2003 Chevrolet Impala: jerking or lurching

Filed Apr 30, 2018 · Transmission · 98,000 miles · NJ

When stepping on gas car hesitates before engaging into gear. It is intermittent and seems to happen periodically especially after car warms up. It jerks into gear from a dead stop. Was told by the dealer it was the transmission solenoid switch but was not covered. It would cost over $1000 to have it fixed. It's been going on for about 1 year and a half.

Filed Jan 7, 2017 · 95,000 miles · NJ

Car hesitates and jerks when applying gas and starting to move from a dead stop. Example: from a stop light or stop sign.

Filed Sep 17, 2016 · Acceleration, Electrical · FL

When I am driving down any road, stopped and turning the ABS system engages causing grinding noise. Loss of power and periodically brakes lock up and gas pedal locks. When pulling off from a stop I can not accelerate & RPM goes almost red line, car starts to jerk and and transmission doesn't shift. I have to let off gas pedal and allow to shift. It has stalled numorus times when pulling into traffic and almost caused me to be hit. The service traction control/ABS warning light dings and stays lit. I manually turn off ABS but problem still occurs. Also the wiring thru out the car has failed to my rearview mirror, domelights and radio panel. My gas mileage has significantly decreased. The problem started around the beginning of the year and has progressively gotten worse to the point I and scared to drive my car.

Filed Jun 17, 2015 · Electrical · IN

I have not had an accident. I have had this car little over a year and had nothing but problems with it. Started off security light flashing then not starting I could unhook battery and reset and it would start. Lights would flash interior lights stayed on then didn't work voltage meter would bury to 0 but battery was fine air consign will not work when this happens door locks do then don't work blows fuses trunk will poc open radio will lock headlights flash t I ll I put manual lights on then automatic would work later. Security light flashes a lot of the time all these things start acting up and it continues to get worse. Sometime car will jerk and I have to reset by taking cable off then it works fine. I have kids and I do not feel very safe b in this car. Some of hard working single parents can't afford to spend 700 here and there from trial and error when it seems a lot of models from this year have the issue.

Filed May 15, 2015 · Electrical · OH

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 chevrolet impala. The contact stated that the vehicle jerked and stalled. The vehicle was serviced under the federal safety agency campaign number: 14v400000 (electrical system), but the failure persisted. The failure mileage was unknown.

Filed Feb 22, 2015 · Acceleration, Airbags · 197,000 miles · OK · crash · 1 injury

I was traveling on a 2 lane road. A truck pulling an enclosed trailer was in front of me turned on his right blinker and began to brake to make the turn. I was traveling 77 MPH, so I moved to the oncoming traffic lane (the left lane) in order to pass the truck. At the last second the truck swerved into the left lane in order to make a wide turn. I abruptly jerked the steering wheel right to avoid collision with the truck, but the vehicle seemed to lose power steering as well as power brakes. I was unable to straighten the steering wheel back after jerking it to the right to go back into the right lane; my vehicle hit the back of the enclosed trailer and then hit steep ditch where my back passenger tire popped and the vehicle flipped onto its roof. The vehicles airbags failed to deploy even though the vehicle has significant damage to the front , top and sides of it. I regained conscientiousness I attempted to turn the car off and remove the keys from the ignition. But I realized that the keys were not I n the ignition.I crawled out of the passenger window to exit the vehicle. The keys were later found by my husband loose in the vehicle. I hit my head hard when the vehicle flipped, good deal of blood on me from what ended up being multiple superficial lacerations as well as a deep wound in my left knee, which required 12 stitches to close up. I will have a scar from it for the rest of my life. I was rushed by ambulance to the hospital and was released around 9 pm. 2 days later we received the ignition switch recall notice in the mail gm refuses to answer any of our questions regarding this wreck. Gm did retrieve the black box info from the vehicle., they refuse to provide us with any explanation to why the airbags failed to deploy or why there seemed to be a malfunction within the car which LED to the accident.

Filed Sep 11, 2014 · Engine · 116,000 miles · MO

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 chevrolet impala. The contact stated when starting the vehicle, it hesitated to start. The contact mentioned that when accelerating to 20 MPH, the vehicle made a loud abnormal noise before jerking into gear. The problem recurred several times. The contact received a notification for recall the federal safety agency campaign number: 14v400000 (electrical system). The vehicle had not been taken to the dealer. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the issue. The failure mileage was 116,000.

