The Chevette was a simple, basic, no-frills subcompact that – in 1976 – replaced the troublesome Vega that Chevy had been marketing since 1971. It would go on to sell nearly three million copies in 12 years, twice the time the Vega was in production. It’s doubtful that the Chevette will make a Chevy collector’s Top 10 list, but this one is likely one of the nicest you’d find for being 44 years old. Located in Chicago, Illinois, this low-mileage example is available here on eBay where the opening bid of $4,500 has yet to be cast. If you’ve just got to have it, the Buy It Now option will make it yours for $6,500. Our thanks to Barn Finder Larry D for bringing these tips our way!
Rather than create another new car from scratch, Chevy borrowed GM’s global T platform for the Chevette and its Pontiac counterpart, the T1000. But variants of the auto were also built for sale in Canada, Europe, and South America. Though the Chevette was retired in the U.S. in 1987, other markets would have the mini machine as recently as 1998. Back in the U.S., the Chevette would become the best-selling small car in 1979 and 1980.
In its third year, Chevrolet sold nearly 312,000 Chevettes, with 180,000 of those being the 5-door hatchback like the seller’s offering. These cars were great on gas by the standards of the day, but it would take you a while to wind up to 60 mph with the 1.6-liter inline-4 that’s sandwiched under the hood, especially with a TH-180 automatic transmission. These were “old school” cars, so rear-wheel-drive was still used to push the little Chevies along.
We assume this Chevette spent considerable time off the road as the claimed mileage is only 34,000. That would explain the need to replace the gas tank and flush out the fuel system as the seller or a predecessor has done. But the car is said to run great now with a new muffler and assorted new maintenance items. The checkerboard interior is tidy, though reminiscent of tablecloths in lower-end pizza joints. The body seems to be rust-free and the paint is okay, but not perfect. The seller has been taking this vehicle to car shows, so you could, too. You might have the only one there!
For some odd reason, even unknown to me, I want one of these with the diesel and a third pedal in it. If I ever find one close enough to PA, I’ll probably buy it.
Got one: 81 4dr Diesel, in Virginia Beach. How do we touch base?
07bluetec320@gmail.com
Did you ever sell the chevette?? If not email me please.
Nice looking car. I remember cars from when I was a boy. For a car like this, assuming such an engine would fit, I’d upgrade the engine and powertrain to a 2.2 litre 4 cyl. engine.
I don’t believe GM still sells it but back around 2013, they were offering a 2.2 turbo crate engine out of their performance catalog. I think that they were targeting hot rodders. I recall that engine also made an appearance in a GM-owned show ’66 or ’67 Nova street rod that I remember seeing at the GM Performance display at the Woodward Dream Cruise in Detroit some years back. Put that in this Chevette along with a 5 or 6-speed manual and a beefier posi or locker rear end and you would have a serious sleeper.
I would imagine so. Although given the Chevette’s target market, I don’t know whether a turbo engine would’ve worked. I would think a standard 2.2 engine and possibly an automatic gearbox.
This is what you get your newly license to teen driver, barely enough power to get them a ticket and no distractions they actually have to drive
I got a ticket in my wife’s Pontiac 1000. The year was 1986. The officer asked me why I was going 87 mph. I told him that was as fast as it would go…
I had a 1985 4 door t1000 which I beat mercilessly , and it never let me down . I put Vega GT rims on it which stuck out a bit , but helped in the turns. One day I was stupidly flying through traffic on a highway after passing my buddies 83ish Camaro. Of course he caught me, and bopped my rear bumper !. later when we got to wherever we were going, he asked me did I know how fast I was going, I told him the speedo only went to 85- he said ” I hit your bumper when we were doing 100! ” We had a good laugh, but I never pegged it again as I thought what would have happened had I lost control of it.
My first 2 cars were Chevettes…..never got a ticket until i bought an S-10….!!
Today, that teen would be 19(& few of those), or more likely 25 – instead of 15 or 16 yrs old, like back in the day.
https://flashbak.com/fabulous-photographs-of-cruising-van-nuys-boulevard-in-1972-428947/
&
read the underlined links below to see what the smartphone has done to modern teens’ lives …
https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2018/05/teen-car-culture/561290/
I like old-school pizza joints.
My son delivered pizza in one of these, through winter storms and blistering summer heatwaves.
The motor was indestructible. We actually drove it to the wreckers when the unibody was so rusted out there was some concern that the front of the vehicle might leave the back end behind.
We had the 87 Pontiac Acadian 5speed Cdn for running into town.
This car was a tropper without a problem.
—————-me too and old style American greasy spoons, there´s nothing nothing better then an old fashioned American breakfast and a pizza with everything for dinner — don´t forget that bottle of ice cold Schlitz.
Just prior to my (at the time) long term girlfriend unceremoniously dumping me, I talked her into buying a new Chevette identical to this one. Karma.
One of the many GM low points around this time in automotive history. An ugly car with a terrible engine and cheaply made interior using poor quality materials. They were horrible cars. Unless, of course, you were a young teenager and didn’t know any better.
These engines are indestructable. December 1978 Car and Driver after a 26,000 mile test said, “The Chevette is the most trouble free, slam the hood and forget it, cancel your service writer etc, we’ve ever encountered. That’s been my experience as well. Sure it doesn’t have a Cadillac quality interior, it’s an economy car.
That would be me. I rented a Chevette when my Pinto was in the shop for a week.
I bought a new 81 4 dr., worst piece of junk I ever bought!!! Passenger door fit was so bad my wife could sick 4 fingers between the body and the top of door frame. right headlight burned out in a week from date of purchase. Service writer told us headlight was not covered by warranty.( Yeah right!) Door frame quote” was normal, no problem”. Transmission howled at all speeds was so loud you had to yell to be heard over it’s noise. Chevy service writer did not want to repair it as “it wasn’t broke in yet “. I got hold of general mgr. to get that fixed. Clutch pedal kept falling to floor was “not a problem nothing wrong with it ” Until it did that to wife!! Problem fixed that day after she politely ripped service mgrs. hide into shreds!!!!!
