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Pontiac Vibe Vehicle Speed Control Safety Report | July 09, 2010
Reported on July 09, 2010
| MY FIANCEÉ AND I HAVE EXPERIENCED THE SUDDEN ACCELERATION PROBLEM IN HER 2009 PONTIAC VIBE BOTH BEFORE AND AFTER THE FACTORY RETROFIT A SHIM IN THE THROTTLE. BOTH TIMES WE WERE GOING SLOWLY (<20 MPH) AS WE APPROACHED A STOP SIGN AND RELEASING PRESSURE ON THE THROTTLE DID NOT CAUSE THE ENGINE TO SLOW. EACH TIME THE PROBLEM PERSISTED FOR 2-3 SECONDS. CASE I: CLEAR DAY IN FEBRUARY 2010 WITH GOOD ROAD CONDITIONS ON LEVEL GROUND. THE ENGINE DID NOT THROTTLE BACK WHEN LINDA TOOK HER FOOT OFF THE GAS AND PUT IT ON THE BRAKE. FOR PERHAPS 2 SECONDS THE ENGINE RACED. I HAD TIME TO LOOK AT THE TACHOMETER AND SAW IT WAS ABOUT 2500 RPM, WITH THE GAS PEDAL RELEASED AND HER FOOT FIRMLY ON THE BRAKE. PERHAPS TWO SECONDS AFTER SHE RELEASED PRESSURE FROM THE GAS PEDAL AND APPLIED THE BRAKE, THE RPM DROPPED AND THE CAR CAME TO A SPEEDY HALT. THIS PUSHED THE CAR ABOUT 3 FEET PAST THE WHITE INTERSECTION DEMARCATION LINE BEFORE IT STOPPED. THE DAY BEFORE THIS HAPPENED, LINDA AND I HAD REMOVED THE DRIVER SIDE FLOOR MAT. LINDA PROMPTLY TOOK THE CAR TO HER DEALER AND HAD THE WARRANTY REPAIR TO THE THROTTLE MECHANISM COMPLETED WITHIN A FEW DAYS. CASE II: FRIDAY JULY 9, 2010, WAS A CLEAR DAY IN JULY, MUCH WARMER, WITH EXCELLENT ROAD CONDITIONS ON A NEWLY PAVED ROAD. THIS TIME THE TRANSMISSION DID NOT GEAR DOWN AS ONE WOULD EXPECT UNDER NORMAL OPERATION, WHICH I BELIEVE, KEPT THE ENGINE FROM RACING. AGAIN AS IN THE FIRST CASE, FOR PERHAPS 2-3 SECONDS AFTER LINDA HAD TAKEN HER FOOT OFF THE GAS AND APPLIED THE BRAKE, THE VEHICLE RESISTED HER ATTEMPT TO MAKE IT SLOW SMOOTHLY. THEN THE ENGINE SOUND DIMINISHED SUDDENLY, AS THE TRANSMISSION EXECUTED A HARD SHIFT DOWN AND THE VEHICLE CAME TO A CONTROLLED STOP, ALSO SEVERAL FEET PAST THE INTERSECTION DEMARCATION LINE, BUT NOT REALLY OUT INTO THE INTERSECTION. LAST WEEK, PONTIAC REPLACED THE THROTTLE ASSEMBLY. *TR | |
| Make: | Pontiac |
| Model: | Vibe |
| Manufactured by: | GENERAL MOTORS CORP. |
| Year: | 2009 |
| Was a crash reported? | N |
| Was an injury reported? | 0 person(s) were injured. |
| Was a death reported? | 0 person(s) died. |
| Was a fire reported? | N |
| Location: | ALGONQUIN IL |
| Vehicle Identification Number (VIN): | 5Y2SM67009Z |
| Mileage: | 29630 miles. |
| Speed: | 20 MPH |
| Number of cylinders: | |
| Vehicle type: | |
| Vehicle fuel: | |
| Was a police report filed? | N |
| Tire size: | |
| Dealer name and location: | |
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