Collecting Cavaliers: Detroit enthusiast embraces 1980s General Motors cars

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nadepalma

Discussion Starter · 15 d ago

Collecting Cavaliers: Detroit enthusiast embraces 1980s General Motors cars
by Tyson Hugie
ClassicCars.com via MotorAuthority.com
MAY 21, 2023

While just about everyone can appreciate a pristine Bel Air, a barn-find Mustang Mach 1, or an unmodified Supra, what about the common-yet-underappreciated vehicle models that somehow survived the test of time?

I recently came across a wintertime photo taken near the Teton Mountains of my mom in her then-new 1982 Chevrolet Cavalier two-door coupe. She and my dad purchased that car from Axtell Chevrolet in Logan, Utah right around the time I was born, and they proudly drove it around the Rockies for several years before trading up to a larger Celebrity.

Mom and dad were at the cutting edge of automotive technology at the time, since 1982 was the inaugural model year for the Cavalier. The car was underpinned by the General Motors “J-body” platform and went on sale in May 1981 with came with just one motor choice: a 1.8-liter L46 inline-four which could be mated to a four-speed manual or a three-speed automatic transaxle. The J-platform was widely used during this era for other rebadged Cavalier variants like the Buick Skyhawk, the Cadillac Cimarron, the Oldsmobile Firenza, and the Pontiac Sunbird.

CONTINUE AT LINK ABOVE

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1 - 20 of 23 Posts

NHRATA01

· #2 · 15 d ago

Quasimodo predicted all this...

Did I not say some time ago in here one day we're going to have a someone treat a low mileage 1990 Corsica like an L88 Vette?

Man there's just no way I'll ever see a value in low mileage malaise-era GM stuff.

Reactions: 3

AWHoden

· #3 · 15 d ago

NHRATA01 said:
Quasimodo predicted all this...

Did I not say some time ago in here one day we're going to have a someone treat a low mileage 1990 Corsica like an L88 Vette?

Man there's just no way I'll ever see a value in low mileage malaise-era GM stuff.

I can kind of understand that, but there's value in history and someone obviously wants us to never forget the name "Cavalier"......for some reason.

Reactions: 2

nadepalma

Discussion Starter · #4 · 15 d ago

NHRATA01 said:
Did I not say some time ago in here one day we're going to have a someone treat a low mileage 1990 Corsica like an L88 Vette?

AWHoden said:
I can kind of understand that, but there's value in history and someone obviously wants us to never forget the name "Cavalier"......for some reason.

It eventually happens in nearly all historical car eras. Things that were once seen as unwanted become collectables for different reasons. Looking back, there are lots of vehicles like the Nash Metropolitan, Ford Falcon, Chrysler Valiant, VW Golf, Ford Pinto, Autobianchi A112, Fiat 127, etc that were all undesirable -- but today have collector following.

Granted, 1980s GM metal may not be something I'd necessarily want to collect, but seeing as some of those products are readily available could be driving the (few) collectors looking to start such a collection.

From a real world prospective, the Cavalier never set the world on fire in terms of styling or desirability. But there's a nostalgia factor driving this. The subject of the article seems to have fond memories of driving his own OHV 3.1L V6-equipped model for years. And that ultimately may be driving some of this.

Of course, from a business perspective, the Cavalier (and related stablemates) sold in huge numbers for GM. Even retractors have to admit that it pulled young, frugal customers into GM showrooms and offered them a solid alternative from the (mostly) better-built/better-spec'ed/better-fuel conscious Japanese competitors.

I can remember looking at some of them years ago when I first drove, thinking "I can get a used put-put I4 Civic/Sentra/Corolla/323 with hardly any engine power, or I can get a similarly sized Cavalier with an actual V6 and lower-end torque for similar money". When you're young, you're often thinking of "power" over "features", and I know it would have made a difference in my teenage mind to get something with some "ball$" over something that arguably looked nicer, had a better looking interior, etc.

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Stéphane Dumas

· #5 · 15 d ago

Now then the 1980s F-body/Corvette and the Monte Carlo SS and the Regal Grand National are now out of reach for those who begins in the collector market. People begin to turn to the Cavalier as well as its J-body siblings (Firenza/Skyhawk/J2000-Sunbird-Sunfire and even the Cadillac Cimmaron). Some might already keep on eye on the Z-24 or the convertible version.

