2000 Chevrolet Impala

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2000 CHEVROLET IMPALA. WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS IN THE SHOP FOR REPAIRS (UNRELATED TO THE ENGINE) THE ENGINE FAILED. THE ERRORS DID NOT APPEAR WHEN THE DIAGNOSTICS WERE PERFORMED. THE CONTACT WAS INITIALLY CALLED TO COME AND RETRIEVE THE VEHICLE, BUT IN THE SAME CONVERSATION, SHE WAS INFORMED THAT SOMETHING FAILED IN THE ENGINE. THE CONTACT WAS ALSO INFORMED THAT SHE SHOULD PROBABLY GET RID OF THE VEHICLE. THE ENGINE WAS REPLACED. NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER 04V090000 (FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY) WAS REFERENCED. THE CONTACT SPENT $1,000 TO HAVE THE ENGINE REPLACED. THE CURRENT AND FAILURE MILEAGES WERE 78,000. UPDATED 08/27/08. *LJ THE CONSUMER STATED THE CRANKSHAFT POSITION SENSOR, IGNITION SWITCH AND FUEL REGULATOR WAS REPLACED. UPDATED 08/27/08

LIKE EVERYONE ELSE W/ A 2000 IMPALA I HAVE FAULTY, NON-WORKING TURN SIGNALS ALL THE WAY TO THE MAJOR PROBLEMS OF THE INTAKE GASKET PROBLEM TO THE MOST SEVERE - THE PROBLEM OF THE CAR STALLING WHILE DRIVING OR SITTING AT A LIGHT. AND NO ONE CAN PIN POINTE THE ACTUAL PROBLEM. MY CAR USED TO JUST STALL OUT AT LEAST ONCE OR TWICE A DAY WHILE DRIVING. NOW THE CAR HAS GIVEN UP AND I'M ABOUT TO TOO. IT STARTS WHEN IT WANTS... I WISH LIFE WORKED THAT WAY BUT IT DOESN'T. TODAY I DECIDED TO RESEARCH RECALLS ON THE CAR AND FOUND OUT EVERYONE HAS THE PROBLEMS I DO BUT CHEVY HAS NOT TAKEN CARE OF ANYONE. PLEASE TAKE NOTE THIS IS SERIOUS. *TR

WAS HAVING A HARD TIME STARTING THE CAR AT TIMES, ESPECIALLY ON SHORT TRIPS IN TOWN. TOOK ABOUT 7 CRANKS TO FINALLY GET IT STARTED. DROVE THE CAR THE NEXT DAY, EVERYTHING SEEMED OKAY DID NOT DRIVE CAR AT ALL OVER THE WEEKEND. GOT INTO THE CAR ON MONDAY AND HEARD A HUGE NOISE. I THOUGHT THE WINDSHIELD BROKE. LOOKED UP AND SAW SMOKE COMING FROM UNDER HOOD. UNLATCHED HOOD, AND SAW THE INTAKE MANIFOLD EXPLODED ALONG WITH THE INTAKE PLENUM, AND THERE WAS A FIRE. BURNT THE INJECTOR CONNECTORS. CAR WAS NOW AT DEALERSHIP, AND CHEVROLET WAS SENDING AN INVESTIGATOR TO LOOK AT CAR AS THIS WAS A POSSIBLE RESULT FROM A RECALL BY GM REGARDING THE FUEL PRESSURE REGULATOR, WHICH I TOOK TO DEALER TO HAVE IT REPLACED. HOPEFULLY GM WILL TAKE OFF THIS.*AK

AFTER NOT BEING USED FOR APPROXIMATELY ONE MONTH, I TRIED TO START MY 2000 CHEVROLET IMPALA WITH 114,000 (+/-) MILES. THE CAR DID NOT START. I CONNECTED JUMPER CABLES AND AGAIN TRIED. THE CAR DID NOT TURN OVER. I WAITED A FEW MOMENTS AND THEN TRIED AGAIN. WHEN I TURNED THE KEY, THERE WAS AN EXPLOSION AND FIRE. I TURNED THE KEY OFF AND DISCONNECTED THE CABLES. THE TOP OF THE UPPER INTAKE HAD EXPLODED. THE PLASTIC ENGINE COVER HAD DISCONNECTED AND THE OIL FILLER CAP/TUBE HAD PROJECTED TO THE NEIGHBOR'S YARD. THE TOP OF THE MOTOR, FUEL LINE AND SURROUNDING WIRES/INSULATION WAS ON FIRE. THE FIRE WAS PUT OUT BY SMOTHERING. I CALLED A MECHANIC DIRECTLY AFTER THE INCIDENT AND WAS INFORMED OF A RECALL FOR THE FUEL PRESSURE REGULATOR. AFTER VIEWING THE RECALL FOR FOR THE 3.8L (VIN K) FUEL PRESSURE REGULATOR, THE POTENTIAL SITUATION OF A LOW BATTERY COMBINED WITH THE LEAKING REGULATOR CAUSING A BACKFIRE AND THUS EXPLOSION WAS EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED. I CONTACTED LOCAL CHEVROLET DEALERSHIPS AND WAS THERE WAS NO RECALL FOR MY VEHICLE. I THEN CONTACTED CHEVROLET CUSTOMER SERVICE VIA A PHONE CALL ON DECEMBER 4, 2006. AFTER MULTIPLE PHONE CALLS OVER THE NEXT FEW WEEKS, I WAS REQUESTED TO HAVE THE CAR TOWED, AT MY EXPENSE, TO A LOCAL DEALERSHIP SO CHEVROLET COULD SENT A REPRESENTATIVE TO INSPECT. CHEVROLET THEN CALLED ME THE BEGINNING OF JANUARY TO TELL ME THAT THEY FEEL THE LOW BATTERY CAUSED THE EXPLOSION AND THUS, THEY WERE NOT RESPONSIBLE. I ASKED FOR A COPY OF THEIR INSPECTION REPORT AND WAS TOLD IT WAS CHEVROLET PROPERTY AND WOULD NOT BE RELEASED. I THEN SEARCHED THE NHTSA WEBSITE AND FOUND VEHICLE RECALL BULLETIN 03054-B WHICH MY VIN # IS WITHIN THE RANGE GIVEN FOR 2000 IMPALA. I AGAIN CALLED CHEVROLET WITH THIS INFORMATION AND WAS TOLD THAT EVEN THOUGH MY # WAS IN THE RANGE, IT MIGHT NOT HAVE BEEN INVOLVED, BUT IN ANY EVENT, THEY HAD INSPECTED THE VEHICLE AND FOUND THEY WERE NOT AT FAULT. THEREFORE, CHEVROLET'S DECISION WOULD NOT BE CHANGED. *NM

