2010 Chevrolet Impala

Above average

Owners filed 441 complaints about this vehicle with federal regulators, most often about the electrical system. It has been recalled 4 times.

When it fails
020k40k60k90k120k200k
74,000 milesMedian miles at failure

348 complaints record an odometer reading. Failures cluster around 60,00075,000 miles.

What fails
ComponentReportsCrashesFiresInjuries
Air Bags90
805
Electrical System79
323
Electronic Stability Control (esc)52
000
Engine45
101
Power Train36
000
Steering26
101
Vehicle Speed Control16
100
Service Brakes13
201
Traction Control System11
000
Seat Belts9
001

4 safety recalls

Part 573 reports
Air Bags › Sensor › Occupant Classification16V507000
Filed Jul 5, 2016289,254 vehiclesGeneral Motors Llc

Defect. General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2009-2010 Chevrolet Impala vehicles manufactured April 25, 2008 through February 16, 2010. The front passenger seat frame may contact and damage the wires of the passenger presence sensor module.

Risk. If the wires are damaged, the passenger presence sensory system may fail to recognize that the passenger seat is occupied, disabling the air bag. Damage may also cause the air bag fuse to short resulting in a loss of all air bags and seat belt pretensions. Both conditions increase the risk of injury during a crash.

Remedy. GM will notify owners, and dealers will double wrap the wires with anti-abrasion tape and replace damaged wires as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on August 1, 2016. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-521-7300. GM's recall campaign number is 36110.

Electrical System › Ignition14V355000
Filed Jun 23, 20143,141,731 vehiclesGeneral Motors Llc

Defect. This defect can affect the safe operation of the airbag system. Until this recall is performed, customers should remove all items from their key rings, leaving only the ignition key. The key fob (if applicable), should also be removed from the key ring. General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2005-2009 Buick LaCrosse, 2006-2011 Buick Lucerne, 2000-2005 Cadillac DeVille, 2006-2011 Cadillac DTS, 2006-2014 Chevrolet Impala, and 2006-2007 Chevrolet Monte Carlo vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the weight on the key ring and road conditions or some other jarring event may cause the ignition switch to move out of the run position, turning off the engine.

Risk. If the key is not in the run position, the air bags may not deploy if the vehicle is involved in a crash, increasing the risk of injury. Additionally, a key knocked out of the run position will cause loss of engine power, power steering, and power braking, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash.

Remedy. GM will notify owners, and dealers will install two key rings and an insert in the key slot or a cover over the key head on all ignition keys, free of charge. The recall began on September 23, 2014. Owners may contact General Motors customer service at 1-800-521-7300 (Buick), 1-800-458-8006 (Cadillac), and 1-800-222-1020 (Chevrolet). GM's number for this recall is 14299.

Suspension › Front › Control Arm › Lower Arm12V377000
Filed Aug 3, 201236,413 vehiclesGeneral Motors Llc

Defect. General Motors (GM) is recalling certain model year 2008-2012 Chevrolet Impala police vehicles because the front lower control arms may fracture. This safety recall does not include non-police Chevrolet Impala vehicles.

Risk. A broken control arm can result in the loss of control of the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy. GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace both front lower control arms, free of charge. The safety recall began on August 21, 2012. Owners may contact the Chevrolet owner center at 1-866-694-6546.

Seat Belts › Front › Anchorage10V480000
Filed Oct 13, 2010303,100 vehiclesGeneral Motors Corp.

Defect. GM IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2009-2010 CHEVROLET IMPALAS FOR FAILING TO COMPLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 210, "SEAT BELT ASSEMBLY ANCHORAGES." THE FRONT SAFETY BELT WEBBING MAY NOT HAVE BEEN PROPERLY SECURED TO THE LAP BELT ANCHOR PRETENSIONER MOUNTED TO THE SIDE OF THE SEAT NEAREST THE DOOR.

Risk. THE SAFETY BELT MAY NOT RESTRAIN THE OCCUPANT AS INTENDED DURING A CRASH, WHICH COULD RESULT IN INJURY TO THE OCCUPANT.

Remedy. DEALERS WILL INSPECT BOTH FRONT SAFETY BELTS FOR PROPER INSTALLATION OF THE ANCHORS TO THE PRETENSIONERS AND, IF NECESSARY, REINSTALL THE ANCHORS. THIS SERVICE WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON NOVEMBER 5, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT CHEVROLET AT 1-800-630-2438 OR AT THE OWNER CENTER AT WWW.GMOWNERCENTER.COM.

What owners reported

Newest filings
Air Bags
Filed Feb 6, 202658,000 milesTX

The contact owns a 2010 Chevrolet Impala. The contact stated that when the vehicle was started, the check air bag and service air bag warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to a local dealer or independent mechanic to be diagnosed or repaired. The contact researched online and related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V507000 (Air Bags, Electrical System); however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 58,000.

