GEO METRO : THE CHEAP GAS SAVER OF THE 1990's
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- čas přidán 24. 05. 2022
- The Geo Metro is a simple, inexpensive subcompact car sold by General Motors in the 90s. It saw some renewed popularity in the ‘00s when gas prices spiked and people realized the small, barebones vehicle gets pretty good gas mileage.
Production of the first Geo Metro models, equivalent to the second generation Suzuki Cultus, began at Suzuki's plant in Hamamatsu, Japan, in late 1988. In 1989, it debuted and replaced the Chevrolet Sprint in the United States. Canadian models continued with the Chevrolet Sprint and Pontiac Firefly nameplates, while the second generation Suzuki Swift replaced the Forsa nameplate. This generation was also marketed by Suzuki as the "Swift" in the United States. The Metro/Swift/Sprint lineup received a facelift, while the Firefly was temporarily discontinued. The first generation Metro was replaced by a rebodied model unique to the North American market.
This is the story of the GEO METRO - Auta a dopravní prostředky
The Metro not only got great gas mileage but it was highly reliable. Plenty of legroom and head room in the front seats. A VERY well designed car for it's purpose. My 1000cc Metro could go 75+ mph all day. 4 wheel independent suspension and big brakes for a car so light. The handling and braking were compromised only by the tires.
I never met a Metro owner who didn't love the car.
The difference is in the choice of Transmission. The Automatic lacked a lockup torque converter, so the car on the highway acted like it was dragging a boat anchor. I had a 88 Sprint Automatic (62 MPH, 58 with the A/C on), and a 96 5 speed, and V-Max was 92 MPH.
Yea I have at 92 Convertible. The best thing I did was upgrade the wheels and tires to something slightly wider and grippier and I couldn't be happier. Obviously I did loose some gas mileage but its ok.
No joke I weight 480 and I absolutely love my 93 vert I don't feel cooped up in it at all I just wish it was in better shape than it is if I had to money to take it to a place that restores cars I wouldn't hesitate
Let me know if you’d ever like to sell it.
I’m looking for a Metro Convertible in good condition and low mileage to putts around in during our summer months.
I think it would be a fun little car just to run around in.
Basic no frills transportation!!! Say what you want about this simple car, it's got great gas mileage!!! They were great commuter cars!!! Thanks for showcasing this little gem 👍👍
I agree
I had a 2 door 1996 Suzuki swift, a 1999 4 door Chevy Metro and my wife had a 2001 2 door Suzuki swift. Extremely basic cars. They were great and affordable to buy and maintain. Something like this is missing from the car market today.
Regulated out of the market. The Fiat 500 was heavier to meet safety regulations.
I disagree with the narrator, with a set of Bosch Platinum 4 plugs, it was fairly zippy. That little 3 cyl. 1 liter engine did better than the 1500 12 valve 4 banger in the Tercel and got way better mileage at the same time.
I had a ‘93 4-door hatchback with a 1000cc engine and 5-speed manual tranny (5th gear was overdrive). I kept records of every fill-up. Never got below 40mpg. One road trip from Texas to California and back I got 48mpg driving 65/70mph. Highest speed I can recall was 85mph. I really liked that car! It was not near as bad as the video depicts.
I had a 1993 4 door hatch, brand new off the lot. Only car I ever bought brand new.
I easily got 40 something in the city and 60+, nearing 70 on the highway.
I travelled cross country, from Seattle to Upstate N.Y. for around $100 back then. By today's standards, it would be $500 +/-.
I did a mini engine rebuild around 140k and I got just as good mileage as when it was brand new. I am kicking myself for not keeping it. Argh!
I have a 95 Geo Metro that we bought 2 years ago for $500. After about $600 in parts and my own labor, she is a daily driver. It is like driving a street legal go kart. Back in the mid 60's, my Dad had a Metro, a Nash Metropolitan.
I dont care what anyone says about the metro i absolutely love it and need one.
I bought one brand new in 96. In the four years I owned it I had zero issues with it. And had no problems on the highway.
