🏁SticKerS🏁 I had one 1999-2001, it was a fun, quick car "in town" that wasn't a total turd on the highway with 500# worth of people and ish in it. It only used gas if I DROVE it on the Interstate and drank it like a 20 year old does beer at a house party when I did that with a passenger. An additional 200# made a difference in quickness but helped in holding it in corners. Torque steer was there but easily controllable due to light weight and easy steering; braking was not scary, I don't remember them overheating but I also don't remember trying to find out when they would. It went through the snow well here in Milwaukee/Chicago area(s) as long as you understood momentum, ground clearance, and got comfy with it riding on top at 40+ mph. Im glad that I was never a passenger in it while passing a semitrailer on a slushy I-94 ride home.... It'd be a hoot-and-a-half as an auto-x car and I often thought it'd be F-U-N with some lightweight 14 or 15x6" rims with STICKY tires on it but that wasn't it's purpose for me. Yep, I'd LOVE to find another one, probably in white again, and use it as the street legal go-cart that it wanted to be. It's 1000# lighter than my Fiero GT (I'd have to look at the specs to compare performance) and 2500# lighter than my Impala SS('95) which gets half the mpg, is much more comfy, quicker, and faster. I wonder how it'd compare to the VW GTI or turbo Omni. It was a great commuter 21 years ago that'd be cool to still have; a huge difference compared to my other cars and truck at the time. Amazingly my long-bodied non-svelte 6'4"+ self was able to get in and out of it AND didn't hit my head without have to crank the seatback down to gangsta level. I wish the friend that I sold it to would've told me he was going to scrap it due to a "broken downpipe"......
The red '87 Sprint Turbo was the first car I ever owned. I bought it on my 16th birthday in 1990. These specs today don't make it sound very impressive, but hot DAMN that thing was fast. Front a dead stop, all my friends who had supped up trucks couldn't beat it, and even at highway speeds, if you hit the gas hard, you got pushed back into your seat. The turbo light came on NO MATTER HOW FAST you sped up, so that was a waste... but you know when the turbo really did kick in. You could really feel it.
@@alphatrion100 , surprisingly, the second one was actually in the USA, but, aside from the badges, it looked practically identical to the hatchback form of the Geo Metro. The USA Suzuki Swift is also much harder to find than a Geo Metro as well.
No they haven't, many FWD cars in non-sport spec versions today don't accelerate much faster then this, specially outside of US in places where these came from originally. Today's economy has twice the power and 2.5 times the weight of these....
Mine flipping Flied. If I could smoke AccordLXi, Integras, Beretta GTZ of the time with one I had a stop light race with mine at around 170k in the early 2000’s with a BMW ZR-1 and the guy was shocked I beat him byba good stretch. Sprint Turbos can really MOVE.
That's a very impressive acceleration time for just 70hp though. I've got the same amount of power, yet my car needs 8 seconds longer. This isn't all too surprising given the much lower weight due to lack of any kind of safety though.
The 80s be like "here's your turbocharged three cylinder." The 90s and 2000s be like "nah, four cylinders are where it's at." The 2010s be like "here's your turbocharged three cylinder". Funny how some things come back around.
Wrong, 3-cylinder Turbo was used for the last 27 years non-stop ! Mostly is JP where they make sense, they have a whole army of micro cars there that move more people then in America with 0.66l-1.2l i3 Turbo engines like the Suzuki Wagon R.
@Timothy Keith Believe it or not I saw one or two on cars dot com over the years but I'm sure you can arrange something yourself, K-cars is what they are called. Suzuki, Daihatsu, ect....they are smaller then a Honda Fit and should be fairly cheap to import since it's a tiny motor.
On the contrary, they were very popular with people who did autocross and road rallies. The Sprint Turbo I currently own won it's class in the road rallies it was raced in.
the most interesting cars were never saved. Part of what makes them so fascinating now. Problem is, to this day plenty of morons think these 30+ year old cars should still be scrapped because they arent on their personal 5-car list of vehicles that "matter".
