It didn't take long after writing my 2006 New Year's Resolutions for me to actually do something about one of them: The purchase of an automobile, primarily for my wife but also as a better-mileage alternative to my 1997 Explorer or 2001 VW camper. The Ford is also out-of-service at the moment, pending installation of a new head gasket (or worse).

The car I bought, based on recommendations from both Consumer Reports and a friend who owns one, is a Pontiac Vibe. This is a high roof line five-passenger hatchback wagon that's also known as the Toyota Matrix. The vehicle I purchased is a 2005 model with 23,000 miles on it. I bought the car at my local Hertz Used Car Sales lot. The drive-away price, including a 4-year extended warranty, was $16,000. The  vehicle was priced about $1,000 less than its "Blue Book" value.

Why did I select this car?

• With the automatic transmission, the vehicle should get better than 25 mpg in normal use. (The claimed EPA fuel economy is 29/34 city/highway). That's a win for someone with a 25-mile commute, each way. Also good for the 120 mile rountrip to San Francisco.
• The high roof line means a guy who is almost 6'3" (like me) and get into and out of the car easily and drive it comfortably.
• My wife calls the Vibe a "small big car" because of the interior space it provides. It's not the van or the Explorer, but with the back seat folded down the Vibe provides more than reasonable carrying capacity.
• The price was right. I could buy the vehicle without getting too much deeper into debt.
• I enjoyed driving my friend's Vibe.
• My wife liked the car.
• Toyota engine.
• This isn't a reason to buy the car, but the thoughtful addition of a 110 volt AC outlet on the instrument panel is a nice touch, useful for recharging batteries and running a laptop. The passenger seat has a plastic plate on its back and can fold forward, allowing it to be used as a desk by a backseat passenger.

The other cars I considered in the same MPG class did not offer as much interior space or enough headroom for comfort. The hybrid options were more expensive and take too long for the fuel economy to offset the initial higher cost.

What don't I like about the car?

None of this is Vibe-specific, but small cars don't provide much space for my ham radio, scanner radio, XM Radio, and GPS unit. I am still working on dealing with placement of these devices. The GPS will probably end up on a glass mount, the control head for the ham rig on the dashboard, and the XM in the center console. The scanner radio will likely have to be a handheld unit that can store in the center console, or perhaps a mobile radio that can be mounted there.

I wish there was access to 12v power back in the cargo area.

Why did I buy from Hertz?

This is my the fourth vehicle I've purchased from the rental car firm. I've been happy with all of them and like getting the same fair fixed-price that everyone else gets for the same type of vehicle. Hertz offered a better financing package than my bank (at the branch or online).

Why did I buy the extended warranty?

This is the only extended warranty I purchase. Hertz runs this program itself, the work is done at new car dealerships, and the price is less than what a typical used car dealer would charge. I've had one of these before and came out ahead on the deal. But, extended warranties are not a habit I'm going to get into.

I'll report back on the Vibe abter 5,000 miles or so.