I recently bought a 99 rs coupe from an old couple who garage kept it since 1999! It's in showroom condition and I get complaints and looks everyday lol people ask me why isn't it rusted and dented up 😂
I think Chevy should have stuck with the Cavalier name instead of changing to Cobalt and Cruze. Cavalier had name recognition and if they kept improving the car I think it would have been more successful
@@motormusique same thing with Lincoln and Cadillac. They've changed world wide known names such as Deville and Continenetal for some completely meaningless MKZ, MKS, CTS...
I don't see what the big problem is. OK it's a bog standard plain jane car but it looked very up to the minute for an American car. There were plenty worse cars on the road. Over here in Britain, the Vauxhall Cavalier was not much better but it was exactly what yer Average Joe needed, an A-B attractive looking motor and prob abit cheaper to service at the time than a BMW or a Mercedes. Soo what if it lacks the prestige? At the end of the day if it gets ye about and it's all ye can afford I don't see anything wrong with the Cav.
Narrator: The all new Chevy Cavalier has a steering wheel, it's got seats, it has lights, comes standard with doors, the radio is right here, this car even has cup holders! Lets not forget the bumpers... it has them. This one is so much better than the old one and sure to attract drivers of cars.
lol, yeah, but some of the stuff he mentioned actually was a big deal. Standard dual air bags and abs on an entry-level car in 95 were pretty noteworthy. Cavaliers get a bad rap, imo. Yeah, they lacked refinement and had cheap interiors, but they looked good (first gen), had a wide range of trim levels and options, had good power for the era and market segment, were inexpensive, had a nice highway ride, and were actually pretty reliable, though not Honda or Toyota reliable.
Frank Burns Oh I agree with you whole-heartedly! I've driven my share of Cavaliers and they are better than expected for what they are. Still, I find it hilarious how after watching all the other MotorWeek and Retro MotorWeek reviews that include cars with all these state of the art features and innovative designs and oozing with luxury and power and things people of the time have never seen before etc etc. Then there's this... ultra basic, bare-bones car with minimal features and they have to some how draw out a whole video about the poor thing.
I bought my Cavalier new in 01 and it’s still going strong. I take great care of it. Oil gets changed every 2,500 miles and trans fluid gets changed every 25,000 miles. Waxed every 6 months. Car looks brand new inside and out.
My 2000 Z/24 is my first ever brand new car I bought from the Chevy dealer i worked for for 14 years as a GM Mastertech. I still have it today with one 121K original miles and lives a sweet life in my garage next to my 82' DeLorean and only coming out when its nice. She is still in mint and about 95% original. I special ordered the car in bright white with the Getrag 5 speed, power windows and locks, cruise control, power sunroof AM/FM CD Cassette RDS 6 speaker stereo with the light grey interior. Little did i know this combo os quite rare cause of the color of the body and interior with a stick shift. Only issues i've had was a water pump, driver door window regulator and reverse light swith. Thats it. I got 35mpg from the Quad 4 Twin Cam before. Today, she still mostly original except inadded a subwoofer to the stock radio, K&N Filter, and a functioning ram air hood from RK Sport that looks likeva 2002 Camaro SS hood. Next i will install the GM Supercharger kit still offered from the factory performance parts catalog! I detail this car all the time and the paint is almost perfect for 15 years old and this car still hauls ass and has no issues barking second, lol Only problem i really only seen with these cars were the dumbasses that did NO maintenance work on the cars. They still ran but were beat to death! The 2.2 did have head gasket issues but took about less than a hour to fix. These cars were simple cars to fix and modify. I have been in modified Cavys that would spank Honda's all day. The Cavalier lasted from 1982 to early 2005 till the Cobalt came out and while still at the dealer, the Cobalt was very cheap and a lot of people brought those cars back for pieces falling off of them. Obviously they were a short lived car that was replaced by the Cruze. If the Cavalier was so bad why did it last 23 yrs and the Cobalt was less than 10? Because the Cavy was simply better!
@@JSabh Good to hear. My 1996 has 115,000. The only thing broken on it is the cassette player. It runs great, and mostly just needs an inexpensive paint job to look new again. When people look down on me for driving a car this old... I can hold my chin up knowing that every month since it was paid off... I've put that "car payment" money in the bank for the past 20 years.
