Learn me: '06 Impala police package (9C1 ?)

I've been searching for an American beater that can seat at least 4, has anvil like reliability, can tolerate severe neglect and won't break my heart should it get door dinged, rusty or stuffed into a ditch. I don't plan to wrench on it beyond basic maintenance.

So far my search for an non-lifted, non-haggard, non-overpriced XJ Cherokee is proving fruitless due mostly, I suspect, to my budget and time/distance constraints; $4,000 max and I work 3rd shift and never have 2 days off in a row, unless the plant is shut down... but then I'm not getting paid. I digress.

My Impreza took an expensive dump and I've been forced to drive my LSC through the salt and snow; a high sentimental value 3,800 lb Foxbody with an open diff... :(

If the snow gets too deep I can take the wife's Outback but I don't like leaving her and the kids at home with no capable vehicle.

4WD/Awd would be ideal but RWD or FWD would work, with RWD being preferred over FWD.

With that in mind I've been looking for an '03-'04 P71 and somehow stumbled onto an '06 Impala 9C1 that looks decent and has 88,000 miles on it. I know very little about these beyond the 60 degree heritage of the 3.9 V6.

So, GRM, care to educate a fella?

Should I run or are they a solid, well built car?

I am looking for similar reliability. I have an appt at 10am to see this:
'04 Impala
I have had a 3.8L LeSabre before and they are good for what they are and what they cost.

In reply to JohnRW1621:

That's a good looking car.

The one I'm looking at:

I guess I should have waited to hear back from the stealership before posting this thread... they want $6,000 for it.

There's a place in Chicago that has an '05 P71 for sale with 80,000 miles for $4,000.

Back to P71's! lol

they still make and sell that body style of Impala as cop cars with very few changes made since they came out a decade ago, so parts should be easy to find..

My mother had one, a non-9C1, with a few options. Car was quite reliable, I think it went to the shop once for something like a wheel bearing at 150,000 miles (outside of normal maintenance). She's a very non-aggressive driver and, with the 3.9, the car pulled around 31 mpg on the highway and something like 27 mixed driving.

Is 6k really that out of line for these cars? Or just too far outside your budget? I don't know that I'd pay 6k for one but I'm not in that market.

I'm not sure if $6k is above the value of the car but that's more than I'm going to pay.

So it's basically my budget for this vehicular need.

JohnRW1621 wrote: I am looking for similar reliability. I have an appt at 10am to see this: '04 Impala I have had a 3.8L LeSabre before and they are good for what they are and what they cost.

I bought.

$2.2k with 130k.
She's not perfect but presentable. I took it straight to the shop for 4 tires.
Has typical northern car wheel well rust but otherwise paint body, and interior are good.
Cheap enough that even if I have to drop another $1.5k into it I will not feel as if I overpaid.
Contrary to the ad, it is an '03.

Nice.