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Chevrolet (Geo) Prizm

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Comments

  • flamanarflamanar Member Posts: 11
    Just bought a 99 Prizm, auto, air, 11,600 mi. for $9500. Does this sound like a fair price? I couldn't find one similar elsewhere on the internet for close to that. They wouldn't negotiate at all. Everyone seems to be right about the tires. They're pretty bad! Lot's of road noise and some traction loss in wet weather. Engine's pretty powerful. Someone mentioned Michelin tires, so I'll probably give them a try. Here's a weird question...anyone know where I can get a brochure for a 99 Prizm???? I haven't found a Chevy dealer yet that still has any left!
  • regfootballregfootball Member Posts: 2,166
    there are some places that sell auto literature on the net. I will try to find some links for you. Also, do a search on yahoo, altavista, etc. to find some places.
  • esfcesfc Member Posts: 7
    I needed to get a second car quickly and had looked at all the usual suspects, civic ,corolla neon,elantra,saturn etc. Pricing for all of the above was running 225 to 250 a month with 1200 to 1500 for inception fees , since most come to the dealers with option packages and if they don't the a/c is a dealer install option for $1500.All I wanted was a car with 5sp a/c and am/fm. I saw an advert for a Primus 179 per month and remembered reading it was a corolla with chevy badges. I test drove it last night in the rain and was impressed , in fact I was floored. When I sat with the salesperson and got the lease #s I thought he was kidding, 195 a month with taxes for 36 months 12K per year with only 195 due at signing. I pick it up tonight.I test drove the car in the rain and yes the tires could be better.
  • esfcesfc Member Posts: 7
    Prizm............it's a Prizm.
  • davemor62workdavemor62work Member Posts: 1
    Can anyone help me with advice or a suggestion on what wrong with my wife’s 93 Geo Prizm?
    We have had to replace the alternator 3 times in 62k miles. The warning light just came on again and it looks like a fourth alternator may be needed. I am starting to wonder about this dealer. (We bought this car new from this dealer.) Two months ago we did the 60k service check and 3 days later the water pump went out. Two days ago the car failed to start and the dealer replaced the starter. Yesterday the light came on indicating an electrical problem. I plugged in a little diagnostic device into the cigarette lighter plug and it says the alternator output is bad. Has anyone had similar electrical issues with a Geo Prizm or a Toyota Corolla? Any Service bulletins, or other service warnings? Any similar experiences? How were they resolved? davemor@bigfoot.com
  • regfootballregfootball Member Posts: 2,166
    good choice.

    The Prizm, which is the same car as the Corolla can be had for better lease and buy deals because the hungry Chevy dealers are more competitive than the snobbish Toyota dealers.

