"Yeah Baby, I got a Vette....CHEVette, that is..."😆😆👍🏻

My gramps drove a chevette for 25 years and about 300,000 miles. Only stopped driving it because eyesight. He changed the timing components every 70k religiously and that car was really good to him. It was very similar to the yellow one. Mid 70s early 80s.

I was the service director for a Chevy dealership back then and I LOVED Chevettes. People would try to drive them into the ground but few succeeded.

Finally, someone who speaks the truth about the fantastic Chevette. Absolutely perfect presentation. My first new car was a 1980 Chevette coupe. A VERY stylish, economical, reliable car. It was, and still is, one of my top 5 favorite cars that I have owned.

I received a brand new 1986 4 door as a high school graduation gift from my grandparents. It had A/C with a 5spd. Drove it all through college and veterinary school. It never failed to start or left me stranded.. It chugged along for 160k miles surviving on delayed maintenance and used parts. It was hardly the greatest car I have ever owned but it was nowhere near as bad as urban legend suggests.

The 1987 last year production was my first car. I went everywhere with that car! Reliable. 👍🏻

I bought a Chevette as a winter beater in early 90's. That thing was incredible in the snow. I was surprised and the heater worked great!

I used to manage a Budget Rent a Car office in the 80s. The Chevettes were great rental car for people getting their car worked on at the local dealerships. They just wanted to get home or to work. I do remember that the front fenders were glued on and when the glue let go, water would end up on the floor. But great in snow in New England. The complete lack of power was great for driving in snow. Would never spin the tires!

I knew a guy who had a Vega. He'd take it in with 5 things wrong, they could only successfully fix 3. It finally overheated one too many times and seized. His next car was a Chevette! It was considerably more reliable than the Vega.

My neighbors chevette hit 395,000km and finally drove it to the scrap yard. It could've reached 450,000 km had he kept it. It never had issues and always started. As for the Vega, beautiful car with more issues than the world today lol.

My dad bought a 1981, replacing the disastrous Vega he bought in 1975. It's the car I learned to drive in. He drove that thing into the ground and had to pay someone to tow it away.

Dad had a 1976 2 door 1.6L 4 speed manual. Price was $3,595. This car was also the first car I drove.

