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What 110 owners told NHTSA about the 2016 Chevrolet Impala

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (110)Crash / fire / injury (12)Electrical system (30)Engine (20)Airbags (16)Steering (16)Transmission & drivetrain (16)Electronic Stability Control (esc) (10)Brakes (8)Body & structure (7)Lights (7)Fuel system (5)

1 of 110 complaints match · Electronic Stability Control (esc) · crash/fire/injury only · clear filters

May 17, 2018Electrical systemElectronic Stability Control (esc)Fire

ON APRIL 2ND, 2018, I WAS DRIVING TO WORK AROUND 4:50 A.M. DRIVING ON THE 303SB ONLY ABOUT 7 MINUTES INTO MY DRIVE I NOTICED THAT MY VEHICLE BEGAN TO LAG AND STALL OUT, I BEGAN TO NOTICE GREY SMOKE COMING FROM THE HOOD AND THAT'S WHEN I REALIZED THAT MY CAR WAS ON FIRE. WHILE TRYING TO AVOID TRAFFIC AND AFTER ALMOST BEING HIT BY ONCOMING TRAFFIC I WAS FINALLY ABLE TO GET MY VEHICLE INTO A SAFE ARE ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND CALL EMERGENCY ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE ON PROVIDED BY MY AUTO INSURANCE USAA. MY CONCERN IS THAT THE VEHICLE NEVER PROVIDED ANY TYPE OF NOTIFICATION LETTING ME KNOW THAT THE VEHICLE WAS SEVERELY DAMAGED. IF MY OIL IS LOW MY VEHICLE TELLS ME SOMETHING, WHEN THE TIRES ARE LOW ON AIR, MY VEHICLE TELLS ME. HOW COME WHEN MY VEHICLE CAUGHT FIRE AND WHILE IT BEGAN STALLING OUT I STILL RECEIVED NO NOTICE? I COULD HAVE BEEN KILLED HAD I GOT HIT BY ONCOMING TRAFFIC AND THE SITUATION MAY HAVE ENDED A LOT WORSE. I HAD MY VEHICLE TOWED TO THE NEAREST REPAIR SHOP AS COVERED UNDER THE USAA ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE ENDORSEMENT THAT BEING CHEVROLET SANDS. I RECEIVED A CALL FROM A REP WHO STATED THAT THE VEHICLE HAD HAD PRE-EXISTING DAMAGE TO THE VEHICLE SUCH AS OLD BATTERY ACID THAT HAD OVER TIME ATE AT THE WIRING OF THE VEHICLE CAUSING THE TRANSMISSION TO BLOW OUT. THIS VEHICLE IS A DEATH TRAP. I MENTIONED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS A CERTIFIED PRE-OWNED VEHICLE AND THAT THE VEHICLE WAS ONLY IN OUR CARE FOR LESS THAN A YEAR IN A HALF AND THAT WHEN WE BOUGHT THE VEHICLE IT CONTAINED 20,022 MILES AND THAT THE VEHICLE NOW ONLY HAD ABOUT 65,000 MILES. NONE OF THE SECURITY FEATURES EVER TURNED ON THE AUTO STOP FUNCTION DOESN'T OPERATE, THE BATTERY WAS BUILT ON TOP OF THE TRANSMISSION SAFETY ISSUE. THE IGNITION CUT OFF DEVICE DIDN'T WORK.

NHTSA ODI 11096550

Working with the data? Download all 110 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 19, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2016 Chevrolet Impala verdict →