GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

pwyu1969

I have loved all my Vibes, but I am now transitioning to the Mazda 3. I like the reliability and workability of them, and like the Vibe, have their own forums and tons of YouTube videos. I’ve also narrowed it down to the SkyActive motors which is an innovative high compression motor that gets 35MPG+...

pwyu1969

Hi all, I have a 2006, MT, FWD. Two months ago I backed… pushed… my Vibe into the garage due to a bad clutch. This week I decided to roll it into the driveway to work on, but the rear wheels won’t budge. I put it up on a jack and here is what I noticed. When the parking brake is on, the wheels are t...

pwyu1969

Hi all, I just got a call from my son that the clutch in his 2006 vibe ‘stopped.’ Essentially same symptom of bad/slipping clutch. It happened while he was in gear and driving at speed, so not while he was accelerating and using the clutch. I just had a new clutch put in within a year, maybe a new m...

pwyu1969

Thanks for the reply and great info. So the ‘09 needs new clutch and transmission (long story). My daughter just got in a front end wreck with the Camry (no one hurt). So I have two inoperable cars and was wondering what it would take to Frankenstein them together. To make a long story short, both c...

pwyu1969

Hi all, I have a 2009 manual vibe that has a bad clutch and transmission. I also have a 2005 Camry my kid totaled the front end, but it has working automative transmission. Both have the same 2.4L motors in them. Can I take the 2.4L autotrans from the Camry and put it on the Vibe, converting it from...

pwyu1969

Late to the show but here my 2c worth. I’ve had a 2003, two 2006s, a 2009, and a 2005 Camry (which will make sense in a minute). The vibes are manual and Camry auto. So the issue with going from ‘03-08 to 09-10 vibes for me is that they are two totally different cars. So self maintenance and parts s...

pwyu1969

I have a vibe with 2.4L automatic. I ran over something pretty solid that hit something underneath solidly. Afterwards the car won’t run when the A/C is on. It kinda starts up then dies right away. Runs fine with A/C off, but it’s getting warm out. Any ideas?

pwyu1969

Fantastic! Of my three 03-08 models I’ve owned, if its not new, keep an eye on the starter. All three of mine went out. Not a bad replacement job either if you are a DIY’er. Though for one of the three, it went out out of town so a shop did for $400. That hurt. Of course the ‘air blend actuator’ if ...

pwyu1969

Alright folks, here is my follow up. I drove it home, 200 miles or so, going about 65/3500 RPMs in 4th no problem. I don’t think the mileage was too bad either... The past day I’ve been driving it around playing with 5th gear. Here is my observation. When I’m driving around I can put it in 5th, and ...

pwyu1969

I am not the original owner, I do believe it was an abused vehicle. I paid $2,200. The guy I purchased it from owned a service shop and said he was given the vehicle because a friends daughter ruined the motor by not ever changing the oil (Since the 2.4L is notorious for burning oil like crazy). He ...

pwyu1969

Yes, so I can shift in 5th, and I can manually hold the shift lever and it will hum along in 5th fine. But once I take my hand of the shift lever, it just pops back into neutral. So technically, I could drive along in 5th, as long as physically hold it in 5th, but that doesn’t seem like it would be ...

pwyu1969

Hi all, I have a 2009 vibe, 2.4L, 5 speed manual. 220K miles on it. I was driving on the highway, call it 80mph on cruise control, went over a hard bump, and bam, the car dropped out of 5th into neutral. It will go into 5th, but won’t stay in 5th (with or without cruise control). Runs fine in 1st to...

pwyu1969

Here’s and interesting article on Denso’s OEM vs Aftermarket divisions. I often see conflicting reviews on the internet where Denso is OEM or OEM quality and others say Denso is junk (not necessarily vibe folks). This helps make sense of this, maybe. I live in W MI where tier 2 and 3 manufacturing i...

pwyu1969

Thanks for the tip on ignition coils. Do they actually go bad and stop the car from running? Also, I do have original serpentine belt and hoses, so I’ll take a close look.

