No reverse gear

[abyss gt]

yesterday I went to pick up my brand new GT. The anxiety was killing me. I signed all the papers and got in the car. Turned the car on and when I tried to reverse, the gear would not go in!!! Even first gear seemed to be third because the car would almost choak when I tried to go forward and I could smell the burnt clutch. This says a lot about GM quality. The only reason I considered the Vibe instead of the Matrix was because the powertrain is Toyota, otherwise I would not even walk into a GM dealership. This issue just emphasizes my point. I haven't even driven the car by a foot and it's already in the dealership for service. I'm now thinking of dropping the keys at the dealership and telling them to f*** off and shove it where the sun don't shine.I hope someone at GM reads this thread and does something about their (removed) poor quality products. I guarantee you this will be the last GM vehicle I'll ever buy.

[abyss gt]

Thanks for giving me a bit of relief. Hopefully thats all there is to it. The funny part is you seem to know more about this car than the service department at the dealership. They have no idea what it can be. I have to wait until monday for the transmission expert to look at it.

[abyss gt]

Your info is greatly appreciated. I'll keep you posted with what happens on Monday

[millster]

Definitely keep up posted on what happens. Best of luck in getting it resolved. I'll tell you from experience, the GT is well worth it once you get that issue sorted out. Sorry you had a bad first experience, but I'm sure they'll get it sorted out and you'll be off enjoying your new Vibe in no time.

[ngilbert]

I understand your fustration, and I hope everything works out for you. However, you do realize that the Matrix and Vibe is pretty much the same vehicle. The same linkage that bust in your Vibe (if that's the problem) is the exact same in the Matrix. Could have easily given you the same trouble as well.GM has come a long way in the last few years. They definately deserved the spurs in the past, but now with the large improvements in quality in most of their car lines, they are starting to come around. Especially with a guy like Bobby Lutz on board! Let us know what the dealership found out.

[abyss gt]

problem fixed"shifter at console came out of shifter clip"I finally was able to take the gt to the hwy and boot it - WOWThis thing really flies. I especially love cruising at 100kmh, downshift to third and let her rip. Love the vvtl engine.

[philndz]

glad to hear you two are bonding!have fun

[Triton]

The same thing happened to a friend of mine while he was on the highway. He downshifted from 6th to 5th and then wasn't able to shift anymore. The link came apart on his also. It was also an easy fix. I am going to have the service department at my dealership check it when I take it in this month just to make sure everything is tight. I hope this incident doesn't discourage you about GM though.Isn't the GT a blast to drive though?! I love mine!

[esjones]

quote:I hope someone at GM reads this thread and does something about their (removed) poor quality products. I guarantee you this will be the last GM vehicle I'll ever buy.Fact is, apart from styling and marketing, this is not a GM car. It is powertrain and interior by Toyota (as you know) and built by NUMMI. As I write this, you have had the shifter problem fixed, and are hopefully a happy Vibe owner. Nothing mechanical, from ANY manufacturer, is perfect. GM is still suffering and recovering from many past sins (case in point... I owned an 84 Corvette... more rattles than a preschool nursery!), but they are getting better in all their car lines, and the Vibe is WAY ahead of the curve. If your new BMW Z4 had a disconnected shifter for some reason, you'd just chalk it up to "one of those things" because of BMW's reputation for quality. GM will get there. Don't give up because of this incident. - Earl

[kaybeejay]

I wonder how they drove it off the truck and drove it around the lot in that condition? Before it leaves the factory, it goes thru a pretty thorough inspection. I am guessing that the "clip" was damaged during delivery.Did it "beep beep beep beep" when you engaged the Reverse gear?

[abyss gt]

No beeping. The car was traded between dealers, so it was driven to my dealer for a good 100Km. You guys are right about me being frustrated at GM, but put yourselves in my shoes!!! I couldn't even take it out of the parking space and already needed dealer service. I've had many bad experiences with GM in the past. I've also had many cars in the past, one of them I just sold to get the vibe. This is a Hyundai Accent GT that I bought new in 96 and never gave me any problems at all. Hopefully I won't regret the exchange.

[abyss gt]

Quote And I will add here, that you better not be *****ing about "GM's (removed) poor quality of the Vibe GT" in a few months/years if you have problems with the car...How the f#$@ would you feel if you paid 30,000 for a car that you can't drive off the lot? The powertrain may be Toyota but correct me if i'm wrong the Vibe was assembled by GM (at the end of the day it still is a Pontiac)Don't bother posting if your gonna be *****ing about my frustration and not the topic at hand.

[esjones]

quote:correct me if i'm wrong the Vibe was assembled by GM (at the end of the day it still is a Pontiac)The Vibe is largely fabricated and totally assembled by NUMMI, not GM. NUMMI www.nummi.com is a separate entity, jointly owned by Toyota and GM. If I'm not mistaken, and feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, Toyota has a slight majority ownership. From the NUMMI web site: Today, NUMMI has grown to become a company of 5,500 team members who produce three award-winning vehicles: Toyota Corolla, Toyota Tacoma and Pontiac Vibe. In 2002 NUMMI began producing a right-hand drive Toyota, Voltz, which is exported to Japan.

[NSimkins]

OKAY gentlemen... quote:How the **** would you feel if you paid 30,000 for a car that you can't drive off the lot?I (as well as most people) would be just as peeved as you are, trust me. The incident you went through definately had to rock your socks off! The strangest things happen to vehicles... even brand spankin' new. If I sell my Vibe right now (problem-free.. so far) to someone next to me and they go to start it 5 minutes later.. and it's dead. It's the luck of the draw... anything is possible. Be glad you have it fixed and your baby is home where it belongs. quote:The powertrain may be Toyota but correct me if i'm wrong the Vibe was assembled by GM (at the end of the day it still is a Pontiac)The fine people over at NUMMI (nummi.com) build the Vibe as well as other vehicles as a joint venture with Toyota AND GM... they don't build GM-only vehicles, so your vehicle is unique because it has 2 automakers working on the vehicle (with almost primarily Toyota components). Check out their website for tons of cool information. Lastly, hope you have nothing but good luck with your Vibe... I'm sure you should be happy with it's performance.

[NSimkins]

quote:Wow, the ref has to get into this one. Nah, as long as it doesn't get uncivil, I was just stating my opinion. Let's try to keep this on topic.

[ngilbert]

quote:How the f#$@ would you feel if you paid 30,000 for a car that you can't drive off the lot? The powertrain may be Toyota but correct me if i'm wrong the Vibe was assembled by GM (at the end of the day it still is a Pontiac)Feel your fustration dude. Although it has been pointed out that Vibes are built by NUMMI and not technically GM or Toyota, it's still quite sad that something like this should happen, regardless of who made it.You should rag on the dealer for obviously damaging your ride (You said they drove it 100km). Make them toss in some oil changes. On second thought, since somehow they have the tendancy to wreck stuff quite easy, maybe you shouldn't take your car there for service after all. Get some cleaning supplies!

[abyss gt]

Thanks for the sympathy guys.She is finally home and I'm enjoying it so far, although with the summer radials I can't drive it when it snows. Next mod - 16" snow tires and steel rims.