Consumer Reports rates the new Impala best

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All personal opinion. I disagree. Having rented both recently, in a addition to a Charger, which I will review later. I have to say as far as what I like to drive the Charger was first, the Impala second, and the Honda last. That is not to say the Honda was bad, it was a nice car indeed, just not what I like to drive.
 
Originally Posted By: Cujet
Final report:

16MPG city,
20MPG highway,

Unable to achieve more MPG. Numb, unresponsive, balky, quirky and full of unnecessary issues. Compared to a 2014 Honda Accord V6, the Impala is half the car.

Awful driving car. Wife hates it, I hate it. Plus some form of aerodynamic rattle that was annoying on the highway.

If GM continues down this path, they deserve to fail, utterly and completely.


That mileage is awful! That's worse than my 350HP Hemi Magnum.
 
Originally Posted By: Cujet
Final report:

16MPG city,
20MPG highway,

Unable to achieve more MPG. Numb, unresponsive, balky, quirky and full of unnecessary issues. Compared to a 2014 Honda Accord V6, the Impala is half the car.

Awful driving car. Wife hates it, I hate it. Plus some form of aerodynamic rattle that was annoying on the highway.

If GM continues down this path, they deserve to fail, utterly and completely.


I have to disagree, I had one as a rental over Thanksgiving and thought it was a great car. Excellent powertrain that was smooth, quiet and responsive. The transmission was quick to shift and always in the right gear. Ride was excellent, steering and handling were quick and responsive. Build quality was very good, and interior materials were very high quality. Controls were easy to operate and intuitive. I would easily compare this car to my 2012 E-class, and in many areas the Impala was superior.

I really can't figure out how you couldn't fit in the backseat. I am 5'10 also, and it was like a limo back there - and the truck is huge. Below is a "selfie" of me sitting in the back with the seat at the position I drive at - which is pretty far back from the wheel.

I did have a nicely equipped LTZ with 19" tires, so not quite sure how yours was equipped, but there is no way I would agree with anything you said about the one I had. 2014 Accord V6 is a great car, but the Impala I had was at least 1.25x the car.

Gripes - Steering wheel was a bit weird looking, but very comfortable to grip in many different positions. I don't like the audio controls on the back of the wheel (like Chrysler). The visibility out of the rear window was lousy due to the steep slant it is on, but the back up camera helps with that.



 
Sat in the new Impala and the whole Chevy line up at a Classic Car show at the local Chevy engine plant in July 2013. Wasn't impressed with any of them. Couldn't get into the Corvette which was locked and to me the only Chevy I would ever consider buying.

When I see the Chevy Bow Tie emblem it makes me cringe. (NOTE: I was a strong Chevy man in the middle 1960's to early 1970's)
 
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Originally Posted By: dishdude
Originally Posted By: Cujet
Final report:

16MPG city,
20MPG highway,

Unable to achieve more MPG. Numb, unresponsive, balky, quirky and full of unnecessary issues. Compared to a 2014 Honda Accord V6, the Impala is half the car.

Awful driving car. Wife hates it, I hate it. Plus some form of aerodynamic rattle that was annoying on the highway.

If GM continues down this path, they deserve to fail, utterly and completely.


I have to disagree, I had one as a rental over Thanksgiving and thought it was a great car. Excellent powertrain that was smooth, quiet and responsive. The transmission was quick to shift and always in the right gear. Ride was excellent, steering and handling were quick and responsive. Build quality was very good, and interior materials were very high quality. Controls were easy to operate and intuitive. I would easily compare this car to my 2012 E-class, and in many areas the Impala was superior.

I really can't figure out how you couldn't fit in the backseat. I am 5'10 also, and it was like a limo back there - and the truck is huge. Below is a "selfie" of me sitting in the back with the seat at the position I drive at - which is pretty far back from the wheel.

I did have a nicely equipped LTZ with 19" tires, so not quite sure how yours was equipped, but there is no way I would agree with anything you said about the one I had. 2014 Accord V6 is a great car, but the Impala I had was at least 1.25x the car.

Gripes - Steering wheel was a bit weird looking, but very comfortable to grip in many different positions. I don't like the audio controls on the back of the wheel (like Chrysler). The visibility out of the rear window was lousy due to the steep slant it is on, but the back up camera helps with that.






