new member up north

General discussions about the Pontiac Vibe & Toyota Matrix. New members, introduce yourself here!
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hogdoctor
Posts: 80
Joined: Sun May 06, 2018 4:28 am

new member up north

Post by hogdoctor »

Greetings from Wisconsin - just bought my first Pontiac... an '04 awd @250k miles, for $1200. Having been in the land of winter salted roads all it's life, I'm surprised how little rust is on it, just a bit below the rear hatch window, and just above the windshield. The previous owner sanded those areas down and coated them liberally with POR15, and I'm starting to see rust pushing up underneath it so there may be some more invasive metal repair in the future. Engine light was lit, codes 133 and 171 (lean) which has resolved itself after a running through a half tank of fuel treated with injector cleaner. The bulbs are missing from both dome lights, haven't figured that one out yet.. have LED light panels ordered for those. One rear wheel is wobbly, but the bearing itself is not making any noise so I figure the bore of the cast iron flange is distorted after a wheel impact. Rear wiper is entirely absent and the wiper mount stud doesn't look usable. The transfer case output shaft seal is leaking visibly, still have to get under there and check the gear oil level in that and the rear diff.

A few questions:
- I noticed the gear shifter indicator has no backlight, should it?
- I don't run it beyond 3k rpm yet, starting out cold - it hangs up at 45 mph and won't shift until about a mile down the road. Normal?
- Part of my justification for buying this unit was to save on gas money, and so far the numbers aren't impressing me. My previous hatchback (civic) was pushing 40mpg. Is it possible to delete the all wheel drive with just a right driveshaft, or is the transmission housing not the same awd vs non?
- is there a bigger set of rear view mirrors I could upgrade to? I feel blind trying to navigate backwards.

This may be common tribal knowledge, but I found this resource and it's been rather helpful. http://www.madstyle1972.com/Repair/
- Is there a free online source for electrical wiring diagrams and parts blowup diagrams with OEM part numbers?

Ok, I'll stop now and get back to digging through old threads about engine upgrades and what not.
Thanks for any replies ;^)

Patrick (aka Hogdoctor) in NW Wisconsin
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joatmon
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Location: SMC MD

Re: new member up north

Post by joatmon »

Welcome to genvibe.

There is a bulb in the shifter. There are two approaches to replacing it. One is shown in the video that theamdman linked at the end of viewtopic.php?f=20&t=33701 The other is pushing on and fidgeting around with the PRNDL plastic strip and get it to move out of the way to gain access to the bulb. The first way is a lot more involved, but the move the strip method can really be frustrating trying to get that plastic strip locked back into position.

Not shifting normally at cold start might be normal, the electronically controlled tranny tends to shift at higher RPMs when cold, probably to help the engine get to normal operating temp sooner. I don't remember worrying about keeping it under 3K when cold, partly because a tenth of a mile from when I leave my house, I have to turn onto a 50 mph road and go up a hill, so I usually have to punch it pretty soon after start.

fueleconomy.gov says the highway mileage estimate for an 04 AWD vibe is 29 mpg, and I'm fairly confident there's not much you can do to get anywhere near the 40 you got with the civic. My first was a manual tranny, and over 288K miles, I had one tank where I hit 40 mpg, that was coming back to sea level from the mountains. To be honest, I think the time and effort required to somehow get 40 mpg out an AWD vibe would be better spent on a different car. Somethings might help, such as a more efficient exhaust might help, not sure the money spent would ever equal the cost of gas saved.

I don't remember anyone installing bigger side mirrors. Maybe some trailer towing vibers have, but I don't remember. I also have an 03 Tacoma, and it sure looks like its bigger mirrors would fit a Vibe, but I've never taken the truck mirrors off to see. If I get rid of the truck before the Vibe, I might try it, because the truck mirrors are bigger and are also the swing away type, looks like the same mirror control in both. Don't buy some based on that, and I'm not likely to test it myself anytime soon.

I don't know why madstyle didn't host the wiring manual, probably just lucky he still has the repair info out there. I don't know what the copyright issues are on that stuff. There used to be various sites that hosted the zip file of the full matrix manual, repair, wiring, and new features, but I can't find any online anymore. I haven't seen a Vibe parts list on line.
There is a pdf of 03 matrix parts at http://www.genvibe.com/images/misc/manu ... atalog.pdf You'll probably have more luck finding Matrix parts these days, Toyota is supporting their version better than GM. A/C parts are different though, and obviously exterior body panels, probably a few others
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vibenvy
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Re: new member up north

Post by vibenvy »

Welcome to GenVibe! Props on rescuing this Vibe and posting a picture of it too!
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2009 Liquid Platinum Metallic Vibe GT - 5-Speed Auto – Garage
2009 Steel Blue Metallic Vibe GT - 5-Speed Auto – Garage
ehoff121
Posts: 756
Joined: Mon Feb 26, 2007 12:19 am
Location: Conn.

Re: new member up north

Post by ehoff121 »

Welcome to genvibe!
hogdoctor wrote:- I don't run it beyond 3k rpm yet, starting out cold - it hangs up at 45 mph and won't shift until about a mile down the road. Normal?
Not on my '05 AWD. It should shift just fine cold. Idle will be close to 2,000 until it starts to warm up- then it will step down gradually to around 700 at operating temp. You're never supposed to "floor it", though. When getting on a highway, the manual says 'half throttle'. Does it act like it's stuck in 1st? Maybe it needs a new tranny filter/pan gasket (AWD has a filter, not a screen like the FWD) and fresh fluid? 250k on the original is waaaay beyond service life...
hogdoctor wrote:- Part of my justification for buying this unit was to save on gas money, and so far the numbers aren't impressing me. My previous hatchback (civic) was pushing 40mpg. Is it possible to delete the all wheel drive with just a right driveshaft, or is the transmission housing not the same awd vs non?
Technically, you could remove the drive shaft (front to rear), but you won't likely get much mileage gain from that. First gen AWD and FWD transmissions are different and not interchangeable. The AWD gets around 21-27 mpg in mixed driving, depending on driving style, ethanol content of the gas, properly inflated tires, hills, alignment of the planets, etc. The AWD's impact on mileage comes from a combination of extra weight, exhaust routing, exhaust manifold with a second catalytic converter inside, and the AWD badge ;). It's not driving the rear wheels 99% of the time because of the viscous coupling that only engages when the front wheels lose traction.
2005 Pontiac Vibe AWD - Platinum
tpollauf
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Re: new member up north

Post by tpollauf »

Welcome to GenVibe. Looks like the best $1200 you ever spent ! ;) Oh and the best color too :D
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2009 Vibe GT (manual), 2009 G8Gt, 2009 Vibe GT (auto)
2014 Silverado, 2004 Vibe GT

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hogdoctor
Posts: 80
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Re: new member up north

Post by hogdoctor »

quote-> Does it act like it's stuck in 1st? Maybe it needs a new tranny filter/pan gasket (AWD has a filter, not a screen like the FWD) and fresh fluid? 250k on the original is waaaay beyond service life...

I'm on a fast track to perform all "routine" maintenance actions, so will see if a trans service changes this. Not first gear, maybe 2nd or 3rd.


quote -> Technically, you could remove the drive shaft (front to rear), but you won't likely get much mileage gain from that. First gen AWD and FWD transmissions are different and not interchangeable.

I was thinking of plucking out the rear diff and transfer case, and rear shafts as well, if it's only a matter of a few bolts. I have it on the lift to swap summer vs winter tires anyway. Would be shedding at least a few hundred pounds of dead weight and inertial burden during the summer, and cut wear and tear on those parts in half, and pick up about 3mpg in the process. This plan was contingent on being able to drop the transfer case and plug in a front wheel drive right drive axle. Bummer that the transmissions aren't the same.

Thanks for your input

Hogdoctor (aka Patrick)
ehoff121
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Re: new member up north

Post by ehoff121 »

Is your overdrive turned on? If not, you will see an orange "O/D OFF" lit up on the left side of the fuel gauge. It's easy to miss if you're not used to driving a Toyota. If overdrive is not engaging, that would make it feel like it's not getting out of 2nd...
2005 Pontiac Vibe AWD - Platinum
hogdoctor
Posts: 80
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Re: new member up north

Post by hogdoctor »

O/D is turned on, no indicator lit. Tonight I pushed it further on my way to work, 3500 rpm @ 60mph and no shift yet. (34F outside temp) As soon as the engine temp indicator gets past the first block, it quickly upshifts twice and drops to 2400 rpm. I don't care to push my luck with over a quarter million miles on this engine, so I'll probably just drive casual the first mile or let it warm up a bit before heading out.

New development, windshield leaks badly, not the original unit... my body man says the paint likely got scratched off the mounting lip when the windshield was replace and now it's rusted through. He can't get to it until late June, so I'm going to have to seal it up as best I can for now.

Check engine light popped up, lean mixture and trim is maxed out... planning on a new intake manifold gasket and new pcv. Anything else proven to be a common intake leak on the 1st gen ?

Patrick (aka Hogdoctor)
ehoff121
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Re: new member up north

Post by ehoff121 »

hogdoctor wrote:Check engine light popped up, lean mixture and trim is maxed out... planning on a new intake manifold gasket and new pcv. Anything else proven to be a common intake leak on the 1st gen ?
While you have the throttle body off to change the intake manifold gasket, you'll want to clean it and the Idle Air Control Valve (IACV) attached to it as well as change the gaskets. Also, clean the Mass Airflow (MAF) sensor if not already done. You may also consider changing the valve cover gasket while you've got the vacuum lines disconnected as they tend to harden over time...
2005 Pontiac Vibe AWD - Platinum
hogdoctor
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Re: new member up north

Post by hogdoctor »

Finally got my hands on a new rear wheel bearing... The procedure looked excessively convoluted, so I skipped a few steps and left the control arm assembly in place, just pulled the axle nut, drum, four bolts from the backside and pulled the hub off. I had to get my die grinder in there to take some lip off that dust shield so I could access the bolts, and it took some chisel wedges between the control arm and brake backing plate to force the bearing out, it was rusted in place fairly firmly. I did unclip the brake line from the support bracket to allow some movement as the backing plate dropped. Had something of a heart attack when I went to slide the new hub on and the shaft jammed up on the spline halfway in... had to encourage it by tapping the hub with a hammer until I could catch a thread with the nut, and pull it through the rest of the way. ABS sensor and ring survived the ordeal. Brake shoes and drums are on order...
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hogdoctor
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Re: new member up north

Post by hogdoctor »

I pressed apart the old hub out of curiosity, it still rolled smooth but had gotten sloppy. The bearing cages had vaporized, but all the balls and races looked perfect. Zero evidence that there was ever any lubricant in there. McGuyver would have just repacked it and put it back in service. Now I'm wondering if I should have installed a zerk fitting in that new hub before I put it in...
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ehoff121
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Re: new member up north

Post by ehoff121 »

hogdoctor wrote:Now I'm wondering if I should have installed a zerk fitting in that new hub before I put it in...
Just out of curiousity, how would you do something like that? And what type of grease would you use? Moly?

If nothing else, it looks like you have a couple dozen pachinko balls to use... :lol:
2005 Pontiac Vibe AWD - Platinum
hogdoctor
Posts: 80
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Re: new member up north

Post by hogdoctor »

Find an accessible spot on the body, drill a tiny hole most of the way through the casting, then enlarge it up large enough for a 1/4" fine thread tap, cut threads with a bottom tap. Finally go back to the tiny bit you started with and drill through into the body cavity of the bearing, and install the zerk fitting. Moly is fine, any high temp wheel bearing grease would be better than nothing. "maintenance free" = disposable. Zerk fittings are cheap. Wheel bearings are not.
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