GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

I bought a 2010 vibe 2.4L standamatic base 3 1/2 months ago from a used car dealership, I also purchased the best Lubrico warranty they had... Now my issue is only 2 garages in my town do Lubrico warranty work both are dodge dealerships when I start the car I get 3-4 loud knocks that dissaper after the car is started. I took it to one of these dodge dealerships and they diagnosed it as a cracked flex plate? After diagnoses I crossed the street to the Chev dealer where one of my friends works as a mechanic and me claims my car does not have a flex plate it has a flywheel he's 99.9% sure.

My question is who is right? I paid out of pocket at dodge and if I do not have a flex plate I will return to get my money back!

Automatics have flex plates, manuals have flywheels. Every time, the manufacturer doesn't matter.

gtv237 wrote:Automatics have flex plates, manuals have flywheels. Every time, the manufacturer doesn't matter.

I had a sun fire early 2000's ish which was an automatic and had a fly wheel. Thanks for posting

No, you didn't. If it was automatic, it was a flex plate. A manual trans uses a flywheel. They are completely different parts. Someone may have told you differently (just like a tech at a dealership).

You also forgot to tell us if your Vibe is auto or manual...

Flywheel:



Flexplate:

To be clear a flex plate is thinner and allows a torque converter to me mounted to it. A flywheel has a thick friction surface similar to a brake rotor for the clutch disc to ride on.

It is an automatic, the thing that bothers me is I have not had it for even 4 months yet! And in Canada (Nova Scotia) where I live there is no set laws or anything of that nature for a person buying a used car from a used car dealership (unlike the Provence of Quebec)

It's gonna be roughly 1,500.00+ to fix according to the dealer that diagnosed it, the only way to really do anything would be to get a reputable mechanic to write and affidavit stating it was cracked before purchasing, which i believe to be the case, and take the company to small claims court.

Ok, you have a flexplate. Your Chevy dealer mechanic buddy doesn't know what he's talking about.

How did they determine it was cracked?

You bought a warranty, call your warranty company. You should be able to use that warranty anywhere. Usually you pay the garage, and submit the claim to the company. Just do your homework. If they won't cover it, get your money back from the dealer where you bought the warranty.

I would just go back to the dodge dealer and have them process the warranty. You can ask them to show you the crack. It wouldn't be the worst idea to take a picture of it as proof.

The problem is they just guessed, and need to disassemble to confirm. But they cannot give me a estimate of the time it would take, she says a full day or 5 hours that would be a difference of $500 plus or minus!

update: i was reading all over the net and came across this Wynn's engine cleaner and if i recall correctly my grandfather swore by this stuff years ago, so i figured $5 and if it didn't help i wouldn't be out very much, fast forward to a few hours later and driving the (removed) out of the vibe and now when i start it the knocking (which before hand would knock loudly 5-6 times, before it fired up) is almost completely gone 1/2 to 1 knock and no where near as loud as it was before hand.

Now i stopped at chev dealer and walked out back and talked to my friend the mechanic whom said "i told you from day one, the knocking sounded like it was coming from the bottom of the engine" so since this quieted down the knocking and almost eliminated it i am thinking (and i am not a mechanic) bearing in the engine? because there is no way that Wynn's even touched the Flexplate.

If it is a bearing, then you better start looking for a used engine. Could it be the timing chain tensioner not working properly? Is it a knock or a raddle noise? A bad tensioner will make noise at startup. What is the oil pressure (actual PSI) when the engine is running cold and then hot?

Definitely sounds internal if you are confident that that engine treatment affected the sound.

Secondly A cracked flex plate can be checked. There is no need to pull the transmission to check it.

It's defiantly a knocking, usually 4-6 loud knocks while the engine is firing up and then the dissaper. Will try to post a video later of what o am talking about

11142007 wrote:It's defiantly a knocking, usually 4-6 loud knocks while the engine is firing up and then the dissaper. Will try to post a video later of what I am talking about

Update: here is the video https://youtu.be/L2SLTvscV5Y

11142007 wrote:

11142007 wrote:It's defiantly a knocking, usually 4-6 loud knocks while the engine is firing up and then the dissaper. Will try to post a video later of what I am talking about

Update: here is the video https://youtu.be/L2SLTvscV5Y

It sounds like damage to the flywheel or starter. It's definitely not a problem inside the engine.

gtv237 wrote:

11142007 wrote:

11142007 wrote:It's defiantly a knocking, usually 4-6 loud knocks while the engine is firing up and then the dissaper. Will try to post a video later of what I am talking about

Update: here is the video https://youtu.be/L2SLTvscV5Y

It sounds like damage to the flywheel or starter. It's definitely not a problem inside the engine.

Thank you for the reply, the flex plate should be a little cheaper to repair than the whole engine.

That being said I never thought of the starter there have been quite a few times I've tried to start the vibe and nothing happens (no sounds, just the dash lights) I need to turn the key off and back on for the car to start, I thought starters made a awful screeching sound when they are going.

I am not very mechanically inclined (hence the reason I believe almost everything someone tells me, Hell I don't even know where the starter is

11142007 wrote:

gtv237 wrote:

11142007 wrote:
Update: here is the video https://youtu.be/L2SLTvscV5Y

It sounds like damage to the flywheel or starter. It's definitely not a problem inside the engine.

Thank you for the reply, the flex plate should be a little cheaper to repair than the whole engine.

That being said I never thought of the starter there have been quite a few times I've tried to start the vibe and nothing happens (no sounds, just the dash lights) I need to turn the key off and back on for the car to start, I thought starters made a awful screeching sound when they are going.

I am not very mechanically inclined (hence the reason I believe almost everything someone tells me, Hell I don't even know where the starter is

Flex plate, yeah that's what I meant. If you are already having problems with the starter there's a good chance that could be what it is. Either way, this should all be able to be inspected without taking the transmission off.