- #2886 of 2955
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Tire Question?
by CapeCod
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Feb 10, 2009 (4:34 am)
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I'm posting here because I think more people visit here than the Vibe tire thread.
I have one front tire (passenger side) that is down to the wear bars. Probably because of a low inflation problem I did not immediately spot. The driver side is still fine... probably half worn. Can I get away with replacing just one tire on the axle or will I have handling, etc problems? Also the tires I'm looking at have two narrow, solid center tread strips that circle the tire, then decent aggressive tread left and right. Tires are directional. Tires are from China (Haida?) but dealer says most tires are from China... like it or not. My question is... will the two center strips help with noise or create even more road noise. I test drove a 09 with GY RS-A's and they were unbelievably loud! What creates the noise... more tread (rubber) on the road?, more air space?, uninterrupted solid tread, or tread pattern that is less uniform with lots of direction changes? Thanks. 
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- #2887 of 2955
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Re: Tire Question? [CapeCod]
by maxx4me
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Feb 10, 2009 (2:43 pm)
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Replying to: CapeCod (Feb 10, 2009 4:34 am)
Yes of course you can just replace the one, as long as it is the same brand and type of tire you are taking off, so it will match the passenger side. Mixing treads is not a good idea. Assuming price is not a serious concern, I would recommend the Michelin Primacy MXV4 or the Michelin Pilot Exaltos. Both are great tires. Either way, you should go to tirerack.com and do your homework, for when you decide to purchase a pair or set. As for the Goodyear RS-A's, they are pretty good tires on dry pavement and I don't find them all that noisy after 5000 miles. However, they are pretty bad on snow and ice. I will be taking them off before winter next year. I took a chance this winter and seemed to have missed the bad weather.
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- #2888 of 2955
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Re: Viscous Coupling Outrageous Part Cost [gary81]
by Brock915
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Feb 14, 2009 (9:38 pm)
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Replying to: gary81 (Feb 06, 2009 7:44 pm)
Hi Gary, I was wondering what kind of noise you were hearing and how did you find out it was the viscous coupling? I recently purchased a 2004 AWD and I hear a whining noise coming from the back and recently discoverd the AWD isn't working.
Brock
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- #2889 of 2955
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Re: Viscous Coupling Outrageous Part Cost [Brock915]
by gary81
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Feb 15, 2009 (6:23 pm)
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Replying to: Brock915 (Feb 14, 2009 9:38 pm)
Hi Brock,
I guess that the sound that I am hearing can be described as a whinning noise as well. My mechanic told me that he thinks the noise is coming from the coupling housing. I am also getting very poor gas mileage. I have two vibes one is AWD and the other is 2wd. My AWD is the one with the noise. The AWD gets 30% less gas mileage versus my 2wd so I am thinking that perhaps the noise problem is attributing to my poor gas mileage.
Gary
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- #2890 of 2955
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Viscous Coupling<------ Vibe Versus Matrix
by gary81
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Feb 16, 2009 (12:44 pm)
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Pontiac wants $2800CAN for the viscous coupling for the Pontiac Vibe AWD 2003. This is a part that bolts to the differential and connects to the drive shaft. The Toyota Matrix AWD viscous coupling 2003 part cost $2000CAN from Toyota. Can anyone confirm that the Toyota part is the same as the Vibe part? If so I will save money by going to Toyota for this part.
Thanks,
Gary
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- #2891 of 2955
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Re: Viscous Coupling<------ Vibe Versus Matrix [gary81]
by maxx4me
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Feb 16, 2009 (1:05 pm)
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Replying to: gary81 (Feb 16, 2009 12:44 pm)
other than the Delco radio and rotors, I don't think there are any GM parts on the car. Go to Toyota. Besides, have your local mechanic look it up. They will be able to tell the source from their data base.
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- #2892 of 2955
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Re: Viscous Coupling Outrageous Part Cost [gary81]
by Brock915
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Feb 18, 2009 (10:02 am)
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Replying to: gary81 (Feb 15, 2009 6:23 pm)
My 2004 AWD gets bad mileade as well, about 21-22 in town, I am taking into the dealer that sold it to me, this Friday. I only bought it about 2 weeks ago, 2nd car from this dealer, expecting everything to be checked out on this used car. I guess it isn't an easy thing to look for. Luckily I bought an extended warranty. So you aren't planning on replacing your viscous coupler?
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- #2893 of 2955
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Re: Viscous Coupling Outrageous Part Cost [gary81]
by Brock915
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Mar 04, 2009 (9:07 am)
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Replying to: gary81 (Feb 15, 2009 6:23 pm)
Well after taking my car to the Toyota dealer the determined that the differential is bad. I'm not so sure, would have had them replace it under extended warranty but the warranty company will only deal with the dealer who sold me the car. That is a Nissan dealer and they said it was working fine. Took it back to Nissan dealer, with Toyota diagnostic and they are now replacing the rear differential. They said it wasn't that loud when I first brought it in. It was that loud the second day I had it and the service guy said it was because they just change the diff fluid and it was cold out. Well so I am getting the diff. replaced for only $50, should be in about a week or two. Hope it fixes the AWD not working issue, probably won't snow now so will have to wait until next year. Hope it also fixes my poor mileage. Although on our first highway trip, we got 30mpg which is about what the epa says, but still get about 22-23 in town, with easy driving, it is cold so that will probably go up when it warms up.
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- #2894 of 2955
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Re: Center wheel disc [raythegerman]
by ejhara
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Mar 31, 2009 (8:13 am)
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Replying to: raythegerman (Jan 29, 2009 8:44 am)
I'd like to thank you (and others) for taking the time to post Vibe cap messages on Edmunds. The caps on my 2009 AWD Vibe had popped out in the first 7500 miles. When I presented the service bulletin number to the service manager at the time of oil change/tire rotation, they put in the improved caps at no cost to me, and refunded the cost of the two old-style ones I had ordered. Your bulletin number/Edmunds post saved me 60 bucks, and now my car looks better. Thanks, again!
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- #2895 of 2955
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Re: Center wheel disc [ejhara]
by raythegerman
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Apr 04, 2009 (7:46 am)
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Replying to: ejhara (Mar 31, 2009 8:13 am)
I'm glad that our posts helped. These forums are excellent as we discover the real world of vehicle ownership from us, the owners themselves. They have helped me in the past as well, hence the reason I did my post.
Good luck on your Vibe!
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