I saved up as a kid and then in 1976 bought my first brand new car instead of used, it was a 1976 light blue Chevy Chevette Scooter - and it was only $2,776, in celebration of the 200th anniversary year for the US and everything was priced ending in variations of 1776. It was the lowest price I could find on a new car, even lower cost than a Honda Civic. It was a 1.4 L smallest engine they ever made, 4 speed manual with no overdrive, bare bones as it gets. There was no back seat, just a plastic scooped out panel where people could sit, but no seat belts back there and basically a large storage area, like a mini-SUV would be today. Two vinyl bucket seats were in the front, no glove box door because that and the rear seat were options, the door panels were some kind of cardboard covered with black vinyl and instead of arm rests in the door, it had thick plastic straps held in place with two bolts, since arm rests were optional too. Door cranks were manual and the two doors locked and unlocked using the ignition key. Rack and pinion steering on that car was very precise and made it drive similar to an older Triumph Spitfire I had a few cars earlier. It even had disk brakes in the front which was very modern at the time. No radio, no cigarette lighter, no antenna, no day/night adjustment to the rear view mirror. But I tracked gas usage and could get 45 mpg easily out on the highway during a time that 55 MPH speed limits were the norm and strictly enforced. I installed a radio/tape-deck, cigarette lighter socket, antenna and glove box door eventually for a better comfort level. The huge back storage area with no rear seat to get in the way held a lot of cargo. Many times it carried a lot of boxes when it came time to move. The light blue paint was latex and something new that year according to the dealer's new car ad brochure which I may still have in an old box somewhere. The bumpers were silver/white paint and total metal, not cheap plastic like nowadays. There were silver plastic bezels around the round headlight bulbs to give it a square headlight appearance and the tiny front grille was also silver plastic. Everything inside was black and the floor was vinyl, no carpeting since that was also an option. Maintenance was very easy for basic things like changing the oil, sparkplugs and tuneup, changing brake pads and shoes. It was lightweight and easy to jack up off the ground. I think the spare tire was located in the back underneath the rear hatch back, you lifted it up and the full size tire and jack was there, then the rear deck cover closed down over that leaving that huge cargo area and rear hatch with two air filled lifters. That car got me everywhere and eventually got me 3000 miles to the opposite coast, then lasted me way up into the early 1990s, after which I bought a second hand Ford hatchback that became the most horrible car ever - but sadly I had already sold the Chevette and gotten $800 for it and it was still running strong and hadn't much wrong except one dent on one rear panel that wasn't so bad I couldn't have lived with it. There was some rust on the driver's side floor board and I had to fill that in with fiberglass sheeting and fiberglass gel to keep it sealed down there. I once had the engine and transmission both rebuilt at around the 135,000 mile mark. By the time I sold it I think it was getting up close to 200,000 miles but was always extremely reliable and always fuel efficient. It also used unleaded gas, which was a recent innovation back in that year too. Gas prices had already gone from 20 cents per gallon up to $1 per gallon and even/odd days and maximum number of gallons per fill up with gas lines were the norm. So gas mileage was a big factor as was the switchover to unleaded, as leaded gas cars were no longer being made and the new fuel was not good for the older style leaded gas engines and could ruin them. That was probably the best new car of my life and not a lot of electronic junk on it like nowadays. The clutch pedal was directly connected to the side of the transmission. The brake pedal had a bicycle cable that ran from inside the car, outside to the master cylinder and that broke on me one day just before coming to a steep hill and I was able to coast to the side of the road luckily and stop. I think I was able to temporarily fix it enough to get home and then had to buy a new cable from the Chevy dealer since there were no after market cables with a special sized rubber piece on one end to fit between the floor board and the brake pedal. I remember being mad I had to pay full dealer pricing for that part which was a special order item instead of finding one aftermarket at a parts store like most everything else. I laughed as car ads began showing great fuel economy by adding $20,000 worth of electronics, electric hybrid drives with expensive battery packs while keeping body weight high and adding tons of fancy equipment, like they have become nowadays. There was a way for car makers to have everyone getting 45 mpg on the highway and the technology was that 1976 little two door light blue Chevy Chevette Scooter. If they built them like that today, they could sell everyone a brand new car for under $10,000 and everyone who bought one would be commuting at 45 mpg and still have enough power with just two people on board to pass trucks and zoom around like in a little sports car, which was how it drove. My dad once told me to drive it until the wheels fall off, because it was such a good price and such a reliable vehicle. I should have taken his advice and never have sold it and I would probably still be out there driving it today.

I had the cleverly disguised Chevette called a Pontiac T 1000. Loved that little car and that thing would bust through snow without getting stuck!

Mark Stuart of Audio Adrenaline sang the song "My Chevette." He remembers laying in the back looking out the hatchback. Great song!

I inherited a nearly new 1985 Chevette in 1987. For the era, it was a great commuter car. Basic transportation with an AM radio, crank windows, a/c, and a plaid cloth interior. It's big fault is you could feel the engine struggle when the a/c was on. I put 115,000 miles on it relatively trouble free. It's today's version of a Toyota Yaris w/ four doors.

I owned the Japanese version of this, some 30 years ago, Isuzu Gemini. Amazingly reliable, economical and practical car that had a wonderful drive feel.

We never should have stopped making chevettes ..the diesel chevette was really good also and they're easy to work on

I wish I could get a car this basic but 2021 model. Manual trans, roll up windows and manual locks. Power brakes and steering. A 5 speed. All with a modern fuel efficient 4 cyl with some pep and the only extra I'd ask for is Bluetooth. Like a Cobalt 2005. The last brand new car I bought and loved. I don't want or need all the junk a new car comes with. Am I the only one?

