There are cars that have inevitably become mostly junkyard fodder at this point, owing to their rapid rate of depreciation and general lack of care and attention from owners. However, every now and again one of those cars suddenly becomes loved again, and we all wish we at least held onto a few of them. This 1992 Chevrolet Cavalier Z24 convertible listed here on eBay is one such car, and while it was absolutely an economy model when new, it was also slightly iconic in terms of the era in which it was made when sport compact cars ruled the parking lots. The Cavalier is available via a no reserve auction with bids to $2,125 and no reserve.
The Cavalier was obviously a car for a value-minded consumer, and it’s striking to see how different a GM economy car was perceived than one from its Japanese competition. I am no Honda sympathizer, but you can’t deny the General had some catching up to do in the engineering department compared to a comparable Civic. But there was no Civic convertible, and the allure of a high-performance Honda was still a few years away. It’s a shame Chevy didn’t try and make the Z24 more of a screamer, as it could’ve had a contender on its hands. The Z24 shown here has resided in California and Florida all of its life, which helps explain its clean condition. The white leather seats are in good shape as is the dash.
The name “Z24” certainly sounds imposing and the Cavalier looked like it meant business. Aggressive side skirts, sharp “slicer”-style alloy wheels, and front and rear lower valances all combined to make a very slick entry into the sport compact battles. The Z24 did get a 3.1L V6 that made a respectable 140 horsepower and 180 lb-ft of torque. That was a decently snappy ride with the standard 5-speed manual gearbox, but it sure seems like most of these are equipped with the automatic gearbox. The seller reports that the Cavalier is in good shape mechanically with no major issues, and that the automatic gearbox shifts smoothly. Some minor oil leaks are noted.
The white soft top is believed to be original and in decent shape, with a cut noted in the back window. The seller is a dealer who has addressed a few deferred maintenance items, including an oil change and new tires. The factory parade boot is included, which I’m guessing is missing on most of these cars by now. While the Cavalier Z24 is unremarkable in many ways, this one actually ends up being sort of special considering how few survive. For cheap, top-down driving that will transform an 80s kid back to their high school years in a jiffy, this car is hard to beat.
To an 18 year old kid these cars were a blast to drive. Mine was a 91 electric blue coupe. It had a growl in the exhaust note, a pep in its step and 90’s go racer good looks. I sold
Mine 26 years ago and still have a dream about it now and then. This one looks pretty sharp, a little elbow grease would make it a near perfect and affordable summer car.
If the seats are original, that’s definitely vinyl, not leather. My first new car was a ‘90 Sunbird convertible with the same seats. Believe the white vinyl was convertible only.
6 owners in 88,000 miles, Not a good sign!!
The other way to look at it is 6 owners in 32 years. Not so bad now, right?
Maybe……
Went to Chevy dealer in 2000 with the intention of buying one of these to replace an Escort GT that I’d worn out. Dealer didn’t have one in stock, and suggested I go next door to their Hyundai dealer an look at a Tiburon. Drove it, liked it, asked price difference. Tiburon is $1200 cheaper, bought it on the spot. 200,000 miles later gave it to my youngest kid, who is still driving it. Nearly 300K on it now. Changed timing belt every 60 K, regular oil changes, one A/C compressor. Has been a wonderful car!
These were everywhere and were nice looking cars. I knew a few that drove them and like sooooo many others from this time. One day you look around and they are gone. I put a top on one for a guy. He bought one with a vandalized top for pennies. I took him on a junkyard cruise and pulled a near mint black one off a Sunbird for 25.00. He thought I was joking when I said here’s your roof for 1 10th of 1% of what a shop wants. Took it back, installed it the next day and it still looked nice when he sold it five years later.
This is one nice Cavalier. I had two. A 1984 hatchback Type 10 in blue with a four speed and a 1988 sedan, grey with a five speed. They seemed to break down a lot but they were cheap to repair. Fun to drive and pretty well equipped, but disposable, ultimately.
I bought my girlfriend a 2000 topless sunfire GT as her first convertible , she loved it for 5 years , upgraded to a z3 and she never used it ! After all , she would like another 4 seater cavalier or sunfire !
This one looks very good , they are cheap cars to buy and maintain and you are not worried when you go to the mall …
Too bad it is across the border and the total would be multiplied by 2 in canadian funds
YOLO