GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

I PURCHASED MY GT IN MAY/2008 AND HAVE BEEN IN AND OUT OF THE DEALER OVER NUMEROUS THINGS. THE DEALER HAS REPLACED THE FRONT CENTER CAPS TWICE AND 2 REARS OVER THE LAST FEW MONTHS. THEY HAVE BEEN FLYING OFF THIS CAR ALL OVER TOWN. THE KIDS FOUND ONE SMASHED IN THE STREET, ONE IN THE DRIVEWAY, AND A FELLOW WORKER FOUND ONE IN THE PARKING LOT. GENERAL MOTORS HAS ISSUED A REPAIR BULLETIN ON THIS #08-03-10-011. IT STATES THAT THE DEALER NEEDS TO INSTALL MISSING CAPS WITH NEW AND APPLY ADHESIVE ON THE WHEEL BORE AND THE CAP TEETH. MY QUESTION IS? ONCE GM AS SILICONED ALL THE CAPS ON THESE WHEELS, WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN A TIRE REPAIR OR BALANCE IS NEEDED AND THE CAPS MUST COME OFF TO PERFORM THIS. DO I CARRY EXTRA CAPS AND SILICONE EVERYTIME I HAVE A BALANCE OR FLAT REPAIR. I HAVE ALSO LOST THE REAR CHROME TIP ON THE EXHAUST, FRONT AIR DAM CAME LOOSE AND FELL OFF, INTERIOR B PILLAR MOLDING REPLACED TWICE. I AM VERY SICK OVER THE POOR QUALITY AND NO ASSISTANCE BY PONTIAC CUSTOMER CARE REGARDING THIS. I ASKED FOR ALL FOUR WHEELS AND CAPS TO BE REPLACED OR WAS TOLD THEY WOULD GLUE THEM ON????? I FILED A COMPLAINT WITH THE BBB. PLEASE GIVE ME ANY INFO OR SUGGESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE...EXHAUST AND INTERIOR PARTS ON ORDER

YOU MUST HAVE BEEN ONE OF THOSE UNLUCKY ONE THAT GOT A BAD VIBE. MINE HAS BEEN GREAT! I DID LOST ONE CENTER CAP AND DEALER REPLACED IT AND I TOLD THEM TO SILICONE THEM ALL AND HE DID HELP ME WITH THAT. I ALSO CHANGED ALL MY TIRES AND WHEN THEY BALANCED MY TIRES THEY REMOVED THE CENTER CAP...I JUST SIMPLY PUT SOME MORE SILICONE ON. HASN'T FELL OUT SINCE. MAYBE I JUST DON'T COMPLAIN MUCH AND I KNOW EVEN THOUGH IT'S A NEW CAR IT SHOULDN'T HAVE THIS KIND OF PROBLEM. BUT I'VE EXPECTED SOMETHING LIKE THIS MIGHT HAPPEN SINCE IT'S THE FIRST NEW MODEL YEAR.

I LOST A FEW CENTER CAPS TOO. THE DEALER REPLACED THEM, BUT I WASN'T WATCHING SO I DON'T KNOW IF HE SILICONED THEM ON OR NOT. THAT'S THE ONLY PROBLEM I'VE HAD ON MY VIBE SO FAR, AND MY DEALER SAYS HE HASN'T SEEN ANY COME BACK FOR ANY WARRANTY ISSUES OTHER THAN THE CENTERCAPS.SILICONING THEM IN IS A CHEESY FIX, BUT IT'S PROBABLY THE BEST SHORT TERM SOLUTION AS IT WILL TAKE TIME TO FIX THE TOOL AND PRODUCE STOCK.

GM issued a new bulletin on December17, 2008 that new replacement caps are available under warranty and should not be glued in place.I have four of them on order and they should be in within a week.See Attachment.

Attached files GM_TSB_08-03-10-011A.PDF (192.9 KB) 

I lost my first center cap two weeks ago from one of my chrome clad 09 wheels. The Pontiac dealership installed four of the superseded caps a week after I notified them of missing a cap.

