Good, reliable car

When my Cherokee got stolen in 2003, I was anything but a happy camper, and certainly not ready to go car shopping, much less for a sensible sedan. But, since Jeep insisted on discontinuing it's most popular car, I had to look for something else.

I decided to get a subtle sedan in granny-beige... something joy-riders wouldn't decide was cool enough to steal and take off-roading (like they apparently did with my Cherokee). When I started shopping around, I found the Chevy Impala. All the stats looked great - best safety rating in its class, best gas mileage, it was roomy, and while not the same cargo dimensions of my Jeep, it had a big trunk and fold-down back seats.

When I went to pick up my base-model Impala, I was depressed, and not excited like a new car buyer should be. I felt like my dog had just died, and this was the ugly replacement puppy I got from the local pound. But that replacement puppy could not have become a more solid, loyal, and loving friend.

In the past 3 years I've had this vehicle, it hasn't replaced the Cherokee for all the reasons I liked the cherokee (cargo area, sporty-look, 4-wheel drive), but there is absolutely nothing I can complain about it (other than it's low-slung enough to pick up sticks and scrape over speedbumps...). It gets great mileage, it's roomy and comfortable, it's reliable and solid.

Not a particularly "sporty" car, it's granny beige and reliable, comfortable and powerful, but then I noticed a phenomenon. Everyone around me started driving them. Apparently I wasn't the only one to notice its quiet power and understated elegance. Like its namesake, it's the flagship for Chevy's sedan line, calling loyal customers like a beacon.

It may not be the flashiest car out there, but after getting one's car stolen, you'd prefer understated. But, it's a great car, and I'll drive it 'til it dies. (Which won't be any time soon, pending any catastrophies).

It's very nice inside, and the seating is great. My 6'5" father is quite comfortable sitting in the back seat, with plenty of head, shoulder and hip room, and I don't have to pull my seat up any to accomodate his long legs, (he has a hard time being comfortable in many FRONT seats, but not this one). Controls are standard placements - nothing stands out in my mind as being weird, troublesome, or annoying (and I had a laundry list of things in my beloved cherokee I didn't like, so that says something). It's a very nice car, and I'm happy to have it.