Future Vibe Owner, Questions...

[iyzmi]

Hey guys, I've been browsing this forum for about 2 weeks now and finally decided to join. I recently noticed the Vibe infront of a dealership I was passing by and decided to do some research, and apperently I really liek this car! Im going to be in the market for a new car in about a year so I decided to start doing research early, like I always do. I'm deciding between a monotone 5spd Vibe and a Scion xA. Rumor has it that the xA is getting discontinued soon so that pretty much rules it out but it's still on my top 2 list for now.I have a few questions, as my title stated. 1st of all, I'm wondering how much money can I take from my GM card to use towards the Vibe. On the GM Card site it says I can only use $1,000 but I've seen people write that they've used more than that.Do you guys think GM will offer this same kind of deal with 0% for 6 years sometime again next year around summer, to early fall?I plan on learning to drive manual on this car, so how smooth/forgiving is the tranny in this car?Most Vibes I see by far are auto, is there any reason to this? How is the paint quality on Vibes?Do all base model Vibe's come with the same tires or do some have one brand/model of tires and others have different kinds?Will Vibes still look the same about the same time next year or will they be redesigned?Does the standerd stereo come with RDS and TheftLock? I'm looking at the optional $440, this is Pontiac's description: Sound system, ETR AM/FM stereo with CD player and MP3 playback, includes Radio Data System (RDS), digital clock, programmable equalizer, TheftLock and (U65) Sound system feature, 7-speakers, Monsoon. Is the only difference between this and the normal stereo that this has MP3 playback?Lastly, feel free to post some pics of your neptune Vibes, I'd love to see them! Thanks in advace guys!

[prathman]

I'll give a shot at some of your questions although we only bought out daughter's Vibe a little over a month ago.1) The GM card deal depends on when you got the card and the terms in effect at that time. When we got ours the rules were that there was a 5% rebate on all purchases but you were limited to $500/year for up to 7 years for a maximum total rebate of $3500 which applied to any GM car except Saturns. Later they switched to a different system which was more flexible about the yearly rebate but was limited in total amount depending on the type of car purchased ($1000 for the Vibe). They asked if we wanted to switch to this 'more flexible' plan but we declined and as a result we could apply our full rebate ($3480) to the Vibe purchase.2) Future offers by GM? Who knows, but GM's financial picture isn't good so I'd expect a variety of financing incentives to attract more buyers.3) When we first got the Vibe it seemed a little touchy about getting a smooth start- either give it a bit too much gas and have the engine rev high or not quite enough and risk stalling. But it has settled down quickly and now starts more smoothly with only minimal clutch slippage needed to start from a stop.4) We ended up ordering a car from the factory (which is only about 20 miles away) since there were so few 5-spd models at dealers and our daughter didn't want any shade of gray which eliminated all colors other than Lava, Salsa, and Neptune. I suppose most buyers are looking for automatics these days since fewer new drivers have learned how to drive a stick.5) No complaints so far on our paint, but it's still new. There are quite a few threads here complaining about the paint chipping easily.6) Don't know. Ours had Goodyear Eagle all-weather tires and I think those are pretty common.7) No major change for '07 except that the GT model will be dropped as well as the Lava color. Big question mark for '08. The Matrix is getting a major redesign then and it's not clear yet what will happen with the Vibe.8) That optional sound system comes with more and better speakers in addition to the MP3 CD feature. The standard radio does have RDS and I think it has some anti-theft feature (it at least has a blinking red LED when the car is turned off).9) Sorry, we didn't order Neptune although that's the color I probably would have picked.

[ColonelPanic]

Manual transmission Vibes and Vibes with certain option packages can be hard to track down, i.e. side air bags, ABS, etc. My old dealer to this day still stocks just base moon & tunes cars with alloys and power package, no other options, none with the manual transmission, no AWD's, no GT's, etc. I guess an automatic base is easier for the dealers to sell than anything else sometimes...Since this is what you'll be learning on, I'll say to avoid the GT since that car doesn't have a very newbie-friendly transmission from what I hear. I can't really drive a manual and I've never driven a GT, I can only go by what people here have said. The paint quality is a big issue for many. I had problems with my Neptune chipping up, particularly on the front bumper. The hood chipped up some, but a hood deflector helped somewhat. But I still had rust spots on the hood further up where it got nailed and I never touched it up. Here are a couple threads on paint problems:http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id ... id=6475The tires are another issue, you'll either find Goodyear Eagle RSA's or Continentals. I think general consensus here is the Goodyear's are preferable. The Continentals have worn out before their time for many of us.Good luck!

[iyzmi]

How will the Goodyears do in WI winters?How good does the stock stereo sound. Is the optional $440 one worth it?How easy do you think it would be to learn manual on a 5spd Vibe? How newbie friendly is it?

