Thanks Jeff ! I hope I can make it to a few meets as well *fingers crossed*!

*UPDATES*

AEM Dryflow Air Filter Wrap - 02.28.12


30,000 Miles! - 03.22.12


Toyota OEM Alloy Wheel-Specific Chrome Wheel Locks - 03.24.12


04.20.12








2nd GM Accessories Premium All Weather Cargo Mat To Protect The Backs Of The Rear Seats When Folded Down - 05.11.12




Optima 35 Series Red Top Battery - 05.19.12






The Vibe is pretty much done mods-wise. I do have 2 pairs of Sylvania SilverStar zXe bulbs for the low beams and high beams and a pair of Nokya hyper yellow Stage 1 bulbs for the fog lights all on their way this week. I will post some updated pictures once they arrive and I get them installed. I figured I'd give the Nokyas a try in the fog lights for something different then the SilverStars I've been using for the past 3 years. Other then routine maintenance and monthly payments, etc. I don't forsee spending any more money on the Vibe at this point in time.

It's been just over 3 years since I bought it and I couldn't be happier with it and what I've done to it. My goal is to keep it at least twice as long as it takes me to pay it off, so 12 years. At this rate, when it's paid off in early 2015, it should only have around 60,000 miles on it, so I don't see 12+ years being an issue at all.

For even more pictures and information, please check out my CarDomain page and my GenVibe Garage. Thanks for looking !

I snapped a couple quick pictures in the rain the other day...

Yellow fogs look cool. Its a nice change...not used to seeing them in a Vibe.

Thanks Zach! Yeah, I was never a fan of yellow fog lights, but the more I thought about it, the more I decided I'd at least give them a try. They were $25.00 on eBay, so no big loss if I didn't like them.

love the fogs. give the car a better look imo.

MRThompson (jrthompson) wrote:love the fogs. give the car a better look imo.

Thanks! As I said previously, I wasn't sure about them, but once I installed them and drove with them, I fell in love.

I LOL every time I see someone put money and time into installing an aftermarket intake and getting those wraps on them. Alright, better location for cooler air, bigger and smoother piping for more/cooler air, better material for cooler and better air flow, high-flow filter for better flow of that air... BAM wrap that @!#$ up and add restriction to the high-flow filter. It just doesn't make sense.

(tabs) wrote:

z yaaaa wrote:its not much fun trying to argue with a wall.

oh, trust us, we know

JLAudioCavalier wrote:I LOL every time I see someone put money and time into installing an aftermarket intake and getting those wraps on them. Alright, better location for cooler air, bigger and smoother piping for more/cooler air, better material for cooler and better air flow, high-flow filter for better flow of that air... BAM wrap that @!#$ up and add restriction to the high-flow filter. It just doesn't make sense.

The only reason I installed the wrap is because the filter was getting filled up with dead bugs left and right because of it's proximity to the large front grilles. I was getting sick and tired of having to clean the damn filter all the time. I doubt it makes that much of a difference. It's not like I'm looking to make massive amounts of power.

*UPDATE*

WeatherTech Dark Tinted Front & Rear In-Channel Window Deflectors - 08.10.12













Since these pictures were taken, I have removed the little WeatherTech stickers that were on the front deflectors (can be seen in the 5th picture).

I went to a local Cruise Night last night with a few fellow Vibe owners. Just thought I'd post a couple pictures of my Vibe all cleaned up (spent 5 hours detailing it yesterday morning).





I removed the air filter wrap because I didn't like the way it looked.

Looks great Carrie, miss you on the Wisconsin area.

Thanks as always Jeff ! I am hoping to possibly make a meet in the next month or two...

Well, hopefully it is for the Sept meet on the 29 cause otherwise I'm not going to be seeing you.

I added some LED bulbs from v-LEDs to the Vibe a month or so ago. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to get any decent shots of the interior ones, but I did manage to get a decent one of the license plate light. I also managed to get a semi-decent shot of my current headlight/fog light setup (Sylvania SilverStar zXe bulbs in the low and high beam headlights and Nokya hyper yellow Stage 1 bulbs in the fog lights)...