Back during my senior year of high school, my friends and I were all getting our first cars. My parents were mechanics and got me a used 94 Integra. The guitarist in my band wanted a cheap minivan, so his mom gave him hers. Then my youngest friend, who pestered his parents relentlessly for a cooler car than mine, was given one of these. Man, I was there when he practically broke into a teary eyed rage over this thing. So they got him a used Hyundai Tiburon. 15 years later, that Cavalier still gets driven by his dad, while the Tiburon fell apart just two years later.
Dad worked for GM and made both. bought a Cobalt new in 08, drove it 150,000 miles (drove 60 miles too work everyday) and it blew up in 2015. bought a cavilier with 250k miles, drove it till 300k and gave it too a neighbor who had it until 325k when it finally went. I have a cruze with 85k miles on it and it prob will only last until 120k.
Can't stand to see all these comments about these cars being shitboxes. The Cavalier wasn't supposed to be fancy, it was supposed to be cheap and simple. All you have to do is change the oil. What's wrong with that? I've heard them referred to as the "American Corolla" and can't think of another car more deserving of that title. I have an '04 with 166,000 on it and have not had any problems out of the ordinary.
I know this is old, but also find old "normal, forgettable" cars interesting too, like the Neon, Focus, Corolla, Civic, Grand Am, Cavalier, Protege, etc.
My grandmother had a 1982 Chevrolet Cavalier 4 door sedan, she bought it new and drove it til she passed in 1995. By that point the car was starting to fall apart, i had alot of great memories in that car. My uncle had a 1984 Cavalier Wagon and that car was tough, he drove it till the body fell apart. I always loved the Cavalier Convertibles from 1984-2005.
The '95 through '05 Cavalier's were the best generation. Low cost, comfortable and drove good. Yes, they'd have periodic problems due to GM's cheap boardroom. But we can't buy anything this comfortable now a days unless moving into an expensive luxury car. Even cars bigger than this no longer ride comfortably because everything has to handle like a track car. And gone is the nice feeling cloth upholstery like these had because upholstery is made out of material like that of running shoes. We have lot of high tech in cars now, but it's worthless in providing a comfortable and pleasant driving experience.
Rotflmao drove good? Compared to what? These things were so sloppy. They handled like a wet sponge. Floated, leaped and bounded amd never felt planted compared to anything Toyota, Nissan, or Honda offered, and the quality was light years behind the Japanese as well. Noisy engines, vibrations and squeaks and rattles everywhere even when new. Fit and finish was horrible at best. That cloth they used for the interior was terrible! Glad American cars arent this crappy anymore.
Nah they still ride terrible. Old suspension is inherently going to be slightly worn out and the Caviler wasn't good to start. There are still cars that ride comfortably but still Cadillac and others, thinks it needs to be BMW now.
My first new car was a Black 1995 Cavalier Coupe that I put 100k on in 4 years until is was totaled in a head-on collision (which I walked away from without a scratch). I then bought a new Red 1999 Cavalier Coupe that I drove 160k miles in 7 years. Both of those cars were VERY reliable and, with regular maintenance, I never had one major mechanical issue with either vehicle. So I decided to stick with Chevy and buy a Red 2006 Cobalt Coupe that I drove 105k in 7 years with no issues either. I now own a 2013 Chevy Malibu 2lz Turbo that I've driven 45k miles and I've had zero issues with it. Some people like to hate on Chevy and claim that their products are unreliable pieces of junk. But that couldn't be further from the truth. Chevrolet has made, and continues to produce, some of the best and most reliable vehicles on the road...
It was extremely advanced when it launched in the '80s and was extremely competitive (if a bit unrefined) until it was discontinued. It was the first engine with 100% electronically controlled ignition. No mechanical distributor of any sort... Only a crankshaft position sensor.
I don't care what people say, The Cavalier was great car, I drove one and it was very reliable and plus I still see lots of them around so that says something about them.
To be fair the Quad 4 was pretty impressive. 150hp the Civic Si that came out only a few years later had 160hp. And although i will give it the Fun to drive factor with the 8000rpm redline, The cavalier honestly doesn't look that bad on paper either and in this video has some cool little innovative tricks like the cup holder in the center arm rest
Don't try to pretend that Civics back then had anything other than reliable engines. Even then they were overpriced and rusted out quickly. Honda finally got the rust under control by using better quality metal but also jacked prices up even more. Just like Toyota. 8th and 9th gen Civics looked like a melted 95 Cavalier, and the 10th gen is just disgusting to look at. The 11th is much better but is basically a smaller Accord now. But everyone should always take stock in the opinion of someone with the screen name "rodmunch69" that's for sure.
