GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

GenVibe has been a great help and place to learn about this very great car. Sold our 03, traded in our 09GT, and we are giving our collage graduate son the 07 we bought new as a send off gift because we know it will last and last and last..... We decided to buy a new Subaru Forester and while we like it very much and it's a great set of wheels in many ways it is not as nice as the Vibes we leave behind. Alas, nothing ever stays the same. Thank you all for the trip we went on, and the best of luck to you all.

Jerry

Wow.... from 3 vibes to ZERO. You just might have withdrawals and the only remedy would be to get another Vibe Good luck with the other vehicles for the remaining driving years you have left. Visit us from time to time

Jerry, there are plenty of cars now that are better than the Vibe; you bought one of them. The Forester is on my short list of three, including the CRV and CX-5. Although I am leaning towards one of the latter, The Forester's easy entrance/exit and command of visibility are the two main reasons that car shines. I for one would love to get an update in a year or so as to how your Forester has performed. Do keep in touch. Remember, the rest of us here are in the same boat as you and will have to replace our Vibes some day soon.

Best of luck with the Subaru.

2K miles on the Forester and so far we like it a lot. The biggest gripe is that we had way more storage space close to hand in the drivers compartment on all of our Vibes. After putting the owners Tome in the glove box the only other thing we can get in there is air. It is much better riding and quieter than the Vibe even getting better milage by 1 or 2 mpg.

The rear deck cover and lower storage bins are a joke though, flimsy and cheap looking. I was impressed at the quality the Vibe rear decks had and the under storage areas were first rate especially in the GT.

After a month, it's a wash. I like some things better, some not. My wife is happy and that is very important. Don't yah know. Time will tell if it is as easy to work on and maintain. Most of the people I spoke to had purchased several in a row and they loved theirs, much like the Vibes,

thanks for the update Sir. What do you think of the CVT? My gut is telling me to stick with the CX5 or one of the Hyundai/Kia offerings in order to stay with the 6 speed transmission.

I drove a 14 Forester for a short period. Love the good all-around visibility. No a fan of the CVT but I know it saves fuel on the highway.

Caretaker wrote:thanks for the update Sir. What do you think of the CVT? My gut is telling me to stick with the CX5 or one of the Hyundai/Kia offerings in order to stay with the 6 speed transmission.

Have you tried the new CX-5?

No, I read that it is a blast to drive. As long as my Vibe's oil consumption does not lead to an early death, I should have this car a good long time to come. However, I always know what my next car will be should some idiot take my car out of the game. I have sat in the HRV and CHR and found both way too small for normal humans. So from my research it comes down to the Forester, CRV, RAV4, CX5, Tucson. If the Forester didn't come with its unnecessary AWD and came with a 6 speed automatic, it would be the logical choice. But the fact that the CX5 has been a winner mechanically since it was born in 2013 makes it my front runner.

Ironically, my daughter bought a CX-5. For me and my wife it is harder to get into especially, the back seat. I prefer its styling, swoopy and modern but not enough for me to hate getting my head scraped every time I get in it.

Caretaker wrote:thanks for the update Sir. What do you think of the CVT? My gut is telling me to stick with the CX5 or one of the Hyundai/Kia offerings in order to stay with the 6 speed transmission.

I feel that is a personal preference. The CVT doesn't bother me at all.