I remember the jokes that went along with owning a Chevette in the later 80s. The one that sticks out is, "You don't need any brakes, just turn on the air and the car will come to a stop." And there was actually some truth to that. The air slowed the car down quite noticeably. In 1987 I managed to have two people in my circle with a Chevette. As a side note, my grandparents had a Vega in like 1976 or so, and I thought that was the coolest looking car (I was 8 then, but still). I loved that car but it mysteriously disappeared rather soon after he bought it.

I was just starting out in my career as an automotive technician in the mid 80s' and the Chevette was literally EVERYWHERE. They were Chevy's little econo-tank. They ran forever with very little maintenance required. Reliable, cheap and easy to fix, and parts swapped back and forth throughout the models entire run. Were they fast? No..not at all, but they could boogie down the highway and aptly keep up with traffic once you got 'em rolling. I sort of always wanted one, so I could attempt to swap in a Small Block Chevy V8 and Transmission! LOL. My ONLY complaint about them was as a technician...I absolutely HATED having to do a full tune-up on the 1.6 with A/C......you had to completely remove the A/C compressor from it's bracketry ( but at least you didn't have to discharge the system, thankfully..) in order to gain access to the #1 spark plug and the distributor cap and rotor, as it was buried underneath the compressor. The ones without A/C only took about 20 minutes or so to change all 4 plugs, the cap, rotor and plug wires. With A/C....it took over a hour to do the same maintenance operation. Aside from that, they were pure gravy to work on. Thanks for this video @OldCarMemories .....brought a smile to my face remembering these cool little Chevy Putt-Putters!

UK version, the Vauxhall Chevette (1975-84), had a couple hot hatches in the line up: the 133hp HS and 150hp HSR, both very collectable now.

Great video ! Ahh the memories growing up in the 80s these Chevrolet Chevette's were everywhere a very simple and reliable little car .

I LOVE Camaros and Corvettes! I also love the Chevette. My first experience was delivering Chinese food and the restaurant had several '76 Chevette delivery cars. Man it was slow!! So the only way to drive it and try to make as many deliveries as possible was just keep your foot to the floor(auto) and stab the break with your left foot when needed. Those cars got beat on hard!😆 But in later years I was unemployed and needed something cheap and bought an '86 4dr auto. Much improved since '76 and I really enjoyed having it.😊👌 The car is part of the Opel family that GM had a stake in. It deserves a lot of credit!!!👍

I grew up in Wilmington Delaware and remember always seeing the new Chevettes on display on the roof above the entrance and on the big sign on the corner. Owned one later, great point A to B cars and easy and cheap to maintain.

I had a 83 Chevy shove it love that car took a beating 500 thousand km on it when I got rid of it and the guy drove it another 4 years

I borrowed my sister-in-law's Chevette in 1987. I floored it getting on the highway and I finally got to 60 mph at the next exit two miles down the road..

I have owned 5 Chevettes, a 78,79, 82, & 1985. I still have my 1983 " Little Red Chevette " :)

My uncle had 4 or 5 of these. The harder you beat them the better they ran. He even had one with a slant 6 from a Chevy 2.

Friends had these. I remember thinking how durable they were and if my friends actually did maintenance on them, the cars would have easily hit over 200,000 miles.

Your voice helps me fall asleep every night. So soothing. Thank you.

I had a 1979 Chevette. It was the only year with the newer front end and the older tail lights. It was my workhorse for over 10 years. I now own a Corvette, but affectionately call my Chevette my 1st Vette.

I had a Chevette once. I still miss it 😪 I think it's a good looking car. Especially the later ones

Don't remember ever hearing anything negative about the Chevette but my best friend in high school bought his first new car, a Vaga. He was so proud of that car but within six months, it had a rust hole at the base of the windshield that he could put his thumb through. Chevrolet's response was, "sorry, not our problem." The car was less than a year old and literally rusting out from under him. It didn't leave him, or me, very impressed with GM products.

Great video - Great little car and simpler times! Wish they would make a simple cheap car again that was reliable....

The little engine that could!

