The 2012 Impala is a fairly decent vehicle, until you reach the long term. Once you pass 100,000 miles, stuff starts breaking. So far, since that mileage, I have replaced three hubs, an alternator, and two (soon to be three) blend door actuators, plus the rear window defroster does not work any more. Recently, the radio antenna broke. On the good side, the car still gets 30 miles to the gallo... Read more

2012 Chevrolet Impala Review

Pros

Strong engine
Spacious interior
Large trunk
6-passenger seating is available

Cons

Old and uninteresting styling
Handling is not good enough
No navigation

The Impala’s reputation is slowly dimming thanks to the much-progressed competition and the lack of a significant upgrade on the Impala.

Overview

The Impala’s reputation is slowly dimming thanks to the much-progressed competition and the lack of a significant upgrade on the Impala. It’s been 6 years since the last upgrade, and that’s eaten into the Impala’s market terribly. Chevrolet’s Malibu itself makes a very strong statement over the Impala. Now do not think for once the car is a bad car or the repairs will leave you with sleepless nights- the Impala does make a strong statement with its space and performance, but time has moved on.

Pricing and Features
6.0/10

The Impala is offered by Chevrolet in 3 trims, the LS, LT, and LTZ. It has one engine option. The basic trim starts at $25,760 and the top comes for a price of $30,300. Standard features on the trims include a six-way powered driver seat, keyless entry, cruise control, power accessories, OnStar, and air conditioning. The LT and LTZ get an optional sunroof.

Trim	LS	LT	LTZ
MSRP (3.6L V6)	$25,760	$27,285	$30,300
Key Features	16-inch alloy wheels	Adds or replaces features of LS	Adds or replaces features of LT
	Air-conditioning	17-inch alloy wheels	18-inch alloy wheels
	Auto headlamps	Rear spoiler	Heated mirrors
	Tilt only steering wheel	Remote ignition	Heated and powered front seats
	Cruise Control	Rear center armrest	Auto-dimming rear-view mirror

We Recommend

The top LTZ trim is what we recommend to everyone. The Impala is an old car, and it makes much sense to buy the all-loaded option or else another car. As we said, the competition has become better, so it’s the right thing to buy a completely feature-packed car that can last for years to come. Also, you should get a sunroof.

Engine and Performance
6.6/10

The Chevrolet Impala comes with only one engine. This engine, a 3.6L V6 makes 300 hp @6500 rpm and 262 lb.-ft @5300 rpm. A 6-speed automatic transmission is standard across all the trims in the Impala.

The car is a Front-wheel driven car. The engine is loved by all who own this car and is often praised; it is very peppy and has a nice grunt.

Model	Chevrolet Impala	Buick LaCrosse	Hyundai Azera
MSRP	$25,760	$30,170	$32,000
Engine	3.6L V6	3.6L V6	3.3L V6
Drivetrain	Front-wheel drive	Front-wheel drive	Front-wheel drive
Transmission	6-speed auto	6-speed auto	6-speed auto
Power (HP)	300	303	293
Torque (lb.-ft)	262	264	255
0-60 MPH (s)	5.9	6.3	6.3
Quarter mile (s)	14.6	14.8	14.9
Top Speed (mph)	158	157	163

The Impala with the new V6 beats the rivals in the 0-60 mph mark with its 5.9 seconds time. The other two cars take 0.4 seconds more than the Impala. In the quarter-mile, the gap reduces to around 0.3 seconds. The Impala leads there as well, with its 14.6 seconds time. The top speed of the Impala is 158 mph. The highest top speed was that of the Areza, at the 163 mph mark.

Fuel Economy
7.0/10

The Chevy Impala’s fuel economy was a cause of concern, and even though it’s better than the previous year’s it still is a concern. The economy stands at 18 mpg in the city and 30 mpg for the highway. This is much lower than the standard economy seen in this class that stands at around 24 mpg, average. The tank capacity at 17-gallons is pretty much up to standards.

Model	Chevrolet Impala	Buick LaCrosse	Hyundai Azera
MPG (city)	18	25	20
MPG (highway)	30	36	28
MPG (combined)	22	29	23
Fuel capacity (gallons)	17	15.7	18.5
Range (city/highway)	306/510	392.5/565.2	370/518

The range of the Impala is decent thanks to its 17-gallon tank. It has a range of 306 miles in the city and 510 miles on the highway. The most range, however, is offered by the LaCrosse, at 392.5 city miles and 565.2 highway miles. It gets the lowest tank capacity at 15.7 gallons. The range of the Hyundai is a little behind the LaCrosse at 370/518 city/highway miles.

Interior
6.7/10

The interiors of the new Chevrolet Impala don’t have much good to them. The materials are subpar, the upholstery is unimpressive and the entire interior looks very bland. The fit and finish are also not that good. The controls are simple to use, but that’s not out of convenience but more out of a lack of features on the inside.

