Vibe versus Prizm

[Corny_04963]

Just sold my oldest (1994)Geo (Chevy Prizm) which had logged 175000 miles and still running great but I did not want to sink more money into the AC which needed a charge. One son is driving a 97 Prizm which I bought new and now has 125000 miles while my wife is driving a 2002 (last model year). Another son is driving a 2001 with an auto- all the others are manual 5 speeds. Never did major engine work or clutch or tranny on any of these vehicles, although the 94 had the radiator go in the middle of the Sumner Tunnel in Boston. (Free Tow to a garage).Since we can no longer get a Prizm and we do a little camping (tent), thought the Vibe may fit the bill. We liked the economy and handling of the Prizms. My neighbor has a Vibe but is less than enthusiastic about it- nothing in particular just not a big fan. He had driven a larger car. Question is how would the handling of the Vibe compare to a Prizm/ Corolla? How would the gas mileage be versus the Prizm?How would the reliability (economy of ownership) be versus the Prizms??

[JayAyeEm]

My Vibe GT replaced my 1991 Geo Prizm, which I gave up after 210,000 miles Only because I couldn't go thru another winter with the heater not working. It never had ACMy observations:The Prizm handled better than the Vibe GT, particularly in the snow. The 5 speed Prizm got FAR better gas mileage than the 6 speed vibe GT. on a mix of highway/local driving, the prizm would average around 33 -35 mpg, all highway would approach and sometimes exceed 40mpg, the Vibe GT around 28 is typical use, and I've never hit 35 mpg for a tank.The vibe GT is about 18 months old, with about 35K on it, and I've not had any major problems yet. The prizm hit at least 90K before I had to have clutch or radiator work done, so there is no basis to compare yet. My Prizm did suffer from the body rust that plagued pre-1993 prizms, and I have concerns that the Vibe my be rust-prone as well.That said, I do really like the vibe GT. it has nice ammenities that the Prizm did not. A/C, power locks and windows, CD player. It is fun to drive, you just can't do the tight turns and agressive snow driving that you could do in the Prizm.I'm not surprised that someone who prefers large cars would not like the vibe. I prefer small cars myself.Test drive the GT and the base 5 speed. The AWD and base auto will feel sluggish compared to what you are used to. The Vibe is certainly a worthy replacement to the Prizm, but is not the kind of value that the prizm was.

[jake75]

Comparing the Vibe GT to the Prizm might not be reasonable.IMO, particularly figuring in inflation, I think the VIBE is probably a much better value than the '91 Prizm. I suppose the mileage difference might have to do with the wind resistance of Vibe's higher body design, but that is what provides the high seating/better visibility plus the hauling capacity. Did the '91 Prizm have airbags? In 1996 I bought a new Plymouth Voyager 4 cyl for a very good price of $15,500. I recently bought a new 2004 T&C for $18,500. For this extra $3,000 I got a V-6, 4 spd auto (vs 3 spd in the '96) cruise, driver's side sliding door, power windows and locks, remote keyless entry, power heated mirrors, roof rack, 6 speaker am/fm with cassette and CD player (compared to just a 4 speaker am/fm cassette in the '96), dual zone a/c, bigger tires, better sound insulation, overhead console with temperature read out, compass, two trip odometers. and multiple garage door opener. The way I look at it, I bought a 2004 vehicile at less than equivalent 1996 prices not even counting inflation.

[ebslopp]

If they are not making the prism anymore, are they going to discontinue the corolla as well?

[ragingfish]

Nah. The corolla ain't goin anywhere. The Prizm never really moved...it was the quintessential econo-box, and as Hyundai, Kia, and Suzuki started improving their products and getting more popular, the Prizm became harder to sell...that, and Chevy just had WAY too many cars in it's lineup, many of which overlapped in terms of functionality, capability, and cost. Frankly, I'm surprised the Prizm and Tracker lasted as long as the did beyond the demise of Geo...

[JimScolaro]

I traded in my 1993 Geo Prizm a year and a half ago and my Vibe replaced it. One of the reasons I bought the Vibe, besides its good looks and fuel ecomony is that mechanics were all made by Toyota as was my Prizm. I had the Prizm almost 10 years, put 150K miles on it and outside of frequent oil changes and replacing the tires I never had to do anything but normal maintenance. I hope the I have same with the Vibe.My Vibe is about almost 2 years old and I have 31K miles on it and I enjoy driving it every day. It is a fun car to drive, much more fun than the Prizm.I have a few more toys on the Vibe though like a cd player, moonroof and power everything. My Prizm was more bare bones, but it never failed me in the 10 years I owned it.

[cobra55]

i just bought a 04 automatic, took it from the showroom floorto florida, running between 70-85 and running a/c i got 33.2 mpgi'm happy.