The Vibe - Good, the Bad and The UGLY

[05 Roush]

Well, as many of you have heard through my usually ranting on here I've been having drivetrain vibration since day one.

The Good

After taking the car in recently to have the TOB TSB done, they also recommended replacing the clutch. I did so begrudgingly, but LOW AND BEHOLD the car ran as smooth as silk on a buttered grease monkey. Finally, after 2 years of anguish the vibe was completely GONE. :burnout:

The Bad

Doing some thinking I deducted that when the boobs down at the last dealership replaced the clutch (while replacing the trannie for the vibe) at 5000 miles, they didn't center the clutch disc correctly.

As a result, the clutch wore out prematurely (at 23K miles) while causing vibration above 75 MPH and a nasty pulsation when depressing the clutch. The TOB was fine, other than your usual wear. Their mistake cost me $530 worth of parts and labor. This is when I get irritated.

So, for you people with the vibe out there, have your clutch checked ASAP.

The Ugly

After I drove the car yesterday, at highway speeds the car started to vibrate again. It kept getting worse and worse and worse. By then I knew something was wrong. After pulling off the road, I noted the entire passenger side axleshaft, exhaust, and tire was covered with grease, AGAIN!.

You guessed it, another set of BAD axleshaft boots. :bash: This will be axleshaft set #5. Plus I may have to have the rear HPS pads replaced from grease contamination, and you know what that means. Stock pad replacement by the dealer. :nonono:


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I believe this is the final straw. I just can't take this poor workmanship any longer. Sure, it's fine and dandy when you have no problems, but when you do, it seems many of the dealers just are not properly trained nor care enough to fix the car right the first time. This WILL BE the last Ford I ever own. Sorry Ford, you've lost a loyal lifetime customer on this one.

I apologize for the venting but I thought some of you guys with the vibe should know my dilemma.

 

[I-CAN-STANG]

I hear ya! I feel the same way and that's why I'm kinda half scared to mod this thing any further. It's like rolling dice and it shouldn't be that way at all. :nonono: This will be the last Ford I'll buy so I can 2nd your decision. I'm not ready to dump money into a car with only 27k miles on it, it's stupid.....:nonono:

 

[SCREAMnCOBRA]

When installing half shaft boots you must shoot some air in before you clamp it down. This will make the boot retain its round shape.
If it does not have a near perfect round shape it will leak under high rpm.

 

[05 Roush]

When installing half shaft boots you must shoot some air in before you clamp it down. This will make the boot retain its round shape.
If it does not have a near perfect round shape it will leak under high rpm.

I hear you. Unfortunately the dealer installed complete halfshafts that included the boots, so I'm not sure if you can screw these up or not while installing.

I hear ya! I feel the same way and that's why I'm kinda half scared to mod this thing any further. It's like rolling dice and it shouldn't be that way at all. This will be the last Ford I'll buy so I can 2nd your decision. I'm not ready to dump money into a car with only 27k miles on it, it's stupid.....:nonono:

That's the same boat I'm in. If the driveline was OK, I'd be modding like crazy but the tranny and rear end is just too fragile. One bad wheel hop episode and kaboom. That's ridiculous. You should be able to hop once in a while without having to do the sign of the cross.