GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

ColonelPanic

Got to mess around with the aftermarket head unit some today (JVC KW-R910BT) after it freaked out. The right front speaker started crackling, then whatever sound that was coming from that speaker was covered up in static. After a while, the speaker went silent save for electrical whine which varied ...

ColonelPanic

The Vibe's belt was a bit longer than a comparable Matrix (different A/C compressors between the two, I believe...)

I went with the belt from GM (P/N 88971576) when I replaced it on our '03 base a couple years back. Looks like it's still available to order from them.

ColonelPanic

Another scary few days!

I'm not a member of the fb group anymore, but I lurked over there last evening and at the time didn't see that anyone had noticed it was down.

ColonelPanic

Welcome!

Please let us know a little more about your Vibe - year, whether this is an OEM or aftermarket stereo, etc. And most importantly whether you have the factory amplified system (Moon & Tunes or Sun & Sound package.)

ColonelPanic

ragingfish (one of the pioneers in Vibe disassembly) wrote up a how-to years ago. Unfortunately the pics are long gone but the instructions are still there... Maybe this will help:

viewtopic.php?t=7912

ColonelPanic

Definitely a scary time. So glad to see we're back up and running!

Thanks for bringing the site back up, Mike!

ColonelPanic

And last but not least, today. I'm sure you guys know about the part of the rocker panel that extends into the rear wheel well, and collects dirt and leaves and crap in it. Mine had holes rusted into them. So what I did today while it was warm was cover the holes with metal drywall patch screen, an...

ColonelPanic

Happy 16th birthday - you have cancer! Driver's side isn't too bad. 20181020_105158 - Edited.jpg Passenger side - not so great... 20181020_104931 - Edited.jpg There was a lot of broken metal on the shelf on the passenger's side sitting there loose. I went ahead and vacuumed the chunks out today. Cle...

ColonelPanic

Clicked over 131,000 miles yesterday.

ColonelPanic

Last time I priced Toyota's coolant at the stealership, it was $40/gal with tax. Sorry, not for a ten-year-old car. (Like I don't get expensive haircuts anymore. No need to polish a turd.) Same here. I've historically been a huge proponent of using OEM fluids (and still am for our newer cars.) But ...

ColonelPanic

I was at Meijer tonight picking up some oil and noticed a coolant I had not seen there before... Two varieties of Peak - one red for Toyotas, one blue for Hondas. The red flavor is for use in applications that take either red or pink. It was $16 and some change for a gallon of 50/50 pre-diluted. The...

ColonelPanic

130,000 as of this evening!

ColonelPanic

These cars came with 5W-30 conventional oil from the factory. Synthetic for these cars is more of a preference, not a requirement. If you wanted to switch to synthetic, all you need to do is drain the old oil and refill with the new. I've used conventional oils of various price points (store and nam...

ColonelPanic

Thanks for those infos! I broke the bulb while trying to pry it out. :( What's left of it won't come out of the brown holder. Anyone know the part number for it? Cheers! cyth The bulb/socket is sold as one piece. All you'll need to do is pick up the bulbs from Toyota (part number in the pic in the ...

ColonelPanic

LOL, as soon as I click Submit, it hangs with 'Waiting for forums.genvibe.com'

I always find a way to jinx myself.

I opened up a new tab and went back to the site and my post was there. Flip back to the other tab, still waiting...

ColonelPanic

I have noticed the same for a while now... Sometimes it doesn't load on the first try, a reload will bring it back up. Once I am here, I haven't noticed any further issues - for me, its just the first attempt that seems to be the problem.

ColonelPanic

I tried it with and without the speaker level converter with two aftermarket radios on two '03s with moon & tunes. While the aftermarket radio did work without the speaker level converter, a level of white noise was introduced that I found was unacceptable. Without the converter, it may not be t...

ColonelPanic

The CIG fuse is what I've used for various switched accessories over the years. Hot while on accessory or run.

It's in the uncomfortable-to-access fuse panel under the drivers side of the dash.

ColonelPanic

Definitely a Matrix. Can't be a Vibe as there is no inverter.

ColonelPanic

The plasti-dip has been flaking off the roof so it had to go. It's been such an ordeal trying to get it all removed so I've been working on it gradually for the last few weeks. FINALLY got all of it off today, exposing the failed clearcoat in all its glory once again. Washed the car and broke out th...

ColonelPanic

The baffle gets bent downward by careless oil change techs as they jam the oil gun down in the filler hole. The bent baffle can get in contact with the camshaft which causes a ticking noise and damage to the baffle. IIRC Toyota had a TSB about this. Hopefully there isn't anything of significance flo...

ColonelPanic

Probably "normal," for better or worse. We had a seized caliper on ours several years back and the shop replaced both with re-manufactured... They too ended up looking like that in no time. When it was time for the next brake job, here's what it looked like: old1.jpg From what I understand...

ColonelPanic

I did not believe you, and thought this was a pretty funny April Fool's joke, but having never been in an 09, I looked in the 09 owners manual, and sure enough (page 5-3) that's where the dimmer control is. Teehee. :D It always struck me as a goofy location. A cost savings possibly, albeit at the e...

ColonelPanic

They moved the dimmer control to the trip odometer reset button in the gauge cluster for the 2nd gens. Give it a twist and see if that helps.

ColonelPanic

Happy 16th!!!!

ColonelPanic

Just looked it up, it's 25 years in Indiana. I was hoping it was 20 because I would definitely have to do that. :D I also learned in this state that if you register your car as a "collector" you can use a plate from the year of the car. I still happen to have the 2003 vintage plate from my...

