Thats great to hear.I didnt think new CV joints would make the ride smoother. At 260K My boots are torn....so im waiting for the infamous CLICK....CLICK on turns, so i guess I have a smoother ride to look forward to upon replacingtpollauf wrote: ↑Fri Jan 03, 2020 6:06 pm Finally got the new CV halfshaft axles installed on my 2004 Vibe GT. I have to confess though due to me working 7-10's continuous lately, I had my buddy who owns an automotive shop perform the work. All I can say is WOW ... what a difference !!!. So today I was cruising south on I-75 and the ride was so smooth that I was doing over 80 (3400 RPM roughly on the six speed tranny) and didn't even realize it. Quickly backed it down as Ohio has one of the worst states for getting pulled over by the highway patrol as they are everywhere on major interstates I provided the parts (thanks to RockAuto) and they only charged me $175 for the labor. This included tire rotation, topped off all fluids, added tranny lube (lost some when one of the axles was removed) and an oil change (I provided oil & filter). Car is at a young 139k miles now and drives like brand new
I've gone through four or five CV joints over the years. If the boots are torn, you need to either get new boots on there (there's a boot kit that wraps around), or replace them. They don't always grind/click on the turns - until your wheel is about to come off.cptnsolo77 wrote: ↑Mon Jan 06, 2020 9:27 pmThats great to hear.I didnt think new CV joints would make the ride smoother. At 260K My boots are torn....so im waiting for the infamous CLICK....CLICK on turns, so i guess I have a smoother ride to look forward to upon replacingtpollauf wrote: ↑Fri Jan 03, 2020 6:06 pm Finally got the new CV halfshaft axles installed on my 2004 Vibe GT. I have to confess though due to me working 7-10's continuous lately, I had my buddy who owns an automotive shop perform the work. All I can say is WOW ... what a difference !!!. So today I was cruising south on I-75 and the ride was so smooth that I was doing over 80 (3400 RPM roughly on the six speed tranny) and didn't even realize it. Quickly backed it down as Ohio has one of the worst states for getting pulled over by the highway patrol as they are everywhere on major interstates I provided the parts (thanks to RockAuto) and they only charged me $175 for the labor. This included tire rotation, topped off all fluids, added tranny lube (lost some when one of the axles was removed) and an oil change (I provided oil & filter). Car is at a young 139k miles now and drives like brand new
Yet another reason the manual tranny's are so much nicer than the auto's Glad it was nothing majorandrewclaus wrote: ↑Tue Jan 28, 2020 12:18 pm I didn't realize you can't put the AT in neutral without battery voltage.
tpollauf wrote: ↑Tue Jan 28, 2020 6:00 pmYet another reason the manual trannys are so much nicer than the autos.../quote]andrewclaus wrote: ↑Tue Jan 28, 2020 12:18 pm I didn't realize you can't put the AT in neutral without battery voltage.
Yeah, I agree. In fact that's why I replaced the Vibe battery last summer. My other car is a manual Subie and I can always push start that. I live in a mountainous area and usually park facing down hill for that reason. Hey, it's cheaper than a new battery. (I put the VIbe's old battery in the Subie because it was 'only' nine years old or something like that.)
Bookworm, since I recently purchased the car I am slow, cleaning and reconditioning everything I touch.
Hey, I fully understand. I buy used fountain pens and razors Cleaning is half the fun.SSizler wrote: ↑Thu Feb 06, 2020 11:07 pmBookworm, since I recently purchased the car I am slow, cleaning and reconditioning everything I touch.
I spent 2 evenings doing the shocks, one night of disassembly / cleaning / painting and one night reassembling everything.
If I was just doing the shocks in a get-it-done fashion, it was probably a 3-4 hour job.
Being the compulsive clean it up type, I also had to clean the lug nuts / lugs, front and back side of the wheels, wheel wells, check the brakes, clean and paint the drums, scrub the interior floor of spilled stinky crap after removing the rear plastic and spare, etc.
I also spent quite a while trying to find the correct torque values for the fasteners, finally settling on 39 foot pounds for the small bolts and nuts on top, and 80 foot pounds on the large nut at the bottom of the shock. I have about 16 total hours in the job.
I enjoy making my cars look like new. The dirtier they are to start with the more satisfaction I get from the final results, and this car is family / 2 carseat kids filthy......
Actually, I have no plans to replace any front end parts yet.Bookworm wrote: ↑Fri Feb 07, 2020 8:48 amHey, I fully understand. I buy used fountain pens and razors Cleaning is half the fun.SSizler wrote: ↑Thu Feb 06, 2020 11:07 pmBookworm, since I recently purchased the car I am slow, cleaning and reconditioning everything I touch.
I spent 2 evenings doing the shocks, one night of disassembly / cleaning / painting and one night reassembling everything.
If I was just doing the shocks in a get-it-done fashion, it was probably a 3-4 hour job.
