GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

Well guys, it's been a good run for me, and I loved my Vibe, but it looks like I'm leaving the Vibe community forever... Late yesterday, about 3:45 AM, I hydroplaned and slid off the road into a parked BMW 325i on the side of a country road. My car hit the BMW and it spun around and took out a fence, while my car continued to roll, eventually into a hillside... I totalled the Vibe and the BMW that I hit. This is where my car came to a stop at the scene of the accident:
https://dl.dropbox.com/u/99882/transfer ... 9%20AM.jpg
and later on that night/morning up on the flatbed at a scrapyard:
https://dl.dropbox.com/u/99882/transfer ... 8%20AM.jpg
https://dl.dropbox.com/u/99882/transfer ... 4%20AM.jpg

I was not hurt AT ALL. Not a single cut or scratch on my entire body. This car is so amazingly safe, I was shocked. I couldn't believe it. The only mark on my entire body is from the seat belt holding me in place. I have minor bruising around my hips, that's it.
To make matters worse, I just got my TEIN S-TECHS in the mail about two days ago and was installing them within this week. Now I'll never even get to see what my car looked like lowered. I'm so depressed about it...

that suxs, glad you're ok though

That is some serious suckage, but this:

vibe5264 wrote: I was not hurt AT ALL.

is all that really matters. Material things can be replaced.

What car do you think you will get to replace it?
(you CAN get another vibe ... )

joatmon wrote: (you CAN get another vibe ...

X2 You'll need to find another one to "lower" and see what you missed out on this one. Glad you're safe. Were you cited for fault in this mishap? Is the beemer owner pissed? Take care

tpollauf wrote:

joatmon wrote: (you CAN get another vibe ...

X2 You'll need to find another one to "lower" and see what you missed out on this one. Glad you're safe.

Yes, if anything happens to mine, I plan on replacing it. Take the money you get from it and go get another one!! On a side note, I notice that my car hydroplanes easily as well..

I don't know what I'm going to get, but honestly, the only way I'd ever get another vibe is if it was a 5/6-speed and it was the 2zz motor. :p I was getting sick of having an automatic, I really hated that. I loved the car, though. But if I ever get another vibe, I'll be back. This forum has helped me so much in the past, and I'd be so annoyed having to re-learn everything about another car. Thanks for everything guys!
Also:

tpollauf wrote:

joatmon wrote: (you CAN get another vibe ...

X2 You'll need to find another one to "lower" and see what you missed out on this one. Glad you're safe. Were you cited for fault in this mishap? Is the beemer owner pissed? Take care

I was cited for driving too fast for road conditions. and I never got to meet the owner of the BMW, he wasn't home at the time of the accident. I only met with his sister. I feel really bad, because the BMW was a nice car... I could tell the guy put some work into it.

Sorry to hear about the Vibe being totaled, but glad to hear it kept you safe which is what really matters.

Time to start searching for another Vibe to put those lowering springs on !

[/quote]
I was cited for driving too fast for road conditions. and I never got to meet the owner of the BMW, he wasn't home at the time of the accident. I only met with his sister. I feel really bad, because the BMW was a nice car... I could tell the guy put some work into it. [/quote]

Yeh - I'd bet the owner of the BMW is really bummed. So what was the speed limit there, and how fast were you going? I think that if you were under the speed limit (black box might prove that) I would go to court - "too fast for road conditions is very subjective" especially since no one observed it. Hydroplaning can happen unexpectedly. When I was a teen (50+ years ago) and had an accident I was charged with reckless driving. The judge threw that out as there was no evidence of that. Perhaps I was - but there was no evidence to support the charge. They just got me for running a stop sign. No one else involved - a dead end - ran into a corn field.

jake75 wrote:

I was cited for driving too fast for road conditions. and I never got to meet the owner of the BMW, he wasn't home at the time of the accident. I only met with his sister. I feel really bad, because the BMW was a nice car... I could tell the guy put some work into it. [/quote]

Yeh - I'd bet the owner of the BMW is really bummed. So what was the speed limit there, and how fast were you going? I think that if you were under the speed limit (black box might prove that) I would go to court - "too fast for road conditions is very subjective" especially since no one observed it. Hydroplaning can happen unexpectedly. When I was a teen (50+ years ago) and had an accident I was charged with reckless driving. The judge threw that out as there was no evidence of that. Perhaps I was - but there was no evidence to support the charge. They just got me for running a stop sign. No one else involved - a dead end - ran into a corn field.[/quote]
The speed limit was 35, but I'm not entirely sure how fast I was going. I don't remember. I remember heading straight at the BMW, franticly trying to countersteer, then there was an explosion sound, and the next thing I knew, I was in a ditch on the side of the road with a loud hissing coming out from under my hood... ugh... I'm going to ask to get the points removed from the ticket, so that my insurance doesn't go up EVEN MORE than it already is going to, but I'm totally willing to pay the fine.

Sucks about the crash and glad you're ok. What type of tires did you have and mileage on them?

star_deceiver wrote:Sucks about the crash and glad you're ok. What type of tires did you have and mileage on them?

