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1998 Geo Prizm problems

The most common problem on the 1998 Geo Prizm is airbags. It has 1.8 times the complaints of a typical Prizm model year.

Typical year1.8x the typical complaints
Owner complaints
11
Recalls
0
Service bulletins
3
Worst area
Airbags

The worst 1998 Geo Prizm problems

Ranked by number of owner complaints. Mileage and cost come from what owners wrote.

  • Airbags
    2
  • Body
    2
  • Brakes
    2
  • Acceleration
    1
  • Locks
    1

Problems by type

Tap a problem to see which part fails, at what mileage and in which other years.

  • Airbags
    2
  • Body
    2
  • Brakes
    2
  • Acceleration
    1
  • Locks
    1
  • Seat belts
    1
  • Suspension
    1

Recalls

No recalls on record for this model year.

Technical service bulletins for the 1998 Geo Prizm 3

Bulletins tell dealers how to fix known problems. A warranty extension means the manufacturer pays for that repair for longer.

What 1998 Geo Prizm owners say

Most recent owner complaints, unedited.

Filed Nov 7, 2007 · Body · VA

Tl*the contact owns a 1998 geo prizm. The roof headliner is dry rotted, corroded, and hanging down in the passenger compartment. The door gaskets on each door have cracked, melted, and hardened. The entire exterior of the vehicle has white haze spots, where the primer is coming through the paint. The contact stated that the failures began right after the three year warranty ended on the vehicle. He also stated that there was a safety recall on the black metallic paint. The recall was good for three years and then it was extended to five years. The contact stated that chevrolet gave him the run around until the safety recall extension expired. He was able to get the roof of the vehicle painted under the recall, however, the paint job failed shortly afterwards. The contact has pictures of the vehicle, if needed. The failure mileage and recall number were unknown. The current mileage was 52,000.

Filed Jan 5, 2005 · Locks · 96,200 miles · CA

All of the handles inside the vehicle do not work. No one can exit the vehicle. Currently, the passenger's side handles do not work, and one cannot open the vehicle from the outside.

Filed Oct 13, 2004 · Body · 78,000 miles · CA · 1 injury

The driver side door caught the consumer on the heel taking part of her heel. The bottom of the door was very sharp.

Filed Feb 19, 2004 · Airbags · 69,000 miles · VT

Air bag sensor light stays on. Dealer states wire harness needs to be replaced. *ak

Filed Aug 20, 2001 · Acceleration · OK

I was told by my transmission/mechanic expert that even though chevrolet made the prizm it had a toyota engine which is why I bought the car to begin with. Then when the throttle position sensor went out he was surprised because ususally this doesn't happen until you have a lot of miles like 200,000 miles on a car. I expected better than the fact the this went out on my car and I basically had 55,000 miles.

Filed Jul 22, 2001 · Seat belts · NC

The seat belt sensor does not activate dash light when the seat belt is not in use. When the seat belt is in use by people who do not need to pull the belt out very far (I.e. Slender, tall people who leave the seat at the back of the track), the dash light mistakenly is lit.

Filed Nov 29, 1999 · UT

We have been unable to find the hardware needed to attach the tether to the car. The anchor nuts appear to be welded to the rear shelf of the car but neither the owners manual or the car dealership has any information about the additional hardware needed to create a tether attachment point. We would really like to use the tether strap on our car seat, but at this point we are unable to do so.

Filed Mar 3, 1999 · Brakes · TN

Brake pedal height is higher than the gas pedal which causes occupant's foot to go underneath the brake pedal, and causes pedal misapplication. Please provide further information.

Filed Nov 19, 1998 · Brakes · TX

Brakes are defective. When brakes are applied, extended stopping distance occurs because the brakes lock up. Dealer not aware of the problem, problem still exists.

Filed Nov 19, 1998 · Airbags · TX · crash

Air bags did not deploy upon impact. Vehicle was hit from the right rear at approximately 60 MPH. Dealer not aware of the problem.

Compare the 1998 Geo Prizm

Other model years

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Questions about the 1998 Geo Prizm

Is the 1998 Geo Prizm reliable?

Owners have filed 11 complaints about the 1998 Geo Prizm, 1.8 times a typical Prizm model year.

What is the most common problem with the 1998 Geo Prizm?

Airbags, with 2 complaints. Next is body (2).

How many recalls does the 1998 Geo Prizm have?

No recalls on record.

What year does the Geo Prizm have bad airbags?

The Geo Prizm model years with the most airbags complaints are 1994 (50 complaints), 1995 (31 complaints) and 1993 (27 complaints).

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