Had a 4 door 4 speed I bought new...it was one of the most relightable cars I ever owned

The car's advertising slogan was: "Chevy Chevette, it'll drive you happy"

My first car was a brand new 1987 Pontiac Acadian 2 door hatchback (Canadian Chevette) two tone grey paint like the one in this video. Yes, the car was gutless, but very good on gas and always started in the harsh cold winters. I had it until 1995 with almost 400,000 km`s on it, had to let it go due to underbody rust. These were great cars and everyone I knew that had one was happy with them.

That was fantastic! Knew someone who had a diesel Chevette. It had a 0-60mph time of possibly. So slow an actual slug jogging passed it. Great memories indeed!

I rented a Chevette in 1980 for about 3 weeks and was extremely impressed with this car. It even went through the snow in January very well, was excellent on gas and started reliably even in a very cold climate. Although it wasn't a race car I found it fun to drive and I ended up missing this car when I had to turn it in. I agree best small car GM ever made and would rank right up there with the best small cars of all time foreign or domestic, in my view.

I had a 85 2door when I was 17 and I loved it lol I slammed it to the ground and had a sound system that blew the rear side window hinges off lol man these cars seriously do bring back memories 😁👍🏽✌🏾

We had 2 growing up . I get excited if I see one now still on the road lol

In 1990 I learned to drive a manual transmission in my dad’s ‘84 Chevette. I’ll never forget that car. Sluggish and noisy, it was already well beyond its service life having almost 100K miles on the odometer. She went to the crusher 6 months later. RIP little Chevy, and thank you.

Always enjoy your content… thanks

fun fact: this car shared it's platform with the Isuzu Impulse (first gen) and that car is a work of art. its like a delorean and an AE86 had a child

Wonderful looking car. Never had one but in the early 90's I had a late 80's YUGO convertible. With gas prices as they are now I wish I had a little 2 door Chevette!!!!!

My Dad was a little league coach and we would haul all the equpment to the games in the back of one of these for years. .. I'd forgottten about that until I watched this. Thanks for bringing back a great childhood memory.

In 1980 my Dad bought a brand new Chevette. It was blue with a 4 spd. About 2 years into having it my Dad decided to buy a ski boat. In our family of 6, we used that Chevette to pull that ski boat to the lake. If you've ever seen the movie, Pineapple Express, yeah about smoking weed, there is actually a scene where you see a Chevette pulling a boat. Since that is so strange of a car to pull a boat with, maybe they were at Arkabutla Lake in Mississippi circa 1982 and maybe seen us and thought wow, that's the strangest thing to pull a boat. The only thing that killed it was my Mom got hit head on by a Mercury Colony Park station wagon. The front of the Chevette was totally destroyed, battery hanging off the side, she had to shut the engine off . The only problem we had was a clutch cable that kept coming loose. Very unique and fond memories of that car.

Mom bought one when I was 11 or so for 300 bucks and drove that thing until I graduated.

My grandmother had an '84 it was so basic, but never failed to do exactly what it was supposed to do, surviving many harsh Maine winters. Good little car.

Dad had a 1980 Four door with 5 on the floor. Never broke down!

I loved my Chevette. It was a 1984, bought used in 1986. Had it for 9 years

Had a 1981 Chevy Chevette in High School. Lot of good memories!

I remember this car being sold here in NZ in the mid-late 70s under the name Vauxhall Chevette and the tv ads calling it "the extraordinary Chevette"-it was a good practiical car and good value for money

I’d love to see ya do something with all the special edition trucks available in the 70’s!

The Chevette was a good car. It has to be compared to other cars of its era and its mission. They were very reliable and the engine was durable as an anvil. My dad drove one as a commuter car. I had one as a college student. My college roommate had one with a 5-speed. They served their owners well with economy and reliability.

👍👍👍👍👍👍 I had a 77, 78, and 79 Chevette and they were great little cars. Thank you.

My first car was a 1980 Chevy Chevette and, I loved that little 4 speed manual. I still would like to have another one they are fun to drive!!! It made me feel down to earth!!! 😎😀

When I worked for Budget Rent A car in 1985 at a freezing Canadian city the Chevette was the car to grab when it was 35' below. It would always start.