That's one of the depressing parts... I just had brand new Goodyears on them. Probably on 1500 miles on them. The tread was 95% percent...

You may want to send Goodyear a letter about this and the ease at which they let go. Perhaps avoid this tire on your next vehicle.

Oh man. So sorry to hear about that. As others have said, it's surprising how safe the vibe seems to be...

Glad you're ok. Hope you find your manual vibe

Sorry to hear about your Vibe, but it did it's job protecting you. If you are interested in a 09 GT manual, there is a nice 16K mile one near me for sale. If I didn't already have my 10 GT, I'd be all over it.

Good luck with the insurance company, your ticket, and the search for a new car.

trb wrote:Sorry to hear about your Vibe, but it did it's job protecting you. If you are interested in a 09 GT manual, there is a nice 16K mile one near me for sale. If I didn't already have my 10 GT, I'd be all over it.

Good luck with the insurance company, your ticket, and the search for a new car.

Unfortunately, I live in PA, near Pittsburgh, which is quite the distance from you. :\
But I found this crash test of a 2005 matrix (and I have a 2005 vibe) and I noticed it crumpled EXACTLY the way mine did.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpL7U_tu ... plpp_video
Picures of my car from the scrapyard today for comparison to this crash test:
https://dl.dropbox.com/u/99882/transfer ... 0%20PM.jpg
https://dl.dropbox.com/u/99882/transfer ... 5%20PM.jpg
The speed limit on the road I was travelling on was 35, and this is a crash test at 35mph. I found this may help my case.

Glad you were kept safe! Sorry that your plans for the Vibe were prematurely ended. Those S-Techs will work on a 2009-10 you know. Best wishes on the replacement car hunt!

If someone could tell me that the Texas 16k Vibe was a steal, I'd fly down and drive it back. Would make a nice road trip.

Kincaid wrote:If someone could tell me that the Texas 16k Vibe was a steal, I'd fly down and drive it back. Would make a nice road trip.

It sounds like a decent deal to me. Young couple, just had twins, and needed more room. Car still has 2 weeks of B2B warranty left. They've had it up for sale for a couple of months on craigslist and cars.com so I'm sure they would come down on the price. http://houston.craigslist.org/cto/3129493997.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Heck, I was looking all over before I bought mine. Considered a few in OH, OK, NJ and AZ, but they did not want to negotiate. One guy did offer to buy my plane ticket though!

To be honest, I'm kind of leaning towards a 7th generation Celica GT, so that it'll be like working on/driving in a smaller version of the same car. I love the styling of them too, and the reliability of the good old 1zzfe like I already had is impressive. Opinions anyone?

I'm glad to hear you are ok. I would say that your car saving you like it did is another reason to get another vibe. I don't know. If a car saved me like yours did you then I would look into another one.

If not and you do go with a different car, do you want to sell your springs and how much? Are they 2" drop?

Wingnut, I was (as previously stated) looking at a 7th generation Celica GT because I liked my vibe a lot, but want something a little smaller and sportier looking. I think a Celica will be nice, as they are pretty closely related to the vibe/matrix, but are a smaller and sportier.
And I actually just shipped my drop springs back to where I originally bought them from on the internet, so, sorry about that.

No problem.. Sorry to see you go.

I know what you're feeling. I also know what you mean about how safe the car is. I totaled mine too less than a week ago. Ended up with a light pole buried in the middle of the engine compartment. I too walked away without a scratch. Glad to hear you did too. The big bummer about mine is that I only had the thing about a month. I'm currently shopping for another Vibe. Good luck with your search as well.

with the s-techs on, they would have helped your center of gravity a lot more. I was driving through rain on Monday, mind you this was 2 inches of rain, and my car did not hydroplane at all. I am sorry to hear about your loss. You should get another vibe with the money you get and throw the springs on immediately!

the way my car looked a few months ago:

Then, the last time I ever get to see it again :'(



I was taking what was left of my aftermarket stuff out of it at the scrapyard (radio, subwoofers, led floor lights, scangauge, surviving HID ballast)

I really miss my car. I want it back sooo badly. All the work and care I put into it gone...
I honestly miss it every single day.

Wow, looking at the damage it is great that you were not injured. Your vibe gave its life so you would be okay. Sorry you miss it, but good luck with its replacement.
Scott

Scwmcan wrote:Wow, looking at the damage it is great that you were not injured. Your vibe gave its life so you would be okay. Sorry you miss it, but good luck with its replacement.
Scott

It truly did... I walked away with a sore leg and two bruises from the seatbelt/airbag... It's crazy.

sorry for your lost man.. take care

Damn.... Your lucky to be alive. That speaks a lot about the Vibe.

Wingnut wrote:(removed).... Your lucky to be alive. That speaks a lot about the Vibe.

I will admit it's an extraordinarily safe vehicle. The crumpling of my car is consistent with the 35mph crash test of a matrix, though, which will prove in court (hopefully) that I was not speeding. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpL7U_tu ... plpp_video" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;