What are differences in Vibe & Matrix?

Z1 Streetfighter · Post by **Z1 Streetfighter** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 1:29 am

I'm seriously considering buying a used Vibe GT. I need to get out of my '03 F150 STX because of gas mileage. Did Toyota or Pontiac build the Vibe? The biggest reason I need to know is because of the amount of metric tools I own. I have very few American Standard tools. I love the looks of both cars, and the Vibe seems to be selling for less in my area compared to the Matrix. Btw, this is a great site. I have been lurking all morning.

damronjr · Post by **damronjr** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 1:34 am

Quote, originally posted by Z1 Streetfighter Â»I'm seriously considering buying a used Vibe GT. I need to get out of my '03 F150 STX because of gas mileage. Did Toyota or Pontiac build the Vibe? The biggest reason I need to know is because of the amount of metric tools I own. I have very few American Standard tools. I love the looks of both cars, and the Vibe seems to be selling for less in my area compared to the Matrix. Btw, this is a great site. I have been lurking all morning. The Vibe and Matrix are essentially the same with the exception of the exterior. Everything on the Vibe is metric. Same with the Matrix. Try matrixowners.com as well for more of the Matrix stuff. They are both essentially Toyotas. They have all the same interior and under the hood. The only difference is the exterior shell. Welcome to the site!

Mr. Poopypants · Post by **Mr. Poopypants** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 1:39 am

Quote, originally posted by damronjr Â»The Vibe and Matrix are essentially the same with the exception of the exterior. Everything on the Vibe is metric. Same with the Matrix. Try matrixowners.com as well for more of the Matrix stuff. They are both essentially Toyotas. They have all the same interior and under the hood. The only difference is the exterior shell. Welcome to the site!Yeah, that's about it, I just wanted to chime in and say welcome!!!

ragingfish · Post by **ragingfish** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 1:57 am

Actually, as each MY passes, the Vibe and Matrix are getting very very different. I suspect within a few years the ONLY similarities will be the engine...

tnpartsguy · Post by **tnpartsguy** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 2:54 am

Buy a Vibe.....TN needs more cool Vibe owners.Toyota & GM builds the Vibe/Matrix in a joint-venture plant in CA. The driveline is all Toyota, but the body design was GM's. They shipped some early Vibe's to Japan, where they were marketed as the Toyota "VOLTZ" and it was considered a SUV.

Thewhite · Post by **Thewhite** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 4:27 am

Difference? the Matrix is ugliest... Vibe got the best from Toyota (mecanics), but not the after-market value (not sure if it's the good expression, borned Frenchy, will die Frenchy...)

Z1 Streetfighter · Post by **Z1 Streetfighter** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 1:26 pm

First of all, I want to say THANKS for the warm welcome, even though I'm not a Vibe/Matrix owner yet. I don't have one "picked out" yet, I was just wondering what the differences are. Glad to hear that it is basically a Toyota. Don't get me wrong, I'm as patriotic as they come, but I've had a couple of Pontiacs in the last several years and was less that overwhelmed by their reliability and performance. "Back in the day" I had a Celica ('81 I think) that I put almost 300K miles on. It had the 20R engine with a four-speed manual tranny...............NO OVERDRIVE and I still got 300K out of her. If and when Detroit can produce a car with that kind of durability then I'll buy it. Almost 2 years ago I bought my first-ever truck because I thought it was about time. Besides, it looks like a Lightning but no supercharger and inflated insurance rates. What's so strange about buying my first truck 1 1/2 years ago is that I am a born and raised Texan. I "transplanted" myself to the Memphis area 10 years ago because of a little Southern Belle. Sorry for rambling; just got home from work after drinking coffee all day. I want a more sensible mode of transportation (value-wise) and I've had the hots for the Vibe/Matrix ever since I first saw one. I've also had my eye on a Mazda3 and Mazda6, but I'm leaning towards the Vibe.O.K., I'll stop now!!!! I sincerely appreciate everyones input and replies.Jim

03VibeGT6Spd · Post by **03VibeGT6Spd** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 2:24 pm

