What 505 owners told NHTSA about the 2011 Chevrolet Impala

WHY IS THERE NOT A RECALL ON STABILITY TRACTION CONTROL? I SEE THOUSANDS OF COMPLAINTS ON THE INTERNET FOR GM VEHICLES. IT SEEMS TO ME THAT GM JUST DOESN'T CARE ENOUGH AFTER THE SALE. I JUST BOUGHT 2011 IMPALA AND NOW THE STABALITRACK SERVICE LIGHT KEEPS COMING ON WHILE GOING DOWN THE ROAD. IT WILL DO THIS FOR NO APPARENT REASON BUT HAPPENS MOSTLY WHEN ACCELERATING. USING THE CRUISE CONTROL ON LEVEL ROAD AND DASH WARNING LIGHT COMES ON AND THROWS CAR OUT OF CRUISE, DECELERATING WHILE GAGES FLIP AROUND ALL OVER THE PLACE. POWER LOSS AND LACK OF ACCELERATION ARE DEFINITELY SAFETY ISSUES. PULLING OUT OF MY DRIVEWAY ONTO MICHIGAN HIGHWAY AND I GET HALFWAY ACROSS HIGHWAY AND CAR STOPS. THIS HIGHWAY IS 55 MPG AND WHILE I WOULD HAVE HAD PLENTY OF TIME TO CROSS THE LANE, CAR LOOSES ALL POWER. LOOKING ON THE INTERNET GIVES NO HELP FOR A FIX. I TURNED THE STABILITY TRACTION CONTROL OFF, BUT THE PROBLEM DOES NOT GO AWAY. I SEE ON THE INTERNET THAT MANY PEOPLE HAVE TAKEN THERE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER GARAGE ONLY TO GET CHARGED EXORBITANT PRICES FOR "POSSIBLE" THAT DO NOT SEEM TO HELP. GM SHOULD GET THIS FIGURED OUT AND NOT LET EVERY DEALER GARAGE DO THEIR OWN GUESSING ON WHAT WILL FIX THIS VERY DANGEROUS PROBLEM THAT IS NOT LIMITED TO SINGLE MODEL OR YEAR BUT SPANS MANY YEARS WITH MANY MODELS. MY FIRST VEHICLE WAS A GM BUT THIS MAY BE MY LAST GM. I WOULD LIKE TO GIVE A DATE BELOW BUT THIS HAS BEEN HAPPENING SINCE I BOUGHT THE VEHICLE ABOUT A MONTH AGO AND GETTING STEADILY WORSE. I HAVE HAD IT CHECKED OUT BUT NOBODY CAN GIVE ME ANY USEFUL ANSWERS

NHTSA ODI 11081263

WHEN DRIVING MY CAR IT GIVES ME SERVICE STABILITY TRAC/ POWER ENGINE DOWN MESSAGE AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COMES ON SOMETIMES THE CAR WILL CUT OFF WHILE DRIVING USUALLY THE MESSAGE WILL GO AWAY AFTER A FEW DAYS

NHTSA ODI 10981161

SERVICE STABILITY TRAC AND REDUCED ENGINE POWER LIGHTS CAME ON. CAR STARTED JERKING AND MAKING NOISES WHEN STARTING CAR.

NHTSA ODI 10957543

WIRE SUPPLYING POWER TO REAR WINDOW DEFROSTER WAS FOUND BURNT AT HARNESS CONNECTOR LOCATED ON PASSENGER SIDE OF VEHICLE NEAR LOWER FUSE PANEL.

NHTSA ODI 10934440

ELAY SWITCH ON DRIVER SIDE FOR AIR CONDITIONER CLICKS FOR SEVERAL MINUTES AND BLOWS HOT AIR. THE PASSENGER SIDE CURRENTLY BLOWS COLD BUT NOW THE CLICKING HAS BEEN HAPPENING THERE ALSO. THIS IS OBVIOUSLY A COMMON DEFECT IN CHEVROLET IMPALAS THAT SHOULD BE TAKEN CARE OF. THIS HAPPENS EVERYWHERE ALL THE TIME MOVING AND PARKED

NHTSA ODI 10908536

TRAVELING A STATE HIGHWAY AT THE LEGAL SPEED OF 70 MPH, HAD TO BREAK VERY HARD. AS THE CAR SLOWED DOWN THE ENGINE SHUT OFF AND POWER STEERING FAILED.