Being the compulsive clean it up type, I also had to clean the lug nuts / lugs, front and back side of the wheels, wheel wells, check the brakes, clean and paint the drums, scrub the interior floor of spilled stinky crap after removing the rear plastic and spare, etc.
I also spent quite a while trying to find the correct torque values for the fasteners, finally settling on 39 foot pounds for the small bolts and nuts on top, and 80 foot pounds on the large nut at the bottom of the shock. I have about 16 total hours in the job.
I enjoy making my cars look like new. The dirtier they are to start with the more satisfaction I get from the final results, and this car is family / 2 carseat kids filthy......
Going to be interesting when you get to the front end. Going to do a full disassembly and replace all the tie rod ends, ball joints, sway bar links, etc, while you do the shocks? Motor mounts
If you're going to do that, don't bother with changing the oil. Just put in a new filter, and enough oil to compensate for the pint or so left in the filter. You want to remove the contaminants; the oil won't have broken down enough to be an issue. (edit) You could even swap one out after two fuel fill-ups, or roughly 500 miles. That's usually the break in period for an engine.
I recently had to get under the dash to replace a lighter fuse I fried while replacing bulbs.Mark wrote: ↑Sun Feb 09, 2020 1:59 pm Yesterday I finally got around to replacing the map light bulb with an LED on both the 04 and 05. The 04 burned out so I bought a pack of led bulbs on Amazon so I could do both. Somehow managed to blow the fuse on the 05 while I was putting the new bulb in, but lucky for me the fuse is in the engine compartment block. I used the 15a spare then picked up an assortment when I went by Walmart later. I think I remember getting to the inside fuse block on the 04 once many years ago, seems like I had to lay on my back across the passenger seat and wiggle myself down till my head was by the pedals. I think I'm too old and fat to attempt that move again.
Yeah, I found out that if you need to replace the crush nut sway bar links, you have to cut them off with a hacksaw or grinder. Lock nuts are a pain to remove, but at least you _can_.SSizler wrote: ↑Wed Mar 04, 2020 8:51 pm Well, a little delay while doing some research, but today I ordered the belt tensioner, new serpentine belt, 2 front wheel bearings and retainer clips, 2 KYB front strut-plus units and 2 AC Delco sway bar end links with nylon lockers, end links per bookworms research.
I also started the siphon / replace_with_clean process for the power steering fluid, using Valvoline long life DEX/MERC ATF.
I will let you know how many reservoir replacement cycles it takes to get the PS fluid looking red again.
LOL Im in the same boat. I replaced all of except that dreaded rear mount. I was HOPING if i replaced 3 the vibration wouldnt be so bad but NOOOOO.....you have to replace that last one ! Actually the vibration got WORSE when I replaced the 3rd one...so I was like....oh looks like I have to change that darn rear mount. It was actually very smooth when I just replaced the side mounts. I need to replace them soon because I have been driving with 3 new mounts for and the old rear one for 2 months and I dont want to wear the new ones prematurely.ColonelPanic wrote: ↑Wed Mar 11, 2020 5:07 pm I've been replacing the engine mounts individually as time permits, finally finished that up today.
20200311_185635.jpg
Bought another mount from Beck-Arnley for the front. Since the left and rear mounts are much more work to replace, I went OEM (chose Toyota for the left, GM for the rear due to the pricing.)
When I replaced the front mount, the vibration in gear at idle actually got *worse.* I don't know how much of that is from where it's idling like crap in general or whether there's something up with the new mount. I'll try to work on the idle next and see if I can get things smoothed out. If all else fails, I'll just have to replace the front mount with an OEM part.
I saved the rear mount for last since I knew I was in for a real treat . Trying to yank the old mount out and drop the new one in was the crappiest game of Tetris I've ever played. I don't recommend it.
The #1 tip I saw for the rear mount is to pound out that center stud on the new one, and replace it with an equivalent bolt and nut. Will still serve the same purpose , without the aggravation.cptnsolo77 wrote: ↑Thu Mar 12, 2020 8:28 pmLOL Im in the same boat. I replaced all of except that dreaded rear mount. I was HOPING if i replaced 3 the vibration wouldnt be so bad but NOOOOO.....you have to replace that last one ! Actually the vibration got WORSE when I replaced the 3rd one...so I was like....oh looks like I have to change that darn rear mount. It was actually very smooth when I just replaced the side mounts. I need to replace them soon because I have been driving with 3 new mounts for and the old rear one for 2 months and I dont want to wear the new ones prematurely.ColonelPanic wrote: ↑Wed Mar 11, 2020 5:07 pm I've been replacing the engine mounts individually as time permits, finally finished that up today.
20200311_185635.jpg
Bought another mount from Beck-Arnley for the front. Since the left and rear mounts are much more work to replace, I went OEM (chose Toyota for the left, GM for the rear due to the pricing.)
When I replaced the front mount, the vibration in gear at idle actually got *worse.* I don't know how much of that is from where it's idling like crap in general or whether there's something up with the new mount. I'll try to work on the idle next and see if I can get things smoothed out. If all else fails, I'll just have to replace the front mount with an OEM part.
I saved the rear mount for last since I knew I was in for a real treat . Trying to yank the old mount out and drop the new one in was the crappiest game of Tetris I've ever played. I don't recommend it.
Any tips for the rear mount ? I found 2 youtube vids where they did it from up top. Im REALLY considering having a shop do the rear mount....I had a hunch that one would be a nightmare. I DID NOT like what I saw on the vids You are giving me even more reason for a shop to do it
How does it drive now ? Im betting it drives very smooth now. I absolutely cannot stand the vibration I have. Especially when cold (removed)
a few folks on the FB page recommend that. I haven't done it myself, but whenever I decide to yank the engine to reseal the timing cover, that may be my plan of attack for that rear mount.cptnsolo77 wrote: ↑Fri Mar 13, 2020 6:53 am Oh wow....I did some serious research on doing this and never came across that one. I can see how that would be a BIG help THX
Secret: slide the belt over the flat water pump pulley last. It is MUCH easier to slide it over that flat pulley than it is to try and lift it up over the grooved alternator pulley.
Oh sure, NOW you let out the secret!
I used to go over the alternator pulley. Then someone mentioned going over the water pump, and I've never looked back. It also helps keep from rounding or breaking the very damage-prone tensioner hex.SSizler wrote: ↑Mon Mar 16, 2020 9:23 amOh sure, NOW you let out the secret!
I actually knew that from other cars I have worked on, but all the comments on the web recommend doing the alternator pulley last.
That's what I get for not thinking for myself.....
that doesn't sound healthy.
I usually buy distilled water in a grocery store, but these days, its hard to know what might be in or out of stock in a grocery store, assuming you wanted to risk going in to one in the first place.ColonelPanic wrote: ↑Sun Mar 29, 2020 6:30 pm Would be a perfect time to replace all that stuff, but I can't find distilled water anywhere to mix the coolant with.
Rain water ??? Although not as pure as distilled water, it's VERY close to it. And if you run it through a coffee filter you'll get even more of the TDS (total dissolved solids) out of it. From what I recall pure distilled H2O has about 5ppm TDS in it. Rain water, depending where the rain comes from, has roughly 20 ppm of TDS. Compared to tap water which is 300 ppm on up. Something to consider.ColonelPanic wrote: ↑Sun Mar 29, 2020 6:30 pm Would be a perfect time to replace all that stuff, but I can't find distilled water anywhere to mix the coolant with.
I painted mine 4-5 years ago. Doesn't look as good, but still looks OK. It is time to repaint, but I am contemplating getting rid of the car, so not overly worried.cptnsolo77 wrote: ↑Sun Apr 05, 2020 8:47 pm Been spending my time repainting the cladding with duplicolor bumper paint. FYI.....DO NOT EVER EVER !!! paint the cladding. It will fade/chip it will look like CRAP and you will have to do it again, plus its A LOT of work. You will end up spending your life in " touch up " purgatory. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED !!!!!
Just get a decent spay wax and call it a day.
It has been 4 years when I painted it last. Maybe thats how long it will last on average for a repaint, but that doesnt include the touch ups I did during that period. I used clear in the first time and using it the 2nd time as well. The spray waxes have improved SOOOO much during the last 4-5 years making painting cladding obsolete....I wish I would have waited My issue is that I used a product called refinish restorer BEFORE I painted and in some areas the paint did not stick and chipped off even after prepping the panels. It must have embedded into the plastic even after the product fadded. I do plan to keep the car so i decided to repaint it I have to say it does look awesome when finished. This time Im using turtle was seal and shine spray wax ( GREAT STUFF ) to help with the fading. Figured I use spray wax because Im not rubbing the paint. Just clean with soap/water and microfiber towel. Hopefully it will last longer. At this point I have had the Vibe for 13 years this august and for it to look halfway decent with over 260K still impresses me.....zbyers wrote: ↑Mon Apr 06, 2020 2:25 amI painted mine 4-5 years ago. Doesn't look as good, but still looks OK. It is time to repaint, but I am contemplating getting rid of the car, so not overly worried.cptnsolo77 wrote: ↑Sun Apr 05, 2020 8:47 pm Been spending my time repainting the cladding with duplicolor bumper paint. FYI.....DO NOT EVER EVER !!! paint the cladding. It will fade/chip it will look like CRAP and you will have to do it again, plus its A LOT of work. You will end up spending your life in " touch up " purgatory. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED !!!!!
Just get a decent spay wax and call it a day.
However, I do agree. You'll constantly want to touch it up if you scratch it and whatnot. Are you going to put a clear coat over it to help protect it more?