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Comments
I start my car (and it does start) the front headlights do not come on, the service engine, and service oil lights come on, if I put in gear(ie reverse) the car does not engage. It's as if I'm locked out of the car. If I then turn the car off, and then back on I can get it to work just fine. I've been the computer is not recording this, and I haven't been able to get it to happen at the dealership..
Any help would be appreciated..
Thanks..
2. How's the premium audio system?
3. It seems like such a small car. From a safety standpoint, if I'm looking at the Forester or Escape, would I be better off If heaven forbid I'm hit?
4. Any chance of future performance upgrades? Particularly with the AWD model?
130 hp is plenty for the Vibe. 167 hp is way more than is needed. You can not get the supercharger with the AWD.
If more HP is needed you could have a full tube frame installed with a 350HP V8 GM crate motor. That would certainly not be underpowered.
Vibe will do over 100 mph as it is. How fast do YOU need to go?
If the Vibe is too small and you are concerned about performance consider the Forrester XT with 210 HP and more room.
Of course, you could just put on different wheels and tires. It would slow the car down and throw off the accuracy of the speedometer an the odometer but....they would look better.
Any experiences out there with the Vibe GT?
I called my dealer today to ask about the dealer-installed supercharger for the base Vibe. He is going to cehck into it.
Add to that the fact that all that power is being put to the front wheels instead of the back and you get sloppy power transmission to the pavement via torque steer, spinning wheels, you know, all the worst parts of the Bible LOL.
IMO, I'd probably look more into the base Vibe. Any more power than low-mid 100's hp range, and I'd stick with RWD or AWD to get all that power to the pavement the right way.
I've got a base with a 5sp and it's already begging me to get into trouble. Stick with the base, but make sure you can live with the noise. It's a pretty raunchy little car. Still like it, though, at least it's got character...
-Mathias
AWD means plenty of extra moving parts. It's a good idea to go with a company that specializes in the technology.
-m
Any comments? How do you rate the fit and finish on your Vibe?
http://news.morningstar.com/news/DJ/M02/D13/200402132036DOWJONESD- JONLINE000935.html
FWIW, they do not use exactly the same parts because of the divergent manufacture locations of Vibe vs Matrix, and now that both models have been "refreshed" for '05, the parts will diverge between the two even more.
The plant in Canada where Matrix is built also builds Lexus for Toyota....so the quality standard between the two plants may not be exactly the same either...
2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)
2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)
I'm 6'1" and I've been driving a Vibe 5sp since Halloween... no problem. Fun car.
If you want something to worry about, the seat cushion is tilted to far forward, and I get uncomfortable when I raise it up from the lowest position, as it tilts further down when you do that. I'd like more thigh support, but it's no reason not to buy the car. The engine noise might be, pay close attention during the test drive; it's fairly loud.
Also, check the Mazda3 if you like. It's very smooth, strong, and feels really buttoned down... but it's more expensive, and then I'd stretch towards a Subaru, but that's me.
-Mathias
It depends on what type of GM card you have.
Just call the redemption line and ask them about your card
2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)
I am considering legal action against GM on this issue and am wondering if anyone else is as fed up with this as I am. I live in Chicagoland and you have either the heat or air-conditioning on about 9 months a year.
Anyone care to join me in a discussion of a class action law suit?
My Matrix doesn't have the smell, but I took a trip to Fort Dix in a rented Corolla that had it. Of course no one noticed until we stopped somewhere and our stink trail caught up to us.
In terms of regularity of the smell, it always happens just as the engine temperature reaches normal. Then it kind of comes and goes.
I don't have it. Think it could be a fuel mixture thing in the ECU?
Also, checked out the Subie Forester. The sales staff was too busy joking around to pay much attention to us? However, we were dressed well and ready to make a decision fairly quickly. My wife doesn't need to drive in bad weather, so the Subie's AWD was not a huge deciding factor. If the truth be known, the inflated Subaru Forester MSRP and the lack of shoulder to shoulder interior room in a $25,500 tall wagon was a deal killer.
The Vibe's good looks, commanding seating position, versatility, price point, Toyota engine & drive train quality and 29 city / 34 highway mpg (gas costs $1.86 per gallon today in Lancaster, PA.) sealed the deal.