Haha! I love how the shift indicator is one of the "highlights" of the instrumentation. Yeah, this car is one of the most disposable cars ever produced. SOme were very reliable, but you had to search long and hard to find one that was.
Cameron Alidor 2.2l engine in it was very reliable. Problem with Cavalier is that mostly idiots and retards ever bought one. So they would drive it on the same oil and coolant till it died. Disposable is the understatement. I knew a cheapo dude that bought one second hand and drove it to 190k miles. I think it still runs. But that dude kept it tuned up like a BMW. I knew a guy with a Corsica and that used the same engine and it had 230k the last time I checked on it.
I've had my share of cavaliers, and I'll probably keep buying them. Mostly because you can get one that runs for 100-200$ And they never die. Body will let go first
My first car was a 1997 Cavalier that I got in 2007 from a family friend, I got it with 108k miles and drove it all the way to 245k miles. it looked just like this, but it was green. the body had no rust, but once I looked under the back bumper cover and saw the actual metal bumper was completely rotted thru. it had the 2.2, it was fun and peppy. That car didn't owe me a thing when I got rid of it.
Syphon787G My 04 doesn't look so hot, and the interior is literally falling apart... But, it's still getting me to work after all these years and miles without any problem.
Ours is almost in mint condition, other than some scuffs on the front bumper, a tiny crack in the dashboard, and a odometer that doesn't work unless you push the trip reset button in.
That's exactly what mine was. I was 20 years old and already eyeing some BMWs. Then reality smacked me in the face and I bought my very first brand new whip. 1995 Chevy Cavalier in Dark Cherry Metallic - I called it purple. I also thought the 1995 models all had dark plastic bumpers and then the 1996 models had bumpers painted the same color as the car body. I didn't realize body-color bumpers were available on the 1995 models.
These were great little cars, contrary to what people say. - Pretty quick with a manual - Lots of torque from the bulletproof reliable 2.2 as well as excellent gas mileage - Lots of room inside, ABS and many other features for the day. There is a reason trashy people still drive them because they won't die.
kirbyswarp For sure I love my 1997 Sunfire 2 door (same as a Cavalier). I regularly dust faster cars with it. Corners pretty well, too. I have a fresh 2.2 with 14,000 miles on it too, quite the sleeper.
Eric Horner I had one with 180,000 miles on it that was a government car for all 180k. Base model with only A/C and 3 speed auto as an option. It still got great gas mileage and as decently quick. And it held up amazingly to that many miles as a company car.
That's because Cobalts were straight junk. It was the same as taking $18,000, or so for a new Cobalt, and just pushing the cash through a shredder. In the end you'd have the same thing. Cavaliers were actually much better cars, but overall, they weren't anything like a Civic.
This car gives me pause and makes me wonder: how will the Cavalier be viewed in another 20+ years in the collector/classic car market? Will they be fondly remembered or respected? Or just laughed at? These days, even a Plymouth Valiant gets attention at a car show. What about the Cavalier?
Believe it or not! That was my first new car When I was young! It was the only new car me and my wife could afford back then, in 1989 we purchased a red with grey interior two doors z24, with the 2.8 engine on it, it was peppy for an econo car, but had many problems with it! Over heating low coolant problems, and also the computer had to be replace twice. Also the wipers went out when I was driving! Had to replace the wiper motor, the water pump...you name it! If I keep going the broblems never stopped!
Cavaliers were very good cars. They were pretty peppy too (relatively speaking). The uni body I'm not a fan of and it turns into a rust bucket in the northeast. The drive-train on the other hand is pretty solid. In college, my dream car was a Cavalier Z24, LOL. I loved the look of them. Little did I know I would end up with a BMW M3! HAHA
For maximum 90s daycare worker aesthetic, get one in turqoise and slap a cheetah print steering wheel cover on it along with an air freshener to get the stale smell of KOOL lights out of the cloth seats.
Gm had a horrible 90's phase. Plastic cladding, horrible speed limiters (108mph?! My 07 KIA Spectra tops at 125 before it cuts the limiter in), those terrible plastic interiors, and the lack of cornering at all whatsoever.
***** gotta give those motors credit, though. That was the only good point of the car. 2.4 twin cams were quick and the 2.2 soldiered on over a decade. But everything else... Lol well, we know that story
We had a 96 Cavalier with the 2.2 and it was very reliable needing only a timing belt due to noise... We had it 3 years and traded it for the new 99 Grand Am with the 2.4 which had a nice fat torque band from 2nd to 3rd gear.. We kept it for 9 years and 236k miles and only problem was brakes which sucked on that car..
