Pontiac Vibe possesses a clunky, manual shifter completely devoid of smooth inserts into the six forward gears. On the plus side, engineers opted to provide a ‘beep-beep’ interior sound when the shifter enters reverse gear, which is good since the backward gear is located next to first gear. Vibe GT’s 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine pumps out 180 horsepower at 7600 rpm – making this petite-sized car quite a speed-masher. To compliment a rocket-inspired exterior design, the interior’s racy appeal comes from vibrant color choices. Standard fare on Vibe GT includes 16-inch aluminum wheels, adjustable roof rack with cross-members, fog lamps, 60/40 fold-flat rear seats, air conditioning, AM/FM radio with CD player, and rear window wiper/defogger. An optional $1,600 DVD-based navigation system – which includes screen controls for radio, clock, etc. – is an appealing appointment that gets overshadowed in daylight hours when sunlight causes glare on the monitor. Mileage estimates are 25 city/30 highway. MSRP is $19,340.