Vibe vs. Matrix - after sales support

[rantech]

As with many others, I purchased a Vibe as I thought I was getting the same vehicle at a lower cost. However, one thing I didn't consider was after sales support.My Vibe was broken into last week resulting in the window smashed and damage to the interior trim. Now I'm driving around without a window as GM has NO side windows in stock anywhere in North America. They are waiting for these windows to be manufactured. As suprising as this is, it is the same story with the interior door trim.Out of curiousity I called Toyota and they have both the corresponding parts for the Matrix in stock (albeit a days delivery away). I guess GM is making up some of the savings in after sales support - it looks like they may be keeping very low inventory levels of parts.Just something to consider when making a choice between the Vibe and the Matrix. Having had to drive 1100km last week (much of it in sub-freezing temperatures) without a window, I know I wish I'd spent the extra dough and bought the Matrix !!!

[nismo]

I'm sorry to hear about the bad luck you've been having recently with your Vibe man. The only thing that I think that would fit on our cars is the interior panel. So, you may want to go to a Toyota dealership and draw out the window and then put it up to your window and see if it's the same size.Inder

[rantech]

Unfortunately, the repair work is being done through my insurance company and the shop isn't willing to try the Toyota glass since it has a different part number. Apparently, I may have the GM glass by the end of the week but I'm not holding my breath.In a case like this, I think GM should be willing to tell me whether the part is "identical" so that the car can be fixed and back on the road. They must have a cross reference list somewhere; if not, they should.

[nismo]

Naw man, it's still a business, so they're gonna wanna get the most of it. And has the insurance company already paid for the repairs? If so, then the dealer or wherever you may take your car will take a long time. I would know. I've been in 2 accidents since I got my Vibe. Poor thing. Inder

[joatmon]

If it was my car and I needed the window in a hurry but couldn't get a new one out of GM, then I'd ask the shop and insurance company to find me the parts out of a wrecked car at a junkyard, and give me the difference in material cost (or apply the cost savings to your deductible)what year is your Vibe?

[glassman]

they are a different glass all be small but there is a diff we can get aftermarket ones no prob and they are a ppg par ???? wonder why the delay

[ragingfish]

The toyota glass is NOT the same as the GM glass...the whole rear end of the matrix is different window-wise....

[RoundUp]

I've had my car broken into before and the sooner you get everything fixed, the better you'll feel. The interior trim should be common with the Matrix. You might want to try getting that from the Toyota dealership. Have you tried an auto glass place? For repairs like that it might be cheaper to go to collision places than the dealership. I'm surprised your insurance company hasn't asked you to get quotes from several places.

[rantech]

The glass is being done by a glass shop that the insurance company sent me to but they haven't been able to find a supplier for after market glass in Canada so they have OEM glass on order with GM.

[soldierguy]

Sorry about your car getting broken into. If that happened to me I'd feel violated, and not in a good way. Hate to say this, but it sounds like business as usual. All the car companies (and dealers/repair shops) that I can think of us a "just in time" system for parts storage...maybe 1 or 2 days of supply on hand of commonly used parts...everything else has to be ordered. It's a way to cut down on warehousing costs, and it's generally invisible to the customer, except when that customer needs something that is not in routine demand (like your window & interior trim panel). That's when it has to be ordered from the part manufacturer that probably works on its own "just in time" system, who then has to incorporate your parts in with its own production / delivery schedule. I'm honestly very surprised that the Toyota shop had the parts you needed in stock...that sounds unusual to me & my experience.I ran into this several years ago with my Jetta...an idiot with no insurance and no brakelights stopped dead in front of me and I bumped him. Cracked the headlight mounts (but not the lights themselves), took a chunk out of the grille, wrinkeld the paint on the front bumper, and jacked up the alignment of the bumper. I could have been in and out of the repair shop overnight if it hadn't been for the grille. The dealer snagged the headlight mounts off of a set they happened to have in stock, realigned and repainted the bumper, but the grille had to be ordered. The first grille arrived 4 days later...it was for a blue GLS, but mine was a red GLX (different grille slats). Four more days, and I had a front grille...8 days total for what should have been an overnight deal. Frustrating? Incredibly. But understandable given the constraints of parts warehousing costs. And to take the edge off my friustration, the dealer cut $120 off the cost of repairs (4 extra days of a rental car @ $30 per day) since they knew I was paying out of pocket because the other guy didn't have insurance and I didn't want to file a claim because the cost estimate was only $50 over my deductible.I feel your pain, but it'll be over soon.

[ToolGuy]

All the parts I have needed and ordered for my Vibe have been ordered in by GM within a couple of days and AC oil filters are always in stock for the engine at the local auto store. Based off that, I would not say your luck is the same for all Vibe parts... Since the parts come from Toyota, GM is the middle man in a joint venture.

[jake75]

Soldierguy - Perhaps the "no brake lights" would make a difference but around here if you hit someone from behind it's an automatic "failure to maintain an assured clear distance violation".I have heard of accidents where a vehicle changes lanes (pulls in front of you) and then "brakes" - don't know what the answer would be in that situation. [Happened to my son, but the other vehicle just kept going and on a busy freeway he couldn't catch up to it.]

[glassman]

national autoglass assoc part (nags) # and wholesale costback glass bd10194 $446.00 no stockfrt r door dd10188 $178 saskatoonfrt l door dd10189 $178 winnipegback r door dd10190 $130 no stockback l door dd10191 $130 torontor quarter dq10192 $115 torontol quarter dq10193 $115 calgary windshield dw1489 $198 vancouverthese are canadian prices parts located closest to vancouver

[kostby]

Hindsight is always 20-20, but why wouldn't your insurance company provide a loaner car while the repairs were made? Especially since your car wasn't weather-tight!