Quote, originally posted by ragingfish Â»I suspect within a few years the ONLY similarities will be the engine...Nope that will be different in the 2007 model at least on the GT.Jeff said last year that they will be replacing, it to get more power.Because they couldn't add a suspercharger to Quote "Toyota's Glass engine unQuote".But who knows with Gm's Cash Flow issue now.

joatmon · Post by **joatmon** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 7:32 pm

Quote, originally posted by Z1 Streetfighter Â» The biggest reason I need to know is because of the amount of metric tools I own. I have very few American Standard tools.I have done some amount of work to mine, and so far every bolt/nut/screw I've found on the car is metric

gpk99 · Post by **gpk99** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 10:12 pm

also air conditioing is standard on the Vibe as well as the fog lights......and the roof rack....you dont get those things on the matrix as standard equipment.

ColonelPanic · Post by **ColonelPanic** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 11:36 pm

And IIRC, I read in the '05 brochure for the Matrix, the 2005 XR and XRS Matrix has retained accessory power to keep the radio/etc on after the ignition is switched off... Vibe lacks that.You know what would be kinda nifty - a FAQ to show the differences in equipment to compare and contrast the two vehicles... Something where folks could easily see "matrix has this, vibe doesn't, vibe has this, matrix doesn't." All in one place so you don't have to do to much digging around to find out the differences.I've got the time, if anyone thinks that'll be a good idea, maybe I can whip something up for the group...

Z1 Streetfighter · Post by **Z1 Streetfighter** » Thu Apr 28, 2005 12:22 am

Pretty good idea, ColonelPanic.It looks like you guys are 'forcing me" to buy a Vibe. Thanks for everyones' input.

Thewhite · Post by **Thewhite** » Thu Apr 28, 2005 12:27 am

Quote, originally posted by Z1 Streetfighter Â»It looks like you guys are 'forcing me" to buy a Vibe. Thanks for everyones' input.what are you talking about!!! we don't encourage you to buy a Vibe, we just say the Vibe is better than the Matrix, so you should take was is the best... we don't force anybody...

Charlievibe · Post by **Charlievibe** » Thu Apr 28, 2005 3:23 am

Hey fellow Shelby County resident!!!!! Welcome to Genvibe. I have no clue what the differences are, other than the Vibe looks way cooler, imho!!!!! Anyhow, just glad to see someone else from this area out here.

Mase · Post by **Mase** » Thu Apr 28, 2005 3:31 am

The Matrix looks faster than the Vibe! On a serious note. What do you think about service and support? I've heard more horror stories about GM service centers than I have about Toyo centers.I have a Matrix and a Grand Am so I have dealt with both service centers. In my experience, the Toyota dealership service and support has far surpassed what I have received from the GM service center.Also, import cars often have a better resale value. On the other hand, GM cars have more rebates...

damronjr · Post by **damronjr** » Thu Apr 28, 2005 3:41 am

From what I have heard the Toyo dealers don't seem to rip you off as bad on parts and stuff too.

ragingfish · Post by **ragingfish** » Thu Apr 28, 2005 10:32 am

Personally, I have no complaints about support and service. My dealer treats me great...I went into a local Toyota dealer and ordered some parts, and they really didn't want anything to do with me...Makes me very hesitant to ever consider a Toyota -- but then again, as long as Pontiac is alive, I"ll drive one.

jake75 · Post by **jake75** » Thu Apr 28, 2005 11:17 am

Seems to me that the "% resale" figures you see published are a % of MSRP. If you compare based on a % of actual price paid, things may more or less even out. You also have less of an intiial outlay. And, in the case of the Vibe vs. Matrix you are really talking about nearly the same driving experience. If comparing two actually different cars such as a Toyota Camry and a Pontiac Sedan, while the dollar depreciation might be the same over 3 years, the driving experience with the Camry might be superior. A plus in my case was that the Pontiac dealer was a lot closer to my home than the Toyota dealer. The "attitude" of the Toyota dealer (I had bought two cars there before) was no better - actually worse if you can believe that - than the Pontiac dealer. This wolf (Toyota) in sheep's (Pontiac) clothing fit my requirements.

