Finally bought the Vibe!!!

[Craigmri]

Vibe-sters!Today we became the owners of a brand spankin' new '04 Vibe. After a great search and much deliberation we located the perfect vibe(well no navigation but there is always the aftermarket).Quick refresher......We were going to Orlando to look at identically equipped Vibes...One Monotone Neptune and one Monotone Salsa. I wanted the Salsa my wife wanted the Neptune. Both Vibes were supposed to have the 5-speed, Moon and tunes, Power group, ABS, 16 inch alloys, Monotone, Polished steel exhaust tip, cargo mat.Turns out when we arrived the salesmen informed us the Salsa sold yesterday(no big deal cause the wife wanted the Neptune and it was her birthday). So I'm thinking.."No decision to make..great!" WRONG was I....The salesmen says..."I got another Neptume Vibe I wanna show you". We walk over to another Blue Vibe that has the same packages the first one had AND MORE! This one also has the Protection package, In-dash 6 CD changer and 17 Inch alloys. At first I was torn but after the wife saw the radio in the better equipped Vibe and after we lined both Vibes up side by side and realized the 17 inch wheels really fill the wheel opening better the decision was made. Originally I wasnt a big fan of the factory 17 inch wheels but after viewing the two cars side by side and analyzing every angle the difference is greater than I thought.The drive home was great. This thing is so tight and solid. Only worry is the lack of low end tourque. I'm going to have to re-train myself to get used to keeping the RPM's up in a range were the power is when needed.Thank you to everyone who responded to the many questions I posed. This forum has been a superb source of information and enjoyment and I cant thank you all enough.SPECIAL THANKS to Michael Tomczach(Please forgive spelling) for providing me with the GM IN THE DRIVEWAY certificate. Between the Certificate and the factory rebate the Sticker went from $21,310 to $17,995. The Dealer also shocked us with the trade in value on our '01 Santa Fe. We bought it new for 18 grand in early '01 and gave us nearly 13 grand. Not bad for a Hyundai if I do say so.First Mod....Window Tint Soon!CraigNeptune Wrapped Vibe

[NSimkins]

Beautiful, and congrats! I agree, I do like the factory 17's on the Vibe. It looks at home in the garage already.

[jake75]

Is the actual diameter of the 17" wheels + tires any different? Or is it just that with a 17" wheel you have 17" of wheel and say 10" of tire for a total of 27" whereas with the 16" you have 16" of wheel and 11" of tire for the same 27" total?

[AKLGT]

great finding! and excellent price! glad you found the one! and welcome to the official vibe owner's club!

[joatmon]

Congratulations Craig! There must be plenty of aftermarket nav systems to choose from. SOunds like you got a pretty good deal on it too!------------------------------------------------On the wheels, I think the outer diameter of the rubber is the same, or close enough to not matter, but the bigger wheels/smaller tires just look bigger, maybe because the metal stands out more than the black tire in the wheel well. (I have the steelies )

[matty77]

nice!

[Craigmri]

Jake,The 16" wheel uses a 205/55-16 tire. The 55 in the number is the aspect ratio. You take 55% of the 205(which is tire width) and you get 112.75 mm. This equates to 4.44 inches. So...You take 4.44 x 2(rubber on each side of wheel) and you get 8.88 inches + 16 inches(wheel diameter) and you end up with 24.88 inches in Diameter for the 16 inch wheel/tire combo.The 17" wheel uses 215/50-17 tires. So running the same calculations we get a 4.23 inch tire height so we take 8.46 inches plus 17" to get 25.46 inches.OK I'm not a tire expert but I did sleep in a Holiday Inn express last night Craig

[Vibe Rater]

LOL!The 17 " wheels look especially nice with the Neptune Monotone. Jackpot!

[Geo]

Very nice indeed! :DNow you have the Vibe ... so, when does it become a money pit with mods for you like it has for the rest of us?

[shibaman]

The 17" tires and rims are a little taller than the 16". Between .5 to .75" depending on tire brand.

[jake75]

So that would cause the speedometer to under-read about 2% or so. Both in mph and in total miles.

[Craigmri]

Hope this isnt too large a pic I'm really starting to dig this car can you tell?Craig'04 Neptune

[1 Cool Vibe]

quote:Vibe-sters!Today we became the owners of a brand spankin' new '04 Vibe. After a great search and much deliberation we located the perfect vibe(well no navigation but there is always the aftermarket).Congrats on the new Vibe and welcome to the genvibe family!

[drunkenmaxx]

beats the hell out of that PT in the driveway next to it!

[jake75]

That PT is awesome as well. Have one of each myself and it is hard to choose. Both have their good points. For a Chrysler product, the PT made in Mexico has been extrememly reliable. Thought it would be too boring to have twin PT's so enticed by a GM card double rebate I went for the VIBE as a companion. The hard PT shelf that makes a flat surface with the folded down rear seats is a stroke of genius. The hard shelf also allows a little storage room on top when at regular height to hide the struff in the "trunk". Long range I suspect the Vibe/Toyota will hold up better, and I like the gas mileage. So listen to me who's owned a PT for over 3 years, or listen to someone who somehow thinks its hip to be called "drunken".