That is clearly not the same car I rented. The rear mirrors on my 2014 Impala I rented were cut on bias and 1/2 the size of the ones pictured above, the front seats had carpeted "skirts" on the bottom that blocked the rear passengers feet, and the only way that much rear seat room was possible was if the rear seats were all the way forward.

Something weird here....

The car I rented had 250 miles on it, was clearly labeled a 2014 Impala and even had a spoiler on back.

I have to wonder if Hertz gets some form of "classic version". Because that is NOT the same car.
 
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Originally Posted By: Cujet
Originally Posted By: dishdude
Originally Posted By: Cujet
Final report:

16MPG city,
20MPG highway,

Unable to achieve more MPG. Numb, unresponsive, balky, quirky and full of unnecessary issues. Compared to a 2014 Honda Accord V6, the Impala is half the car.

Awful driving car. Wife hates it, I hate it. Plus some form of aerodynamic rattle that was annoying on the highway.

If GM continues down this path, they deserve to fail, utterly and completely.


I have to disagree, I had one as a rental over Thanksgiving and thought it was a great car. Excellent powertrain that was smooth, quiet and responsive. The transmission was quick to shift and always in the right gear. Ride was excellent, steering and handling were quick and responsive. Build quality was very good, and interior materials were very high quality. Controls were easy to operate and intuitive. I would easily compare this car to my 2012 E-class, and in many areas the Impala was superior.

I really can't figure out how you couldn't fit in the backseat. I am 5'10 also, and it was like a limo back there - and the truck is huge. Below is a "selfie" of me sitting in the back with the seat at the position I drive at - which is pretty far back from the wheel.

I did have a nicely equipped LTZ with 19" tires, so not quite sure how yours was equipped, but there is no way I would agree with anything you said about the one I had. 2014 Accord V6 is a great car, but the Impala I had was at least 1.25x the car.

Gripes - Steering wheel was a bit weird looking, but very comfortable to grip in many different positions. I don't like the audio controls on the back of the wheel (like Chrysler). The visibility out of the rear window was lousy due to the steep slant it is on, but the back up camera helps with that.






That is clearly not the same car I rented. The rear mirrors on my 2014 Impala I rented were cut on bias and 1/2 the size of the ones pictured above, the front seats had carpeted "skirts" on the bottom that blocked the rear passengers feet, and the only way that much rear seat room was possible was if the rear seats were all the way forward.

Something weird here....

The car I rented had 250 miles on it, was clearly labeled a 2014 Impala and even had a spoiler on back.

I have to wonder if Hertz gets some form of "classic version". Because that is NOT the same car.


Yeah, you had a 2014 Impala Limited, which is a fleet-only continuation of the old Impala that was redesigned in 2006.

GM doesn't want the new Impala to become a rental car darling, but rental agencies still need full-size cars. During the launch, GM kept the old model around to sell to the rental fleets while they fill the retail channel with the new version.
 
Originally Posted By: MrHorspwer

Yeah, you had a 2014 Impala Limited, which is a fleet-only continuation of the old Impala that was redesigned in 2006.

GM doesn't want the new Impala to become a rental car darling, but rental agencies still need full-size cars. During the launch, GM kept the old model around to sell to the rental fleets while they fill the retail channel with the new version.


You are exactly right! I had NO IDEA GM still produced that car for rental fleets, until I saw the pics above. Then, it started to make sense.

So, with that in mind,,,,,, Please disregard my posts above. I wish BITOG would allow me to edit the incorrect posts and correct the information.
 
Originally Posted By: Cujet
I wish BITOG would allow me to edit the incorrect posts and correct the information.

You are not the only one. I type pretty quick and always leave a letter or word out somewhere and don't notice it until the edit time has expired.

The would explain it. You were driving a old school W-Body. While I like my Grand Prix. The new Impala is a 1000 times better than the old W-body.
 
I have also got to love the Goofs who chime in based off a review of the wrong car like they actually know something.

Typical GM bashing its best.
frown.gif
 
Originally Posted By: ls1mike
I have also got to love the Goofs who chime in based off a review of the wrong car like they actually know something.

Typical GM bashing its best.
frown.gif



Well, I was unaware of the continued production of the older version. You can certainly understand my confusion for not knowing that GM produces 2 completely different versions for 2014. I do read the various tests, but I don't remember reading anything about the 2 wildly different models with exactly the same name and model year.

It absolutely was not my intention to "bash" GM. Only to inform that the car I rented was sub-par.

Remember, I rent cars all the time. So, when it's unusually good or bad, I like to post my findings. just this week, I've rented a Jeep Liberty, Impala and a Spark sedan (which I kind of like, btw)

Also, I'd love to own a C6 Vette. Not much to bash there... except the expensive competition......
 
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To a certain degree, this is kinda what GM gets for playing both sides of the card though--I'm glad your review is still up there for this exact reason! If you're going to sell something to rental agencies as a "2014" Impala, then this is what's going to happen, particularly when someone rents one who isn't particularly car-savvy. If you were confused by it, imagine the impression the average rental customer is going to have?

If they didn't want Impalas out as rentals, they should have re-named the old one, like they did with that one rental SUV. You can't have it both ways, piggybacking off the name but then selling a cheaper car as a rental. It seems like really bad branding to me. The new actual Impala looks really nice to me. If they made a wagon version, I'd be interested!
 
I agree. That seems to be utterly stupid move unless there is financial incentives to have more Impala "name plates" sold. Or GM's pre-agreed fleet contract price is below the cost of the new Impala but even then it is brain-dead move,
 
Originally Posted By: Cujet
Originally Posted By: ls1mike
I have also got to love the Goofs who chime in based off a review of the wrong car like they actually know something.

Typical GM bashing its best.
frown.gif



Well, I was unaware of the continued production of the older version. You can certainly understand my confusion for not knowing that GM produces 2 completely different versions for 2014. I do read the various tests, but I don't remember reading anything about the 2 wildly different models with exactly the same name and model year.

It absolutely was not my intention to "bash" GM. Only to inform that the car I rented was sub-par.

Remember, I rent cars all the time. So, when it's unusually good or bad, I like to post my findings. just this week, I've rented a Jeep Liberty, Impala and a Spark sedan (which I kind of like, btw)

Also, I'd love to own a C6 Vette. Not much to bash there... except the expensive competition......


It wasn't directed at you Cujet as you drove what you thought was an updated 2014 Impala.
More at the folks who just chime in even if they have not driven the car are anything GM has produced since the 80's...

However if you looked at the original article their is a picture of the updated Impala at the very top.
smile.gif

That may have cleared it up for you as to why a lot of the automotive press likes the car so much. It is just ,to me at least, more than what I would pay for a lot of cars.
 
Originally Posted By: ls1mike
http://www.gmfleet.com/chevrolet/impala-limited-sports-sedan.html


I love the link..."Impala Limited Sports Sedan," even though they don't say it in the page text, they still implied the W body Impala is some kind of sports sedan. There is nothing in the least bit sporting about a W body Impala. Maybe the V8 when they had that, but I have NEVER seen a V8 W body Impala in person. I have seen a V8 LaCrosse Super, and it was a nice car, but most W body Impalas I see are pretty awful.

That does explain the OP's negative impression though. If I was expecting an all new car and then got in the previous gen of Impala, I would be like [censored] too.

GM really, really should have just put this [censored] thing out of its misery as soon as the new Impala was hitting dealer lots. The W body served them well, good cars did come out of it, but trying to offer two Impalas at the same time with one of them being the old W body...stupid GM, very stupid. They should know better by now. Cujet is a car savvy guy and it threw him off...imagine what the average person will think when they see an ad for "the all new Impala," then get this as a rental.

I can understand some overlap when a new model is introduced, but at least just call it the "Classic" or something so people know up front that "this car doesn't represent the company, this is just the turd we could sell to Enterprise for $15K."
 
You really have to look at all the W-body cars separately.
I know there are folks on here who love the older SHOs

97 SHO VS 97 GTP

Back then it did pretty good, the outgoing Impala is long in the tooth, but there were some W-bodies that had different steering and upgrade suspension.
 
That's why I said good cars did come from that platform, I was just clarifying which generation of Impala I was talking about. In that form the W body was no sports sedan.

I don't really understand the need to overlap in this case. Isn't this the exact thing they were trying not to do with the Equinox by offering the Captiva for rental fleets? And this is even worse than putting a new model in rental fleets since they are offering an old, unrelated car by the exact same name except for "Limited."
 
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