NHTSA ODI 10895539

ON MY WAY TO WORK, I WAS MAKING A NEXT TURN AT A LIGHT WHEN MY CAR ALL OF A SUDDEN SHUT OFF AND THEN TURNED BACK ON TWICE IN A MATTER OF 15 SECONDS. THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS, IF IT WASN'T FOR THE VERY ATTENTIVE DRIVERS, I COULD'VE BEEN RAMMED!!! THE SECOND INCIDENT WAS AFTER I GOT OFF OF WORK. MY CAR WAS IN A PARKING GARAGE WHEN THIS HAPPENED. I TRIED STARTING MY CAR AND IT WOULDN'T START. I TRIED A SECOND TIME AND IT STARTED BUT THE ENGINE WAS REVVING REALLY HARD, LIKE I WAS ABOUT TO SPEED OFF OR SOMETHING. I TURNED THE CAR OFF AGAIN AND STARTED IT AGAIN FOR THE THIRD TIME AND "SERVICE STABILITRAK, SERVICE TRACTION CONTROL, AND REDUCED ENGINE POWER" ALL COME UP ON THE SERVICE SCREEN. AFTER READING MULTIPLE FORUMS ONLINE WITH HUNDREDS OF COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS. I WAS SCARED TO DRIVE HOME. I DROVE AT ABOUT 40 MPH ALL THE WAY HOME (MY JOB IS A 25-30 MIN COMMUTE) AND FORTUNATELY I DIDN'T GET STRANDED AND MY CAR DIDN'T TURN OFF IN THE MIDDLE OF DRIVING LIKE SOME FOLK HAVE EXPERIENCED. GM NEEDS TO ADDRESS THIS PROBLEM. WHY ISNT THERE A RECALL YET?!

NHTSA ODI 10863734

WHILE DRIVING THE TRACTION CONTROL,STABILIZER,ENGINE POWER WARNING ALL COME ON AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COMES ON AND SOMETIMES THE ENGINE TURNS OFF. PULL OFF ROAD, WILL NOT START THEN MINUTES LATER IT STARTS. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT STAYS ON. AFTER MULTIPLE STARTS THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT GOES OUT . I HAVE READ MULTIPLE COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS ,YET THE NOTHING IS BEING DONE. TO REPAIR THIS PROBLEM. THE EFFECTS OF THIS IS THE SAME AS THE IGNITION TURNING OFF. PENDING ON TRAFFIC. THIS COULD BE DEADLY. THIS HAS HAPPENED ALOT.

