We’ve seen a few Geo Metros here at Barn Finds, home of the dusty muscle car, and they sometimes go over well and sometimes not. Most have been convertibles so it’s a little unusual to find a regular ol’ 1989 Geo Metro LSi such as this one posted here on craigslist in the Oakland, California area. The seller is asking $4,450, here is the original listing, and thanks to ToddK for the tip!
They always say to buy the nicest example of a vehicle you can find rather than to restore it yourself, and that goes for econoboxes like the Metro, too. The Metro is based on the Suzuki Cultus and several models were sold in North America, including the Suzuki Swift and Forsa, the Chevrolet Sprint, and Pontiac even had a version called the Firefly. And, of course, the Geo Metro such as this LSi version. My personal favorite is the late-80s boxy Chevrolet Sprint Turbo.
This car looks as nice as any that I’ve seen in quite a while, inside and out. For the 1989 model year, the Geo Metro replaced the Chevy Sprint and they were made until 2001 in two different generations. Most Barn Finds readers won’t have any interest in this car whatsoever, other than to have it be monster truck food, but there are groups of enthusiasts who love these little three-cylinder cars.
As expected, the interior looks almost like new in this Geo. The seller says that the shift knob is OEM and the stereo system has been replaced, on top of a lot of other maintenance. They show it with a Thule bike rack on top and that goes with the sale. You want a five-speed in these cars rather than an automatic if at all possible.
Believe it or not (!!) (crickets) there are no engine photos in this ad! I know, crazy stuff, eh? I hope that the 1.0-liter Suzuki three-cylinder is as clean as everything else appears to be on this little gem. It would have had 55 horsepower and 58 lb-ft of torque and that’s what makes it popular with brave commuters and others who just like a head-turning city car. Have any of you owned a Geo Metro?
Scotty, you’re wearing out that good buy line!
It wasn’t all that clever the first time.
The “nicest one” never left the factory.
Thanks, guys, that’s darn nice of you…
Where does he say “Good buy”? Why not rip on “the nicest one left” line? I normally let comments like yours roll off, but I’ll not tolerate any animosity towards the writers, especially my good friend Scotty. He’s the most talented one( sorry others)
Again, let’s talk about the cars, unless you think you can do a better job.
Thanks for the great review, but, nah. I owned the best clown car out there. A 2012 FIAT 500 Abarth.
BigC those Abarths sure have a sweet exhaust note 🎵
The neighbors enjoyed it, every morning!
Nicest one? Try only one. I haven’t seen a non-convertible Geo Metro in years! I mean, ok, probably not the only one but there can’t be many. No one thought to preserve them, so the only ones still around will be by some odd circumstance.
I still remember the Sprint Turbos, neat little cars, but you rarely saw those. But ones like these were once all over the place, and now they’re almost nonexistent. These little buggies did what they were intended to do, get you from point A to point B inexpensively. Im really surprised to see how well preserved this Geo is.
I had a white New 87 Turbo Sprint, fun little ride!
Owned one? No, but cars like it. Also got to drive these and Festivas, Aspires and such. Great transportation. Great at sipping fuel. Not a car for the image conscious driver or passenger. I’ve never been that guy. But some folks would rather just walk.
I had a ’93 that cost me in 1998 about what this is asking now. That alone makes me feel old, that the newest and best car I’d owned to that point has long since bottomed-out its’ depreciation curve and is climbing up again.
Too bad not one of the manufacturers makes an economy car anymore.
In the early 90’s a co-worker had one exactly like this. One night he was on a long curved freeway entrance when the electricals cut out on him. He was about to get out to push it off to the side but right then he got hammered squarely from behind. He did survive with a long recovery.
I get the interest many have in these types of finds but they still make me cringe.
In the early 90s I used to work at Acura of Boston and one of these but convertible showed up on the used car line and I did a used car check on it. It was cold but had to go out with the top down. It’s a cool little car and the engine was tiny. Looked like you could pull it out without an engine lift. Was a little scary ride at highway speed. Chassis wasn’t that stiff but it was definitely a fun little car.
Well if the news is telling the truth 🤔 and gas is around $7 bucks a gallon in California this should sell quick
Whew, regaining composure,dang, some of you. I personally enjoy Scottys posts so much, I’m willing to repeat my experiences with whatever he writes up. It’s my thank you for him, well, all the writers, really, for taking the time to present this stuff to us. My experience with these, the guy I rented from in N.Wis.had 4 on his farm. One, he drove, and 3 parts cars. All had over 200K on them. Rust killed them all, eventually. The 3 cylinder is really smooth, and no indication it’s a 3 cylinder. I don’t think he ever got gas for it, kidding, but while the advertised 50+mpg is a bit much, 40 easy. Eventually, the “good”one bit the dust too, still running great. Keep em’ coming, SG!!
Take a nitro pil grandpa and calm down, he’s getting paid, its not like he’s volunteering his time, writers should be open to critique.
