2008 PONTIAC VIBE — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 63 complaints · 4 recalls
Most-reported system: AIR BAGS (47 complaints · 74.6%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 3
  • Fires 0
  • Injuries 4
  • Deaths 0
Compare with 2007 →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Component Problem Distribution

Share of owner complaints filed for each vehicle system (unaffected by sales volume)

Component Problem Distribution AIR BAGS appears in 47 of 63 owner complaints (74.6%) in this vehicle snapshot. AIR BAGS: 47 complaints, 74.6% of reports AIR BAGS 47 · 74.6% · 1 crash reports ENGINE: 4 complaints, 6.4% of reports ENGINE 4 · 6.4% · 1 crash reports VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL: 3 complaints, 4.8% of reports VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 3 · 4.8% STEERING: 2 complaints, 3.2% of reports STEERING 2 · 3.2% TIRES: 2 complaints, 3.2% of reports TIRES 2 · 3.2% FUEL SYSTEM: 1 complaints, 1.6% of reports FUEL SYSTEM 1 · 1.6% SEAT BELTS: 1 complaints, 1.6% of reports SEAT BELTS 1 · 1.6% SERVICE BRAKES: 1 complaints, 1.6% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 1 · 1.6% · 1 crash reports SUSPENSION: 1 complaints, 1.6% of reports SUSPENSION 1 · 1.6% UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 7 complaints, 11.1% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 7 · 11.1% · 1 crash reports 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

UNKNOWN OR OTHER is an NHTSA classification artifact and is always listed last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
AIR BAGS 47 74.6% 1 crashes · 0 fires
ENGINE 4 6.4% 1 crashes · 0 fires
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 3 4.8% 0 crashes · 0 fires
STEERING 2 3.2% 0 crashes · 0 fires
TIRES 2 3.2% 0 crashes · 0 fires
FUEL SYSTEM 1 1.6% 0 crashes · 0 fires
SEAT BELTS 1 1.6% 0 crashes · 0 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 1 1.6% 1 crashes · 0 fires
SUSPENSION 1 1.6% 0 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 7 11.1% 1 crashes · 0 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Problem & Recall Timeline

Observed complaint volume and manufacturer recall actions over time

Problem & Recall Timeline Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Apr 2008; the first recall shown was reported in Aug 2010. 2008-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2008-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2009-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2010-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2010-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2010-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2011-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2011-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2011-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2013-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2013-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2014-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2014-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2016-Q2: 15 owner reports 15 2016-Q3: 9 owner reports 9 2016-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2017-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2017-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2019-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2019-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2020-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2020-Q2: 6 owner reports 6 2020-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 Owner reports Apr 2008 Sep 2021 Recall campaign 10V387000 ◆ Recall campaign 10V387000 Recall campaign 16V128000 ◆ Recall campaign 16V128000 Recall campaign 16V127000 ◆ Recall campaign 16V127000 Recall campaign 19V627000 ◆ Recall campaign 19V627000 Investigation EA10006 ● Investigation EA10006 Investigation EA21002 ● Investigation EA21002
  • Campaign 16V128000 was reported 2,850 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 16V127000 was reported 2,851 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 19V627000 was reported 4,124 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
2008-Q2 Owner reports 3
2008-Q3 Owner reports 1
2009-Q1 Owner reports 1
2010-Q1 Owner reports 1
2010-Q2 Owner reports 1
2010-Q3 Owner reports 2
2011-Q1 Owner reports 2
2011-Q2 Owner reports 1
2011-Q4 Owner reports 1
2013-Q3 Owner reports 1
2013-Q4 Owner reports 1
2014-Q3 Owner reports 2
2014-Q4 Owner reports 1
2016-Q2 Owner reports 15
2016-Q3 Owner reports 9
2016-Q4 Owner reports 1
2017-Q2 Owner reports 2
2017-Q3 Owner reports 1
2019-Q1 Owner reports 1
2019-Q4 Owner reports 4
2020-Q1 Owner reports 3
2020-Q2 Owner reports 6
2020-Q3 Owner reports 3
Recall campaign 1 10V387000
Recall campaign 1 16V128000
Recall campaign 1 16V127000
Recall campaign 1 19V627000
Defect investigation 1 EA10006
Defect investigation 1 EA21002
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (4)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

  1. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 10V387000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    THERE ARE A VARIETY OF WARNINGS AND CONSEQUENCES ASSOCIATED WITH THE DEFECT. THE ENGINE WARNING LAMP COULD BE ILLUMINATED, HARSH SHIFTING COULD RESULT, THE ENGINE MAY NOT START, OR THE ENGINE COULD SHUT OFF WHILE THE VEHICLE IS BEING DRIVEN. AN ENGINE SHUTOFF WHILE THE VEHICLE IS BEING DRIVEN INCREASES THE RISK OF A CRASH.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE PRODUCTION NUMBER OF THE ECM AND REPLACE THE ECM IF NECESSARY. THIS SERVICE WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON FEBRUARY 8, 2011. OWNERS MAY CONTACT GM AT 1-800-620-7668.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 16V127000

    Report date
    Component:
    AIR BAGS
    Consequence:
    In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants potentially resulting in serious injury or death.
    Remedy:
    The recall began on March 25, 2016 for Toyota and Lexus vehicle owners. The recall began on June 23, 2016 for GM owners. The respective dealers will either replace the front passenger air bag inflator or the entire front passenger air bag assembly depending on the model. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331, or Pontiac customer service at 1-800-762-2737. This recall expands recall 15V-285.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  3. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 16V128000

    Report date
    Component:
    AIR BAGS
    Consequence:
    In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants potentially resulting in serious injury or death.
    Remedy:
    The recall began on March 25, 2016 for Toyota and Lexus vehicle owners. The recall began on June 8, 2016 for GM owners. The respective dealers will either replace the front passenger air bag inflator or the entire front passenger air bag assembly depending on the model. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331, or Pontiac customer service at 1-800-762-2737. This recall expands recall 15V-286.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  4. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 19V627000

    Report date
    Component:
    AIR BAGS
    Consequence:
    An improperly inflated air bag increases the risk of injury during a crash.
    Remedy:
    Toyota will notify their owners. Pontiac Vibe owners will be notified by GM. Dealers will replace the front passenger air bag assembly or sub-assembly, free of charge. Toyota owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371. Toyota's numbers for this recall are K1Q and K0Q. Pontiac owners may contact GM customer service at 1-800-762-2737. GM's number for this recall is N192273760.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Complaint Narrative Explorer

Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-08-21
Safety incident filters
Showing 0 of 63 complaints · page 1 of 3

No complaints match the current filters.
EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

 Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Data sourced from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Snapshot date: 2026-08-21.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources