Who remembers the Geo nameplate? It was a 1990s thing when General Motors formed a partnership with Suzuki to produce small subcompact cars for the U.S. market. They were the rebadged Suzuki Cultus sold in the States at Chevrolet dealers. Eventually, the brand would merge into Chevy for a total run of 13 years. This 1992 Geo Metro LSi is a sporty little convertible that is an economy car with a drop-top. This well-preserved example is in Chicago, Illinois, and is available through a dealer here on eBay for $4,999 (Buy It Now). Offers will be considered. Once again, we thank Barn Finder Larry D for another interesting tip.
Imported economy cars were continuing to sell well in the U.S., so Chevrolet added the Geo line-up in 1989 to better compete. The cars were originally sourced in Japan but – beginning in 1990 – all North American production hailed from a plant in Ingersoll, Ontario, Canada because of a 50-50 joint venture named CAMI Automotive. The cars continued to carry Geo labels through 1997 and (due to declining sales) the brand was folded into Chevrolet until the cars were discontinued altogether in 2001.
The seller doesn’t provide many details on this car other than to repeat some of the information that would have been listed in a brochure. The convertible was added to the line-up in 1990 but disappeared after 1993. Metros were offered in three trim levels and the LSi, like the seller’s car, was the more upscale version. First-generation Geo’s were powered by a 1.0-liter 3-cylinder engine that could be paired with either a 5-speed manual or automatic transmission, the latter of which is in the seller’s car. These weren’t fast machines by any means, but fuel-efficient, getting up to 50 mpg even before the advent of the Hybrid a few years later.
This car has seen little use in the last 29 years, accumulating just 45,000 miles on the odometer. It presents well and there are no apparent issues with the body, paint, or interior. The only thing that might be amiss is that the driver’s seat belt might be a tad frayed. There’s not a lot of room for people and we’re not sure of the trunk capacity because of whatever space the retracted top would occupy. But if you’re looking for a car for a little weekend spin, this could be fun to drive!
This car will always remind me of the supporting role it held in Tim Allen’s comedy BIG TROUBLE. If you don’t know the movie it is definitely enjoyably recommended! Lots of recognizable faces too.
“Hayzeus??” “No, Puggy”.
It’s really too bad that there are no longer cars of this size available in the U.S. They are fun to drive (especially in convertible form), cheap to own, and helpful to the environment.
If these were made today, I’d grab one up.
Go ahead and laugh, this motor was one stout unit. In a sea of RAM dually pickups, I wouldn’t be caught dead in a car like this, but Suzuki had it pegged, these motors routinely go over 200K with no service. Neighbor had a car like this, was their daughters, had an incredible 240K, and never worked on. Farm I lived on, guy had 3 hardtops, all 3 cylinders, all with over 200K and all ran, but severely rusted. Fun little car, in a place where everybody else drives cars this size, that is.
I built/restored/modified one for my daughters first car
Pink panther pink was the color
It had the Suzuki swith 4 cylinder
It had the swift interior
A dodge stealth rear wing
The neons under the dash and car
Big sound system
That non existent back seat was great for speakers
She ended up hating the car because she couldn’t go anywhere without getting noticed!
My friends would call me whenever they spotted the car
I am going to forward this ad just to aggravate her !
Do it! Hahaha!!! You will hear “DAAAAAD! REALLY? Thanks best dad ever.
Please submit a pic of the Pink Metro
If I recall correctly, these had a load capacity (passengers and cargo) of around 330 lb. That’s me, a pizza, and a 6-pack.
I car pooled with 3 300 lb co workers in one of the sedans. 2nd gear to get up steep hills.
$299.00 Dealer/Protector Prep Fee for vehicle? Seriously. And dealers wonder why people hate them.
I owned 3 of the coupes, all with 3cylinder/ 5 speed manual, all bought used. I averaged over 140 miles a day with the job I had at the time, getting an average mpg of 42. They all exceeded 250k with ease. I sold the last one to a neighbor, who proceeded to put another 80k on it before it finally broke down. Great cars, was disappointed when they quit making them!
I bought new a 1993 Suzuki Swift GT. It had the 4cyl DOHC. It was a great looking car and super fun to drive. Manual transmission gave me problems early on. The dealer was good in trying to help resolve them, but eventually I traded it in on a Toyota 4Runner. In hindsight, I wish I would have kept it. You just never see them now. It got great gas mileage. I still have some factory inserts for the doorjambs that I never installed.
