The speedometer in my 2004 Impala with only 42,000 miles on it has suddenly gotten a mind of it's own. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. I called the service department of the dealership and they said it would be over $500 to get it fixed. I have looked for recalls but can't find any but have found plenty of complaints. I never know for sure how fast I am going.

- Valley Center, KS, USA

The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Impala. While driving approximately 65 mph with the cruise control activated, the contact noticed that the speedometer displayed an incorrect speed and would fluctuate sporadically. The instrument panel cluster was repaired. The manufacturer did not provide any assistance. The current mileage was 67,000 and failure mileage was 47,826. The consumer stated GM issued an extended warranty for the instrument cluster. Updated 12/12/07

- Clermont, FL, USA

Chevy 2004 Impala: Speed and temp gauge were reading erratically and at times stayed at a particular speed and temp which were not accurate. Gauge cluster was changed out according to a dealership. Who knows what they really did. Had vehicle in to same dealership again for intermediate steering column shaft for a knocking sound. Dealership lubricated shaft. To me, if something is making noise, this means there is contact with at least two components causing wear. I believe the shaft should have been changed out. All problems have not returned, yet. No accidents or injuries or speeding tickets either, thank god. I can guarantee you the dealership or the manufacturer of this vehicle would not pick up the cost of a speeding ticket or associated costs due to an injury or death. What I would like to know is when is someone going to step up and put some real heat on the auto industry. Does it take a death of a fellow citizen to take action? I think it's too late if that's what it takes. I don't recall the dates of either incident so the date I enter is not accurate. I could give you the phone number of the dealership to find out the actual dates, but your not looking to make waves with the industry. Please tell me I'm not wasting my time with this complaint. Please tell me there is a genuine concern at NHTSA. Please do not insult my intelligence. Yes I'm angry and dissatisfied with the auto industry whose aim is to live off of components breaking down so you have to bring your vehicle back in. It sure would be nice to purchase a vehicle, drive off the dealership lot and never having to return.

- King Of Prussia, PA, USA

Temperature gauge quit working, and now as of today my speedometer is not working either, it was working fine and then just shot to 120 and then when I shut off my car it buried the needle and now it will not move. This is a 2004 Chevy Impala.

- Lewiston, ID, USA

My speedometer goes haywire whenever it wants. My speedometer will say I'm going 60 mph but I'm not really going that fast. Sometimes it goes the other way. It will say I'm doing 30 mph and I'm actually doing about 60 mph. Right now parked in the parking lot it says the car is going over 120 mph. I have checked for recalls and the a none for this defect. I call it a defect because I have found numerous people with the same issue, and their cars have about the same mileage as mine. This is a huge safety issue not to mention an issue with the law, because I have no idea when it's going to happen. I would get it fixed but I just had a baby (so not safe to have her along with me) and I don't have an extra $500 laying around. Normally when something goes wrong with my vehicle it is not an issue, I get it fixed because its normal wear and tear. I do not feel that a speedometer is something that should have these kinds of issues at 69,000 miles. It should hold up to what the company says the expected life of the car is. This "defect has 2 tsb#'s but I don't know how to go about getting them used to fix the car. Tsb#'s 01726 & 050604058 are the numbers but nothing tells me what I should do with those numbers or who I should talk to about using the numbers to get the car fixed.

- La Valle, WI, USA

Gas leaking out throttle body. Car is idling low. Cuts off while driving. Instrument panel cluster went out and then all of the before mentioned problems started happening. Skips after being tuned up.

- Maxton, NC, USA

Wow same problem as everyone else. Speed does not register properly seems to be whenever it wants it will show speeds higher then what they are. This is a danger because speeds are guessed in school zones and highways. After a couple days speed will begin to work ok. Now the blower motor and heater do not work unless you pound by the ashtray area and hopefully the air conditioning will start blowing but the heat will not come on when switched to heat. This is a safety issue living in Montana when it gets below 32 and colder it would be nice this winter to thaw out the windows so I can see when driving at unknown speeds. Sometimes when the air is blowing you can smell something burning. We are in drought conditions in Montana and if my car were to catch on fire on side of road and continue up the mountains this could be a disaster be creating a wildfire. I am unhappy with my car which has started problems around the 30,000 mile mark. Another problem is the high beam switch is needing to be clicked twice before dimming down from high beam. This is a safety issue due to blinding oncoming traffic. Transmission has been like slipping into gear as well.

- Helena, MT, USA

At about 70,000 miles my Impala's temperature gauge started acting funny. Once it stayed on cold while I drive completely across town. The next day it went all the way to hot. I got off, checked the water and oil levels. Everything was fine. Within a few days I noticed that my speedometer showed that I was going 50-60 mph while I was driving in a parking lot. I stopped and the gauge stuck at 40 mph. Both gauges have continued to go haywire. My temperature gauge is now stuck way past the hot level and has almost made it all the way around again. My speedometer is stuck on 50 mph for the last 4 days and at times also almost goes all the way around. I attempted to Chevrolet and they are basically doing nothing about this even though reading on multiple websites about other peoples issues, this is the main problem with the 2004 Chevrolet Impala.

