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Fresh Member here!

Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 1:34 am
by MSAGRO
Just bought a fusion O 2004 Vibe.I will have many nagging questions for you in coming weeks.I already made a post on the Audio thread.I'm looking to install an Indash NAV unit. Advice here would be helpful.Lucky purchase on the Vibe, One-owner carfax, 56k, perfect condtion out the door for 9,000. Great shape.I will use the SEARCH function to find already posted answers.

Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 2:01 am
by lovemyraffe
Congrats and welcome!If you can't find answers, don't be afraid to ask.

Re: (lovemyraffe)

Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 2:10 am
by Kamikaze
Welcome.We like pictures of your ride here... so I'll give you the warning.....The sooner you can post the pictures the better... otherwise... the MOB will be coming....Congrats on the stellar purchase!*EDIT: I retract my previous statement.. saw the picture: http://forums.genvibe.com/zero...63311

Re: (Kamikaze)

Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 2:25 am
by NascarXprt
Welcome!

Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 2:30 am
by bull77
welcome to Genvibe!

Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 5:05 am
by kostby
Welcome to GenVibe!You've done well already, posting pics right away and using SEARCH! Hope you enjoy getting to know the whole GenVibe community. Although our common interest in (and occasionally hate for) GM, Pontiac, and the Vibe are what brought most of us here initially, you'll find we're about much more than cars.Love the color! I was looking at a new Fusion Orange Vibe in 2004 when I found the deal on a used Salsa Red '03 that I couldn't pass.

Re: Fresh Member here! (MSAGRO)

Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 5:33 am
by 03VibeOttawa
gorgeous ride, and congrats!I hope you plan on tinting sometime too

Re: Fresh Member here! (Feelin' The Vibe)

Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 6:03 am
by MSAGRO
Thanks for the warm welcome... oh yeah, there will be pix in the future. This is the only one I have. for now.

Re: Fresh Member here! (MSAGRO)

Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 12:14 pm
by MSAGRO
Here is more shots of the Vibe I got. These were from McMinnville Totoya Autotrader ad that got me interested.2004 Base, was asking 11,900. Drove it out of the lot for 9000, the place was a tomb. I was the only customer that day. 57k, one owner, perfect carfax with all matinence. Looks and drives better than the photos indicate.I got a slushbox because GF cannot drive a stick.... that's OK she's hot and we have been together for 15 years ;J)I sold my GX the same day I bought the Vibe. I paid 18k for it in May and sold it for 22k... nice to have a Vibe AND 13 thousand dollars in the bank!Not gonna miss the 14mpg tho. Nice seeing the gas gauge NOT move on the Vibe.

Re: Fresh Member here! (MSAGRO)

Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 1:40 pm
by Blanco_Diablo
Very nice, pics on the first few posts! Welcome to the site...great to see another PDX vibe owner, second one in two days!

Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 8:56 pm
by bull77
how'd you end up making money selling the suv?what phone/camera do you have that prints your GPS location?

Re: Fresh Member here! (MSAGRO)

Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 10:05 pm
by Blueridge9
Welcome! I have a 2004 Fusion Vibe too and I LOVE it.See more pics in the Vibe Garage under TEAM FUSION http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=32526You can add your pics there too.

Re: Fresh Member here! (Blueridge9)

Posted: Fri Aug 07, 2009 7:47 am
by MSAGRO
How I sell a huge assed SUV in times like these and make a profit?One word: Detail!The woman who owned the Lexus kept good service records, but not to keen on how it looked. I got her down to 18k on purchase, then just detailed the hell out of it... waxing, armor-all, great trick for those who have a black car with zillions of rock chips, the kind that would take oh, 3 months to touch up.I took a plastic 'scritcher' pad to the front end to smooth out the roughness, yet not so hard to damage the clear coat.Then I mixed a few drops of black liquid shoe polish to liquid wax then applied. Worked beautifully, all the tiny white chips were dyed black, the wax protected the dye. and the front end looked great.After 3 months of washes, the dye never washed off.Sold the SUV on Craigslist in 3 days.

Re: Fresh Member here! (MSAGRO)

Posted: Fri Aug 07, 2009 9:23 am
by star_deceiver
Quote, originally posted by MSAGRO »I mixed a few drops of black liquid shoe polish to liquid wax then applied.Learn something new everyday!!

Re: Fresh Member here! (star_deceiver)

Posted: Fri Aug 07, 2009 11:17 am
by vibolista
Fusion, I've heard it's now the new formal black. Very nice. For an 04 it looks incredibly good. Make sure they didn't use orange shoe polish to cover up the blems!! That Lexus looks new. Paint quality on the SUV must be fairly good, or you are true expert at waxing. Your pics also show very interesting floor surfaces. Polished under the Vibe and ruffled and ridged under the GX. What the heck are they?Can't wait to see what you do with the Vibe. And I agree... Detail, detail... detail. If you have to sell a car, detailing will add a lot of value. That's great bang for the buck for you!

Posted: Sat Aug 08, 2009 3:47 am
by MSAGRO
LOL "Orange shoe polish".The shiny floor was at the dealer where I purchased. The rough surface of the GX shot was taken at a boat launch here in Portland.As far as wax goes... the only product I use was rated #1 by Consumer Reports.It's Black Magic "Wet Shine"Imagine taking a piece of bacon and rubbing it on the finish... greasy shine. Thats what this stuff is like.I used it this moring on the vibe:

Re: Fresh Member here! (MSAGRO)

Posted: Sat Aug 08, 2009 8:23 am
by ArcsVibe
Welcome to the site!