Bought a new 1988 Turbo Firefly, and that thing was awesome, put 500,000 km on it and never had any issues, wish I had another one now.
I have a 1997 Geo Metro. It's not difficult to accelerate. You just put it in a lower gear.
I just purchased a 93 metro and it’s a fun car and reliable car to have I’m planning on keeping it for a while
I have 2! A 94 2 door hatch and a 92 convertible. Both are excellent for almost 30 year old cars still holding up. Forever a geo fan 😁
Doesn't your windshield crack every time (convertible)?
@@MarkGelderland it makes cracking sounds when driving over bumps etc but it doesn't physically crack no. The whole car makes cracking sounds nature of the beast lol
@@aaroncabral1849 I just bought an 93 Convertible with 75,000 miles.... does the thing sway side to side like you are driving a boat on water.. my mechanic swears to me there is nothing
out of place loose or missing underneath ... and its very clean and rust free... but this is the very first car in my life that I hate driving... i can live with no acceleration but it feels unsafe to drive above 40mph
I’ve owned 2 Metro’s. A 94 & a 96. Both were 3cyl 5spd.
They’re extremely durable but they ALL burn oil from the time you buy them new until you sell them.
I installed a 2” Flowmaster exhaust, doubling the 1” exhaust.
When my 96 hit 51K miles the cat failed so I put in a straight pipe and I noticed an mpg increase by 8mpg.
I also noticed an increase after going to a larger exhaust.
The 94 mpg increased from 49-55mpg after the exhaust system was changed. My 96 went from 55mpg to 60mpg after I took out the cat. Yes the check engine light stayed on until I sold it 8 years later.
The egg shaped 94 with 12” tires got tossed around a bit in the wind, but the 96 with 13” tires and different body style, I didn’t have any problems.
I’d LOVE to find a 2000-2001 Metro with low mileage, 3cyl 5spd now as a commuter car.
If y’all know anyone who has one, PLEASE let me know.
Keep in mind the EPA has revised the MPG numbers since this was made. We had a rental Geo Metro, the 4 door, 4 cyl, with the automatic, we never got no more than 33.
Automatic transmissions in small cars at that time were very inefficient.
The manual was the best
My first Metro was a 94. I bought it in November of 93.
I lived near Salem, Oregon and had to drive to LA California Every weekend (I had 3 day weekends).
The only time it saw 55mph was when it was on its way to 85mph. I got it down to drive the 900 mile trip in 12 hours.
At 51K miles the catalytic converter went out, so I put in a straight pipe. I went from 55mpg to 60mpg after I removed the catalytic converter.
On only ONE tank of gas (10 gallons) I had a strong tail wind and got 80mpg. My metro died on the off ramp and I coasted into a gas station in Bakersfield, CA.
I replaced the original clutch at 200K miles. When the factory tires wore out I replaced them with 80K mile radials.
It burned 1/2 a quart of oil between changes (I changed the oil every 3K miles) and 210K miles later it was still burning 1/2 quart oil oil. I had to replace the brakes once with full ceramic brakes. Every 30K miles I had the grease in the transmission replaced. I put platinum tip spark plugs and replaced them for the 2nd time right before I traded it in for my 96 Metro.
Those 12” tires were inexpensive on my 94. In 95 they changed the body style and they went to a 13” tire.
When I first bought my 94, I’d be in the slow lane going north on I-5 over the “Grapevine” (the mtn range 60miles north of LA), I’d be in 3rd gear with my foot on the floor going 55mph.
After a few trips to LA and back I’d be in 4th gear driving 65mph. Of course going down the speedometer only went to 85mph so I don’t know how fast I was actually going. On flat land it was Always on 85mph.
Yes they were small and runty, but both of mine were super reliable.
Other than the catalytic converter going out, both were more reliable than my Honda.
After buying my 96 I no longer had to drive to LA and it took me 13 years to put 95K miles on my 96 Metro.
You’re right, everyone who’s ever owned a Metro usually bought another one.
When I sold my 96, the man was looking for his 3rd Metro.
It’s too bad that they stopped making them.
