Does the Chevy Impala need 302 HP?

[punjabiplaya]

needs more power to lug giant chrome rims, chrome pepboys sticks, hugely loud sound system, and fat women in the back

 

[JimW1949]

The 3.6L DI gets better fuel mileage while making 90 more HP, plus they are going to a 6 speed auto from the current 4 speed. Don't see how any of this is a negative.

I am not familiar with that, but in any case I wasn't suggesting there was anything negative about it. I was merely saying that the trend around where I live is that people want smaller more fuel efficient vehicles. With the price of fuel being what it is, I can understand why.

 

[exdeath]

needs more power to lug giant chrome rims, chrome pepboys sticks, hugely loud sound system, and fat women in the back

Hydraulic pumps and batteries weigh alot.

 

[Bignate603]

Could it be as simple as them wanting to kill of an engine that wasn't a good seller? Using a single engine in multiple vehicles saves GM money. Now they're using it in the camaro, the CTS, the SRX and the Impala. I have no problem with them using an engine across more models when it's a solid engine.

 

[pwnagesarus]

There were no other Impalas after this one.

 

[Doppel]

It is rather fun to have a vehicle with a lot of horsepower. But with the price of gas at $4 per gallon and will no doubt be going even higher, I suspect vehicles with larger engines will not be driven as much, if at all. Manual transmissions get better mileage and I suspect that is probably why they are becoming more common these days. Speaking about older cars, I really liked the Chevelle when it came out.

Other than the Chevy Cruz of recent automobiles I've checked out I would say more times than not the automatic gets better mileage, or they get the same. This did not used to be the case but is now. There is generally no reason to get a manual from a gas use perspective and in fact manuals are becoming LESS common. They are undeniably dying. They are available increasingly in only the entry level of a car or a sports-oriented automobile.

Manuals now exist in most cars simply to save a few bucks at time of purchase (maybe) or for fun factor but the technology of automatics now has them every bit as capable on gas use and often just as fast, too. I've owned many manual cars but this is the reality now.

 

[DougoMan]

It is rather fun to have a vehicle with a lot of horsepower. But with the price of gas at $4 per gallon and will no doubt be going even higher, I suspect vehicles with larger engines will not be driven as much, if at all. Manual transmissions get better mileage and I suspect that is probably why they are becoming more common these days. Speaking about older cars, I really liked the Chevelle when it came out.

I think large engines get a bad rap. Gross vehicle weight is what people should be studying. Geared right big engines can get remarkable good fuel economy, especially on the highway.

Also it seems to me that a lot of automatics are becoming more efficient than manuals, what with 5-8 gears and more efficient dual clutch boxes. Though that might just have to do with shorter gearing since they are usually sportier models.

Still though manual cars are 10x more fun to drive. I honestly think I would prefer a 5 speed Civic to an automatic Porsche or similar high performance vehicle.

 

[Zargon]

for real

MT equipped LS1 4th gen fbodys can easily get over 30 MPG on the highway, same with V5 vette's.

 

[GuitarDaddy]

There were no other Impalas after this one.

Drove one of these for a decade and put 288k miles on it. Replaced it with a 2006 SS with the 5.3l 303hp that everybody is hating on in this thread and have driven that one for almost six years.

I absolutely loved the way the 96 looked and the freeway ride it had, but I have to say in every other respect the 06 is a better car. It's faster, lighter, handles better, gets way better mileage 18/30, and has been more reliable.

The torque steer everyone complains about is only noticable if you stomp it off the line and even then is not bad, during normal to aggresive driving it is absolutely a non issue. Even though it posted 0-60 times (5.7s) better than the 5.7l 96 and equalled the times of the Mustang GT in the years it was released it is not the car that you would want if throwing a brick on the pedal and racing street light to street light is your thing.

 

[LTC8K6]

Yeah, with the 06-09 Impala, you really didn't lose any fuel economy going with the 5.3L over the V6's. It actually got much better highway economy than the 3.9L V6 with the auto. It was close to the 3.5L as well.

 

[mmntech]

I'm surprised by this. Chevy still makes the Impala?!

I guess they're trying to add some life back into it. The Malibu has pretty much usurped the Impala as their full size, even though it's technically a mid-size. Don't see too many new Impalas on the road. Not like you used to.

 

[DivideBYZero]

No way man, '62 all the way!

<boner>

Yeah, these old Impalas are great. The recent ones are like a shit sandwich with a side of extra shit.

 

[Throckmorton]

I like the styling of the current Impala except for those googly headlights that look like they came off a 90s Hyundai.

 

[hanoverphist]

No way man, '62 all the way!

truthfully, every year between 61 and 69 i would love to have. 62, 64 and the 66 are my fave styles, and the 61 would have to be a convertible. those are just too bubbly for me without a soft top hehe.

 

[brblx]

have you guys ever heard of black people?

and no, that's not racist. find me anyone that clamors over a FWD 'super sport' built like an 80's shitcan and guesses can be made about their ethnicity.

 

[hanoverphist]

have you guys ever heard of black people?

and no, that's not racist. find me anyone that clamors over a FWD 'super sport' built like an 80's shitcan and guesses can be made about their ethnicity.

my good friends mom drives one, loves it. shes a 5 foot nothing irish woman in her 60s. the cool thing about a stereotype is it could be true, if you think about it in a specific way. but youre still a tard for even mentioning it, since its such a generalized ideal that it doesnt really matter to anyone else but people that want to focus on the race thing. get over it.

 

[JulesMaximus]

for real

MT equipped LS1 4th gen fbodys can easily get over 30 MPG on the highway, same with V5 vette's.

