GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

Are Pontiac mechanics adequately trained to work on the Vibe since it essentially is a Toyota??

Good question. I've wondered that myself. I suspect there are some people here with insight into this...

I know of 3 dealers I spoke to about 2 weeks ago regarding maintenance, had no Damn clue...and they were giving lots of BS, ........... Only 1 of the 3 gave me Honest answers and was extremely courteous and very helpful, the other 2....I don't wanna start!!! However I did go to Toyota, and of 3 dealers I went to as soon as they saw the engine they told me right away the info I needed.... So GM should try to spend some $$$ and Train there service personel here in the Montreal area, this is bad for business and affect sales with the service they offer..... I swear, the feeling I got was like bringing a steer to the Butcher shop..they would have slaughtered the vehicle, this is without exageration....

I think it is time to get a service manual and do as much self maintenance as u can...LOL

I took more then 1 hour to my dealer to make my 1st oil change (and I was the only one in the garage). It took about 15-20 mins to the mecanic the find out the wright oil filter!!!!

I guess Chevrolet would have a little more experiences with Japanese cars, due to "Prism" and "Sidekick". Pontiac would have to start all over again, does this mean Pontiac guy has to buy metric tools all over? (yes, I did not forget the old Pontiac Le Man, this is a pop quiz for you guys out there, what is a Le Man, who makes it.)

quote:I suspect there are some people here with insight into this...Speaking from my own experience, they don't know what they're doing, just because they've had NO TRAINING. They are relying on learning this car by the seat of their pants, in my opinion. Also, the Toyota dealer is about 200 km from my Pontiac dealer, so it's not like my service guy can just phone up & go, "Hey this is Mike, I have a question about the muffler bearings..." Pretty shoddy, if you ask me. But then again, just my $0.02.

quote:(yes, I did not forget the old Pontiac Le Man, this is a pop quiz for you guys out there, what is a Le Man, who makes it.) Yep, the Vibe wasn't the first Pontiac that was truly not a Pontiac. The LeMans of the late 80's/early 90's was really a Daewoo... I'll find out how my dealership's service department does with the Vibe this week. Got a leaking rear window, and over the weekend I noticed the sunroof is leaking (hopefully the fix stated in the TSB will take care of it.) My dealership sells Chevrolet/Pontiac/Buick/Cadillac and Oldsmobiles (for the time being.) Hopefully they still remember how to work on Toyotas from the Prizm days... I'm sure they will do fine. Now, the Pontiac-only dealerships... Hmm.....

Dang. Took my dealer 20 min to do my oil change. I do need to ask you guys this. You DO use regular oil in the GT's, right? Not some kind of special oil for the valve changing, high rev? The guy asked around and said you use the same oil.

quote:Dang. Took my dealer 20 min to do my oil change. I do need to ask you guys this. You DO use regular oil in the GT's, right? Not some kind of special oil for the valve changing, high rev? The guy asked around and said you use the same oil.Regular oil (as in non-synthetic) should be fine. Make sure it is the recommended weight 5W30 and of course don't forget to change the filter. Thanks for all the heads up, btw. Looks like I will be doing almost all my maintenance myself.

Well, I know that when I brought in my Vibe for its first oil change, it took 3 mechanics to figure out where the oil filter was. But I am sure that by now more people will have been trained on it (I hope).

Im very scared if something breaks. i could just see it in five years, i got a toyota engine with half ac delco accesories!. ac delco alternator, ac delco starter, ac delco oil filters, ac delco rad with dexcool etc. At my first oil change, the tech put in 4.5l of oil and had to drain the oil twice. he also got oil all over the plastic valve cover. the tech did not know how to start the vibe cause you had to stomp on the pedel. at least the tech felt bad and did the oil for free. i wonder if toyota has a say in just what toyota parts have to be kept toyota. example alternator. my extended warenty allows me to go anywhere for service. i will be going to a toyota dealer to keep my engine toyota. i dont want someone playing mix n match with my vibe.

AC-Delco makes aftermarket parts for most makes. If you are concerned when the time comes, request that your repair shop not use AC-Delco parts to repair your Vibe. It just seams to be a lot of worry, to be concerned with the next parts on your car. Most people worry about the current parts on their cars.

quote:At my first oil change, the tech put in 4.5l of oil and had to drain the oil twice.What is the oil capacity of a Base VIBE?

Base = 3.9 qts (3.7L)GT = 4.8 qts (4.4L)Both numbers include changing the filter.

are you sure....(le mans) i that car was almost identical to the vauxhall astra (in england) or Opel Astra (in the rest of europe). we are talking about that little hatchback car right?

Seein as how I havent looked there yet this question came in handy. The Le Mans was built by Renault. Not a good car to carry on a grewat name.