Thanks guys I get mine out in next weekend. But with this whole GM situation Im curious if the dealer will still be open by then

Quote, originally posted by whytea »Thanks guys I get mine out in next weekend. But with this whole GM situation Im curious if the dealer will still be open by thenAny GM dealer can service your GM car under warranty, provided they are willing to, the VIBE is a different breed than much of GM's stable. Chevy would probably be your best bet for they used to sell rebadged Toyotas before Pontiac got it.Dave

Anybody have trouble getting the dealer to replace their center caps? My local dealer refused to do it under warranty, even after I showed them the GM service bulletin with the warranty labor code on it.

Anyone works at GM? Now GM is claiming the service bulletin doesn't exist.

I have a copy of the service bulletin and my receipt for the replacement by the dealer.Send me your e mail address and I'll scan it and attach it for you.

Thanks! I'm pulling my hair out over this... GM claims 08-03-10-011A is not their service bulletin.

Do you still have your center caps or no? If you do, take your wheels off and put some clear silicone on the backside of the center caps. That's what the dealer did with mine and my mom's GTs and we haven't had a single problem with them falling off or anything.If you have lost any or all of them, demand that the dealer order new center caps for you at no charge and than silicone them yourself.

No they all fell off after I had my tires rotated (at the dealer - first time tires were off the car) and drove to a wintery area.I already demanded. They claimed perhaps somebody stole all four center caps and have no knowledge of the bulletin on it.

Every time you have your tires balanced, they have to remove the caps. You would have to re-silicone them each time. Since I've had the newer style ones, I've not had any problems with them. They take them out to balance the tires and put them back in when done.

Yeah I suspect when they removed them it weakened the ill-fitting plastic lip. Then when they got cold they stiffened up and and lost all retention altogether.

I just checked NHTSA for TSBs on the 2009 Vibe and noticed they no longer show the two TSBs about the engine-surge problem that many of us had performed on our Vibes last year. Anybody know what's going on?

I wonder if when Pontiac went under they purged the TSB database?

So the parts number on the attachment is the number you need to replace the center caps? I have already lost another center cap. I am just going to buy a set next time.

CAPS LOCK IS THE CRUISE CONTROL FOR COOL

Just had a friend with GM Data access check for me and the bulliten is still there...I just picked up a used '09 a week ago with the 17" machined wheels and I have already began loosing center caps. 18K miles on the car

As I've said before, just get some clear RTV silicone and put it around the backside of the center caps and pop them into place. The silicone will keep them in place and if/when the center caps need to be removed to have the wheels and tires balanced, just peel the silicone off (it comes off very easily without leaving any residue or causing any damage) and re-apply it. I had to re-silicone the center cap on my new wheel that I got after the old one was decimated. It has been fine for four months now and I used a minimal amount of silicone. It doesn't take much at all to keep it in place. I don't know why you guys keep messing with getting new center caps. I know it's covered under warranty, but still... the silicone works so much better. For all you know, the dealer may be giving you the same old caps that don't fit properly which is probably why you continue to lose them. Just my $.02 though .

Haven't lost a single one since the dealer replaced them. I used to lose them constantly.

The GM database shows that the previous owner of my car had the center caps replaced under warranty three times. They must have gotten it right the last time, because I haven't lost a single one in over 5000 miles since I've had my car. I've had the tires rotated twice.But if I lose any, the new ones will definitely get the silicon treatment. I had an '89 Chevy Corsica that had the same problem with the center caps (and also the trim rings), and a little silicon solved the center cap problem. (It was a hallmark of Corsicas - almost every one you saw driving down the street was missing center caps and/or trim rings.)

Geoff, have you checked the backside of the wheels to see if maybe the dealer just got annoyed and siliconed them which would explain why they haven't fallen out anymore ?

