Thanks for the vid! I have a 2005 Vibe that I bought brand new and it currently has just over 197k miles. Never had a major issue and maintenance is super easy. Even though it's been garage kept, the front bumper has faded considerably and the dash lights are very dim. I absolutely love this car and plan on keeping it another 15 years. To confirm, most Toyota engines, including this one, have a timing chain. The timing chain should not ever need replacing but, if it did, it's a fairly major repair. Many other manufacturers use a timing belt that needs to be replaced about every 70k miles and costs about $2k.
@@North49191 A timing belt will bill at about 2 hours by the book, plus materials. It's not that much money, but if ignored on an interference engine, you risk the pistons colliding with the head when the timing belt breaks. This is why most manufacturers use timing chains now. If the timing chain rattles all the time then it needs adjustment.
I have a 2006 Vibe with 213k+ miles. Still going great. It just needs 2 things: a new paint job and I want to install a radio like yours to connect my phone via Bluetooth. I have a check engine due to the cat going out, but LOL it keeps passing inspections so why replace it? LOL. here's a personal story for ya. We had a friends of ours teenage kids in our Vibe and he was talking about what kind of car he wants(a truck or Honda Civic of course). And I told him why we bought the Vibe, cheap on gas, lots of room, we've moved to 4 different houses in the Vibe and if you put the back seats and the passenger seat down, you'll have the same amount of space as the back of a truck (of course not height wise). So he asked how many miles did the Vibe had, I told him 210k miles. So he looked around the inside and outside of the Vibe and asked if I would sell it to him in a couple of years. I told him no because my oldest daughter would learn to drive on it and it would go to her. He looked at me funny and said "But she's only 4 years old!" I told yeah, so what? I'll probably still be driving it when she old enough to drive." He was like no way. I just told him to look up the life span of Toyotas and how many Toyotas from the 70s, 80s, 90s and early 2000s are still on the road. He called me back that evening and said "Tell your daughter to enjoy the Vibe. I'm saving up for a Vibe or Matrix".
Is it just mine or is the cabin in this car really loud? My only experience has been my moms new 2022 car lmao I just got myself my own car a pontiac vibe so maybe I'm just not used to such a loud noise inside the car. I know it's a cheap economy car with a toyota engine so maybe that's just normal with this car.
If you want to temporarily disable the automatic headlights at night while the car is running parked at idle. At night before you start your car, make sure your ebrake is engaged, flash a small led light on the light sensor on the dash, start your car and your headlights won't come on until you release the E-Brake. A little hack I learned from my Vibe. One thing you can do to make sure your Timing chain stays on tight is to replace the timing chain tensioner at 200k miles as preventative maintenance. As far as the ticking sound near the air box, that's usually the evap purge valve solenoid next to it working to purge fuel vapors from the evap canister back into the engine to be burned off as part of your Evap system.
There is a timing chain IN the engine. Name is pretty self explanatory. Likely if the timing chain broke, the engine would need replaced or gone over by a solid mechanic.
I replaced the timing chain tensioner a couple of weeks ago, stopped a small but persistent oil lead, and definitely gained some horses now that the chain is properly tensioned again.
If your timing chain broke which is unlikely, it won't destroy your engine, because it's a non interference engine meaning it won't bend the valves if a belt or chain were to break !!
They definitely upsold you big time. For tires, it's good practice to check the pressure once a month - buy yourself a good gauge and plug-in tire inflator. While you're doing that, also do the "penny test", which involves using a penny to measure how far from the top of Honest Abe's head the tread goes. It's a great and simple way to keep track of your tires' wear. If you know your tires are correctly inflated and there's still unusual wear, it could be a sign of a suspension or alignment issue (or they might not have balanced the tires correctly), meaning those two tires you just had replaced might not have addressed the underlying problem. The TPMS for a 2005 Vibe is "indirect" and not dependent on a battery sensor inside the tire itself. Usually (not always) just ensuring the tires are correctly inflated according to the sticker on the inside of the driver's side door is enough to fix the problem. On the exhaust pipe gasket, the parts themselves (gasket, spring bolts) can be purchased for ~$25 and might take a newbie an hour to replace if you have some PB Blaster, breaker bar, and basic ratchet set (which every car owner should have anyway). No way should that job cost $200. The wiper claim was just bogus, a "freebie" to get you to agree to a bunch of other stuff.
