GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

Well today I messed my Vibe up. I was driving on the freeway after work I get out on my usuall exit and there is a ligth to make a right or a left. It turns yellow when I get close to it so I gun it to try to beat it. Im turning and my front wheels lose grip and the front of the car starts to skid starught instead of turning. I hit the sidewalk with my passenger side wheel and that was it. Seemed fine I thought just a dent/scartch on the rim but as I drive the car is wobling. I pull over to an empty parking lot I check the wheel and its BENT! The top of wheel is sticking out farther out than the bottom of the wheel. So now Im not sure what I broke or bent. I took the wheel off and there is a couiple things I see wrong. I dont know the name of the components I just know that metal bar that holds the wheel is bent (axle maybe) also that triangle metal thing that holds it all is bent a little not a lot only reason I noticed it is because the paint or whatever they spray on it to protect from rust I guess is broken like when paint breaks off a surface that you bend. Not sure on the damage I will get a mechanic to take a look at it and estimate the damage and see if its worth reporting to insurance or not. Sad day! Luckily no other cars were involved and no body damage besides a light scratch under the body bu the beggining of the wheel well.

That sucks! Sounds like you might have a hefty bill there Hope they say otherwise though. Why did you lose traction like that? Is it raining up there or were the roads wet or something or was it just bad tires or what? Maybe you were going a little faster than it seems from your story!

We can all learn from that mistake in judgment - I suspect it will be an expensive mistake from what you describe. Wonder how fast you were going when you made what I assume was essentially a 90 degree left turn.

Oh man! That's the worst! Hopefully the damage is not too bad. Luckily, as you say, no other cars were involved and you weren't injured. The car can always be repaired.I did much the same thing with my Sebring... twice. Two different corners in the same day. Missed a fire-hydrant, by mere inches on one of them. It was the first time driving the Sebring in the snow and it just doesn't handle as well as the Vibe did. To be fair, it was also the first snow of the season and was one of those where it rained first. Lots of ice under powder. I wasn't the only one. The poor guy behind me polished off that fire hydrant. I quickly learned that I need to corner VERY slowly with the Sebring.. I pride myself in being a very safe driver. I've been driving for almost 9 years and have only had one accident when I was struck across the front end turning into traffic. Anyone can slide off a road. It happens.At any rate, hope it's not too bad and they get your car all straightened out quickly.

Quote, originally posted by damronjr »That sucks! Sounds like you might have a hefty bill there Hope they say otherwise though. Why did you lose traction like that? Is it raining up there or were the roads wet or something or was it just bad tires or what? Maybe you were going a little faster than it seems from your story! Yeah I was going faster than I should have. als the tires hadnt been rotated since I bought them (lazy) about 8 months ago so you can imagine what they look like. Ill try to take some pics tomorrow and maybe you guys can tell me what kind of damage I might have.

oooo sounds like the upper and lower control arms are bent. sorry hope insurance covers it...

Quote, originally posted by scherry2 »oooo sounds like the upper and lower control arms are bent. sorry hope insurance covers it... Sounds about right to me, you maybe better off reporting it to your insurance and just paying your deductable. Glad to see that you are ok!

Sorry to hear about that, wicked. But as was said, glad you're ok and no one else was involved. Let us know what the end result is and if you get the some pics, that would be good.

Damn bro that sucks! I am very happy though that you and no one else was hurt (poor Vibe though)Hope the costs will be reasonable, good luck and keep us posted.

Quote, originally posted by scherry2 »oooo sounds like the upper and lower control arms are bent. sorry hope insurance covers it...Sucks but like others stated glad you or no one else was hurt. As you know a car is nothing more then a bunch of parts and most can be replaced! Control arms sound right too! Axle, strut and knuckle should be checked too, finally a new alignment after the new rim is put on.

Oh man, that sucks Wicked. I hope for a speedy Vibe recovery . Thankfully, no one was hurt. Do you know how much your deductible is?Was it off the 101? Which exit? I'm just trying to paint myself a picture of the area.

Oh, Man! That Sucks! Post a pic when if you get a chance. Glad to hear your OK! Hope your baby gets well soon!

at the risk or being the groucho of the bunch...that doesn't suck at all. we're supposed to decelerate and stop when the light is yellow, not gun it and try to beat it.i almost got killed last year by a driver who ran a red light. every time you race a yellow, you willingly risk killing someone. so much for sympathy...

Quote, originally posted by sylvainber »i almost got killed last year by a driver who ran a red light. every time you race a yellow, you willingly risk killing someone. so much for sympathy... There is no traffic coming your way its a left or right turn and a wall infront of me no traffic coming towards me so no I could not have hit another car. Yes Psychobroker it was off the 101. Heading from Ventura to Oxnard 101S I got out on Victoria Ave and there is a light to either turn left or turn right and I went to make a left and BAAAAM! I didnt have time to take pics my dad had my car towed to the mechanic early in the morning the next day when I was at work. I havent talked to the mechanic so I dont know what is wrong yet but dad said the estimate was around $670 so Im guessing it cant be that bad. I wont know whats up till later today when I get a chance to talk to dad since Ill be at work all day! Not having a car sucks!

