I Bought a Car!

"Dunnik" (dunnik) 08/05/2013 at 19:12 • Filed to: OPPOSITELOCK, NEW CAR, IMPALA

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I love cars - obviously, else why would I be here? But I've been car-less for almost a decade. As I've been living and working in downtown !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! - which is more like Manhattan every day - and a car was a want , not a need .

But recently I got a job at !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! (YYZ), working for a major car rental chain as a driver. The pay isn't the greatest but all I have to do is drive - I don't have to clean the vehicles or interact with customers (though I have done both of those jobs too in the past). A nice job for a Jalop - sure, we have the usual suspects like the Chrysler 200 and the Corolla - but we also have the C-Class Merc, the Volvo C30 T5, the Camaro RS soft-top and Mazda 2's and 3's.

I intend to write up a Fleet Review at some point, but for now, the point is the airport is accessible by public transit, but my commute was between 45 minutes and 1 and a half hours - one way . Ugh, it was horrible. The subway system doesn't run out to the airport, so the last leg is on an !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! bus with no suspension to speak of. There's an old joke in Toronto, a play on the acronym for the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . Question: "What does TTC stand for?" Answer: "Take The Car."

When Shiny and New. Photo Credit: General Motors

So, I took one! After searching every single internet car ad within a hundred miles - dealer websites, AutoTrader, Kijiji, I found a 2002 !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! on sale from a dealer for $2,500, e-tested and certified. All I had to do was plate it drive it away. But first I brought a friend and gave it a test drive, then, once that checked out, I got a Pre-Purchase Inspection (PPI) done with said friend's mechanic. When you hear people complain about buying a crappy used car, it's probably because they skipped that last part.

The PPI was good enough for me to buy the car. The dealer said the $2,500 price was firm, and that he wasn't willing to negotiate. I poked at that for a while with no success, then just paid up, knowing that this dealer - who had only been in business for 2 years - had probably mis-priced this car (it might have sold for $3000).

You're probably wondering about the mileage. The answer to that is why this dealer seemed to have trouble selling it, and why he felt he had to low-ball the price. It's a "domestic car" and "isn't as reliable as a Toyhondasubie." is what your "average" car buyer is thinking here in Toronto. As such, the prices of Toyota's and Honda's are insane. I've seen 450,000 km (279,000 mi.) rusted out Camry's still commanding $1,000, and Accords with 350,000 km with "typical Honda rust" going for near $2,000. So the Impala is a bit of a sleeper car, market wise.

Oh, yes, the answer: my !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! was purchased with 245,157 kilometers on the odo (152,000 mi.). "That's nothing on those cars" said, like, a dozen people I know, and a dozen more I didn't know on !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! .

It really is nothing. Here's what's right with the car, almost 12 years after she was made, just up the highway from here at the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! (in the week after 9/11, as a matter of fact...). She's had two owners, the first kept her for 9 years (before buying a new Impala) and clearly must have taken care of her.

- original transmission still shifts smoothly with no hesitation, fluid good

- 3800 Series II motor is, as you might expect, in excellent shape and pulls like a steam train

- front/rear suspension is in prime shape (with one exception, see below)

- "all the buttons work"

- factory tint (!) is still in great shape

- Traction Control/ABS functioning normally (felt TracCtrl kick in once)

- no rust, and the sub-frame is aluminum

- no rips or tears in the fabric seats, interior is clean overall

And here's what's wrong with her. Every used car has issues, but my goal was to find one where the problems could be tackled one at a time, and were not of a critical nature (this is, after all, a DD, and reliability is king).

- rotors are pitted and calipers need lube but the car still stops when I want it to (for now)

- upper strut mount bearings may be starting to fail (will do with the brakes)

- low on coolant (service sched says flush/fill at 245,000 km), replacing this week

- need new tires before winter (may be able to warranty the Michelins that came with)

- windshield was so sandblasted (probably by lots of highway) that I've replaced it

- trim molding is faded, some minor front bumper scuffing

- a couple minor scratches, sheet metal is pristine

- headlights and fog lights are cloudy (with build up on the inside), need to replace

- wheels coating is flaked off (known issue)

And...that's it. "So far," the cynics among you will say. Indeed, but I've already put over 800 km on her (500 mi.) with no issues. I believe this is a "if you take care of her, she'll take care of you" kind of car that I've lucked into buying.

