GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

Hi everyone! This is my first post on this forum in which my membership started because of the issue I had with my Vibe today.I folded the back seat down so I could fit a headboard/footboard (Less than 40 lbs tota) for my King size bed in the back. It was a tight squeeze but it fit with being tied down by rope from the hinge of the hatch door to the locking latch for the hatch door. I drove it 50 miles home like that on the freeway at an avg spped of 45MPH. On the way home I smelled a burning smell like burnt rubber or plastic but I smelled it all the way home so I knew it was me. I got home and unloaded the headboard/footboard and left again (car rested for 1hour). When I left again I turned the corner after driving less than 1/8 of a mile and it stalled; all the lights came on, power steering locked up and I was barely able to pull it to the side of the road. I turned it off, let it rest for a minute and turned it back on, drove it around the block and it was fine but still had a burned plastic smell. Anyone have the same experience? Or know what this could be? I have only owned the car for 4 wks barely. Help! Thank you. Amy

well I can't say that I have come across that problem, only to say if it stalled, its like turning the key on but not forward. Everything defaults to that position, and since the power steering is fed by the pully driven by the serp belt (not electrical assist like the Malibu), you lose powersteering.That odour... now since you were driving with the trunk open... but smelling of burning plastic? Something caught on the exhaust comes to mind but why the car stalled later...sorry I don't have an answer for you but if it continues, take it to the dealership, have someone go for a ride with you so you can point out the smell. Was there an engine light remaining on after all this happened or other then the smell, seems fine?

Thanks for replying. After it stalled and then I drove it around the block and it was fine, I still drove it directly to the dealership because I was afraid it was going to stall again. No engine lights left on at all. They gave me a Chevy Silverado HD Diesel King Cab which is really fun to drive but I am afraid I did something to cause that problem and I will be stuck with the rental bill. Oh well. I am just paranoid it was something I did?!

the burnt plastic smell could be something innocent like a preservative burning off the exhaust, and like Mavrik said if you had the hatch open then that smell could get inside the car. Assuming it stalled for some reason other than you turned the key off, I don't see how anything you did would cause the car to stall. Probably a good thing you took it to the dealer. Please let us know what the dealer has to say about it.and welcome to genvibe!

Nice silverado.

Did the check engine light come on at all? I assume no since you did not mention it... Coincedence to me. The exhaust fumes were coming back into the car with the hatch open though, this would happen to any vehicle with the rear openBetter keep on eye on it and take it in if anything else happens.

I didn't see the individual lights and what they were. It all happened so fast but it seemed like all the lights that were possible lit up when it stalled. It was so weird. I will definitely let you know what happens tomorrow when the dealer calls. Thank you!!

Burnt plastic is lightly a plastic bag caught ony our exhaust...I've had it happen twice, and heard of it happening to many...As to the car stalling out, that is odd, sounds like just a fluke to me!

The smell and the stall could be related, but it's tough to tell without having experienced it. I'd go with everyone else and say the smell was probably a plastic bag that got caught on the exhaust pipe.The stall thing could have just been an electrical gremlin...my old Jetta scared me one night doing that...70 mph on a rainy highway at night in the middle of nowhere in Texas with pretty much all the accessories running (defrost, stereo, lights, fog lights, etc)...all the warning lights came on and the car lost power for a second, then everything went back to normal. Never did it again, no codes thrown...nothing. I just chalked it up to water getting in somewhere it shouldn't have been...the engine control computer on the previous generation (pre-99) Jettas was below the windshield wipers in this metal tray with nothing but a thin plastic piece protecting it from the elements.

maybe she had said plastic bag melt and wrap itself around the trannie which caused the car to stall, when she started her back up it could have rid itself of the bag, just an idea, OH!, I had that happen to me a few years back.