    Enjoy the new ride with its VVTi engine.
  • mazda323mazda323 Member Posts: 66
    I can't be sure about this, but I think that the Corolla uses a Toyota (Nippon something...) alternator, while the Prizm uses an AC Delco (GM). If your Prizm has an AC Delco (GM) alternator, don't be surprised: 20k miles is normal life expectency form what I've read.
  • esfcesfc Member Posts: 7
    When I picked up the car on Tuesday I was mindful of some of the talk here about steering pull due to tire problems.I have not experienced any pull so far.It was raining when I picked it up and although the tires could/should be better I don't think I will replace them until they wearout.I haven't driven a car with a standard tranny for 20yrs.but this little car is fun to drive.And you are right Chevy dealers and all american car dealers are working deals to get people to start buying american again. I came off a Honda lease and while I was shopping around at Honda, Toyota,Nissan, VW,Volvo , Acura, Infinity I came away feeling as if they where doing me a favor. And I was looking to lease 2 cars from most of them.I started looking at Chevy, Ford and DC. In the course of 1 week I leased 2 american cars a fully loaded Dodge Interpid ES and the Prizm and I was a longtime Honda owner. Both Chevy and the Dodge listened to what I wanted and what I was will to pay and worked to make it happen.Altough I have only had the cars for a few days the fit and finish of both where just as good as the much higher price imports.And since I lease long term realiablity is not a major concern for me.I don't think I will be looking at the imports in the future I think I will be staying at home.
  • flamanarflamanar Member Posts: 11
    Well, after having my 1999 Prizm a week, here's what I think. Suspension is very firm, but I don't think it's a bad thing. Tires still have to go. I get some loud humming when going above about 40 mph...I'm not sure, but it might be the tires again. I'm getting used to the 3-speed auto trans, but I think I'd probably like the 4-speed better. The radio is excellent. Love the feature that automagically turns on your headlights at the appropriate light level. Definitely should've gone with a lighter exterior color...it appears that the primer coat is white, so if you get a scratch, it really sticks out. The engine has lots of "kick". I like the antenna at the rear of the car. Would've liked a little more leg room in front (my gas-pedal ankle gets cramped from the angle that I have to hold my foot in). Also, moving the seat far enough back to feel comfortable puts my head almost behind the left door pillar. Huge trunk, although I have the base model without the folding rear seats...which would be nice to have :) Would've liked to see a center armrest between the two front seats, but after several calls to Chevy parts departments, there apparently isn't one available! Great air conditioning...high speed fan blows you away! I called several other dealers about different cars and found most of them to be very rude...especially Honda. I called two different Honda dealers. The first didn't sound like he wanted to talk to me, and the second immediately tried to talk me into a car with much more equipment than I wanted! I gave up looking for stick shift cars. It appears as though they'll be gone soon...though dealers will probably stock one-or-two on the lot just to say they "carry them", and to be able to say they have a cheap car available. That's about it. I look forward to having a car that will last me a long time...this time!
  • regfootballregfootball Member Posts: 2,166
    CONGRATS ON YOUR NEW pRIZM.

    I did learn to live without the armrest, for short trips I don't miss it.

    The Chevy dealer I bought my car from was easy to deal with and many of the others I talked to were good too. If the customer is completely uneducated before you shop, you will get treated like dirt. if you do your homework and are an educated consumer, you can do the deal quicker and for a mutually satisfactory price. And the Chevy dealer will be a lot less of a pain in the *ss than the snobs at Toyayta will be.

    As far as sticks, yeah ya gotta hunt for them. Use gmbuypower.com to shop dealer lots before you even go out there. Its a fabulous feature.

    GM cardholders make sure you use your cash back.. Free money!!!!
  • esfcesfc Member Posts: 7
    You are right about finding cars with 5spds. The local Chevy dealer that I went to had about 15 cars on the lot to choose from but only 1 with a 5spd.The dealer was willing to work the #s on a auto model so I could get the color I wanted, but the 5spd was a must have, so I settled on the color ( black).I'll kick myself when I have to work out the swirls. I did order a wax that others are raving about at another site in edmonds ( www.zainobros.com )check it out, I have not used it yet due to the rain and snow but it may help.
    It was the same at Honda they didn't have a 5spd or needed to move stock so they immediately went into the upsell mode , going from a base to a mid-level trim with pwr everything and auto tranny. So I walked and got the Prizm.
  • regfootballregfootball Member Posts: 2,166
    It just kills me.....

    People think its absurd on a motorcycle to have anything besides a standard transmission and a clutch but people think its not appropriate for a car.

    I'm sure I'll get flamed for this, but I know men tend to be more receptive to the idea of a stick. Yet, much consumer research says women today hold greater purchasing power and are the decision makers for a majority of the auto sales these days.

    Personally, I don't know a lot fo women who enjoy driving a stick. Guys I know are just indifferent.

    The other thing that kills me is that in other countries, manuals sell at a higher percentage than in the US.
  • shishi Member Posts: 6
    I know at least three cases for Toyota Corollas (two 91 and one 93 model) the alternator went around 30K mile and again at 70K. But no info on Prizm.
  • regfootballregfootball Member Posts: 2,166
    we should rename this topic "Chevy Prizm" and get rid of the gripes part.

    There is hardly anyone griping about their Prizms!

    If we got rid of the gripes part, we'd get more posts!
  • L8_ApexL8_Apex Member Posts: 187
    I can't "rename" a forum. You could create one or give me a little time and I'll do it and consolidate this one with the new one...

    Later,

    L8_Apex
    Sedans Host
  • gearhead4gearhead4 Member Posts: 122
    regfootball,

    Yes, you may gert grilled for your comments, but there is somewhat valid.

