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Traditional Catholic Faith => The Catholic Bunker => Topic started by: Cryptinox on August 29, 2021, 02:28:23 PM

Title: Geo Metro?
Post by: Cryptinox on August 29, 2021, 02:28:23 PM
Hey so in the last few days I found out about the Geo Metro. I am curious if they are good cars for anything other than the mileage. I wonder about the safety features and how reliable they are. The 30+ mpg in the city really appeals to me.
Title: Re: Geo Metro?
Post by: Mark 79 on August 29, 2021, 02:41:22 PM
I'm surprised there are still any Geo Metros on the road. GM is not known for longevity of their vehicles, especially their economy cars.  They are about on a oar with the Yugo or Russian Lada. 

My advice? Look for a VW diesel Golf or Passat. They are good for 200-300,000 miles, low maintenance, 40-45 mg.
Title: Re: Geo Metro?
Post by: Last Tradhican on August 29, 2021, 04:51:50 PM
I'm surprised there are still any Geo Metros on the road. GM is not known for longevity of their vehicles, especially their economy cars.  They are about on a oar with the Yugo or Russian Lada.

My advice? Look for a VW diesel Golf or Passat. They are good for 200-300,000 miles, low maintenance, 40-45 mg.
Geo Metros? Wow, I am surprised one is still running around. They were built by Suzuki for GM. They were a piece of junk. VW's like Mercedes Benz are not what they were 30-40 years ago, they are now high maintenance cost cars, I would not recommend them. The best car for mechanical repair incidence is the Toyota Camry with the 4 cylinder engine. If you can find a 2001 or older (see*) with under 200,000 miles, you can get 200,000 more miles out of it easy with just changing the oils. If you find an older, retiree type owner that kept them in garage, you can pay him top dollar and have a good looking car forever.

* Up to 2001 the 4 cylinder Camry engine was a non-interference engine. On non-interference engines if the timing belt broke, the car would  just stop running. All you do then is change the timing belt and you are good to go for 120,000 miles to who knows what. On the 2002 models and forward the engines were interference engines, if the timing belt busted on them, the pistons would hit the valves and the engine was destroyed. Not a good thing! If you can find any car with a non-inference engine, you will have that piece of mind. Especially that you are buying an old car. To change the timing belt on an interference engine can cost $1000 and more. Someone sells you an inference engine car that has not had the belt changed, you drive it 6 months and the belt breaks and you no longer have a car. People lie about having changed the timing belt. Mechanics can lie too, and the person thinks they changed the timing belt when they didn't.  
Title: Re: Geo Metro?
Post by: SimpleMan on August 29, 2021, 06:32:34 PM
Geo Metros? Wow, I am surprised one is still running around. They were built by Suzuki for GM. They were a piece of junk. VW's like Mercedes Benz are not what they were 30-40 years ago, they are now high maintenance cost cars, I would not recommend them. The best car for mechanical repair incidence is the Toyota Camry with the 4 cylinder engine. If you can find a 2001 or older (see*) with under 200,000 miles, you can get 200,000 more miles out of it easy with just changing the oils. If you find an older, retiree type owner that kept them in garage, you can pay him top dollar and have a good looking car forever.

* Up to 2001 the 4 cylinder Camry engine was a non-interference engine. On non-interference engines if the timing belt broke, the car would  just stop running. All you do then is change the timing belt and you are good to go for 120,000 miles to who knows what. On the 2002 models and forward the engines were interference engines, if the timing belt busted on them, the pistons would hit the valves and the engine was destroyed. Not a good thing! If you can find any car with a non-inference engine, you will have that piece of mind. Especially that you are buying an old car. To change the timing belt on an interference engine can cost $1000 and more. Someone sells you an inference engine car that has not had the belt changed, you drive it 6 months and the belt breaks and you no longer have a car. People lie about having changed the timing belt. Mechanics can lie too, and the person thinks they changed the timing belt when they didn't.  
Geo Metro.  No.  Just no.  Please don't.  As the old joke goes, they have shock absorbers, they're called "passengers".  I rented one many years ago in Florida.  This is not a car you want to spend any money on.

I hear what LT is saying about <2001 Camrys, and he is right, however, I recently had to invest in a new car in a big hurry, my father was in his last days, and I absolutely had to have reliable transportation, so I bought a new 2021 Camry LE.  3500 miles so far and I'm loving it.  Low 20s MPG city, 30+ MPG highway, got it up to 34 MPG on a recent hours-long road trip.  Again, I had to have reliable wheels right now, and after beating back and forth the new-vs-used argument, I had to choose one or the other, so I chose new.  No worries so far, it does everything I need a car to do, putting the key in the ignition and having the car run is part of this "everything".  I am assuming this will be my car for at least the next ten years.

