GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

I am having a problem with my car. When I accelerate and push on the gas more than what is expected (not flooring it though), my enging revs really high before slowly settling down to about 3-4000 rpms. So if I was in 2nd gear, and I wanted to give it an extra push, my RPMs would jump to say 5500 then slowly settle down to 4000 and then it would finally "catch" and give me that acceleration. When it goes to 5500, it has the feeling as though my foot is pushing the clutch in and I'm just reving. It annoys me cuz whenever I go up a hill and try to give it a little bit of push, I won't have any power at all. Can anyone give me suggestions to what they think the problem might be? Thanks

yours is a manual?

Yeah I got a GT

what model do you have? sounds like your clutch is slipping. I remember when I used to have the Honda CRX, it used to do the same until finally it was completely gone and didn't go anywhere. I had somewhat similar experience with my Vibe as well. I had to REV up pretty high cause if I didn't my car would stall since it wouldn't get enough power and when the clutch finally catches, I would stall since I didn't have enough momentum. I was lucky enough to get it fixed under my warranty, since I was getting some nasty howling noise previous in which the dealer was able to get a look into it and replaced the clutch. If you're in your warranty period still and you don't have that many kms, get it looked after, I heard especially with the GT's that clutch wears out too quickly since it's made for a lighter car. I only had the base vibe and I had this problem. Maybe there is some truth to the fact that the clutches on these vehicles are made for lighter cars and requires a more heavy duty clutch and flywheel?

I am WAY past warranty. If it's the clutch, how much would it cost to get replaced? It's been a pain in the a$$ lately.

Sounds like a slipping clutch.EDIT: Quote »I heard especially with the GT's that clutch wears out too quickly since it's made for a lighter car.You hit the nail on the head...our GT clutches are notoriously weak.Super...how many miles do you have on it? I've got 36k, and while the clutch still seems ok, I'll be replacing it with a racing clutch soon. I'll probably just wait until it dies to do it though.Labor can run you anywhere from $300 (independent) - $700 (dealer) depending on who you talk to, where you live etc. Parts, well, I'm not sure about stock parts, but you can pick up a racing clutch for as low as ~$260 (Exedy Stage 1, organic disc) or $290 (RPS street ****ch, organic disc). You'll need a new throwout (release) bearing (~$40), 8 flywheel bolts (~$30), and 6 (i think) pressure plate bolts (~$.80 each lol)All in all you're looking at a minimum of $600 (oem stuff) for parts + labor. Do NOT go to the dealer, they will rape you for $1200+ and give you the same old crappy OEM clutch. Go aftermarket! EDIT 2: hey, where the heck is Pittsburgh, CA? NorCal?

If you're pushing on the gas with the car in gear, and it does that, your clutch is definitely going (gone) south. Do NOT go to a dealership for this, they'll want way too much money. Find a local shop that does clutches, and go to them, it'll probably be something like $300 for the labor.See if you can find a place that builds clutch discs near you, ask the local shop if they know any place. That'll be your best bet for a clutch. If the flywheel isn't too far gone, get it resurfaced, should be like $35 for that.

Pittsburg (no H), CA is in the Bay Area. I was actually going to let Aerogear do their tests on my car for the body kit back in the day but they wanted the car longer than I expected so I decided not to do it. But thanks for the help on my problems. I guess I gots to save my money for an aftermarket clutch and labor.

I put in a standard 'streetclutch' replacement for around $100 (the clutch kit was $100) and it's holding up better than stock. I can still slip it, but it doesn't smell like i've burnt through half of it when I do. You don't have to get extravagant with the new clutch..

where did you buy yours from? I don't really want to spend that much money on the clutch. Oh and to answer all your questions from earlier... I have 96k on my Vibe

WOW!! 96k on a GT and your clutch is just now going out?? that's got to be a record...not to mention the 96k being a lot of miles on an 03 in general. very nice to see!

So I was looking at an Exedy clutch for 130 on ebay but it's for the Matrix. Is this interchangable? Can't afford the 350+ for an ACT and I don't want stock. I was hoping this would be my best bet. Thanks

yes, they are the same! Is that the Exedy OEM clutch?