Now that I’m pushing 60 years old, I’d LOVE to find a Metro Convertible in good condition and low mileage for my wife and I to putts around in during our summer months as a quirky cool little Convertible.
Bought a 91 Metro brand new. As a commuter car it was great. Never had any mechanical problems, never had trouble keeping up with traffic (single occupant) actually was fun to drive, but then I've always liked bare bones manual trans cars.Typical gas mileage for me was usually high 40's MPG, except for a two week stretch one summer during some really hot weather, for whatever reason, it got 62 MPG those two weeks. Only negative was as SUV's took off in popularity, it became the smallest thing on the road, and I began to feel very vulnerable. I sold it after four years of ownership and got a bland Chevy Lumina four door (yuck!) for free from my father. I felt safer in the larger Lumina but I did miss that cheap little Metro tin box.
The air got thinner, so less drag 😉
Purchased a 92 geo metro convertable last year. Previous owner had nearly ran it into the ground. I had quite the time bringing it back from the brink of death
My 95 Metro LSI routinely got 35-40 mpg back in the day. It got me through the two hour commute I had one summer and never let me down. Wasn't big on creature comforts but it did the job and I always smile when I see one.
A Geo Metro XFI in good running condition would easily sell today with gas over $5 a gallon.
My mom and dad back in the early 90's had a Geo Metro XFI. With both of them in the car and myself driving I did a fuel economy test with speeds varying from 30 MPH to 55 MPH with most of the driving on rural highways during the summer.
I fueled the car up at a local gas station to the top were I could see stationary standing fuel at the top of the filler neck. After our trip which consisted of about 100 miles I filled up at the same station and same pump. Same filling method as before and the MPG for that trip was 67 MPG. Impressive mpg's to say the least.
Though the XFI was not the safest car it was still safer than a motorcycle, more comfortable, can carry more than one passenger, had a heater for cold weather and if it rained you would not get soaked. Also it probably got the same or maybe even better mpg's than most motorcycles.
"safer than a motorcycle", yes.
I had a few classic cars I drove in nice weather. I seen a ‘86 Chevy Sprint (Geo Metro) in the late summer of 1992 paid $700 with 70K miles. I wasn’t sure about the 3 cylinder engines longevity but I wanted the car as a winter beater. The Car was in Great Shape. 2 dr. Hatch Manual. I ended up driving it through the year and for 3 years paying $6 every other week for gas and I was always driving 50 60 mile trips plus giving employees and family rides all the time. My Friend Mark says to me one day. “YOU LOVE THAT CAR” He as right. It owed me nothing! After the 3 years I had 120K miles and I decided to sell it. I detailed it up and sold it for $1,400 to a family friend’s, friend. They drove it for years as their only car! It was so fun to drive. The car also had MORE Front LEG room than my ‘84 Crown Vic. Sedan. The down side was I know I’d be dead or severely injured in any accident. at age 28 you don’t think of these things. I was always on the freeway. And many times with 4 full sized adults in the car going to dinner all over 6’ tall. 😅 I still remember the Sticker Price on the First Year Chevy Sprints was $4,995. And 64 MPG was the rating.
The light weight with those skinny 13" tires did awesome in the snow! I was the only teenager on the road when we got snow.
My daughter had a Geo Metro, 3 cylinder convertible. Tiny little car and her plate was "Gerbel". Barely hit 70 mph going down hill 😂😂!
I had the 1986 Chevy Sprint ER with the same 3 cylinder engine and a 5 speed manual gearbox. I must have driven it 15 times from LA to San Francisco, usually at night, in a span of 5 years. It was ultra reliable and only BMWs and Audis could overtake me in winding mountain roads.
I've had my '92 Metro convertible up to 80 mph several times.... on level ground.
i owned a few, and they handle great!!!!. it was precise steering and the breaks are fine. It is one of the funniest cars to drive. The reliability is great, one of the most durable cars as good as any toyota. however these days most of them are gone.
Hey Thanks for watching!!!
This is true. Mine handled surprisingly well on the stock tires. Most reliable car I've ever owned, too.