ColonelPanic

Could be 16 depending on how early of an '03 it is!

Ours will be legally old enough to drive itself in October.

ColonelPanic

19204818 is what I ordered last year from gmpartscenter.net. It's similar to the original except for it being white in color. But of course it is no longer available for purchase. If most other GM parts sites are showing it is discontinued (which it seems that they are,) I would assume its long gone...

ColonelPanic

Yeah, there isn't much to them.

The 2ZZ in the GT used a slightly longer filter. Those will fit the 1ZZ and provide a small increase in oil capacity. I've ran many of those over the years.

ColonelPanic

I used to prime the filter. Sure, it may have made the oil pressure light go out just a little bit sooner. But I stopped doing that when I had to walk to the parts store mid-project for another new filter. I had two 5 qt jugs of oil, identical in appearance from the outside. One had new oil inside a...

ColonelPanic

Welcome! Good luck with the restoration!

ColonelPanic

Got my airbag recall done. Removed the radio, radio and HVAC trim panels as well as the glovebox BEFORE taking it in to insure the techs don't break anything !!!..... ^^ Wish there was a like button here. That's something I plan on doing since I had to replace all of that trim after getting the fil...

ColonelPanic

dusted off ash from yesterday's evacuation. I'm keeping the Vibe loaded with our earthly goods in case the fires start back up with the wind tomorrow. The interior will need a good fumigation. Smells like a camp fire. :shock: Glad to see you're OK! Hopefully you can get the smell out. Probably not ...

ColonelPanic

Washed the Vibe on Saturday, then broke out the DA and put some cleaner wax on, followed up with Collinite. The plasti-dip over the roof's failing clearcoat has exceeded its useful service life but it's too late to do anything with it now. I'll just have to keep her under the cover as much as possib...

ColonelPanic

That'll happen! When I started changing my own oil again, the prior shop had the filter on so tight I couldn't get it to budge. Tried a socket/wrenches/pliers, nothing worked. Stopped shy of the screwdriver trick - filled it up with oil and drove it the 1/2 mile back to that shop and made them chang...

ColonelPanic

I dug out the air compressor and spent some time this morning getting the tire pressures in order. Don't forget the spares - all three of our vehicles were down to 40-something. :o Cleaned up the interior of the Vibe a bit and did the usual weekly checking of fluids. I was hoping to get a wash in, b...

ColonelPanic

Check derf's thread and video on the subject. That's what lead to the demise of a cheap pair of Kenwoods I installed. I later noticed that the black trim on the door at the bottom of the glass was pushed toward the rear of the car, leaving a sizable gap at the front. Slid it as far forward as I coul...

ColonelPanic

I've read quite a bit about Collinite 845 over the years but never tried it until this spring. Wow - wish I would have started using it years ago! 8-) The Vibe's paint is long gone, so it (or anything else) doesn't do a lot of good there. But on the other two with good paint, it's been amazing. Easy...

ColonelPanic

If it is the outer vents on the driver and passenger side, that's perfectly normal. They will always blow air regardless of the blend door position. That's for the 1st gen, not sure if you have a 2nd gen and if they behave the same way. If any of the inner vents have air coming out when in floor or ...

ColonelPanic

Just went out and checked ours - same here with the deflection. This is with a relatively new belt and tensioner (replaced both last year with GM parts.)

ColonelPanic

That's frustrating that the Matrix one didn't work 100%. It looked to me like the seat belt buckle switch and seat track position sensor are integrated into that connector. Both tie into the air bag system. Luckily my wobbly buckle was from a thin spring washer broken off that's supposed sit between...

ColonelPanic

Empty reservoir via transfer pump/refill with a store brand Dexron III ATF/repeat is all I've done thus far. First time was at 13 years/112k mi. Personally, I wasn't too concerned with mixing since the power steering fluid cap states Dexron ATF. I went with the assumption that despite the color diff...

ColonelPanic

That's a good deal! I was expecting much more than that. Thinking about how much it might cost kept me from calling around, but perhaps I need to make some calls.

Who is the manufacturer of your new windshield if you don't mind me asking?

ColonelPanic

I have a 2003 base. Can anyone decided the manufacturer paint lingo and spell it out plai9nly? Mine is white. The white color is called Frosty. You will need the correct paint code for finding the proper paint, see the paint codes in the first post. You can also find the paint codes on the service ...

ColonelPanic

Hit 125k last week.

ColonelPanic

I had the battery disconnected when I did some work on the Vibe last year (the list included replacing the timing chain tensioner.) I have to say it kinda scared me with how rough it ran at first, my mind instantly went to somehow I managed to knock the timing off on the thing. Then I thought about ...

ColonelPanic

GM.

The Vibe will be the first and last "Toyota" in this household.

ColonelPanic

Repainted hubcaps with Krylon brilliant aluminum and painted steelies so it wouldnt show the rust behind them. Best 5 bucks I ever spent. That looks fantastic! I desperately need to do the same, I'm just waiting on figuring out a way to get the Pontiac logos back on. Although on a couple wheel cove...

ColonelPanic

I'm sure it'd work better with the photos, but alas, Photobucket put the screws to the recipient's posting :evil: I don't want to think of how many other helpful how-to's across various forums they've made not-as-helpful overnight with the change in their terms of service. :cry: Fortunately, all th...

ColonelPanic

Welcome! Good price on the Vibe, that sounds like a nice project you have there.

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