Posted: Sat Aug 08, 2009 12:21 pm
by B14CK_H4WK
Welcome to the Forums!! i see we have alot of new members with the cash for clunkers program. I love the color you picked lol another fusion hell yeah!!!! looks like its in great shape too!!

Posted: Sat Aug 08, 2009 1:18 pm
by MSAGRO
"Cash for Clunkers" is a very scary notion.It reminds me of 2 years ago when they were giving out home loans to people who could not afford them.Saw a news article on the cashforclunkers program, and a couple said, "I could never afford a new car without this program!"Well... if you can't afford a new car now, how in the Hell can you afford one later??Many of these cars will be reposessed before the year is out.Plus, don't the customers realize that an automoble loses at least $4500 in depreciated value when you drive it off the lot?Happy with my 2004 Vibe... "I think I'll keep her"

Posted: Sat Aug 08, 2009 1:33 pm
by rAERRK
usually dont like that color but yours looks good. enjoy it, and lose the front plate mess if possible

Re: (MSAGRO)

Posted: Sat Aug 08, 2009 1:36 pm
by star_deceiver
I think when they said Quote, originally posted by MSAGRO » "I could never afford a new car without this program!"They ment that they bought an overoptioned upscale sedan, whereas before they could've only bought a smaller car (like the Vibe). So now they have an 8 year loan, paying through the nose... just wait 'till little Katie needs braces or tommy runs up his cell bill... Hopefully nobody here's in that boat. And what's going to happen to auto sales when the "cash for clunkers" program ends????? 5 bucks says GM will be the first to complain about slumping car sales!

Re: (star_deceiver)

Posted: Sat Aug 08, 2009 1:51 pm
by MSAGRO
Oh yeah, I'm gonna take the dealer plate off as soon as I register my Oregon Salmon custom plate.I took it off my Lexus and I'm gonna transfer it to the Vibe.I get many great reactions on this custom plate, It takes people behind me about one minute to "get it", they then crack up and give me a thumbs up.Let me know if you get the meaning of my license plateHINT: The O C O as letters have no meaning:

Re: (MSAGRO)

Posted: Sat Aug 08, 2009 1:52 pm
by vibolista
Hey buddy, I'm going out for some bacon first thing in the morning! That is one slick looking fusion surface. Ants don't bother it?I haven't used Black Magic yet. Really made that GX look new, and it worked well on that fusion. I'll give it a try. What the heck kind of car dealership has a polished shop floor? Holy crap! I just noticed your front plate. I bought a car from these guys about three years ago before their new facility was built. Small world.

Posted: Sat Aug 08, 2009 2:01 pm
by MSAGRO
Vibolista,Thats really funny, when I to the dealer to look for the Vibe, they directed me to the new place.I always like going to a dealer 'stealth', and just 'happen upon' the car'. In my opinion, I feel that if you get specific on a car, the dealer has the upper hand.They directed me to the new facility, but my cover was blown. Still got a deal tho.. asking $11,900, bought for $9,000 cash.

Re: (MSAGRO)

Posted: Sat Aug 08, 2009 2:25 pm
by vibolista
This is too funny! I found them online and dealt from Portland, the one on the east coast. Looks like you did a good deal with them. They seemed to be a fair group.

Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2009 12:24 pm
by Kincaid
M, I like your trained salmon! I couldn't get the salmon plate, didn't like the Crater Lake plate so I just went with the ugly tree. I should have kept my old Oregon Trail plate - I liked how the color went from blue on the top to gold in the middle and green at the bottom.

Posted: Tue Aug 11, 2009 1:03 am
by MSAGRO
Kincaid, why was it hard to get a salmon plate?Have they stopped making them?Yup you got it. Salmon jumpin' thru hoops.Glad to see a fellow PDX'r on the site.

Re: (MSAGRO)

Posted: Tue Aug 11, 2009 2:00 pm
by vibolista
Salmon. Hoops. How did PETA let you get away with that? Livin' on the edge out there in PDX. How did you come up with the idea?

Posted: Wed Aug 12, 2009 12:26 am
by MSAGRO
When the first of the 'Salmon" plates came out, I was behind one that said "NYC 01".I noticed that the 'C' looked like the fish going through the hoop. It wasn't centered tho, but close. I went to DMV and specified that the 'C' be centered, and the 2 'O's be as close to the left and right edge as possible.There is a site called http://www.coolpl8z.com/ and its in the top 100 on votes.

Posted: Wed Aug 12, 2009 12:32 am
by Kincaid
Actually, should have said the Salmon plate charged $60 extra initially and then an extra $30 every two years at renewal. I didn't want to spend that kind of money on a plate.I think yours is even worse at $85 each renewal? Yowza.I really preferred the Cultural Trust plate, but it was charged just like the salmon plate. It also ticked me off that after the initial charge, all the fees collected at renewal didn't continue to go to the Trust, but was diverted to light rail or the west side rail project (and I hate how Metro handles mass transit around here).

Posted: Wed Aug 12, 2009 12:39 am
by MSAGRO
Yup every 2 years, and $60 extra that goes to something like the Salmon Habititat or some such nonsense.

Posted: Wed Aug 12, 2009 1:09 am
by Amtron
Welcome to the site! I love the colour.

Re: (MSAGRO)

Posted: Wed Aug 12, 2009 3:38 am
by bodhi_tree777
Quote, originally posted by MSAGRO »Let me know if you get the meaning of my license plateHINT: The O C O as letters have no meaning:awesome..jumping through hoops