The dash is too simple, but two points: one, the overall interior may lack substance but it looks refined. The cabin is quiet as well. And two, it’s a nice change at first glance from the usually cluttered and busy consoles in today’s cars.

Model	Chevrolet Impala	Buick LaCrosse	Hyundai Azera
Seating capacity	5	5	5
Front row (Head/Shoulder/Leg) (in)	39.4/58.7/42.3	38/57.4/41.7	40.3/58.3/45.5
Second row (Head/Shoulder/Leg) (in)	37.8/58.6/37.6	37.3/56/40.5	37.3/56.4/36.8
Trunk space (Cubic ft)	18.6	10.8	16.3

Comfort is another point about the interior where the effort feels half-hearted. The interiors are spacious, but the seats are wide and offer no support as such. Mind you, the design is much older and is not up to date in some aspects. There is a lot of headroom and shoulder room on offer, but there is not much legroom like the Hyundai Azera. The trunk space is the best in the class at 18.6 cubic feet, but with a folding rear seat instead of a regular 60/40 split seat, it feels restricted. Few interior features on the Impala are:

Power steering
Air conditioning
Cruise Control
Interior air filtration
Tilt only steering wheel

How intuitive is the 2012 Chevrolet Impala’s infotainment system?

The Impala’s infotainment system is super basic and lacks some important features like USB or even navigation as optional, leave standard.

As standard features, you get a CD player, satellite radio, auxiliary audio jack, Bluetooth, and a 6-speaker system. Well equipped with features across both the trims. The top LTZ trim gets an 8-speaker Bose audio system. Some infotainment features include:

Bluetooth
Auxiliary audio jack
Satellite radio
Bose 8-speaker sound system

Exterior
7.0/10

The exterior of the new Chevy Impala lacks any substance and it’s easy to mistake the car for a used car. The car won’t turn any heads, but some people prefer this simple look. Chevrolet says that they have redesigned the front and rear, but it’s so tiny that it’s very hard to notice. The main could be seen in the front grille, and now it fits in with the remaining lineup.

The single most nice design element on the Impala can be said to be the swept-back headlights. The roofline is like the standard boxy shapes we’ve seen on the 2010 and before-year cars. The rear, however, looks decent with the triangular taillights and the two exhausts.

Model	Chevrolet Impala	Buick LaCrosse	Hyundai Azera
Curb Weight (lbs)	3555	3829	3825
Length (in)	200.4	196.9	193.3
Width (in)	72.9	73.1	73.2
Height (in)	58.7	59.2	57.9
Ground clearance (in)	7.1	6.5	5.4
Wheelbase (in)	110.5	111.7	112

The Impala is a long car and has a long wheelbase as well. This has helped the interior become bigger and a more usable trunk. The car is decently tall and offers a good view of the world outside. It has the most ground clearance at 7.1 inches. But the Impala manages to be a little less heavy compared to the other two and this has helped the car in gaining an upper hand in performance. Exterior highlights to name a few are:

Rear spoiler
18-inch alloy wheels
Body-coloured mirrors
Dual exhausts
Sunroof

Safety
8.7/10

The federal NCAP rated the Impala 4/5 stars overall in the crash test. The IIHS gave it a ‘Good’ rating for frontal and side-impact but an ‘acceptable’ rating for the rear impact and roof strength. The Impala gets front side airbags, side curtain airbags, traction control, stability control, antilock brakes, and OnStar telematics. Some safety features are:

Front Seatbelt Pretensioners
4-wheel ABS
Dusk sensing headlamps
Rear door child safety locks
Engine immobilizer
Remote anti-theft alarm system

Final Verdict

The Chevrolet Impala severely lacks behind in what it offers as a package. It might do good in the performance time part, but the actual performance defined by the handling and the ride quality is not that great. The cabin might be quiet, but the interiors lack any taste.

There are a lot of better options out there, which offer better overall as a car at a similar price. So, we know some people might still prefer this car, but this car is not something we’d recommended to anyone as a first buy. A second or third, probably yes.

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2012 Chevrolet Impala User Reviews

Pretty good at first...

ProsFantastic gas mileage, Comfortable ride

Cons Lots of gotcha issues, Long term reliability

2012 Chevrolet Impala Review

Pros

Cons

Overview

Pricing and Features6.0/10

Engine and Performance6.6/10

Fuel Economy7.0/10

Interior6.7/10

How intuitive is the 2012 Chevrolet Impala’s infotainment system?

Exterior7.0/10

Safety8.7/10

Final Verdict

Pros
Fantastic gas mileage, Comfortable ride

Cons
Lots of gotcha issues, Long term reliability

Pricing and Features
6.0/10

Engine and Performance
6.6/10

Fuel Economy
7.0/10

Interior
6.7/10

Exterior
7.0/10

Safety
8.7/10