Hi from Eastern Canada

[MikeyP]

First off GREAT forum. Doing my research here helped me buy my first Vibe.We traded our 01 TDI Beetle in for a 03 Vibe (base, Auto *ugh*, moonroof, etc. 70,000kms). The Beetle was awesome until they wanted $700 to fix the door locks. Plus the fact that we have a 13 week old and no space in the Beetle helped a lot.The Vibe is a great car for us. Good on fuel (not as good as I hoped ... but I'm coming from a diesel Beetle ), Tonnes of space for a rear facing infant carrier, stroller, diaper bag, etc. LOVE IT. And the Beetle's winter rims and tires are an exact fit. BONUS!I do have one or two questions I haven't found the answer to yet. Firstly I would love to add a strut bar. I see them on eBay for the Matrix all the time. Will the Matrix strut bar fit?I also noticed the TSB for the battery. Does this mean I'm in for a free battery? I guess I'm just slow on the uptake on the battery discussion. Same thing goes for the cat.. it does smell a little funky in the morning. Free cat maybe?Anyhoo thanks for all your patience. I never thought I would like the car as much as I am (err.. as much as my wife is. Hahaha).

[ramenboy...]

hey mikeywelcome to genvibe. as far as strut bars go, if it fits the matrix, it should fit the vibe. genvibe loves pix! enjoy the ride. m/ >.< m/

[AKLGT]

welcome to genvibe! glad we helped you decide on the vibe. yes, the matrix stb will fit on the vibe. you can also check out the ebay cheapies and those work pretty well too. as for the battery issue, it depends on what dealership you go to. not all of them will honor the TSB since it was old and apparently (from what my dealer told me last year) was changed. i never got my "free" battery and went with an optima red top. after 2 or 3 times being late to work because the car wouldn't start, i decided it was a good investment over losing my job and not worth fighting with GM about. my hubby has the upgraded battery in his vibe, AC Delco 560 cca, and so far hasn't had any problems with start ups in the mornings. and we've had a few pretty cold ones this winter already!

[ArcsVibe]

Welcome to the forums fellow Canuck! Always nice to see Canadians joining our ranks ..Matrix strut bar will fit the Vibe, no worries. As for the battery and the cat you have to bring it to the dealer and *whine* about it to get fixed.Once again welcome and yeah we do love pictures here

[gargoyle]

Welcome and congrats on the Vibe... great choice for functionality and economy (and it looks cool too!)

[MikeyP]

Wow. You guys are quick. Thanks. I'll post a pic as soon as I get 'er waxed. Honest. Are those cheapy eBay """carbon fibre""" strut bars any good at all? It's not like I'm going to be autocrossing or anything.

[BlueCrush]

Welcome to GenVibe! Enjoy your stay!Strut Bars on a Vibe are more for looks than performance anyway since there is very little flexing. I have a cheapy polished silver Megan Racing Strut Bar from eBay and it looks great!

[goodvibrations]

Welcome follow Nova Scotian, I think that makes three of us. You will find lots of good information here. I know I did.

[vibe-04]

Welcome...The Vibe s a great ride... As for the battery issue, here's a link to the GM service VME. You might be out-of-warranty.http://forums.genvibe.com/zerofile/5125/Vibe.pdfWhen I talked to my service manager about it, he understood the 310 CCA battery wouldn't cut it in winter and I think he knew about the problem (I also mentioned the service VME). What I did was describe the "exact" conditions as outlined in the service bulletin -- slow crank hard to start -- then they load tested and replaced the battery. Good luck, go now and report back!

[djpositivek]

Welcome fellow Nova Scotian. You will enjoy the Vibe I'm sure. I know I am.

[Mavrik]

What? no autocrossing? come on. It would be fun. I'm going to try it in my car next year.