*UPDATE*

GM Accessories 2003-2008 Vibe Muffler Tip - 01.05.13





I was getting bored with the smaller OEM oval shaped muffler tip but didn't want to spend money on a full exhaust, so I decided I would give this GM 2003-2008 Vibe polished stainless steel 4" round angle cut muffler tip a try. It was $17.00 brand new on eBay with free shipping. When it arrived it seemed that it was going to be a major PITA to install because the inlet on the tip is 3"+ and the tailpipe is only 2 1/8". The 1st generation (2003-2008) Vibes actually came with a smaller muffler tip from the factory and then this bigger, fancier GM one would simply be slid on over the existing tip and tightened down with a band clamp. My exhaust guy ended up making a sleeve and welding it to the tailpipe, than sliding the tip over that and tightening it down using the band clamp that came with the tip. I couldn't be happier with the new look of the rear end !

*NOTE: Please excuse the dirty Vibe .*

Looks good!


http://www.autotalk.com/pictures/data/1536/medium/2005_Chevrolet_Cavalier_Xtreme_002_autotalk_com_.jpg

Thanks !

Not that anyone really cares, but here are a few more updates on the Vibe:

In Winter Mode For A GenVibe Picture Challenge Shot - 01.28.13



TRD Forged Aluminum Oil Filler Cap With Metallic Silver Painted Insert - 05.12.13





TRD Front Strut Brace - 05.17.13







40,000 Miles! - 05.18.13



After A Full Exterior Detail - 05.25.13





Now for some commentary on the above pictures...

I am so glad I spent the money to get OEM wheel covers for the winter steelies. The Vibe now looks so much more respectable during the winter months.

I had a TRD oil cap for a while a couple years ago, but got tired of it. I decided to put it back on and this time I just painted the TRD logo'd insert with GM color matched spray paint I had since I am not fond of logos, decals, etc. I think it looks much better like this because the metallic silver paint is almost exactly the same color as the aluminum of the cap itself.

I had been debating about whether to get the TRD front strut brace for a while now. I finally decided to bite the bullet and get it because I was getting sick of looking at the goofy looking OEM strut brace and I figured the red of the TRD brace would add a little more color to the engine bay without being too obnoxious. Wow, am I glad I got the TRD brace! It is about half the weight of the OEM one and since it's all one piece, as opposed to the OEM's 3-piece design, it actually tightened up the front end significantly. Just a bit of a side note, I removed the TRD badge before installation.

I have only put on 40,000 miles since getting the Vibe with 76 miles on it on April 11 of 2009. This thing is definitely going to last me a long time at this rate!

Since the weather here in Chicagoland finally decided to cooperate, I did a full exterior detail over Memorial Day weekend. I washed it, dried it, clay barred it, washed it again, dried it again, used Mother's Water Spot Remover For Glass on all the exterior glass (including the sunroof) and finished up with the Mother's 3 Step Ultimate Wax System. All the other products I used were Mother's as well. I am very happy with the results. It was well worth the approximately 8 hours total it took to complete the entire process. I am very happy with how my paint is holding up. Vibes are notorious for having crappy paintjobs that chip very easily. My front end has a few "battle scars" as I call them, but overall not bad at all for a 4 year old daily driver that has also seen 4 Chicagoland winters.

After 4+ years, I am still as happy as can be with the Vibe, although I definitely do miss my Sunfires. Perhaps someday I will get another one. If I do, it will most likely be a low mileage 2000 Ultra Silver Metallic Sunfire GT Convertible that will be a fair weather toy. We shall see what the future holds though. The Vibe is getting closer and closer to being paid off...

*UPDATE*

Black PlastiDipped OEM Wheels - 07.28.13

Plastidip FTW!

I like it! I pretty much would try putting black wheels on anything though lol.





"A car just isn't a car without a little blood, sweat, and beers." -- Shadowfire

The dipped wheels look good man. Keep it up!

the black wheels look ok, not bad but i liked the silver better. But over all nice vibe looks clean cut and nice.

I love the way you take your time not only in tastefully modding your Vibe but also in documenting everything. I wish I had the same patience...

Please keep it coming

Thanks for the kind words everyone! I really appreciate it ! I am not too sure how I feel about the black wheels, but that's the beauty of PlastiDip... it's not permanent! Hopefully it holds up until I put the winter wheels on in a few months and than I will probably peel it off. I'll be getting new tires when I get my income tax refund next year, so we'll see what I do with the wheels. I may end up getting them powder coated metallic silver, but I'm still undecided.

@ Sparky: FYI... I'm a girl !