Chevrolet Chevette
| Chevrolet Chevette | |
|---|---|
1978 Chevrolet Chevette 4dr Hatchback
|
|
| Overview | |
| Manufacturer | Chevrolet (General Motors) |
| Also called | Pontiac Acadian/T1000/1000 Isuzu Gemini |
| Production | 1975–1987 |
| Model years | 1976–1987 |
| Assembly |
Wilmington Assembly, Wilmington, Delaware, United States Lakewood Assembly, Atlanta, Georgia, United States, Sao Jose dos Campos, Gravatai Brazil Bogotá, Colombia , Ecuador Hiroshima, Japan (as Isuzu Gemini) Valencia, Venezuela |
| Body and chassis | |
| Class | Subcompact |
| Body style | 3-door hatchback 5-door hatchback |
| Layout | FR layout |
| Platform | T-body |
| Related |
Opel Kadett Isuzu Gemini Daewoo Maepsy Vauxhall Chevette |
| Powertrain | |
| Engine | 1.4 L G140 OHV I4 1.6 L G161Z I4 1.8 L 4FB1 diesel I4 |
| Transmission | 4-speed Saginaw manual 5-speed Borg-Warner T-5 manual 3-speed GM Hydramatic |
| Dimensions | |
| Wheelbase | 97.3 inches (1978 4 door), 95.3 inches (1978 2-door) |
| Length | 163.8 in (4,161 mm) |
| Width | 61.8 in (1,570 mm) |
| Height | 52.2 in (1,325 mm) |
| Curb weight | 1,843–2,035 lb (836–923 kg) |
| Chronology | |
| Successor |
Chevrolet Sprint (Canada) Geo Metro/Chevrolet Metro (United States) Pontiac LeMans |
| Chevrolet Chevette | |
|---|---|
Early Brazilian Chevette
|
|
| Overview | |
| Also called | GMC Chevette (Argentina) |
| Production | 1973–1994 (Brazil) until 1996 in Ecuador, 1998 in Colombia |
| Assembly | San Martín, Buenos Aires, Argentina (GMC Chevette), São José dos Campos, Brazil Bogotá, Colombia Quito, Ecuador () Montevideo, Uruguay Valencia, Venezuela. |
| Body and chassis | |
| Class | Subcompact |
| Body style | 3-door hatchback 2/4-door sedan 3-door station wagon |
| Layout | FR layout |
| Platform | T-body |
| Powertrain | |
| Engine | |
| Transmission | 4/5-speed manual |
| Dimensions | |
| Wheelbase | 2,395 mm (94.3 in) |
| Length | 4,161 mm (163.8 in) (1985 sedans) 3,961 mm (155.9 in) (1985 HB) 4,197 mm (165.2 in) (1985 Marajó) |
| Width | 1,570 mm (61.8 in) (1985) |
| Height | 1,325 mm (52.2 in) (1985) 1,385 mm (54.5 in) (1985 Marajó) |
| Curb weight | 836–923 kg (1,843–2,035 lb) (1985) |
| Chronology | |
| Successor |
Chevrolet Corsa Chevrolet Kadett/Ipanema |
The Chevrolet Chevette is a front-engine/rear drive subcompact manufactured and marketed by Chevrolet for model years 1976-1987 in three-door and five-door hatchback body styles. Introduced in September 1975, the Chevette superseded the Vega as Chevrolet's entry-level subcompact and sold 2.8 million units over twelve model years. The Chevette was the best-selling small car in the U.S. for model years 1979 and 1980.
The Chevette employed General Motors' global T platform. Worldwide, GM manufactured and marketed more than 7 millionT-cars — rebadged variants using the T platform — including the Pontiac Acadian in Canada, Pontiac T1000/1000 in the United States (1981-1987), K-180 in Argentina, Vauxhall Chevette, Opel Kadett, Isuzu Gemini, Holden Gemini and, as a coupe utility (pickup), the Chevy 500. A T-car variant remained in production in South America through 1998.
Under the direction of chief engineer John Mowrey Chevrolet began developing the Chevette on December 24, 1973 in response to the 1973 Oil Crisis and GM's Energy Task Force, arising out of the crisis and the resultant shift in consumer demand to smaller, foreign vehicles boasting greater fuel-efficiency.
The Chevette used its basis GM's World Car, "Project 909" — what would become the T-car program, so named because the vehicles shared GM's T platform. With the well-known problems of its predecessor, the Vega — which included production issues, reliability problems and a serious propensity for corrosion — the team reworked the international platform such that the Chevette shared not a single body panel with another T-car and reworked the underbody extensively to enhance corrosion protection. The Chevette's 1.4 liter base iron block engine weighed 59 lbs less than the Vega's much heralded aluminum block engine.
The Chevette was officially launched on September 16, 1975, in Washington D.C. just after new legislation mandated Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards. With initial projected sales of 275,000 units in its first year, numbers were cut in half as the price of oil stabilized. The Chevette would ultimately reach 2,793,353 sales for its entire production across 12 model years 1976-1988. and global T-car sales would surpass 7 million. The last Chevette was manufactured on December 23, 1986, at Lakewood Assembly — following the end of production at Wilmington Assembly in September, 1985. The last Chevette manufactured was a light blue two-door hatchback shipped to a Chevrolet dealer in Springdale, Ohio.
...
Wikipedia