That remind me of a thread about a guy who collected Chevettes.

www.gminsidenews.com

Meet the Collector Who Owns 27 Chevettes

I saw this article from Hemmings blog about one guy who collected Chevettes as well as variants like Buick-Opel, Pontiac Acadian & T1000. https://www.hemmings.com/stories/chevette-collector-has-27-tcars/ At one point, Roberto F. Neris lost track of how many Chevettes he owned. "I had to go...

www.gminsidenews.com

www.gminsidenews.com

Reactions: 3

eaton53

· #6 · 15 d ago

Stéphane Dumas said:
Some might already keep on eye on the Z-24 or the convertible version.

This one.
Already seeing them at car shows.

Reactions: 3

big swede

· #7 · 14 d ago

Stéphane Dumas said:
Now then the 1980s F-body/Corvette and the Monte Carlo SS and the Regal Grand National are now out of reach for those who begins in the collector market. People begin to turn to the Cavalier as well as its J-body siblings (Firenza/Skyhawk/J2000-Sunbird-Sunfire and even the Cadillac Cimmaron). Some might already keep on eye on the Z-24 or the convertible version.

That remind me of a thread about a guy who collected Chevettes.

Meet the Collector Who Owns 27 Chevettes

I saw this article from Hemmings blog about one guy who collected Chevettes as well as variants like Buick-Opel, Pontiac Acadian & T1000. https://www.hemmings.com/stories/chevette-collector-has-27-tcars/ At one point, Roberto F. Neris lost track of how many Chevettes he owned. "I had to go...

www.gminsidenews.com

I would take the Chevettes all day over some bland FWD anything.

Like I said in the linked thread.

“How fun would a 2.0 Liter Turbo Ecotec be in one of these. Or even the supercharged 2.0 from the Cobalt. Lightweight RWD with about 300hp. Good times”.

Lowboy

· #8 · 14 d ago

Always liked the looks of the 84-87ish Cavalier Z24 in coupe trim, didn't care for the hatchback as much.

Reactions: 3

BlackGTP

· #9 · 14 d ago

nadepalma said:
It eventually happens in nearly all historical car eras. Things that were once seen as unwanted become collectables for different reasons. Looking back, there are lots of vehicles like the Nash Metropolitan, Ford Falcon, Chrysler Valiant, VW Golf, Ford Pinto, Autobianchi A112, Fiat 127, etc that were all undesirable -- but today have collector following.

Granted, 1980s GM metal may not be something I'd necessarily want to collect, but seeing as some of those products are readily available could be driving the (few) collectors looking to start such a collection.

From a real world prospective, the Cavalier never set the world on fire in terms of styling or desirability. But there's a nostalgia factor driving this. The subject of the article seems to have fond memories of driving his own OHV 3.1L V6-equipped model for years. And that ultimately may be driving some of this.

Of course, from a business perspective, the Cavalier (and related stablemates) sold in huge numbers for GM. Even retractors have to admit that it pulled young, frugal customers into GM showrooms and offered them a solid alternative from the (mostly) better-built/better-spec'ed/better-fuel conscious Japanese competitors.

I can remember looking at some of them years ago when I first drove, thinking "I can get a used put-put I4 Civic/Sentra/Corolla/323 with hardly any engine power, or I can get a similarly sized Cavalier with an actual V6 and lower-end torque for similar money". When you're young, you're often thinking of "power" over "features", and I know it would have made a difference in my teenage mind to get something with some "ball$" over something that arguably looked nicer, had a better looking interior, etc.

Nostalgia is exactly IT and what drives the collectible market. I'd love to have a restored '89 Cavalier Z24, which was my first car I bought new. With 125 hp and fwd it certainly was no exotic, collectible sports car, but looked good to me and just something I'd love to have - nostalgia. Though the reality is I probably will never buy one to restore as I lack the time to do something like that and probably don't want to spend the money on a restored one.

Plus, from first hand experience, I know how many mechanical headaches come with owning one

Reactions: 2

rockyspaw

· #10 · 14 d ago

4

I always liked the Buick Skyhawk T-Type and the Pontiac Sunbird GT, with the 1.8T @ 150hp and the 2.0T @ 165hp!

