GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

so after dealing with my dealership over the last 14 months from everything ranging from: they forgot to put the hub sleeves on(!), they damaged one of the hub sleeves and didn't notice, they don't know how to balance/align properly, then plead no alignment was necessary and the uneven wear on my tires was due to the "vibe's design", to finally warping at least one of my 2 front rotors while performing 'warranty' brake work which didn't even fix the problem!I had it. Interestingly, i received my first "GM Customer Satisfaction Survey" in the mail after that last 'rotor warping' incident! I'm still writing the attached letter .SO...i've replaced the unevenly worn tires with Michelin's HydroEdge tires...then I decided that if i was replacing the rotors, i might as well get something neat. Also considering that the difference in price was not as much as i thought it would be!....i went for the KVR drilled rotors (see attached pic and next post) and KVR carbon fibre 'dustless' brake pads.After a week of using this combo (along with proper balance and alignment done at a location other than my dealership!) the car is like 'buttah'. It is SMOOTH. It drives better than the day i picked it up (no lie, as that day they forget to put the hub sleeves on!).In fact, last friday, some of you may know that we had a 1 in a 100 years storm here in Toronto and i found myself across the city from home. As i drove home through some very rain slicked roads (some rivers!) i was AMAZED at how well the hydroedge tires worked (comparing to the stock contis, BF Goodrich's and Goodyear Eagle HP's that were on my VW). And then, whenever i had to brake...no lying here either, the brakes grabbed immediately. It took me awhile to get used to not worrying about a couple dozen revolutions to clear off the water before feeling brake!I finally have a car that i fully enjoy driving. I always liked the vibe but there was always that little knot in my stomach as i drove due to strange vibrations, weird noises and eventually horrible braking vibration/performance.It's all gone and (knock on wood 3 times) things are great!(images are from cell phone...sorry for quality!)

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another pic showing the red carbon fibre pad....sort of.

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Are they infact giving off no brake dust now? I'm thinkin bout seriously gettting these so, yeah.Inder

Quote, originally posted by TRD4reel »Are they infact giving off no brake dust now? I'm thinkin bout seriously gettting these so, yeah.InderInder I was just about to ask that. Great minds think alike Cannot take the brake dust man! My wheels need to get a good scrubing cuz of that....Atomb how much did the brakes set you back if you don't mind me asking? Oh and the tires as well

Been wanting a set of those myself, they look good! How much did they set you back?

yes, me too. especially with my "braking" habits.

Rotors were $164 (?) Cdn each (something around there...maybe $170) and the pads were something around $80 Cdn.So far i haven't noticed much but i've only had them for a week....i'll keep you posted.website with prices in USD and CDN at: http://www.kvrperformance.com (for some reason it's not working right now?) arcs, they're located in Ottawa...not too far from you!

Quote, originally posted by Atomb »website with prices in USD and CDN at: http://www.kvrperformance.com (for some reason it's not working right now?) arcs, they're located in Ottawa...not too far from you!Great! It's only an hour and half away roadtrip!!!

Quote, originally posted by trdvibe »yes, me too. especially with my "braking" habits. You use your brakes? another project for next year, new rotors.

Quote, originally posted by Atomb »Rotors were $164 (?) Cdn each (something around there...maybe $170) and the pads were something around $80 Cdn.So far i haven't noticed much but i've only had them for a week....i'll keep you posted.website with prices in USD and CDN at: http://www.kvrperformance.com (for some reason it's not working right now?) arcs, they're located in Ottawa...not too far from you!$164 CND per rotor?!?

Quote, originally posted by Psychobroker »$164 CND per rotor?!? Come on C thats like 10USD! lol

I can vouch those pads give off almost zero brake dust, those are what I had put on my vibe 2 weeks before my accident. with the original pads. after detail on my original pads a day or two of driving in rush hour my wheels would have a black film. After I was told about those pads when the place i go to for oil changes and brakes jobs was out of ceramic pads he put a set of those on for me and in that 2 weeks i saw no dust at all. if there was some there it was very minimal because the day before my accident i spent 9 hours detailing my car and using a terrycloth rag on my wheels didn't even turn black.

Quote, originally posted by Mavrik »You use your brakes? another project for next year, new rotors. he he. i'll probably need new rotors and brakes. in fact, i was suprised i didn't need them in the VGT. I know I pushed that car much more than the new one. but i liked the brakes better on the VGT than the LGT. the LGT are kinda soft imo. just like the suspension that needs some help.....

Quote, originally posted by tangerine »I can vouch those pads give off almost zero brake dust, those are what I had put on my vibe 2 weeks before my accident. with the original pads. after detail on my original pads a day or two of driving in rush hour my wheels would have a black film. After I was told about those pads when the place i go to for oil changes and brakes jobs was out of ceramic pads he put a set of those on for me and in that 2 weeks i saw no dust at all. if there was some there it was very minimal because the day before my accident i spent 9 hours detailing my car and using a terrycloth rag on my wheels didn't even turn black.You sold me on them - I hate brake dust with a passion. For now, with steel wheels - I dont' care. But the ceramic brake pads will be part of my wheel upgrade, no doubt!

Quote, originally posted by Psychobroker »$164 CND per rotor?!? man... you have no idea... stock rotors for some vehicles are over $200... Lets not even talk about the GM truck lines...

so, atomb are you saying your suspension tastes great on toast?

Quote, originally posted by drunkenvibe »so, atomb are you saying your suspension tastes great on toast? also good with a squeeze of lemon juice and some dried oregano ...melted over a nice grilled steak......or on smothered on a sweet corn on the cob....or just a bit on the top of pancakes then covered with maple syrup....or i just hijacked my own thread! Nice jedi mind trick, drunken!back on topic.one thing i've noticed, in the morning when brakes are cold there is a definite 'new' sound. Obviously (ask anybody on the track) they perform much better as they warm up a bit. But that first brake or 2 in the morning makes them sound like you're stopping your car by pushing gravel into the rotors!