Slick sporty: Pontiac's Vibe hatchback takes good cues from Toyota

BY LAWRENCE ULRICH
DETROIT FREE PRESS AUTO CRITIC

Call it a crossover. Call it a hatchback. Or throw up your hands and call it a wagon, only jacked up to mimic the scenic overlook of a sport-utility.

However you define the Pontiac Vibe, include some descriptors not always associated of late with Pontiac: Modern. Distinctive. Versatile. Most of all, relevant.

The Vibe isn't perfect, but it is a slick mix of the sporty and practical, able to ferry four good-size adults, or two plus a fat hatch load of gear.

Now, with the possible exception of Velveeta-based snacks, everything tasty starts with impressive ingredients. Enter Chef Toyota, whose fine new Corolla provides the building blocks for both the Vibe and its Toyota-badged brother, the Matrix. (In a break with past joint projects between General Motors and Toyota, the two versions will be built at different plants, with the Vibe taking shape in Fremont, Calif., and the Matrix in Cambridge, Ontario).

In a nice twist, the Pontiac earns the styling nod over the busier-looking Matrix. "Cute" seems to be the operative word here, and the funky, chunky Vibe drew loads of goodwill when I drove it in metro Detroit and around Los Angeles.

Best of all, the Vibe isn't laden with exterior plastic in that notorious Pontiac style. It wears about a G-string's worth of body cladding, and it looks freer and happier because of it. Giddy with the discovery that an attractive car doesn't need the automotive equivalent of a girdle, Pontiac plans to ditch the heavy cladding on future models.

Pleasant surprises continue inside. Airy mesh fabric on the bucket seats looks refreshingly upscale. The dashboard design is clean, the ergonomics solid. The effect is one of unadorned quality. A soaring roofline creates tall-boy headroom both front and back. At 62 inches, the Vibe's height is identical to the Chrysler PT Cruiser's.

The interior's niftiest feature is the two-prong household power outlet in the dash. I plugged in a laptop, and it worked as advertised. Fantasies of whipping up waffles while I drive were quashed; the outlet isn't designed for energy-sucking household appliances. (Probably a good thing, not having to explain batter all over the seats.)

Rear chairs fold flat with no need to yank on the cushions or remove headrests. The load floor is covered in sturdy-looking gray plastic, with eight clever cargo tie-downs that adjust by sliding along two tracks. Another eight D-ring anchors are set along the walls.

With the seats down, I secured a folded, queen-size bed frame in the back with room to spare. The front passenger seat can also fold flat to accommodate narrow items up to 8 feet long.

You'll find more space behind the rear seat than in most hatchbacks. Drop the seat, and total cargo room grows to 57.2 cubic feet.

The lift gate features a separate lift glass, and there's hidden storage for small items under the cargo floor. If the back is stuffed to bursting, family quartermasters can use the standard roof rack, something the Toyota version skips.

Two gripes inside: The Toyota-based navigation system, a $1,600 option, has good speed and decent graphics. But the mix of touch-screen functions with rows of minuscule buttons makes for cumbersome operation. An optional six-CD player is inexplicably located under the passenger seat, and you need to wedge your head under the seat from the back to load or unload CDs.

OK, here's where it gets a bit tricky for buyers.

The base engine is the 1.8-liter, 130-horsepower four-banger from the Corolla. Acceleration is modest at best: 0-60 in about 9.5 seconds with the five-speed manual trans. But variable-valve timing and excellent gearing make this a flexible performer with terrific gas mileage: 30 m.p.g. city and 36 on the open road, equipped with the stick. At 80 m.p.h., the engine is barely turning 3,000 r.p.m., amazing for such a tidy power plant.

Move up to the Vibe GT, and the Toyota connection continues with the 180-horsepower engine from the Celica GT-S. Sounds great, and the Vibe GT can scoot from 0-60 m.p.h. in the mid 7-second range. That is, if you're willing to wring it out. The peak torque of 130 foot-pounds is only 5 more than in the base engine.

