Selling a worn-out or dead Chevy Impala

The Impala name returned for 2000 and ran through 2020. Owners filed 10,278 complaints with NHTSA on those years, and GM ran 32 recall campaigns. A few of those recalls still matter when you decide what to do with an old one.

Three Impalas, three sets of problems

The counts here were taken from NHTSA's public files on October 10, 2026.

2000-2005: oil on the manifold, keys and gauges

The 2000 Impala sat on the Lumina's front-drive W-body and came from Oshawa, Ontario. Buyers got a 3.4-liter V6 (180 hp) or a 3.8 (200 hp), and the 2004-2005 SS had a supercharged 3.8 rated at 240 hp. Every one used a four-speed automatic.

This generation holds 4,732 complaints, and 238 of them mention a fire. The 2000 alone has 818 complaints, 73 fire reports and 2 deaths.

The best-known fire risk is engine oil dripping onto the exhaust manifold. Recall 09V116 (April 2009) covered 1,497,516 GM cars with the 3.8 V6, including Lumina, Monte Carlo, Regal and 2000-2003 Impalas. Under hard braking, oil could land on a hot manifold, catch, and spread to the plastic spark plug wire channel. The fix was a redesigned front valve cover and gasket. Recall 15V201 added 2004 Impalas built April 8 to June 23, 2003, along with some 2004 Buick Regals. Then 15V701 (October 2015, 1,003,556 vehicles across several GM models) brought back 2000-2004 Impalas that already had the first fix.

Two fuel recalls also touch these cars. Recall 04V090 swapped leaky Delphi fuel pressure regulators on 3800 V6 engines across 910,873 GM vehicles, the 2000 Impala among them. Recall 01V136 added a bracket on 2000-2001 Impalas with the 3.4 and no ABS, because a fuel return line could sever in a frontal crash.

The 2004 drew 1,073 complaints, more than any other year, and 641 of them name the electrical system. Owners wrote of gauge clusters quitting and of the PassLock security light staying on while the car refused to start. Neither problem has a recall or warranty program behind it that we could find.

2006-2013: air bags, key rings and police arms

The ninth generation offered a 3.5 or 3.9 V6, and the SS had a 5.3-liter V8 from 2006 to 2009. The V6 grew to 3.6 liters with a six-speed for 2012. Fleets kept buying it as the Impala Limited until Oshawa stopped building it in May 2016.

The 2009 has 824 complaints, and 210 concern air bags. Recall 16V507 covered 289,254 2009-2010 Impalas whose passenger seat frame could chafe the occupant sensor wires and switch off the passenger air bag. Recall 10V480 checked front belt anchors on 303,100 of the same years.

Recall 14V355 (June 2014, 3,141,731 vehicles across GM brands) covers 2006-2014 Impalas. A key knocked out of run can cut engine power, power steering and power brakes, and the air bags may not deploy. Recall 14V400 is the matching campaign for 2000-2005 cars: 5,877,718 vehicles, Impalas and Monte Carlos among them.

Police cars had their own recall. Under 12V377, 36,413 Impala police vehicles from 2008-2012 got new front lower control arms, which could fracture.

2014-2020: steering assist and a dragging parking brake

The last Impala moved to GM's Epsilon II platform with a 2.5 four, a 3.6 V6, and a 2.4 eAssist hybrid that lasted one year. A 2015 Bi-Fuel version burned natural gas or gasoline. By 2020 only the V6 was left.

The 2014 had 636 complaints and 12 recall campaigns, the most recalls of any Impala year. Under recall 14V450, 57,242 early 2014s had a poor ground at the power steering module, so assist could drop out. Recall 14V541 updated electronic parking brake software on 2014-2015 Impalas and Cadillac XTS sedans, 205,309 cars in all, because pads that stayed partly applied could overheat and start a fire.

NHTSA complaints and recalls, year by year

"Fires" counts complaints that report one. Some campaigns name more than one model year, so the recall figures sum past 32. The last column is the system named most often, leaving out NHTSA's "unknown or other" tag. Four more complaints are filed under a 1999 Impala, a year before the name returned, and are left out.

Repair, or sell it as it is?

Recalls come first: NHTSA's search page takes the 17-character VIN. On a 2000-2004 car, ask a Chevy dealer about any open valve cover recall, because it is a fire risk.

Next, check whether a GM extension ever applied. Special coverage 14582 paid for throttle position sensors on 2008-2011 Impalas that ran rough or lost power. GM's bulletin set the term at "10 years or 120,000 miles (193,000 km), whichever occurs first," counted from when each car entered service. By now that window has closed on nearly all of them.

Then price the repair in writing and hold it up against the going rate for the same Impala in running shape. When the repair costs about as much as the car would be worth, keeping it rarely pays. If the engine bay has already burned, the fire-damaged car guide covers what to expect. If it simply won't start, see non-running car.

Selling a whole Impala: what to have ready

1. The VIN, the miles and the trouble. "Cranks but won't start" or "oil fire under the hood" tells us more than "needs work."
2. Ask for an offer online, or call (877) 421-6008.
3. Where the truck meets it. Name the spot, whether that's your driveway, a curb out front, a back lot or a mechanic's bay. Flag any flat tire, and whether the car can coast in Neutral. Pickup is free anywhere in the US.
4. Nothing comes off. Sell the whole car as it sits; keep the converter, the battery and all four wheels on it. A Bi-Fuel car keeps its natural gas tank. Tell us about anything already pulled.
5. On the day itself, the driver takes the signed title and the keys and checks your ID. Whether you keep the plates is a state-by-state question that after you sell answers.

Looking at another Chevy? See the Lumina, Monte Carlo and Malibu, or every Chevrolet we cover.