Is a 1996 Geo Tracker safe to drive? I read about them flipping, swerving in the wind, being unsafe for long highway drives, etc. Whats the real deal?

About as safe as an Isuzu Trooper <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/lol.gif" alt="" />

I have two of Trooper never done any flips. Anything can get pushed around in crosswinds, Trackers are no different. I have ridden in my friends Tracker on 150 mile daytrips with no complaints. Other than a 4spd auto or 5sp manual would be nicer than his 3spd auto, a little buzzy at 70.

You may be confused with the Suzuki Samurai which Comsumer Reports labled as "unacceptable"due to it's rollover tendencies in their tests. The Tracker has a wider wheelbase & handles quite well. Strong crosswinds are a problem for any light vehicle.

My wife has 170K on hers & has never had a complaint. I find it a bit noisy & rough on long trips, but it certainly seems safe.
Dave

Living in the desert, I have driven my '92 and'94 thru some serious winds (40+ MPH) at highway speeds and haven't had a problem, even with a 2" lift and slightly bigger tires (225-75-15). I feel the winds, but I've never felt out of control.
In my '94, I was at a dead stop and rear ended by a 2004 Grand Cherokee going about 45 mph. The Cherokee had serious damage, grill, hood, front undercarriage, and air bag deployment. It pushed me into a lifted 85 Cherokee (a Jeep sandwich!) with a steel bumper. Although totalled on paper, my little Tracker came out extremely well. What totalled the Tracker was not the rear hit, but the lifted Cherokee bent the welded front cross plate, the hood and fenders which was serious labor dollars to repair. I just needed a door for the back. My Tracker was towed to the same body shop as the 2004 Cherokee and the body man was really surprised as to the damage my Tracker "caused" on the Jeep. I think the full box frame made the difference in that accident.

Just look on how low your chasis sits. This is what gives you stability. The chasis on the Sidekick/Tracker sits low. I thougs it would be a problem off road, but it has not caused me any bad situations at all. This rig is very safe and it might be the most stable real 4x4 with severe off-road capabilities out there.

Owned a 94 since new have been everywhere with it with no trouble

I have had my 96 4-door six months. I do some mild Rcky Mountain dirt-road "Drifting" with no problem. It leans some on any corner, a little less since I replaced the struts and shocks. I am going to look for inverted rims befor next summer to widen the wheel base.
The convertibles are less topheavy and should be even easier to handle when breaking traction around the bend on dirt roads.

I feel they are safe as long as you drive them right. I drive my 97 Tracker 4x4 onthe free way atleast 5 days a week and it does fine. By the way i have my 97 Tracker for sale if you want one. Look at my ad is the for sale section.

Back when Suzuki was accused of having the tippiest vehicle on the road, the Samurai, it was proven afterwards that there were 6 veehicles that would tip over befire the Samurai did, including Jeep, Bronco, Blazer, and Isuzu. Suzuki was waiting for the minimal roll-over law to take place because it had at the time the safest 4x4 on the market, the Sidekick. When Ford and Jeep heard of the minimal roll-over law, they did everything in their power to kill it. So, to summarize it, Sidekicks are very stable. Don't forget, what makes a vehicle safe is a low stance and if you look at the chasis in the Sidekick, it sits pretty low. That is not a great thing when wheeling over rocks, you are bount to hit a few of them, but it makes it very stable.

the ever so debated question- consumer reports said they flip, but do they? i have owned a 96 sidekick since new. the report if you noticed was on a samari. also- i remember when this all happened. the samari had outrigers on it that displaced weight to the side of the vehicle. plus the driver whiped the wheel in an S patern and held it threw the patern to cause it to roll. any 4x4 put threw the exact test will roll. but samari was singled out--- hmmm. the sidekick has a wider and longer stance. this conbined with the lower CG makes a stable production vehicle- more stable then, yes, ford and chevy like vehicles. now- fast forward a few years- and you'll notice that all suzuki 4x4 vehicles have nasty insurace ratings. domestice doesn't have bad insurace ratings. combine that with plated consumer alerts- hmmmm. more capable 4x4 imports at lower cost then domestic- i belive you can all figure this one out. 10 years driving my sidekick with increasing gas prices- i'll never trade it for an overpriced, gas guzzling domestice. no matter what consumer reports try to convince me. three words- it's bull sh#@!!!