9th gen Impala

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I may be 1 of 7.3 people in the world who actually like this car, but it is what it is... 2006-2016 Chevrolet Impala. Every time I rode in one of these - I was always impressed by the bench seat, comfort, quietness, interior simplicity, and just a solid "I'm riding a tank" feel. If I was to get one today, for daily driver duty, which one would be the one to get? Which years of 3.9L are the best? Or is 3.5L better? 3.6L scares me with the chains of timing... Does 5.3L really go through transmissions as fast as people claim? I don't know much about it. Got any pointers? Which model (with bench seat) would be the one to go with for long term?
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I've had an '06 Malibu Maxx SS with the 3.9. for many years It's got 100k miles now of trouble free use-just brakes and tires. A pal has had the Impala with the 3.5. He ran it to over 200k miles with no issues. The Max has about 40 more hp and I can hold gear with the 65 series trans. They didn't make the 3.9 but for just a short time. The imp does ride well and should be a reasonable purchase at this crazy car pricing time. Good luck.
 
The the iron block push rod GM 3.5L V/6 engine was one of the most reliable engines on the market. It does not suffer from the 3.1/3.4L V/6 engine problems. It doesn't make a lot of power but it does get good gas mileage. The 3.9L comes from the same engine family and makes more power, but it has AFM which is a big negative in my book. There aren't many of the 5.3L V/8 Impalas out there, these and the 3.6L V/6 are the ones to stay away from.
 
I may be 1 of 7.3 people in the world who actually like this car, but it is what it is... 2006-2016 Chevrolet Impala. Every time I rode in one of these - I was always impressed by the bench seat, comfort, quietness, interior simplicity, and just a solid "I'm riding a tank" feel. If I was to get one today, for daily driver duty, which one would be the one to get? Which years of 3.9L are the best? Or is 3.5L better? 3.6L scares me with the chains of timing... Does 5.3L really go through transmissions as fast as people claim? I don't know much about it. Got any pointers? Which model (with bench seat) would be the one to go with for long term?
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They have a huge trunk.
 
I had a 2012 as a company car that I bought afterwards in early 2016 with 7x,000 miles for $4,400 and promptly resold for $7,800, I think. I really liked that car and should’ve kept it for the commute I have now. It was regularly serviced and had tons of power and got over 30mpg on the highway. I’m not sure at what mileage the timing chain issues pop up but mine was trouble-free in the time I had it. It did like to eat up rear tires a bit though.
 
These got the 3.6 pretty late in the run, I'm fairly certain the chain issues were resolved by then. The chain issues were amplified anyway, failure generally only happened on severely neglected engines.
 
These got the 3.6 pretty late in the run, I'm fairly certain the chain issues were resolved by then. The chain issues were amplified anyway, failure generally only happened on severely neglected engines.

Yeah I was just reading about that. Mine was the LFX engine and it appears to have been mostly resolved. Now you make me wish I had that Impala even more. A great highway cruiser, I drove to Jackson MS on a tank of fuel once….500 miles.
 
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Get the 3.6 if you can verify maintenance history and the Overkill tune, really woke up my 2012!
 
I was selling new Chevy vehicles in 2006-2008 and I always thought the Impala was a nice riding decently well built car for the money. It was significantly nicer than the Malibu for not much more money. The hardest part seems to be finding one that has been well-maintained. I'd go with the 3.5 if I were buying one.
 
Whenever I see one of those Impalas, I immediately hear the sound of climate control actuators clicking away in my head. I don't think any other car model has come close to the number of actuator replacements that I've done on these things. I refer to it as the mating call of the Chevy Impala. ;) 🍻
Oh boy... Hard to replace? I've done a few actuators on a few early 2000s Lexus vehicles. Wonder how Impala compares in terms of access and difficulty.

The problem with the LS4 powered Impala SS is people tend to beat on them like red headed step children & the 4T65E-HD isn't up to the challenge especially with tuning that modifies/eliminates the Torque Management.
That's what I figured. I wonder if a low mileage example could live a long life with frequent fluid changes and my grandpa driving.

I had a 2007 Impala SS with the 3.9 w/SC and I loved it. The only problem I had was the steering rack failed under warranty.
Didn't know the 3.9L came with a supercharger. Was that a factory or aftermarket option?

I was selling new Chevy vehicles in 2006-2008 and I always thought the Impala was a nice riding decently well built car for the money. It was significantly nicer than the Malibu for not much more money. The hardest part seems to be finding one that has been well-maintained. I'd go with the 3.5 if I were buying one.
I had a 2012 as a company car that I bought afterwards in early 2016 with 7x,000 miles for $4,400 and promptly resold for $7,800, I think. I really liked that car and should’ve kept it for the commute I have now. It was regularly serviced and had tons of power and got over 30mpg on the highway. I’m not sure at what mileage the timing chain issues pop up but mine was trouble-free in the time I had it. It did like to eat up rear tires a bit though.
The 3.5 is pretty bulletproof and gets over 30 mpg. The 3.9 adds complexity with variable valve timing. The 3.6 should be avoided for the timing chain issues.
Sure does seem like 3.5L is the way to go for long term reliability and fuel efficiency. I'm at the point where I'm perfectly ok with slow, as long as it makes up for being slow through lower cost or maintenance, repairs, fuel.
 
These got the 3.6 pretty late in the run, I'm fairly certain the chain issues were resolved by then. The chain issues were amplified anyway, failure generally only happened on severely neglected engines.

Haven't seen any YT videos for 3.6L timing chain jobs, but of the ones I've seen for Ecotec engines..I couldn't help but notice that the area under the valve cover almost always looks like the bottom of a barbecue grill that's NEVER been cleaned. Gee, I wonder what causes THAT and whether it has ANY connection to the engine needing a timing chain job???
 
I have a 2002, but have driven a couple '06+s as rentals and it was seamless moving from one to another. Roomy, comfortable and good visibility when behind the wheel. I like the conservative yet attractive styling (much better than, say, the pre-08 Malibus). I'd buy one if a low-mileage non-rust-belt one came my way.
 
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