The chain they are referring to is your cam chain...and yes it has a chain, the earlier 1.8 engines before 2003 had belts instead of chains, Toyota put chains instead of belts because they are more trouble free !!
I still have an 06’ Vibe with 165,xxx miles that I purchased in 08’ and I just replaced all front brakes and struts and wheel bearings other then that I havnt touched a thing on the car and now my girlfriend drives it 50 miles a day to and from work to save miles on our brand new car we just got and she says it runs great still. Great car
I'm going to test drive the 06 and I'm leaning on buying it. I had a Sunfire 2003, and that car ran great and made it through a blizzard. I trust Pontiac even though they are no longer
I have a 2006 vibe, have replaced the stereo, removed the cigarette lighter and put in a dual port USB 3.0 in its place, and aside from maintenance (oil changes, brakes etc, I do it myself) this car has been unkillable. 260,000km on it.its my daily and I put a lot of mileage on it since it's a cart around everything / delivery vehicle. You should polish your lenses and put in some nice LEDs, they just change in and it's a world of difference. Also buy an odbd2 scanner, a decent one is about 30 bucks on Amazon, links to your phone via by and will give you all the details on codes you could need.
I’ve already got an odbd2 scanner, but thanks! Would you have any recommendations on LEDs? I’ve tried this in the past but have had bad luck with LEDs in these housings.
i got an 05 pontiac vibe automatic base model still going around 163k rn nearing 164 if i pushed it since i try not to put 1k a month for the traveling i do
Always leave the a/c on when you're driving, no matter what the temp outside. Just turn the temp up for heat and the compressor won't run anyway. The more you circulate the fluid the better. We run the a/c in our 2006 Highlander all the time and adjust the temp as needed. And most of the time on recirculate. Just had the compressor replaced last year. It was still blowing cold air, but making a slight noise. The new compressor isn't quite as cold as the original. Replacement parts always suck. I'd really love to get a Vibe or Matrix. The Vibe looks a little better than the Matrix though. The timing chain is on the left side of the motor under a cover. It should be replaced at about 150,000 miles.
No need to replace timing chain unless you are hearing chain slap from it being stretched. These are not belts..they don’t need to be done on a set interval.
Why does no one else complain about the Uncomfortable HIGH seat in the Vibe? Feels like a Truck or SUV, I want it to sit lower........like a car. but the Vibe doesnt have that seat lowering option. Im talll & doent want my head rubbing the roof.
I’m considering buying one of these, but I’ve heard that manual transmission ones have known issues and I’m afraid of this 4 gear transmission… how does It drive on highways, considering there is no fifth gear? It doesn’t gets too high Rpm and increase fuel consumption?
I'm not sure about the manual transmission, but mine is a 5 speed automatic which has done fine. Unfortunately mine is currently up for a torque converter replacement. These Vibes are getting old, due to their age if you are considering buying one at this point, I'd just ensure it's running/shifting correctly. If you're willing to fix them up otherwise, they make great cars.
@@TechMaxWare that’s some good news! I’ve done a ton of searching online and I only found this 2 options of transmission (5 gears manual or 4 gears automatic), but it’s nice to discover that there are 5 gears automatic transmission options too! I imagine how bad it would be to have only 4 gears, specially on highways
You really need to track down and establish a relationship with a local toyota mechanic who is honest and skilled. They are out there. Don't go to a tire sales retailer for anything other than tires. They just don't have the skillset to do other work efficiently. There is nothing wrong with replacing tires two at at time on a front wheel drive car. When I take my car in for an oil change, I provide the filter and oil. I go out of my way to return to my regular oil change place. They seem to know what they are doing.
I've got around about the same amount of miles and I have no problems thank you Lord. I don't think I have a tire pressure light? I do know I need two oxygen sensors. Man they don't understand what they did they ruin try to ruin a good car
It does sound like you had a bogus mechanic working on your car, I really hate that for you bro. It would have been nice to have a good mechanic to get a second opinion and give the other one a bad yelp review. Also, I hate the tire pressure sensor monitors. I wish they'd just stop putting that crap on cars. I've heard on many occasions that they can go bad, and just not work properly. Some (as I) would just ignore the light, and check the pressure maybe once a month. As far as making long trips on a high mileage car...these are the toyota engine they put in the Camry, and Corolla. They are known to go 3 to 500,000 miles (and more). However, I don't know the dependability of the automatic transmissions. They apparently aren't the same that they use in the Matrix. I have 2 Vibes, a 2003, and 2007. I love these cars, but my biggest complaint is the lousy cup holder layout, lol.
