General Comments:
This is one of the best cars produced I believe. This is my second Prizm, I also have a 90 model with 189,000 miles that is still going strong as ever. I had a Geo Metro that I traded for the 97 Prizm, it wasn't as refined as the Prizm but it was still a great reliable little car.
The 97 Prizm rides so smooth you would never guess this car was meant to be an economy car. The interstate travel is also terrific, you can cruise at speeds of 75-85 and not even tell, the engine is so quiet. There isn't much body lean when you turn sharp corners either. The A/C and heater are both excellent. Acceleration with the 1.8 is also quite good. All this and you still get great gas mileage!
3rd Feb 2007, 20:57
Hey, I feel the same. Mine is 1996 with 248k miles with it already. Still drives excellent. I also joke with my wife - this is my little lexus!
Well, for the noise part you may have overblown it. I do feel that the wind noise is its drawback. Mine is 1.6l though. But I always wear noise isolation (Etymotic) earphone when I commute every day for about 120 miles.
This thing just never breaks. Oh, you want to hear it when at idle, it is so relax as if no strain! At one time, it was stuck in the slow and ran idle for over 30 minutes, and it just ran quite and smooth as if nothing was going on.