I WENT OUT TO START MY 2000 CHEVY IMPALA WITH A 3.8L ENGINE AND UPON CRANKING THE ENGINE THERE WAS A LOAD BANG. I IMMEDIATELY NOTICED SMOKE COMING OUT FROM UNDERNEATH THE HOOD. I GOT OUT AND OPENED THE HOOD AND SAW THAT THE TOP OF THE ENGINE WAS ON FIRE. I WAS ABLE TO PUT THE FIRE OUT WITH A FIRE EXTINGUISHER. I TOWED THE VEHICLE TO A LOCAL DEALER AND IT WAS NOTED THAT THE UPPER INTAKE MANIFOLD HAD EXPLODED AND THE FIRE WAS CAUSED BY THE FUEL LINE BEING DISPLACED. CHEVY SAID THEY ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE INCIDENT EVEN THOUGH THERE ARE RECALLS FOR THE 3.8L ENGINE UNDER THE CAMPAIGN NUMBER 04V090000. MY [XXX]. *JB UPDATED 07/16/2012 *JS INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

1. I DISCOVERD I HAD A SLOW GAS LEAK IN THE GAS RETURN LINES. I HAD BEEN SMELLING GAS FOR SEVERAL MONTHS BUT JUST THOUGHT IT WAS A SPILL IN THE TRUNK POSSIBLY OR SOMETHING ELSE. I NEVER SUSPECTED IT TO BE A LEAK BECAUSE THE CAR WAS SO NEW AND IN EXCELLENT CONDITION AND HAD NEVER BEEN TREATED ROUGHLY. 2. I COULDN'T DRIVE THE CAR FOR SEVERAL WEEKS TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT IT WAS AND IF IT WAS A RECALL OR NOT, IT WASN'T CLEAR. THE CONSEQUENCES COULD HAVE BEEN MUCH WORSE IF I HADN'T FOUND THE LEAK. 3. I TOOK THE CAR TO MY MECHANIC, THEY SAID IT WAS A RECALL; THEY SUGGESTED I TAKE IT TO A CHEVROLET DEALERSHIP AND HAVE THEM FIX IT. I DID THAT AND THEY INFORMED ME THAT THEY WERE NOT ABLE TO FIX IT BECUASE IT WASN'T INCLUDED IN THE RECALL. I TOOK IT BACK TO THE ORIGINAL MECHANIC AND THEY FIXED IT FOR EXACTLY HALF THE PRICE THE CHEVROLET DEALERSHIP WAS TRYING TO CHARGE... ANYWAY, I AM OUT OF POCKET A LOT OF MONEY FOR A RELATIVELY NEW CAR. THE RECALL ON THE WEBSITE SEEMS TO INCLUDE THE GAS HOSES BUT WHEN I CALLED GENERAL MOTORS, THEY SAID MY VIN # WASN'T INCLUDED IN THE RECALL. MY MECHANIC ADVISED ME TO FILE A COMPLAINT BECUASE IT CLEARLY STATES THAT MY CAR SHOULD BE INCLUDED IN THE RECALL!

MY CHEVY IMPALS LS 2000 HAS BEEN STALLING WHILE HOT ON THE PARKWAY. THIS IS A SERIOUS SITUATION. THIS WAS HAPPENING INTERMINTELY ABOUT EVERY FEW MONTHS, THEN RECENTLY IT HAS BECOME A DAILY EVENT. MAYBE 1 - 6 TIMES A DAY WHILE ON MY WAY TO WORK. THE DRIVE IS ABOUT 30 MILES, ONE WAY, AND IT STALLS USUALLY TOWARD THE END OF THE TRIP. I HAD THE THRODLE BODY REPLACED LAST WEDNESDAY AT THE DEALER, AND IT DID NOT FIX THE PROBLEM. BEFORE THAT THE GAS FILTER WAS REPLACED. THIS WEEKEND IT HAPPENED FOUR TIME ON SATURDAY AND FOUR TIMES ON SUNDAY. THIS IS A VERY DANGERIOUS SITUATION ESPECIALLY ON THE PARKWAY. I HAVE HAD IT TO THE DEALER A NUMBER OF TIMES AND THEY CANNOT IDENTIFY THE PROBLEM. AFTER THESE STALLS OTHER CARS ARE ALMOST RUNNING ME OFF THE ROAD. I HAVE BEEN LUCKY. I LOVE THE CAR AND DON'T WANT TO GET RID OF IT, BUT IF THIS KEEPS UP I MAY HAVE TO.*AK