- Houston, TX, USA

My 2004 Impala ss has had several failures of the instrument panel cluster. The first was incorrect speedometer readings that lead to total failure of the speedometer (sticking and/or erratic behavior of the speedometer needle). The second was improper fuel level indication (high level shown with low fuel light coming on - almost no fuel left). The latest is incorrect oil pressure indication. All of these are known issues with the model of stepper motor used to drive these gauges in many GM vehicles. My total cost for repair has been in excess of $300, not including the current oil pressure gauge repair (stepper motors for speedo and fuel level gauge). I plan on having all stepper motors replaced with the latest generation replacement (switec X25.168). This is something that GM needs to take responsibility for and correct as it is a very widespread issue.

- Grant Township, MI, USA

The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Impala. While driving 35 mph, the contact noticed that the speedometer displayed 75 mph. When the vehicle is parked, the speedometer displays the last traveled speed instead of zero. In order to reset the speedometer, he must turn the switch on and off until it reads zero. The dealer stated that the instrumental panel cluster needed to be replaced and would cost $1,000. The dealer information was unavailable. The current mileage was 80,000 and failure mileage was 65,000.

- Firestone, CO, USA

Speedometer reads erratic. Indicator began reading the incorrect speed at approximately 37,800 miles. Speedometer currently stuck at 35 mph with vehicle at a complete stop. When actually traveling at 65 mph, speedometer reads 110 mph. This would be a serious problem if the driver thought the 110 mph was correct and quickly applied brakes to slow the vehicle. Dealer was contacted and vehicle checked. Speedometer had returned to normal operation and dealer could not find any problem. Since then a week has gone by and problem has returned.

- Boyers, PA, USA

We bought an Impala Chevrolet 2004 new in 2004. There were a few problems with it. Instrument panel cluster -and speedometer gauge did not work and noises came from the instrument panel. Steering gear popped/clanking noise heard and sensed from front end. Also, seemed like something was wrong with the transmission because it did not change gears correctly, and it kind of bumped when accelerating, appeared as if engine did not want to accelerate. There was a delayed start, may be necessary to hold key in start several seconds until starting or turning back and trying again. Sometimes key locked in and won't turn. Took to dealer, but it did not do it for them. On the steering gear the steering intermediate shaft was replaced on 11/19/05. Again the noise was back and on 07/17/07 the steering intermediate shaft was lubricated. On other issues repairs are to costly. Do not feel secure on vehicle these problems have been going on for the past two years.

- Kissimmee, FL, USA

Previously this year the spedometer would be stuck at a higher speed than the vehicle was moving, at a standstill it would show 50mph. That has resolved spontaneously, now however the fuel gauge is showing 3/4 of a tank when it was earlier at 1/4 and I have not added any fuel, it is not dropping below 3/4 of a tank despite driving the vehicle.

- Hoboken, NJ, USA

Instrument panel cluster- temp gauge no longer working, speedometor was reading 30mph when actual doing 60-70mph speedometor has recently reset its self okay for now still no temp. Realitive tells me it's common for GM shop is repairing ipcs' daily.if this is that common theres a problem with product!!

- Bakersfield, CA, USA

- the contact stated that while driving the 2004 Chevrolet Impala with 82000 failure mileage the speedometer displayed incorrect rates of speed. The speedodometer needle also began to swerve back and forth slightly. The vehicle was diagnosed as having a failed instrument panel cluster.

- Springfield, TN, USA

The instrument cluster on the 2004 Chevy Impala goes out-of-control. It regristers speeds greater or less than the speed I am traveling. Everything was working great and then all of a sudden it started going out-of-control. I was told that the entire instrument cluster needs to be replaced.

- Torrance, CA, USA

Instrument failure, nothing caused the failure, it just started slowly at 30000 miles, had mild speed misreadings at night, but slowly became worse and worse. But now temperature and fuel does not read correctly any time of day, but goes crazy on hot days. I took the cluster apart and the main processor chip had a blob of silicone drip on it during assembly and now has a burn mark on it. I have talked to numerous other Impala owners with some probem.

- Saint Cloud, FL, USA

Speedometer acts like it freezes while driving. While driving recently the speedometer was stuck on 65 mph. After coming to a stop and starting again, speedometer started from this point and went to 120. I parked the car overnight and the speed was 65 mph. I turned the key on and off and it went down by 10 mph. I did this a few more times and it finally went back to 0. it registered correct after I drove it but it still acts like it is sticking or hesitating. My friend also has an Impala and she stated that her speedometer on her car does not work sometimes either.

- Alto, GA, USA

Tachometer and speedometer quit working correctly. Tachometer would vary anywhere from 0 to 7000+ RPM when idling, would go off the scale or fall to zero while driving. Speedometer was showing 85 mph while driving approximately 40 mph. Speedometer showed 52 mph and was actually going 70 mph, verified by state trooper using moving radar.

- Klamath Falls, OR, USA

The speedometer on my 2004 Chevrolet Impala does not function properly. It will read 110 mph when I am going approximately 45 mph. It will read "0" while I am driving.

- Lebanon, OH, USA