Spotting a Fake XFI
 

Hey everyone, I'm looking for some insight. Recently, I have found a 93 Geo Metro XFI in a neighborhood ad, selling for $1000. To get right to the point, I can tell that the "body" in a genuine XFI(i.e due the fact that the passenger side mirror is missing, along with it's characteristic wheels) but I'm not certain about the engine.

I got suspicious when the lady at the dealership made two points. 1) She claimed that with the right engine modifications, that the car could acheive
82 mpg. We all know that's not true.

2) She mentioned that the engine came straight from Japan, without any further elaboration, even when I asked. I'm not certain if she if meant the engine was recently transplanted, or if it came stock.

Bearing everything in mind, I'm wondering if there would be a "tell-tale" way of authenticating that this would be genuine XFI engine; say by finding a VIN number stamped somewhere on the engine, or by any other means.

Thank You.

You believe a used car sales(wo)man? That being said, I have seen people get that kind of mileage and better with such a car, usually with some pretty extreme aero-mods, and extreme hypermiling driving techniques. The average persons mileage will be a lot less (but still pretty dang good).

Sounds like one of those "low mileage Japanese engines". If so, it may well not be a "true" XFI engine. There is probably a way to tell, but I don't know it. Still, for $1k, if the car is in good condition, e.g. no rust, runs good, reasonable miles on the clock, looks presentable, it sounds like a deal...

"You believe a used car sales(wo)man? That being said, I have seen people get that kind of mileage and better with such a car, usually with some pretty extreme aero-mods, and extreme hypermiling driving techniques. The average persons mileage will be a lot less (but still pretty dang good)".



By no means did I believe her, which is why I said I was suspicious. Especially with respect to the fact when she mentioned that "with the right engine modifications, 82 mpg could be acheived". Like I said previously, we all know that any simple or complex engine modifications by themselves wouldn't even come close.

found this interesting as well...

https://3cylinders.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=280

5 to 10 mpg gain by swapping cams?

I don't think there were many 3 cylinder engine put into cars so if it is a 3 cylinder then it probably is an XFI . . . so there were cam differences between Metro's and XFI ? I thought it was gear ratio tranny difference only.

Actually, most Metros came with a three-cylinder engine. Some of the later ones had an optional four-cylinder.

IIRC, big differences between XFI and regular Metros:

Milder cam
No RH mirror
Transmission ratios
Somewhat lighter weight.

Maybe some other differences.