Just put water on the headlights. then put baking soda tooth paste on it. Let it sit 10 minutes. then start briushing in a circular motion. then rinse the head light. repeat one mor etime. headlights will be clear. only do in warm weather.
Thanks for the vid! I have a 2005 Vibe that I bought brand new and it currently has just over 197k miles. Never had a major issue and maintenance is super easy. Even though it's been garage kept, the front bumper has faded considerably and the dash lights are very dim. I absolutely love this car and plan on keeping it another 15 years. To confirm, most Toyota engines, including this one, have a timing chain. The timing chain should not ever need replacing but, if it did, it's a fairly major repair. Many other manufacturers use a timing belt that needs to be replaced about every 70k miles and costs about $2k.
Timing belts don't cost $2k.
@@North49191 A timing belt will bill at about 2 hours by the book, plus materials. It's not that much money, but if ignored on an interference engine, you risk the pistons colliding with the head when the timing belt breaks. This is why most manufacturers use timing chains now.
If the timing chain rattles all the time then it needs adjustment.
Cool vid. I've got an 05 manual. 170k. Bought new. Still going.
Awesome, thanks for sharing!
@Moses Kaiden not true this and brock clyde are tandem bot accounts to HECK U
I have a 2006 Vibe with 213k+ miles. Still going great. It just needs 2 things: a new paint job and I want to install a radio like yours to connect my phone via Bluetooth. I have a check engine due to the cat going out, but LOL it keeps passing inspections so why replace it? LOL. here's a personal story for ya.
We had a friends of ours teenage kids in our Vibe and he was talking about what kind of car he wants(a truck or Honda Civic of course). And I told him why we bought the Vibe, cheap on gas, lots of room, we've moved to 4 different houses in the Vibe and if you put the back seats and the passenger seat down, you'll have the same amount of space as the back of a truck (of course not height wise). So he asked how many miles did the Vibe had, I told him 210k miles. So he looked around the inside and outside of the Vibe and asked if I would sell it to him in a couple of years. I told him no because my oldest daughter would learn to drive on it and it would go to her. He looked at me funny and said "But she's only 4 years old!" I told yeah, so what? I'll probably still be driving it when she old enough to drive." He was like no way. I just told him to look up the life span of Toyotas and how many Toyotas from the 70s, 80s, 90s and early 2000s are still on the road. He called me back that evening and said "Tell your daughter to enjoy the Vibe. I'm saving up for a Vibe or Matrix".
I have a 06 vibe about to hit 340,000 and still runs strong!! Great little cars
Is it just mine or is the cabin in this car really loud? My only experience has been my moms new 2022 car lmao I just got myself my own car a pontiac vibe so maybe I'm just not used to such a loud noise inside the car. I know it's a cheap economy car with a toyota engine so maybe that's just normal with this car.
Vibes and Matrixes are super great and if they are maintained they can go on for a loooooong time. I have an 04 Matrix and my GF has an 06 Vibe. :D
Would you consider them to be Gay cars? You think ppl will know I'm gay?
If you want to temporarily disable the automatic headlights at night while the car is running parked at idle. At night before you start your car, make sure your ebrake is engaged, flash a small led light on the light sensor on the dash, start your car and your headlights won't come on until you release the E-Brake. A little hack I learned from my Vibe. One thing you can do to make sure your Timing chain stays on tight is to replace the timing chain tensioner at 200k miles as preventative maintenance. As far as the ticking sound near the air box, that's usually the evap purge valve solenoid next to it working to purge fuel vapors from the evap canister back into the engine to be burned off as part of your Evap system.
There is a timing chain IN the engine. Name is pretty self explanatory. Likely if the timing chain broke, the engine would need replaced or gone over by a solid mechanic.