    When I told an aqaintance about my new car with the 5 speed, she immediately stated in with "What is it with you guys and stick shifts?

    My retort went something like this ... "Well, I get better performance and gas mileage with a stick. But the biggest reason is that my last car had an automatic that was slow to figure out what gear it should be in. Besides, buying the stick saved me $700."

    What really drove stopped the discussion was when I said ... "Besides, this car is replacing my wife's car which had a stick."

    May we always have a choice to come through in the clutch!

    gearhead4
  • esfcesfc Member Posts: 7
    My wife couldn't wait to drive the new Prizm, reason was it had the 5Spd.We haven't had a car with a standard tranny for 20 years, thay have all been auto's. My daughter is also looking to drive it due to it's being a 5spd.Here in the suburbs some 30 miles out of NYC ,some dealers are starting to stock more cars with standard trannys.Although some like Honda and Toyota only are stocking 1 or 2 in each model.
    5 spds may be coming back in style now , with the introduction of some radical designs and bigger engines from auto makers and the rising cost of gas.Standard trannys aren't for everyone , but I'll never understand buying a car like a vette with an auto tranny.
    Back on the subject of the Prizm , I only have 350 miles on it mostly highway and I am very happy with it.Merging into traffic is not a problem ( back to the 5spd thing again ) and rides great, still have the tank of gas I drove off the lot with.Great little car .
  • squeak6squeak6 Member Posts: 28
    ....I have a 98 Prizm... for the most part its a very good car ( no problems yet) I have 61,000 miles on it... yes 61,000 miles.... most are on the highway..... I put new tires on them..... the originals did not last long.... I have the 185/65R instead of the 175's...... my only concern is my MPG I get about 33 MPG... even when I'm on the highway I get 33 MPG.... I drive about 75/78 MPH on the highway...... on a full tank I can get about 330 miles...... ( is this ok ? ) (how can I get better gas mileage?).... the AC is fine no problems.... I need a new paint job on the front... the bugs and rocks from my many trips have taken there toll on the front..... I put a new CD in the car the factory AM/FM had to go..... I get the oil changed every 3,000 and I've had 2 tune-ups..... is there anything else I can do to keep the car in good shape.....? any additional comments to help with my car will be greatly appreciated....
  • niesamowityniesamowity Member Posts: 3
    When I was looking for an armrest - I asked Toyota dealer - and if wanted bad enough it could be had from Corolla CE along with part of center tunnel trim ~ 150 bucks
    While there I picked up mudguards designed for Corolla that fit Prizm perfectly
    Finally I bought armrest made specially for 95-99 Sentras - this is just the padding element - dealer takes ~55 and could be ordered on the net for as low as 42 dollars
    Check it out
    by the way I support manual shifter lovers - if not for 5 speed transmission I would not get into these small cars ;-)

    popularmechanics.com has some information on 98 model cars - somewhere they say that Civics were sold 50 % configured with manual transmissions - maybe that was the reason why there was so many of them around...
  • flamanarflamanar Member Posts: 11
    What year was your Prizm?? Are you saying that you didn't buy the Toyota one, but instead went with the Nissan armrest? If so, did it fit right...and where on the net can I see one?? I know that when I called several Chevy parts departments, they said that I'd have to buy the "whole assembly", and that it was expensive. Thanks in advance for the good info.
  • tmckay2tmckay2 Member Posts: 4
    Hi,

    I'm waiting for my silver Prizm (base) with 5 spd, ABS, side air bags, and CD player. Should get it tomorrow!

    I was very encouraged by all the posts on this list praising Prizms ranging in age from brand new to 10 years old! Reliability is very important to me and it seems that the quality of the Prizm has been confirmed.

    I saw a few posts on the list complaining about the availability of 5 spds. I told the dealer what I wanted, and there 2 (yes two) with a stick, ABS, side air and a CD player within a 150 miles (as the crow flies) of Boston! Now there is only one...

    I drove a few Focuses and made the decision to buy a Prizm over one of the Foci. The Focus is nice and all, but I'm a little skeptical about it's reliability based on Ford's history. Maybe next time, if it proves itself. Plus, the mileage is not as good as the Prizm and the automatics, at least, have annoying engine noise at low rpms. Don't remember if the ZX3 had this problem.