Filed Sep 9, 2014 · Brakes, Driver assistance · 80,300 miles · NC

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 chevrolet impala. While attempting to accelerate from a stop, the traction and brake warning indicators illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle jerked during acceleration. The failure occurred on a daily basis. The dealer stated that the hub sensor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired and the failure recurred three days later. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 80,300.

Filed Mar 13, 2014 · Acceleration, Engine · 88,000 miles · SC

I was driving on the back roads at the speed limit of 55mph when the car started to jerk violently. I didn't know what was going on so I let off the gas and hit the brakes a little. I was able to come to a stop safely, but the jerking was dangerous as it propelled me into the oncoming traffic when I was on a curve. I don't feel safe driving the car now. The car shows no codes and no warning signals. I think it has something to do with the transmission, but I am not sure. I read many others with transmission problems and I think this is more dangerous than people think and it should be recalled if its a known problem. I don't know what to do.

Filed Dec 27, 2013 · Brakes, Driver assistance · 100,000 miles · MI

The service traction control light is on the dash panel and my car started to shake and pull to one side when the brakes were applied. The problem quickly grew into the cat constantly pulls to one side and the steering feels sloppy and loose if that makes sense. The traction control doesn't work but will randomly kick in while driving and the car instantly feels as if the brakes are being applied and grinder but the worse part is how the pulling to one side becomes a quick grab and jerk to one side and has nearly caused me several accidents and I cannot relax and drive. I am always tense and ready to fight to keep my car going straight and now with the bad michigan winter its impossible to drive on some days. I've been told that I need a new traction control pump which is going to cost around $2500 and up depending on what they find but will automatically start at $2500. That cost is ridiculous and I have talked to prob approx a hundred people who either had the same problem or knew of someone who does, over the past few years. My car is now parked and I have to beg for rides to work because its winter and I cannot put myself and others in danger with this issue. I have to work and transport kids to different events and feel that this part has to be defective from the start if there's that many people with this same issue. And all of the same exact complaints found online. Please I'm begging you to check into this issue to see if a recall is necessary. Thank you so much.

Filed Oct 11, 2013 · Engine, Fuel system · 118,000 miles · MN

Acted as if it dosen't have power steering when turning to the left, very stiff,and jerky. Total cut out on a freeway on ramp for about 20 seconds. When try to put fuel in gas tank have to hold fueling nozzle barley open or it will not take fuel. Drove to work, got off of work went to start it, it would start with out a jump.

Filed Sep 10, 2012 · Electrical · 146,064 miles · VA

Recently, when I arrived at a local business center, I attempted to turn the ignition key to off and I could not. The key was stuck in the acc position, and thus could not be removed. In addition, all the accessories were on. Reluctantly, I had to leave my car in a public parking lot with the power on and my keys dangling in the ignition. When I drove home, once again the key would not rotate to the off position -- it remained at acc. I attempted many fixes for the problem -- repeatedly shifting into park, turning the steering wheel, etc. I was forced to leave the car on, and with the key in the ignition. My battery in time would be dead. Perhaps worse, my car was just sitting there waiting for an opportunistic thief. I searched online for help and found scores of reports of impala owners who had the identical problem. The ignition key gets stuck in acc and can't be removed. It's an intolerable situation because you can't secure your car. Not to mention that you can't turn the accessories off, so you have a guaranteed drained battery. Here is just one forum where this specific impala problem was discussed: http://repairpal.com/ignition-key-stuck-due-to-failed-shifter-020. Chevrolet should issue a recall and fix this problem. There's no way one can force the key out of the ignition, and the only means of avoiding the drained-battery problem is to remove the battery cables. That's not technology, that's a nightmare. My car is constantly at risk of being stolen, and I'm hooking and unhooking the battery cables all the time. This is a very pervasive and persistent problem with impala owners. Just this one web site alone (above) contains detailed accounts by scores of complainants, and it's but one of many. We paid too much for these cars to be ripped off and jerked around.