Faults:

The air conditioning/heating system in the car has been a minor annoyance. While it has not yet quit entirely, it appears that a contact in the switch is going bad, because I have to jiggle the switch to make the blower come on.

The only other money I have spent on the car has been regular maintenance--tires, exhaust, brakes, etc. I think the rotors may be on the weak side, because mine always seem to be a little warped (pulsing is felt in the brake pedal).

General Comments:

My previous car was a modified 1977 Chevy Camaro that was powered by a 350 horsepower V8. The Metro quite a change, but I have not regretted purchasing the car. It has been incredibly reliable--I have been stranded only once in three years of ownership, and it was my own fault. The battery was going bad and I ignored the problem until it was too late.

The car is not powerful, but the four cylinder model makes sufficient power to merge with traffic safely (I suspect that the smaller three cylinder engine would not make adequate power to safely merge in interstate traffic).

The cabin is almost entirely windows (mine is a hatchback model), and there is no discernable blind spot.

The Metro handles surprisingly well, and it's roadholding ability in winter driving conditions has pleasantly surprised me.

Creature comforts are lacking, although what do you expect in a Metro? There are no power locks, windows, or power steering. My only complaint here is that the seats are not comfortable for longer drives. I wouldn't recommend planning to take it on a five hour trip; I did this once and could barely walk when I arrived at my destination.

With a tailwind the car once gave me 40mpg on the highway, although I seem to average between 33 and 37 miles per gallon on the highway and 29-33 in town.

Faults:

At about 3000 miles the A.C. quit.

At about 10,000 miles the A.C. quit.

At about 15,000 miles the fuel pump went out.

At 29,800 miles the A.C. quit.

General Comments:

Just to let out my frustration I have to let you know what General Motors has done to me. I bought a new Geo Metro in November of 1997. In the spring of 1998 I turned on the air conditioner and didn't like the performance. I called the chevy garage to see about changing the freon from r134 to r12 they told me that I should not be able to tell the difference. I took it in to La Riche Chevy Cadillac in Findlay to have it checked out. They told me the Freon was low and refilled it (under warranty). The next summer again bad air conditioning. This time I took it to McDaniel Chevy here in Marion. Answer was it's just low and it was refilled and I was on my way again (under warranty). In 2000 the same thing. Last week I took it to McDainel motors again and this times the warranty is up and the extended warranty takes over what a joke, but that's another story. Well since the warranty is over this time they take the time to install dye to the air conditioner to find the leak. Guess what? They find the leak and it will cost $438.00 to fix. (Extended warranty does not cover it)

My guess for the rip-off is this.

The freon cost about $10.00 per pound (r134)

The cost of the dye is about $7.00

My car holds 1.3 pounds of Freon.

When I do the math I get this answer.

1998 Car is under warranty just spend the $13.00 and send it down the road and don't try to find the leak.

1999 Car is under warranty just spend the $13.00 and send it down the road and don't try to find the leak.

2002 Car is not under warranty spend the $7.00 to find the leak and charge the guy $438.00 to fix something we should have fixed twice before, but did not want to spend the $7.00 for fear of what we might find and have to fix. If you own a chevy beware of the warranty.