I tried not to let my desperation show to the dealer, and I think I hid it pretty well.  Bottom line, I needed a car, I got a car.
Title: Re: Geo Metro?
Post by: Cryptinox on August 29, 2021, 08:37:07 PM
Geo Metro.  No.  Just no.  Please don't.  As the old joke goes, they have shock absorbers, they're called "passengers".  I rented one many years ago in Florida.  This is not a car you want to spend any money on.

I hear what LT is saying about <2001 Camrys, and he is right, however, I recently had to invest in a new car in a big hurry, my father was in his last days, and I absolutely had to have reliable transportation, so I bought a new 2021 Camry LE.  3500 miles so far and I'm loving it.  Low 20s MPG city, 30+ MPG highway, got it up to 34 MPG on a recent hours-long road trip.  Again, I had to have reliable wheels right now, and after beating back and forth the new-vs-used argument, I had to choose one or the other, so I chose new.  No worries so far, it does everything I need a car to do, putting the key in the ignition and having the car run is part of this "everything".  I am assuming this will be my car for at least the next ten years.

I tried not to let my desperation show to the dealer, and I think I hid it pretty well.  Bottom line, I needed a car, I got a car.
Are you talking about the sedan or the hatchback? I was thinking of getting the sedan.
Title: Re: Geo Metro?
Post by: Cryptinox on August 29, 2021, 08:48:19 PM
I'm surprised there are still any Geo Metros on the road. GM is not known for longevity of their vehicles, especially their economy cars.  They are about on a oar with the Yugo or Russian Lada.

My advice? Look for a VW diesel Golf or Passat. They are good for 200-300,000 miles, low maintenance, 40-45 mg.
The higher prices on diesel isn't worth it in my opinion
Title: Re: Geo Metro?
Post by: Mark 79 on August 29, 2021, 09:34:29 PM
The higher prices on diesel isn't worth it in my opinion
I bought our low mileage VW diesel for the longevity of the engine. I take good care of our vehicles so I expect  it to last for 250-300,000 miles. It will likely outlast two gas engine vehicles.  The fuel economy is just a bonus.
Title: Re: Geo Metro?
Post by: bodeens on August 30, 2021, 01:39:47 AM
Geo Tracker (Suzuki Sidekicks) are better and are a fun ride to boot if you are set on Suzuki. This is not a serious city car recommendation though. If you can get Volvo 240 DL (check fuses, particularly windows and make sure no other electrical issues) with less than 400k with a working cluster (or own a 3D printer) pick that up. I personally know people with 750k+ on those, they just keep ticking but parts are beginning to become an issue. If you have space for a spare(s) 240 DLs at a friend's property or something this is not a bad route. I know people swear by Subarus but all Subys for sale at this point need head gasket work so either figure that into price or stay away.
I guess to get more specific for recommendations I need to know what you're doing. A small truck like a 1st or 2nd gen Tacoma (check for frame rot in particular) or a early 2ks Ranger (pay attention to tranny on test drive and make sure to knock on the frame) might even be good for you especially if you are planning to get out of the city eventually (which should be a goal).
Title: Re: Geo Metro?
Post by: Limoges on August 30, 2021, 04:09:36 AM
If you're looking for a combination of reliability and fuel economy, nothing beats Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla. Manual transmission for even more longevity (automatic transmissions don't last as long as manual transmissions).
Title: Re: Geo Metro?
Post by: SimpleMan on August 30, 2021, 12:21:52 PM
Are you talking about the sedan or the hatchback? I was thinking of getting the sedan.
The one I drove was 31 years ago, and I want to say it was a hatchback, but that's a long time, to try and recall a detail like that.  I just know it was a white tin can of a car.
Title: Re: Geo Metro?
Post by: Mark 79 on August 30, 2021, 03:43:57 PM
What year did Toyota get rid of timing belts in their engine line-up?
Title: Re: Geo Metro?
Post by: Cryptinox on August 30, 2021, 11:42:03 PM
The one I drove was 31 years ago, and I want to say it was a hatchback, but that's a long time, to try and recall a detail like that.  I just know it was a white tin can of a car.
Ah, I am considering a 1996-2002 metro sedan or another 1996-2000s car
Title: Re: Geo Metro?
Post by: bodeens on August 31, 2021, 10:17:34 AM
What year did Toyota get rid of timing belts in their engine line-up?
It's unfortunately not that simple. The V6 Tacomas used belts until the VVTi engine in 2004, and the 4cyl ALWAYS used chains. I think other vehicles switched to chains after they switched to VVTis too judging by the Highlanders. The new (crummy) 3.5L engine seems to use chains too.
source: https://toyota.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/7690/~/does-my-vehicle-have-a-timing-belt-or-timing-chain%3F
Title: Re: Geo Metro?
Post by: Mark 79 on August 31, 2021, 12:58:59 PM
Thank you.