Cars Simplified: Everything Automotive Explained

Geo

Geo was a short-run branch of which rebadged inexpensive cars for the North American market. It was founded in 1989, and shut down in 1997, lasting fewer than ten years. The brand served as an economy branch of GM. This allowed the brand to exist as its own entity and not affect the perception of other GM brands, for better or for worse.

Some of the vehicles Geo produced would live on under other brands after the Geo brand was discontinued. These would also have a short run, but allowed the vehicles to still be produced, slightly improving the return on investment in tooling specific to these vehicles.

The vehicle pictured at the left is a black four-door 1995 Geo Prizm. After the Geo brand was dissolved, the car lived on as the Chevrolet Prizm.

Vehicle Models by Geo

Model NameDebut Year
Metro1989
Prizm1989
Spectrum1989
Storm1990
Tracker1989

The Rise and Fall of Geo by

The Geo brand had a short run, so not many people had a chance to get to know Geo. This video by Hello Road tells the story of the brand and the curated imports it sold under the GM banner.