2012 Chevrolet IMPALA

Problems, Recalls & Reliability Report

Avoid This Year

Quick Summary

The 2012 Chevrolet IMPALA has 422 owner complaints filed with NHTSA — that's 5.3x the segment average of 80. The most common issue is electrical problems (14% of all complaints), specifically: purchased a gm certified vehicle. vehicle stalled several times whenever making a left hand turn. when i would make a left hand turn, the vehicle would die completely in the middle of the turn. i would have to restart the car. one instance when trying to restart the car, the ignition acted "stuc. ⚠️ 5 fire reports filed.

5 fire reports 24 crash reports 13 injuries

422

Total Complaints

Recalls Issued

—/5

Safety Stars

5.3x

vs Segment Avg

Known Problems

ELECTRICAL

58 complaints

14%

• PURCHASED A GM CERTIFIED VEHICLE. VEHICLE STALLED SEVERAL TIMES WHENEVER MAKING A LEFT HAND TURN. WHEN I WOULD MAKE A LEFT HAND TURN, THE VEHICLE WOULD DIE COMPLETELY IN THE MIDDLE OF THE TURN. I WOULD HAVE TO RESTART THE CAR. ONE INSTANCE WHEN TRYING TO RESTART THE CAR, THE IGNITION ACTED "STUC
• 2012 CHEVROLET IMPALA. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO POWER SENSOR FAILURE IN VEHICLE. *SMD THE CONSUMER STATED WHILE DRIVING, THE VEHICLE LOST ALL POWER. THE ENGINE QUIT, THE FLASHERS WOULD NOT WORK AND HE WAS UNABLE TO MANUALLY UNLOCK THE DOORS, OR LOWER THE WINDOWS USING THE POWER SWITCH. THE ON
• SAME INCIDENT TWICE. I AM DRIVING EITHER AT LOW SPEEDS (5 TO 10 MPH) OR AT 30 MPH. THE LIGHT SERVICE STABILITRAK AND BRAKES COMES ON. AFTER I TURN OFF THE CAR, THE WARNING LIGHTS AND THE MESSAGE GO OFF. I TOOK CAR TO DEALERSHIP BUT THEY SAID THEY COULD NOT HELP BECAUSE THE WARNING MESSAGE IS OFF

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 2 fire reports💥 3 crashes

“PURCHASED A GM CERTIFIED VEHICLE. VEHICLE STALLED SEVERAL TIMES WHENEVER MAKING A LEFT HAND TURN. WHEN I WOULD MAKE A LEFT HAND TURN, THE VEHICLE WOULD DIE COMPLETELY IN THE MIDDLE OF THE TURN. I WOULD HAVE TO RESTART THE CAR. ONE INSTANCE WHEN TRYING TO RESTART THE CAR, THE IGNITION ACTED "STUC”

— NHTSA complaint filing

ELECTRONIC SYSTEMS

54 complaints

13%

• IM GOING DOWN THE ROAD MASH ON THE GAS DOING 38 AND THE VEHICLE IS OUT OF CONTROL. I LITERALLY HAD NO CONTROL OVER THE CAR. IM DOING 45 TO 50 AND THE VEHICLE IS DRIVING ME RIGHT INTO THE SHOULDER OR INTO OTHER TRAFFIC I HAD TO LAY OFF THE GAS TO GAIN CONTROL OF CAR DOING SUCH LOW SPEED. I WAS DRIVIN
• IN FEB. 2014 STARTED GETTING INTERMITTENT COMPUTER MESSAGES CONCERNING, SERVICE TRACTION CONTROL, SERVICE STABILATOR(?) CONTROL, REDUCED ENGINE POWER. MESSAGE OCCURS RANDOMLY, AND STAYS FOR A DAY OR LESS, THEN GOES TO JUST SHOWING THE ENGINE ICON, THEN CLEARS SELF. CAR WAS PURCHASED USED (16000 MI
• I WAS DRIVING AND AFTER MAKING A LEFT TURN, MY SERVICE TRACTION CONTROL, SERVICE BRAKE ASSIST, AND ABS LIGHT ALL POPPED ON. IT WENT ON AND OFF FOR MANY DAYS AS I WOULD STOP AND THEN RE-START THE CAR. I FINALLY TOOK IT TO A CHEVY DEALERSHIP AND WAS TOLD THEY TESTED THE FRONT ABS CONNECTOR AND ADJUST