@@ThisOldCarChannel The balance of the car is good. What most people do not know is the original design body and chases was done by GM and they sold that design to Suzuki who then produced the car and designed the engine. GM sometimes take a lot of time and research when developing a car and it is this aspect of the design which is why the GEO is so solid and handles well. I owned a 95 1.3 4 cylinder sedan (the 4 door with trunk) and own now a 98 1.0 3 cylinder hatch both manuals. They are light cars but feel solid and grounded and the sedan with the manual is extremely fast and had no problem on the hwy. The sedan had power steering and both are so predictable and great in in snow. In 1989 or 90 I took a trip to Florida and rented a automatic 4 door hatch with AC and the acceleration was so bad in the automatic. the automatics are 3 speed and have terrible gearing and the engines and tranny in the automatic are really noisy at hwy speed or any speed over 45mpg. So a 5 speed manual vs an automatic is a very different car and driving experience. MY 1.0 3 cylinder is not as good on the hwy if I want to go over 70 mph but I do not care and I will never sell the car its great to scoot around down and does not feel anemic for around town driving. A friend crashed my 95 sedan and I have been searching for one ever since. For a small car the sedan had a great trunk and back seat was ok for people unless over 6 feet. I do not know who designed the 95 sedan if that was GM or Suzuki but that was a great car and I miss it dearly. It was a great road trip car. I would drift it in the snow around corners in the mountains in Colorado. With good snow tires it would never get stuck and it had surprisingly good ground clearance for a smaller car (better than the hatch) and it was so predictable it was the best snow car I ever owned. That car would never plow and would grab its way around tight mountain turns. If you know how to control a skid like dukes of hazard or starsky and hutch there is nothing funner than a manual geo sedan. The car was so predictable, if one knows how to control the rear end by accelerating at the right moment, one can really take that car to its limit.
I loved my '93 convertible! Had it til 2003 when the transmission died. I wish I still had it!
Before the Geo line this car was called The Chevy Sprint.
I doubt that this reviewer ever owned a Metro, and maybe never drove one. I put 300,000 km on my 1990 and 400,000 on my 1993 (badged in Canada as a Pontiac Firefly and Suzuki Swift GA). Both had the amazing 1.0L. engine, I found them fun to drive. They had NO trouble keeping up with bigger cars on the highway, but on twisty 2-lane roads you needed to carefully choose places to pass slower vehicles. I did not find wind noise or road noise excessive. They were wonderful cars and very economical. But in a collision they would probably not do well. (Incidentally, I had 2 daughters and a son who also owned Metros.)
Fellas, I've owned at least 1 Geo Metro 3/5, since :1995. I'd still have my beautiful little baby right now IF: I could only get parts for it. I've had to recently sell it (Jan '21). I've driven over 450K on my 3 Geo Metro's that I've owned since '95. Love the little car, they're TOUGH, they're DEPENDIBLE , they're ROOMY (for the size of car that they are), and they get BETTER Gas Mileage than a Motorcycle yet still , can haul around myself and 3 other "fat-asses".! Now since I've sold it, I own/drive/Love an '04 Toy Cor. Not getting the mileage that I did but > now being older,,,,, wow, I've got AIR CONDITIONING, and it works great! The Toy Cor. has SO MUCH room inside of it..../ going from Az , to Nor Cal. driving up "5" and the Grape Vine,,,, I stayed in 5th Gear, didn't have to downshift at all! With the little car I'd have had to downshift to 4th, and maybe 3rd. Love my little Toy Corolla! Oh to that fella who's daughter could only hit 70mph? > Let me say on Hwy 111 in California, I drove my Geo 3/5 (3 cyl/ 5 speed) to TERMINAL VELOCITY, and it got up to 93 MPH, (estimated) because the #"s stopped at 85, and there was room more....so it's an estimate> ON FLAT LAND on the East side of the Salton Sea.
