GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

Hi - I have a 2009 Vibe that I bought earlier this year - the warranty is about to expire and I need to know if it's normal that the defogger stays on. Even if I shut the car off and turn it back on, it remains on Is this a problem , or is this normal for this car ??Thanks

Yep, it won't go off until you press the button again!

My 2009 Vibe's rear view defogger does not turn off...even if i turn the car off and turn it bck on..it stll remains on. I bought it used..and it's been like this since i got it Is this normal on this model ?? Or do I have something wrong with it.

Almost sounds like someone hard wired it, or maybe there's a short? Did they also have command start installed on the car before you bought it?

It will stay ON until you push the button again to turn it OFF.. Even if the car is turned off and restarted. It does NOT have a timer, so will remain on constant until you push it to turn it off. Just like the AC and circulation button, you push them, and they remain on even after the car is turned off and restarted. Don't be afraid to push it to see what happens, it won't explode!

that's weird. on my '10, it does have a timer and will shut off after about 10 minutes, and will turn off if the engine is shut off.being on all the time once pressed is outside the norm for any vehicle i have ever owned or driven, which admittedly does not include much seat time in other japaneese cars.

Very weird.. Mine will stay on all day long!

Mine will turn off after 10-15 minutes and reset after turning the car off

Ours too... and my Mazda as well.Rear defoggers didn't used to have a reset or timer and so people would forget they were on and they'd simply burn up!! Hence the reason a timer and reset functions were made std.Nope. Sounds like something is amiss to me... perhaps a stuck or malfunctioning relay. That's my best guess.Find the relay, probably under the hood, and give it a few taps w/the back of a screwdriver handle.

Quote, originally posted by 09vGT »It will stay ON until you push the button again to turn it OFF.. Even if the car is turned off and restarted. It does NOT have a timer, so will remain on constant until you push it to turn it off.You are correct on this one Below is the quote from the owners manual:Rear Defogger): Press to turnthe rear window defogger on or off.An indicator light shows that it is on.Depending on the vehicle, the rearwindow defogger either stays on untilit is manually turned off or turns offautomatically after a set amount oftime. Clear any snow from the rearwindow.If the ignition is turned off, whilethe rear window defogger is on, thedefogger turns back on automaticallywhen the ignition is in the ON/RUNposition again.Also I've included the page from the owners manual. Enjoy

524343=15736-Rearwindowdefogger.pdf

Mine turns off after a set amount of time automatically

'09 here, and mine stays on until pushed a second time. Maybe a feature that can be changed with a TechII

Thats really weird.. "depending on the vehicle".. What would be the reason for some doing it.. and others not?

"According to the vehicle" That is really strange, I wonder why. Probably different option packages.Mine times off by itself and if you turn the ignition off and back on the defroster is off.What options do you have? Mine is the base with I think they called the comfort or preferred package. I'm not sure what they called it but it includes the door locks, power windows, etc. all lumped together.

My 09 vibe's defogger won't turn off either unless I push the button, I was so used to my old car having it turn off automaticly that when I looked down and saw it was still on after an hour of driving I just figured it didn't turn off by itself and was like "woops" lol.

That's some craziness! Timers have been standard issue for a long time now, why go back to manual control? Seems like it would tax the electrical system a tad much if one forgot about it.

Agreed! And why on only "some" models?So many times in this world I would like to turn back the clock to simpler times. But this is not one of them.

Quote, originally posted by beemerphile1 »Mine times off by itself and if you turn the ignition off and back on the defroster is off.Drove the Vibe to a hockey game last night and on the way back I had to use the rear window defogger. It was on steady for the 15 min trip home and when I got home, turned the car off, then restarted it and NO defroster came on! This is what I would have expected and is the case with my Vibe GT. You must manually turn it on each time you start the car and it automatically turns itself off

Is it bad to leave on the defroster for a long period of time?

Quote, originally posted by 09vGT »Is it bad to leave on the defroster for a long period of time? Besides drawing a lot of power, it can burn up/out. And if you want that tint of yours to stay nice for a long time, I wouldn't use it more than I had to. The direct heat of it affects the adhesive and will eventually cause bubbling and delamination.

Quote, originally posted by BLargal »My 09 vibe's defogger won't turn off either unless I push the button, I was so used to my old car having it turn off automaticly that when I looked down and saw it was still on after an hour of driving I just figured it didn't turn off by itself and was like "woops" lol.Same for me. It's really weird that it doesn't turn off by itself...I had that feature on my old 1996 Sunfire and not on my 2009 Vibe...

Rear defogger in My 2009 Vibe GT will not shut off until you manually turn it off. However, the defogger switch is on, but the rear window does not clear. Can the light (on the switch) stay on even though the defogger relay is bad?

Glenpointe wrote: ↑Fri Oct 29, 2021 11:17 am Rear defogger in My 2009 Vibe GT will not shut off until you manually turn it off. However, the defogger switch is on, but the rear window does not clear. Can the light (on the switch) stay on even though the defogger relay is bad?

Yes