I am buying a used 2009 Vibe GT. I pick it up in a few days. I noticed in the picture that the car is missing one of the caps. I am going to try to get ahold of the nearest gm dealer to see if they will replace it under warrantee. I didn't realize this was such an issue until reading your posts. They have been helpful ...thank you.

Quote, originally posted by cebosound »I am buying a used 2009 Vibe GT. I pick it up in a few days. I noticed in the picture that the car is missing one of the caps. I am going to try to get ahold of the nearest gm dealer to see if they will replace it under warrantee. I didn't realize this was such an issue until reading your posts. They have been helpful ...thank you.So glad to hear you're already getting a ton of help from GenVibe ! You will your Liquid Platinum Metallic GT! I guarantee it !

guarantee aye J.... I like the way that sounds. I'm exciting for the change in car.

So will the G6 center caps fit a Vibe? They look the same.

Quote, originally posted by RedHotVibe09 »So will the G6 center caps fit a Vibe? They look the same.I tried finding part numbers to compare to find out for sure, but no such luck.There are a bunch of G6 center caps on eBay. Your best bet would probably be to get one on there for cheap and see whether it fits or not. I would be weary of the same issue of loosing them though if they are indeed the same.

Hi all! I don't know if anyone will see this post or be able to help me.
I've had my 2009 GT for a little over a year now. I've lost 3 center caps and now my radio volume knob no longer works. I plan on selling the vehicle ASAP and would like to fix these problems. Does anyone have the part# for the caps? I'll buy them if I can find them. The GM Parts on line doesn't cover wheels. Does anyone want to sell a good OEM radio cheap? Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks, Don

XSarge wrote:Hi all! I don't know if anyone will see this post or be able to help me.
I've had my 2009 GT for a little over a year now. I've lost 3 center caps and now my radio volume knob no longer works. I plan on selling the vehicle ASAP and would like to fix these problems. Does anyone have the part# for the caps? I'll buy them if I can find them. The GM Parts on line doesn't cover wheels. Does anyone want to sell a good OEM radio cheap? Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks, Don

The part number for the updated center caps per the TSB is: #20835338. The MSRP for one center cap is $17.26. I would recommend ordering new caps from GMPartsCenter.net. Their price is $12.74 x 3 = $38.22 + $7.99 handling = $46.21 for 3 of the updated center caps vs. $51.78+ from a dealer.

I don't know if you're aware of this or not, or if you would even be interested in trying this, but at least one or two 2009-2010 owners here have replaced the radio knobs on their OEM radios. Otherwise, I would check eBay and car-part.com for used OEM radios.

Thank you very much for the help. Should I buy 4 caps or will the 3 be exact matches to the one I have?

XSarge wrote:Thank you very much for the help. Should I buy 4 caps or will the 3 be exact matches to the one I have?

You're very welcome !

Personally, I would just go ahead and buy 4 of them. Looks-wise (the side you see), they're exactly the same, but the backside (the side that attaches to the center of the wheel) is what they changed per the TSB. If you don't replace the 1 you have left (the old, problematic version), it will more then likely end up falling out eventually, so do the next owner a favor and just go ahead and order 4 of them now and replace the 1 that's left so all 4 are indeed an exact match and shouldn't ever fall out again.

I appreciate the help. I found a place that sells the radio knobs for $10. And the caps are in the mail.

XSarge wrote:I appreciate the help. I found a place that sells the radio knobs for $10. And the caps are in the mail.

Glad I could be of help !

Hello! I'm new to the forum. Have an '07 Vibe which I bought new at the end of the model year. I love this car because of the great gas mileage and handling. This car also has the ability to transport large items inside of it (like a new patio set in the box, a small kayak, or a large dog crate). Currently have 117,000 miles on her with no major probs!
My center caps have been loose not long since I bought the car. I have not lost them and am now on my third set of tires. They're still there but very loose! I'm wondering if there is some other kind of stylish center caps (without the Pontiac logo) I could purchase that would fit?