Radio is Volume Knob is Broke and has Poor Rear Visibility

[Underdog]

My company got me a '09 Vibe as a company car. I get a gas card too! I had a '07 Chevy Crew Cab pickup but when gas prices went up last year they got me this Vibe. I just found this forum as I wanted to start palying around the the car a little bit. I just sold my C5 Vette so now this Vibe has to be my play car too. I've been thinking about trying some autocrosses. Anybody do this with theirs? The only down side is it's an automatic but it does have the sequential shifter with I use most of the time, even in traffic. The car has zero low end power so I keep it rev'd up as much as possible. I've been getting around 30 mpg with it and have 40K miles on it now with problems. I drive it very hard and it's held up well so far. I think I may need brakes soon though. Overall, it's a great little car. Oh, the seats are too f'ing hard. I got a chair pillow from Walmart and that helps. Glad to have found this forum!

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[Kamikaze]

Welcome and congrats! There are a few here that have auto x'd their vibes but not 09's...So even though it's a company vehicle they don't care if you alter it at all? I think one big improvement you could do would be some lowering springs, and obviously for Auto X some better tires would make a world of difference (maybe some wheel/tires for track only?)As for low end grunt, not sure what can really help you out, personally I'm not sure what's even available for 09's in aftermarket.Good luck with the Auto crossing!

[lovemyraffe]

Welcome! That's awesome that your company lets you play with their car.

[808 Vibes]

Welcome. Lucky.

[Underdog]

Yup! I can do what I want with it (to a certain extent). Normally with the trucks we will put about 100K - 150K on them and then we turn them over to our work crews (commercial roofing). With the Vibe, I will drive it until its starts giving me problems then we'll just give it to one of our guys as a bonus and I will get a new car! Oh, my only real complaint is the bad blind spots at the rear quarters. I'm always afraid I'm going to run over someone when I back out of a parking spot!

[bonzo4ever]

They even sprang for the Alloys. Well played, good sir. Enjoy!

[Eloi]

Quote, originally posted by Underdog »Oh, my only real complaint is the bad blind spots at the rear quarters. I'm always afraid I'm going to run over someone when I back out of a parking spot! Yes, that's the only thing I really don't like on the 2009 Vibe. The rear vision is awful and I also don't like backing out in parkings....

[kowell]

Quote, originally posted by bonzo4ever »They even sprang for the Alloys. Well played, good sir. Enjoy!These alloys are the ones included in the 1SC package which means they also sprang for the 2.4L engine... pretty nice for a company car.

[northvibe]

yeah I sat in a 2009 vibe yesterday and wow those rear side windows are not for viewing out of. I would suggest those concave little mirrors for your side mirrors. I love them, makes merging easy and checking the blind spot. Hmm autox is fun but yes on most stock cars the suspension is horrible for it. Lowering springs would be a very good mod and your in Cali so no snow

[Blueridge9]

Quote, originally posted by Underdog » [/QUOTE] Oh, my only real complaint is the bad blind spots at the rear quarters. I'm always afraid I'm going to run over someone when I back out of a parking spot! [/QUOTE]Have you thought about installing one of those cameras on the back? Lots of minivans have them now too. Or try parking as much as possible so you can pull straight out when you leave.Welcome, wow are you lucky to get the Vibe as a company car - enjoy!

[Underdog]

I put the spotter mirrors on right after I got it. I run them on all my cars and they really help. I saw one of the NASCAR style interior wide view mirrors and thought about getting that too. The camera is a good idea. We bought three of these at once and one had the rims and fog lights so I claimed that one! I guess the bonus was the big engine and I think the other two are the 1.8. Anyway, the car is fun to drive and has been very reliable. 40K miles and no problems.

[AKLGT]

for autox:front and rear sway bars, front strut brace, springs or coilovers (coilovers are much better and will save your struts over the long haul), lighter rims and better tires.

