I rescue Basset Hounds in Appalachia. The average haul (home-shelter-vet clinic-home) is about 600mi. My geriatric 86 Volvo 4banger got about 22mpg on the road, and when gas spiked over the $3 mark, those little Metros were looking attractive. Alas, they quickly became worth their weight in gold. Now that it's more like $2.25/gal, folks started going back to 4x4 trucks and SUVs....and I found a Metro in good shape for $500. Snapped it up. Here's what I found....
All those plus-sized mountain mamas in their Escalades, Navigators, Suburbans, taHoes, and the like scream about gas prices (but Junior might just take up the Tuba, so we 'have' to have that monster SUV), but I noticed the working folks with the 60-70 mi one way commutes driving Metros and Aspires...maybe they had that pesky habit of eating on a regular basis that they would have to skip to drive the big pickup 4x4 fashion toy every day. No government program, no idiotic GOP rebates, these folks just got by with less.
If your need is to get there and still have a wallet left, be prepared to search hard for good Metros. The ones on the used car lots are overpriced.
BTW: Has anyone figured out how much a battery changeout will be for those hybrids? Easily much more than I'll have invested in my Metro. :)
Styling: 'Cute' might come to mind if I was part of the vertical orientation underage license set. As economy in operation is the Metro's strongest point IMHO, the styling sure beats previous econoboxes like the Chevette (America's Cold War answer to the East German Trabant), or the Yugo ('incorporating the latest in Serbo-Croatian technology' - Dan Aykroyd 'Dragnet'). I do like the styling and aerodynamics. Not bad for 'dirt cheap transport'!
Quality of Build: This is no Lexus. It is lightweight, tinny, and noisy inside. You'll 'feel' the road, the wind, and the one liter three-banger. For 45-50mpg, and a minute fraction of the outlay for a hybrid, this is the 'cost of doing business' with the Metro. For me, it's worth it.
Crash Safety: DON'T CRASH! I'm old enough that my first cross-country distance passenger ride was in a BMW Isetta. When my son, armed with his learner's permit, got behind the wheel of my then MG Midget, I made the point of "don't worry bashing up about Dad's sports car", but that the forward crumple zone started about a foot behind the rear bumper. If safety was paramount, I'd get another boxy Volvo 240 (the Hummers steered clear of mine). The best crash protection is to avoid them in the first place. Think like a motorcyclist. Again, 45-50mpg comes at a price.
Interior finish: You'll never forget that you are in a sub-sub-compact ultra-economy car with the Metro. Then again, Suzuki/Geo/Chevrolet made no pretentions about a head-to-head comparison with a Maybach or Roller....or a Toyota Corolla for that matter. At least you won't be finding Miller Lite beer can labels (in Korean) on the sheet metal when you remove the door panels.
Curb Appeal: The Metro's curb appeal is mainly the distinct lack thereof. Certainly not a 'chick magnet', but you won't be handing clipped 'Two for One Special' coupons to the waiter either because you just robbed one card to pay the other in a struggle to make payments, insurance, and gas for the loaded Armada Mil-Spec Macho Grande SUV. The Metro isn't for the 'Keeping up with the Jones' lot, but you'll actually have real money left in your wallet to spend on fun things.
On Value (again): These cars were cheap to buy and operate..nothing more. They depreciated like a loaf of day-old white bread. The good news is that the previous owners paid the depreciation. Many were 'throw-away' commuter cars. The trick is to find the ones that received some modicrum of owner care and service. If you aren't familiar with junkyard parts shopping, you will be with the Metro (I owned 6 VW Beetles and a Transporter long ago). There are good ones out there, but some diligence in search and some luck do make these high-MPG econoboxes simple, reliable, and easily maintained cars. Choose wisely, and you'll be the one laughing when the Yukon Maru drivers take out a second mortgage to fill-up. Gas prices will remain a volatile demand driven beastie, and you'll suffer far less when pump prices rise again. It will happen.
I just couldn't resist modestly chiming in as a woman showed off her new 'thirty-something' thousand dollar Hybrid Camry, claiming 38 mpg. $500 and 45-50plus mpg on my Metro. Shortly thereafter, I saw a mechanic from the area Toyota dealership, and inquired as to what the Hybrid's battery replacement would cost. Answer: a shrug of the shoulders and his eyes rolling upward. To be fair, the Camry is nicer, far more comfy, and safer; but for the money, I'd expect that.
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