Structure › Frame and Members › Underbody Shields
Filed Oct 8, 2025OH

The unibody of this vehicle has become completely rusted/rotted to where the car is undriveable. This has been inspected by a service center, and I was told it is dangerous and beyond repair. I am sick about this, as there are MANY other makes of vehicles older than mine that do not have this issue.

Service BrakesCrash
Filed Sep 25, 2025NE

I bought a used car as is for $6700.00 and was told that the car was nothing wrong with it but within the first month 07/02/25 the car has been to 3 different shops and in the shop 5 different times all due to brake problems since I bought the car I have had to replace both front calipers and rotors brake pads wheel bearings and on the back both brake pads plus new tires and it's still not fixed the ABS traction and stability lights are on i could of caused a wreck I only drive it to the store with the money I had paid for the car putting it in a shop I shouldn't of had to do they sold me a dangerous car

Electrical SystemFire
Filed Jun 18, 2025188,000 milesCA

The contact owns a 2010 Chevrolet Impala. The contact stated that while the vehicle was turned off and unattended in a parking lot. After about ten minutes, the contact was unlocking the vehicle and noticed fire inside the vehicle near the front of the vehicle near the radio and heater. The contact used a water bottle from the back seat to attempt to extinguish the fire. The fire was extinguished by a bystander using a fire extinguisher. There were no warning lights prior to the failure. There were no reported injuries. There was no police report filed, airbag deployment, or crash involved. The vehicle was towed to her residence. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, who opened a case. The failure mileage was approximately 188,000.

Vehicle Speed Control
Filed Oct 18, 2024MO

I started my vehicle in the morning to let it warm up. I come back out to get myself and my son in the vehicle to go to work and take him to school. My dash upon entry had a check engine light on, and the message it displayed was "engine power reduced." I put my car into reverse, having no choice but to drive it and the traction control went out. My father in law pulled the code and it said something about the accelerator sensor. This is a known issue and recall in other models and I wanted to report it is also happening in my model.

Electrical System
Filed Jun 4, 202477,000 milesOH

The contact owns a 2010 Chevrolet Impala. The contact stated that the vehicle made an abnormal grinding sound while starting and while driving. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the grinding sound persisted after turning off the vehicle on several occasions. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where unknown actuators located behind the dashboard were replaced; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer and the manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 77,000.

Air Bags
Filed Aug 10, 2023MO

Recall # 36110. our car is having the same issues that are indicated with this recall but GM refuses to include our vehicle in this recall. Front passenger seat sensor is shorting out against the seat frame which is turning vital passenger airbags off. Unsure when this actually started as my daughter drives this car to work and didnt notice when it first appeared.

Air Bags
Filed Mar 6, 2023148,000 milesNJ

The contact owns a 2010 Chevrolet Impala. The contact stated that the air bag warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 148,000.

Air Bags
Filed Oct 18, 2022ID

About a week ago I got in my car and started driving. as I started going down the road the passengers side alarm for the seatbelt kept going off and I noticed the passenger side airbag had turned on as well. I was in my car alone and had nothing sitting in the passengers seat nor a passenger in my car. That was the first time it lasted my whole drive to work (about 13 miles) but made me think of past times my vehicle had done that as well A few weeks before that the same thing happened and I had to connect the seatbelt to make it stop. I didn’t think much of it at first and thought it was a one-off kinda thing till it became a pattern of sorts. This morning I started my car and the dash kept telling me to “service airbags” I just bought my vehicle from national auto sales in Spokane Washington the previous February of this year (2022) and only drive to work (13 miles) and back for the most part. Seeing the “service airbag” light on in my car was concerning because I don’t know what that means. As I looked further into things I found a recall for my vehicle for the passenger side airbags malfunctioning, recall #36110 to replace wiring in the seat. So I called GM and they couldn’t find a recall for my vehicle. I then called Knudtsen Chevrolet in post falls Idaho expecting it to get taken care of. The guy from the service department looked up my VIN and told me my vehicle had already been serviced in the past for this passenger side airbag recall issue at another dealership and

Engine
Filed Aug 31, 2022TX

My Engine is shaking back-and-forth and it’s a new engine not new jd byrider replaced last month and I got the same problem again today

Engine
Filed Mar 10, 2022120,000 milesTX

The contact owns a 2010 Chevrolet Impala. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the front-end of the vehicle would lower and the front end was unstable. In addition, the check engine warning light would remain illuminated. The vehicle was also consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. The engine fan had failed and the transmission was faulty. No further information was available. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer and manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 120,000.

Air Bags
Filed Feb 7, 2022137,000 milesIN

The contact owns a 2010 Chevrolet Impala. The contact stated while driving 30 MPH, she noticed the "Service Air bag System" warning light was illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed with needing the air bag seat sensor and side-impact sensor to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired but was pending repairs. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The manufacturer informed that contact that her VIN was not included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V507000 (Air Bags, Electrical System). The failure mileage was approximately 137,700.

