So what exactly is the Pontiac Vibe?

[Chuck McKnight]

That is, in which category of car does it most closely fit? I've heard it called a crossover, a four-door sedan, a hatchback, a station wagon, and probably others.My insurance considers it to be a station wagon. I like the term crossover myself. What do you think?

[CAMOGIRL]

In ks its classified as a sport wagon. I just call it a hatch

[09vGT]

Sport Wagon sounds cool. Sounds fast. I too call it a hatch

[KITT222]

I call it a hatchback. It isn't SUV-y enough to be called a crossover. Pontiac calls it a sport wagon. Insurance calls it s station wagon. In Europe most all cars are hatches, and very similar to the Vibe, including a roof rack.

[CAMOGIRL]

Indent remember on what but I've seen it called a utility wagon too.

[jake75]

Sorry folks - I think it is just a station wagon.

[csxt8058]

Quote, originally posted by 09vGT »Sport Wagon sounds cool. Sounds fast. I too call it a hatchSecond that...When I had my Malibu Maxx, my co workers in good humor called it a station wagon or grocery getter...I prefered hatchback, or I just called it 'the Maxx'. JR

[star_deceiver]

It's a wagon. A 3000lb car is way too big to be called a hatchback!

[vibenvy]

State Farm considers it a Wagon. The state of Illinois considers it a 4 Door Hatchback. I call it a Wagon because when you hear Wagon you think Station Wagon, but it's definitely much cooler than a Station Wagon, hence just Wagon .

[ParknVibe]

Since you all are comparing hatchbacks and station wagons, does any one know why they used to term "Station" as in Station Wagon? What is the station in that type of car? Does station mean a fixed cargo space in the rear? How come they weren't called a Cargo Wagon?

[Chuck McKnight]

"Station wagon in the automobile sense is first recorded 1929, from earlier use for a horse-drawn conveyance that took passengers to and from railroad stations (1894)."http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=station

[jake75]

And why do they call it peanut butter - there's no dairy ingredients in there?

[KITT222]

Quote, originally posted by jake75 »And why do they call it peanut butter - there's no dairy ingredients in there?For that matter, why are they called butterflies? They aren't made of butter and they aren't flies. What gives?

[Bedlam]

I don't think the word sport should go along with the Vibe. Can easily be considered a hatchback as well.Station Wagon Sport Wagon under 200hp in any trim including GT is definitely not "sporty". They can handle nicely, but the term sport gets over used for the sake of advertising .

[Chuck McKnight]

Sure, the Magnum may be a bit more sporty than the Vibe, but both are above a station wagon.This is a station wagon.

[cptnsolo77]

I always thought of it as a "compact wagon" Its not a full size wagon. Like the Taurus pictured above. 4 door hatch works for me too.

[vibolista]

Ok, so from the discussion above, it seems that a Vibe is not really a Sport Wagon, a Wagon, a Hatchback, or a Crossover. That only leaves the obvious... It's either in a class of its own or it's a 4 door sedan. Who the heck ever classified it a 4 door sedan? I found a few articles written a while back when I was reseaching the Vibe that actually considered the first Gen to be a Crossover vehicle. After the 2008 model, it became more of a sporty Hatchback. In any case, I've noticed that a Vibe is a car that's pretty tough to define and easily fills a lot of different roles.

[09vGT]

Oh boy look what you've started!

[ParknVibe]

Quote, originally posted by Chuck McKnight »"Station wagon in the automobile sense is first recorded 1929, from earlier use for a horse-drawn conveyance that took passengers to and from railroad stations (1894)."http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=stationThanks for doing the research for me. It just came to me to ask the question while I was reading this thread. I'll be using that site alot. I would of never thought that was where the saying came from. I still can't see it as a reason to call a family wagon a "station wagon" As other suggest, I agree that "sport wagon" fits better in the current times.

[Houston]

The Vibe is a small station wagon.

[Chuck McKnight]

Quote, originally posted by Ivibe »Thanks for doing the research for me. It just came to me to ask the question while I was reading this thread. I'll be using that site alot. I would of never thought that was where the saying came from.It's a great site. As a writer/editor and one who generally likes words, I reference it quite frequently.

[Old Tele man]

...both the state of Arizona and State Farm Insurance consider it a "station wagon."

[ponta2147]

I just use the general "Hatchback" or "5-door"... mostly because this car is a bit taller than the normal ride height of a wagon. I consider the Vibe to be in the same class as whatever you'd call the Mazda3 and the (newer) Ford Focus.

[journeyforce]

According to Car and Driver in their Oct 2001 review on the 2003 Matrix it is a 5 door wagonhttp://www.caranddriver.com/re...eviewIn their review of the 2009 Matrix they still say it is a wagonhttp://www.caranddriver.com/re...eviewI always thought it was a 5 door hatch just like the 2005-2007 Ford Focus ZX5 due to the lack of meaningful C- Pillar windows

[KNINE]

It's a chick magnet.

[VforVIBE]

Quote, originally posted by K-NINE »It's a chick magnet.Dang it, I knew I got the wrong car.

[ParknVibe]

Since I am old enought to grow up in the age of the station wagons. (50's to the seventies), A station wagon always had a large cargo space with some cars having a third fold down seat that faced the rear in that bay. The rear door was a swing down gate with a roll down window that can be kept open for long items. Some models had the function of a hinged swing gate as well. I do not remember any of them being called a "hatchback". The term hatchback came along in the early seventies when the Chevy Vega and Ford Pinto were marketed. Some cars were called sport fastbacks that also had a hatchback. (the Firebird comes to mind) Then the Chevy Monza, Buick Skyhawk, Olds Starfire. and the Pontiac Sunbird came along as a compact sporty 3-door hatchbacks (or the look of a fastback). I owned the Chevy Vega and the Olds Starfire, then last owned a Dodge Daytona. The Pontica Vibe has a hatchback...so I consider it in the class of the old hatchbacks, except that now they added two rear seat doors. Maybe because the original Vibe had a swingout hatch window, they named it a station wagon.

[journeyforce]

And don't forget the most famous Hatchback of the 1970's the VW Rabbit/ Golf.I grew up in a family that had and still has at least one wagon at all times. One of my first cars was a 1989 Buick Century wagon. My high school years coincided with the last run of the Buick Roadmaster. I love that car, huge station wagon with 5000 pounds towing ability.However the wagon classification is a strange creature. I owned a 1992 GMC Jimmy (the small one based on the S-10) and Maryland classified it as a wagon

[TONY TAT2]

Not the MAMA