2001 Chevrolet Impala Review (continued)
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Walkaround

The Impala is slightly shorter than the Lumina four-door sedan, but it looks bigger on the road with its upright windows and roof pillars and longer greenhouse. The Impala is a whopping 9 inches shorter than a Dodge Intrepid, yet it's slightly larger in total interior volume than either the Intrepid or the Lumina.

The most significant styling cues are the headlight and taillight clusters, which use a unique combination of round lights clearly visible from behind trapezoidal covers. It's an aggressive new look for a Chevy sedan, so you'll easily spot an Impala in traffic. If you don't like the boy-racer spoiler on the decklid of the LS model, it will cost you $175 to delete it.

The optional ($600 on base models) anti-lock brake system includes a tire-pressure warning monitor. The availability of a base car without anti-lock brakes bucks a trend at GM to equip all cars with ABS; Chevy explains that some of its customers prefer cars without it.

New for 2001 is the addition of GM's OnStar system as standard on the LS and optional on the base model. OnStar is a customer-service network linked to each car via satellite. It's one of those convenience features that you may never notice during daily use, but it's nice to have if something goes wrong. The system can notify network representatives of the car's location to assist in providing emergency roadside assistance or to help track it if it is stolen. It automatically notifies the OnStar network when the airbag has been deployed, and operators will dispatch emergency crews to the spot unless you respond to their calls.

Interior Features

The Impala is noticeably roomy inside. With 122 cubic feet of interior volume, it is 6 cubic feet more spacious than the Lumina. So what magic did Chevrolet perform to make the Impala shorter, yet larger inside than the Lumina? Interior space was gained by designing a high roofline with more vertical sides, carefully rearranging the rear bulkhead, and moving the seats slightly outboard.

Base models come with a three-seat split bench in the front; LS models come standard with just two front seats, though the bench seat is optional. Chevy expects most buyers will choose the three-in-front arrangement. From the driver's seat you get the impression that the car is huge inside, likely because you sense a notable distance to the right-side passenger.

Chevy Impala's rear seat area is shorter on legroom than the cavernous Dodge Intrepid, but better than the Chevy Lumina, Ford Taurus, or the archaic Ford Crown Victoria. The seat position in the rear is comfortable and relatively high, which makes it easy to get in and out. There are three shoulder belts in the rear, as well as child-seat tethers. The rear seat is split 60/40 and folds down to allow bulky items to protrude from the trunk; that's handy if you're a Home Depot regular.

Two interior colors are available, an unusually loud mustard brown and a more conservative gray. It's easy to orient yourself inside the Impala. Controls are logical, work smoothly, and are easy to see. They follow the function of those in the smaller Malibu, but they're bigger.

At first glance, the seats look flat, like semi-benches, but when you sit in them, they provide good support on your thighs and your back. They feel like bucket seats. The center passenger in the front has to straddle the split between the front seats. A slight hump down the center accommodates the exhaust pipe; that hump hampers legroom for the front center passenger.

The headliner and ceiling are specially padded. Chevy says this design will pass the federal head injury requirements scheduled to come into effect for all cars in 2003. A seat-mounted side airbag for the driver is an option.