By accessing this website, you acknowledge that Edmunds and its third party business partners may use cookies, pixels, and similar technologies to collect information about you and your interactions with the website as described in our
Privacy Statement, and you agree that your use of the website is subject to our
Visitor Agreement.
Comments
It is a LOT more than a non-GT Vibe, and you can equip a non-GT to have all the features of the GT.
The GT gets 6mpg less, and to get the extra oomph you have to rev the engine to 6000 RPM. Also, the GT requires premium fuel.
People might think I have a souped up car and start to drag race me at every stop light.
However, the dealer is telling me that the owner's manual is wrong, and that the Pontiac technicians say that the cruise control is designed to operate that way. I know that this is not true, I just want you guys to verify that yours is working correctly. To have to reset (not resume) cruise control after every stop is just rediculous. Thanks for your help.
P.S. cfilkins - I've got the high-idle thing too, but only for the first few minutes.
Owners - does your cruise control do the same thing? Does anyone have any information about this issue? Thanks again for your help.
My Vibe drinks 9 liter gas at its first 100km.
When I start my Vibe, it idle at about 1800rpm. Even I don't wait it warms up and shift to D, it drops to about 800rpm immediately. I think they designed this way.
You're driving on a U.S. Highway, cruising along at 62 mph, and stop for one of those stoplights that pop up sporadically on U.S. Highways. In every other car I've ever driven, once I've accelerated back up at least to over 35 mph, I should be able to hit resume and go right back to exactly 62 mph. The owner's manual of the Vibe says I should be able to. But I can't.
However, if I hit the brake to slow down for a brief period of heavy traffic, as long as my speed doesn't fall below 25 mph, I can resume my previous speed.
No, it's not that hard to set the speed again, but resume does make things a little easier, and it's how the cruise control is supposed to work. It's how every other cruise control system works, as far as I've experienced (and I've experienced a lot of cars when I worked for a car magazine a couple of years ago). If there's a defect in the system, I think Pontiac owes us a TSB to fix it rather than saying, "Oh, uh, the owner's manual is wrong and that's how it's supposed to work."
Based on my example above, is that how the cruise control system works on your Vibes?
Actually, all of the cars I've driven where I've used the cruise control can resume from a complete stop (as long as you accelerate back up to at least 35 mph). I guess I just never used the cruise control in the Toyotas I've driven or any other make that has this quirk.
I just wanted to be sure that's the way its supposed to work, because automakers will try to get out of any warranty work that they can. Thanks again for your help.
Lets put this to rest.
What a coincidence! I got some strange vibes from an Intrigue I just saw
Sorry, but I couldn't resist...
Has anyone seen or heard otherwise?
The Matrix selling for $2000 less for the same equipped vehicle might have something to do with it.
I guess supply is less here, who knows. Florida is a retirement state so the old folks probably don't like the Vibe. ;-)
Still waiting for my shadow coloured base model Vibe that I ordered in March. There are barely any Vibes available in Saskatchewan, Canada.
A while back, I priced out and compared a Base model, a moderately equipped model, and a fully loaded model, and they each came very close to $2000 (US) each lower on the Matrix version. The options used in each case were identical.
Also, it would be impossible for the Vibe to have a better lease program. Actually its the opposite due to the poor residual of the Vibe, which is a whopping 11 points lower than the same equipped Matrix. Depending on your money factor this means a savings of $60 to $100 EACH MONTH if you lease a Matrix instead of the Vibe (just on the residual difference alone).
These numbers are from 3 weeks ago on loaded models for a 3 year lease with $0 down:
Matrix XRS - MSRP @ $19,900 - Purchase @ $19,500 - lease payment = $310 + tax
Vibe GT - MSRP @ $22,000 - Purchase @ $20,700 - lease payment = $375 + tax
So, even with pontiac giving the Vibe away at invoice, it still not even close. The payment goes over $400 if you add the extra $1000 to the purchase price of the Vibe.
http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=16
Anyhow, they found one at a nearby dealer with the options we wanted in the "Shadow" color, which also matches the body cladding. Was a bit worried about the color being a boring gray but it is actually quite nice -- not really gray at all but more a topey/mocha type of color. We got the base model with sport and safety (ABS) packages. We wanted a sunroof and unfortunately had to get the whole sport package to get it -- I already had my eye on some aftermarket wheels and we already have a high-end stereo to put in it. I also expect to mod the engine, perhaps with the supercharger, should it become available.
Paid MSRP - it's pretty hard to bargain when you have no other alternative save waiting for 5-6 months. I would have gone for the Matrix but I had $3200 in GM Card earnings and another $1000 grad bonus so it would take an amazing deal from Toyota to beat that! I also wonder if there is less room for price movement here in Canada. If you take the US base price of 16k and times it by the current exchange rate you get about 25k Canadian -- but the Canadian base price is only 19k (and those auto-plant workers are paid in $US!). Anyhow I'm happy and it feels like a good value for what it is. Best wishes to all!
Revka
Host
Hatchbacks & Station Wagons Boards
This is my experience, I don't know the GT/XRS pricing or what the prices are in the U.S. at all for that matter. Up here, the Vibe is a decent deal and if you have GM points or grad money, it get's even better.
Have seen how the roof racks would look on the Toyota Matrix (i.e. if you ever decide to put them on by yourself) ? I have to agree the body cladding is really ugly.
Thanks
Prime: keep us updated on how it drives. Good luck.
1. Replace the factory speakers with mid-range aftermarket models (look on the net for recommendations). I haven't had the doors apart yet on the Vibe, but it often makes a huge difference as well how secure the speakers are in the doors, and how solid the panels are around them. It will do wonders for the bass and the overall solidity of the sound if you reinforce the areas around the speakers in the doors. You can get tacky sound/vibration dampening material from car audio stores (typically it's expensive) or get something on-line or from a hardware store. www.b-quiet.com has some good and cheap stuff.
2. At this point you'll find out how good the factory deck is in terms of sound quality and power. If you have the premium package with the external amplifier you might be okay... otherwise you might want to add one. If you do have the base stereo I suspect that your total cost to upgrade the speakers and add a small amp will actually be less than the option cost to purchase the 'premium' system... and again you'll have something that you'll probably enjoy much more.
3. Once you're happy with the speakers and the power and sound going to them, your next likely upgrade is a subwoofer for better bass extension. I'm curious what sort of space is available behind the panels and under the cargo space in the Vibe... it might be possible to install something that doesn't occupy any usuable space. I've seen small ones that might add a bit of bass that will probably fit in the circular cut-out underneith the cargo area.
Enjoy!
Avalanche cladding is not good and will only be an option next year.
Base Model Shadow
automatic trans
side airbags
power package
abs and engine block heater
MSRP about $19,100
GMO Price $17,100
GM Card -$ 3,150
With Tax out the door under $15,000 very happy with this price. Financed with People First 36 months 5.4%. We had one minor problem with a squeak which the dealer fixed quickly. After 600 miles very happy with the car also gas mileage has been over 30 MPG with mixed driving.