    Interesting, I went to the Toyota dealer first and was told that I could not get a Corolla with ABS for at least 3-4 months if at all, and that the current Toyota factory output for Corollas with ABS is only 1% of production! Then, the salesman tried to sell me a Camry, and when that didn't work he tried to sell me a CE :) Hello, Chevy, got a Prizm?

    I'll let you all know how I like it after I drive it to Rhode Island this weekend.

    Oh, one more thing. With the current $1250 rebate, I got the car for $14500, which is $300 over invoice. List was $16,160. I thought that was a pretty decent price, any comments?

    Trev
  • tmckay2tmckay2 Member Posts: 4
    Oops,

    I meant to say that I got the car for $300 over invoice (my cost was $15,700) and applied the rebate to get the car for $14450.

    T.
  • toomanychoicestoomanychoices Member Posts: 18
    Congratulations on your Prizm. I owned my 1990 for 10 years and never had a regret. I only got another car because after 10 years, I thought it was time for a change.

    Good luck and happy driving!
  • niesamowityniesamowity Member Posts: 3
    I bought armrest for our Sentra I gave it a try in our 99 Prizm
    Well - it is not a perfect fit but better than nothing - say Sentras box is 3x6 inch - then Prizm is 3 x 6.5 - bit longer so it can slide back and forth a bit plus it sits kinda low - but I went for it and now could not imagine being without it
    see picture :
    http://www.nissan-accessories.com/PP.asp?PID=22
    I think I got mine from www.nissanaccessories.com - without dash...
    $42 was the lowest price I found
  • flamanarflamanar Member Posts: 11
    Sorry to hear about your tranny problem. This may sound rediculous, but have you tried other Chevy services departments or just the one? I've noticed that they vary WIDELY in their expertise from one service department to the next. Also, they aren't "tied together" electronically...so you could go to another service department and they wouldn't know you've had the problem looked at by another service department...which is sometimes a good thing:) Hope this helps. I'd like to hear how your arbitration goes. Good luck.
  • flamanarflamanar Member Posts: 11
    I'm wondering if the next model up from the base (I think it's the LSI) has the armrest standard? If it does, I've been thinking about keeping an eye out for a wrecked one at a junkyard and using the one in the wrecked car (if it's in great shape, of course :) for my own! Probably a super longshot, so I'll check out the Nissan one in the meantime. I might get a friendly Nissan parts department to let me see how it fits in my car...
  • flamanarflamanar Member Posts: 11
    Just found out what that "humming" noise was that I mentioned in a previous post (I think it was titled "1 week review" or something like that). Had it in the shop today and it was a bad 'bearing hub'...or something like that. Nothing major and it's covered under warranty. It may sway my opinion on the 'noisy tires' since replacing this part may quiet the ride. I have to take it back tomorrow to get the work done. If it affects the tire noise, I'll let everyone know.
  • flamanarflamanar Member Posts: 11
    Just found out what that "humming" noise (when my car was between 50-60 mph) was that I mentioned in a previous post (I think it was titled "1 week review" or something like that). Had it in the shop today and it was a bad 'bearing hub'...or something like that. Nothing major and it's covered under warranty. It may sway my opinion on the 'noisy tires' since replacing this part may quiet the ride. I have to take it back tomorrow to get the work done. If it affects the tire noise, I'll let everyone know.
  • powerslidepowerslide Member Posts: 48
    Is the current model Prizm smaller than the previous version? It just seems to me that it is.
  • flamanarflamanar Member Posts: 11
    Well...the replaced 'hub bearing' on my car didn't fix the humming. I have to take it back a third time (after waiting about a total of 5 hours from the last two visits about this problem). The next trip will net me a loaner till it's fixed...thank God. I'm kinda hoping the engine or tranny is bad. I love warranties :) BTW, sorry for the previous double-post. My browser stalled.
  • keithchkeithch Member Posts: 4
    I read through Prizm 2000 owner guide.
    I did not see any suggestion to change timing belt at 60,000 miles interval.
    Do I need to replace the timing place at all ?
  • wenyuewenyue Member Posts: 558
    I own a 99 Corolla (same thing as a prizm). I seem to remember the engine uses a timing chain, not a timing belt.