Midweek treat 😀
I have owned 2 97 geo 99 Chevy metro and I drive a 2000 Suzuki swift now . Over 250k miles. I commute 144 miles round trip . Great car getting 37 mpg
Hi, I had a 98' violet metro 2 dr. We name it little grape. I bought for $500 because the electrical system was a mess and nobody knows how to fix it. I fix the wiring and with a tune up the little car hits the road again. I had a lot of adventures with that little car till I sell it for $1,500.
Had a 90 for my first car love it delivered a lot of 🍕 in it. it wasn't fast fast but it was fun to drive and a visit to the pumps twice a month I miss it
In Europe it was sold as a Suzuki Swift, the convertible had a 1.3L 4 cil. engine
I had a 88 Chevy sprint, 2 friends had metros . Both put Loud systems ( as it was in the day ) .
Not true, and whomever posted this is umm..a liar?...My gf in the 90's bought a convertible Metro and it was so much fun to drive.
I pulled the engine and refreshed with new rings and bearings, and that car was rock solid!!
Ice cold air...you could cruise any interstate without the slightest bit of struggle.....aftermarket cruise control worked flawlessly!!!
I always wondered if anyone ever put cruise control on one of these! One would think that would increase mileage a bit more! Was it easy to install?
Just bought a 92 four door hatch still runs good!
Fun little cars to drive if you got the stick shift. I never owned one, but I drove a handful when I was a auto tech in the 90s.
Me too. But most of my customers had automatics. They were slow. But many other cars were slow too back then. In reality the Sprint/Metro weren’t bad cars for their day. They were fairly reliable cheap small cars
I love those! Around 1990 we had 3 in the familly, mine was a 1985 suzuki forsa manual! The manual was a fun car to toss around but the top speed was 130 km/h with the door wooshing making a chopper kind of noise....
It's $6.49 here in California for gallon of gas, I own a 2001 Chevy Metro with the 1.3 with multi-port fuel injection and 16 valves. Good for somewhere between 79 and 84 horsepower. The 36 to 38 MPG I'm averaging combined right now, I am glad I bought this car. And mind you I drive about 5 mph sometimes 10 mph over the speed limit, and I'm getting those numbers. And I always drive 5 mph over the speed limit. They're talking $10 a gallon of gas. Like I said I'm glad I bought this car.
I'm not a fan of chevy/geo but... this car is about exactly what a LOT of people need nowadays. It just makes sense. Ford should make another Fiesta like they made back in the 70s. Low cost, low power, low maintenance, high gas mileage and gets you where you need to go.
What we NEED is President Trump instead of biden. Drill baby drill!
My 1st Geo I bought was in '92, it was the "wagon" type. I got it because of my new wife and now a baby,,,,,, it was a 3 speed automatic/ 4 door. The window sticked said: 36 City, 39 HWY, that's exactly what it would get. Didn't matter if you went 45 mph, or 70, you wouldn't get more than 39 on the freeway. I hated it, it SUCKED! But when I got my first 3/5> WOW! The absolute MOST gas mileage I've ever got on a trip from Phoenix, AZ to Yuma, Az was 76.4 mpg!!!!!! At that time I had in it an "XFI" transmission it was a "taller" set of gears on the final speed. I would normally get around 45-48 in the winter/City. I'd get 50-55 summer/City, and freeway always at 68MPH I'd pull 62 in the winter months (because of the grade of fuel> winter months) and I'd easily get 64-66 freeway / summer
Friend of mine had one…great memories with it. We used to pick it up and wedge it sideways in the driveway between homes so he couldn’t pull out. One night I was driving it and there was six of us stuffed in it. One was in the hatch. We were driving from clubs in NYC and drove thru the Battery Tunnel into Brooklyn. Car was barely moving up the Gowanus expressway as it’s a bit of a climb. The front wheels were chirping as the front end was skipping off the ground. LOL! He put over 200k miles on that little car!
I miss the times when this car was all over the place, but I certainly don't miss this box or crap.
Oh yeah, my '93 Geo Metro, that was totaled by the insurance company, I took it down to my body guy, who fixed it up, made it STRAIGHT again. I ended up selling it to a guy in California for $3400.oo > the book said it was worth about $600.oo. It was on a salvaged title. You can see that EXACT Car on You tube: Type in " Veggiepowered, "72 Mpg Geo Metro 5 speed"
Got an idea:
Will there be a market for the true “cheap” automobile again?
