2003 Pontiac Vibe Airbag Problems

Which parts fail

• Frontal
  4
• Frontal › Sensor/control module
  2

Components named in complaints (front, side and curtain air bags, sensors and inflators).

Mileage when the problem started

• Under 25k
  27%
• 25k–50k
  517%
• 50k–75k
  517%
• 75k–100k
  414%
• 100k–150k
  621%
• 150k+
  724%

Owner reports

Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2003 Pontiac Vibe owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).

The 2003-2004 Pontiac Vibe was manufactured by Toyota and is for all intent and purposes is a 2003 Toyota Matrix. The 2003-04 Pontiac Vibe should be included in the "Do not drive" advisory issued by Toyota 20 Jan 30th 2024. Only the body is different than the Toyota Matrix and everything internal is the same. Please do not let this model fall through the cracks. January 30, 2024, Toyota issued a "do not drive" advisory for certain 2003-2005 car models due to concerns about their Takata airbags: 2003-2004 Corolla 2003-2004 Corolla Matrix 2004-2005 RAV4 The company says the Corolla and Matrix models are under a separate recall because their airbags can be deployed without a crash. The Takata air bag inflators are at risk of exploding and hurling shrapnel. …

Tl* the contact owned a 2003 Pontiac Vibe. While driving approximately 15 MPH, the contact crashed into the rear of another vehicle and the air bags did not deploy. The contact sustained injuries that required medical attention. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a body shop and deemed destroyed. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 87,000.

This vehicle was in an accident in December of 2009. It was totaled. I broke my sternum because the airbag did not deploy properly. This was before the recall. It was on black ice and I hit the meridian strip twice and spun out, did not hit any other vehicles. It is too late now to do anything, but I wanted to stop getting recall notices. Thank you

I have a2003 Pontiac Vibe which had atakata recall. In January 2020, I took the car to a GM dealer called"quality Buick GMC of englewood" located at"406 grand ave englewood nj 07631 us" to do the recall repair. Since the day of the repair the lid on top left side of the dashboard had poppedup and did not close fully. That is where the passenger's airbag in the upper left of the dashboard is located.I thought this was just a cosmetic issue that could be ignored. The car startedmaking intermittentnoises similar to a clock sound shortly thereafter. I have rarely driven the car due to the pandemic since the repair was done. But recently the noise has become steady. I had my mechanic who specializes in Toyota cars check the car in April 2021. My mechanic happens to be familiar with the Takata airbag issue. He says that the airbag repair done on the car in 2020 is the root cause of the noise. …

My 2003 Pontiac Vibe received over $10000 in damages and was judged totaled due to a collision with a Lincoln towncar on July 13, 2014. The Lincoln struck the front of my car at an angle while making a left turn into my path from oncoming traffic. I was traveling approximately 40-45 MPH and had little time to react and brake prior to the impact. The impact drove the front bumper into the radiator and the radiator into the engine doing a considerable amount of damage under the hood. There was no obvious physical damage to the passenger compartment but my concern is that the air bags did not deploy to prevent me from being injured. The police officer responding to the incident also indicated surprise that the air bags would not deploy in this type of accident. …

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 Pontiac Vibe. The contact stated that the air bag warning indicator illuminated after being repaired per NHTSA campaign number: 18V883000 (air bags). Garber Buick (5925 state st, saginaw, mi 48603, [phone]) performed the recall repair. The vehicle was taken back to the same dealer where it was determined that the replacement part was defective. The vehicle was repaired. Twenty days later, the air bag indicator illuminated again. The vehicle was taken back to the same dealer a third time where it was determined that the supplemental inflatable restraint (sir) steering wheel module coil needed to be replaced, which was not related to the recall. The vehicle was not repaired due to the repair fees. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 156,908.

I was in an accident on 11/29/2013 on crow canyon, san ramon, ca and the individual in front of me slammed on there brakes and in turn I did the same and my vehicle hit the vehicle in front of me and totaled my front end. The airbags did not deploy and my body slammed into the steering wheel which in turn hurt my chest badly. The san ramion pd was shocked that the airbags did not deploy. I rec'd a recall notice on 1/2012 stating the parts were defective. Never was resolved by the GMC Pontiac. Thank goodness I was wearing my seatbelt or I have gone thru the wind shield. The airbags should have deployed. The GMC corporation should have resolved the problem long ago and did not. This is not correct. I believe they should be held accountable for the defect of airbags for not resolving the airbags long ago.

Takata recall; I received a recall notification directing me to go to kool Chevrolet for repairs. Parts were ordered and a service person called and an appointment was made. The service manager jason immediately called me to say they would not honor the appointment and work on my car because of an incident at kool Toyota next door relating to incompetent work performed on my 2012 Toyota rav4 two years ago. Are Toyota and GM now one and the same? Why solicit my business and then refuse to do it after all arrangements have been made? Can a GM dealer "blackball" a consumer trying to complete a life threatening recall repair? I will contest in advance any excuse that kool Chevrolet comes up with that they say justifies their inaction to perform this life threatening recall repair.

I was in a accident on 11/29/2013 on crow canyon, san ramon, ca and the individual in front of me slammed on her brakes so I in turn did the same and my vehicle hit the vehicle in front of me and totaled my front end. The airbags did not deploy and my body slammed into the steering wheel which in turn hurt my chest. The san ramon p.d was shocked that the airbags did not deploy. I received a recall notice on 1/2012 stating the parts were defective. Never was resolved by GMC/Pontiac. Had I not been wearing my seat belt I would have gone thru windshield. The airbags should have deployed. The GMC people should have resolved the problem about the airbags. This is just not correct. Someone should be held accountable for the defect. Updated 12/18/13

I was driving south on nottingham dr. At the intersection of north westover blvd ( I had a green light ) when a white Lexus turned left on to n. Westover blvd in front of me. The Lexus was too close to avoid and the front passenger-side corner of my car impacted the rear passenger-side door and rear wheel of the Lexus, turning it 180 degrees clockwise. The side air curtains of the Lexus deployed but the air bags in my car did not deploy. I believe the air bags in my car should have deployed.

Related recalls

NHTSA investigations

Airbag complaints in other Vibe years