    Also, unlike most Honda and Nissan engines, all toyota engine except the now discountinued Tercel, uses a "free running" engine design. So even if the timing chain/belt breaks, there wouldn't be any engine damage. Timing chain easily last 120,000 without the need for changing. So rest easy, you have nothing to worry about. :)
  • flamanarflamanar Member Posts: 11
    OK. So I came up with several more gripes about my '99 Prizm. LACK OF ACCESSORIES!! I find it hard to believe that Chevy doesn't carry hardly any accessories for my car! I used to work for Saturn and they had lots of stuff you could attach to your car. I checked with a local Chevy parts dept. yesterday and found out that:
    A) No cargo net is available for the trunk
    B) My fears about the center armrest (I have the base Prizm) were correct. They don't have a "drop-in" armrest...you have to buy the entire assembly (which is standard in the "LSI" model) from the shifter area to the rear cupholder... about $150.
    C) The day that I picked up my car (the day it was purchased..it was used) I noticed that the paint job was damaged. The dealer tried to hide it by parking it in the rain for me to pick up and take home. Fortunately, the rain made the problem look worse and I pointed it out to my salesperson who said that I'd have to bring it back in and they'd take care of it. I didn't find out until last week (when it finally stopped raining for few days) when I ran it through the car wash how bad the damage was. What happened is this...sorry for the long post, BTW...the front and rear bumper had some dings and chips that I had requested be fixed. What they did was had somebody come in and repaint the bumpers (a very shoddy job since they painted over some sand and dirt and now there's raised 'pits' in the paint in those areas). They only masked a small portion of the front and rear of the car. They painted in the wind, which carried the paint to most of the car...which wasn't covered (windows, mirrors, even wheel covers got hit). It left an extremely dull finish on most of the car. After weeks of going back and forth with the salesman, after hearing him repeatedly deny that it was the dealers' fault and that it was a used car that was probably painted by someone else (and after me thinking to myself how much of a moron this guy is turning out to be), I finally talked to a manager yesterday who said it was obviously a bad job on their part and they'd make it right. I had it to a body shop (because after having a detail shop look at it, they said they couldn't help me), who gave me a quote of $350. They would use laqeur thinner and rebuf the car to remove the stray green paint. The dealer is going to 'cut and gloss' the car (basically, compound and rebuf the car). Don't know if that'll work, but I'm getting very tired of having to deal with Chevy dealerships already!
    Enough gripes for now. I anticipate there'll be more...
  • squeak6squeak6 Member Posts: 28
    ....I have a 98 Prizm... for the most part its a
    very good car ( no problems yet) I have 61,000
    miles on it... yes 61,000 miles.... I drove most onthe highway..... I put new tires on them..... theoriginals did not last long.... I have the 185/65R
    instead of the 175's...... my only concern is my
    MPG I get about 33 MPG... even when I'm on the
    highway I get 33 MPG.... I drive about 75/78 MPH on
    the highway...... on a full tank I can get about
    330 miles...... ( is this ok ? ) (how can I get
    better gas mileage?).... the AC is fine no
    problems.... I need a new paint job on the front...
    the bugs and rocks from my many trips have taken
    there toll on the front..... I put a new CD in the
    car the factory AM/FM had to go..... I get the oil
    changed every 3,000 and I've had 2 tune-ups..... is
    there anything else I can do to keep the car in
    good shape.....? any additional comments to help
    with my car will be greatly appreciated....
  • wenyuewenyue Member Posts: 558
    Turning the A/C on, will drain about 3 mpg off the gas milage. Keep the tire inflated at the right pressure (measure pressure when the tires are cold). 3000 miles per oil change is great! You might try synthetic, heard that will increase the gas milage, as well as don't need to be changed until 6000 miles.