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 1 fire reports💥 3 crashes

“IM GOING DOWN THE ROAD MASH ON THE GAS DOING 38 AND THE VEHICLE IS OUT OF CONTROL. I LITERALLY HAD NO CONTROL OVER THE CAR. IM DOING 45 TO 50 AND THE VEHICLE IS DRIVING ME RIGHT INTO THE SHOULDER OR INTO OTHER TRAFFIC I HAD TO LAY OFF THE GAS TO GAIN CONTROL OF CAR DOING SUCH LOW SPEED. I WAS DRIVIN”

— NHTSA complaint filing

STEERING

50 complaints

12%

• I WAS ROTATING THE TIRES AT HOME. WHEN REPLACING THE WHEELS I STARTED AND SNAGGED THE LUG NUTS BY HAND. I WENT TO TORQUE THE LUG NUTS TO SPECIFICATIONS (100 FOOT POUNDS) USING A TORQUE WRENCH. ONE OF THE RIGHT FRONT LUG NUTS WOULD NOT STOP TURNING WAY BEFORE REACHING THE SPECIFIED TORQUE. AS I CONTI
• TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 CHEVROLET IMPALA. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 50 MPH THE STEERING BECAME DIFFICULT TO MANEUVER CAUSING THE DRIVER TO CRASH INTO A TELEPHONE POLE. THE FRONT PASSENGER SUSTAINED WHIPLASH. THE REAR PASSENGER SUSTAINED A BROKEN THUMB AND A HEAD CONCUSS
• I RECENTLY READ THAT GENERAL MOTORS ISSUED A RECALL AUGUST 3, 2012 FOR 2008 - 2012 CHEVROLET IMPALAS CONCERNING THE SUSPENSION. RECALL # 12V377000 CONCERNS THE FRONT LOWER CONTROL ARMS WHICH, ACCORDING TO THE RECALL MAY FRACTURE. A FRACTURED LOWER CONTROL ARM CAN RESULT IN THE LOSS OF CONTROL OF T

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 1 fire reports💥 7 crashes

“I WAS ROTATING THE TIRES AT HOME. WHEN REPLACING THE WHEELS I STARTED AND SNAGGED THE LUG NUTS BY HAND. I WENT TO TORQUE THE LUG NUTS TO SPECIFICATIONS (100 FOOT POUNDS) USING A TORQUE WRENCH. ONE OF THE RIGHT FRONT LUG NUTS WOULD NOT STOP TURNING WAY BEFORE REACHING THE SPECIFIED TORQUE. AS I CONTI”

— NHTSA complaint filing

ENGINE

43 complaints

10%

• ENGINE MAKES A TICKING NOISE OR KNOCKING NOISE WHILE ACCELERATING , I'M VERY CONCERNED WITH THIS BEING THAT THIS NOISE STARTED THE NEXT DAY AFTER I HAD THE CAR HOME FROM THE DEALERSHIP . I'M HOPING THIS ISN'T A SAFETY CONCERN BUT IT SURE IS A CUSTOMER DISSATISFACTION. THE DEALER HAS TRIED TO ISOL
• ENGINE MAKES A KNOCKING NOISE WHILE ACCELERATING. I DROVE ANOTHER ONE AND THE NOISE WAS EVEN WORSE, THAT ONE HAD 15000 MILES ON IT. THIS SEEMS TO BE A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THEM ALL. I AM VERY UNHAPPY WITH THIS CAR. I DON'T ENJOY HEARING ALL THIS NOISE FROM A NEW CAR. (NOW HAS 6000 MILES ON IT) IF I C
• VEHICLE STARTED VIA NORMAL KEY IGNITION. AFTER HIGH IDLING STOPS FOR WARM UP, VEHICLE STARTS TO HAVE ODOMETER NEEDLE MOVE FROM 500 RPM TO 1000 RPM FOR A STEADY 5 TO TEN MINUTES. IN ADDITION, EVENT OCCURS FREQUENTLY AT LONG STOPS EVEN AFTER CAR WARM. USUALLY, RPM MAY STEADY AT ABOUT 750 OR SO A NO

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 1 fire reports💥 2 crashes

“ENGINE MAKES A TICKING NOISE OR KNOCKING NOISE WHILE ACCELERATING , I'M VERY CONCERNED WITH THIS BEING THAT THIS NOISE STARTED THE NEXT DAY AFTER I HAD THE CAR HOME FROM THE DEALERSHIP . I'M HOPING THIS ISN'T A SAFETY CONCERN BUT IT SURE IS A CUSTOMER DISSATISFACTION. THE DEALER HAS TRIED TO ISOL”

