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Chevrolet Impala SS badge returns with a supercharged sedan
Bob Plunkett
Date Posted: 5/10/2005
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MILAN, Mich. -- Make sure that seatbelt's snug because we're poised on the straight strip at a motorsports park near Motor City and preparing to put the pedal down on a vehicle bearing a fabled badge out of Chevrolet history.
It's the Impala SS, as in Super Sport, with a new edition for 2004 that's pumped up with supercharged power.
And it looks bad -- as in good -- in a special monochromatic black paint treatment with foglamps added up front, twin pipes in back gleaming from stainless steel, and instruments in the cabin expanded to a six-dial cluster with supercharger boost gauge.
It also runs up to quick times as we shed some rubber from the low-profile tires and rip down the speedway's straightaway.
With that blower working for additional thrust and the speedometer's needle inching toward triple-digit territory, we're seeing that a four-door family sedan can still play the road game quick and fast.
This is the way designers at Chevrolet spark new life in a venerable marque.
Chevy's archetypal sportster returns with something borrowed from yesterday (that vintage nameplate) and various elements from today (such as the chassis of a contemporary Impala sedan with its sheetmetal shell), but with a supercharger under the hood and hard-cornering suspension tuning to kindle a sporty spirit.
It's a clear-cut case of deja vu all over again.
Yet new Impala SS for 2004 is not its 1960s namesake. The only similarity, in fact, comes from the name and Chevy's tradition for sport-minded engineering.
The Impala name first appeared at the 1956 Motorama auto show on a slick dream-car sedan with fiberglass shell and a honker V8 stuffed below the extended hood.
It subsequently became a production reality in 1958 as the top-of-the-line Chevrolet with cool coupe and convertible styling. Other shapes followed with trendy fins and muscular shoulders, and by 1961 there was a special package that forged the Impala Super Sport, first of the souped-up SS breed.
In its heyday of the Sixties, Impala amounted to a full-size car with an iron-block V8 engine that exerted massive horsepower on the rear wheels but handled like a floaty barge.
By contrast, the current Impala runs 200 inches in length with a front-wheel-drive (FWD) stance to cultivate a lively personality. With a mid-size structure but full-size cabin space and seats for as many as six, Impala the sedan ranks among the best-selling passenger cars in America and it's also the bestseller at Chevrolet.
It debuted in year 2000 re-oriented with the FWD gear and a mid-size scale to replace the retired Lumina series.
In Chevrolet's 2004 line, all Impala issues earn upgraded seats with new cloth covering the front bench or twin buckets.
Also new is an optional sport appearance package with tail spoiler and body-color taillamp appliques.
A base model and upscale LS pack V6 powertrains.
The familiar 3.4-liter plant from GM produces 180 hp at 5200 rpm, while an optional 3.8-liter V6 reaches to 205 hp at 5200 rpm.
However, engineers at GM's Performance Division pulled out a supercharger and attached it to the 3.8-liter V8 to make the Impala SS.
With supercharging, power jumps to 240 points to set up a swift sedan that's also rather conservative on fuel.
Further, the torque generated from this horsepower boost climbs dramatically through supercharging but at lower engine speeds, which means there's more strength available quicker through lower gears.
Supercharging amounts to a simple mechanical idea.
Essentially, a blower driven by the engine forces more air into each cylinder to enrich the mix of fuel and oxygen required for combustion. This boost of air in turn generates more power with each cycle of ignition without requiring more fuel to do so.
The supercharger goes strictly to Impala with that SS badge applied.
An electronically-controlled four-speed automatic transmission -- GM's smooth Hydra-Matic shifter -- links to the V6.
Styling for Impala looks sleek but different from the ordinary medium-sized and wedge-shaped sedan, due to its high-hiked roofline and an unusual tail treatment.
Impala's nose slinks low and cradles a grille narrowed to match the thin shape of twin headlamp clusters. The hoodline forms a smooth arch that rises to meet a contoured windshield. Side panels seem rather flat and there are large wheelwells to accommodate large-scale wheels and tires.
At the tail a curt tapered panel holds a wide back strip of lamps with bold round lights that look similar to those marking the earliest Impalas.
Beneath the sculptured skin, structural components start with a safety cage that has underbody longitudinal and cross-car bracing for extra rigidity and torsional stiffness. Body stampings on each side from windshield pillar rearward to the tail consist of a single piece of convoluted metal and a horizontal cast slab of magnesium runs across the structure from one front pillar to the other behind the dash.
A compliant four-wheel independent suspension system enables Impala to respond with solid sensations when moving over pavement irregularities, and it reacts quickly when asked to steer clear of lane obstacles like slower traffic. The suspension puts a MacPherson strut at each corner and progressive-rate springs to dampen road chatter.
Actually, all three trims differ in ride quality due to variances in suspension tuning. Softer settings apply to the base Impala, while the LS exhibits firmer traits because of a switch in stabilizer bars, front and rear, plus different tuning for shock absorbers and stiffer springs.
Spring rates on Impala SS measure even stiffer in front and back to check body roll when cornering.
Impala SS also has 17-inch diamond-cut aluminum wheels capped by P235/55R17 W-rated tires.
Chevrolet brings all three of the 2004 Impalas to market under a theme of value-added price points. Base Impala lists for $21,240, with Impala LS pegged at $24,340 and the supercharged Impala SS set to $27,335.
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| Vehicle Specifications: |
| 2004 CHEVROLET IMPALA SS Specs |
| Description: |
Full-size sedan
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| Model Options: |
Full-size sedan
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| Wheelbase: |
110.5 inches
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| Overall Length: |
200.0 inches
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| Engine Size: |
OHV 3.4-L V6
OHV 3.8-L V6
OHV 3.8-L V6 SC
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| Transmission: |
Auto/4 4T65-E
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| Drive: |
Front
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| Braking: |
Power 4-disc
Impala: opt. ABS/TCS
Impala LS: ABS/TCS
Impala SS: ABS/TCS
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| Airbags: |
2 (front) + opt. 1 (side)
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| Gas Mileage: |
3.4-L: 21/32 mpg
3.8-L: 20/30 mpg
3.8-L SC: 19/29 mpg
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| Price: |
Impala: $ 21,240, Impala LS: $ 24,340, Impala SS: $ 27,335 |
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