GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

so im 19 years old went down to this dealership and asked them what i could get aproved for with no credit history. the dealer(very nice man) pointed to 2 cars. a 99 corolla or a 04 vibe. i natrually completly disreguarded the carolla and made my way over to the vibe. Its silver has 104k miles on it and i believe its the base model cause it was a 5 speed. the car is in emmaculant inside and out and im really think i might buy it, has great cargo space for all the fishing i do and is soooo much nicer then my 91 celica i drive right now lol. but for all you gurus out there or even just happy vibe owners i have a few questions!any specific problems that these vehicles tend to have? any thing i should look out for?what can i do for performance? just to gain a little extra something besides bolt ons?(aka header, exhaust, intake. wires)how long do they last? ive heard there built buy toyota so will they last as long as one?!?!?!?i didnt see a big aftermarket for them am i missing it?id appreaciate any and all help and hopefully this is the car for me!

5 speed transmission issues come to mind...

like what? what transmission issues do u speak of, u can't say that and then not tell me lol.

I have heard of a Vibe that has over 300k miles on it. I don't know if it's true or not though...Mine's a GT with the six speed so I don't know about the 5 speed issues.You are correct the car was built by Toyota, in the NUMMI plant in Freemont California. It is the exact same plant that they build Corollas (I think) in, and the Vibe itself is the "same" car as the Toyota Matrix. The only differences are the rims/hubcaps, body panels/emblems, and window glass. Toyota even sold a model overseas called the Toyota Voltz, and it IS the Vibe with different logos on it. The Pontiac arrowhead is replaced by a silver and black V on the Voltz.Aftermarket stuff is not very strong for the Vibe, but there are options available, and most that I have seen are high quality stuff. I hate nothing more than to see someone take a nice car and bolt a bunch of cheap crap all over it. Coming here you are obviously going to get biased answers, as most of us are here because we LOVE our Vibes. However when I was researching before I bought mine, I found that it seems to be almost hard to come by people who have any solid complaints about the Vibe. Most of the complaints I did read were things along the lines of driving position, styling, and a few complaints about the sluggish feeling of the all wheel drive models.I would say to test drive it. If you like it during the test drive, then get it. You may want to shop around locally though and see if you can find one at a better price, or in a color you like more, or less miles, or something, but at 104k I wouldn't be scared of something major going out in that Vibe. Possibly a new clutch, but that depends a lot on the previous owner. All in all they are a solid car, good gas mileage, and it is probably the most versatile vehicle I have ever owned. I love mine.Also be sure to check the tread in the tires, condition of the belts, see if you can find how old the battery is, and check the brakes if it has discs. You might need to factor these into your haggling when you buy it, and these all go for any car.

yeah what 5 speed manual issues? Ive never really heard of any but "sloppy" shifting that can be helped with some shifter bushings and/or short throw shifter.The vibe is a full corolla so you get pretty good reliability too. The aftermarket if you look you can use most corolla/celica/matrix parts as well as long as you make sure they fit before buying them. If you can take that vibe to your mechanic, its about 80-100 bucks and they will give it a look over to see if anything is wrong with it. theres no real issues just random things most cars have and the tune ups/maintenance. My vibe I sold to my sister is almost at 100k and its a automatic.

tyvm for the help guys. one more question. i was reading that pontiac dealrships will supercharge vibes if u bring thm in?!?!? whats that all about

Quote, originally posted by jamesus »tyvm for the help guys. one more question. i was reading that pontiac dealrships will supercharge vibes if u bring thm in?!?!? whats that all aboutDo you mean like over charge you for service and parts? I've read that too.

I'm not positive, but think that supercharger is no longer available.

2004 vibe Fusion Orange is offered as an exterior color for 2004. New options include 17-inch all-season tires and XM Satellite Radio. A supercharger for the 130-horsepower 1.8-liter engine will be offered late through GM Service and Parts Operations (summer availability).

superchargers were a dealer installed option for a few years.....if you wanted one now youd have to browse online to find a leftover one and then hope a dealer could install it for you cuz if not then the warrantys no good, by the way its gonna cost you if im not wrong guessing somewhere between $2,500-$5,000 just for the supercharger pontiacpartspeople.com 2,468.00ebay 3,054.00 cost of labor and shipping ?