Amazing how clean that interior is – i would prefer darker colored seats & carpet(especially). My friend in the boonies would make this car a big mess inside in short order. lol
More small cars have bitten/will bite the dust – Toyota!!!! Yaris & usa Chevy Sonic. & like a fool i was waiting many many years for the latter(& Cruze) to come in 2 door versions.
How do some of the car companies NOW meet mpg standards when there are no or less subcompacts to counter balance the awful mpg by the big suvs? Is the EPA even aware? I didn’t know the above 2 cars are history – till today.
Oddly, the ugly too small for a back seat asian Chevy Spark is not discontinued.
Same with the Mitz Mirage – i didn’t think Mitz sold ANY cars here anymore – for years. lol
Any time that gas prices take a major hike, these Geo Metro 3 cylinders take a spike in demand / price. Pretty soon, all of them will be long gone.
I had a hardtop. I sold it 8 years ago with almost 300k miles and still getting 45 mpg. Sold it to a friend. He’s still driving it.
Had one in collage. Was changing the clutch. Had the jack under the tranny. Undid all the bolts. Started moving the jack and wiggling the tranny, when it started slipping off the jack. Quickly reached over to steady it and expected to try my best to gently fall to the ground. To my surprise instead of falling I easily picked it up and out of the car.
Agree with the others, it is a shame we no longer have simple, low cost to buy, low cost to maintain cars in the USA. Can’t imagine what I would be driving today is I was a collage student.
My personal rant is we are moving back to where cars will last 100k miles and then be tossed. They will be too complex and expensive to fix.
Two notes of possible interest:
1. This version would only get 30 mpg as per fueleconomy.gov.
2. Here’s a list of the fees to expect:
State or local taxes, title, license fee, processing fees, registration fee, dealer documentary fee, finance charges, emission testing fees, and compliance fees are additional to the advertised price.
Applicable Fees are; $300.00 Illinois Documentation fee, $15.00 for Thirty-Day Drive Away Permit Fee for Out of State Customers, $299.00 Dealer/Protector Prep Fee for vehicle, Illinois Customers will pay $150.00 Title Fee and $151.00 for Illinois Plates, $25.00 for Illinois Registration, Sales Tax (for Illinois Residents and Residents of Tax Reciprocal States with the State of Illinois). Fees subject to change. Please call or email if you have any questions regarding Reciprocal Tax with the State of Illinois. Out of State Buyers are responsible for all State, County and City Taxes and Fees, as well as Title/Registration Fees in the State that the vehicle will be registered.
This would be a great investment and the best $5000. spent on a little car. It’s true you cannot buy these new and this is a nice example. It is true they will go 200K plus miles with little maintenance. It is also true the values spike when gas prices do. This would be a fun run around car that wouldn’t break the bank. It’s interesting this has a 4 X 100 MM bolt pattern. The same as older Honda Civics VW Golf Jetta Rabbit and E30 BMW’s so it is a custom wheel paradise.
My mom bought the exact same car when my dad would not let her take out the 57 Chev. convert they had. Only used in the summer in Wisconsin it’s still like new. Even though the parents have passed my daughter still has the GEO and drives it every summer. We still have the 57 convert. too but use it every chance we get.
The Clown car fun to drive on a Saturday morning to the local coffee shop. No power but its a drop top.
Who was smarter the person with the GEO Metro or the person with the 40th Anniversary Corvette?
funny, I thought I wuz the only 1 to skip the vette & look here.
Some of my p/u truck drivin buddies still search out these…
No more Yugos – but a Yaris I guess…
(K.Ghia, fiat 850, miaita, lill but stylin car…
I’ve had a ’93 convertible with the 1.0 liter and a 5-speed for 20 years. I travel all over the country in it attending GEO meets. Just returned from a thousand-mile trip to Minnesota and averaged more than 46 mpg on mostly interstate driving. My car has just under 150K miles, and a lot of items have been replaced over the years, but the block is still untouched. The trunk is surprisingly spacious for a car this small.
Interesting Michael. Where would one find these meets going on?I still have one…….a very special Metro I wouldn’t mind getting out and showing.