Daisy Olsen

I’m not always the most observant person when I’m out running errands. Today, though, I happened to notice something that really caught my attention. It wasn’t anything spectacular, just a blue Geo Metro hatch-back (an early one from the look of the body style) driven by a guy in his forties. The thing that struck me was that there was a Dealer sticker in the back window that boldy announced that this car was meant to get 50 miles per gallon. This seemed, to me, a statement bolder and more pointed than any witty bumper sticker could ever make.

I’ve lived in places where driving an older car is nothing out of the ordinary. Around here, in this bedroom community for New York City, the SUV is king. The larger and more expensive the vehicle the better. Or at least that is how it used to be. To see this car, driven by a professional looking individual would have been a rare sight just a short time ago.

It’s no secret that people are beginning to make decisions in their lives based on the ever rising cost of gasoline. Fuel economy is clearly a hot topic at the moment. My own family is now making an effort to plan our trips around town to be more efficient. We have even restructured our work schedules to telecommute more and to reduce the number of commuting days.

So, back to the Geo Metro. The guy that displayed his original dealer sticker so proudly in his window was obviously making a point. This got me to thinking. What’s a used Geo Metro selling for on eBay these days? I did a quick search and was surprised to find the following:

• There are 37 Geo Metros currently listed for sale on eBay.
• The Highest bid for a Geo Metro is $4000 for a 1993 Convertible it has 38 bids with nearly 2 days left in the auction
• 85% of the listings have at least 1 bid

A search of recently ended auctions for the Geo Metro yielded these results:

• 83 total ended listings in the past 30 days
• 65 of these listings ended in a sale
• 14 listings were ended early by the seller
• 1 was re-listed and successfully sold the second time
• 3 did not sell
• 10% of the total listings sold for over $5000
• Highest selling car – a 1991 2 door hatchback for $6776
• Keley blue book value – $1200
• Original MSRP in 1991 – $6795

Back in my teenage years I wanted one of these cars desperately maybe I should have tried harder to get one. I’d say that’s a pretty good return on investment for an 18 year old car that, at least in my neighborhood, was referred to as a “disposable car.”

How much is the promise of 50 mpg worth to you?

photo credit: kylemac