Regular maintenance costs remain zip, zilch, nada, zero for Cars.com’s long-term 2014 Chevrolet Impala test car. We’ve gone through two rounds of oil changes and tire rotations after 13,808 miles — once at 6,000 miles and the other at 12,000 miles — and Chevrolet’s two years/24,000 miles of complimentary maintenance have kept those services freebies so far. That leaves two remaining services before we reach our maximum service frequency (four) of the service plan.
Related: More on Our Long-Term Fleet
The Impala spent unscheduled time at the dealership after we noticed a dull vibration pulsing through the floorboards and seats above 60 mph. The pulsing was worrisome enough to warrant one editor pulling into a service center during a road trip to have the car inspected.
Technicians discovered two slightly bent wheels likely caused by plowing over one of the monstrous potholes in our home base of Chicago. The vibration was partially remedied by balancing the wheels on the road and again back home, though replacing one or two of the optional 19-inch wheels is still not out of the question as there’s a hint of vibration when driving on completely smooth roads. The $119.90 we spent on wheel balancing is the only cost we’ve encountered outside of fuel and $99.95 all-weather floormats.
