Pontiac :: 2003 Vibe - Check Engine Light On / No Codes Stored
Aug 16, 2015
My wife and I recently bought a 2003 Pontiac Vibe, a Toyota Matrix with slightly different skin, and shortly after we got a check engine light. When I inspected the car before purchase I noticed that there was black soot in the exhaust pipe. The owner told me that he'd put a cat back exhaust but I suspected I'd probably be replacing the O2 sensors soon and we negotiated the price accordingly. So now it's a month later and I bought an OBD II checker. I followed the instructions and after the checker and the cars ECU linked it showed no stored codes. I turned off the CEL and we went shopping. Mid way on the drive home, we live out in the country, the CEL came on again. Went through the procedure again, still no codes stored. I've read the instruction manual twice and I don't think I'm doing anything wrong. Is it possible to have a check engine light on and there to be no codes stored for the OBD tester to find? I could have bought many rolls of black tape for what the tester cost and I kept the receipt just in case.
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I never had a single problem with that great car, now at 164,000 km, but got my first check engine warnings last friday, with the VSC OFF flashing, as well as the stabilitrak and check engine signals being lit. The car was still running fine, so I disconnected the battery this weekend and erased the codes. But this morning (2 days only later), the warnings are back. I went to a local garage and they retrieved the following codes: P043F, PO43E, P2402, P2419, P2401 and P2402. What do I do with this?
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I have 4 lights that came on simultaneously on my 2009 Pontiac Vibe. My check engine, AWD, Traction Control and my VSC Off is blinking. I had the codes read at Advance Auto and 2 codes came up and they are C1201 Engine control module performance and P0456 Evaporative emission system leak detected (very small leak).
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Every year at this time I get check engine code about either the temp. sensor or the thermostat. I replace the temp. sensor every year, and last year I replaced both the temp. sensor and the thermostat and flushed the cooling system and replaced the coolant. but not this year, no I'm not doing it! For there has to be some other reason other than the temp sensor failing each year! 2005 Pontiac Bonneville 3.8 V6....
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I have a 2009 Pontiac Vibe with 43,000 miles. Recently the check engine light, the vehicle stability control light and the traction control system light all came on simultaneously. Since then they have all come on or all gone off several times. Usually once they come on, they stay on for the remainder of the trip. Sometimes they will still be on when I next start the car, sometimes they will be off. What might be causing this?
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My Vibe (manual trans) started making a weird chattering/fluttering noise in 4th gear a couple of weeks ago, so I took it in (mileage around 160k). The noise was similar to the one it was making two years ago when the transmission tore itself to shreds and the shop did a full rebuild, so I was somewhat concerned about taking it in before I was stranded on the road somewhere. It took several days to find the problem, but apparently a balance shaft moved and chipped some teeth, and that somehow affected the trans in 3rd and 4th gears.
Now when they were explaining this I was trying to calm a screaming baby, so I wasn't really paying attention to the explanation, but I wanted to verify that this could happen and that I really do need yet another rebuild, this time with a new balance shaft. He's cutting me a break (this rebuild is significantly cheaper than the last one).
All this said, I really do trust my mechanic, but am really considering letting go of this curse of a car. I've now paid for it's value 1.5 times over the last two years. While the mechanic assures me this trans is bulletproof, two incidents in as many years makes me think otherwise. A quick google search doesn't allay my fears either...
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So I have been having some troubles with my 2003 F150 4.6L ... Truck has been running rough and the check engine light was on so I decided to get the codes read and I got back P0302 and P0304, which from what I understand is a misfire on cylinders 3 & 4. At the same time I got Ford to do a little diagnostic and this is what they wrote for me:
"The connector for the number 2 coil is broken and will not stay plugged on to the coil and the number 2 coil is not working / replaced the wire for the coil still running rough removed the coil and plug. the plug was very badly fuel soaked started the vehicle to see if there was spark at the plug. OK. Suspect either a injector issue or a compression issue cleaned the plug seems better. "
So of course they quoted me for the works. They say I should replace the coils, plugs, and injectors??? I am pretty mechanically inclined and think I could change these things myself since I am on a budget. One tech told me is that the plugs can seize in these engines often and could scrap the whole thing??? Seems a little weird. If that happens though what could I do?
