GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

Hi everyone,

I am looking at buying with a Vibe or a Matrix and have a few random questions. I've looked at a few '03-'05 models and every single one of them has rust on the top of the driver's side rocker panel around the rubber pad. Is this just common surface rust or is there a deeper problem and this is the early signs or rusting all the way through? The passenger's side (front and rear) and the rear driver's side rockers have been clean on every vehicle. I'm in Wisconsin so yes, our cars see 6 months of salt every year.

Are there some very common problems I should be watching out for on the earlier models? I did some searching and the only thing I see some comments about are wheel bearings and 5 speed manual transmission problems around the 100,000 mile mark.

Most of the cars I've been looking at have at least 70,000 miles on them and most have around 100,000. Can I expect to get another 100,000 reliable miles out of them as long as they have been taken care of? I do see an awful lot of 150-175,000 mile cars for sale but have yet to see one with 200,000+ on it.

Any information or general advice would be greatly appreciated!

04 here no rust on mine. not sure about that as a prob but I will be keeping a eye on mine. The reason you wont find to many 200,000 mile vibes for sale is because their owner probably loves it and plans on keeping it for another 100k. I know their is a few people on here with more than 200k. I have a GT its been a great car and I have no problems with it other than the ones I caused.

Also 200k over a 10 year period (for an '03) is 20k miles a year. Not too many people put that kind of miles on a car, although we probably have more than our share here.

Welcome to GenVibe! I live in Chicagoland and have never seen a Vibe with rust on it anywhere around here. I'm not too familiar with the 1st gen (2003-2008) Vibes so I can't really comment on them, but you have definitely come to the right place to get answers to all your questions. Best of luck with your search and keep us updated if you end up with a Vibe .

Thanks for the replies. After I posted I found the "How Many Miles on Your Vibe" thread and found lots of high mileage ones in there. I tend to keep my vehicles for as long as possible and only get rid of them if I no longer trust them for long distance travel. Out of my last 4 vehicles, all but one made it over 200k with no major problems and the one that didn't just got too rusty to keep on the road.

Other than the rust on the driver's side rocker panel, I haven't seen any rust on any of the vehicles I've looked at which is pretty good for 10 year old vehicles around here.

I originally had quite a few cars on my list but have really become fond of the Vibe and Matrix. I'm hoping to find a nice lower mileage one that I can hold on to for a long time.

My first Vibe was an 03 and it had over 230 thousand when it was wrecked by a nasty deer hit here in Minnesota. Only rust on it was on the hatch door bottom right but I always blamed that on the fact that i bought it with rear end damage and when I had it all fixed up that spot just was a problem. No major issues with my 03 , if they are taken care of they go forever! The hood prop had broken and my passenger seat belt wouldn't always want to click shut and I had the leaky a/c inside the car once or twice...just minor annoyances. My current Vibe I've only had a few weeks, it's an 05 and I bought it with 180,000, I was searching with in a 200 mile radius and had a limited budget so I only looked at higher mileage vehicles, normally that would concern me but not with this trusty little gem! I am certain my 03 would've gone over 300,000. This 05 is white and there are small rust spots on top of car near the windshield and around the hatch window. I agree Mac99d that many Vibe owners just hang onto them. I wish you luck on your search !

Welcome to GenVibe Matt. Hope you find one where you are located (where is that ??? Update profile please ) Lots of them out there I'm sure BUT stubborn owners like many of us here do not want to part with them so there may not be as many as you think. Grab one where the opportunity knocks. Hope to hear from you soon with a "new to you" Vibe

Rust on a Vibe?? Seriously?? It actually happens??

I live up northern, in Canada, where they salt the roads like crazy in the winters. You're lucky to get 10 years out of any car if you are lucky. To date, of all the Vibes i've ever worked on, or the matrix, I never see one with rust on the exterior panels. I don't see many Toyotas rust much either!

I've seen some rust, mostly underside, where people don't undercoat them regularly. Mostly minor. From a durability perspective, they look enginered to last 20 years really.

If you do get it, get the bodywork done to it, then get it undercoated, and make sure they soak the stuff on!

Is the rust underneath the cladding/plastic panels on the bottoms of the doors? I imagine salty water could splash up in there, but then again I haven't exactly looked up under the sides of my doors lately so maybe I'm remembering something completely wrong...

lannvouivre wrote:Is the rust underneath the cladding/plastic panels on the bottoms of the doors? I imagine salty water could splash up in there, but then again I haven't exactly looked up under the sides of my doors lately so maybe I'm remembering something completely wrong...

No, it's not on the doors, it's on the rocker panel all around the rubber wear pad. The strange thing is that it has only been on the driver's side in that area both on Matrix and Vibe models. Other than that spot, every one I've looked at has been completely rust free. My guess is that the salt collects there from the water and slush that falls off of your shoes when you get in and out. It doesn't really look like it's coming from the back side but I really don't want to find out either unless the vehicle is priced right. I owned a first gen Explorer which had no rocker panels left by it's 10th birthday. Good thing it had running boards so you couldn't tell as much.