Been reading that... as long as you take good care of your car it should last 300k
I replaced the timing chain tensioner a couple of weeks ago, stopped a small but persistent oil lead, and definitely gained some horses now that the chain is properly tensioned again.
If your timing chain broke which is unlikely, it won't destroy your engine, because it's a non interference engine meaning it won't bend the valves if a belt or chain were to break !!
They definitely upsold you big time. For tires, it's good practice to check the pressure once a month - buy yourself a good gauge and plug-in tire inflator. While you're doing that, also do the "penny test", which involves using a penny to measure how far from the top of Honest Abe's head the tread goes. It's a great and simple way to keep track of your tires' wear. If you know your tires are correctly inflated and there's still unusual wear, it could be a sign of a suspension or alignment issue (or they might not have balanced the tires correctly), meaning those two tires you just had replaced might not have addressed the underlying problem. The TPMS for a 2005 Vibe is "indirect" and not dependent on a battery sensor inside the tire itself. Usually (not always) just ensuring the tires are correctly inflated according to the sticker on the inside of the driver's side door is enough to fix the problem. On the exhaust pipe gasket, the parts themselves (gasket, spring bolts) can be purchased for ~$25 and might take a newbie an hour to replace if you have some PB Blaster, breaker bar, and basic ratchet set (which every car owner should have anyway). No way should that job cost $200. The wiper claim was just bogus, a "freebie" to get you to agree to a bunch of other stuff.
The chain they are referring to is your cam chain...and yes it has a chain, the earlier 1.8 engines before 2003 had belts instead of chains, Toyota put chains instead of belts because they are more trouble free !!
Thanks for the vid. Thinking of buying a vibe. I also live in missouri. This helps a lot. Very good information
I have a 2005 Vibe manual trans and I have NO chain either. Lol
I love mine and am very happy with it.
Lucky you, I have a timing chain sucks cause if something goes wrong with it it's a expensive fix
@@hakeemfb3 The Vibe and Matrix all have a chain and it is rare for it to go bad. It's actually not an expensive repair if you do it yourself.
I still have an 06’ Vibe with 165,xxx miles that I purchased in 08’ and I just replaced all front brakes and struts and wheel bearings other then that I havnt touched a thing on the car and now my girlfriend drives it 50 miles a day to and from work to save miles on our brand new car we just got and she says it runs great still. Great car
The chain question is probably talking about a timing chain. After a lot of mileage they need to be replaced
I'm going to test drive the 06 and I'm leaning on buying it. I had a Sunfire 2003, and that car ran great and made it through a blizzard. I trust Pontiac even though they are no longer
Sunfire was not made by Toyota. Vibe was made by Toyota.
Intake gasket causes check engine light to come on in cold temps. I have a 2007 matrix. Easy replacement.
Interesting, I wonder why that is.
Just wanted to let you know that I am taking a look into this, and if it happens to work well, I'll feature you in the next video. :)
The reason the intake leaks when cold, is because metal shrinks in the winter and expands when it warms up sealing the leak !!
I found a 2006 AWD pontiac Vibe with only 65k miles on it. thinking of buying it.
Did you do it? Hope you did because the Vibe is a fantastic used car to buy IF it's been well-maintained by previous owners.
I have a 2006 vibe, have replaced the stereo, removed the cigarette lighter and put in a dual port USB 3.0 in its place, and aside from maintenance (oil changes, brakes etc, I do it myself) this car has been unkillable. 260,000km on it.its my daily and I put a lot of mileage on it since it's a cart around everything / delivery vehicle. You should polish your lenses and put in some nice LEDs, they just change in and it's a world of difference.
Also buy an odbd2 scanner, a decent one is about 30 bucks on Amazon, links to your phone via by and will give you all the details on codes you could need.
I’ve already got an odbd2 scanner, but thanks! Would you have any recommendations on LEDs? I’ve tried this in the past but have had bad luck with LEDs in these housings.
The downside the sun ate my clear coat
i got an 05 pontiac vibe automatic base model still going around 163k rn nearing 164 if i pushed it since i try not to put 1k a month for the traveling i do
Always leave the a/c on when you're driving, no matter what the temp outside. Just turn the temp up for heat and the compressor won't run anyway.
