Headlight Switch problems of the 2004 Chevrolet Impala

I was driving at night and turned on my brights and shortly after my headlights went out. I had to mess with the switch before they would come back on. They kept doing this until I switched back to dims.

After sitting for a couple months, upon driving the car again the low beam headlights don't work. Replaced the multi-function switch, checked all the relays and fuses. Still not working. High beams and daytime running lights work. This basically renders the vehicle undrivable, as it gets dark at 4:30 in eth winter, and I am not able to drive it at night.

Headlights went out while driving at night,hold dim/bright switch to have brights only,release switch to normal position,lights go out,normal clicking sound when engaging dim/brights not there.

The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Impala. The contact was driving approximately 60 mph with the headlights activated when they suddenly failed. The contact attempted to use the high beams however, they also failed to illuminate. The vehicle was taken to a private mechanic where it was diagnosed that the multi-function switch needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 210,000 and the current mileage was 214,000. The VIN was not available.

We were driving our 2004 Chevrolet Impala this evening and have been having issues for the past month with the headlights. The dim lights would not work at all, only the brights worked. This evening, we smelled something burning and suddenly the multifunction switch was smoking and on fire. We shut off the car and waved the fire out, luckily we got out safe. We now have no headlights and had to have the vehicle towed. I have seen that this is a problem with many Impalas and Chevrolet needs to take action. Someone could be injured in an accident due to their lights failing or get injured because their car starts on fire. It's a lawsuit waiting to happen.

I was driving down the interstate with my bright lights on and suddenly my headlights turned off. I reached down and pulled the headlight switch on thinking it was the day time driving lights, but they still did not turn on. In a panic I flipped the dimmer switch on the steering wheel and they came on. Since then I happened again with my brights about a month ago but happened 4 times last night, with my brights and dims, on my 6 mile drive home. I have owned dozens of cars in my life, most Chevrolet, and never had a failure of this magnitude while driving. This seems to be a serious failure and a huge safety concern for me as I have teenagers that drive my car and may not have be able to safely resolve an issue like this with out injury.

While driving at night with the high beams on, the headlights and instrument lights suddenly go dark. Manipulating the high/low beam switch on the steering column caused the lights to turn on again. This condition has happened several times and occurs without warning. It is a very dangerous situation.

Last July the dash lights and interior panel lights stopped working. They could be made to work intermittently by wiggling the headlamp switch and / or banging on the instument panel. Last night my son was driving home at approximately 9:30 pm on a 4 lane secondary road at approximately 45 mph in moderate traffic and all of the headlamps went out with no warning, leaving him unable to see the road ahead. He ran over a curb, but was able to maintain control of the vehicle and bring it to a stop in a nearby parking lot. He and his passengers (2) were very shaken emotionally. The car was left there overnight. When it was picked up during the daylight hours today, the headlights were working again. After driving it home and turning the headlights on and off manually, they quit again. They could be made to work intermittently by wiggling the dimmer switch / turn signal lever on the steering column. I called the Chevrolet dealership nearby and was told that this was a common problem and the part was over $500. I believe this to be a severe safety problem if this is common to these vehicles, as my son and his passengers could have been seriously if not fatally injured had the circumstances been different.

The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Impala. The contact was driving approximately 40 mph with the headlights activated and suddenly without warning the headlights stopped illuminating for a few seconds. The same malfunction recurred on three separate occasions. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 95,000. Updated 03/14/lj the multi-function switch was replaced at a cost of $ 495. 78.

When applying the bright headlights, all exterior and dash lights go out. Very scary! when operating switch again lights return, but have dim headlamps only. This has happened several times. Now only drive with dims on until I can afford the repair. Not safe!.

The headlights on my 2004 chevy Impala just suddenly went out during night time driving. The only thing that would give me any light was to hold back on the dimmer switch lever. I have since learned that this malfunction has happened to hundreds of owners of Impalas. The switch is quoted as costing over $500 and instalation another $200. That's alot for a commonly defective plastic part! it's also a very poor design to have all headlights go out simply because the dimmer switch is malfunctioning.

Roughly around 2 1/2 to 3 years ago, I was driving across a levee when my headlights went completely went out-the lights came back on the next day. Then again 2 days later went completely out, therefore, I had the dimmer switch replaced. 2 months ago my headlights went out again. This time when they came back on, they only worked on bright. I cannot dim my lights and have been pulled over twice-once by a state trooper and another time by the local police department.

The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Impala. The contact stated that while driving approximately 30 mph, the headlights suddenly failed. The contact had to utilize the high beam headlights in order to illuminate the roadway. The vehicle was inspected by a dealer and they advised him that the bright and dim switch would need to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 85,000. Updated 5/24/11 the consumer stated the manual switch did not work. The consumer stated he had to use the highbeam lights. Updated 096/03/11.

