Faults:

Original tires were shot when we bought it at 18000 miles. This is just pathetic when it comes to tire life. Replaced with Goodyear tires, and immediately noticed the car rode smoother and quieter.

Plastic was scratched inside when we bought it.

Some of the exterior trim has come loose.

Raspy noise on throttle application during acceleration. Not sure what this is, have not had it checked out yet.

General Comments:

You get lots for the money. Paid $14k and car came with moonroof, 6 CD changer, nice alloys, and all the cargo space you could ever need.

Car handles very well and the auto tranny performs better than any auto I have ever driven. Shifts right when I want it to. The steering feel is excellent.

Much more solid and quiet than our other vehicle ('01 Civic).

Leg room is limited for taller drivers. My wife is 5'-7" and she has the seat all the way back! I'm 6'-4", so imagine how it feels for me.

Cargo space and practicality is unreal. This car has bailed us out on more than one occasion when it comes to hauling stuff.

Fuel economy is so-so. Does not get near the EPA highway estimate, even though it is driven almost entirely on the highway.

Faults:

I never had a problem, it was a good car.

I was in an accident last week with my 03 Pontiac Vibe and it held up great. I was hit on the drivers side and I walked away with only a couple of bruises.

The car was totaled out however.

I had the Vibe, just over three years and I had 106,000 miles on it. I changed the oil pretty regular and just in a few months ago, I had to change the brakes.

General Comments:

If you're looking for reliability and a little bit of pep I recommend the Vibe.

Faults:

Nothing so far.

General Comments:

I really love this car. The more I drive it, the more I realize how perfect this car is for my lifestyle.

The trunk space is good, with the rear seats folded perfectly flat, it's great, and with the fold flat front passenger seat, there's nothing from IKEA that this car can't hold!

The tie-down rails in the trunk area are a great touch, same with the two-prong electrical outlet, however, because of the hinged cover on the outlet, clunky MP3 adaptors won't fit unless you cut off the hinged outlet cover.

I love the styling, and thankfully I have the 17 inch rims and not the ugly hubcaps.

The factory roof rack looks and great, unlike the after-market eye-sores that are fitted on top of the Matrix cars.

I don't find the drivers seat to be very comfortable.

I predicted before buying this Toyota built car that I would have issues at the Pontiac dealership. Sure enough, trying to order another key-fob was a hassle. "I've never seen this key-fob in my life. We don't sell this" says the service manager. "Hey moron, this key-fob comes from the same cars you are selling out front!" "One moment please!"

Another issue is the privacy cargo cover. Again, the people at Pontiac where clueless, so I drove over to Toyota. Surprisingly, those guys were stumped. 10 minutes later they found what I was asking for, but the price was $470.00!!! Are you crazy! It's nothing, but a flimsy piece of vinyl with 4 hooks!! Why couldn't Toyota engineer the Matrix/Vibe with a hinged privacy cover like every other 5 door car? To hell with it, I just tinted the windows and put an alarm on the car. A way better investment I think!

From day one I've had alignment issues with this car. The car won't drive straight unless the road is PERFECTLY flat. If I'm the left lane, the car SWERVES left, ditto the right lane.

Snowboarding season just started, and I've come to realize that this car barely heats up. It's -10, the auto-starter has been on for 15 minutes, and when I hop in the car, cold air is still blowing from the vents! Full blast heat, full speed fan, hat and gloves on and I'm just O.K. after a 20 minute drive. I had this checked out twice and there isn't anything wrong, so I've been told. Try sitting in a Honda Civic with full blast heat on, you'll pass out!

My last gripe is the serious lack of low-end torque. Passing power on the highway is nonexistent. Dumping my American V6 for this car has made me very nervous. This car doesn't know whether to stall or speed up! I'm still back-and-forth on the issue of buying the GM super-charger kit. It would make this car perfect, but it would also defeat the purpose of owning a cheap and fuel efficient 4 cylinder car. I feel stuck.