    Since your paint is taking beating from all that highspeed trips, maybe you should invest in a nose bra. It's a small investment compared to a new paint job. :) Good luck.
  • tutu1tutu1 Member Posts: 1
    Hello, I'll looking for information on the 1997 Geo Prizm. I currently own a 1990 Geo Prizm and I love. But it's getting old and kind of junky looking. So, I'm looking at buying a 1997 Geo Prizm and was wondering if the 1997 has any of the quirks my 1990 has. Such as: Problems with the window assembly being very weak. I roll the window down a little and it falls down the rest of the way at the first bump in the road. And when it is wet outside it likes to spit and sputter. other than that my car is very dependable and I'm afraid of getting worse problems. But so far of what I have read here about the Prizm in general they don't seem to have many problems. Sorry for the long note.
    Thanks for any info. tutu1
  • cpzhangcpzhang Member Posts: 16
    I am graduating from college and looking for a compact car now. It seems Prizm is even pricier than a Corolla. From CarsDirect.com, a Corilla LE is about $13.9k while a Prizm LSi is about $14.3k. I do not see any price advantage in buying a Prizm, plus the depreciation of Prizm is significantly worse than Corolla. The only advantage for Prizm is that I can use the GM Card earning and the recently college graduate rebate. But I read a lot of posts on this forum that are saying Prizm is about $1k cheaper than a comparable Corolla. So I want to know how much you are paying for the Prizm. Thx.
  • wenyuewenyue Member Posts: 558
    maybe carsdirect forgot to include any rebate that the Prizm is having.
  • regfootballregfootball Member Posts: 2,166
    a) Chevy dealers will wheel and deal more than Toyota dealers

    b) using your GM Card rebate will save you extra

    c) Prizms sometimes have better factory incentives than Corollas. See Edmunds rebates and incentives page.

    d) Chevy dealers are more desperate to sell cars, especially Prizms. They don't want them on their lot as long as they seem to have them.
  • luvmyprizmluvmyprizm Member Posts: 1
    I have a 1990 Geo Prizm (manual) with almost 210,000 miles, which I love. I have never owned a car as reliable and problem-free as this one, with the lagniappe of being fun to drive. It has no problems and still gets 30+ MPG, but I am beginning to be concerned about its age and mileage. So I am considering getting a 1999 or 2000 model. However, did the change to "Chevy Prizm" change the reliability at all? Or should I stick with my current car for another 200,000 miles? (BTW, we have never had the timing chain replaced) Any comments?
  • tmckay2tmckay2 Member Posts: 4
    cpzhang, (sorry for the length ahead of time :)

    I'll affirm what some others said already, that Toyota almost never has factory backed incentives on cars that are selling well or are not new models. GM, on the other hand, has several big sales events a year and more often than not GMAC is offering financing or rebate deals across the whole product line.

    I just a bought a Prizm a month ago, and I paid $14500 AFTER the rebate. It's a base with ABS, side air bags, cruise, CD player, and the temp/tach cluster. To get a Corolla with side air bags I'd have to buy an LE (according to Toyota) and with comparable equipment, plus 3% over invoice, it would be about $15200.

    True, the LE would have power mirrors and power windows; maybe that's worth the $700 to you.

    The reason I went with Prizm over Toyota was availability. Toyota sells millions of Corollas; ironically that makes it harder to get what you want. They treat them as commodities, and expect you to buy off the lot. If you don't buy, plenty of others will so they don't particularly care. I was told that to get the Corolla I wanted, I would have to wait 4 months!

    Assuming you order something weird, you'll also probably get a worse deal since they know they've got a tough-to-find option set. Supply and demand works against you sometimes if you do a factory order.

    Prizm, on the other hand, seemed much easier to find.

    A word about depreciation. I drive cars forever. You have to ask yourself, how long are you going to keep the car? If you're like me, depreciation is not an issue because by the time you give it up, it doesn't matter WHAT it is, you'll only get $1000-$1500 for it :)

    You might want to give the dealer a shot yourself. I walked in, told him what I wanted, and asked him if he would give it to me for invoice plus $300. He said sure, and that was that. If you don't get an answer you like, just walk.

