FOR MANY younger
buyers, small sporty coupes
have replaced the small hat-
chback or sedan as their
first new car purchase.

Unlike the utilitarian hat-
chback, sporty coupes offer at-
tractive styling and sporty per-
formance without sacrificing the
practical benefits of front-wheel
drive, gocd fuel economy and a
small size. Most importantly,
small coupes are affordablc,
usually priced between $9,000 and
$15,000.

The Geo Storm coupe joins a
parade of new coupes that have
been introduced in the past few
years including the Mazda MX-3,
Nissan NX1600, Saturn SC,
Toyota Paseo and Hyundai
Scoupe. The Storm can boast

Fri jay 29, 1992 — North Shore N

Geo Storm

Japanese heritage, imported from
Isuzu for General Motors’
Chevrolet/Geo dealerships.

Based on the [suzu Impulse
(which is no longer available in
Canada), the Storm comes in
three models and twe body styles:
a base hatchback/coupe, the per-
formance-oriented GSi hat-
chback/coupe, and a_ hatchback
that looks like a station wagon.
All Storms have two doors,
front-wheel drive and four-
cylinder engines.

Many sporty cars in this class
tend to look embarrassingly simi-
lar, but the Storm has some par-
ticularly distinctive styling
features. Its four narrow halogen
headlamps lie buried in narrow
slits in a body-colored bumper.
The steeply raked hood is very
short and the front windscreen is

positioned very far forward on the
body. The Storm’s high tail with a
large glass hatchback has virtually
no rear deck. And the rear wheel
is positioned at the far extremity
of the body. The GSi model looks
even more aggressive, adding
built-in fog lights, a wrap-around
front air dam, and add-on rear
spoiler.

The Storm’s smail size and light
curb weight contribute to its nim-
ble handling and quick accelera-
tion. Base models have a 1.6-litre
four-cylinder engine with 95
hersepower while the GSi has a
1.8-litre engine with 140 horse-
power. In my test drive I found
that the base engine has more
than enough horsepower for
average driving needs, and then
some. Both engines are a little
noisy under hard acceleration but

comfortably quiet at cruising
speeds. Fuel economy is very good
in the base model, averaging 7.1!
litres per 100 kilometres (40 mp2)
with the manual transmission.

The Storm exhibits some
driveline ‘lurch’? when applying
the accelerator or when suddenly
removing your foot from the ac-
celerator pedal. This has some
implications when changing gears.
Though the standard five-speed
manual transmission is a
smooth-changing unit and well-
positioned for reach, changing
gears requires some delicacy to
eliminate the jerky tendencies of
the drivetrain.

An optional three-speed
automatic transmission is available
on the base coupe and wagon
models and a four-speed
automatic transmission in the GSi
model.

The Storm’s smail size and light
weight aiso help shorten stopping

Price as tested $14,190

Base price $13,690

Type two-door, four-passenger
hatchback coupe

Layout transverse front
engine/front wheel drive
Engine 1.6-litre four-cylinder,
SOHC, 12 valves, electronic
multi-port fuel injection
Horsepower 95 @ 5,800 rpmi
Transmission five-speed man-
ual (three-speed automatic)
Tires Bridgestone P185/60

ae ey

Greg
Wilson

TEST DRIVE

distances. Braking is very good
despite the car’s standard front
disc/rear drum setup and lack of

See Storm page 28

HR1}4 all-season radials

Length 4,166 mm/164.0 in.
Width 1,694 mm/66.7 in.
Height 1,298 mm/51.1 in.
Trunk space 311 litres/11 cu.ft.
(rear seat up); 6:7 litres/21.8
cu.ft. (rear seat down)

Fuel economy City 8.3 litres/
100 km; 34 mpg. Hwy 6.0
litres/100 km; 47 mpg.
Warranty complete
years/60,000 km
daquire about the Geo Storm at
Dick Irwin, 845 Marine Dr.,
North Van.

three