NHTSA ODI 10862078

I BEGIN NOTICING ISSUES WHEN TAKING OFF FROM A COMPLETE STOP WHERE THE VEHICLE WOULD LUNGE FORWARD LIKE IT COULDN'T SHIFT INTO FIRST GEAR. I HAD THAT CHECKED AND NOTHING SHOWED AS AN ISSUE, SO THE MECHANIC SAID IT HAD TO BE ELECTRICAL. THIS WEEKEND I AM DRIVING IT AND AFTER 25 MINUTES IN THE CAR THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COMES ON, AS DOES THE NOTICE THAT MY ENGINE POWER HAS BEEN REDUCED, AND TO SERVICE THE STABILITY TRACTION CONTROL SYSTEM. I WAS COMING TO A STOP LIGHT WHEN IT CAME ON AND I PULLED OFF TO TURN OFF THE CAR AND RESTART IT AS THAT WOULD WORK WHEN IT FAILED BEFORE TO RESET THE SYSTEM. IT DIDN'T RESET AND I HAD TO DRIVE IT WITH REDUCED POWER THE REST OF THE WAY TO MY DESTINATION. I HAD THIS FIXED A COUPLE YEARS AGO. I DID GET A NOTICE FROM GM ABOUT THE ISSUE AND THE ABILITY TO BE REIMBURSED OR GETTING IT FIXED IF THERE WAS A CURRENT ISSUE AND I WAS ABLE TO GET REIMBURSED FOR IT. NOW IT IS HAPPENING AGAIN, BUT MY MILEAGE IS TOO HIGH TO GET IT FIXED UNDER THIS REPAIR NOTICE BECAUSE THE LETTER SAYS THAT THE MILEAGE COVERAGE IS ONLY UP TO 120,000. IF THIS IS A KNOWN ISSUE AND I HAVE ALREADY DEALT WITH IT BEFORE, WHY SHOULD I HAVE TO PAY FOR IT TO CONTINUALLY FAIL WHEN IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH NORMAL WEAR AND TEAR, WHICH I WOULD HAVE NO ISSUE FIXING AS A PART OF MAINTAINING THE VEHICLE?! THIS SHOULD BE SOMETHING THAT GM WOULD FIX EVERY TIME IT GOES OUT BECAUSE IT IS CLEAR THE ISSUE IS A MALFUNCTION OF THE OVERALL SYSTEM AND NOT LINKED TO ANYTHING THAT THE DRIVER DOES OR DOESN'T DO TO MAINTAIN THE VEHICLE PROPERLY. IN ADDITION WHAT IF IT HAS TO BE REPLACED MULTIPLE TIMES AS IS THE CASE WITH MINE. I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN A DEVOTED GM CUSTOMER, BUT HONESTLY I AM NOT SURE I WILL EVER BUY ANOTHER GM AFTER THIS ISSUE. IT IS UNSAFE AND PROVIDES ANXIETY WHEN DRIVING, BECAUSE IT MIGHT FAIL AT THE WORST TIME AND COULD NEED FIXED AGAIN EVEN IF I FIX IT THIS TIME.

NHTSA ODI 10840205

REAR DEFROSTER NOT WORKING. DISCOVERED BURNED-UP CONNECTOR IN A PLUG UNDER PASSENGER FOOTWELL FUSE BOX. INTERNET RESEARCH INDICATES THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM AFFECTING IMPALAS AND OTHER MODELS OVER SEVERAL YEARS. THIS WOULD THEREFORE APPEAR TO BE A DESIGN DEFECT. OUTCOMES INCLUDE REDUCED VISIBILITY DUE TO INABILITY TO DEFROST/DEMIST REAR WINDOW AND FIRE HAZARD DUE TO OVERHEATED CONNECTOR

NHTSA ODI 10820086

I TURN ON THE VEHICLE AND THEN IT SHUT OFF...LIKE THE IGNITION SWITCH IS FAULTY...THEN THE STABILITRAK COMES ON..I HAVE TO TURN THE KEY OVER SLOWLY SO IT WON'T HESITATE TO TURN ON OR SHIRT OFF

NHTSA ODI 10778805

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 CHEVROLET IMPALA. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE LOST POWER WHILE DRIVING VARIOUS SPEEDS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT ALL THE WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED AT THE TIME OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 100,000.

NHTSA ODI 10764133

MY SON WHILE DRIVING HIGHWAY SPEEDS 60-70MPH, THE CAR DISPLAY WOULD SAY "REDUCED POWER" FOLLOWED BY "SERVICE STABILLATRAC", "SERVICE TRACTION CONTROL". SHUTTING CAR DOWN AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS. SHUT CAR OFF FOR 5-10 MINUTES AND WOULD B FINE FOR A WEEK, A MONTH, SIX MONTHS!!! THIS HAS BEEN GOING ON INTERMITTENTLY FOR OVER A YEAR!! CAR NOT UNDER WARRANTY AND CANNOT AFFORD TO TAKE TO DEALER EVERY TIME IT HAPPENS, NEEDLESS TO SAY NO ONE DRIVES IT BUT ME. HAVE NOT TAKING TO DEALER BECAUSE RESEARCH ONLINE AND NOTHING SEEMS TO BE A SURE FIX!! OTHER PEOPLE ARE REPLACING THROTTLEBODY,S, GAS PEDALS, GAS CAPS, ABS SENSORS, VARIOUS WIRING HARNESSES, BATTERIES, GROUNDS, COMPUTERS WITHOUT ANY OF THEM BEING A SURE FIX. SOMEONE WILL OR MAY HAVE ALREADY BEEN KILLED BY THIS MALFUNCTION AND UNFORTUNATELY DID NOT LIVE TO SAY THE CAR DID THIS!!!! I KNOW FROM READING ONLINE FORUMS AND THE SUCH THAT THIS SEEMS TO BE A VERY COMMON OCCURANCE ON MULTIPLE YEARS OF THIS MODEL!! ALL OF THIS ON TOP OF A $2 KEY SWITCH FIX THAT TOOK HOW MANY TO DIE BEFORE ANYTHING WAS DONE!!!

