1990 Geo Tracker Barn Find?
The Geo Tracker was built in Canada as part of a joint venture between General Motors of Canada and Suzuki. The brand was intended only for the U.S. market while its Suzuki clone, the Sidekick, was built for the Canadian market. This mini-SUV was running when it was parked in a barn 10 years ago, but it may only be a parts truck now because the title can’t be found, and the ignition was broken to get the front wheels to turn. Located in Phoenicia, New York, this vehicle is available here on eBay where the bidding is a mere $102.50, but there is a Buy It Now price of $999.99.
The Tracker and Sidekick were built by CAMI Automotive in Ingersoll, Ontario. Although marketed as compact SUVs, they were certified as light trucks due to their off-road capabilities, truck chassis, and body-on-frame construction. The first Geo Tracker debuted in 1989 and annual production was projected to be 200,000 units, but the Tracker and Sidekick combined never reached those levels. The draw these trucks had was they were inexpensive to purchase, had 4-wheel-drive, and were simply fun to drive!
When the seller found this Tracker, it had been in storage for nearly a decade. It has some rust that probably festered while in captivity and there are some dents and dings to be found, as well. The windshield is also cracked, and the interior is going to need attention if plans are to make the truck a driving vehicle again. Because the ignition key was lost, rather than call a locksmith someone broke into the ignition to free the front wheels. That will be a more expensive repair than the service call would have been and may very well seal this Tracker’s fate as being a parts car.
Under the hood should be Suzuki’s 1.6-liter SOHC 4-cylinder engine that was good for 80 hp. There is no indication if this truck will run, and the lack of a functioning ignition system would make it difficult to coax the motor back to life. If you happen to have one of these SUVs and it needs some parts, this might make a good donor. Production of these vehicles ran through 1996 and then the Geo nameplate disappeared in 1998 when the brand was merged into Chevrolet. Going forward, the Geo Tracker would be called the Chevy Tracker.
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Comments
Oooof that steering column looks completely toast! I imagine the convo went like this “Bob I need to move this trucker let’s call a lock smith” Bob “no way hold my beer, I have tools!”
Supposed to be “trucklet” but u get it!
Wow, but hey it’s unlocked now! Locksmith is how many cases of beer? I got this.
Why..
I coulda cracked that ignition in 30 seconds without visable damage or needing someone to hold my beer, that’s Joe Bob and Elmer amature all day long….
Maybe put the wheels on rollers? Geeez
This is great,,,in the “there’s a sucker born every minute” dept., whilst Jeep hunting, a local dealer, known for inflated prices, had a Tracker like this. Had 186K miles, relatively clean,( more like cleaned) with new cheapo tires to look good, asking price,,,$7,995. Keeping in mind, this croo,,,oops, I mean, this dealer maybe had a grand into it as a trade, I laughed, nobody is THIS stupid. Well, I ate my words, as some old guy was seen driving that POS around with one of those temp. plates, so there you go. Oh, P.T., like fishing in a barrel for these car dealers.
Geos were great vehicles, they had their time in history, when new, and properly maintained, can easily deliver a ton of miles, but once they get to this stage, they are ready for their next duty in life, like a toaster or new Toyota. It was a stark improvement over the Samuri, that’s for sure. I don’t think Suzuki ever outlived the Samuri’s shortcomings. The Sidekick/Tracker was a much better vehicle. I wouldn’t spend a dime for this.
Tough little trucks. 10 years ago, in the February snow on a road I did not know, I backed out of a long winding driveway in my 3/4 ton Dodge (2wd) truck. As I turned it into my lane, I dropped the back wheel off the pavement (snow was deep!), and hung the truck up on the axle. Wondering what to do in the middle of nowhere, a local farmer comes by in one of these, and says he’ll tow me out. NO WAY!
Yes way. That little thing in 4wd just groaned and pulled the truck back on the road. I was amazed
In Canada those things were sold as Chevrolet Trackers, Geo Trackers, Pontiac Sunrunners, Suzuki Sidekicks, and as Asuna Sunrunner.
…and we did get them badged as Suzuki Sidekicks in the US market as well, so that wasn’t just a Canadian-market thing as the article suggests.
They were soldcin the uk as suzuki vitara and got known as a hairdressers car
My first GEO was a ’94 Tracker convertible. I loved that car and it ran perfectly for the six years I had it. Hated to trade it in. It was still like new, but I was ready for a better ride. Drove it all over the country, even all the way from Missouri to D.C. She made many trips to North Padre Island, where we would drive way past the 4WD-Only sign and sit on the beach all day. The Tracker taught me I could trust Suzuki products and I’ve owned a GEO Metro convertible as a project car for the past twenty years. Now it’s her turn to drive all over the country.
Funny thing , i am actually looking for a mint one right now , they are hard to find because they were used hard and put away wet , surprisingly, they are getting expensive and they sell rather quickly , i do not want/need/wish for another project so i simply keep looking until i find the good one , this is a parts car at best
I had a ’92 great little vehicle, I should have kept it a long time but I traded in on a new ’96 Chevy C1500. That C1500 was terrible and I kept going back to the GM Kool-Aid twice more before I learned their time was over.