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BrakesPart report

1996 GEO Metro Brakes Problems

Complaints
9about this part
Share
10%of 88 total for the year
Median mileage
—not reported
Trend
Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.

NHTSA recorded 9 complaints about the brakes of the 1996 GEO Metro, 10% of the 88 complaints for this model year. 5 of these say a crash was involved and 1 a fire, according to the filers.

Fewer than 15 complaints name this part, so treat the figures as a rough indication only.

Example complaints

Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.

“I owned a 1994 and a 1996 Geo Metro I was involved in a head on with the 1994 and my air bag did not go off. When I reported it the dealer said I did not hit the sensors right. So I bought another one a 1996 lsi. I hit a chevrolet s10 going 15 MPH with no time to brake and nither one of my air bags went off in the car. The front bumper on this car had been removwed for repair and was not in place at the time of accident. The whole front end was damaged clear through the fan and radiator so the air bags should have gone off that time. …”

NHTSA complaint #727886, filed 2000-08

“Consumer was traveling about 20mph on a highway and roads were slippery. She applied brakes, and vehicle slid into another vehicle. There was a five car pile up on the highway, and consumer's was the fourth vehicle. Upon impact, airbags didn't deploy at all. She will contact the dealership. There were no injuries.”

NHTSA complaint #873936, filed 2000-10

“Vehicle was parked facing uphill in the driveway,the parking brake was applied and the manual transmiison was in neutral. The car was parked and locked at approximately 3:30 pm. At approximately 7:10 pm the car rolled backwards down the drive and across the state highway and stopped against the guardrail, blocking traffic. My son heard a commotion and noticing the car, went to move it off of the highway. He returned to the house, got the car key and proceeded to drive the car back to the driveway. He noticed that the parking brake was not applied at that time. …”

NHTSA complaint #705821, filed 1999-04

Related service bulletins

Brakes: other model years

YearComplaintsShare of year
2001117%
2000211%
199929%
1998618%
1997914%
1996910%
19951312%
1994913%
199324%
199259%
199112%
198914%

Other parts of the 1996 GEO Metro

Air bags
28 complaints
Electrical system
12 complaints
Engine cooling
9 complaints
Seats
6 complaints
Visibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)
6 complaints
Exterior lighting
5 complaints
Tires
5 complaints
Suspension
4 complaints
Transmission and drivetrain
4 complaints
Vehicle speed control
4 complaints
Seat belts
3 complaints
Body and structure
3 complaints

← All problems reported for the 1996 GEO Metro

About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 31, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.

To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology