2004 Pontiac Vibe Problems, Recalls & Reliability
315 owner complaints sit in the federal file for the 2004 Pontiac Vibe, alongside 7 recall campaigns and 5 defect investigations. It scores 68/100 on the trouble index — a below-average year for this model. Airbags leads the reports, typically around 106,500 miles.
Below average
Where 2004 sits among all Vibe years
What owners report
“As there is a NHTSA recall notice on the 2004 Toyota Matrix for a Takata air bag risk of explosion with shrapnel, should there also be a similar notice on the 2004 Pontiac Vibe, which is practically the same vehicle and was manufactured at the same plant in CA?”— owner report to NHTSA, 2004 Vibe
“Driver side window is sticking and make erratic movement going up and appears to not be tracking correctly. This car has been owned by same family since new in 2004 and this issue has been noticeable for some time now. Passenger side is slow in coming up i found gm recall #07273 came up online…”— owner report to NHTSA, 2004 Vibe
Mileage when trouble shows up
Among the 159 reports that include an odometer reading, problems most often appear around 77,000 miles. Half of those reports fall between 37,500 and 104,000 miles — a useful range to weigh against the mileage of the exact car you're looking at.
Recalls (7)
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2003-2004 Pontiac Vibe vehicles equipped with a front passenger air bag assembly replaced under a prior recall. The replacement air bag may not unfold as designed during inflation in high temperature conditions,…
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and replace the passenger air bag module, as necessary, free of charge. The recall began February 19, 2020. Owners may contact Pontiac customer…
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2002-2005 Lexus SC and Toyota Sequoia, 2003-2005 Toyota Corolla and Tundra, and 2003-2007 Pontiac Vibe vehicles. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as…
Fix: Toyota will notify the Toyota and Lexus owners. General Motors will notify the Pontiac Vibe owners. Depending on the vehicle model, dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with…
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) notified the agency on May 13, 2015, that they are recalling 2005-2007 Lexus SC, Toyota Corolla, Corolla Matrix, Sequoia, and Pontiac Vibe, and 2005-2006 Toyota Tundra vehicles that were originally sold, or…
Fix: 2003-2004 Corolla and Corolla Matrix vehicles that are recalled under both 15V-043 and 15V-286 are under a Do Not Drive advisory. Owners of these vehicles are advised not to drive their vehicles…
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) notified the agency on May 13, 2015 that they are recalling certain model year 2004 Sequoia vehicles manufactured August 18, 2003, to August 19, 2004, and 2003-2004 Tundra vehicles manufactured March 18, 2003,…
Fix: 2003-2004 Corolla and Corolla Matrix vehicles that are recalled under both 15V-043 and 15V-285 are under a Do Not Drive advisory. Owners of these vehicles are advised not to drive their vehicles…
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2003-2004 Toyota Corolla vehicles manufactured December 28, 2001, to May 2, 2004, 2003-2004 Toyota Corolla Matrix vehicles manufactured January 6, 2002, to April 29, 2004,…
Fix: Toyota will notify their owners. Pontiac Vibe owners will be notified by GM. Dealers will replace the air bag control module, free of charge. The recall began on August 24, 2015. Toyota owners…
Toyota is recalling certain model year 2003-2004 Corolla and Corolla Matrix vehicles and 2003-2004 Pontiac Vibe vehicles. The supplemental restraint system (SRS) circuits are susceptible to internal shorting. The electrical short may create an abnormal…
Fix: Toyota will re-notify their owners who have already had their vehicles repaired with a noise filter, but did not receive a new airbag control module, and General Motors will re-notify theirs.…
TOYOTA IS RECALLING 662,178 MY 2003-2004 COROLLA, COROLLA MATRIX AND PONTIAC VIBE VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH POWER WINDOWS. THE DRIVER AND FRONT PASSENGER DOOR GLASS BOLTS MAY LOOSEN AND COME OFF, CAUSING THE DOOR GLASS TO SEPARATE FROM THE WINDOW REGULATOR.…
Fix: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE DRIVER AND FRONT PASSENGER DOOR GLASS BOLTS WITH NEWLY DESIGNED BOLTS FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON APRIL 16, 2008 TO TOYOTA OWNERS. THE RECALL BEGAN ON MAY 21, 2008,…
Federal defect investigations
Still open as of the last data refresh. An investigation is not a recall; it may close with no action. All open investigations →
Component: AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE
From 2000 through 2017, Takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("PSAN") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004L. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade,…
Model years named: 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010
Component: AIR BAGS:FRONTAL
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE14-016 in June 2014 based on six inflator rupture incidents involving consumer owned vehicles produced by five vehicle manufacturers.All six vehicles were operated in Florida or Puerto Rico at the time of the rupture and for the majority of their…
Led to recall campaign 13V172000.
Led to recall campaign 08V162000.
Technical service bulletins
424 manufacturer communications — service bulletins, the biggest share on electrical and engine — are on file for the 2004 Pontiac Vibe. A TSB is factory repair guidance, not a recall — the repair is not automatically free.
Complaint history for this model year
When owners filed their reports — a long tail means problems kept surfacing for years.
Questions buyers ask
Is the 2004 Pontiac Vibe reliable?
The 2004 Pontiac Vibe drew 315 complaints in federal safety records — a below-average year for this model. Its trouble index is 68/100, scored against the model's worst year (2009).
What are the most common 2004 Pontiac Vibe problems?
The top reported problems for the 2004 Pontiac Vibe are airbags (104 complaints), visibility & wipers (82), and body & structure (24).
At what mileage do 2004 Pontiac Vibe problems show up?
Owners most often report 2004 Pontiac Vibe problems around 77,000 miles. Half of all reports that include an odometer reading fall between 37,500 and 104,000 miles.
Does the 2004 Pontiac Vibe have recalls?
7 recall campaigns apply to the 2004 Pontiac Vibe. Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer.
Every number on this page is a count of records in the federal complaint, recall, and investigation files published by NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation. Check any specific vehicle's open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.