pwyu1969

Hey all, I’ve got a 06 vibe, 225k, 5sp manual with moons and tunes. I just put in a new clutch, front brakes and rotors, rear drum brakes and parking brake cable, new tires, and a new starter about a year ago. Newer actuator too. I’m about to give it back to my kid that goes to college 3 hours away....

pwyu1969

It’s hard to see from the picture but it looks like the inside door jamb/well got bent in, which is something that has to be pulled rather than pounded out. It’s usually pretty thick ‘structural’ as well, as opposed to a body panel. Back in the day I had a ‘96 corolla that took a similar hit, but by...

pwyu1969

Ok folks so in changing my brakes, front right rotor, the dust shield was so rusted I ripped it off like a tin can. Two questions, (1) in putting on the replacement, do I have to take off the wheel hub or does it slip right over and then just screw it in? (2) is it necessary to replace? What happens...

pwyu1969

My kids vibe blew a starter on the other side of the state. I had to lay $480 for the repair! $260 for starter, $110 for labor, $60 for diagnosis. It really hurt since I’ve done two of them in my 03 and other 06. $120 for the part. That said, I took both mine out from the bottom. The one issue I had...

pwyu1969

Yeah, I have a manual so I do need it. MI winters are tough on the underside. But in ended up finding a video for a corolla. Looks like I just undo the rubber hangers and let the exhaust hang to get clearance to get heat shields off etc...

pwyu1969

Hi all, I have to change out my rear parking brake cables. I can see where they run and where they get to the Y-bracket. Here’s my question. The heat shield that blocks the view has two 10mm nuts, easy access, then one nut blocked by exhaust pipe. Then even if I can get the nut off without rounding ...

pwyu1969

So here is a weird one. I have a 2009 2.4L with 5 speed. I have recently replaced on the front end, both struts, outer tie rod ends, ball joints, and CV axels. This past month I put my regular wheels on for snow tires. I noticed that the front ends was shaking, like the tires were out of balanced. T...

pwyu1969

This really hard to do and I kind of got ‘lucky’ as there are some nuts/bolts that are ‘blind’ to you unless you take apart the whole dashboard (which I did not, but partially). Here are my tips. First, here is a YouTube video that I watched to see where it is, but I did not do exactly what he did m...

pwyu1969

My 09 clutch started to do goofy things too. Unfortunately it did not self correct. Ended up being the master cylinder, though I changed the slave cylinder (did the work this past weekend) and took out the accumlator. I also agree on the air bubble in the line as a possibility. Maybe the cold weathe...

pwyu1969

Thanks for the heads up on the accumulator. I guess Toyota used them on their 'higher end' clutches. For the repair, turns out it was the clutch master cylinder, which was an absolute pain to change on the 09 (it makes the 03-08 air-blend actuator seem like a walk in the park). I also changed the sl...

pwyu1969

Hi all, I have a 2009 vibe, 2.4L, 5-speed. Bought it recently with about 180K and now has about 200K. I was told it had a new clutch put in. Ok here is the issue. The clutch does not disengage. At first I noticed about a week ago that when I put it in reverse, as I let the clutch out, it stopped hal...

pwyu1969

The trick to getting the top screw is (1) using the 5mm or 5/32 (I think) socket, wrap the barrel with two sided tape. I use the kind to adhere body trim as it has the foam core to add thickness. The tape adhesive and added thickness allows you to take it out and put it back in. (2) if you can reach...

pwyu1969

I have a 2009 2.4L and I guess the factory wheel specs are 5x114.3, center bore 60mm and backspace of 5.25in. I got some used snow tires that came on Steelies that are 5x114.3, center bore 63mm and backspace of 5.5in. I put them on and the cone-lugs seated and centered fine. No rubbing of brake cali...

pwyu1969

For 4 seasons including winters the Nokian WR G4 (or G3 if you can find them) are great. A little softer rubber so they are more like 40-50k tire rather than +60k tires with harder rubber. But they are a legit snow tire in Michigan winters. I guess this is what the MI State police use year round. Th...

pwyu1969

So I have the 2009 vibe 2.4L which I think is more like the camery than Corolla. I do believe that it is a clutchless compressor. Here is a video of a similar repair for a Camry for comparison. https://youtu.be/z6nIuswqG7w Here is the part number, I think: Denso 6SEU14C AC Compressor For Toyota Coro...

