Original Vibe Owner Saying Hello

General discussions about the Pontiac Vibe & Toyota Matrix. New members, introduce yourself here!
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LittleRedVibeHood
Posts: 10
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2016 7:30 pm

Original Vibe Owner Saying Hello

Post by LittleRedVibeHood »

Hello!

I found this forum when I searched for the term, "how long will my Vibe last?"

I'm the original owner of a 2005 Vibe that I bought in 2004. The car has served me well and Ive always maintained it on its regular schedule and kept it in the garage. Yet a few well meaning family and friends (and my boyfriend) keep telling me I should get a replacement car "soon." But my car still runs just fine and looks great. It has 145k miles on it.

Today I'm getting four new tires for the car before the winter and getting it serviced. Not giving up on the car yet since it hasn't given up on me. I'm seriously considering replacing the windshield too because it's so pitted.

Anyway, hello again! It's nice to see there are other people out there who love their Vibes.
Caretaker

Re: Original Vibe Owner Saying Hello

Post by Caretaker »

Well, if you have $1,000,000 already saved up for your retirement and your financial future is secure, I'd say go for a new car. There are a couple dozen new cars out there which will provide a much better riding experience. Moreover, if your family is so concerned, I'd hit them up for the money :roll: to see if they are really concerned about your finances and your future daily driver. Otherwise, if you are in the same financial situation the majority of us are, and if finding a vehicle that will last upwards of 300,000 miles without bankrupting you on repairs is important, then you have made one of the smartest decisions in auto buying history. People drive lots of Corollas worldwide for a reason: it is a smart financial decision. As long as harsh winters and lots of salt are not eating away at your components, your Vibe will last a whole lot longer than 145,000 miles. These are the days/years that we can observe all the other old Vibe/Matrix/Corolla cars on the road and smile knowing we made the right choice all those years ago. Welcome to the forum. Enjoy your next 100,000 with your car.
LittleRedVibeHood
Posts: 10
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2016 7:30 pm

Re: Original Vibe Owner Saying Hello

Post by LittleRedVibeHood »

Lol, I like your answer. I might use that line next time I get grief for my "old car."

What's funny is my boyfriend likes to take me car shopping which is fun. But I always come to the same conclusion: I like the car I have most because I own it/ no payments and it runs great. What more could I ask for?
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vibrologist
Posts: 1598
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Location: Iowa

Re: Original Vibe Owner Saying Hello

Post by vibrologist »

LittleRedVibeHood:
Welcome to the forum! I am glad you found us. I bought my 2005 Vibe in 2014. I am certainly in a situation where I could have spent 2 to 3 times as much as I did for the Vibe. But why??????

Caretaker gave you some good material for one-line answers to the grieve your folks are giving you about this "old" car.

Maybe we should come up with a few more:

I drive an old Vibe because it leaves money in my pocket for
*flights to Europe
*Vacations
*Pay son's tuition
Last edited by vibrologist on Wed Dec 14, 2016 8:50 am, edited 1 time in total.
Vibrologist
'05 Vibe

"It is important to know the difference between 'accurate' and 'precise' even if you are neither!"

viewtopic.php?f=30&t=43476
JerBear
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Joined: Tue Nov 27, 2012 5:18 pm
Location: Reedsburg Wisconsin

Re: Original Vibe Owner Saying Hello

Post by JerBear »

The old adage "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." applies here. My family lives in central Wisconsin we own a 04, 07, 07 ,09 Pontiac Vibes respectively all but the 09 have more than 100k on them and they are, by far, the best transportation I have ever owned. The ride is mediocre but they are inexpensive to maintain, very easy to work on (on the rare occasion you have to), will carry a ton of stuff along with people and look great! I have very little rust on any of our cars and I have been looking for the vehicle I would buy when I finally need to replace them because they are not being built anymore. Believe it or not several of the cars I thought might be a good fit are no longer being made because the Vibes keep chugging along.

The only time I have been left stranded by one of these has been when I left the lights on by accident because it was raining. I stopped to let my wife go shopping while I sat in an un-running car listening to the radio in the parking lot and the battery died. The stinking battery was 9 years old, it wanted to live for ever but I killed it. If you sell your Vibe, you are a fool IMO. :)
LittleRedVibeHood
Posts: 10
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2016 7:30 pm

Re: Original Vibe Owner Saying Hello

Post by LittleRedVibeHood »

Hey, thanks again. I am glad I found this forum. With just a few weeks until Christmas, I know I am going to see my extended family and hear, "Are you still driving that old car?" comments. Sometimes I feel like the only one who can't see the point of replacing what "ain't broke."

And like I said, I go "car shopping" with my boyfriend on the weekends. I just don't like other cars the way I like my Vibe. I've test driven all kinds of cars now. My Vibe is still my favorite. Back when I bought it 12 years ago, I had known I wanted a Vibe for a few years. I saw one and knew it was the car for me. It still is.

I did spend a lot of money on my Vibe today. Just maintenance. I got four new tires, an oil change and oil filter change, replaced the air and cabin filters, and replaced all three wiper blades. All in all it was about $800 but the car needs nothing now until the next oil change. My mechanic says my car is in great shape.