My first car was a 1976 Chevette 2 door with a standard transmission. I got it to go 110 miles per hour... In the Need for Speed I put an X11 H.O. Citation V-6 motor in it.... the Chevette was silver with orange rally Stripes over the hood and down the side lower rocker panel. It had black Enkei Wheels 60 series tires. I thought I was cool. Especially with the Pioneer Super Tuner Stereo, Pioneer 6 by 9 speakers and a Fosgate amplifier. IT ROCKED....AND ROLLED

I loved these cars and always wanted one. I think they were awesome little cars. Great video, thanks for the walk down memory lane!

Who didn't want to own a 'Vette back in the 70s?

My 1st car was an 84 Chevette CS. Got it in late 1989 at the start of my JR year of H.S. Found later it had been "Frankensteined" from 3 other Chevettes, so it had a few issues over the course of owning it, but it wasn't a bad 1st car. I have great memories of riding around the countryside and cruising the local small towns of North Middle TN. with my H.S. buddies feeling like the kings of the road. Mine was 1 of 4 in our H.S. parking lot and the best looking IMHO. A bright, almost neon, blue with limo tinted windows and neon green accessories that I added (Hey, it was the late 80s/early 90s, it was the style, or lack there of, LOL)

Great video! I really enjoy your videos. They are all so interesting and give me a new appreciation of the cars you feature - even cars that I did not think were very special. Thank you.

I remember a brown Chevette being featured in the pilot episode of "Beverly Hills 90210" as Brandon Walsh's car. After the pilot episode, Brandon then drove a late 70's Mercury Cougar XR-7 for a short time, then he went on to his most well known car on the show, a beige 65 Mustang convertible.

The Chevette was a criminally underrated car.

Cool, a friend of mine in collage in the mid 1990's had a 2 door red stick shift hatchback. 😀

As an iranian who is obsessed with everything american and of course american cars , i recently found out about your reviews on the history of american car industry and I'd like to say that you're doing a fantastic job. Keep up the good work. Your channel is the first youtube channel to which I'm going to subscribe.

My first car was a white four speed four door 1980 Chevette. It was a humble toaster on wheels that got it done. Easy to park, cheap to own. I'm most nostalgic for the handcrank windows and sweet maroon interior!

I had two of them. Both were great cars!!!

I had an '87 chevette scooter and tortured it to death dogged it to redline through all 5 gears and spun the tire at every stoplight. It was like the super go kart. Tons of fun. A couple oil changes, a couple clutches and quite a few back tires was all (self inflicted)+ maintenance was all I ever had to do. It never failed me and I outran a few pintos, automatic base cavaliers, and b210s in it

I bought a 1984 chevette new for $4995, I drove it for 14 years and put 229,000 miles on it when it finally died, miss that old car

I currently daily Drive a 1983 Chevette 4 door she's the best little car I've ever owned.

THEY WERE GREAT..STILL AROUND TOO

Had three of them two four doors with automatic transmission and one two door four speed loved them all

I had a blue two-door 1979 Chevette and I loved it. It was impractical for me. I play bass guitar, and my huge bass Amp did not fit. Fortunately, the band had a GMC full-size van, where I left it between gigs. Eventually, I changed bands and had to get a station wagon. My blue Chevette had a racing stripe on the side. Still searching though old photos for a picture. Thanks for the video!

I bought a 1987 Chevette brand new, and had very little trouble at all with it. Engine still ran great when rust got it at 214,000 miles in 2014. Sure do miss that car!

It is interesting and informative that GM’s best cars have foreign roots, like the Chevette. My (final generation) Impala traces its roots to Opel from Germany and has been a fantastic car so far. The Pontiac G8 and Chevy SS are both rebadged Holdens from Australia and are excellent vehicles.

we had an 87 chevette. Loved it. it was uncomfortable, noisy and cold in the winter, and no power steering, but we loved it. cant even put a finger on why. We would complain about it, but it never broke down, or gave us issues. Basic and to the point is what it was. I would love to find one today and restore it.

I had a 1980 Chevette with some kind of McClaren inspired suspension. That thing handled incredibly well, and I could keep up with my buddy’s MG through the twisties.