A friend of mine bought one brand new in 87' we use to street race I drove a 84 Nissan 300zx. Let me tell ya that little sprint was no joke. It was fast. It gave me a run for my money. Those were the good ole days!!!
Exactly what I was going to say... Imagine being at the dealer and it has 20 miles on the odo and that's what it sounds like.... Bet none of these were sold on days below 45 degrees lol.
The green 'Turbo' readout in the tach is one of the coolest readouts I've ever seen! It's even cooler than the green 'Supercharger' light in the supercharged MR2 AW11! But, just imagine what a sleeper the Sprint would be with a Stage 1 tuning to 100hp and a set of good springs and shocks!
@@nlpnt Yep, the glorious Swift GTi, of the 2nd generation, with the 1.3 reaching 7500rpm, maybe more even! It's one of the best cars Suzuki has ever made!
@@VL1975 The present time is the best for cars, it will only get better. Where in time can you buy stock trucks that do 0-60 mph in the 5 second range?
@@TheCarCrazyGuy The present is no very good for cars. Yes, we have faster cars, but they become ugly, heavy and boring. People interest for cars and motorsports in general is going down.
Problem is new cars and truck that perform at the 5 second or faster are too expensive for the average joe to afford. Additionally, new cars are way too complex. If they wanted to, cars and trucks could be manufactured to be fun, efficient, affordable, and easy to repair. Since they’re not, I personally don’t have a real interest in newer cars regardless of how fast they are.
6! SIX. S I X seconds faster to 60 MPH than the previous years car. Now that is an upgrade. LOL Sure it's stil just 9.5 to 60s but holy crap that's a huge drop in a year. LOL
@@economynotstable I had a 1.0/stick Metro, I can't imagine what a dog the auto was. That being said, the 5 speed 3 cylinder Metro would hit the rev limiter in 2nd before it hit 60 so a timed 0-60 run would've had to include a shift to 3rd.
These were the days when you had to leave GIANT gaps in traffic to merge safely. Imagine driving a 50hp car onto a freeway when a semi is doing 60 in the slow lane and it takes 15 seconds to get to that speed!!!
I bought a Chevy Metro brand new in '98 with the 16 valve 4 cyl engine. I put an SRD header on it and a couple other mods. A kid I worked with had a standard 3 cyl Metro that looked almost identical to mine. I'll never forget the first time he drove mine he was absolutely shocked by the difference 30 extra HP made in a 1900lb car. I got 16 years and 220k miles out of that thing it was legendary
@@economynotstable My uncle had a Swift GTI that he ran to almost 200000 miles before it got totaled in a wreck.He replaced it with a Metro that was out of a rental fleet and drove that one quite a while too
The headlights are so General motors, sort of wide eyed and downturned, I've never understood their styling to this day, virtually everything they make or have ever made is the opposite of what I like, they must have a very specific market in mind
That was such a dannged good looking little car. I saw tons of them back in the late 80's here in So-Cal. And man! Those full color matched wheels were awesome back then. Like my bike that had them wheel discs. 80's aesthetic man! Goodtimes. Even though it didn't have voltmeter and oil pressure gauges. 1:37 LOL! Damn, *brake* dancing was still a thing, but slowly dying.
This was my very first car I love it and I miss it $10 you can ride 2 weeks without running out of gas 46 mpg not even a stupid Prius get that . Mine was the red one .
Had a 1987 Pontiac FireFly Turbo! What a riot that car was! Bought it for $20.00 [yes $20.00] not running, took me a lot of time and loads of messages to figure what the problem was. Knock sensor. Drove that car to Redline everyday I owned it! Raced anyone at any red light, anywhere! Surprised loads of people with that Go-Kart! Sadly sold it, I miss it for sure. Chevy Sprint, Pontiac Firefly, Suzuki Cultus, find one, buy it and have a riot!