The tires were kind of expensive and most of the cost, but I wanted good tires on it before the winter weather. I'll never forget how it got me home when we had an unexpected snow storm a few years back, the last time I got new tires. It was supposed to be about 3 inches and it turned into 30 inches. The roads weren't treated, the plows weren't ready. My little car got me through. Other cars were sliding around and getting stuck. Not me. My car had good tires on it. And as the snow piled up in the unplowed roads, it had the height to clear the snow that other cars got stuck in and the fuel efficiency to put up with the bumper to bumper traffic without running out of gas like the trucks and SUVs. The sides of the roads were littered with stuck cars and out of gas trucks as I chugged slowly home. My Vibe got me to the end of my driveway before it finally got stuck (the roads weren't plowed, but packed, my driveway was pure puffy snow). Anyway, good tires were part of that story, so I wanted to be sure I had good ones before the winter again.
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vibrologist
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Re: Original Vibe Owner Saying Hello

Post by vibrologist »

Does anyone think $800 could have bought a car that matches up with your Vibe? Just giving you some ammo to counter the shots you might encounter over the holidays. ;)
New tires give you the perfect opportunity to have the alignment checked. It should be less than $100.00
Vibrologist
'05 Vibe

"It is important to know the difference between 'accurate' and 'precise' even if you are neither!"

viewtopic.php?f=30&t=43476
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vibenvy
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Re: Original Vibe Owner Saying Hello

Post by vibenvy »

Welcome to GenVibe! Glad you finally found and joined us! As others have already said, unless your family is going to buy you a new car, don't pay them any attention. Your Vibe is a baby mileage-wise and as long as it's running well, why would you get rid of it.
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mysteriousem
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Re: Original Vibe Owner Saying Hello

Post by mysteriousem »

I've never really understood the mentality of people who replace their cars when they're still running fine. I guess if you're trading it in, the math works out? But it's such a hassle to buy a new car, why would you want to do it more often than you have to? XD

But everyone in my family drives the wheels off their cars, so I guess it's a totally different culture!

All I know is that I'm not giving up my Vibe until it's dead beyond repair. It's just way too cool to be able to throw a mattress in back and drive across the country without having to pay for lodging along the way. And the gas is so cheap that it makes travel possible in a way that I couldn't hope to do in another car! I'm sure there are newer cars that could do the same thing, but those cars aren't paid for. My Vibe is. So mine wins again. ;)
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vibenvy
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Re: Original Vibe Owner Saying Hello

Post by vibenvy »

mysteriousem wrote:I've never really understood the mentality of people who replace their cars when they're still running fine. I guess if you're trading it in, the math works out? But it's such a hassle to buy a new car, why would you want to do it more often than you have to? XD

But everyone in my family drives the wheels off their cars, so I guess it's a totally different culture!

All I know is that I'm not giving up my Vibe until it's dead beyond repair. It's just way too cool to be able to throw a mattress in back and drive across the country without having to pay for lodging along the way. And the gas is so cheap that it makes travel possible in a way that I couldn't hope to do in another car! I'm sure there are newer cars that could do the same thing, but those cars aren't paid for. My Vibe is. So mine wins again. ;)
Couldn't have said it better myself!
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2009 Liquid Platinum Metallic Vibe GT - 5-Speed Auto – Garage
2009 Steel Blue Metallic Vibe GT - 5-Speed Auto – Garage
korax234
Posts: 59
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Location: NE Ohio

Re: Original Vibe Owner Saying Hello

Post by korax234 »

mysteriousem wrote:I've never really understood the mentality of people who replace their cars when they're still running fine. I guess if you're trading it in, the math works out? But it's such a hassle to buy a new car, why would you want to do it more often than you have to? XD

But everyone in my family drives the wheels off their cars, so I guess it's a totally different culture!

All I know is that I'm not giving up my Vibe until it's dead beyond repair. It's just way too cool to be able to throw a mattress in back and drive across the country without having to pay for lodging along the way. And the gas is so cheap that it makes travel possible in a way that I couldn't hope to do in another car! I'm sure there are newer cars that could do the same thing, but those cars aren't paid for. My Vibe is. So mine wins again. ;)
Heck a mattress go buy a Pontiac Aztek they had a Tent Kit that actually stuck out the back of it lol. Google the tent attachment for the Pontiac Aztek
but that is awesome you do that.
mysteriousem
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Re: Original Vibe Owner Saying Hello

Post by mysteriousem »

Heck a mattress go buy a Pontiac Aztek they had a Tent Kit that actually stuck out the back of it lol. Google the tent attachment for the Pontiac Aztek
lol, that's hilarious. XD Kind of defeats the purpose of sneaky free camping, though. lol
Owim
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Re: Original Vibe Owner Saying Hello

Post by Owim »

It's so refreshing to see people who don't go "ohh my car has over 100k miles on it better spend 15k+ on a new one before mine starts having problems/it loses resale value" 250k on my 09 vibe and it only left my stranded when my transmission went out at 200k. I knew it was coming and my mechanic just said drive it till the transmission totally dies and have it towed, could be tomorrow or 6 months(it died the next day but I drive all day so it woulda been at least a week for the average driver) This car has been overall awesome for me, cruise control is wonky right now but I'm hopefully getting it fixed on friday.

Good luck with your vibe it will last a long time!
2009 2.4 AWD
LittleRedVibeHood
Posts: 10
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2016 7:30 pm

Re: Original Vibe Owner Saying Hello

Post by LittleRedVibeHood »

I posted pictures of my car in the garage forum (I was going to post them here, but after looking at the other forums it seems like that's the right place to post the pictures).
tpollauf
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Re: Original Vibe Owner Saying Hello

Post by tpollauf »

Welcome to GenVibe and glad you finally joined up with us. Keep it till the wheels fall off! Period !!! Visit often here and get involved ;)
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2014 Silverado, 2004 Vibe GT

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