2016 Chevrolet Impala

2015 Chevrolet Impala

Photo credits: www.cars.com



-...  prestige car within the reach of the average American citizen.-
Ed Cole, chief engineer of Chevrolet division from the 50's.

1959 Impala

Photo credits: allfordmustangs.com

 

Short History of Chevrolet Impala

Impala is one of the most famous model from all GM divisions. It is a full-size sedan produced by Chevy from 1958. It debuted in 1956, as a concept car on the General Motors Motorama,one of the most famous TV auto shows of that time. First production version was made on Chevrolet's A body platform and it was designed by Clare MacKichan and her team of Pontiac designers whose platform caught an eye of Harley earl, who was GM styling vice president. First Impala was different from the rest of much more conservative full-size sedans made by Chevrolet, it was lower and wider and it was classified as top of the line Bel Air coupe and convertible. Impala rose to prominence in mid-sixties when it became the best selling full-size sedan, in competitive market, since back then this was the most mainstream  class. It was competing with rivals such as: Ford Galaxie 500 and Plymouth Fury. Chevrolet Impala Caprice was the top trim level of the sixties Impala range until in 1965 Caprice was made into a separate higher performance model. Impala was produced until 1983, when it was replaced with Chevrolet Caprice Classic sedan. In 2000 Impala was reintroduced, and since then it became one of the best selling large sedans. It is also ranked as one of the most affordable large cars. Accept in United States it is also sold by Chevrolet Canada, Mexico and various Middle East Chevy divisions.

2014 Chevrolet Impala on the road

Photo credits: Motortrend.com

 

2016 Chevrolet Impala Related News

 

Chevrolet Impala Limited police car

 

Chevrolet Impala Limited

2016 model year is going to be the last year of Impala Limited production, which is the old version Impala that's going to be based on GM Epsilon E platform and sold only as a fleet vehicle. This version's popularity among fleet buyers is the reason of this continuation. Impala Limited will be produced in Oshawa plant in Ontario and its story resemblance the one of old Malibu whose production was continued after this vehicle's redesign. 

2015 Chevrolet Impala SS

Photo credits: Topspeed.com

Chevrolet Impala SS Performance Model

There are a lot of rumors online about new performance oriented high-end vehicle is going to replace current Chevrolet Impala SS.  Since the whole Impala line became little bit too much of a family car and totally neglected its rebel reputation from the sixties, this is probably going to be an attempt to win over the younger crowds into liking this sedan again.

Impalas at Oshava plant in Ontario, Canada

Photo credits: cbc.ca

 

Oshawa plant closure- Impala moves back to Michigan

GM plans to close its Oshawa plant in Ontario, Canada. This will have consequences to all of the Chevrolet Canada produced models including Impala, that's being assembled in this plant. Chevrolet Impala's production lines are going to be moved to Michigan in 2016 and the assembly plant which employs more than 3,500 workers and which won prestigious  J.D. Power Silver Plant Assembly Line Quality Award last year is going to be closed. This move mostly has to do with large decrease in sales of GM vehicles in Canada, that now control only 12,5% of the Canadian car market, which is an almost 10% drop from 22,4% that GM hold in the third quarter of 2008.

2015 Chevrolet Impala CNG

Photo credits: motortrend.com

 

Bi-fuel Impala

From 2015 model year Chevrolet division started producing bi-fuel models. 2016 Chevrolet Impala bi-fuel version will be able to run on both gasoline and CNG and together with bi-fuel Honda Civic it is going to be the only car like this that's produced in the United States.

2014 Chevrolet Impala in the dessert surroundings

2014 Chevrolet Impala on Auto Show

Photo credits: motortrend.com

 

 

Exterior, Interior, Performance, Price etc

We still haven't find any information about how this model is going to look or what features it is going to come with. Accept everybody predicting a major redesign in 2016, nobody knows what is going to be changed exactly. We definitely think that new model's price is going to stay the same or it will only come with a minor increase, since this car is labeled as the most affordable large sedan, and that's just part of its image since the 50's. 2015 Chevrolet Impala can be bought from $27,535, for the lowest LS trim level up to the $36,580 for the highest LTZ trim level with 3,6 liter V6 engine.
Last Impala model came with the most spacious trunk in its class, quality materials used in making its interior and a praised 3,6 litreV6 engine that offers high performance and nice acceleration. If GM is going for some major change in this model they should definitely replace the base model's four cylinder engine, with something stronger, because in last few model years most of the reviewers were advising buyers to skip base level engine and go straight for the V6.

2015 Kia Cadenza

2013 Chrysler 300

Photo credits: thecarconnection.com

 

Other Possible Options

Traditionally main rivals of Chevy Impala are Dodge Charger, Ford Taurus and Nissan Maxima. Since we usually try to find some other alternative competition, we would add Kia Cadenza to this group. as well as Chrysler 300.

1958 Chevrolet Impala commercial

Photo credits: plan59.com

 

 

Statement

Older Imapala models are one often seen on the hotrod and low rider gatherings and are basically the type of car that's been driven by the people who love their Impalas more then they love their mamas. Since these models have a true gangsta look it is very popular among these type of people, plus the wannabes, especially on the West Coast. Newer Chevrolet Impala models are much more common and ordinary than the ones from the sixties. Driving a 2014 Chevrolet Impala tells that you are a person who likes as much luxury as it can afford, that you are someone who is hedonist on the one side and practical and economic person on the other. Probably the perfect combination of all three.

Stevie's Impala in American Graffiti

Doughboy and his Impala from Boyz in da Hood

Kobe Bryant's Impala

 

Trivia

Impala got its name from the Southern-African antelope and it owns one part of its popularity to its unusual name. Since it is one of the most popular cars in the country Impala was seen in many movies. It played the main role some of the biggest Hollywood blockbusters like American Graffiti where it was a Stevie's car driven by Terry the Toad. It was also seen in Batman Begins with Tim Burton, as no other but the Batmobile itself, with customized body made on the Chevrolet Impala's chassis. My favourite movie Impala is the one from Boyz in da Hood, driven by Doughboy (Ice Cube). There are a lot of celebrities who drive this car, but they usually choose the older models, some of them are: Kobe Bryant, Lebron James, Kevin Dorsey from the Green Bay Packers and a lot more celebrities have old Impala models in their fleets. In popular culture Impala is also known as the car which was driven by the murderer of Christopher George Latore Wallace a.k.a. Notorious B.I.G.

What Do Girls Think About Chevrolet Impala?

Girls adore Impala drivers, especially the older models. Newer models also got some positive reviews from the girl I showed its pictures to, especially the red Chevrolet Impala SS. One girl told me she adors the newer model from the photo I shoved her, but she also said that it looks great in red color and she's not really sure how it would look in some other color. Another girl from Russia told me that the 2014 Chevrolet Impala looks catchy, respectable and elegant. Girls that I showed the older models to, especially the ones from the sixties were so crazy about them that they would hop into the back seat of any of those cars in no time, especially if they see a convertible. So old Impala is definitely the right car to cruise around the city on the hot summer nights.

 Photo credits: Lowrider.com