In my 2004 Chevrolet Impala night driving is unsafe. I will be driving down the road when its dark and I will have a chance to turn on my bright headlights for a better vision of the road. After turning them on I can drive about 5 or so miles and the headlights will shut off. The only way to regain the headlights is by turning off the brights. You loose all lights, not just the brights. The only lights on are the parking lights. Very unsafe and you cannot see the road. Also everyones in awhile the lights will blink. It happens at least once every time if I go on at least a 20 minute drive and are turning brights on and off. No buttons are involved when the lights go out. They just automatically shut off by themselves. Very scary and very unsafe if you don't know how to get them working again. Have heard that it may be the brights switch but those are way overpriced.

There have been numerous occurrences of this incident during the last year; the latest being last night. Last night, I was running somewhere between 55 and 60 mph on a very dark night with my bright lights on when all of a sudden my headlights went out. The instrument panel lights remained lit. After frantically activating the steering column bright/dim switch, the dim lights came back on. This is a very dangerous situation because we live down long, curvy mountain back roads that are not lit. This is a very serious safety issue that is going to get someone killed. My research reveals that there have been untold numbers of identical incidents involving the 2004 Impala. I am not going to pay a tax payer bailed out general motors to fix a design related safety issue. Before I do, I will contact my attorney and initiate a class action law suit. Is it going to take the needless death of many people to get gm to fix this problem? hello out there. Is anyone listening?.

2004 Impala headlights go out unexpectedly while driving at night but will come back on if the dimmer switch is used. . Dash lights and headlights dim when stopped at traffic light.

Headlights went out completely after dark at 55 mph . The problem is in the quality of the high /low beam selector I was told . I am replacing the third switch this week 3/16/11 since 09/20/09 . This to me seems to be a gm safety problem which I think should be a mfg recall . Have owned many of vehicles and never totally lost headlights . The cost is also unheard of can be $500 or more.

Total headlight failure while driving at 65 mph on u. S. Highway 287 north of ft collins, CO. The failure occurred when changing from low to high beams on the headlights. This has happened many times since the first time last fall but we now have the fog lamps on so when they fail we at least have some light though it is minimal. We then have to flip the hi-lo switch several times to get the low beams back on. There has been occasion that after we get the high beams to work after a few minutes they will just go out completely. I have researched this problem online and have found there are probably hundreds of people that have had similar problems with the multiswitch gm used on 2000-2005 vehicles. The cost to replace this switch is outrageous $300. 00- $600. 00 so I'm sure there are a lot of vehicles on the road that pose a hazard due to this faulty switch. My girlfriend who owns this car lives on a narrow winding mountain road and has had these headlight failures in the middle of curves and it is very scary for her and passengers. If you could investigate this situation I would greatly appreciate it.

The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Impala. While driving approximately 55 mph at night, the high beam headlights failed to operate when activated. The contact's visibility was extremely poor and she pulled the vehicle over to the side of the road. She had to manually hold the dimmer switch while driving to ensure the activation of the headlights. The vehicle was able to be driven normally, but has not been repaired. The VIN was not accepted by the system. The failure mileage was 60,000 and current mileage was 70,000. Updated 5/26/09 updated 05/28/09.

My 2004 Impala has problems with it's light/dimmer switch. One has to click the handle twice in order to dim/brighten the lights. A couple of time the dash lights and headlights all went completely out when I tried to dim/brighten the lights. This is a hazard. There should be a recall!!!!!.

The headlights go completely out occasionally when switching on the high beams. It has done this intermittently for some time. They will come on when you switch them again. The car is a 2004 Chevrolet Impala ss. It first started it about 2 yrs ago.

2004 Chevrolet Impala - the headlights will go out without any warning while you are driving down the road. This is extremely dangerous! I am still in the process of trying to figure out how to get this problem corrected. I have already had the light sensor replaced and the bcm replaced. Neither of these corrected the problem. After many days and hours of research, I think it may be related to the multi-function switch on the steering column. This must become a recall as this endangers many lives!.

The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Impala. While driving approximately 60 mph, the contact turned off the high beam headlights and the electrical system failed without warning. The contact had to park the vehicle and manipulate the high beam switch on the steering column in order for the lighting/electricity to return. In addition, the vehicle received a recall repair for the ignition key where the key was replaced. Afterwards, when the key was in the ignition and turned, the vehicle failed to start. Once the vehicle was started and the key was in the on position, the vehicle would stall without warning. The contact had to manipulate the key in the start position several times in order to start the vehicle. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the switch on the steering column and body control module failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer stated that because the vehicle was over 10 years old, they were unable to assist with the repair. The failure recurred. The failure mileage was 42,536.