Automotive parking light Car Land vehicle Tire Vehicle

Automotive parking light Car Land vehicle Vehicle Tire

Tire Wheel Automotive parking light Car Land vehicle

Tire Wheel Car Vehicle Automotive parking light

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eaton53

· #11 · 14 d ago

BlackGTP said:
probably don't want to spend the money on a restored one.

I doubt that even a very clean one is expensive.
True of '80s cars in general unless they're something like a Grand National or Sierra Cosworth RS500.

Plus, from first hand experience, I know how many mechanical headaches come with owning one

Collector cars usually don't break much. They don't get driven enough for that.

Reactions: 3

BlackGTP

· #12 · 14 d ago

eaton53 said:
I doubt that even a very clean one is expensive.
True of '80s cars in general unless they're something like a Grand National or Sierra Cosworth RS500.

Collector cars usually don't break much. They don't get driven enough for that.

Sadly, it didn't take many miles on my old one for problems to pop up

eaton53

· #13 · 14 d ago

BlackGTP said:
Sadly, it didn't take many miles on my old one for problems to pop up

Hard to believe, but after a thorough sorting the Merkurs have been trouble free, knock on wood.

BlackGTP

· #14 · 14 d ago

eaton53 said:
Hard to believe, but after a thorough sorting the Merkurs have been trouble free, knock on wood.

Sadly my Cavalier Z24 left me stranded on the side of the road probably 10 or so times in the 4 years/78k miles I owned it. Still loved it!

Reactions: 1

61BelAir

· #15 · 14 d ago (Edited)

I'm just waiting to see an ad on craigslist or fb marketplace listing a J-body as a "barn find" with "patina".

Reactions: 3

AWHoden

· #16 · 14 d ago

big swede said:
I would take the Chevettes all day over some bland FWD anything.

Like I said in the linked thread.

“How fun would a 2.0 Liter Turbo Ecotec be in one of these. Or even the supercharged 2.0 from the Cobalt. Lightweight RWD with about 300hp. Good times”.

...Fiero spindles in the front, Fiero discs on all 4 corners to get rear parking brake, S-10 rear axles (they fit in the Chevette rear end/differential) so everything is 5-bolt, get the 2.0T with the 5-speed from a Solstice GXP or Sky Redline.

AWHoden

· #17 · 14 d ago

61BelAir said:
I'm just waiting to see an ad on craigslist or fb marketplace listing a J-body as a "barn find" with "patina".

Well if that's the case, they ALL have "patina" around here. Come to think of it, there's someone across the river with an '82 Cavalier sedan still running around, the only rust is on the chrome bumpers. Looks like this one:

Wheel Car Tire Vehicle Land vehicle

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big swede

· #18 · 14 d ago

AWHoden said:
...Fiero spindles in the front, Fiero discs on all 4 corners to get rear parking brake, S-10 rear axles (they fit in the Chevette rear end/differential) so everything is 5-bolt, get the 2.0T with the 5-speed from a Solstice GXP or Sky Redline.

That would probably a ton of fun.

eaton53

· #19 · 14 d ago

BlackGTP said:
Sadly my Cavalier Z24 left me stranded on the side of the road probably 10 or so times in the 4 years/78k miles I owned it. Still loved it!

I've had the XR4Ti for 9 years and put 12K miles on it. 52K on it now.

Guy in the Merkur Club had his Scorpio die on him at a stoplight the other day.
So he asked the club what was wrong and what he should do.

Being the helpful fella that I am, I responded "It's a Scorpio. Just accept it."

Reactions: 2

6cylinder

· #20 · 13 d ago

Lowboy said:
Always liked the looks of the 84-87ish Cavalier Z24 in coupe trim, didn't care for the hatchback as much.

BlackGTP said:
Nostalgia is exactly IT and what drives the collectible market. I'd love to have a restored '89 Cavalier Z24, which was my first car I bought new. With 125 hp and fwd it certainly was no exotic, collectible sports car, but looked good to me and just something I'd love to have - nostalgia. Though the reality is I probably will never buy one to restore as I lack the time to do something like that and probably don't want to spend the money on a restored one.

Plus, from first hand experience, I know how many mechanical headaches come with owning one

The later boxy Z24 years looked good. Knockoff Mustang styling. I had an 04 for a bit, and before that a base 93 coupe for about 3 years without issue. It was the most economical car I've had. A fast-hatch like the early ones offered would've made it better.

Reactions: 1

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