Maybe build it off the cts?

Everybody builds fwd sedans for the entry level market.By making it rwd it will be something different.

Have three trim levels
1.) base- new 3.8l v6 4-speed auto.
2.) mid level- same 3.8l v-6 but with finer suspension tuning and more options maybe a 5-speed auto.
3.) ss- 4.0l (old aurora engine) v8, 5spd auto. firm suspension

 

Most people here are gonna say "Hell ya, Impala should be RWD!"

But.... It is one of GM's best selling cars, as is... it would be a tough choice to switch such a successful car.

 

I'm not talking about as a performance car.

honda accord- fwd
toyota camry- fwd
ford taurus (or it's replacement) -fwd
and a whole lot of cars from other manufacturers.

GM is focusing all their rwd platforms on performance or luxury vehicles like caddillac.

The entry level sedan market is an important segment with a bunch of "cookie cutter" cars.

By making the Impala rwd it would set it apart in sense from this mold. By making a mid $20k entry level sedan that had the fact that it was the only car in its class that had rwd, it seems to me that it could potentially make gm a lot of money. It would potentially be an option that would lure import buyers away.

It would be very hard for gm or any company for that matter to beat honda and toyota at their own game.

Not everybody can afford a cts if they want a v6 rwd car. I think that the impala can fill this "niche".

 

plus not many new Impala owners ar elooking for performance and FWD is alot better in harsh conditions. RWD would lure some new buyers but I think it would push away the middle age women that drive around todays Impala's. If they make a body style change and change it back towards a big luxury 4-door with power, then I can see it being successful. But if they stick with it's current looks. naw

 

people don't buy fwd cars just to drive through harsh conditions. I don't think that the next impala will have it's current looks.

As for middle aged women, that's what they make buicks for

 

Buicks were for middle aged women 25 years ago....now they're just for old people.

Unless you could show that a RWD Impala as you specify would not only sell, but sell better than the current model, I don't think it stands a snowball's chance in hell.

That said, yes, I agree it would bring something different. I just don't think it would attract the target audience for today's Impala, and that's where the sales are.

 

I think it needs to stay FWD. They can't stop selling enough of them and GM needs bread and butter cars that sell like that. The RWD cars need to remain the minority. A future Monte Carlo and Camaro possibly built on the same platform should be Chevy's RWD lineup.

 

GM, V8, and FWD should NOT be used in the same sentance.

 

The CTS is on the SIGMA platform and has been said by GM that there will be no sharing of this platform with other brands. Cadillac has serious backing on this and the Impala CANNOT move to SIGMA.

Speculation:

I would wait for 06 for a SIGMA/VE for some answers...

 

That's the only problem with the sales success of the Impala.............it pretty much killed the chance of it becoming rwd.

I was also thinking about the possibility to move the Impala to the rwd platform and put a different name on the next generation of the current Impala(I think that this has been brought up before). I think the problem with that is, too many people(the ones that are actually buying them) associate the Impala name with the current car and a switch like that would drive people away from either of those new vehicles.

 

The current Impala seems to be selling to good to move to RWD. I think Chevy still needs a Malibu/Impala sized RWD car. They could sell that along side a FWD Impala. Chevelle maybe???
give it:
200HP 3.5L V6
245HP 3.9L V6
300HP 4.8L V8

 

This is an enthusiasts site, so of course we'll say "H*ll yea" to a RWD Impala. But if it were our money on the line, and it was our livelyhood on the line, I think we'd say "Keep those FWD Impalas coming"!

Buicks and Impalas were never made for middle aged women. They are dependable high value family cars with a dash of design (questionable) thrown in. You get alot of car for the price, and there's very little you have to do to the car for at least 100,000 miles. That's the whole idea. People that buy them are looking for that, and at the moment, it seems Impala has a extremely successful formula selling almost every one Chevrolet can make!

Adding RWD to this formula probally isn't a bright idea. Alot of Impalas are purchased by people in the northeast who bought into the RWD is dangerous BS, and haven't yet figured out that 9-10 months out of 12 it typically doesn't snow up there.

On the other hand, Chevrolet does need a "Sports Sedan" much like you described, and it seems like it just may happen soon. Chevy's current lineup leaves a gapping whole in the full size RWD car area where Ford has a monopoly. A STS sized RWD (much like the Holden Statesman) car I feel is exactly what Chevy needs.


BTW: I can't find the article, but Cadillac doesn't have a hold on Sigma anymore. The issue is bringing down Sigma's production costs, and it appears that's what Holden is doing for GM. That's what the VE cars and the cars to be made here will be. Lower priced Sigmas.

 

I'd like to second that!

 

Its a gamble, but if GM makes the next Impala as RWD, puts good all season tires on it stock, put a good diff in the back, include the latest ABS, TractionControl, and YawControl for "no cost", and heavily markets it showing how well it handles in adverse conditions.. all for the same price..... it could possibly distinguish the Impala from the rest of the FWD variety.. In the perfect world, they would keep the older buyers and attract new..

 

How about keep the current Impy FWD and make the Impala SS RWD (aka Holden Caprice/Statesman)? It'd work for me