I literally never saw a single one of these on the roads in my neck of the woods in Ft. Worth during this time, not a single one. and if you can find one today in halfway decent shape, you don't have much. My '88 Mazda 323LX 5spd (non turbo) did just fine and was a nice place to be with power windows/locks, sunroof, cc, int wipers, etc; such a great car. Saw more Metros, Storms and Impulse than Sprints. Always had a soft spot for an Impulse because I wanted handling by Lotus.
I remember going on a test drive in a sprint turbo when I was 14. I was with my mom while car shopping for a new car for my sister. I can recall my mom being totally surprised by the unexpected acceleration that the turbo gave the little car. My parents ended up buying a 1987 Pontiac Sunbird SE instead.
Everyone complaints about 0-60 This and that . All I can say is as a 85 crx si owner these 1700 pound Cars are fun and quick nothing like Modern cars.. you'd be surprised trust me ..now 2800 POUNDS IS LIGHT ..
Loved these when they were still around. I owned an Imark turbo in the late 90's ...even after owning many "better" cars since I still call it one of the coolest and most fun cars I've ever had. The downside to making "cheap" performance cars is they can easily get into the hands of people who either dont know or cant afford the extra maintenance and care that comes with them. That leads to most on the roads in poor running condition and the rep takes a hit...then sales go out the window. The late 80's were so great for variety, with everything today either being a truck or a pregnant rollerskate compact suv we may never see those times again
The shop I worked at in the early 90s had a semi-regular customer with one of these and a personal license plate. IIRC, "2RC4U", Too Racy For You. While I would love one of these for Lemons, I still wonder how slow his previous car was, that he thought one of these was fast. Still a cool car, and would love to run one in in Lemons.
I had a standard 1986 red 5-door, with 3-cyl engine and AT (a concession to my new wife), my first and last new car. We bought it because it was cheap, and I would have preferred a MT, but it was fun to drive, and I LOVED IT!
Forward 33 years ad now we got same engine same turbo and intercoolers getting like almost same horsepower and torque and heaver vehicle with 400% cost ! . I would buy one of these way before i'd buy any new car with all the electronic nannies and maintenece and cost any day!! These were fun to drive and mpg were great compared to now.
Isuzu, probably not, they were junk cars, the Sprint, Swift or Metro ( whatever you wanna call it ) was actually really good when it comes to the engine and trans, the issue was rust, my Dad had a 1989 Metro that he drove all through out college and a few years past that, and the engine out lived body because Geo Metro's are very rust prone on the floor pans, shock towers and the area in front of the rear wheels, they were still super crappy though, I think the real issue with these cars is how disposable the manufacturers make them, kinda like the new 3 cylinder Mirage.
You never see people cry how "little" power this motor made in times of performance restrictions but they never fail to cry to how a comparable era 5.0l V8 "only" made 215HP in 1987, which was more then enough for 99% of drivers to even handle safely then.
That complaint isn't about total power, it's about volumetric efficiency. 215 HP out of 5 liters IS pathetic, considering that the same company made a 3.0L V6 that produced 140 HP. And this was if you stuck with a pushrod engine. The Toyota Camry at the time was available with a 2.5L V6 that made 153 HP. Ford doubled the displacement to make only 62 more HP? Yes, 215 HP was quite a bit for the time and type of car. The problem was that they needed a 5 liter V8 to make it.
Great, both of you just confirmed what I said, the levels of lack of knowledge of this industry or history in both of you is staggering....I guess they should have strapped on a fully tuned V8 race motor from an '80s Indy Car, put out 125hp/liter, fail every stringent emissions test in the process and raise the price of every V8 car in line up 3-4 times. Cars from EU with V8s didn't put of much more, considering their restrictions were nothing like here at the time, ah and they also use 32 valve DOHC heads that make more power in any engine cylinder setup. Most V8s from the '80s only need a few parts (with which they would have come with if it was any other decade) to make very decent power, swap the fuel/air restrictions alone for something high flow and you'll have a whole another engine. There's nothing wrong with those motors other then the government/politics getting involved with them, 15 years before that they 500hp motors in road cars, in the '60 Ferrari doesn't even get close to that ! Learn some automotive history first....
