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Pontiac Vibe Electrical/Lighting Issues

72 messages,  Last post on Aug 23, 2009 at 6:47 PM

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What is this discussion about? Pontiac Vibe, Electrical, Wagon

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#23 of 72 Re: Headlights in the cold [mikey00] by larsi Feb 21, 2006 (4:46 pm)
Replying to: mikey00 (Feb 20, 2006 2:28 pm) Thanks for the info. I printed off some of the Vibe headlight complaints I found on the internet yesterday, and brought them to the dealer. By then they had the information regarding this issue from GM. They explained that the "multi-function stick" the stick with the headlight controls and turn signal was the culprit. In really cold weather a plastic part shrinks so bad that it trips contacts and turns your headlights on. They were kind enough to fix it without charging me .   I did find that during the bitter cold, turning the brights on caused the daytime running lights to turn off, and because the car was turned off, the brights did as they were supposed to and remained off . . . resulting in all lights being off .
#24 of 72 Daylight running light/drl sensor by 98clru Jan 27, 2005 (11:14 am)
I gently pried sensor out of dash, and removed the smoke colored cover. It is much better, but still goes full headlights in brighter light than I would like.   The sensor is installed by just connecting to wires and pushing into place, simple tension retainer. Be gentle! The dash is still hard for me to see in bright daylight, but much easier to see than it was when the sensor dimmed dash lights when the headlights were activated!
#25 of 72 burned out light on stereo by airhead Jul 13, 2005 (5:06 pm)
I have a 2003 Vibe and the display light on the stereo just burned out---repair cost from dealer is $580 because the whole unit has to be replaced. Has anyone else had this happen? Replies to this message: bheiny3 (Jul 15, 2005 7:05 am) ddavis69 (Nov 23, 2007 7:53 am)
#26 of 72 Re: burned out light on stereo [airhead] by bheiny3 Jul 15, 2005 (7:05 am)
Replying to: airhead (Jul 13, 2005 5:06 pm) I don't have a solution for you - but half of the display in our 2000 Montana burned out last spring. When the dealer told me how much it would cost (over $400, and yes the ehtire unit would have to be replaced) I decided I could live with the half lighted display. On my new 2005 Vibe I got a month ago, I noticed it has almost the same identical unit as the Montana - display and controls, et al. So I have that to look forward to, probably in a couple of years - probably on both vehicles. I will be interested in any other replies you get that might actually give a better repair solution.
#27 of 72 airhead by nortsr1 Jul 15, 2005 (9:24 am)
Isn't your vibe still under warranty? Replies to this message: airhead (Jul 18, 2005 1:23 pm)
#28 of 72 Re: airhead [nortsr1] by airhead Jul 18, 2005 (1:23 pm)
Replying to: nortsr1 (Jul 15, 2005 9:24 am) No, the warranty expired---it has 56,000 miles (mostly freeway). They tried to suggest that the light burned out prematurely because I was in and out of the car a lot, but I drive 40 miles each way to work so I don't think that's a valid argument. I wonder if it might have to do with the daylight sensor turning the dashlights on and off all the time. I saw a different dealer today who told me that a lot of the car's functions (i.e. powder door locks) run through the radio wiring. I was considering going to Circuit City and having a better radio put in for much less money but now I'm wondering if that's even a possibility.
#29 of 72 Dead Battery by mjb56 May 31, 2006 (5:14 pm)
Our 05 Vibe (Base) has had the battery die on 3 different occasions in the last month. The dealer is saying that the radio tends to draw a lot of power and that playing it while the car is off can kill the battery. I find this hard to believe that 20 minutes of radio play will kill a battery. Has anyone else had this experience? Replies to this message: herzogtum71 (Jun 04, 2006 10:23 am) ronald711 (Jun 06, 2006 9:20 pm)
#30 of 72 Re: Dead Battery [mjb56] by herzogtum71 Jun 04, 2006 (10:23 am)
Replying to: mjb56 (May 31, 2006 5:14 pm) '03 Matrix with the original battery. Have waited for kids at various events many times with engine off and radio on with no ill effects. Have they changed your battery, or just charged up the same one 3 times now? Replies to this message: ronald711 (Jun 06, 2006 9:20 pm)
#31 of 72 Re: Dead Battery [herzogtum71] by ronald711 Jun 06, 2006 (9:20 pm)
Replying to: herzogtum71 (Jun 04, 2006 10:23 am) It sounds like you have some dead cells, and your Battery is not holding a charge very well. If you goto Sears they can test your battery by putting loads on the battery and checking the voltage drop.
#32 of 72 Dead Battery replaced by mjb56 Jun 12, 2006 (3:48 pm)
They finally decided to replace our battery, though the analysis showed it was fine. No problems since then. We'll be closely monitoring but I suspect the old one had some bad cells. The dealership is saying that the modern alternators do not charge unless there is a draw detected and then you must drive quite some time to re-charge fully. I still think it was a bad battery. Otherwise the car is great. Good mpg, fun to drive, versatile. Hope this ends this episode.

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