NHTSA ODI 10763412

WE OWN BOTH A 2011 AND A 2013 CHEVY IMPALA. BOTH VEHICLES GRIND AND HESITATE. THEY BOTH ACT THIS WAY WHILE TAKING OFF FROM A LIGHT, BACKING OUT OF THE DRIVEWAY AND THEN PUTTING IT IN DRIVE AND ANY OTHER TIME IT FEELS NECESSARY TO DO SO. EXCEPT WHILE BEING CHECKED BY THE MECHANIC. WE OWNED A 2007 IMPALA THAT DID THE SAME THING. OUR REMEDY, PUSH THE TRACTION CONTROL BUTTON TO THE "OFF" POSITION. STOPPED MAKING THE NOISE AND NO LONGER HESITATES AFTER PUTTING IT IN DRIVE. OF COURSE, WE HAVE TO DO THIS EACH AND EVERY TIME WE GET IN THE CAR. NO MORE BUYING CHEVY'S FOR US.

NHTSA ODI 10722114

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 CHEVROLET IMPALA. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE HEAT FAILED. IN ORDER FOR THE HEAT TO FUNCTION, THE VEHICLE HAD TO BE IN MOTION. THE FAILURE RECURRED NUMEROUS TIME. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER, BUT WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 65,000. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE.

NHTSA ODI 10716696

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 CHEVROLET IMPALA. WHILE DRIVING 70 MPH, THE TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT ILLUMINATED AS THE VEHICLE STALLED. AS A RESULT, THE VEHICLE CRASHED AND THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE DRIVER AND PASSENGER SUSTAINED MINOR INJURIES TO THEIR HANDS AND LEGS, BUT DID RECEIVE MEDICAL ATTENTION. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER. THE TECHNICIAN STATED THAT THE IMPACT WAS NOT HARD ENOUGH FOR THE AIR BAGS TO DEPLOY. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 56,000. UPDATED 6/8/15*CN UPDATED 11/6/15 *JS

NHTSA ODI 10706702

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 CHEVROLET IMPALA. WHILE DRIVING AT 40 MPH, THE INSTRUMENT PANEL FLICKERED AND THE STEERING WHEEL SEIZED. AS A RESULT, THE CONTACT CRASHED INTO THE REAR OF ANOTHER VEHICLE AND THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. THE CONTACT SUSTAINED NOSE AND FACE INJURIES THAT REQUIRED MEDICAL ATTENTION. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC. THE TECHNICIAN DIAGNOSED THAT THE HOOD AND SIDING NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE VIN WAS INCLUDED IN NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 14V355000 (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM). THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 5,000.

NHTSA ODI 10703869

WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY THE "SERVICE TRACTION CONTROL" MESSAGE COMES ON, THEN, THE MESSAGES "SERVICE STABILITY TRAK" THEN "ENGINE POWER IS REDUCED". AND THEN THE CAR SHUTS DOWN I HAD TO QUICKLY PULL OVER ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. AFTER A FEW MINUTES THE CAR STARTS UP AND EVERYTHING IS FINE. THIS HAPPENED TWICE SINCE THEN. EVERY COUPLE MONTHS THE SENSOR LIGHTS WOULD COME ON WITH THE ABOVE MESSAGE-WITHOUT CAR SHUTTING DOWN. THE LIGHTS COME ON A LOT MORE OFTEN NOW-ALTHOUGH THE CAR DOES NOT SHUT DOWN, IT'S THE FEAR OF THE POSSIBILITY. WHEN GOOGLING THIS PROBLEM WITH THE CAR IT SOUNDS LIKE THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM. I'M NOT SURE WHY THERE HASN'T BEEN A RECALL. I'M BRINGING IN MY CAR TOMORROW TO GET FIXED. HOWEVER, ITS UPSETTING THAT THERE SEEMS TO BE A PROBLEM WITH THE THROTTLE POSITION SENSOR, AND THERE WAS A RECALL ON A GMC TRUCK IN 2008 FOR THIS PROBLEM. THIS SEEMS TO BE A PROBLEM REGARDLESS OF YEAR OF MILES OF THE IMPALA. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10702423