The more you circulate the fluid the better. We run the a/c in our 2006 Highlander all the time and adjust the temp as needed. And most of the time on recirculate. Just had the compressor replaced last year.
It was still blowing cold air, but making a slight noise. The new compressor isn't quite as cold as the original. Replacement parts always suck. I'd really love to get a Vibe or Matrix.
The Vibe looks a little better than the Matrix though.
The timing chain is on the left side of the motor under a cover. It should be replaced at
about 150,000 miles.
I thought Scotty Kilmer said you never had to replace a timing chain.
No need to replace timing chain unless you are hearing chain slap from it being stretched. These are not belts..they don’t need to be done on a set interval.
Why does no one else complain about the Uncomfortable HIGH seat in the Vibe? Feels like a Truck or SUV, I want it to sit lower........like a car. but the Vibe doesnt have that seat lowering option. Im talll & doent want my head rubbing the roof.
Well, I say for me it feels about right. My new car I find to have more of a problem with my head banging the ceiling, but that’s a Sedan.
I have a 2005 Vibe. It feels perfect for me.
My next car
this is a venting video oh boy
Why 7 minutes into the video about the rant? That would actually make a good separate video and reach more viewers.
I’m considering buying one of these, but I’ve heard that manual transmission ones have known issues and I’m afraid of this 4 gear transmission… how does It drive on highways, considering there is no fifth gear? It doesn’t gets too high Rpm and increase fuel consumption?
I'm not sure about the manual transmission, but mine is a 5 speed automatic which has done fine. Unfortunately mine is currently up for a torque converter replacement. These Vibes are getting old, due to their age if you are considering buying one at this point, I'd just ensure it's running/shifting correctly. If you're willing to fix them up otherwise, they make great cars.
@@TechMaxWare that’s some good news! I’ve done a ton of searching online and I only found this 2 options of transmission (5 gears manual or 4 gears automatic), but it’s nice to discover that there are 5 gears automatic transmission options too! I imagine how bad it would be to have only 4 gears, specially on highways
My 2005 Vibe has 195,000 miles on it. I have never had a problem with the manual transmission. It has always worked flawlessly.
You shoulda left there.
Prolly gonna buy an old vibe.
If the gasket is leaking it fails
Yep, I actually ended up replacing that which I will cover in the next video.
You really need to track down and establish a relationship with a local toyota mechanic who is honest and skilled. They are out there. Don't go to a tire sales retailer for anything other than tires. They just don't have the skillset to do other work efficiently.
There is nothing wrong with replacing tires two at at time on a front wheel drive car.
When I take my car in for an oil change, I provide the filter and oil. I go out of my way to return to my regular oil change place. They seem to know what they are doing.
I do everything myself except for tires. I'm not afraid of the mechanics of my car, and trust I understand what I'm doing. 🙂
I've got around about the same amount of miles and I have no problems thank you Lord. I don't think I have a tire pressure light? I do know I need two oxygen sensors. Man they don't understand what they did they ruin try to ruin a good car
Please tell me where you got the mud guards
Those came with the car.
@@TechMaxWare ok thank you
You could have done that all yourself
It does sound like you had a bogus mechanic working on your car, I really hate that for you bro. It would have been nice to have a good mechanic to get a second opinion and give the other one a bad yelp review. Also, I hate the tire pressure sensor monitors. I wish they'd just stop putting that crap on cars. I've heard on many occasions that they can go bad, and just not work properly. Some (as I) would just ignore the light, and check the pressure maybe once a month. As far as making long trips on a high mileage car...these are the toyota engine they put in the Camry, and Corolla. They are known to go 3 to 500,000 miles (and more). However, I don't know the dependability of the automatic transmissions. They apparently aren't the same that they use in the Matrix. I have 2 Vibes, a 2003, and 2007. I love these cars, but my biggest complaint is the lousy cup holder layout, lol.
it has a matrix trans as well.
Sounds like you need to go to a different shop.
Just put water on the headlights. then put baking soda tooth paste on it. Let it sit 10 minutes. then start briushing in a circular motion. then rinse the head light. repeat one mor etime. headlights will be clear. only do in warm weather.
I have heard of other methods similar to this one too. I ended up buying brand new headlights this year.
Corolla engine
Whoa...male Karen alert
I'll take it.
Thanks for warning us of your presence.