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Engine coolingPart report

1993 GEO Prizm Engine cooling Problems

Complaints
8about this part
Share
10%of 77 total for the year
Median mileage
95,000miles
Trend
Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.

NHTSA recorded 8 complaints about the engine cooling of the 1993 GEO Prizm, 10% of the 77 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 95,000 miles.

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.

“Dangerous levels of carbon monoxide leaking into passenger compartment due to cracked exhaust manifold. Replaced cracked manifold two times, the second one lasted 16 months. This is a safety issue due to the carbon monoxide!! Exhaust repair shops told me that this is a very common problem with Geo Prizm and toyota corolla models. At over $300 to replace each time, I can not afford to keep replacing. The main concern I have though is with the carbon monoxide issue. Is this being investigated?”

NHTSA complaint #10047466, filed 2003-11, 95,000 miles

“While driving car home from work I noticed engine noise getting louder. Upon closer inspection the following morning I found that the exhaust manifold was cracked completely into two seperate pieces.also noticed odor from exhaust leaking into pasenger compartment.aparently I am not the only one with this problem and would think that exhaust fumes are a large problem for my eighteen month old son.I want to know if anyone has or is investigating this and what if anything was or will be done about it.”

NHTSA complaint #10043140, filed 2003-10

“Dear sir or madam: I own a 1993 Geo Prizm. Twice, I have had the exhaust manifold repaired by a welder because it was cracked and leaking exhaust fumes into the vehicle. Despite the welder's best efforts, the manifold keeps developing more cracks. I wanted to replace it with a used manifold. However, a call to several salvage yards revealed that it's very hard to obtain a good, used manifold for that vehicle. The reason is that so many of the 1993 prizms that are in salvage yards already have cracked manifolds. It seems to be common among that make and model. …”

NHTSA complaint #755450, filed 2001-12

“While driving the oil cap exploded and the engine started smoking; on 2 separate occasions th window regulators failed, sending the windows into the doors and engine would seize intermittently.”

NHTSA complaint #803151, filed 1996-11

“Weather had been cold; vehicle was running; had noticed vehicle was leaking exhaust. Checked under the hood & noticed that exhaust manifold was cracked.”

NHTSA complaint #821040, filed 1998-03

Related service bulletins

Engine cooling: other model years

YearComplaintsShare of year
2001117%
2000229%
199928%
199712%
199623%
199555%
199475%
1993810%
19921530%
19911022%
1990616%

Other parts of the 1993 GEO Prizm

Air bags
27 complaints
Visibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)
10 complaints
Seat belts
9 complaints
Electrical system
7 complaints
Body and structure
6 complaints
Brakes
5 complaints
Seats
4 complaints
Fuel system
3 complaints
Suspension
3 complaints
Exterior lighting
2 complaints
Latches, locks and linkages
2 complaints
Equipment
1 complaints

← All problems reported for the 1993 GEO Prizm

About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 28, 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