Am I the only one that finds it funny to hear John Davis say Turbografx at 2:31? Perhaps NEC was watching this video and thought, "that's a great name for our new console!"
this was my 1st get away car lol.. i was a teen with no driving licence driving as fast as i can to lose the cops lol got it the hard way .. it was not fast enoug .. i remeber staying all day in the police station till my dad came and got me out of there .. good old memories
Wow! How time flies! 105 horses like seen in this car back then is the power level of a standard NA 1.5 liter cars nowadays, while turbo 1.5 liter engines like the ones on recent turbo crvs & civics has at least 180hp, similar power level of a 2.4 liter NA engine!
If you were going to get a 1987 Chevy Spectrum turbo; might as well get a Isuzu I-Mark RS turbo because of the styling and a better interior. The Chevy Sprint turbo with intercooler was a true pocket rocket and had impressive numbers in 0-60 in its time. Great car.
Yeah Honda is great. The swift 1.3 gti could take on the crx 1.6 with 110hp though. From 0-100 i smoked them lol. The 115hp rare japspec model could probably match the 130hp crx model.
I happen to drive one of these new, My cousin bought the white sprint turbo. I actually thought the car was quite the runner despite being so small. It had plenty of get up & go, & was great on gas!!!!
From time to time I still see 80s GM trucks, Suburbans, big cars and mid size fwd cars still on the roads today but in my life time I’ve seen one Monza, 2 Chevettes, and one Citation. Never have I seen any Sprints or Spectrums lol, or any 80s Novas for that matter.
I had a white sprint turbo that I got up to 120 MPH going down a slight downgrade. Those cars where fast. I now have the 3 cylinder 2014 Ford Fiesta turbo. It moves right along too.
True, rust was most likely a problem, on the East coast(salty roads). Parents bought the '85 auto new, and it lasted over 15 years, rust-free. And yes, it could go over 75mph. Would occasionally race my sister's Nissan Pulsar getting to bowling alleys on O.C. Freeways. Sadly, engine died, couldn't afford to fix it. Mechanic where I used to live a few years ago had a convertible Geo Metro, pristine condition. Kept hoping he'd put a For Sale sign on it.
I like these type cars. Not fast at all, but feels fast. Just imagine if you throw today's upgrades on it and see what it can do. Like suspension, better turbo, bigger intercooler, head studs, cv axles, exhaust, intake, tune, and port out the the valves.
I’m not saying I necessarily want this car, but damnit why doesn’t any USA car company sell a 2 door anymore unless it’s a sports car? I’m so sick of stupid 4 door trucks, SUV’s, and crossover garbage. I’d give anything to have a 2 door automatic car or the old 2 door ford ranger cuz everything now is big and bulky 😑🤷🏼♀️😡
miss my turbo sprint, bigger brakes, tires and wheels from a 2000 metro,2.25 exhaust and a little more boost, funnest 55mpg car i ever had. Got eaten by the midwest rust monster
Were there any cars in 1987 which still *didn't* have halogen headlights or radial tires? According to Goodyear, all U.S.-built cars came with radial tires as standard equipment as of the 1982 model year. That leaves just trucks, and possibly some imported cars, as carrying on with bias-ply tires beyond that date.
I don't remember when was the last time I saw cars like these in my country. Oh well, I saw a Sprint turbo maybe 2 years ago, but it was '89 or' 90 (basically a Geo Metro with turbocharged G10 3 cylinder engine)
Owned one. Loads of fun to drive, but, as they point out, that torque steer can be a killer. Nearly wiped out one time with four people in the car leaving my office driveway when a car came out of nowhere while I was entering traffic. Hit the accelerator to get out of the way the car wanted to go one way while I wanted it to go the other. Almost flipped it, but did avoid the oncoming ghost car..
Had an 89 sprint 5 door. Was a good little car through college in the 1990s. I think it had a small 4 banger, though. 1.3l maybe. The Ohio roads and winters killed it and the 1998 sprint 3 door with a 3 cyl that replaced it. Both averaged well over 40 mpg the entire time.