Air Bags › Sensor › Occupant Classification › Status Indicator Lamp/Light
Filed Jan 22, 2022OK

Air Bag Service message comes up on the information panel with the air bag light on. Did a diagnostic check showed passenger air bag. I reached under the seat and shook the wires the light and message went off, however the diagnostic check still showed the passenger air bag system. Found recall Number 16V507000. The dealer says my VIN is not in the recall however it seems I have the same problem the recall describs.

Steering
Filed Dec 20, 2021IN

There is a known issue with the shift lock release. the cable will fail in many 2006-2013 impala's. the vehicle will not get out of park. another well known issue is the blend door actuator. it is a noise that comes from the dash/heating/cooling due to chevy using cheap plastic parts.

Power Train › Automatic Transmission
Filed Dec 13, 202197,000 milesNY

The contact owns a 2010 Chevrolet Impala. The contact stated that while driving his vehicle at 40 MPH, the vehicle stalled without warning. The contact was able to restart the vehicle where he returned home and parked it. The contact called the dealer where he was informed that there were no recalls on the vehicle.The manufacturer had yet to be notified of the failure. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was 97,000.

Power Train
Filed Nov 14, 2021IA

The car can have moments of power loss where the speedometer suddenly, erratically spikes while the tachometer slightly lags. It almost stalled my vehicle while transmission was in drive while stopped. It feels like dragging when the power loss occurs. This has occurred randomly for the past month, mostly during interstate driving with cruise control operating. It has happened the last six times I have driven, but the previous several times it did not occur. It also occurred in a similar random fashion for the prior two weeks. When it does occur it feels like power drain and deceleration that can last a second and this will occur several times during a twenty minute drive at 70mph. Mechanics at two shops seem confused and don't know where to begin except for a transmission fluid flush. That was completed and the problem has persisted. There are no related error codes. To lose power suddenly and unexpectedly could cause an accident especially if a system failure shuts off the vehicle while driving. This vehicle has had an oil consumption/burning problem since I bought it with around 60,000miles. It needed 2 quarts of oil added between the last oil changes. I have spent $1400 in July of this year on gasket replacements and that did not stop the leak. More gasket heads and an oil pan are going to be need to replaced and the estimate is another $1400. This is too much to be spending on possibly related issues in a short time span that may not resolve the problem.

Seat Belts
Filed Oct 31, 2021IL

Seatbelt will not stay attached to the inner drivers side buckle. While driving if you are able to attach it and hear a click, it will randomly come undone and the seatbelt will not reattach.

Air Bags
Filed Oct 6, 2021115,063 milesIL

The contact owns a 2010 Chevrolet Impala. The contact stated that upon start-up of the vehicle, the airbag warning light illuminated the instrument panel. The contact called the dealer where he was informed that the vehicle was not included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V507000 (Air Bags). The contact attempted to reach the manufacturer but was not successful. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 155,063.

Electrical System
Filed Sep 26, 2021TX

Service stabilitrak message displayed and reduced engine power to 0 mph while driving. Throttle body, Accelerator pedal position sensor (whole pedal assembly), and ecm replaced. Issue continues. P2138, P2122, P2127 codes present. Stonebriar chevrolet incompetent to resolve.

Air Bags
Filed Aug 27, 2021IL

My air bag light stays on and my abs light stays on and something with the wiring keeps ruining my battery

20 of 441 complaints, reproduced as filed.

Across model years

Worst on record: 2004
YearComplaintsRecallsFiresDeathsAssessment
202015000Routine
201928110Routine
201859100Routine
2017116000Routine
2016111040Routine
20153003110Above average
20146341280Above average
2013272100Above average
2012258350Above average
2011505250Above average
2010 — this page441430Above average
2009824591Fatalities reported
20088102101Fatalities reported
20076273101Fatalities reported
20065242221Fatalities reported
20056094130Above average
20041,0727210High concern
20036948320High concern
20027957320High concern
200174210672Fatalities reported
200081810732Fatalities reported
19994000Routine
19982010Routine
19971000Routine
199688120Routine
199544110Routine
199415100Routine
19932110Routine
19920100Routine
19910100Routine

Compare every Impala year →

Reading this record

Complaint volume is well above typical for a single model year.

Complaint counts track how many cars were sold and how long they have been on the road as much as they track quality. A common model from 2013 has had a decade to accumulate reports; a rare one from last year has not. The signal worth weighing is in the severity columns, in whether the same component keeps appearing, and in whether the manufacturer eventually opened a recall for it.

Recall repairs are free for as long as the recall stands. Check whether a specific car still has open work at NHTSA's VIN lookup.

Most recent recall on file: Jul 5, 2016. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.