After getting into a car accident last summer, I found myself in need of a new car. I'm a college student in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, and I knew that I was looking for a few specific features: reliability, good gas mileage, and the ability to handle our 300+ inches of annual snowfall. I found all this in a 1995 Geo Prism. I opted for the 5 speed manual transmission.

So far, my Prism has met all these expectations and then some. I have yet to have a squeak or rattle that needs to be looked into. The only maintenance it's needed in the past year has been regular oil changes. As for gas mileage, I find that I get in the low 30s in the city, and have hit 43 miles per gallon on long highway trips.

As for winter driving, I would recommend snow tires, since the Prism is a rather light car. Since I had my "snow shoes" put on, I haven't had a problem in snow. The antilock brakes work wonderfully--I come to an even stop when others are sliding through intersections.

Not only is my Prism everything my practical father likes, it's also a fun little car. The suspension is quite tight, and it corners extremely well. Getting in and out of parking spaces is no problem at all. The engine is a little small, so it's not quite the sports car experience. But for an economical car for a college kid, it feels sporty enough.

For all my raving, I have encountered a few annoyances. The back seat is quite small. The speakers seem to be placed a little bit awkwardly--I have to either listen to my music a little too loud, or not hear all the detail that I like.

All in all, I'd recommend this car to anyone on a budget looking for a smaller car. It's actually built on the same assembly line as the Toyota Corolla, so expect about the same as you would from Toyota.

I love my Geo and see myself in it for quite a while.

Update!!!

It's now 2005, and I've had my car for nearly six years. I now have 150,000 miles on it, and it still purrs like a kitten. My mechanic says that the body will rust out before any of the main components go bad. (And I only have two small rust spots - pretty good for all the salt they use on the roads in the Midwest.) With good care, he gives it at least another 10 years.