I’ve noticed that prime examples of the metro(or swift or similar) are raising in price to astronomical levels recently. How true is that and how will that effect everyone?
Btw, AMAZING channel and keep up the great work!
I get better mileage by far in my 2013 Prius than I did in my Metro. I loved my Metro, but would never go back to one after seeing what a Prius can do.
I actually drove one as a rental in L.V. and felt like a metal box.
I had a 92 metro, it had a tuned muffler and Bosch Platinum 4 spark plugs when I bought it ten years old for $1400. It got 50 mpg average. Never less than high 40's commuting.
Had a 91 Swift 1.3 4 cyl 5 spd . Was great on yes but was fun to drive. Bought it new in 91 was dark blue, No air con, black bumpers, single drivers side mirror, no wheel covers, super basic but drove it all the way down to Florida from Toronto in August the heat with a full tank and cost me in gas on the way down $21.00 if memory serves gas was 2.04 a gallon about and a fill up was like $14.00 as I listened to the Alpine with a rockford fosgate. Amp under the passenger seat a MTX subs in the back so I was one happy camper. Those were the days.
15 years ago, my father had an accident. The car was totaled. He still needed a car but had a tight budget. The best thing we could find was a Suzuki Swift 1.0. After 15 days of owning the car, he went back to the dealership saying the gas indicator was not working. The owner of the dealership laughed out loud! Don't worry, he said. It will come down. Oh, by the way, the previous owner that bought a Mercedes came back. He wanted the car back 😂
My father retired 7 years ago and gave me the car. I completely reburbished it. Never had a malfunction, only the battery going out and get consistent 52mpg. 4 years ago, I got the GTi version. 1600 pounds and 115bhp of pure fun in mountanous windy roads 😁
I owned a brand new 92 Suzuki Swift Limited, for 27 years . 4cyl .175 k The AC was the best, I gave the car away , 2 years ago .I would still own it .but rust took it over, Which happens when you move a NY car to FL. The car is in Lakeland FL now. Suzuki's were badged under many names, Pontiac Fire Fly for one. I own a Suzuki Piano,, Suzuki Jimmy is the new Tracker/Sidekick.. I would gladly buy one today. Suzuki in America ruined it's reputation when it merged with Daewoo.
I have driven 3 Geo metros throughout my life all but the current one that I'm driving cost me under $1,000 and all of them have been fantastic incredibly reliable cars. I love my metros currently I'm driving a four-door hatchback with over 300,000 MI on the body and a rebuilt engine.
it's my little "Whitey", with a different transmission, I had it getting up to 72mpg on the freeway! The clip on You Tube is 1:11 long.
Was looking for a Geo Metro on the market a few months ago with no luck. They are either being sold only as a shell or as a convertible. I did see one 4 door hatch geo on sale for $2000, but it was quickly grabbed a month later.
I had a 95 Metro, 3 cyl, 5 speed. Never got under 45mpg on a tank no matter how hard I drove it.
I can remember growing up in the late 80's and early 90's my friend Andre own a white geo Storm LoL we thought it was pretty cool at the time
My friend Warren had a Geo Storm back in the day. I raced him with my Honda CRX. I won the race but not by a lot. GOOD TIMES! :-)
I saw an xfi in a parking lot 3 years ago and I put a note in the windshield because I knew gas was going back up. Best note I ever got a response on. Comuting 60 miles a day and laughing at everybody at the pumps
Love to have one.but you don't see these cars around here anymore
Maude Flanders: C'mon, Ned move this thing!
Ned Flanders: I can't, it's a Geo!
I own a 2001 Suzuki Swift, 1991 convertible Metro, 1992 convertible Metro and a 1996? 2 door hatch Metro....
I am looking for a 1993'ish Metro. But at the moment, working on what we have. Lol. Love my little entourage....
The convertible always reminds me of a Golf Cart.