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Ive got a question for all you code readers out there. My dreaded check engine light has been on for about a month. I bought a code reader recently and checked it out. Two codes come up; PO401 and PO446. What these mean. My book says "Exhaust Gas Recirc. Flow Insufficient Detected" and " Evaporative Emission Control System Vent Control Circuit Malfunction". Which sensors, location on vehicle, etc..... this is a 97 5.4L Expedition.
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I have a 2003 Pontiac Vibe that was new to me in 2011. Pushing 180k+ miles. It was subject to the airbag recall last summer and has been repaired by the GM guys. But last fall I was driving at around 70mph with the cruise on and came up to a speed change so I tapped the brakes to end the cruise and EVERYTHING went dark in the car- radio, dashboard, a/c, the electrical charging plug- EVERYTHING for about 5-7 seconds. Then everything came back on and I continued as normal. My mechanic was dumbfounded. Figured one time freak thing so no worries.
No issues since until this morning. On the drive to work I had the high beams on as it was 5:15 in the morning on a state highway in the country. Came up on a red light so flipped high beams off. EVERYTHING goes dark for 5-7 seconds, comes back on, and I continue as normal. Obviously I'm getting a little concerned at the randomness, not to mention that losing power at 70mph is a little disconcerting. Mechanic is dumbfounded but willing to tear up the dash and steering column and see if he can't recreate the issue.
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I have a 2003 Pontiac vibe fwd base model with the 5 speed manual transmission and I recently replaced the clutch, half axles, ball joints, etc. It drove wonderfully for around 50 miles or so but now it can't get going.
The engine starts just fine, but when you put it into gear its like the whole engine starts stuttering. It shakes and clunks and the wheels get no power, just this horrible and violent noise.
I checked the clutch fit with the alignment tool, used a new flywheel, torqued all the bolts, but I just don't know what I missed. What I could have done wrong? If there's a possible fix that doesn't involve taking the transmission off again?
Here's a video I took or what it's doing ....
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I have an 03 vibe. when the temperature get cold around 18 degrees or colder, what would cause the daytime running lights to com on by their self and drain the battery.
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This is a weird problem. But now I have had the same thing happen with two different 2003 Pontiac Vibes so I am wondering what is going on! I have owned two 2003 Pontiac Vibes and both have had this same annoying experience. When it is extremely cold (this morning it is minus 8) the headlights turn on. Not the tailights, jut the headlights. Obviously this drains the battery (I have a charger on the car right now, and the headlights are still on!) Is there any way to stop this from happening, short of disconnecting the battery every night?
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2003 Pontiac Vibe, 5 speed manual, 70K miles. Recently the cruise control started shutting itself off; if I keep turning it on/off it will hold speed again for awhile, but a few mins later the same problem reappears. Some days the CC works just fine; other days it flickers on/off. The cruise light starts flickering too when this happens, but doesn't remain off. I am not touching the clutch, brake, gas.Seems unrelated to weather or road conditions.
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Last winter, I noticed the engine was surging intermittently after start-up, until the engine warmed up. No issues on warmer days, spring/summer, etc.. Recently, the check engine light came on, so I took it into the shop. The shop did not feel the problem was the throttle body, and replaced the mass air flow sensor. The engine is still doing the surging thing after starting up.
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I have a 2006 Pontiac Vibe with an AC Compressor that my be frozen. My car was sitting for 6 months not be used. Before the AC worked great. When i put the ac on a few days ago, my engine died. I turned the ac off and started the car up again, and no problem. I pressed AC button and car slowly died. Does my ac pump need more oil, or a new ac compressor?
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I have a 2003 AWD Pontica Vibe, automatic transition, almost to 100,000 miles, the majority of which are from midwestern highway driving. Last summer on a long highway drive, the cruise control mysteriously shut itself off after maybe 2 hours, and wouldn't hold speed again no matter how many times I tried to reset it. When I stopped for gas and tried it again after restarting the car, it worked fine for months. I figured it need a reboot and didn't worry about it.
But since November the same thing always happens: the cruise control works the first time you set it for anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour, and then it shuts itself off. Any attempts to reset it after that will hold speed for anywhere from 10 seconds to about a minute. The "cruise" light on the dashboard flickers at the moment the speed drops, but doesn't remain off.
