Thundercat
01-19-2009, 03:26 PM
Hey all, I've been lurking in the background for a while now. I purchased a 2004 Vue back in August to replace my 2001 SC2. The transmission let go in the SC2, I replaced it, got it safetied, and upgraded. It was also getting too small, and costing too much in speeding tickets. (one for 139 in 100, another for 137 in 100, another for 97 in 80km/h). That car liked to MOVE. Would do 100mph happily.
Again, it's a 2004, electric blue color. cloth seats, 4 speaker system. no sunroof. Honda's wonderful drivetrain (the main reason I decided on the Vue, Honda's have been in the family for 20+ years). There is currently 112,000km on the Vue.
The first thing I did was install a new stereo. Found the tech section on here very helpful. And you guys were right, the 4-way flasher button clips are junk, pushed it into the dash a few months later. still work though :)
I put a good 6000km on the Vue before any real serious inspections to it (aside from an oil change). It had a fresh safety, so no need for me to get in-depth right? well, turns out my front tires were wearing badly, horrible feathered edge from a toe-out situation. They were squealing a bit around corners, but figured it was the tire brand. Back to the dealer, told it was just a minor alignment issue. Fair enough. Took it in for an alignment. $260 later, it was fixed. The struts were changed as part of the safety, but the useless mechanic failed to mention the need for an alignment. I got half the bill back from the dealer. Took measurements of the tire treads....front tires at 4/32", rear tires at 13/32". Not a happy camper now I tell you!!!! back to the dealer, they say it's the mechanic's situation. Talk to him, he says it's the dealers call. Get the old runaround, and I have to replace a pair of tires out of my own pocket. I'm less than thrilled about that situation!!!!!
In regards to the alignment, when they installed new struts, they failed to install them with the proper cam-bolt kit. This gave the truck a toe-out of 1-23/32"!!!!!!!!
I live in Winnipeg, so I am definately a fan of the AWD. It works great for me, and by the sounds of the other threads, I have a good set of tires on. The tires are Cooper Discoverer ATR's, good for about 80,000km. Of course, I won't get that out of the ones that were on the front. I've since rotated the good ones to the front. My AWD kicks in nicely, with a slight hum, and sends me ahead of traffic off the line in icey and in sloppy road conditions.
I'm getting married in May, and we're expecting our first child in July, so I'm very glad of the safety-ness of this vehicle. The thread about the tarp encounter boosted my faith in the safety aspect.
I have nothing to complain about as of yet, but again, I haven't done a whole lot. Plans for the spring are plugs, timing belt, serpentine, and trans fluid change.
Another note, I just read about a surging transmission at around 50mph. My Vue does the same thing, and it's a bit of a nuisance. It's just not happy at that speed. At 90km/h, it's fine, but at 80km/h, surges. Someone posted that the "I" gear needs to be adjusted, and I agree.
Great info on here, I'm impressed :)
Again, it's a 2004, electric blue color. cloth seats, 4 speaker system. no sunroof. Honda's wonderful drivetrain (the main reason I decided on the Vue, Honda's have been in the family for 20+ years). There is currently 112,000km on the Vue.
The first thing I did was install a new stereo. Found the tech section on here very helpful. And you guys were right, the 4-way flasher button clips are junk, pushed it into the dash a few months later. still work though :)
I put a good 6000km on the Vue before any real serious inspections to it (aside from an oil change). It had a fresh safety, so no need for me to get in-depth right? well, turns out my front tires were wearing badly, horrible feathered edge from a toe-out situation. They were squealing a bit around corners, but figured it was the tire brand. Back to the dealer, told it was just a minor alignment issue. Fair enough. Took it in for an alignment. $260 later, it was fixed. The struts were changed as part of the safety, but the useless mechanic failed to mention the need for an alignment. I got half the bill back from the dealer. Took measurements of the tire treads....front tires at 4/32", rear tires at 13/32". Not a happy camper now I tell you!!!! back to the dealer, they say it's the mechanic's situation. Talk to him, he says it's the dealers call. Get the old runaround, and I have to replace a pair of tires out of my own pocket. I'm less than thrilled about that situation!!!!!
In regards to the alignment, when they installed new struts, they failed to install them with the proper cam-bolt kit. This gave the truck a toe-out of 1-23/32"!!!!!!!!
I live in Winnipeg, so I am definately a fan of the AWD. It works great for me, and by the sounds of the other threads, I have a good set of tires on. The tires are Cooper Discoverer ATR's, good for about 80,000km. Of course, I won't get that out of the ones that were on the front. I've since rotated the good ones to the front. My AWD kicks in nicely, with a slight hum, and sends me ahead of traffic off the line in icey and in sloppy road conditions.
I'm getting married in May, and we're expecting our first child in July, so I'm very glad of the safety-ness of this vehicle. The thread about the tarp encounter boosted my faith in the safety aspect.
I have nothing to complain about as of yet, but again, I haven't done a whole lot. Plans for the spring are plugs, timing belt, serpentine, and trans fluid change.
Another note, I just read about a surging transmission at around 50mph. My Vue does the same thing, and it's a bit of a nuisance. It's just not happy at that speed. At 90km/h, it's fine, but at 80km/h, surges. Someone posted that the "I" gear needs to be adjusted, and I agree.
Great info on here, I'm impressed :)