    Best,

    Trev
  • eeqleeql Member Posts: 2
    I have a question about fuel. My friend has a Geo Prizm Lsi 93, she told me that she needs the premimum for the car. Something about the 8th digit of the VIN is 8, so according to manual, her car is with 1.8L engine. she needs premimum fuel. Is that right? I am curious, for I rarely heard that some car need above 91. And I think that Geo is with 1.6L engine.
    If so, that cost more money on fuel, right?
  • minnbillminnbill Member Posts: 28
    I just traded in my '93 Geo Prizm on a Chevy Venture minivan (for my growing family). In the owners manual for that year, I remember reading that the 1.8 L engine should use premium unleaded for best performance. I had an LSi model, too, but just had the normal 1.6 L engine. Most dependable vehicle I have owned (18 yrs of owning cars). Only problem was tranny seals replaced at about 60,000 miles. Otherwise just normal maintenance. Still ran like a top, getting 28-32 mpg. Some of the interior plastic fell off, i.e. the radio knob, air vent knob and driver's inside door handle, but all in all a great vehicle. '93 was the first year of the redesigned Prizm body, and the parts were all Toyota. Don't know if the Chevy Prizm still uses any Toyota mechanicals, but I know the newer Prizms seem smaller and look cheaper than the '93-'95 Prizms. Sorry I gave up the car, but needed more space for my brood...
  • twk2twk2 Member Posts: 7
    My '90 Prizm has had an a/c odor (mildewy)since new. It began this year when the temps hit 90. It may be high humidity although it hasn't rained here in a month. Any ideas?
  • denniswadedenniswade Member Posts: 362
    Just entered this conference, so my comments are a little late to do any good, but here goes:

    luvmyprizm: the Prizm is still a rebodied, rebadged Toyota Corolla bult at the same factory in Fremont, California as the Corolla. Same mechanicals, same manufacturing, same workers. You should never have to worry about reliability. And the new ones have VVTi (variable valve timing with intelligence), so they have a LOT more spunk -- you'll love 'em!

    eeql: The Corolla is designed to run on regular gas. Running premium will simply cost you more money at the pump, as it is not designed to take advantage of the extra octane. Remember, it's an economy car, not a sports car.
  • jtinctjtinct Member Posts: 1
    OK heres the deal, i can get this 92 Geo Prizm for whole sale price. It has between 70-80k miles, (not exactly sure how much), AC, automatic trans., power windows, and i think power locks. I could get this car for $2500-3000. should i go for it? I'm going to have a mechanic inspect it but if its in good shape should i get it? I need a reliable car that would last me about 4 years.
    Please Help, and if possible email me with advice at JTinCT@hotmail.com
    thanks!!
  • denniswadedenniswade Member Posts: 362
    ......if that mileage is for real (your mechanic should be able to verify whether it is or not), you have a REALLY low-mileage car with a LOT of miles left in it (probably 150-200k without doing anything but change the oil and belts and adjust the valves), at a really cheap price. I'd say buy it before it disappears, unless your mechanic tells you different.
  • occupant1occupant1 Member Posts: 412
    wholesale for that car is about $1500-1800, not $2500-$3000. You're paying a normal price. If you get the car for less than $2500, it's good. A 1992 Prizm is a good car. I wouldn't pay that much for one, but that's me, I would look for one with more miles that was more beat up that I could get for $1000-$1500.
  • denniswadedenniswade Member Posts: 362
    Who wants to drive a beat-up car? Hell, if all you want is transportation, buy an old Crown Vic -- you'll pay the same price and you can drive the thing on 6 cylinders if you have to!
  • swl56swl56 Member Posts: 1
    Bought my Prizm about a year ago and can not imagine being happier. Have not had any problems with it, it gets excellent gas mileage, and is fine transportation for our family of four. Traded in an '86 Cavalier that just wouldn't die, but had to go because I had seven years in on the GM card and needed to cash in. Got the base Prizm with AC and 4-speed automatic transmission with overdrive, and a few other minor options. After getting fed up dealing with salesmen, I faxed a description of the car I wanted to buy to a dozen GM dealerships I hadn't dealt with. So they dealt with me on paper (e-mail) giving me their best price, no haggling. In the end, between trade-in, $1500 factory rebate, dealer incentive, and $4500 in GM card rebate, I stole this car for around $8500, and with the fuel economy I'm getting, I'm smiling all the way to the bank.

    Like I said, I can't imagine being happier...
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