I WAS DRIVING TO A JOB INTERVIEW ON A BARELY MOISTENED ROAD. SERVICE CONTROL THEN PROCEEDED TO POP UP ON MY DASH BOARD ALONG WITH THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT AND REDUCING ENGINE POWER. MY CAR THEN SHUT OFF AND I WASN'T ABLE TO CRANK IT FOR ABOUT 5 MINUTES. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10694831

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 CHEVROLET IMPALA. THE CONTACT RECEIVED A NOTICE FOR NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 14V355000 (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM) AND FELT THE REPAIR WAS INACCURATE. THE DEALER STABILIZED THE KEY, BUT THE IGNITION FAILURE STILL OCCURRED. THE MANUFACTURER STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT BE REPAIRED AGAIN. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS UNKNOWN.

NHTSA ODI 10693950

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 CHEVROLET IMPALA. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE APPROACHING A STOP SIGN, THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED BUT THE VEHICLE FAILED TO STOP. AS A RESULT THE CONTACT CRASHED INTO A CURB AND AN EMBANKMENT. THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. THE CONTACT SUSTAINED SHOULDER AND RIGHT HIP INJURIES BUT DID NOT REQUIRE MEDICAL ATTENTION. THE FRONT PASSENGER SUSTAINED ANKLE INJURIES THAT REQUIRED MEDICAL ATTENTION. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED AND THE CONTACT WAS UNSURE IF THE VEHICLE WAS DESTROYED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE VIN WAS INCLUDED IN NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 14V355000 (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM). THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS UNKNOWN. UPDATED 7/23/15*CN UPDATED 11/9/2015 *JS

NHTSA ODI 10692249

2011 CHEVROLET IMPALA. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO NOT RECEIVING A RECALL LETTER REGARDING THE IGNITION. *SMD

NHTSA ODI 10668001

I MADE AN APPOINTMENT WITH THE CHEVY DEALER AFTER RECEIVING THE RECALL NOTICE. WHEN WE TOOK THE CAR IN AS INSTRUCTED, WE WERE TOLD THEY DID NOT HAVE TIME. BUT THEY DID HAVE TIME TO TRY TO SELL US SOME SERVICES FROM THEM. WHAT IS THE COMPANIES RESPONSIBILITY TO FIX OUR CAR? *TR

NHTSA ODI 10684221

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 CHEVROLET IMPALA. WHILE DRIVING AT 55 MPH, THE ENGINE WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED AND THE VEHICLE STALLED. THE VEHICLE WAS ABLE TO RESTART AND WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE CONTACT RECEIVED NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 14V355000 (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM). THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 72,000.

NHTSA ODI 10682785

2011 CHEVROLET IMPALA. CUSTOMER UNSATISFIED WITH GM RESPONSE TO FIXING LIFE SAFETY ISSUE. *TA CONSUMER SENT ADDITIONAL CORRESPONDENCE. *SMD THE CONSUMER STATED THE VEHICLE CONTINUES TO HAVE AN ENGINEERING DEFECT IN THE IGNITION SWITCH, THAT COULD LEAD TO THE SWITCH COMING OUT OF THE RUN POSITION. THE CONSUMER STATED GM'S FIX WAS TO MODIFY THE KEY AND USE SMALLER KEY RINGS. THE CONSUMER STATED THAT WAS JUST A PATCH, THAT DOES NOT RESOLVE THE UNDERLYING ENGINEERING DESIGN MANUFACTURING DEFECT IN THE IGNITION. *JB STATUS UPDATE 02/10/15*JB UPDATED 06/22/15.*JB

NHTSA ODI 10663888