GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

Here is my new Lava AWD monotone vibe after its first wash and wax.Things I've done to it so far (good advice for all new owners):1) Peel the dealer sticker off2) Pop the little rubber doohickeys that the delaer left in my glovebox into where they are supposed to go (the wheel wells!)3) First oil change (used Mobil1 and a Toyota filter)4) Weathertech ventvisors (I highly reccomend these to keep the interior cool in the sun)5) Weathertech rubber floor mats (I highly reccomend these to keep the carpets clean)6) Do-it-yourself rear cargo area mat cut from a $15 entry mat from HomeDepot (cut a template out of newsprint first)Props go to genvibe for these tips. I wouldn't have known how to do any of those unless I had heard about them on these forums)One new bit of advice I'd add for other Vibe owners is to slide under the back of your car and spray some WD40 into the threaded holes meant for adding a trailer hitch. They are very fine threads and will easily accumulate water and salt that will promote rust. A little WD40 will help protect the threads JUST IN CASE you ever want to add a hitch to your Vibe.Things I plan to do to my vibe in the future:1) Stainless steel license plate screws2) Get rid of those dealer plate covers3) debadge it 4) Purple underbody and interior neons or LEDs

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Welcome to GenVibe! Nice lookin Vibe. For the license plate cover, I got mine off of eBay. They are platinum and it says Vibe with the arrow etched into it and they also come with screw caps to hide unsightly screw heads. Looks really great IMO. I'll post pics when I take some.Enjoy the ride!

Nice ride. I am not sure about purple neon on a red car. But to each his own. I am really not a fan of neon.

welcome!!what the the rubber things? i know i have some in the spare tire compartment like they are oval things. i too need to get some license plate covers, jaycie so those vibe ones are pretty nice?

Sweet ride, love the color.

Quote, originally posted by northvibe »what the the rubber things? i know i have some in the spare tire compartment like they are oval things.http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=18954

Hey, good to hear we could help.

As stated before - so much for dealer prep! [And they wonder why we hate car dealers.]

welcome again! and wow! lava is really a bright color. saw a new 05 lava monotone like yours today and it just stuck out.

Looks just like the one I just bought, NICE TASTE I must say! Question for you. Does the front and rear bumpers match the rest of the car as in shinnyness (is that a word). Mine do not match, the rear and front bumpers are a matte enamel finish not gloss? The dealer gave me a run around last night on this paint issue. Not sure what to do next? Thanks!

Quote, originally posted by BEACH »Looks just like the one I just bought, NICE TASTE I must say! Question for you. Does the front and rear bumpers match the rest of the car as in shinnyness (is that a word). Mine do not match, the rear and front bumpers are a matte enamel finish not gloss? The dealer gave me a run around last night on this paint issue. Not sure what to do next? Thanks!We have an '05 Vibe in monotone Lava.... and no, the plastic body panels (bumpers, rocker panels, rear hatch handle) aren't as shiny as the body. I'm guessing it's a different blend of paint formulated to adhere to the plastic. It also seems that the paint on those panels is not as tough either, because ours chips very easily.

Quote, originally posted by briandb »We have an '05 Vibe in monotone Lava.... and no, the plastic body panels (bumpers, rocker panels, rear hatch handle) aren't as shiny as the body. I'm guessing it's a different blend of paint formulated to adhere to the plastic. It also seems that the paint on those panels is not as tough either, because ours chips very easily. 8k miles on mine and a wicked chip in my Abyss. While not as obvious because the cladding is dark - my wife's Salsa will surly show all cladding chips very easily.Also, the dealer forgot to install the plugs in both cars. w00t to genvibe for saving my cars from my dealer.

What sucks is a just saw one at the shopping mall the other day and it appeared that all the panels did match? That is what had me so confused!

My '06 is not as shiny on the plastic parts either. The paint seems to have a different grain to it and as stated is probably a different paint to adhere to the plastic. If this helps resist chipping than I can live with it. It may shine up with the first waxing too.

I just went out and checked the bumpers. I can see how you might say they are different from the metal parts in shinyness, but I think I'd describe it as more of a texture thing. The plastic parts seem to have very fine dimples, like an eggshell or something, while the metal is, of course, perfectly smooth. The paint on both surfaces is the same color, and I'd say the same shinyness, but the texture is different. I don;t think it is a manufacturing defect, just the way different materials are produced.