ColonelPanic · Post by **ColonelPanic** » Thu Apr 28, 2005 11:42 am

Quote, originally posted by ragingfish Â»I went into a local Toyota dealer and ordered some parts, and they really didn't want anything to do with me...Makes me very hesitant to ever consider a ToyotaSame here... I've had problems with what used to be my Pontiac dealer, while the experience I had with them was terrible, they were still better than the Toyota dealers in the area who I give two big ... The Toyota dealers don't want anything to do with me either... And they have been far from helpful when I've asked them for assistance on THIER mechanical bits... They appear to be under the assumption that Toyota is perfect... Plus they're apalled by the fact that their precious parts were installed in a lowly Pontiac...So no, I will never consider a Toyota. Maybe things are different in other places, but around here, the Pontiac dealers are much more down to earth, not way up on a pedestal as the Toyota people are, looking down on everyone else like they are scum.... Just my $0.02, I'm sure there are Toyota dealers around that give good service - just that there are none in my general area.

kostby · Post by **kostby** » Thu Apr 28, 2005 1:58 pm

Welcome to the Encyclopedia of Vibe!Although you're probably already aware of it, I haven't noticed anyone mention that the Matrix XRS and the Vibe GT both require Premium (91+ octane) fuel. New ones are available ONLY with a 6-speed manual, though a few early XRS's were built with automatic trans.The Base and AWD Vibes and the base Matrix, Matrix AWD, and Matrix XR all use Regular fuel (87 octane).From the experiences posted in the various Genvibe forums, with a GT or XRS, if you stick your foot in the throttle a lot to hit 'lift' (basically where the high performance camshaft profile kicks in at ~6000 rpm), you might not get fuel mileage AS GOOD AS your current truck! Reports of 18-20 mpg seem pretty common for GT/XRS owners who drive aggressively.I despise the 'hockey stick' side styling of the Matrix, and the closest dealer was a Pontiac dealer, so I went with a (used) Vibe base automatic. 14 months later, I'm still happy with my purchase. I wasn't looking for a Mustang GT, I was looking for reliability, cargo space versatility, and small overall outside dimensions.My average MPG to date for 14,000 miles is about 25.0, which is 80% short trips in a small city, and 20% interstate highway with the cruise control on.My highest MPG to date was 37.6 on a 265 mile 100% interstate trip, lowest was 19.5 with lots of ZERO MPG idling time in winter.

Z1 Streetfighter · Post by **Z1 Streetfighter** » Thu Apr 28, 2005 8:29 pm

kostby, the fact that the GT uses only premium fuel is good to know. Thanks. Perhaps a GT isn't what I want after all. I just like the looks of the GT, but after viewing some owners' pics here, a non-GT Vibe can be modded to look pretty darn sweet. (Not that it doesn't already!) silverawd26, I haven't seriously looked at any one car just yet, only here and on ebay. I DO want a manual tranny, but is there more than one engine available? Probably should read more on this site to answer this question.I've been VERY busy with work and performing my "House Husband" duties the last several days; my wife travels extensively and with 2 teen-age daughters and 4 dogs......well you get the picture.Perhaps this weekend I'll have more time to investigate. Again, Many Thanks to everyone who has replied to my newbie questions.Jim

What are differences in Vibe & Matrix?

What are differences in Vibe & Matrix?

Re: What are differences in Vibe & Matrix? (Z1 Streetfighter)

Re: What are differences in Vibe & Matrix? (damronjr)

Re: What are differences in Vibe & Matrix? (Z1 Streetfighter)

Re: What are differences in Vibe & Matrix? (silverawd26)

Re: (ragingfish)

Re: What are differences in Vibe & Matrix? (Z1 Streetfighter)

Re: (gpk99)

Re: (ColonelPanic)

Re: (Z1 Streetfighter)

Re: What are differences in Vibe & Matrix? (Z1 Streetfighter)

Re: What are differences in Vibe & Matrix? (Z1 Streetfighter)

Re: What are differences in Vibe & Matrix? (Mase)

Re: (ragingfish)

Re: (ragingfish)

Re: What are differences in Vibe & Matrix? (silverawd26)