You mean like this kind of highway? No way you'd ever see anywhere near 20mpg with either of those cars around here.

 

[BUTCH1]

The extra power is a good thing, I have the current 3.5 in my Malibu and while it's adequate for that the Impala is a bigger car and could use the extra HP. To those who think it's gonna be a gas sipper I don't think so, yea, when it's on the highway without traffic in overdrive OK, but not around town at all, there is no free lunch, if you make more HP it costs fuel..

 

[JimW1949]

Has the unthinkable happened--More Americans are buying manual transmissions?!

Well, the quote above is from the first post in the thread. My comment was that with the price of gasoline prices being what it is, that is probably the reason. Traditionally, manual transmissions have always given better mileage that automatic transmissions by somewhere around 2-5 miles per gallon. When the wife and I were looking at new cars a couple months ago we noticed a few cars with manual transmissions. We actually considered a manual transmission, but we decided against it. My wife is from Michigan and we go there to visit her family/friends three or four times each year. We have to go around Chicago and that can be pretty hectic at times, especially when we run into a lot of start and stop driving. In that type of situation a manual transmission can be a pain in the neck.

Other than the Chevy Cruz of recent automobiles I've checked out I would say more times than not the automatic gets better mileage, or they get the same. This did not used to be the case but is now. There is generally no reason to get a manual from a gas use perspective and in fact manuals are becoming LESS common. They are undeniably dying. They are available increasingly in only the entry level of a car or a sports-oriented automobile.

Manuals now exist in most cars simply to save a few bucks at time of purchase (maybe) or for fun factor but the technology of automatics now has them every bit as capable on gas use and often just as fast, too. I've owned many manual cars but this is the reality now.

I have not heard that newer automatic transmissions get better mileage than a manual transmission. I am not saying you are wrong, I am just saying I have never heard that. I don't understand how that could be the case, but I am certainly no transmission guru and I don't keep up on stuff like that. But the wife and I did look at some new cars a short while ago and from our very limited experience at the car dealer, the manual transmissions got better mileage.

I think large engines get a bad rap. Gross vehicle weight is what people should be studying. Geared right big engines can get remarkable good fuel economy, especially on the highway.

Also it seems to me that a lot of automatics are becoming more efficient than manuals, what with 5-8 gears and more efficient dual clutch boxes. Though that might just have to do with shorter gearing since they are usually sportier models.

Still though manual cars are 10x more fun to drive. I honestly think I would prefer a 5 speed Civic to an automatic Porsche or similar high performance vehicle.

I am sure you are right, gearing is very important and if a large engine is geared just right it would give really good fuel economy. But that would apply only to highway miles, not "in town" miles. When you are driving in the city, you don't go very fast and there is a lot of start and stop driving. That kind of driving would really put a dent in the gas mileage of a vehicle with a large engine.

 

[ShawnD1]

Does it seem weird that GM is giving the ancient Impala a 302 HP engine for 2012? I can't imagine that Impala buyers (fleet and ??) want that kind of power. It would make a good 'sleeper' though!
http://www.leftlanenews.com/chevrolet-impala-2012.html

That's not much more than usual. A Honda Accord has 270HP. A Toyota Camry has about 270 as well.

And in other Chevrolet news:
The Cruze is getting manual transmissions for all trim levels except the top o' the line LTZ.
http://www.leftlanenews.com/chevrol...manual-transmission-models-to-2012-cruze.html

Has the unthinkable happened--More Americans are buying manual transmissions?!

It's an economy car. Economy cars are always available with manual transmissions because they cost $1000 less. They are more economical if you want to think of it like that.

Other than the Chevy Cruz of recent automobiles I've checked out I would say more times than not the automatic gets better mileage, or they get the same. This did not used to be the case but is now.

Same mileage but they're virtually undrivable. Put 3 people in a Corolla and the thing will jump gears between 3 and 4 all the time. The instruction manual and people in AT Garage both say one should lock it out of overdrive when it does this, and that drops the gas mileage by 10&#37;. Cars with manual transmissions never need to be restricted like that. In trucks with automatic transmissions, the instruction manual will often say never to tow anything in overdrive. Such a rule does not exist with manual transmissions; you can run a manual in overdrive all you want and it won't screw up.

 

[DivideBYZero]

you can run a manual in overdrive all you want and it won't screw up.

Oh, Christ on a bike, here we go again. :|

 

[angry hampster]

I'm surprised by this. Chevy still makes the Impala?!

I guess they're trying to add some life back into it. The Malibu has pretty much usurped the Impala as their full size, even though it's technically a mid-size. Don't see too many new Impalas on the road. Not like you used to.

Lots of fleet sales.

 

[ShawnD1]

Oh, Christ on a bike, here we go again. :|

The only reason people keep autos out of overdrive when towing is because it jumps gears too often, which will eventually burn out the cluthes. Google the words "towing in overdrive" and see what the general consensus is among truck owners.

 

[LTC8K6]

The only reason people keep autos out of overdrive when towing is because it jumps gears too often, which will eventually burn out the cluthes. Google the words "towing in overdrive" and see what the general consensus is among truck owners.

It's also to avoid overheating the trans fluid and to provide better engine braking. Most autos do not gear hunt, even when towing a trailer in O/D. Some certainly do, of course.

 

[Zargon]

You mean like this kind of highway? No way you'd ever see anywhere near 20mpg with either of those cars around here.

dont get too jeaous they will destroy your maxima and out MPG it, its OK :biggrin: