Second Gen Vibe in Ohio

[wojolohre]

Hi, my name is Mike and I"m a small regenerative farmer in Morrow and LIcking County, Ohio. I have a 2004 Vibe 5 speed manuel with the 1.8 and it just turned over 270,000 miles. Burns some oil, but still gets 25 plus for mileage and I basically use it as a pickup, as I have a small 5 by 8 dirt bike trailer that similates the bed of a pickup, plus what I can put in the back of the Vibe. The 1st Gen Vibe with 5 speed is the ultimate small farmers vehicle IMHO, as it carries so much, goes through a ton of snow and mud with decent snow tires on it, yes, year round, and has surprising hauling power. Plus I've strapped recliners, hay bales, love seats, plywood, drywall and more to the roof rack. The car gets the job done and is the best 1,800 bucks I've spend on any car in my 54 years.

Now recently my wife got involved in a hit and run with her Civic, and the person who hit her fled, but it signals the time to get my wife in a Vibe. I picked up a 2009 Vibe, 2nd gen, with 1.8 engine and already has 207k on it. I know the first gen car inside and out, not so much this one. It doesn't run but I only gave a grand for it, and I'm going to try to get it rolling with as little money and fanfare as possible. It needs coils, plugs at the least, it barely runs, plus brakes and rotors all around, serpentine belt, new battery. While I am at it, can someone who owns this same car of generation offer me advice on things I'm not sure about. Should I bother replacing mass air flow sensor, PVC valve? What else might I be missing while I am at it, or is there some common sense and typical mods people do to this car, or common breakdowns, weak points I don't know about? Any help would be appreciated, and of course I'll search the boards as I"m sure this has been discussed, but just wanted to check in and say hello and thank you for this great website. I appreciate all the community here, and may God bless and keep you all safe in your prudent and good looking little cars, lol!

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[GORGO]

Welcome Mike.So far I only needed general maintenance on my 09 & 2 rear brake calipers.Since we use a lot of brine & salt here I make sure I flush the frame etc every spring.

[tpollauf]

Welcome to GenVibe Mike from a Northwestern Ohioan! Got two of the 2009's in my fleet and other than basic routine maintenance, nothing major has needed to be done to either of them. Post pics of the new Vibe when you get a chance.

[zbyers]

Welcome to the party.

I would say leave MAF alone. Cleaning doesn’t really do much, and the cost of a new one is usually $$$$
PCV valve could probably use a cleaning (hose out w/brake parts cleaner and let dry) or replace.
As always, fluid flushes—coolant, oil, brake fluid, gear oil, power steering, etc.

There is a member I am good friends with who lives south of you near Portsmouth. He is (was?) on here, and is on the GV Facebook page….Linky for that in my signature.