GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

I've been wondering this since I have had my Vibe. Is there a chance that the car is underpowered? I thought that a car of its size would have a little bit of a bigger engine. I have a base Vibe. Did they ever think about putting a bigger engine in it? Smaller cars (the Scion TC) have bigger engines, some with V6's. I guess it was just a decision by GM/Toyota on what engine to put into it and what they wanted to accomplish with the car.Any opinions?

1. It has as much power as I need/want.2. It is basically a Corolla Station Wagon - dont' see any Corolla's with a V-6. Claim to fame is more geared to economy.

Sure, I wouldn't mind more power. But with more power, you sacrafice gas mileage, and I think that the Vibe gets very good mileage. I am impressed with the Vibe's power (I have an 03 GT). If you want a larger engine, get an '09 Vibe with the 2.4

i knew what i was getting when i bought it soo, no. But yes the new 09 vibe has a dual vvt 1.8l or a 2.4l. Just do some mods to get that thing going!caithrottle rotor (dbw tb's)ported throttle bodyported exhaust manifoldfull exhausttuner - unichip, camcon or emanage

its pretty much made as a fuel economy car...the tc is considered a sports car and i think that engine came out after the vibes went into production, it will be in the '09s though...if you want more power you are going to lose gas mileage for the most part...

Quote, originally posted by jake75 »2. It is basically a Corolla Station Wagon - dont' see any Corolla's with a V-6.Considering what it is, it isn't half bad. My Vibe has a smaller engine than my wife's Jetta (1.8 vs. 2.0). The Jetta actually weighs more than the Vibe and the Vibe produces more hp.

If you bought a Vibe for speed. You are in for a rude awakening. A base model vibe was not even remotely close to be geared towards performance. Perhaps you should have done your research before you purchased a car. It usually helps

never drove a base or AWD model, but my GT is pretty damn good for a car this size, especially on the freeway ;pvinny, haven't seen you in a while, how's the audi treatin ya??

Yeah, if you were after a performance car, you definitly bought the wrong car... The funny thing is, my Vibe can easily burn one tire with a part throttle launch, but if I mash it, it's hardly does much... the point to the Vibe was much like the origional PT Cruser, they wanted to make a good looking, small on the outside, big on the inside, people hauler that had a LOT of functionality AND got decently good gas mileage... The amount of lines the Vibe crosses is great, but it was never really intended as a "performance" car... This is why I have the "other" car...

Quote, originally posted by MRCN RCE »never drove a base or AWD model, but my GT is pretty damn good for a car this size, especially on the freeway ;pvinny, haven't seen you in a while, how's the audi treatin ya??hee hee, his poor baby has a boo boo. He hit a mailbox in my neighborhood so the bottom right is way dented in.

yes it is under powered. I still loved mine but not enough to keep it forever.

there is a significant power difference b/w the base vibe, awd vibe and gt versions. I had the 03 GT because the base and awd versions were way too underpowered for me. I wanted something with function, utility, looked nice (to me), sporty (why I bought the GT), decent fuel economy and a Toyota based engine. The VGT fit all those needs. Sure it isn't the world's fastest car, however the utility of having the hatch in the car made it awesome. I wish I could get 28 mpg again but with a 300+ hp awd engine! Probably not going to happen.... so instead I'll settle for the new STI hatch. Going back to hatch and I can't wait!

Quote, originally posted by MRCN RCE »never drove a base or AWD model, but my GT is pretty damn good for a car this size, especially on the freeway ;pvinny, haven't seen you in a while, how's the audi treatin ya??Oh hanging in there. Between school, work, and the gf, theres barely any time to troll forums. Let alone the gf forum.