I am definitely not touching the brake, and there is no correlation with road conditions or weather as far as I can tell. We took it to the dealer in December to check for electrical problems, but they didn't find any error codes. I'm not sure what the next step is - should we drive it on the highway for an hour and THEN check the codes once it's in a malfunctioning state? Or is there another likely culprit?
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I had the airbag recall work done recently. Last week, the passenger airbag status light stayed on, even with the engine turned off, and the key removed. The word, "Passenger" is constantly illuminated. The dealer that did the recall work told me to go home, and read my manual. A week later, a Toyota dealership told me that this is normal. I can't believe him, the word Passenger should not be lit when the car is off, and the key removed. When the passenger seat is occupied, Airbag On, or OFF works fine. It is just the word PASSENGER that is constantly lit.
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We have taken our 2006 Pontiac Vibe to two different mechanics numerous times trying to find out what's wrong, but they told us that the car needs to not start for them in order for them to diagnose the problem. The issue with this is that every time we leave it with them, it starts just fine, and they charge us $45 per night to leave it there. We are scared to use the car because we don't want to be stranded somewhere when it randomly doesn't start.
Symptoms:
- Starts sometimes, but not consistently (once every week or two, it just won't start)
- The car sounds like it is almost going to start, as we are hearing more than just clicking, but for some reason the engine just never gets to that final rumble to stay on.
- When the issue occurs, the car will sometimes start if we try again minutes or hours later
- Jumping the battery seems to get it start.
Previous Attempts:
- Already changed the battery
- Already gotten a tune-up and oil change
As I said, we are incredibly frustrated, as this problem is not consistent enough to show up for the mechanic, and therefore renders us with an unreliable and undiagnosable car.
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I have a 99 f150 with the 4.2l v6 with a 5 speed 173000 miles. I picked it up not to long ago. When I first got it it had both the P0171 & P0174 lean on bank 1&2 it was also siting for a while. I replaced the fuel filter which was filled with black fuel, also changed the PCV valve, cleaned the MAF sensor, and changed the oil. I cleared the code, drove it for a little bit and the light came back on after 20 miles.
I then proceeded to replace the upper and lower intake manifold gaskets. Upon doing that i noticed that i was missing one of the linkages for the IMRC. I went to the junkyard and pulled off another linkage rod off the same motor. ordered new plastic clips, put the IMRC on cleaned everything up and began putting it back together. I also cleaned the Injectors while i had them out as well and put in new spark plugs and wires.
Put everything back together. code was cleared since the battery was disconnected. drove it and then the engine light came back on again. this time it was only the p0174. so i then both the upstream and downstream O2 sensors on bank 2, reset the code and it came back on again. I'm lost.
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My friend has a 1996 or 1997 Pontiac Bonneville with over 130K miles on it and its been in her family for several years and she says the "Check Engine" light on it has never turned off. She's taken it to different shops to have it looked at and none of them can tell her what's wrong with it. As far as she can tell, the car runs fine, she keeps up with the service on it but I wonder what would be causing this? I once owned a 1999 Chevy Malibu with the V-6 3.1 liter engine and I had the same thing happen to me but when I had it serviced, the mechanic hooked a little code reading device to it and turns out the spark plugs were misfiring so he changed the coil pack in it....problem solved. So obviously my friend is having issues with fuel emissions system in it but I wonder why the mechanics in the City she lives in can't seem to figure out the problem. Not saying her car has the same problem my old malibu once had, there's a number of reasons why that light turns on and from what I've learned it usually involves the fuel emissions system in it. So what could be wrong with it?
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I've had a check engine light on in my 3.5 Pontiac G6 for awhile now. It's an emission code (can't remember what code but evap leak). The solenoid by canister was also tripping a code that disappeared after I changed it. However, the evap code still persists. Last night while changing my oil I noticed the intake air hose to the crankcase had broke at the case and wasn't connected. It's the hose that runs from the engine intake to the crankcase for the PCV system.
I am replacing the hose regardless, but my question is; would the intake hose for the PCV system being loose cause an evap leak code? I am thinking no but it'd be nice if it was that simple.
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