Check engine, and noises from the CD Player

[w42w42]

Hi everyone My Wife and I bought an '03 Vibe this last Saturday, and we went through almost a 1/2 tank of gas before noises, sounds like marbles rolling around, started coming from the CD Player during braking. The Check Engine light also came on, and wouldn't dissappear.Took it to the dealer on Wednesday morning, and they don't know what caused the light to come on. It was a cylinder misfire in the computer, but they don't know what caused it, hence the famous "we reset it, try it now" line. The car is currently sitting at the shop still though because "overnight" on shipping radios apparently doesn't really mean "overnight".We really like a lot of things about this car (silver base, 5sp), but I'm hoping this isn't a sign of things to come.

[NSimkins]

quote:My Wife and I bought an '03 Vibe this last Saturday, and we went through almost a 1/2 tank of gas before noises, sounds like marbles rolling around, started coming from the CD Player during braking. The Check Engine light also came on, and wouldn't dissappear.There is a known problem with the noises coming from the CD Player Radio. See here: http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=179 I believe most people with this problem had their radio replaced with a corrected model and the problem was corrected.

[MA-VIBE-FAN]

Shouldn't the dealer give you the car to drive while waiting for the replacement radio to arrive? That way you can check to see if the light comes back on, and have it checked again when you do finally go in for the radio.

[w42w42]

We finally got the car back, after two days. We still hadn't gone through a tank of gas, when I started it up on Sunday night. Had a rough sound to it, but no light on. I walked in the house, came back out, and sure enough, the check engine light was back. I called the dealership, and they tried telling me that I had to click the gas refill cap five times before it was fully sealed. I reminded her that I'd yet to go through my first tank yet, so I doubted that was the problem. I took it in this morning.They did fix the radio though, it had to be replaced. We really like this car, so hopefully they'll get it fixed this time.

[Sputnik]

The check engine light on my dad's Saturn wouldn't go off so he put black electrical tape over it (he did take it in, but they couldn't find anything).

[2fatty]

GM probably would have charged him for the tape....

[nascarfan]

Hey w42w42,Oh boy, does your problem sound familiar (the check engine light - not the CD player noise). I picked up a 5 speed manual Vibe in early August. Roughly 1 week after closing the deal, the check engine light came on. Took it to the dealer - they hooked it up to the computer and it spit out "engine misfire". The mechanic changed a spark plug and sent the car back to me. Roughly 1 week later, the light was back on. Took car back to dealer and they essentially told me the same thing you were told - "Well, we really don't know what is wrong, so document the time, driving conditions etc... when the light comes back on." Well, another week goes by and the light comes on again. Now the car stays in the shop for two weeks and they end up calling in GM honchos to analyse the engine. They replace a part called the fuel rail. So now I will see if they finally fixed it. I am documenting everything in case I have to use Florida's lemon law. The funny thing is, I traded in a Ford Focus ZX3 because of its poor quality and reliability. Pretty ironic, don't ya think??? Hope this helps you with your problem. It is soooooooooo very frustrating when a dealer can't fix the cars it sells.

[RAC]

Sorry to hear about your problem since we have the same. I checked this site in mid August, didn't see others with the CEL problem, so I thought we got the only bad one. Just looking for the first time in several weeks. Hopefully you've followed the recommendations in the owners manual. After the first attempt failed you need to call the service manager and let him know the car is back for the same problem for the second time. When it goes back for the 3rd time the owner or GM of the dealer needs to be notified. If it goes back on again call Pontiac service in the owners manual. After the 4th, call the BBB arbitration number and customer service. Always be cordial and polite, let them know you want the problem fixed and are following the owners manual recommendations escalating the notification of a problem to the next level.GM does not know how to fix this problem. We are using an attorney to have GM buy it back after 7 attempts to fix. The day the papers were filed they offered to exchange it for another Vibe if we pay $0.25 per mile. No mention of the hundreds of miles they put on with the road tests. I guess they expect their customers to fund R&D now. The dealer had it for 29 days total (during the first 100 days of ownership), reproduced the problem at the dealer and technical service in Warren was telling the dealer what to do to fix it. They replaced the ECM, solenoid valves, cracked fuel lines, tightened loose fuel lines, checked seal on gas cap and did smoke tests. It first came on after just 2 weeks and every time the dealer read the code and "fixed" it the light came back on. It took any time from the moment of picking it back up to maybe 7 days maximum between "fixes".GM ignored my letter before I got an attorney involved. Too bad since I told them this car is of more value to them than us since they could solve it in their tech center after buying it back and prevent others from the same aggravation. If you live in Illinois, the new emission test requires the light to operate properly. I'm sure other states may have the same test or soon will. The test will get the light to come on and then off after reading certain codes. The first test is after 4 years. If they fix yours, hope it stays fixed and your car will pass this emission test. In any event get them to extend your warranty for free if you have this problem so if it fails the test your not stuck 4 years from now. From the IL site http://www.epa.state.il.us/air/vim/enha ... *******How does the procedure work? The enhanced emissions test accurately measures emissions from today’s computer-controlled vehicles. Most 1996 and newer vehicles will receive an On-Board Diagnostic Test (OBD) which consists of two parts: First, the Malfunction Indicator Light (MIL) on the vehicle dash will be checked to see if it is working. Second, a scan tool will be connected to the vehicle's on-board computer to determine OBD system (readiness checks) to retrieve any stored diagnostic trouble codes, and to determine MIL illumination status (commanded on or off). ***********************************************************Hopefully with the problem in other Vibes they will settle quick and find the cause once this Vibe is back in Warren.Good luck