[808 Vibes]

Welcome! You've made a good choice in the Vibe! And Neptune! I think the GM earnings depend on your balance(?????)Ours was only $220.93 or something like that because we didn't use the card very much and didn't have a big balance. But the last time I looked at the GM card link, it said Vibe had a maximum of $1,000 earnings.If you do have any earnings on your card, you can find out by calling 1-800-947-1000 (their 24 hour customer service center) you just enter your 16 digit card number, your zip code and there's a menu for balance info/last payment/earnings info. (It is automated). Hope this helps. I really like the UC6 stereo (the 6 CD changer Monsoon system) in my Mom's Frosty, so I ordered my Neptune with it.

[prathman]

Re your followup questions:1) Wish I knew. Our Vibe (and daughter) will be in the Milwaukee area for the next few years and she's hasn't had any experience at driving in snow. The car drove well through a late season snow storm we encountered crossing the Rockies last month. I'm not sure if a set of strictly snow tires would be worthwhile in Milwaukee.2) We have the stock radio and I haven't compared to the upgraded model. The stock one sounds ok but not exceptional. I'd think that you could probably do better applying the $$ to improving the stock system with better aftermarket speakers rather than spring for the upgraded factory package.3) It seems like a reasonable transmission/clutch on which to learn. But in general cars with more torque are more forgiving when learning and the Vibe isn't real high on torque. Ideal would be if you have a friend who's planning on replacing his clutch soon and therefore wouldn't mind a bit of extra wear on it. There do seem to have been more clutch problems with the GT model (6-spd), so I'd agree to stick with the base 5spd instead.

[MRCN RCE]

hey welcome to the family... i can only help you on 1 of your questions. i have a gt, so i can't tell you how the tranny is on the base models since i haven't driven one.1: i've got a few chips on my paint that seem to have come fairly easy... the first one is from a careless person in a parking lot, right above my rear right wheel on the lower cladding. maybe it's because the paint doesn't hold as well on the plastic, i couldn't tell you for sure. and the other chips are on the front bumper and a couple small ones on the hood. the best thing to get is the clear bra from 3M. i haven't got mine yet, but it IS in my future plans. if you don't know about em, look at ballrub's page for VOTM(vibe of the month) http://www.genvibe.com/html/vo...shtml at the bottom of the page, click on part 3, and at the bottom of the new window, click on page 2. there are pictures and a description of the bra. i've seen a few in person on other vehicles, and it is nearly impossible to see it unless you're up close and know it's there. hope this helped

[Mrizzle05]

Quote, originally posted by iyzmi »Hey guys, I've been browsing this forum for about 2 weeks now and finally decided to join. I recently noticed the Vibe infront of a dealership I was passing by and decided to do some research, and apperently I really liek this car! Im going to be in the market for a new car in about a year so I decided to start doing research early, like I always do. I'm deciding between a monotone 5spd Vibe and a Scion xA. Rumor has it that the xA is getting discontinued soon so that pretty much rules it out but it's still on my top 2 list for now.I have a few questions, as my title stated. 1st of all, I'm wondering how much money can I take from my GM card to use towards the Vibe. On the GM Card site it says I can only use $1,000 but I've seen people write that they've used more than that.Do you guys think GM will offer this same kind of deal with 0% for 6 years sometime again next year around summer, to early fall?I plan on learning to drive manual on this car, so how smooth/forgiving is the tranny in this car?Most Vibes I see by far are auto, is there any reason to this? How is the paint quality on Vibes?Do all base model Vibe's come with the same tires or do some have one brand/model of tires and others have different kinds?Will Vibes still look the same about the same time next year or will they be redesigned?Does the standerd stereo come with RDS and TheftLock? I'm looking at the optional $440, this is Pontiac's description: Sound system, ETR AM/FM stereo with CD player and MP3 playback, includes Radio Data System (RDS), digital clock, programmable equalizer, TheftLock and (U65) Sound system feature, 7-speakers, Monsoon. Is the only difference between this and the normal stereo that this has MP3 playback?Lastly, feel free to post some pics of your neptune Vibes, I'd love to see them! Thanks in advace guys!1. The GM card i dont know about... never had one. 2. The 0% interest thing could happen again... depends on the market and competition.3. Like others say the GT is unforgiving... i have a manual... and im not the best but i know how to drive it... and its quite unforgiving at times... but if you get a TWM short shifter its 10X better.4. Auto is more common on cars... and our isnt really a sports car... and the GTs only come in 6 speeds.5. as all others say about the paint , the colors are nice but the quality isnt all that good. mine has knicks in the hood and bumper from rocks... and under the door from barely kickin it tryin to get in.6. depending on where you are your gonna end up with contis or goodyear rs-a tires... some people like em and some hate them. the rs-a tire arent that bad but wear fairly easy.7. The redesign is set for 08. so not sure what the change may look like.heres some links to other neptunes.http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id ... d?id=22889