I had a 1984 PONTIAC ACADIAN SCOOTER when my wife and I got together in 1999. THE BEST little car I ever owned. Would plow snow that was right to the top of the hood. Was a 4 speed manual. Boy I miss that car.

I bought a 1976 powder blue Chevette Scooter in late '75 while still in college. It was the perfect car for a young, budget-minded single adult. I drove my manual 4-speed all over the Western states. It never broke down, except for a timing belt issue. I tricked it out with an 80 watt sound system way before SoCal made the trend popular. The gas mileage and hatch back made it one of the best cars to have at the time!

I owned an 87 Chevette in 1999. I remember my neighbors laughing at me They weren't laughing when Chicago had a bizzard in early 1999 and my Chevette was jump starting the neighborhood and riding over the snow like it had on I've skates...

My mom had an Opel GT. All of my elementary school friends thought it was a Corvette. I didn't argue with them.

Was my brother's first car, some good memories cruising around

I knew someone who had a Chevette and loved it very much.

Got mine used in 1977. Scooter. No back seat, air, FM radio... nothing. Could go to Marquette from Detroit on less than $4 gas... and could load her up with a dorm full of stuff........ and of course speeding tickets only happened if you were in a 20mph zone with LOTS of room to wind her up. Started in Marquette's below zero temps every time... only drawback was it was so little and light... they made me drive along side a semi crossing the Mackinac Bridge in a snow storm... "for safety." Great times and a sturdy little car. Only repair was a starter... my uncle bought me the parts.. jacked it up... gave me the manual and went inside for a beer or 12.... an hour later... after figuring out how EASY it was... went in to grab a beer and smoke with him.... of course being 16... all I got was a dang ROOT beer and no "smoke."

My grandpa had one brand new in 1979!

I have had 5 Chevette's over the years. I still have my 1983 Little Red Chevette

My Grandad had a Pontiac T1000 that was basically a Chevette clone with Pontiac badging. I learned to drive in that car on the dirt road next to his farmhouse. Those were good memories and from what I remember about that car, I thought it was nice.

I think the Chevette was the first ever succesfull "world car" beeing build in several shapes in every countries GM had a division i can't think of a platform having so many variants before or after that

I have NEVER been in a slower “car” in my life, but man, what gas mileage. 0-60……count in minutes. Little 1.6/55 hp, tin can, useless in the winter, BUT everyone had one as a 2nd/3rd car for the wife or teenagers to get around town.

I had one, 2 door stick. My truck needed work so I bought it used as stop gap transportation. It was not powerful or fast, but it always started and ran great. I have it to a friends son for a first car when I was done with it. It wasn’t the sporty car he dreamed of, but everyone knows that first car is a magic carpet.

Chevette was my first car

It’s possible the T platform appeared simultaneously (near enough) as the Chevrolet Marajó in Brazil and Opel Kadett ‘C’ in Germany, in 1973, as the British version of the T platform car, the Vauxhall Chevette, appeared in 1975, and I always knew it as being based on the Kadett, which was also sold in Great Britain (as were a lot of Opels in the 70s, with a lot of overlap with equivalent Vauxhall products) but with styling differences front and rear between the Chevette and Kadett. The Vauxhall Chevette later became available as a four door sedan and two door wagon, but never a five door hatch (only 3 door hatch) and was withdrawn in 1984, effectively being replaced by the first generation Vauxhall Nova and Opel Corsa, smaller, boxier, FWD cars that I never personally liked much.

Had one back in the mid eighties. Two door and four speed. Hated it then but would take it now.

My dad had a 2 door 'vette 🙂 I don't remember what model year. But it had an auto transmission and was the car I learned to drive on. It was a nice "go kart". I'd love to have a Vega. My cousin had one. They are nice looking cars.

I like the mini Z28 looking gages.

When I was in the Army one of my friends had one his Mom bought him a brown one for graduating basic infantry training!! It lasted him 11 years and was pretty reliable, and I SWEAR it got better fuel economy than today's cars!! One trip we drove from Toronto Canada to Las Vegas!!!