2004 Pontiac Vibe
By Tom Strongman

Pontiac's compact Vibe hatchback occupies a new niche: sporty hatchback with the function of a small sport-utility vehicle. It is even offered with all-wheel drive.

Base prices of the three models range from the mid-$16,000s to over $20,000.

The Vibe is built in California's NUMMI plant, which is a joint operation of Toyota and General Motors. The Vibe shares its basic structure and mechanical components with the Toyota Matrix.

With a wide stance, large wheels, fast-back roofline and an integrated roof rack, the Vibe is clearly designed for the youth market. It is recognizably a Pontiac. The twin-port grille, cat-eye headlamps and fog lamps look a little like a scaled-down Aztek, but the overall design is much better looking.

 The test car was equipped with dealer-installed spoilers on the roof, tailgate and front fascia. They gave the Vibe a more aggressive look, but they were a little too gaudy for my taste and added $1,890 to the price.

The transversely mounted, 1.8-liter, twin-cam four-cylinder is essentially the same as the one in the Toyota Celica. This all-aluminum powerplant comes in two versions: the base model, with 130 horsepower, and the Vibe GT, with 180 horsepower. Both engines have variable valve timing. The 130-horse engine is available with a manual or automatic transmission, and last summer Pontiac began offering an optional supercharger through its dealers. The GT comes with a six-speed manual transmission and it is not offered with all-wheel drive.

Pontiac says the Vibe scoots to 60 miles per hour in a little over eight seconds. The automatic test car didn't feel quite that peppy, but overall performance was adequate.

The Vibe's tall roof and upright seating position gives excellent visibility. Leg and head room is pretty good for a car with a 102.4-inch wheelbase. The instrument panel looks like a cockpit. Silver-ringed gauges with amber/orange night lighting are clustered in front of the driver. The center section of the dash, which contains controls for heating, cooling and audio, is finished in brushed silver. Smooth surfaces throughout the interior give the car an upscale feel.

 Interior flexibility is what makes the Vibe appeal to buyers, regardless of age. The 60/40 rear seat not only folds down to create a flat load floor, but the passenger-side front seat can be folded forward, giving a space on one side of the vehicle big enough for 8-foot-long objects such as a step ladder or skis. Access is through a large rear hatch whose glass also opens separately. The cargo area can swallow up to 57.2 cubic feet of cargo. The rear floor, covered in hard plastic, features a unique cargo system that includes two parallel tracks running the length of the rear compartment. Unwieldy items can be secured with adjustable sliding anchors. The ability to haul lots of stuff in a small package is important to the kind of young, active buyers at whom the Vibe is targeted.

Nine storage compartments are located throughout the vehicle. The center console has a cell-phone holder with power outlet.

Standard equipment includes an AM/FM stereo CD player and a 115-volt, two-prong household-style outlet in the cargo area for powering various accessories.