2004 Pontiac Vibe
1.8L DOHC 4-cyl Engine
Auto Transmission
Frosty (White)- Premium Monotone Appearance Pkg.
Moon and Toon-(Sunroof & 200 Watt Premium Audio System Upgrade)
Power Group
17" inch Alloy wheels
Antilock brakes
Total MSRP with Destination- $21,265
less Rebates -$2,500
less Negotiated Discount- $1,055
less Trade- $4,700
Cash Price of Vehicle: $13,010
Walked into my home town Pontiac dealership with a Capital One Draft Check with a financing rate of 3.85% and a GM Buy Power quote of 1% over invoice from another nearby Pontiac Dealer. I made our Lancaster, PA. Pontiac Dealer (Jones Pontiac-Buick-GMC) a 1% over invoice offer for our new 2004 Vibe and this price was accepted without haggle. The Jones finance manager beat the 3.85% Capital One rate with local bank financing at 3.49%. Very easy! No pressure or hard sell tactics. The sales, service and finance staff was excellent and easy to work with. The Vibe with 17" inch alloy wheels in white Premium Monotone Appearance Pkg. looks awesome. After, about 100 miles of driving, she is hooked on the Vibe. The Vibe/Matrix tall wagon should serve my spouse well for the next 48 months.
Respectably,
Larry
Could you copy and paste your post over in the Pontiac Vibe: Prices Paid & Buying Experiences discussion? It would be great to have your post in that discussion as well (many shoppers look there to see what others are paying).
Thanks! Congrats again!
:-)
-Larry
Done, Sylvia and thank you for the Congrats!
-Larry
I have yet to determine much rime or reason to it yet...I simply have been too busy and preoccupied to devote much scientific analysis to the issue so for now its just something that is kind of annoying that occurs every now and then...
I have since learned how to creep in 1st gear just above stall speed. I also don't downshift at stop lights like I used to. I just put it in neutral and use the brakes.
If you jump over to the Corolla: Problems & Solutions board you'll find referrences to the smell within the first two pages of the board. However, I don't know if Toyota has addressed it.
-Larry
"practically, any of the majors in your area are using the same refinery stocks and just adding your additive package for gas. There ARE differences in the refinery stocks. Some have already cut over to newer equipment that cuts sulfur in the gas to essentially none, some haven't yet. If you have a recent car that has a permeable-ceramic catalytic, sulfur can build up in them under light driving, and release in a hot stinky cloud of hydrogen sulfide if you floor it, tow, start driving uphill, or otherwise load the engine more or get the cat hot. There are a lot of yowls about that across the Edmunds Boards. The car makers all say use the lowest sulfur gas you can get. But, who has it is something a little hard to tell. If Spilco is advertising in your area that "our gas already meets the 2005 EPA clean-air requirements... because Spilco thinks this is a special place," then they have a refinery feeding them that is cleaned up. If you live near it, have a cup or two in the nearest cafe, watch out the window, and see whose trucks are filling up at that refinery. You now have your shopping list. It may only be good on, say, the East End of your city, because the far west suburbs may be getting their fuel from the pipeline terminal. But that's something you have to find out locally. I don't think any state websites are posting that data, certainly Minnesota isn't, and a few other I've Googled aren't."
-by Scott Schrader Mar 20, 2004 Town Hall
They acknowledge that there is a smell but state that there is nothing they can do about it. They then state that they are sorry that I am unhappy with their decision and refer me to the Better Business Bureau.
I am absolutlely dumbfounded by this response. What GM is saying is that they acknowledge a major defect in the Vibe but won't do anything about it. I know some of you may feel that this is petty but believe me when that smell kicks in, it is awful.
Bottom line from this Vibe owner, don't buy one. I have owned 4 pontiacs in the last 12 years (2 ssei's, 1 montana and the Vibe) and after this experience would never, ever, buy another pontiac or GM product. If this is how they treat a loyal owner, I wonder how they treat others.
I see complaints about the smell in other boards too. No one seems to have a clear answer. Lot of talk about fuel mixtures and additives.