Owners filed 7 complaints about this vehicle with federal regulators, most often about the equipment › appliance › air conditioner. No safety recall has been issued.
| Component | Reports | Crashes | Fires | Injuries | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic › Foundation Components › Master Cylinder | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Seat Belts › Front › Buckle Assembly | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Latches/Locks/Linkages › Doors › Latch | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Equipment › Appliance › Air Conditioner | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Engine and Engine Cooling › Exhaust System | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Air Bags | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
The contact owns a 1997 Geo Prizm. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine and air bag warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or the dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 324,000.
THE HANDLE OF THE LEFT-HAND (DRIVER) DOOR HAS STOPPED OPENING THE DOOR. THE PLASTIC FIXTURE WHERE IT SHOULD ENGAGE FOR THE DOOR TO OPEN DOES NOT FUNCTION. IN ADDITION, THE WINDOW STOPPED ROLLING UP AT THE SAME TIME. THIS EXACT DEFECT HAS HAPPENED TO OUR 2002 CHEVY PRISM. THE PLASTIC PIECE AROUND THE DOOR HANDLE OF THE SAME DRIVER'S SIDE HAS CRACKED AND NO LONGER CAN ENGAGE TO WORK. IT IS A SAFETY ISSUE WHEN YOU CAN NOT OPEN THE DOOR! *TR
DT*: THE CONTACT STATED AFTER STARTING THE ENGINE, THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ILLUMINATED AND HAS BEEN CONSTANTLY ILLUMINATED FOR THE PAST FIVE YEARS. ALTHOUGH THE VEHICLE WAS SEEN BY A DEALER NUMEROUS TIMES FOR THIS CONDITION, THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT WAS UNABLE TO DETERMINE THE SOURCE OF THE ILLUMINATION. THE VEHICLE DISPLAYED NO OBVIOUS PROBLEMS.
FRONT PASSENGER SIDE SEAT BELT BOLT DETACHED, CAUSING THE SEAT BELT TO SEPARATE FROM THE VEHICLE. *AK
WE HAVE TAKEN THE CAR TO THE DEALERSHIP SEVERAL TIMES AFTER THE FIRST MONTH OF PURCHASE FOR NOISES,AC NOT WORKING PROPERLY. THIS HAD GONE ON WITH NO PAPERWORK DRAWN UP TO SHOW THE NUMBER OF TIMES WE BROUGHT IT IN UNTIL 3-16-02 WHEN THEY FINALLY AGREED TO PRINT UP A FORM BUT DID NOT HEAR OR FIND THE PROBLEMS.JUNE 3,2002 WE HAD THE CAR BACK TO BILL HEARD AND ARGUED WITH THEM THAT THERE IS A PROBLEM OR SEVERAL PROBLEMS WITH THE VEHICLE. THEY FINALLY HEARD ONE OF THE NOISES AND REPLACED THE AC COMPRESSOR. THEN WE WERE TOLD THE SERPENTINE BELT WAS BAD AND WE NEEDED TO PAY AND HAVE IT REPLACED. WHEN WE ASKED THEM WHY IT WENT BAD THEY HAD NO ANSWER. WE THEN LEFT TO GO ON VACATION IN NEW YORK. WE MADE IT NEW YORK AND DURING OUR VACATION THE NOISES GOT WORSE. WE TOOK THE CAR TO FOX AUTO GROUP , INC. IN PAINTED POST,NY. 14870 AND THEY HAD FOUND THE EXHAUST PIPE SHIELD BAD, SERPENTINE BELT (THE 2ND ONE) BAD AGAIN, THE BELT TENSIONER HAD GONE BAD. THEY SAID THEY DONT SEE HOW WE MADE IT TO NEW YORK FROM FLORIDA WITH THESE PROBLEMS. WE COULD HAVE GOTTEN INTO A BAD ACCIDENT OR EVEN KILLED AS A RESULT OF THESE PROBLEMS. WE ARE VERY UNHAPPY WITH THE SITUATION , FOR NO ONE BELIEVING US EXCEPT FOR FOX AUTO WHO DID A WONDERFUL JOB. HOW CAN DEALERSHIPS, CAR MAKERS TAKE LIFE SO LIGHTLY WHEN IT COMES TO PEOPLES LIVES?? WE EVEN HAD TO HAVE MY FATHER IN LAW DRIVE 101 MILES TO GET THE TENSIONER SO WE COULD LEAVE TO HEAD HOME. OUR VACATION WAS RUINED AS A RESULT OF OUR CAR BEING IN THE SHOP FOR A WEEK.
WHILE DRIVING THE BRAKE WOULD ENGAGED AND DISENGAGE ON THEIR OWN, THE DEALER REPLACED THE THE BRAKE MASTER CYLINDER WAS BUT WAS NOT SURE IF THAT WAS THE PROBLEM, AND THE BRAKES STILL DON'T WORK 100%.*YD
CHEMICAL SMELL COMING FROM THE AIR CONDITIONER VENTS. TOOK TO BOB BELL CHEVROLET THEY HAD CLAIMED THERE WAS A BULLETIN CLAIMING THERE WAS A KIT THAT THE CONSUMER COULD BUY FOR $650.00 TO REPAIR A MANUFACTURES DEFECT. CHEMICAL SMELL MAKING ME SICK.*AK
7 of 7 complaints, reproduced as filed.
No unusual pattern of severe incidents in the complaint record.
Complaint counts track how many cars were sold and how long they have been on the road as much as they track quality. A common model from 2013 has had a decade to accumulate reports; a rare one from last year has not. The signal worth weighing is in the severity columns, in whether the same component keeps appearing, and in whether the manufacturer eventually opened a recall for it.
Most recent recall on file: none. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.