Maybe not that one, but the Geo Metro is making a huge comeback. So huge that people are paying up to seven times the Kelly Blue Book Value on eBay. Why? Because it gets 58 mpg when outfitted with a 3-cylinder engine and a 5-speed manual. Bonus for the truly ecologically minded – buying used means the car has zero “carbon debt.” The Prius doesn’t burn off its carbon debt until it hits 50,000 miles or so.
Has the world gone nuts for the Geo Metro? [Automobile magazine blog]
The whole carbon debt thing is explained eloquently by Wired:
Because there are about 113,000 BTUs of energy in a gallon of gasoline, the Prius has consumed the equivalent of 1,000 gallons of gasoline before it reaches the showroom. Think of it as a carbon debt — one you won’t pay off until the Prius has turned over 46,000 miles or so.