[Underdog]

Not really, just some things bug me. 1. It's hard to see out of. Who designed this thing? It's like driving a panel truck! 2. What's up with the interior light delay? Why do I have to wait in the dark for my interior light to come on when I open the door? 3. My radio volume knob broke and they can't fix it. They say I have to buy a whole new radio to the tune (no pun intended!) of about $400! 4. It is appropriately named. This thing vibrates like a cougar with fresh batteries. I thought it might be tires but I just had a new set installed and it still vibrates. It varies with vehicle speed, not engine speed. Anyone else experience this?5. The Vibe(rator) gets no respect. I own a C5 Vette and a few other fast cars and when I tell my buddies that the Vibe is pretty peppy and handles well they all laugh at me. I got the 2.4 and sequential shifter so I always drive it like a manual and I have a lot of fun driving it. I'm not going to try to race my Vette buddies but I think this little car can hold its own among the import crowd.6. Did I mention this thing has really crappy rear visibility?7. The seats are very hard (the vibration doesn't help). I put a cushion on the seat to help. I'd like to get some nice racing seats for it. 8. Sooner or later I'm going to back into something because I CAN'T SEE OUT DA BACK!Other than that, it's been a great little car that's a lot of fun to drive.

[ponta2147]

Rear visibility... I hear you. On the '09s especially, those little rear corner windows are such a tease. From my position in the front, I can't even see the glass much less use them to see what's in my blind spots. All I can see is the light from the window on the pillar. Aside from letting in light, what's the point?I made up for it by adjusting my side view mirrors heavily and just becoming more aware, though.And any car that can happily go 80+ mph without feeling like it's struggling at all is good enough in my book.

[KNINE]

It beats the heck out of having to carry your shoe shine kit everywhere.

[ou.grizzly]

Well, since your radio is broke, you could always purchase a new HU with a rear backup camera, problem solved. Hard to compare a Vibe to a Corvette... Pota2147 makes a good point, mirrors are your friends. As for vibration, sounds like you have a problem. I can easily go down the expressway and not feel any vibration one of the Vibes we have. Get your front end and tires checked out.

[Underdog]

Yup, I have the little spotter mirrors on the outside rear view mirrors.Speaking of those outside rearviews, they are mounted too high on the doors so with the extra wide A pillars and the mirrors they block a lot of front view. Especially on the right side. My head can rub on the roof and I still have to be careful going around right handers.

[keithvibe]

not ment to be mean... just thought this image seemed to fit

[ou.grizzly]

I do not have a problem with vibrations, the seat being too hard, and or with visibility. Maybe you need to adjust your mirrors or the seats Yes, the seats in a 2003-2008 are more comfortable, but the 2009+ are not bad.

[TONY TAT2]

I think your the 3rd person on this forum who has a Vibe & Vette.

[Underdog]

Yeah, company car so I can't complain too much! They pay for gas too. Had the brakes done and new tires put on, still vibrates. I'm trying to get in to a dealer to have it checked out but they are all book up till next week. I have to drive to Phoenix/Tucson next week for business and was hoping to get it fixed before. Oh, sold the '98 C5 and got a '04 Z06.

[keithvibe]

yea i would complain too if i drove a vette LOL

[ponta2147]

Quote, originally posted by Underdog »Yup, I have the little spotter mirrors on the outside rear view mirrors.Speaking of those outside rearviews, they are mounted too high on the doors so with the extra wide A pillars and the mirrors they block a lot of front view. Especially on the right side. My head can rub on the roof and I still have to be careful going around right handers.I noticed the front view issues too the first few times I drove the car, I was like "whoa where did the left turn lane go?"

[ou.grizzly]

Quote, originally posted by ponta2147 »I noticed the front view issues too the first few times I drove the car, I was like "whoa where did the left turn lane go?" Have you adjusted (raised) your seat to the highest position? Considering I am 6'4" my seat is in the lowest position and I have no issue seeing.

[star_deceiver]

You'd make a great automotive journalist.... (spoiled by the industry of cushy cars and nit-picking the details.....)

[ponta2147]

Quote, originally posted by ou.grizzly »Have you adjusted (raised) your seat to the highest position? Considering I am 6'4" my seat is in the lowest position and I have no issue seeing. As high as I can stand- I liked the high ride of the car compared to other small cars and wanted to accentuate it.

[Underdog]

Well, dropped the Big Vib(rator) off at the dealer this morning and just got the call. It needs new hubs and wheel bearings. Covered under the 100K warranty but parts are on back order and they don't know when they will get them!They didn't say why the parts went bad so I'll ask when I pick it up. Looks like I'll be rattling around for a little while longer.

[cq358]

its a company car, no body will going baby it.. you should be amazed when we have a bad day at work will affect how we drive a company's car. ..ride on the curb , no problem.. not our car anyways..