GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

Here are some pictures of tearing out the interior for cleaning. The car was pretty dirty.

Here it is getting towed home. Here is all the stuff I tore out of it the first day. Here you can see the front seats taken apart.

And I've started putting it back together. The carpet is in, the driver's seat is in, the center console is starting to go back in, some plastic trim is back in. I'll post more pictures to show my progress. It's either too hot or raining so I'll be working on it when I get the chance. After the interior is done, I'm going to have to work on dropping the transmission!

Sorry if these pictures bore you. If you don't like them, go away! You're not obligated to look at this thread.

Looking Good Ken,
You were not kidding about it being dirty.

mr.clutch wrote:Looking Good Ken,
You were not kidding about it being dirty.

i'm dreading the clutch job.

ken99287 wrote:

mr.clutch wrote:Looking Good Ken,
You were not kidding about it being dirty.

i'm dreading the clutch job.

I would think so if you are starting with the interior. But you had to clean it anyhow so order is not that important.
Is the white one your families too.

Looks good! What a difference on the headline, for sure. I've never taken seats apart to clean them, but have removed them and used lots of hot water and my shop vac or shampoo vacuum - almost the same one you have, but the hose is attached in the back. Yours looks much better as ours has hose failure issues.

I know someone that worked at a used car lot and on the dirty cars, they pulled everything and took the whole seats and carpet out to power wash them too. The foam and everything dried out after a couple of days in the sun and it all came out much better looking and smelling!

Mr. Clutch, yeah, the white one is my 04 auto that I supercharged. My clutch comes in the mail today. I'm going to try to do it on Monday, I have off. I hope it is the clutch and not just the wrong fluid in the tranny. It would sick to drop the tranny unnecessarily! After I get it fixed, I'm going to have to decide which one to keep.

Trb, I did a lot of research before buying this thing. I've got a dog and a cat, so there's always something to clean up. It's got the best reviews.

ken99287 wrote:Trb, I did a lot of research before buying this thing. I've got a dog and a cat, so there's always something to clean up. It's got the best reviews.

Add kids to the mix and you never stop using it! Our shampooer is a good 17+ years old, and aside from the hose issues, which is probably why Hoover redesigned it, it still works well.

No kids here yet!

Wow!

Mr. Clean.....I mean Ken: don't miss the chance to add sound deadener and insulation.

You did an unbelievable job and quick too!

I think disgusting was a pretty accurate description of the interior before you cleaned it. It looks brand new now and I imagine it probably smells alot better too. I, for one, enjoyed looking through all the before and after pictures. My favorite picture was the one of both your Vibes! Best of luck on dropping the transmission !

Ken, quick question: I want to take the carpet out and I am not sure how the part below the shifter is attached. I suppose there are clips. If so, where should I pull?
A picture would be great.
TIA

Awesome job so far Ken. Definitely add some sound deadening material as suggested. Also I'd be leery on the cable ties as they have the tendency to crack after 5 years or so. The hog rings are a B I T C H to reinstall BUT will be there forever. If you're in a colder northern climate, then look into heated seats while you got it tore apart. A wise investment for sure! Your front yard there looked like a tornado went through and left debris everywhere! Keep up the good work!

This is the best thread on sound deadening I could find:
viewtopic.php?f=29&t=35813&p=400686&hilit=roxul#p400686" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

So far I did the doors and the cargo area and I added a layer of quilt batting into the sub woofer box. You should see my son's grin when I turn the radio on. I still have to do the floor.

Under the shifter area? You remove the center console, remove that storage thing under the shifter. Then it's pretty much loose, just two Christmas trees on each side of the hump way up towards the firewall.

I'm not sure I want to put any sound deadening in the thing. I didn't think it was too loud. I'm used to driving junker!

ken99287 wrote:Under the shifter area? You remove the center console, remove that storage thing under the shifter. Then it's pretty much loose, just two Christmas trees on each side of the hump way up towards the firewall.

I'm not sure I want to put any sound deadening in the thing. I didn't think it was too loud. I'm used to driving junker!

Thanks! Exactly what I needed to know.

When your GT is done it's no junker anymore!

All the best
Vibrologist

Update: How is the car?

She's doing well. Driving it when I'm not in the work truck. My wife now drives the s/c base model. Our brand new Sonata SE 2.0T stays in the driveway it hasn't moved in over a month... we bought it for her, but she prefers the vibe, haha.

I have the new rear backing plates and parking brake cables, just have to find the time to put them in.

I put a new donut in the front, but it still sounds like there's a small leak. Exhaust manifold gasket? No CEL.

Other than that, a few small things like I'm missing the passenger side lower grill insert, missing the battery hold-down...

Someone just posted a link to this thread elsewhere.

Man, I gotta ask. How the HELL did the previous owner get it that dirty?

WOW! Awesome job... can't believe i've ever seen such a thorough interior cleaning!

PS Can't believe I've been gone so long LOL... still have and love my 03 GT.