Rather than remove the ugly (but in good shape) vinyl in our basement,
I am thinking
of putting engineered wood on top of it. Would vinyl work well as a
vapor barrier? Would you
suggest placing anything between the vinyl and the engineered wood?

What about doing the same in the kitchen? Moisutre is not a problem in
the kitchen but I'm not too excited about the thought of removing vinyl
and would prefer to leave it in place.