The Citation may be best remembered as the car that replaced the Chevrolet Nova. It was the company’s first foray into front-wheel drive cars as the X-body platform was reworked for that change. Unlike the Nova, you seldom see one of these automobiles today, yet more than 1.6 million were built across six model years. This faded example looks worn, but it is said to operate properly. Hailing from Denver, Colorado, this Chevy is available as “cheap wheels” here on craigslist. A nod goes to Mike F. for this Malaise Era tip.
General Motors went all-in on the Citation by sharing it with all the other divisions except Cadillac. So, there was also a Buick Skylark, Oldsmobile Omega, and Pontiac Phoenix version of the Citation. Three body styles were offered, including the 3-door hatchback like this one. The standard engine was the “Iron Duke” inline-4 that originated at Pontiac, and it may have been the best thing about the car. Although Motor Trend bestowed Car of the Year honors on the Citation in 1980, quality control and recalls would plague the vehicle during its single-generation run.
I owned one of these cars, a 5-door hatchback, for a weekend. I was unhappy with my 1980 Pontiac Sunbird, so I traded it in on a used 1980 Citation. After I washed it and found water had leaked all over the floorboards, I rushed back to the dealer to get my old car back. We’re told this ’80 coupe has been given a tune-up and has a new head gasket at 94,000 miles, so it should perform as a daily driver.
Rust does not seem to be an issue on this survivor, but the greyish-blue paint is badly faded, and there are a couple of small dents here and there. The interior is also worn, especially the driver’s seat. But if you need cheap transportation and don’t require perfection, this Chevy could do the job. It has a manual transmission, while I’m guessing most Citations came with an automatic. The seller says the title has been rebuilt, so is that a red flag? It doesn’t look to have been in a major accident. Perhaps it was once stolen and then recovered.
You left out that it has a 4 cylinder engine,and that
they’re asking $3000 for it.
Every once-in-a-while I see a perfect Light Blue
Citation 4 door driving around in our area.Always gets
my attention.
$3K for this or $3.9K for the 81 Imperial? Not a difficult decision to make. Drove a slightly used Citation back in the day. Never wanted to be in one again. Cheap insides, cheap outsides.
The paint is faded? From the pix, my first thought was that it had been repainted with a few spray cans.
I recall thinking the X11 trim looked cool on these, as a kid, but I don’t remember anyone saying good things about Citations.
Danno was the x11 the suspension/handling pkg. I thought I read on here that people who drove the X11 citations w stick shift, and V6 were actually quite happy with the cars, and they performed very well for the time.
Even though it’s not expensive, it’s hard to see $3,000 being a deal. It has several visible dents, the paint is shot, and it needs interior work, at a minimum. Someone is likely to be looking at it as cheap transportation, not a quasi enthusiast car that will draw attention at a coffee and cars.
Steve R
I had a loaded, V6/4-speed Citation X-11 hatchback in college. It was entertaining to drive (for the time), had room for five people, and more cargo space than some station wagons. Too bad it was rushed into production and ruined by quality control problems.
This one has one of the more unusual options: mechanical remote control swing-out side windows. There’s a lever above the b-pillar on each side that’s rotated to open or close the rear side windows. Cars with this option have a triangular black-out panel at the rear edge of the window.
You might want drive it first. Some of these develop pretty funky and spooky steering feel due to the way the rack is mounted. My buddy have one in college and it was terrifying to drive. You couldn’t feel the road. But I drove others , which were just fine.
Unfortunately, these days, good luck finding a mechanic who has even heard of a Chevy Citation, much less one who knows how to diagnose and work on it! Many parts are no longer produced and very hard to find. A buddy of mine bought an ’81 X11 not all that long ago , and he couldn’t even find an air filter for it except on eBay. It’s been over 40 years since the last one rolled off the line and they didn’t last particularly long after that on the whole.
I think this is one of those cars where you would have to really understand it and do it as a labor of love.
Price is way out of whack. Right now there’s an ’82 for $3800 on eBay, 55000 miles, 4cyl, automatic, much nicer condition and plenty of engine bay and underside photos to demonstrate condition.
Garbage!
I nearly got killed in a rented one that did a 180 on a wet highway when I tried to brake which was likely caused by the rear set locking up.
As for the ‘Iron Duke’ GM seems to think that by giving a tough sounding name it makes the product. Yes, compared to the Vega’s engine this was an improvement but that does not make it a great motor.