1996 Geo Metro 1.0 from North America

Summary:

Excellent economy car

Faults:

Headlights (hi & lo) went out, I have been driving on drl lamps.

Muffler replaced twice.

Catalitic converter split where meets at head exhaust pipe.

Large rotting hole in frame (passenger side wheel area)

Underside of body under doors rotted bad (sheet metal-patched)

Hood closure latch spring broke.

Headlamp sealed beam replaced (reflective material inside bulb wore away)

Fins falling out of radiator.

Replaced front rotors (warped)

Body panels dent easy.

"hard" ride (suspension) for long trips.

General Comments:

Excellent car for someone short in stature without lower back problems.

I live in a snowy-winter area, so the body isn't holding up well to rust.

The car has been holding up excellent, without the proper, regular maintainence I should be doing.

I own the hatchback model and it holds a lot! I've carried an 8 foot ladder, 32" door, walk-behind push mower...

The only serious complaints are the headlamps out.. and the rotted frame.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 31st August, 2004

8th Mar 2006, 16:27

Wow, sounds just like my 91 Geo Storm almost word for word. Never though a car could rust so fast, but still goes and is dependable.

1996 Geo Metro LSi 1.3L from North America

Summary:

Good value for money

Faults:

My ABS indicator on the dashboard came on about a month ago.

Since last week I have been having acceleration problems. It feels like there is some heavy load, some drag because of which the car would not pick up speed. Sometimes it makes a heavy noise when I try to accelerate. I got the transmission oil changed two weeks before, I don't know if the oil used is proper or not.

I am not bothered about the ABS, but could someone tell me if the acceleration problem is because of a faulty alternator or fuel injection system or what. Suggestions please..

General Comments:

I got the 1996 Geo Metro in Aug 2003. I ran great for about 10 months. I used it mostly on the highway and it gave a 40mpg. Never had any problems.

Since the last two months I have moved into the city and have to do a lot of city driving to get around. It has started to slow down, does not accelerate at all. Apart from that it is a wonderful car.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 26th July, 2004

11th Aug 2004, 11:07

I have a solution for the loss of acceleration. The reason why your ABS light is on, is that there could be something blocking the ABS sensor, on the toner wheel of the outter CV axle. Since the ECM "Electronic Control Module" is not getting a signal for the wheel speed, the ECM thinks that the tires are just spinning, not grabbing on the road. That's probably why the engine accelerate slow.

1996 Geo Metro LSi from North America

Summary:

A low performance bargain

Faults:

-Had to replace air conditioning a few months after owning the car.

-Had to replace a fan for the heat.

-Had to replace wheel bering's on both rear tires.

-Had to replace brake pads.

-Fading of the dash.

-Oil leaks, which I still haven't fixed because the cost of that would probably be more than the car is worth itself.

-Needs a new exhaust.

General Comments:

This is the first car I have owned, and it has always gotten me where I needed to go. It is very cheap on gas, which is a good thing for me.

The only real problem that I have with the car right now is the oil leak, which I'm sure that I probably have caused that myself driving the car hard, by not slowing down for speed bumps.

My exhaust on my car is louder than it should be, but I myself like that sound, beings many people try to have loud exhausts and they pay a lot of money for their exhausts to sound like mine.

A good thing about this car is that it is low to the ground and would be hard to tip over, but it could be a very bad thing to get into a car accident with a car this little.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 6th June, 2004