued a recall for the tahoe for the same problem but refuses to recall the defect in the impalas . clearly a manufacturing defect and not do to age or mileage. *tr

Well i'm so tired of repairing the same problem .this abs issues are driving me crazy i mean i already replaced the [xxx] computer the bearings the cable that sends the signal and still this problem is going on in since 2009. ever since 2009 is ridiculous and dangerous i mean is a matter of time before this issue becomes an accident i mean i'm driving fine and all of a sudden the [xxx] car acts all stupid the brakes don't even work fine because the abs system makes them push back to you and then it makes your car pull to the right for no reason it so annoying i'm a hard working person i have invested a lot of money into my car for gmc to sell me a dangerous car i also had to get another motor because the original would shake when ever you would accelerate but i just want to get this dangerous issue fixed please make them repair my car because sooner or later my wife or me are going to have an accident....thank you *tr information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2004 chevrolet impala. the driver stated that his speedometer malfunctioned while driving 65 mph it indicated that he was driving 5 mph. the vehicle was purchased 3 months ago and the failure has occurred 3 times. he has contacted the dealer and taken the vehicle in to be repaired; however, the dealer stated that he couldn't offer any assistance since it was working when the vehicle was purchased. the failure mileage was 60,000. the vin was not available. the current mileage was 67,000.

Speedometer was sitting on zero, after stopping it started moving, but was jerky. the speed sensor has been replaced. this did not fixed the problem. the tachometer is not working properly either so unable to tell what my speed is in the car. *tr

Speed-o-meter needle pegs out and wanders inadvertently. just happened one day. it is a continual occurrence. some days it seems to work kind of, and at other times it moves very abruptly on the dial and never smooth like it should. it has been the cause of being pulled over on 3 occasions in the last month due to lack of knowledge of my vehicles' speed. there is no way to determine the vehicles' speed without it (and without a gps device or something similar). *tr