The Geo Metro was a product of the joint venture between General Motors and Suzuki from 1989 to 2001. The arrangement included the Canadian production of U.S.-bound cars. This pint-sized hatchback from 1992 is the super fuel-efficient XFI model and could be one of the nicer survivors you’ll likely find. Located with a dealer in White Marsh, Maryland, this gas-sipping car is available without reserve here on eBay. The current bid is just $1,038, putting the vehicle firmly in Cheap Wheels territory.
On its home turf in Japan, the Geo Metro was one of many derivatives of the Suzuki Cultus. It was branded as a Geo at first and as a Chevrolet later on. Early Metros came from Japan, while the majority were built by CAMI Automotive (the JV) in Ontario, Canada. The CAMI plant struggled to meet profitable production levels and was eventually phased out. As was typical of the day, the Metro had a transversely-mounted front engine and front-wheel-drive.
To squeeze more out of a gallon of petrol (as high as 58 mpg), the XFI had a 3-cylinder engine and was built to be lighter than the rest of the Metro line-up. The seller’s Plain Jane aqua-colored survivor has just 45,000 miles and uses a 5-speed manual transmission. The sparse interior looks capable enough and the paint is probably original, showing some of its age with no visible rust (there are scads of photos).
The only extra on this Geo is likely the aftermarket sound system. One of its sales features is that it has “matching tires” (a new marketing ploy to me!). If you need simple and economical transportation on the cheap, this may be a better deal than any more modern hybrids – though you’ll have to do all the work like rolling the windows up and down by hand.
It looks to me like someone has painted the wheels and the bumpers, as they did not come with black wheels and the reflection off of the black bumpers indicates something other than just the original finish. To me, those two things indicate either higher mileage or an awful hard 45000 miles. Something just doesn’t look right here.
Judging by the almost blinding gloss sheen of the interior plastics, I’m betting that the glossy bumpers are just dripping with Armor-All or some such similar stuff. Painted wheels don’t concern me much, but what looks like rot on the rockers and their pinch-welded seams merit a close inspection.
My father had a Metro back in the day and those plastics discolored in no time even with regular maintenance… I’m surprised the dash isn’t dried out as well as those did not hold up well in the heat either. It took a lot of Armor-All to keep it looking decent.
“Faster than a….” ,er,nevermind.
They definitely put paint on the bumpers and wheels but its a nice cheap car.
Would make a nice addition to a car collection. Not every car needs to be a speed demon. This would start many more conversations at a show then any big block Chevy or Mopar.
Taught countless drivers how to operate a manual transmission automobile 👍
Love it.
Except….I’d get either Suzuki Swift or Chevrolet Sprint badges for it.
Just to set the record straight. I had a roommate that brought one new. I did all his mechanical work. These little cars came with black plastic/rubberized type whatever bumpers and black wheels.
Three of us grown men made a Payette, ID to Jackpot, NV blackjack run one weekend. Our average weight each was right at 200 lbs. We got 42 mpg. Although there was some down shifting involved we made it. Key operative term.
We all agreed that the next time we would take my Eldorado. We felt like sardines in a one pint whiskey bottle. All in all we had a blast. These make great one person commuting rigs.
I have the big block 4 cylinder model, closest I can get to riding a motorcycle while sitting down. Fun to drive! Still get 44 m.p.g. I also ride two different big bikes. Watch for rotted front suspension frame horns, that’s what sent most of them to the junkyard.
Why? As my dad would say….you know if you get hit in an accident in that thing your gonna die.
He always drove a Cadillac, preferably pre 77.
For those who don’t know, Suzuki is the third most popular car brand in Japan.
I can’t see that good on my phone, but it looks like it has air-conditioning. It looks like a receiver dryer on the front in front of what would be the condescending
Cadillac Kiddo-
The XFI wouldn’t normally have A/C as an option, to my knowledge. I suspect that part of the dash was replaced.
I assume that if an XFI had A/C, turning it on would be a lot like pressing the brake pedal.
~Lothar
But still, do you see the received/dryer?
I owned a 1990 Metro for a number of years. It was not fast, but it didn’t need to be. It got 50 miles to a gallon of gas and saved me gobs of money. I drove it until it fell apart and I had to move on. When my friends pulled up beside me on our commute home or to work, I would make motions with my legs to make it look like I was pedaling fast and hard. It was a real hoot.
I rented one on a business trip to save the company money. After one day of being blown off on the freeways I exchanged it for something that could get out of its own way. They are super cheap to run but lack any kind of performance.
As a Metro owner for the past twenty-four years, lots of people add and subtract things to these easy-to-work-on cars. If this one is an XFi, it shouldn’t have factory A/C or a right-hand mirror, but both of those could have been added. I’ve Euro-spec’d mine as well as added all sorts of features. Here’s a pic from this past weekend. We had three Metros at the show, mine, a naturally-aspirated 3-cylinder convertible, a Swift GT clone with the twin-cam 4-cylinder, and an actual Canadian Swift with the turbo 3-cylinder.
As a current owner of a Metro convertible, and former owner of another convertible and 2 door, I agree you just need to slow down with these cars. With the automatic, I got 45 mpg, and not much more than 45 mph. Lol
Bought a used one of these to drive a 30 mile commute to work up and down hills. Always got 40 mpg. My right foot was floored most of the time.
They say it’s more fun to drive a slow car fast than it is to drive a fast car slow.
My father recently told me about owning one of these. he said that he took a trip from Dayton to Chicago on 4/5 of a gas tank.
Wow, its up to $2325 with a $799 “doc fee” added to the price to the high bidder… smdh
JC, that doc fee is for the cardboard box to ship it in.
lol
“Documentation fees” are a bunch of BS IMO.
I’m not much on government interference but maybe dealers should have to advertise the actual price of the car (plus tax, title and license if needed).
I realize the dealers will just build that cost into the price then but at least potential buyers would know upfront what to expect.
Last time I bought from a used car place, the guy tried to throw one of those extra fees at me and I asked him to please remove it from the cost, saying he did not mention that in the negotiation process, and said I would absolutely walk away from the deal if he did not, and I would have.
He complied.