"Dad, could you hand me the keys once more??? PLEASE!!!"

My dad bought this car online for a pretty decent price. I got his old 1986 Chevy Nova when he got this car. It now has almost 14K miles on it.

Prizm?

The Chevrolet Prizm was known as the Geo Prizm from 1989-1997, then the Geo name was dropped, and the Prizm was added to the Chevrolet line. Back in 1985-1988, the car was called a Chevrolet Nova, then changed to the Geo Prizm in 89'. The Chevy Prizm is almost exactly the same as the Toyota Corolla. The only real differences are that the corolla offers a sunroof, and has a better interior layout (in general). Both cars are built in the same CA. plant, and share the same engine/drivetrain components.

Features

This car has some nice features for a small car. Available features include:

-Dual front air bags
-side air bags
-alloy wheels
-power windows
-power locks
-power mirrors
-power steering
-am/fm cassette or cd player (cassette acutally costs more)
-5 speed manual and for the first time 4 speed auto (used to be 3 speed)
-1.8 liter DOHC 120 horsepower engine
-front and rear sway bars
-60/40 fold down seat backs
-daytime running lights
-keyless entry
-courteousy lights
-digital odometer



Performance

I tested this cars 0-60 time myself. I got a 8.7 second rating with the 1.8 liter DOHC 120 horsepower engine and a 5 speed transmission. The 2000 and later models have a VVTI (Variable Valve Timing Instrument) 1.8 DOHC 125 horsepower engine. There are no other engines available. Both the base models and LSI models have the same engine. The handling on this car is pretty nice. The power steering isn't speed sensitive so you don't get as good road feel as you could, but the car seems to get around the corners very well. It doesn't lean too much, but there is some leaning. A front strut tower bar would eliminate that. They cost around $50, and are worth the investment. The braking is EXCELLENT. Stopping from 60-0 is done in an impressive 137 feet. ABS is available (i think), but my car doesn't have that, so i couldn't say what the distance on it is.

Comfort

The older Prizms were actually more comfortable. The seats in the new ones don't adjust at all. The headrest doesn't even adjust. There is some support, but they can get tiresome to sit in after about 2 hours of driving. The manual 5 speed foot rest is in a great location and supports your left foot well. The rear seats are typical. If you are over 6 feet tall, you'll have to stradle the drivers/passengers seatback. They do have headrests which is nice. The interior looks kinda plasticy. It is well finished, but they could have used a more textured plastic for the dash and doors. The CFC air conditioning works allright, but won't cool you too well if it's over 90 degrees outside. Other than that, it works good enough. When driving, the engine can get loud if you are revving it above 3000rpm's, but usually you don't need to. The car's suspension is great; not too soft, not too hard. It smooths the bumps out easily and without much noise.

Recommendations

I love driving this car. The 5 speed transmission shifts very nicely, and the gas mileage is great. I delivered pizzas in this car for a week, and still got 30 miles to the gallon. This is thanks mostly to the higher gear ratios, but the car still can accelerate despite the ratios. The handling is crisp, but I don't like the large diameter steering wheel all that much. Consumer Reports rates these things are very reliable, so you can count on this car lasting 15 years or more. You should be able to get 300000 miles out of this car's engine. I have with my old Chevy Nova (older Prizm), and its a 1986 car. These cars do depreciate fairly quickly, so if you can find one for $11000-9000, go for it!! Toyota Corolla's don't deprciate as fast as these do, and since they are pretty much the same car you should go with the Prizm. Besides, I like the aggressive look to the Prizm as opposed to the less contoured hood on the Corolla. GET ONE!!