I bought a Geo Metro ER [Extended Range] new in 1986 and it was rated 55 MPG city and 60 MPG highway and it would get that MPG all day long.
My first new car was a 1993 2-door 5-speed non-XFI; the only option on it was a rear window defroster. When I waxed and buffed it, one could faintly see “Budweiser”; I suspect a blue one (@0:37) would read “Pabst Blue Ribbon”.
Commuter around town, 48 to 52 mpg. Highway going 60, hit 58 mpg on occasion over a tank. Great for what it was, a no-frills commuter. Was a lot better than my 1982 Honda CM250C during inclement weather. Any yes, managed to peg the 85 mph speedo on more than one occasion. The license plate surround, “Hyperactive chainsaw on wheels”.
Thank you so much for watching!
In spring 1992, I had to buy a new car after graduating from university. My choice was either the Chevy Sprint/Geo Metro/Suzuki Swift/Pontiac Firefly or the Ford Festiva. I went with the Festiva because it was really a Mazda 121 built by Kia (who knew who they were) and sold by Ford. It was a great car, great gas mileage (only filled up about every 6 weeks) but very basic. No power steering, 13" wheels, no radio and 5 speed manual. And I loved it. And it was much peppier than the Metro.
Thanks for sharing!
I like simple cars as their components are either easy to fix or don't break at all. I much prefer crank windows because they are simple. By comparison, my Miata has power windows and I had to shuck out hundreds to fix one of them when it broke and I couldn't fix it. Then the other one let go and I had to shuck out more money to fix that too. I love the Miata because it doesn't have a lot of frills either, but I know one day I may have to move to a newer car. I'm dreading it. Touch screens, insane engine management and the design philosophy that actively fights people like me who will fix things themselves are not what I want. Too many of them are sinfully ugly too.
The Geo was pedestrian, but the Suzuki Swift GT was genuinely fun to drive. I borrowed one for a few days from a relative and was surprised what a great hot hatch the car made.
ABS was available in rhe 2nd generation, but it was extremely rare.
I drive one of these bad boys everyday
I have a 2016 Ford Fiesta with the 3cyl engine and it is rated at 44 mpg. Got as much as 64mpg on trips at the speed limit. 7.9 seconds 0-60 also. Definitely not fast but it’s good enough for me.
there was a guy who worked at pizzahut that used to have one, he was nearly 7 feet tall, he had his drivers seat removed and drove it from the back seat- he literally looked like the tall guy in small car in the simpsons before he took his front seat out.
Ive owned so many Geo models such a very reliable little brand of cars.
Hey Thanks for watching!!!
I never had a metro but I owned a Geo prism and a Geo storm ...both cars I took to the junkyard still running ...great cars ...the prism got about 35-40 mpg and every shock/ strut was broken 😂 and was on all mismatched tires and still drove great under 50 mph anything faster and the wheel vibrated terribly ..I bought both cars for under 300 dollars each and put well over 50,000 miles on each only changing the oil and drove them till the wheels fell off! 😂
What killed the Metro? Automakers found out they can sell cars with a electric motor in addition to the Gas one for twice the money despite the Metro getting better mileage than most Hybrids today. So, the cheap hatchback died the way the Minivan did, as automakers chose to only build vehicles with a higher profit margin...well besides Mitsubishi. If you want a new "Metro" Mitsubishi sells a spiritual successor today in the Mistubishi Mirage.
Thanks for watching and the comment ! Boca Brothers!
Cool 😀
There was also a Geo Prism
Yet they also made a Geo Metro convertible as well for only, just a very short while. It was a really cute open casket on wheels.
Not well-known, ford focus sedan at end of its run could be bought in U.S. with one-liter engine. The turbo and variable valve timing bring 124 HP -- more than double the metro. I got one in 2018, not realizing phase-out of the model. With this engine you got a real transmission -- not the DPS6.
I have a Ford Fiesta with that same engine and a 5 speed manual. Easy 50 mpg on trips.
