Which is a better deal? A comparable Corolla is 2500-3000 more than a Prizm, but I assume its resale value is about 1500 higher when you sell it too. Plus there may be more demand for the Corolla when you sell it, so you can get a higher price. So even though the startup cost for a Corolla is higher it will sell for more and ‘may’ be more reliable than the Chevy prizm. Even though supposedly both cars are identical mechanically I have more faith in a Toyota. Gas mileage is roughly the same too.
I love this subject. I probably wont even buy a car i’m just talking about it because its sooooo much fun.
They are the same car, there’s no reason to have more faith in the badge on the side. They were built in the same factory side-by-side, IIRC. In fact, many reviewers liked the interior of the Prizm more than the Corolla, since they used different materials, designs, etc.
If you are planning to drive the car into the ground, the Prizm makes much more sense. Same car, same reliability, lower cost. If you plan on using it for a few years and then selling it, perhaps the Corolla would work better.
Two family members recently bought used Corollas and their upkeep has been assigned to me. I have the Haynes manual for them. On basically every other page there are disclaimers about “except on the Prizm where…”. Invariably, the Prizm has a simpler/cheaper version of the part or the part doesn’t exist at all. Since most of my mechanics work so far has been on brakes, this is quite alarming at times.
In short: The Prizm was designed to be a knock off cheaper version of the Corolla. Other shortcuts were no doubt taken during assembly, etc. So I don’t consider it the same car at all.
My Prism, a 1993, has had a bunch of interior cosmetic failures, like the door handles breaking and the temperature control knobs coming off. Things also rattle a lot on the inside. Also, the front of the hood eaily gets pinged, and then gets dots of rust. Every Geo Prism I see seems to have it to a greater extent than the Corrolla.
I had a Corrolla once, but only for a year before a guy totalled her, and I didn’t have any interior problems or rust with it. The Corrolla was younger then than my Prism is now, so it’s probably not too comparable. Maybe the owner of a 1993 Corrolla could check in.
I had a 93 geo prizm. Other than the door handle (partially my fault, tried to force with and ice covered door), and wear and tear (new alternator after 100,000+ miles) I had no significant problems.