[tetazoo]

I too had a CEL problem at first. The dealer took it in and when brought back it was gone. But at the first fuel up it reappeared.Now reading through the manual the CEL is very sensitive to the emission system. Octane levels of different fuels can offset what the engine is expecting. Now here is what I did to get it to go away.1. Check the fuel cap lid. This is probably what the dealer told you at first. Unscrew the cap off and rescrew the cap back in making sure that the cap 'clicks' a number of times. Maybe gas vapour is not sealed properly.If this doesn't work. Force a reset to the engine computer.2. Do this by unplugging the negative terminal on the battery. Ensure that no charge is going to the car by turning the key in the ignition. Maybe wait 30 seconds before reattaching the battery terminal.I have done both of these steps just once. (one was after the first fuel up after getting it from the dealer, the second when light just suddenly lit up) Since then have never got the CEL to come on again. Good Luck.

[Flip-Side]

quote:1. Check the fuel cap lid. This is probably what the dealer told you at first. Unscrew the cap off and rescrew the cap back in making sure that the cap 'clicks' a number of times. Maybe gas vapour is not sealed properly. The fuel cap was the culprit in my case, but I actually had to have the cap replaced. Original seemed and looked fine, but the switch fixed it.

[mu_ohio]

I noticed something very similar in my brothers Sunfire. Someone stole his gas cap and after a week his check engine light stayed on for about a year. He finally got a new cap and after 2 restarts of the engine, the light disappeared for good. I know this is an extreme human cuased issue , but if your cap is not sealing correctly the same thing can happen. Not saying that this is the cause for everyone's problems, but it can happen.

[w42w42]

When we called the dearship 2nd or 3rd time with this problem, they mentioned that. Seems they're having major problems right now with that - though it is not the cause of our problem (occured before we'd put first tank of gas in).

[ken]

w42w42 can you tell us what the outcome was on this problem. I had the same thing happened to me today. Check Engine Light came on followed by CD/Radio problems after one year and 15,000 trouble free miles. Here's my story....I had just started the car for the first time for the day and drove off for about a quarter of a mile when the Check Engine Light came on. I stopped, turned off the ignition and unscrewed the gas cap and screwed it back on, making sure it clicked a couple of times. That didn't help. I opened up the manual and saw references to gasoline and thought it was probably bad gas (even though my last fill-up was several days ago). I continued toward my destination expecting that a new tank of gas will do the trick. At about an hour after the Check Engine Light came one the CD I was playing started making weird noises. I put another CD in but nothing. It looks like it's playing but no sound from the speakers. I hit a couple of light bumps on the road and I hear "scratching" noises from the speakers as if there is a loose connection somewhere. I've heard of this problem with the radio/cd but only when you apply the brakes. Here, I was on the highway cruising along when this problem happened. Important to note that it was not only the CD, but I couldn't hear anything from the speakers with the radio on as well. Then after a minute or two the speakers were completely dead....no more loud scratchy noise on bumps. At about a quarter tank remaining, I filled it up with a different brand of gas and with the 93 Octane instead of the usual 87. That didn't help with the Check Engine Light either. On the way back home (after the car had been off for about 4 hours) when I started it up the Check Engine Light was still on, but the radio/cd was now working fine. When I got home from my trip I decided to do the battery trick to get rid of the Check Engine Light by disconnecting the negative battery cable and reconnecting it. That got rid of the Check Engine Light but I am still not totally satisfied. I drove it around for about five mins and the light didn't come back on. Will just have to wait and see what happens in the near future. I'm reluctant to take it in to the dealer right away because I know, as well as many of you will agree, that they will just reset it and send me back home. Nevertheless, this has really got me worried. This is the first time this has happened in a year and 15,000 wonderful miles on my Vibe. Let's keep an eye out on this one guys.Base Vibe. Automatic. Single CD player. One year old. 15,000 miles.Only problem until now was a premature blown map light and chipping paint which, by searching this site, seems to be common.

[wep76]

The check engine problems you have are just like mine. I think this gas cap tightening stuff is bougus. If the engine is running rough why would something so simple fix that. I think it is a bigger problem because is has happened on all model types. I want to resolve the issue before my 3yr 36000 is up. I'm looking into lemon law if they can't give me a better explanation. My car is in the shop for the 3rd time as I write this. GM just doesn't want to correct a problem that might be occuring from the Toyota parts in this car.