— NHTSA complaint filing

BRAKES

34 complaints

• WHEN STOPPED AT A RED LIGHT THE PEDDLE WOULD SLOWLY DRIFT TOWARDS FLOOR. THE CAR BEGAN TO ROLL AS IF THE BRAKES WERE RELEASING. I APPLIED MORE PRESSURE TO THE PEDAL HALTING THE VEHICLE. I TOOK THE CAR TO A DEALERSHIP AND WAS TOLD IT WAS DUE TO THE LOCATION OF THE MASTER CYLINDER AND GM WAS AWARE
• BRAKES HAVE WHAT I FEEL IS EXCESSIVE AMOUNT OF FADE ESPECIALLY AFTER JUST A FEW STOPS SEEMS TO OCCUR MORE AT SPEEDS OVER 50 MPH. *TR
• SAME INCIDENT TWICE. I AM DRIVING EITHER AT LOW SPEEDS (5 TO 10 MPH) OR AT 30 MPH. THE LIGHT SERVICE STABILITRAK AND BRAKES COMES ON. AFTER I TURN OFF THE CAR, THE WARNING LIGHTS AND THE MESSAGE GO OFF. I TOOK CAR TO DEALERSHIP BUT THEY SAID THEY COULD NOT HELP BECAUSE THE WARNING MESSAGE IS OFF

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 5 crashes

“WHEN STOPPED AT A RED LIGHT THE PEDDLE WOULD SLOWLY DRIFT TOWARDS FLOOR. THE CAR BEGAN TO ROLL AS IF THE BRAKES WERE RELEASING. I APPLIED MORE PRESSURE TO THE PEDAL HALTING THE VEHICLE. I TOOK THE CAR TO A DEALERSHIP AND WAS TOLD IT WAS DUE TO THE LOCATION OF THE MASTER CYLINDER AND GM WAS AWARE ”

— NHTSA complaint filing

Estimated Repair Costs

ELECTRICAL(~50K mi)

$500

ELECTRONIC SYSTEMS(~50K mi)

$500

STEERING(~50K mi)

$500

ENGINE(~50K mi)

$500

BRAKES(~50K mi)

$500

Estimates based on average reported repair costs. Actual costs vary by location, shop, and severity.

🔍 Pre-Purchase Inspection Checklist

Based on 422 owner complaints for this specific year, here's what to check or ask about:

☐
ELECTRICAL: PURCHASED A GM CERTIFIED VEHICLE. VEHICLE STALLED SEVERAL TIMES WHENEVER MAKING A LEFT HAND TURN. WHEN I WOULD MAKE A LEFT HAND TURN, THE VEHICLE WOULD DIE COMPLETELY IN THE MIDDLE OF THE TURN. I WOULD HAVE TO RESTART THE CAR. ONE INSTANCE WHEN TRYING TO RESTART THE CAR, THE IGNITION ACTED "STUC
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
ELECTRONIC SYSTEMS: IM GOING DOWN THE ROAD MASH ON THE GAS DOING 38 AND THE VEHICLE IS OUT OF CONTROL. I LITERALLY HAD NO CONTROL OVER THE CAR. IM DOING 45 TO 50 AND THE VEHICLE IS DRIVING ME RIGHT INTO THE SHOULDER OR INTO OTHER TRAFFIC I HAD TO LAY OFF THE GAS TO GAIN CONTROL OF CAR DOING SUCH LOW SPEED. I WAS DRIVIN
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
STEERING: I WAS ROTATING THE TIRES AT HOME. WHEN REPLACING THE WHEELS I STARTED AND SNAGGED THE LUG NUTS BY HAND. I WENT TO TORQUE THE LUG NUTS TO SPECIFICATIONS (100 FOOT POUNDS) USING A TORQUE WRENCH. ONE OF THE RIGHT FRONT LUG NUTS WOULD NOT STOP TURNING WAY BEFORE REACHING THE SPECIFIED TORQUE. AS I CONTI
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
ENGINE: ENGINE MAKES A TICKING NOISE OR KNOCKING NOISE WHILE ACCELERATING , I'M VERY CONCERNED WITH THIS BEING THAT THIS NOISE STARTED THE NEXT DAY AFTER I HAD THE CAR HOME FROM THE DEALERSHIP . I'M HOPING THIS ISN'T A SAFETY CONCERN BUT IT SURE IS A CUSTOMER DISSATISFACTION. THE DEALER HAS TRIED TO ISOL
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
General: Get a pre-purchase inspection from an independent mechanic ($100-$200)