Consumer Reports says the Vibe is great. Every area they check on the '04 Vibe is listed as 'excellent' with the exception of the fuel system which is listed at 'very good'. My advice to you is to get a subscription to ConsumerReports.org ($26 for a year - it pays for itself) and do some research on reliable used cars and check prices. The Vibe is a great car - that does not mean the dealer is giving you a fair price (all car salesman seem nice when a customer is there)As for the price - I haven't seen the car - but your dealer probably paid $3,000 for a '04 base model (assuming A/C) with 104k. They deserve to make money but I would not pay A DIME over $4,500 (and I would push for $4k.) If they won't give you that price go find another reliable car for cheap.

Quote, originally posted by spiffy1001 »Consumer Reports says the Vibe is great. Every area they check on the '04 Vibe is listed as 'excellent' with the exception of the fuel system which is listed at 'very good'. My advice to you is to get a subscription to ConsumerReports.org ($26 for a year - it pays for itself) and do some research on reliable used cars and check prices. The Vibe is a great car - that does not mean the dealer is giving you a fair price (all car salesman seem nice when a customer is there)As for the price - I haven't seen the car - but your dealer probably paid $3,000 for a '04 base model (assuming A/C) with 104k. They deserve to make money but I would not pay A DIME over $4,500 (and I would push for $4k.) If they won't give you that price go find another reliable car for cheap.You can actually subscribe to CR online only for MUCH cheaper and bi-monthly. 4500? yeah it will cost more than that. You'd be surprised what used vibes are going for with only 100k they seem to hold their value better now. I bet they are asking 6-7k. Yes you can still find the superchargers but only used from 1zz-fe related car sites, like 9thgen corolla, matrixowners, here. Or ebay/craigslist. Used they dont sell for a ton of money but new they were easily 2500-3500. So you can think around 1-2k used. depends if its the full kit they are selling and how despite the seller is.

I'd look out for the leprechaun that comes standard on all models, usually found in the spare tire well.

Quote, originally posted by ou.grizzly »5 speed transmission issues come to mind... There is thread in Edmunds' forum about issues with the 5speed on the Matrix. I didn't read it because I didn't own a manual Vibe.http://townhall-talk.edmunds.c...d9b0e

Quote, originally posted by SinisterMind »There is thread in Edmunds' forum about issues with the 5speed on the Matrix. I didn't read it because I didn't own a manual Vibe.http://townhall-talk.edmunds.c...d9b0eI read through the postings that were made in that forum over the last year and there does seem to be a lot of postings in regards to 03' and 04' manual transmissions having significant problems. These individuals appear to be convinced that these problems are happening on a much larger scale then should be expected and several of them were talking about a class action lawsuit.

A few months ago I paid 6k on the nose for an 03 GT with about 80k miles on it. Looking around though I've noticed that people online seem to report their Vibes costing quite a bit more than this. Also, Kelley Blue Book lists the value of this car at dealer price in my area at about $8,355.

Quote, originally posted by northvibe »yeah what 5 speed manual issues?Joatmon and Mavrik's Vibe's come to mind. http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=16794

I'm 19 also good luck on getting the vibe its a fun car

alright well thanks evryone!

I'm also 19. I really like my vibe! Good luck. If you're in school you should check into a student credit card. That what the bank suggested we do to build my credit.. Now i have two cards... and a car payment..

4 failures on a forum this large isnt too bad if you think about it. But like suggested in the thread, it may be best to stick to the stock lube, change often and stay in the proper gear.CC's arent needed to build proper credit. Been there done that, with out CC's.

Student loans are building my credit. lol

Quote, originally posted by L5K »Student loans are building my credit. lolYup mine did too. Then I got a car loan.....ugh debt the american way

just put my deposit down should pick up the vibe 2 weeks from today

Welcome to the site! Hope you get many years of enjoyment out of the Vibe. What color is it?Jamesus, hmmm. Any relation to Jesus?

Quote, originally posted by Kincaid »Welcome to the site! Hope you get many years of enjoyment out of the Vibe. What color is it?Jamesus, hmmm. Any relation to Jesus?color is silver, 104k miles mint inside and out. its a nick name ive had for sooo long.maybe a little bit of relation my birthday is 12/25/1989. kinda surprised u picked up on that

Always do your homework

i did

got fired one day before i was going to pick up the vibe. i fail =[

Sorry to hear it. So are you a Vibe owner frantically searching for a job, or is there no car loan to worry about?