Otherwise, insurance is $108/month (and I have probably the most expensive postal code in the country, insurance-wise). Fuel economy, as I do mostly highway, is excellent for a big six and very close to approved specs (29 mpg/9.05 L/100km). Parts are, of course, as cheap as it gets, it being both a domestic, a !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! and powered by an engine from a family that has 25,000,000 brothers.

Thanks for reading! Wish me and "Sandy" luck. Yes, I already like her enough to name her. The factory color is "Sandmist Metallic" (GM Marketingese for beige), so I figured that would work. And yes, I bought a beige car :/ But not on purpose! And as a DD in this price range, and considering her overall condition, I couldn't quibble on color (though I am jealous when a silver, black or blue one goes by).

Doug DeMuro > Dunnik 08/05/2013 at 19:37

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Congrats! The look of that body Impala was vastly improved with alloy wheels. Enjoy what can best be described as a VERY comfortable commuter car!!

Dunnik > Doug DeMuro 08/05/2013 at 19:41

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Yea, those 5-stars are pretty nice, and this gen Impala 'aint half bad looking, either. I happen to appreciate and like the echo of the 60's Impala in the tail lights.

And it is very comfortable, especially on the highways, but that's what we've come to expect from American cars. Seats are described as "buckets" but, yea, they're not exactly Recarro's. Comfortable though, unless you're cornering at speed. And the power-to-weight ratio is such that she has more than enough juice to pass and merge. And she has a 630 km range, enough to drive to NYC on one tank. She's not exactly a Grand Tourer, but she's a Tourer, heh.

Doug DeMuro > Dunnik 08/05/2013 at 19:44

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Definitely. And the 3800 was certainly an upgrade over the 3400 that went in a lot of those, if I recall correctly.

Dunnik > Doug DeMuro 08/05/2013 at 19:50

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Yea, most of the Imps you see for sale around here are the base version with the 3.4L, which is not only less powerful, but probably less reliable too. This gen Impala was on my short list of cars, but only with the 3800. When this one came up, I lept at the chance, beige or no.

Mr. Ontop, No Strokes, No Smokes...Goes Fast. > Dunnik 08/05/2013 at 20:14

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YYZ, you say? Here, from the greatest Canadians ever!

Joe_Limon > Dunnik 08/05/2013 at 20:16

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any interior shots?

I looked at newer impalas, but the interior did it in for me.

Dunnik > Joe_Limon 08/05/2013 at 20:25

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Uploaded with more shots, including an interior/dash/console shot.

It was a dated interior 11 years ago, but this 90's GM styling is so dated now, it's almost retro cool.

And yes, that is a cassette deck you're seeing, allowing me to use my smartphone, unlike so many more modern cars with no AUX port. The sound is surprisingly good for factory, 60 watt per-channel amp running four 6x9's. I never need to upgrade the stereo, or even add more speakers, really.

Joe_Limon > Dunnik 08/05/2013 at 20:44

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That interior is 10x better then where they took it several years later.

I had a similar vintage grand prix, and I agree, the sound system in these cars was very nice. It's not blow your doors off by any means, but it was very well balanced.

Makoyouidiot > Doug DeMuro 08/05/2013 at 21:47

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As a parts flinger, the 3400 is approximately 15 kinds of junk. Thank the lord for the 3800.

FieroGT,NBK. > Doug DeMuro 08/05/2013 at 23:27

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The base model had the 3400. The LS had the 3800.

shpuker > Dunnik 08/06/2013 at 20:03

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Sounds like it's time for some back to black on the trim and some paint to hit those wheels then ;) Not a bad looking car though. Especially not for $2,500

Dunnik > shpuker 08/06/2013 at 20:22

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Yep, but the time isn't now, materials aren't expensive but are expensive enough that I've sensibly decided to put it off for now - maybe I'll do it in the spring.

And actually the factory trim color is a dark, charcoal grey, rather than black (but going black would probably also work too).

shpuker > Dunnik 08/06/2013 at 20:27

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You can work wonders with some of the new spray cans and a heat gun. (heating the can allows the paint to spray more evenly).

WhatDaFunk > Dunnik 08/06/2013 at 22:21

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Grats on the new car! And ouch on the insurance, I had no idea it was so expensive in Canada.

Dunnik > WhatDaFunk 08/07/2013 at 08:51

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Heh, thanks, but actually that's pretty cheap, for Toronto, anyway: everybody whose asked how much I pay responds with a variation of, "That's it? Wow, I pay $$$$".

It helps that I'm in my 30's and they class me as a "7-star driver", the highest rating, but part of the reason is the Impala is cheap to insure relative to other cars: one reason the model was on my shortlist.