I've gotten up to 51 on the highway, but usually between 33 and 37 on country roads. It's a lot more peppy than my ranger with 2.3 pinto engine. I used to get a head start when approaching hills, to make sure I got over the crest. That crate got 22 MPG at-best.
My brand new Pontiac Firefly rusted so fast here in Montreal.
"Its a Geo !!" -Ned Flanders
Damnit everybody was ragging me about my 93Xfi so I got a dumb turbo convertible and am now kicking myself in the head... That Geo was way more reliable than any Audi and of course used half the fuel.
While I agree with most of your assessments on this vehicle (having owned a 93 Metro Convertible and 2 Suzuki Swifts), your assertion they weren’t reliable is wrong. Mine were all as reliable as any Toyota vehicle. Which is to say they were exceptional. They were incredibly simple machines and dead reliable as a daily driver. Take them for what they were and they were better than most cars today.
I knew a guy who had one with the three cylinder. I used to call the Tri-squirel. He wasn't impressed .
i had a metro. it was a good car but the roof was a pill to keep closed and locked. i lost it in a car wreck .
Ive watched this so many times. Lol I am very careful driving my 97 knowing anything that would crash into me would be deadly. I have the automatic 4 cylinder with ac and trust me you aint going anywhere fast in this sucker well 0-35 is pretty quick but then its done. Extremely reliable little cars though the door handles and knobs will snap off but mechanically it will go until it cant
I have a 1998 Metro 3 cylinder 1 liter i have 290,000 miles great car, I wish I could buy a brand new one.
Back in the EARLY 2000's... while it wasn't THIS car? I had the Ford "version" of this car in the form of a 1994 Ford Aspire hatchback. The preivious owner hauled around landscaping stuff in it while he had it and just didn't need it anymore, so I got it for $100.
The only things (significant) wrong with it? Brakes and tires.
The ONLY thing I held against that little car for a daily driver for what it is and what it's meant for? The lack of power steering in a stick shift. lol
Geo is a very dangerous car my best friends mother was killed in one in. She had a head on with a truck, when I went with him to the impound lot. It caved in on her there was about 10” between the dash and driver seat the Speedo was crushed in and had the speed on impact stuck on 45 mph. This should not have crushed her. Rip Mrs. Burg
Thank you for another interesting and informative video. Yeah, people bought this car. It is interesting today in 2022 Chevrolet does not have a small car as I think they Spark is on its way out or will be cancelled. I cannot recall. Good job putting together the footage as well. It was another video surprise.
You forgot about the Geo Prism, had 2 platforms, I believe they were the isuzu imark and then later, the Toyota Corolla. I could be wrong, but you definitely did not mention the Geo Prism and you should have.
Early on they had a hatchback version and then later became a sedan.
If this car could keep at 70-80 MPH easier it would be such a great buy!
Shame we can get such simple cars now.
I gotta 94 turbo for sale 189k on it. Asking 2500 been maintained highly
Imagine one of these bad boys all swapped everything, maybe a K series
My mother have 2 she love it.
I have a Geo 1992 with 90 000 miles and I drive everyday I love this car I just put 20 dollars in gas and laste two weeks my other car 20 dollars last me two days only and everywhere I go someone want to buy it and I said is not for sale .
Why you hating on the Geo metro? It's actually a great little 🚗. Very reliable.
lies. my dad had one. an 89 model with a manuel transmission. it was plenty peppy and easily got to 60mph. now the automatic was another story. this video perfectly descibes the automatic version.
I love my little Pontiac firefly if I die in a car crash in it so be it
30 years later with all this technology, and not many cars are doing better with MPG...
The Chevy metro was replaced by the Aveo then the Sonic not Spark. The Sonic was actually there resigned Aveo in other countries
You won’t be able to find a geo metro two door manual hatch on the market but you can find them in a junkyard.
Can tell this presenter has never driven one of these.
Come on admit it people, when you saw the Metro the first time you were struck with the rake of the windscreen weren't you, admit it now :)
I have never been struck by a windshield, been struck by a bumper, but not the window. It hurt.
@@dave8599 I just hope you don't get struck by a rake either. lol :p