Quote, originally posted by wicked1981 » There is no traffic coming your way its a left or right turn and a wall infront of me no traffic coming towards me so no I could not have hit another car. Yes Psychobroker it was off the 101. Heading from Ventura to Oxnard 101S I got out on Victoria Ave and there is a light to either turn left or turn right and I went to make a left and BAAAAM! I didnt have time to take pics my dad had my car towed to the mechanic early in the morning the next day when I was at work. I havent talked to the mechanic so I dont know what is wrong yet but dad said the estimate was around $670 so Im guessing it cant be that bad. I wont know whats up till later today when I get a chance to talk to dad since Ill be at work all day! Not having a car sucks!Ouch, I know exactly where that was...hopefully it'll all work out OK.

Could be worse...

Attached files

Looks like 1/2 the cars in SD when it sprinkles! Imagine today, it poured like crazy! Semis on their sides, cars flipped all over the place!

Quote, originally posted by Jahntassa »Could be worse... or more worse (worser?)

Wow, that doesn't even look like a Vibe anymore! Only the grills gave it away!

Well the DAMAGE is in. Dad took care of the whole thing because Im at work all day and hes off in the mornings till like 4pm so I wasnt sure what was up with the car. Here is the parts list/price.Knucke right side: $292.18Wheel bearing assy $65.03Right hub assy: $169.98Right front strut assy: $ 172.95Right lower contrl arm: $189.19CV joint assy: $ 142.23Total: $1031.16Labor: $552.50+Front alignment+ tow in+ taxesGRAND TOTAL OF: $1772.42 So this sucks I have to pay all this cash back to parents cause they had to help me pay the bill. I guess there will be no mods to my Vibe anytime soon. This is gay!!

Sorry to hear that. At least your car is getting fixed. Damn it's hard to type when you're drunk!

Quote, originally posted by damronjr »Sorry to hear that. At least your car is getting fixed. Damn it's hard to type when you're drunk! Well its not only fixed but its at home already. The bill just sucks!!

Quote, originally posted by wicked1981 »This is gay!! How would all that's happened to you relate to being cheerful?

Quote, originally posted by wicked1981 » Well its not only fixed but its at home already. The bill just sucks!! Ouch, why didn't you file a claim with your insurance?

My guess would be that the 1981 in Wicked's screen name denotes his birth year, meaning he isn't past the insurance hump of 25 years old. Might be that the inevitable raise in his premiums due to the claim would more than offset the out-of-pocket repair costs!Edit: I just realized that the repair costs were in USD...WOW! -- that is a lot of $$$. Good luck to you Wicked, but as others mentioned here, it was only repairable mechanical damage. I'd take that over a broken limb any day!

Quote, originally posted by B18B »My guess would be that the 1981 in Wicked's screen name denotes his birth year, meaning he isn't past the insurance hump of 25 years old.According to my insurance company the hump isn't until you turn 26! I found that out when I turned 25 and called them up asking about it. Others have told me it doesn't even exist anymore.

haha...maybe its something specific to the insurance company, or where you live. I know that rates go down for over 25ers up here in Toronto with my insurance company. In fact, mine will drop by approximately 1000 CAD in a few weeks!!!

Quote, originally posted by B18B »My guess would be that the 1981 in Wicked's screen name denotes his birth year, meaning he isn't past the insurance hump of 25 years old. Might be that the inevitable raise in his premiums due to the claim would more than offset the out-of-pocket repair costs!Yes this is basically the reason. I know it would have only been a $500 deductible but my insurance would go up for a few years so in the long run it was the cheaper route. The other reason is because the 1st quote was for $800 but once they started working on the car more stuff keept coming up. Labor alone was over $500 so parts were like $1,000. Big ouch!

From the sounds of it not only did you bend your rim you must have bent or broke your tierod and your a- arm as well good luck with gettin it fixed.

This is the saddest thread....the next time I go to port hueneme, and I get off the 101 at victoria....I am going to go 10mph!!!!!!! maybe I will leave one of my stock wheel covers at the end of the off ramp as a memorial I just hate this story.....It sounds like one of mine...

Quote, originally posted by Faultline »This is the saddest thread....the next time I go to port hueneme, and I get off the 101 at victoria....I am going to go 10mph!!!!!!! maybe I will leave one of my stock wheel covers at the end of the off ramp as a memorial I just hate this story.....It sounds like one of mine... (removed)!!!!! Yeah be carefull its a killer turn when going fast!! It could have been worse if I would have been going faster I would have hit hit and went up the curve and hit the wall.