Woah, MRR. Maybe you should respect your elders. Howard provides some of the most insightful musings on this forum. It’s good to hear from his experience even if it comes with a little grit. Scotty consistently uncovers the best of what we’re once ordinary cars. Both of these guys are among the very best.
Drove a 93 a few years back for 1 month was a loaner car while other car was being repaired it was white we called it the egg it was a fun little car great gas mileage kinda got me hooked on tiny cars. I drive a 2016 Ford Fiesta today. Another fun great little car
I bought one new and 89 , it was a 5-speed only option I put on it was cruise control. I lived in West Branch but commuted Detroit Michigan twice a week, I put over 350,000 miles on that little car . I never had a problem with anything on it . I never replaced the clutch I can only remember doing brakes on it at 3 different occasions and I taught three kids how to drive a stick shift on it . Rust finally took out one of the( A )pillars. In the front . Passenger front tire and axel curled under the car when I hit a pothole. Had it towed home. I bent and reinforced the a-pillar with some angle iron. Did a hillbilly alignment with a straight 2×4 and drove it for another year. Rust was taking its toll, decided to sell it. I still see it occasionally running around I got 55 plus miles per gallon with it uphill downhill or with my three kids wife and sheepdog in it. It must have been quite a site going down the expressway with the whole family in it people , would shake their heads and laugh and I can’t say I blame them . However it was a great little car and I wish they made them again
Yes, a worker from GM drive one of these in a long commute to Pontiac. Had a similar amount of miles. I was amazed. No luxury but seemed durable.
I bought a red 89 in florida..it got rusty once it brought it back to wisconsin. I rebuilt it 2 times..love driving that 5 speed..had guts..had to put my left foot out on an icy hill to get going just enough..digs with the front tires to go through snow..sure miss it..I got a poopy automatic red vert I need to put the top on..no power or back seats.
The Suzuki Swift GTi was by far my favourite of this ilk.
I would love to have one of those, talk about rare! Fun little pocket rocket.
Think of it as 3/8th of 2.7L LS V8???
Make a good toad behind a motorhome. If it were east coast I’d grab it.
I owned a 1989 Suzuki Swift GT version with the twin cam 4 cylinder. It was rated at 100hp, but felt more like 80hp.
My brother had a black Swift. We put a little red Knight Rider light in the grill, it was a cool little car.
Gee, a glorified golf cart for $4,450?What are they smokin’?must be really good.Don’t ever try to merge onto a busy highway in this thing,you might get run over…
These were reliable and solid units, better build quality than GM’s mistake with Saturn. My sister bought a Storm new in 90, still ran well @ 130k remained rust free. But a minor accident rendered it undrivable. COULD NOT GET PARTS,sad loss for only a 13 year old car.
Much better than the POS Aveo that followed..
Every time I see the “nicest one left” tag I start laughing. They’re almost always POSs. Is that coincidence or intentional?
One of the Warrant Officers had one. Some of the Gunners in training picked it up one night and squeezed it between some other candidates cars so it could not be accessed or removed from its parking space.
Best prank 1993 Battle School 2 RCHA Petawawa.
P.S. I had nothing to do with it – honest!
I’ve told this story here before, so if you’ve read it before, just skip on by ut,
My Father-In-Law wanted to buy 2 brand new cars on the cheap – one for him and one for his daughter going off to college. He went in and spoke to his Chevy dealer friend and came home with 2 of these. No options, manual transmission. Both cars proved to be very reliable and long lasting. He could have done a LOT worse.
You guys don’t appreciate a fun little car. My 92 rusted underneath gt survived a pic maneuver accident at 60 mph. Drove it home. I had put front and rear suspension braces on it and I had 220,000 miles on it. My 1990 now is 110,000 and drives great. My kids say I don’t get in I put it on.
BTW I got 40 + mpg consistently. There is a junk yard in Arkansas that has all kinds of body parts for sale.
It’s not worth $44.50. Those things were junk when brand new. Not at all interested.
Many people disagree that they’re junk, including me.
Maybe I was too harsh. After all, it’s not a K car.
Oh, oh, those are fightin’ words, hahahah!
One thing I remember is that the k-cars were easy to work on. Lots of room, oil filter easily accessible. Oh, and they were good for a lot of jokes…
I had 3 of these little gems. All 4 door models. A red 89 auto, a 92 aqua 5 speed, and a boring silver 94 auto. All base trims, all had air. I got up to 50 mpg with all of them. Fun to drive, excellent outward visibility, futuristic and clean styling, and lots of road noise! I do remember the seatbelts were door mounted and I had to turn the a/c off on the ones with autos if I was driving uphill. Dependable cars and great for what they were. Oh, and replacement tires were dirt cheap. I’d be scared to see how one would fair in a modern crash test. I think they were all of about 1800 LBS max.
Almost flipped a blue one like that, hit a squirrel and ran over a pothole on the opposite side. I swear it went airborne, but it landed on it’s wheels like a cat.