You had a “lemon” I’ve had dozens of Chevettes and not one has the door askew like yours, and not one has a “howling “transmission. Even a Mercede’s will have a lemon once and awhile, but I’m sure Mercede’s would have corrected all the issues in a flash. You also had a bad dealer.
Wow, a sealed beam headlight burned out and that’s one of your major complaints ?
I was teenager in the 80s ,had 2 door post 57 Bel-Air, with a built 283,guess I knew better MikeB
Rw, what a coincidence! I had a 57 Chevy 2dr.post coupe w/ 283 4bbl in 1958 when I was a freshman in college.
Maybe I ended up with yours Mikeb.
‘The Chevette was a simple, basic, no-frills subcompact that – in 1976 – replaced the troublesome Vega that Chevy had been marketing since 1971.’
No it didn’t. The Vega was in another size category and sold alongside the Chevtte in 76 and 77.
Monza took up the slack in the segment when the Vega was discontinued after 1977 along with the 2.3 engine.
Monza was on the same H body introduced with the Vega.
That incorrect observation re: the Chevette replacing the Vega has been made before on BF.
It’s not an accurate observation.
Yes, the Chevette and the Vega nameplate overlapped for 2 years (1976-77); starting in ’78 the Monza line was expanded to include the former Vega wagon and (briefly) hatchback, for whatever reason the wagon was discontinued for 1980 which was the Monza’s final year, but with production continued to the end of calendar 1980 and the “1982” Cavalier replacing it in early calendar 1981 (and bringing a further line extension with a 4-door sedan the Vega/Monza never had along with a proper 4-door wagon).
Maybe I ended up with yours Mikeb.
Ex in-laws bought one. Automatic/A/C equipped. Car had to speed up to stop.
Bought one new, the big selling point from the salesman was that it had a foot rest next to the clutch pedal! Had it for 8-9 years, never had a problem, was actually a lot of fun to drive. took off the shift knob and had a 15″ pipe for an extended shift throw… nothing but good memories :^}
I bought a new 2-door Chevette in 1983. I test-drove one with an automatic transmission first. Oh boy, I realized then that car was a traffic hazard. And I would be the hazard driving it. I quickly took that one back to the dealership and tried one with a 4-speed manual. Ah, that was more like it. So I bought the manual version in Black with Sand Gray interior. And regardless what most people think of these cars, it was a very good vehicle.
I sold that car at around 80k miles to some people I knew. What sold them on it was that it had always been garaged, looked new for a 10 y/o car and I had every piece of paperwork that had ever been generated for that little car since new including maintenance, inspection and repair records. They gave it to their daughter who was heading off to college. She drove it the whole 4 years she was there including a lot of trips back and forth from college before trading it on a new car when she graduated. And she never had any undue problems with it either. Proof that proper maintenance and sensible driving make for a car’s longevity.
I had this exact car and let me tell you they are absolute dogs! Like driving a riding lawn mower but not as fast. That guy is right about it being a good first car for a teen I guess.
I bought an ’81 2dr. auto new. Put 140,000 mi. on it in 10 years. The problem areas were brakes that wore out quickly. and broken coil springs. Was screaming at 65 mph. Very slow but overall reliable. Never burned any oil averaged 29 mpg. Sold it in ’91 for $100 because the front seats were falling through the floor from Wisconsin salt.
In 1984, I was looking for my first new car. I drove an Escort, a Renault Alliance, and a Chevette. All within my price range. The Chevette had me running out of the dealership. What an uncomfortable tin can. It was about as exciting to drive as a riding mower. The saleswoman was almost embarrassed as we squeezed into the thing.
An Alliance and a Chevette. Candidates for the crusher.
The Escort would have been the correct choice.
I bought the Escort!
Not in 1984, the first gen Escorts were well known to develop cracks in the heads between the valves around 50,000 miles . the 85 and ups had a different engine and were more reliable . The Chevette was exactly what it was designed for, and low cost economy car that was easy to work on
Had an 82 Chevette – OK transportation but awfull on snow/ice! Had a 74 Vega GT – longest I ever kept any car except for my 68Cougar xr7, BUT it was trouble free! No problem selling it to co-worker. Glad it had rust colored paint – lol!
I bought a used one for my son when he was a teen. It was an ex telephone company car with a bunch of miles. He had it for about a year and beat the heck out of it. When he hit a curb and bent up the whole front suspension, we totaled it.
“Faster than a,um,er,…..nothing!”
That interior looks familiar. Our family’s had a 3rd pedal & the exterior was a dark red metallic that waxed up nicely. Its chassis seemed tighter than our ’76 2 door version. Any reliable car is fun when you’re young, but objectively these were just economic transportation. (I wouldn’t add any power before a brake upgrade.) Hard to believe that it might be worth more than my ’92 Civic Si with over 300k on it (and still vastly superior in every way).
Had a friend who used to take his dads 78 Pontiac acadian for joy rides whenever the chance came about. We were probably 14 or 15 years old at the time so it was a fun little car to bomb around in. I remember us laughing so hard when youd kick it down into passing gear on a hill or straightaway it would actually start losing speed and just make alot of noise It was not a bad dirt road car if you drove it hard and used the emergency brake to help get it sliding into the turns . One night we got are hearts racing when it spun around and went off the road backwards at a good clip. With a bit of work we got it back on the road and back to its spot in the driveway before anyone was the wiser. Until about a week later when the guys old man gave him a back hand and said he knew