Once upon a time, before becoming a mainstay on rental car fleets, Chevrolet's Impala was a premium sedan in reach of the average consumer. Chevrolet returned to its roots with the current generation car, which was launched in 2014. The big four-door has been revitalized and offers style, space, and plenty of amenities. It's also a comfortable and quiet drive.
In the three years it has been on sale, not much has changed with the Impala. This continues to be the story for model year 2017. The biggest change is that Chevrolet has re-organized the available trims, whittling the range down to just three models: LS, LT, and Premier. The Premier name replaces LTZ this year, in line with Chevrolet's other models.
Other changes include the addition of two new colours (Arctic Blue, and Pepperdust Metallic, a sort of golden-green colour), and the addition of a Wheat/Jet Black interior colour which takes over for Mojave/Jet Black. Models with the large 8.0-inch infotainment screen also gain Android Auto.
Two engines are available. The LS and LT trims feature a standard 2.5-litre four-cylinder engine which produces 196 horsepower and 186 lb-ft of torque. Standard idle-stop helps curb consumption at stoplights and gives it a city consumption of 10.5 L/100 km, which is better than V6-powered rivals from Chrysler, Dodge, Toyota, and Kia. The downside to this small engine is that it won't win any stoplight drag races, though acceleration is acceptable overall.
For those desiring more power, GM's ubiquitous 3.6-litre V6 engine can be had. It develops 305 horsepower and 264 lb-ft of torque. It comes standard on the Premier and is an option on the LS and LT.
All use a six-speed automatic transmission that routes power to the front wheels. While the Impala wasn’t designed as a sports sedan, it offers a comfortable and stable ride with good roadholding.
Impalas come equipped with the latest in-car entertainment features. Other than the base LS trim, all Impalas receive an 8.0-inch Chevrolet MyLink system with crisp graphics, OnStar with 4G LTE in-car internet, USB, and Bluetooth. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto come standard on vehicles with the MyLink system, while a Bose audio system and wireless device charging are available.
All Impalas also have a nicely styled cabin trimmed in premium materials. The swoopy dashboard design is easy to navigate, and there's stretch-out rear legroom and enough headroom to accommodate taller passengers. Trunk space is generous at 532L. Thanks to a low beltline, the Impala offers better visibility than its kissing cousin, the Buick LaCrosse or Cadillac XTS.
A reverse camera, parking sensors, blind-spot monitoring, lane departure warning, and forward collision warning comes standard on the Premier trim, and is optional on the LT. Radar cruise control with emergency autonomous braking is available as an option for the Premier.
This vehicle has not yet been reviewed
