Under car questions

Discuss any problems, warranty, repair, or replacement issues you are having with your Vibe & Matrix
Post Reply
ihaveavibe
Posts: 96
Joined: Sun Jul 02, 2017 7:48 pm

Under car questions

Post by ihaveavibe »

Hi all,

I looked under a 2003 base vibe as I was changing the oil and noticed a few odd things. Wondering if someone can explain...

One odd thing is a hole which seems to have captured a plastic plug.
plug under car - small.jpg
plug under car - small.jpg (219.05 KiB) Viewed 998 times


This is under the front passenger foot-well area. What is this hole for and is there a piece missing here? Should I fish out the thing that's in it? Also, it seems like some undercoating came off (in the photo just below the hole). Should this be treated somehow? (How?)

The other odd thing is a connector -- I can't decide if it has a broken cladding or if this is normal. Any ideas?
wire connector under car - small.jpg
wire connector under car - small.jpg (195.32 KiB) Viewed 998 times
Thanks for any help!
User avatar
joatmon
Posts: 10018
Joined: Fri Mar 21, 2003 5:19 am
Location: SMC MD

Re: Under car questions

Post by joatmon »

I assumed those were drain holes. If you ever flood out the floor, by leaving a window open in the rain or having the AC drain clog, or a msasive spill, you can pull those plugs to help let water out. The plug in the picture was pushed in somehow, fish it out, then press it back into place from underneath. The Vibe I have now I bought used, it was missing one of those plugs. I RTV'd a can lid over the hole to keep road spray out.

if there's bare metal then maybe it got scraped on some road hazard, maybe touch it up with some naval jelly and throw a quick spray of primer over it

The connector/wires are for the oxygen sensor, I've seen several, your's looks normal to me, no worries
Image
User avatar
vibrologist
Posts: 1598
Joined: Sat May 10, 2014 8:24 am
Location: Iowa

Re: Under car questions

Post by vibrologist »

Those are drain holes. They put them in because the whole body gets submerged in an electrophoresis primer bath.
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
ihaveavibe
Posts: 96
Joined: Sun Jul 02, 2017 7:48 pm

Re: Under car questions

Post by ihaveavibe »

Thanks for the info.

Now I'm wondering whether there is corrosion inside the hole .. the edge looks like it might have some rust.

The other bare rusty spot led me to search on google - seems that the undertreatment can trap moisture between it and the frame and make rusting worse than without it, so i guess i'll have to peel back a little and check.
Post Reply