Now I'm a big fan of peaky power plants, but this thing is Mt. Everest. The GT doesn't say "go" until the engine hits its variable-valve stride at 6,800 r.p.m. From that lofty rev range, there's good pop all the way to the 8,200 r.p.m. redline. But hold your thumb and forefinger an inch apart, and you've got an idea of the useful power band. Even with the GT's added six-speed manual (a clunky, uninspiring unit), it's difficult to keep the engine in its ideal range. You end up rowing more than an Oxford crew member.

I can't recall an engine announcing itself this boisterously in the cabin, outside pure sports cars where you expect that kind of rock 'n' roll accompaniment. I sliced through craggy valleys north of Los Angeles with intrepid freelance photographer Jim Fets in tow, and we both got tired and headachy after three hours of high-r.p.m. racket.

If you're interested in the GT, I'd urge you to wheel it around town and especially on the freeway to make sure you're up for it.

The Vibe GT does reveal itself as the more fun-to-drive car. With room to stretch out, it's easier to keep the wildly high-strung engine in its sweet spot. Vibe GTs also add four-wheel disc brakes with ABS, compared with rear drums in other models.

The tall ride height helps inspire a healthy amount of body lean in fast corners, but the optional 17-inch tires help provide better stick than the 16-inch all-seasons on our base model. Nudge it past the limit, and the Vibe segues into the nicely controllable understeer, or front-end slide, that you expect from a front-driver.

My biggest beef with the Vibe is how it backs you into a corner at the dealership. Everyone was happy to hear the Vibe would offer all-wheel drive, but the Vibe AWD can't be had with the powerful GT engine. (Toyota and Pontiac say they don't have an AWD system that could handle the thermal loads of the high-revving engine.)

So people with the money and inclination to load up a Vibe GT can't get the feature that would make it a trusty all-season performer. In fact, opt for the AWD model and the base engine is actually detuned to 123 horsepower. Add the extra weight of AWD hardware, and you're stuck with the slowest Vibe of the bunch, with a 0-60 dawdle of about 11.5 seconds.

Having driven all three models, I lean strongly toward the base Vibe. It's just quick enough, especially with the stick. The power plant is less harried, more flexible and delivers much better mileage. And the $16,900 base price saves $3,000 over the GT.

A grump might dismiss the Vibe as simply a re-badged Toyota, and in many ways it is. But talking with Pontiac folks, it's clear that this car is influencing its direction and philosophy. So what if the folks at Pontiac take a lesson from Toyota? They could do much, much worse.

However they get there, here's to Pontiac making more cars as good as the Vibe.

2003 Pontiac Vibe
Rating: (out of four)

Toyota gets a big chunk of the credit, but the Vibe gives off welcome waves of the future at Pontiac.

Bragging points: Clean styling, tight construction. Appealing interior. Cargo-swallowing hatch. Reasonably sporty. Efficient, high-mileage base engine.

Nagging points: All-wheel drive not available in up-level GT model. Peaky, clamorous engine in GT. Sticky-feeling manual shifter. Cumbersome navigation system. Loaded prices a bit steep for younger buyers.

Vehicle type: Front-engine, front-wheel-drive or all-wheel-drive compact wagon

Key competitors: Toyota Matrix, Chrysler PT Cruiser, Mazda Protege5, Ford Focus ZX5, Volkswagen Golf

Base price:

$16,900
As tested:

$20,000 Standard equipment: Air bags, air conditioning, AM-FM-CD audio, power mirrors, intermittent wipers, fog lamps, roof rack, household power outlet, tilt steering, 60-40 split folding rear seats.
Options: ABS, power windows and locks, remote keyless entry, cruise control, rear hatch release, 16-inch aluminum wheels, DVD navigation with 6-CD changer

Specifications: (Manufacturer's data)

Engine: (Base model) 1.8-liter four-cylinder, 130 horsepower, 125 foot-pounds torque

Fuel economy:

30 m.p.g. city, 36 highway
Curb weight:

2,700 pounds
Wheelbase:

102.4 inches
Length:

171.9 inches
Width:

69.9 inches
Height:

62.2 inches
Where assembled:

Fremont, Calif.

Contact LAWRENCE ULRICH at 313-222-5394 or ulrich@freepress.com.

April 25, 2002

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