Air Bags › FrontalCrash
Filed May 19, 1997OK
VEHICLE WAS INVOLVED IN A FRONTAL COLLISION, IMPACT 12:00 POSITION, SPEED 20MPH, DUAL AIRBAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. *AK
Page 2 of 2 · complaints 51–61 of 61
1996 Geo Prizm complaints
Owner reports filed with NHTSA about this vehicle, newest first and reproduced as filed. They are unverified accounts: one proves nothing, and a pattern across many is the thing worth reading. Back to the full 1996 record →
Structure › Body
Filed May 5, 1997MA
VEHICLE'S ROOF CAVED IN DUE TO WEAK AND DEFECTIVE METAL. ONLY ABOUT 2 FEET OF SNOW WAS ON TOP. *AK
Air Bags › Frontal
Filed Apr 18, 1997OH
WHILE DRIVING THE DRIVER'S AND PASSENGER'S SIDE AIR BAGS DEPLOYED WITHOUT REASON, CAUSE UNKNOWN. PLEASE PROVIDE DETAILS. *AK
Air Bags › FrontalCrash
Filed Mar 12, 1997MS
OWNER STATES WHILE DRIVING VEHICLE SHE HIT THE CURB AT NO MORE THAT 8-10MPH AND THE DRIVER'S SIDE AIRBAG DEPLOYED. OWNER QUESTIONS THE SAFETY OF VEHICLE BECAUSE OF THE VERY LOW SPEED DEPLOYMENT AND THEIR WAS NO DAMAGE TO THE VEHICLE. *AK
Service Brakes, Hydraulic › Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip
Filed Feb 28, 1997VA
AFTER STARTING THE VEHICLE, SOMETIMES BRAKE PEDAL DOES NOT ALWAYS ENGAGE WHEN APPLYING THE BRAKES. *AK
Service Brakes, Hydraulic › Foundation Components
Filed Feb 14, 1997VA
WHILE DRIVING APPLIED THE BRAKE AND THE BRAKE PEDAL LOCKS UP. *AK
Service Brakes, Hydraulic › Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip
Filed Feb 14, 1997VA
WHEN VEHICLE IS IN MOTION THE BRAKE PEDAL WILL LOCK UP, CAUSING EXTENDED STOPPING DISTANCE. THE VEHICLE WILL NOT STOP UNTIL COMPUTER DIAGNOISTICS ARE COMPLETED. PLEASE GIVE FURTHER DETAILS. *AK
Structure › Body › Trunk Lid
Filed Feb 12, 1997CA
TRUNK RELEASE MECHANISM OPENS TRUNK, BUT IT DOESN'T SPRING BACK TO ALLOW THE TRUNK TO CLOSE PROPERLY.
Steering › Linkages › Knuckle › Spindle › ArmCrash1 injured
Filed Dec 4, 1996NJ
REAR SPINDLE SHEARED OFF AT HIGHWAY SPEED, CAUSING LOSS OF CONTROL, RESULTIN GIN A COLLISION. *AK
Air Bags › FrontalCrash
Filed Sep 3, 1996TX
DRIVING AT SPEED OF 70MPH, VEHICLE IMPACTED AT A 1:00 POSITION, DUAL AIRBAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. *AK
Power Train › Axle AssemblyCrash2 injured
Filed Jul 24, 1996UT
WAS DRIVING VEHICLE FROM UTAH TO BOSTON; ROAD & WEATHER WAS GOOD & CLEAR; AXLE BROKE & LEFT REAR WHEEL SEPARATED FROM VEHICLE; ROLLED OVER TWICE ONTO MEDIAN, ALSO NO DEPLOYMENT OF DRIVER'S/PASSENGER'S AIR BAGS, RESULTING IN INJURIES. *AK
Reading these
NHTSA publishes every complaint as the owner wrote it and investigates only a fraction. Spelling, capitalisation and judgement are the filer’s own. What carries weight is repetition: the same component failing the same way across many filings, and whether the manufacturer eventually opened a recall for it.
Full record for the 1996 Geo Prizm → · Every Prizm year → · How the figures are calculated →