GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

So I popped open the hood of my '06 Vibe to do a quick check of the fluids and hoses (something I do about every 3-4 weeks) and noticed some blue powdery substance around my battery terminals. Figured it was corrosion which was surprising as the battery is about a year and a half old and the last time I checked it the terminals were clean. I used a paste of baking soda and water to clean the terminals and used some of the red terminal spray along with a new pair of felt washers. I removed the positive then negative terminals than reversed that for installation. Went to start the car, everything lights up like normal but when I go to turn the key, nothing! So after a moment of panic I take off the clamps and put them back on, the car starts with no issue but there is significant vibration throughout the car. Now I've replaced my battery and cleaned the MAF in the past so I know a car can be a bit off as it "relearns" so I took a drive around the neighborhood. A few minutes into my drive the car dies with no warning while at a stop sign. I shift the car in park, put my flashers on and hope for the best as I turn the ignition. My Vibe starts with no problem and I continue my drive for another two or so miles. I get back home and sit with the Vibe in park and listen, it seems like the vibration has subsided and after multiple cycles of off and on I call it a day.

For those of you still with me I have two questions: first what happened initially as the Vibe didn't turn and second why did the engine die shortly after I started my drive? Any thoughts would be appreciated!

Tough one. There are only guesses.
1. Even though I trust you did a great job maybe the contact to the poles was not right.
2. The alternator may have had a hick-up. That can put the PCM into a loop.
3. Maybe the PCM received a bunch of weird signals and didn't get things right.

If you are still concerned you could check ground contacts, harnesses, and possibly the battery cables. If corrosion has entered the cables under the insulation it can increase resistance.
Since it it working now I would not do much at all.

Oh, not good. Best thing I can say is to start checking for engine codes. Also, you'll need to check all the fusible links because some if not all are shot. You'llneed to check relay switches and even the ecu. There's no telling what was burnt out. Oh, it's also common for the alternator to burn out from that, too. So don't be surprised. I'm even betting the next time you attempt to start or use it, more issues may show up. Start from the battery and start working your way through. It's not going to be simple. Perhaps someone else has done the same thing with their Vibe and can help more specifically. Sorry. Good luck.

Quick addition: Try disconnecting the battery completely for 30min then try again. I doubt resetting the ecu will fix it at this point since it does sound like something or another is fried, maybe even the ecu itself.

Update and it's good news Taking the Vibe out on Sunday errands and everything works like nothing happened. Only casulty was that the clock needed to be reset. I think I must've misread the instructions for the terminal spray and maybe was a bit too heavy handed with it. Thanks for the quick responses guys! Will update if anything else happens.

It didn't start because of improper re-clamping.

I encountered the same while doing some work. The terminals and clamps are old, and starting needs to pull a lot of juice.

I'd say the vibration and all the rest is the car re-learning and bad vibes about what is happening, ie your paying extra close attention. Hopefully no more bad mojo

New update: Running Sunday errands and got stranded in grocery store parking lot. All my lights and radio worked fine but it sounded like the starter wasn't turning. Called AAA; driver tests the battery and says it looks good. I mentioned I had a corrosion issue last week so before he goes to test the alternator and starter he gives the clamps and the posts a quick clean. Vibe started up no problem! Problem now is that the significant vibration is back and the Vibe died at the first red light I was at. Once again I shift the car in park and cycle the key and the Vibe started again no problem without the vibration. Got home let the Vibe sit a bit and cycled the car a few times with no issue. So I'm thinking I'm going to take your suggestion ctgottapee and take a closer look at the terminals and clamps and replace them if they look corroded. Seems like the battery, alternator and starter all work fine. I'm not the most comfortable with electricity so any real deep troubleshooting will be left to my mechanic. Thanks for your help guys!

Look at my very first guess.......


Consider replacing all the cables that connect to the battery with new ones. Corrosion can invade the cables under the insulation and increase resistance. Look for all ground connections and clean them.

I think I'm going to go down that route. I followed the negative cable and that seems easy as it is just grounded to metal in the engine bay. Positive cable seems a lot more complicated, any pointers vibrologist?

RRich89: I have not done this I think since the late 70's on my 1956 BMW R26 motorcycle. LOL. So, really I can't give you pointers. That said, EricTheCarGuy on Youtube has some good videos on basic electrical trouble shooting. It never hurts to watch some of those before diving under the hood.

I re-did the 2nd gen battery connections.
There is one cable from neg post to car metal, the connector at the car is custom and they use a press to crimp. Check it for corrosion, etc.
There were 2 cables from the pos post. One goes to the fuse box as a main for the car, pretty easy to find in fuse box, with eyelet crimped on it. The other goes to Starter or Alt (i forget). Cleaning up the terminal and ground connections should be enough.

your starting and vibration may not be related issues

you might want to search for a trouble tree (list of things to check) for a occasional no-start issue