My 1999 Chevy Metro-Updated

I bought this car new in 3/2000 for commuting. It is a 4d LSi w/ a 5 speed manual transmission and currently has 158K miles. It has had no major problems other than maintenance type items, ex. tires, brakes, spark plugs, injectors cleaned, one burned out headlight. I have had the Chevrolet dealer perform all of the maintenance since the car was new. It still gets about 40-41 mpg on the highway. I am only on my 3rd set of tires including the original factory set. The tires are inexpensive, about $130 for a SET of 60K mile tires with lifetime balancing & road hazard at Sam's Club. I have only had one set of front brakes put on & that was at over 100K miles. The rear were still 70% good & just need the rotors turned. The only maintenance item I haven't done is to replace the fuel filter, which is in the gas tank. This involves removing the gas tank to replace it. Estimates are $600-$1000 to replace the filter. I'll wait until it fails, which could be on the side of the road, I guess. The only problem I have had is the ac compressor will run out of freon about every 18-24 months, but no leaks could be found. One more issue is the paint on the factory hubcaps has came off over the years & looks bad. Chevrolet wants $140 per hubcap to replace them. I can live with the ugly ones. The interior is ok, no torn seats or broken plastic. The car is what it is, a cheap source of transportation (I paid $9500 new) but when properly taken care of, as with anything, it has held up very well.

Everyone laughed & made fun when I bought this car 7 years ago but now I laugh at the gas station when people are paying $75 to fill up their SUVs and I pay $25.

Fortunately, this is not the only car I own. Like others, I pay $100 to fill up my Ford F350 with diesel & about $50-$60 to fill up my Nissan 350Z Roadster with premium but the Metro gets 90% of the weekday miles.

Do I love this car? Well, not really. I have owned this car longer than any other and it has been the best car I have ever owned. Would I buy another one? Definitely, if I needed one to replace this one but the Aveo that Chevrolet has now, is not this car. Until Korean (Daewoo) quality gets a little closer to Japanese quality, I will keep driving my Chevrolet with the Suzuki engine until it bites the dust for good.

UPDATE: 3/30/07

I forgot to address a couple of items in the performance & comfort categories. When passing other vehicles on a two lane highway, plenty of distance is required as well as possible downshifting into 4th gear from the overdrive 5th gear unless sufficient speed has been attained, ex. 65 MPH+. As with passing other vehicles, distance can be a factor when merging onto freeways as sufficient acceleration should be attained prior entering the freeway. I'm sure most of us have, unfortunately, been behind a driver who stops at the end of the freeway entrance ramp trying to merge from a stop, in the Metro, entering in this manner, can be a challenge due to the small engine & somewhat slow acceleration. It's better to keep rolling or proceed along the shoulder if possible to minimize the need for excessive acceleration & the resulting torque steer. The car does; however, cruise sufficiently at 65-70 MPH but at speeds over 75 &/or if it's very windy, the car can feel unstable. The car is better at zipping around town than passing other vehicles on the highway. With the standard transmission, it has plenty of power for city streets, plus parking is very easy. As far as comfort, the seats are adequate but a little tiring on trips over a couple of hours. Cruise control, which is one option, I should have added, would help on longer trips or commutes. Passengers, 1-2 max, anymore than that & the car feels "weighted down" or heavy.