Pontiac Vibe GT

The Pontiac Vibe is a car produced in Fremont, California, in the United States by NUMMI (New United Motor Manufacturing, Inc), a joint venture between General Motors and Toyota. It is a short and tall station wagon that is being marketed as a trendy, quasi-SUV vehicle for younger buyers. Prototypes were shown at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit in January 2000 and production vehicles came on the market in 2002 for the 2003 model year.

Toyota markets the same vehicle in North America as the Toyota Matrix. Due to lack of capacity at the NUMMI plant in Fremont, the Matrix is produced at a Toyota plant in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada.

The car features a standard household-style 115 volt AC electrical outlet so that common electrical devices can be used inside the car without a separate inverter.

The Vibe is available in an economical base model, a "sporty" GT trim with more power, or an all-wheel drive model.

Powertrains available for this car are a 1.8 L I4 16-valve engine producing 126 hp on the base model (manual or automatic transmission), 118 hp on the all-wheel drive model (automatic only), or a version with VVTL-i producing 164 hp for the GT (manual 6-speed only). The Vibe is currently the most fuel efficient vehicle sold by GM in North America.

There have been some minor changes between model years. The Vibe was first produced in 2002 and went on sale as a 2003 model. Horsepower ratings for the first three model years were slightly higher, with the GT up to 180 hp, the base model rated at 130 hp, and the all-wheel drive model rated at 126 hp. Engine power claims decreases to current levels for 2006, as a result of Toyota's re-testing of its engines for the new SAE ratings standard.

The front fascia was freshened in the 2005 model year. In an attempt to 'converge' the Pontiac look, the front grill was restyled to resemble the look of the Pontiac Solstice, also adopted by other vehicles in the Pontiac line.

The all-wheel drive and GT versions will be dropped after 2006 due to poor sales and new federal emissions standards, leaving only the base Vibe.

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