pwyu1969

I have the exact same question. Thanks for posting.

pwyu1969

I feel your pain. I just rebuilt the front suspension of my 2009 vibe. It’s the new model, but much of it is similar enough. 1. Regarding the shaking. Note the exact conditions. Mine was the CV axel. It would shake under engine load. You really felt it at speeds greater than 50mph. Pedal on, whole f...

pwyu1969

Hey, Since buying my first vibe in 2015, I’ve had a total of 5, currently own 3, well, 3 that run, the 4th is my parts car. I’m in W MI too, by Lake MI. 3 of my 5 vibes needed a new heater/AC blend door actuator. You will know as you will hear a clicking sound from right behind the glove compartment...

pwyu1969

I have the following for sale. Bought from RockAuto and decided not to install and could not return since outside of 30 days. Highest quality parts:

Passenger side control arm
Inner tie rod ends
Strut sway bar link

Email me directly at pwyu1969@yahoo.com

pwyu1969

Welding and extracting is doubful

pwyu1969

In changing my drivers side control arm on 2009 FWD 2.4L, the front bolt head sheared off. Probably rusted to the bushing. I feel screwed. As I see it, option 1 is to drill the bolt all the way out. Option 2 is try to sawzall the bolt and bushing (tight fit) and then drill out only the threaded port...

pwyu1969

I think 150k is ‘young.’ I look for vibes (I own 4, 3 that run) at 150k for between $2000 to $4000. I have 2 teen drivers and a third in training so I’ve been collecting them. Once I learn to fix something on one, it’s a skill (and tool) I have for the other. I’ve done 3-4 blend actuators. I’ve got ...

pwyu1969

1. For this model, which Toyota is it the same as? 2009 corolla? 2. So in taking all of this apart, what order you recommend all of this being done? 3. Any thing else I should be replacing? Lower control arms? Some bushing I should be checking? Any tips or something I’m missing? Also I have two 06 ...

pwyu1969

Hi all. Need advice. 2009 2.4L FWD. looking for inner tie-rod end. Most places sell them on rack-pinon. Any recommendations for inner only?

pwyu1969

Ok, so my 03 vibe, 220k, 5-Speed manual, has mostly died. Sparing you the long story, it’s worth more in parts than it is to try to sell on FB. And while I currently own an 05, 06, and 09, the 03 that has died was my first (bought in ‘15) that got this vibe madness started... also all I own are manu...

pwyu1969

Hi all. I have a 2009, 2.4L, 5 speed, 190k. I bought it Fall 18 for $2200. Need light body work, and apparently a new front end. (1) CV axels both sides, (2) strut assembly (will use Monroe quick struts), (3) inner and outer tie rods, (4) sway bars, those all for sure. Planning on (5) ball joint sin...

pwyu1969

Kwalkord did you ever figure out if it was the cv axel? Just curious.

pwyu1969

So I have an 03, 06, and 06 vibes. The 03 finally died. I’m looking to replace with an 09. Besides the body, what else has changed from 08 to 09 models. Motors, transmission, etc? Was it just cosmetic or did the mechanicals change too?

pwyu1969

I feel your pain. Mine was the DRL, center dash lights, and door buzzer. I think my (our) problem is a bad ground somewhere. I saw a video online with another car where there was a bad ground at the ignition switch that kept a bunch of stuff on. Since I think the dash lights, buzzer and DRL are conn...

pwyu1969

Need some help here. I had to cut off my DRL as a quick fix for an issue* with electrical system. Based on various online videos and postings. Here is what I did, at the running light assembly unit, (1) I cut the yellow wire and grounded the assembly side. (2) I also cut the red/white wire, no groun...

pwyu1969

Is there a thread on how to change the 5-speed manual transmission on an 03/04 vibe? Can't find it with the search feature. Either video or disassemble steps. Looking to do 5-speed to 5, not 5-speed to 6. Thanks!

pwyu1969

Hi all, I'm in MI and planning on buying a 2004 vibe that has been driven up here mostly. I was wondering if Vibes tend to have body rust problems in the same areas. Thanks,
Paul

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