The 2006 Chevy Impala that I am reviewing is actually my 72 yr. old mother's car. Impala LT in Glacier Blue with Grey interior and silver accents.I helped her pick it out and drove it home (she was too exhausted after crying on the way to the dealer because we were turning in her 1987! Chevy Celebrity that was owned by my father and step-father and lasted 20 reliable years). She turned in Rita for Lana (yes, she already named it!).

My mother has carpal tunnel so she wanted a car with the transmission control on the steering wheel, not a console. The choice was between the Impala, the Buick LaCrosse, a used Buick Century or Impala, and the Toyota Avalon. She found the interior controls on the LaCrosse a bit confusing, the Century she though felt like a old womens car (yes I know she is 72 but she's young at heart), the 2005 Impala was hard to find at the time, and as for the Avalon if you are going to buy an American style car-buy American!

I must say the Impala looks much better in person than in pictures. Pictures just do not capture the jewel lens headlights and tail lights and even the front grill looks better in person. Nice job, Chevy.
The interior has excellent fit and finish and looks particularly good with the satin silver accents. I had her special order this since the fake wood is standard and personally I think it looks awful. Why Chevy didn't make the silver accent standard is beyond me as it is far superior and much more elegant looking. The controls, including A/C and Stereo are all high quality and nice to the touch. This car just feels more expensive than it is.

Ride quality was flawless in my opinion. Bumps and potholes just weren't an issue as the suspension soaked them up with ease. The base engine has more than enough power for most people. I found the pick-up to be smooth and the engine is very quiet at idle. Steering was tight and steady and handled turns in a sporting manner, while the brakes were smooth and thankfully not over-assisted. The only criticism on the steering is that it feels a tad too tight at parking speeds. I don't mind it but I was concerned that my mother would have a problem with it. She found it tighter than she would like but can live with it.

Visibility is very good out front since the seats are high up and offer a good outward view. As noted in a few reviews the side mirrors are a little small and rear visibility is poor. Not helping are the head restraints on the back seat, something I have never seen in a car before. However, if my mother can pull out of the garage without scratching the sides of the car (her garage is very small) than it isn't a hindrance.

The stereo sounds very nice but I recommend fading the speakers to 70% rear and 30% front because the rear speakers can handle bass much better than the front speakers, which of course is par for the course in autos. The controls for bass and treble, etc could be easier to access. As in most cars nowadays looks count for more than ease of use. I would always prefer separate knobs for bass, treble, balance, and fade rather than have them be menu driven. A/C controls are very easy to use however and the controls feel like they belong in a more upscale car.
In conclusion, I must say I am very impressed with the 2006 Impala. I enjoy looking at it and driving it. Since I let my mom use my GM Card Rebate (which GM generously increased to $3,000 just in time for her purchase) she got an excellent deal. $18,800 for the LT1 with ABS Brakes. Since GM was so generous and the Chevy dealer gave a good base price right off the bat, I decided to have her purchase an extended warranty-7 yrs for $1,400. It isn't a GM Warranty but one from a company called API. For some reason the dealer pushed this warranty on her instead of GM's Major Guard. I thought it was odd but I can't seem to find any negative reports on API on the web so hopefully it was a good choice.
The 2006 Chevrolet Impala is highly recommended. If reliability remains strong you won't be hearing from me again. If it isn't you most definitely will! I happen to think I will not have to add anything negative based on my first impressions of this fine vehicle. People who ignore American cars, and in particular GM, are making a big mistake in my opinion.

I am going to add some more info in response to a viewer comment:
I would say the seats are comfortable even though I prefer bucket seats. These are the 60/40 bench seats. They are adjustable 6 ways including height and lumbar support.
The trunk is huge, able to swallow a lot of luggage, however a flaw in the design allows water to drip into the trunk when open if it has been raining out. My car does the same thing, I wonder if it happens to all cars?
Gas mileage I could not estimate at this time as she hasn't even gone through a tankful of gas yet.
The controls are excellent, very nice to the touch, especially the HVAC controls which are very smooth.
The brakes are a strong point on the car, smooth and powerful without being overassisted which with my heavy foot sometimes makes me jerk cars to a halt.
I must emphasize its weak points a little more though. The rear visibility is atrocious. The rear window not only is small but it angles completely downward. Very poor design for visibility but I'm sure it helps it to look good from the outside. However, I would much prefer to give up some looks in order to see better out the rear. My mother is uneasy about this also but otherwise loves the car. The view forward is excellent since the seats are high up and the hood slopes downward a bit.