I had an ‘00 Z24 Convertible. Was the first vehicle I ever bought from a dealer. Enjoyed the car and found it very dependable and useful. I especially liked that my cheap convertible had a glass rear window w/defroster while much more expensive small convertibles had cheap plastic sheet windows
Going from the 2.2L to the 2.4L (w/those 30 extra horses) made the car feel so much faster and spunkier. The 2.4L would allow the caviler to hit 60 in 8.0sec flat, and hit the quarter in 16.5sec. That was quite respectable back then.
I'll admit that I haven't been watching as many of these uploads lately since that seemingly never-ending string of BMW videos a few weeks ago (not whinin', just sayin'!), so I may be a tad late on this, but I absolutely LOVE what you guys have done with the new Retro Review intro!! Keep up the great work!
I picked up a ‘97 model a few years back from an aunt who was being moved into a nursing home. It was in perfect condition and she had only put 30,000 miles on it over seventeen years! I have now put over 80,000 additional miles on it since I purchased it and it has provided very reliable, basic transportation that keeps the wear, tear, and miles off of my good vehicles! Not going to lie - I actually enjoy driving this car - it’s happy as can be humming along at 75 mph down the interstate and routinely delivers 30 mpg on the highway. Likely the cheapest transportation I’ll ever own.....!!!
The opening statement: "Is Chevy's basic box good for another 14 years?" If he only knew it wasn't far from the truth. The Cavalier would serve another 12 almost unchanged.
They are insanely reliable, I swear that the rust (the only reason we had to get rid of our first one, the rust got the frame and cracked it) will get them before the engine or transmission does
memories! my mom had a 1998 Coupe in ice blue. The car was so basic the only option it had was air conditioning (a necessary thing in Ohio). It didn't have a lot going for it but it was reliable as heck. the engine held up better than the interior by the time we sold in in 2006 with over 150 thousand miles
I remember working as a car Jockey at a Chev dealer during these days.... Cavaliers were built in either Mexico or USA.... While most for Canada came from Mexico instead of US, it was very notable the difference in quality between Mexican and US Cavaliers.... the Mexican versions were built better!!!
Ive had a couple of sunfires over the years and enjoyed the low initial price, fuel economy, ease of repair, ease of operation.... just really have anything bad to say. The ride isnt that great, but whatever
GM has done a lot wrong, but I see so many of these and Sunfires still on the roads. Just as many as Civics and Corolla/Tercels from this era. The Escort/Tracers and especially the Neons have dropped like flies in the last decade.
I have a 2001 Cavalier I bought for $1400 in 2006 with 63k miles because it was in an accident. I bought 2 new fenders genuine GM parts for $110 each (try that on a foreign car) turn signal lens and driver's mirror totaling around $300. Since then a new radiator $50 installed myself front wheel bearing $200 installed myself. It now has over 150k miles. Clutch is original, air conditioning works great. Commuting to work last I checked got 28.4 mpg. All the best car I ever owned.
Compared to my Chevy Aveo, my Chevy Cavy is a tank. Aveo not only has a really really bad engine (although higher fuel economy), but it has the worse breaks I've ever seen. Not to mention the ABS on this thing is stupid AF, almost had an accident 6 times and 2 times I really did. Though I like that Aveo has some nice added optionals (got both of them brand new). Except for the electro-motor, which is stuck, the Cavy still works.
I respect how Chevy put standard antilock brakes on the cheap cavalier, GM started removing standard antilock brakes on some car models in the early 2000's. I know this because my 2000 Buick Century comes standard with antilock brakes, but the newer model years don't despite being the same car
My 03 pontiac has a 4 speed autp which was pretty behind the times by then too especially for a "luxury" car. Gm just doesn't like improving things untill most of their buyers notice
My family's '99 was a pretty dependable car. The fuel gage stopped working, you could not display the odometer (stuck on trip meter), the rear suspension creaked, the cruise control stopped working, I think the AC died, but the parts you needed to keep the car rolling, kept working. Very few repairs were required to ensure you got to your destination. The acceleration (and noise at highway speed) with the three speed auto was slow enough to help keep young drivers like myself out of trouble. The folding rear seat allowed for tons of cargo. I can't say I loved the car, but it got me, and and the other members of my family where we wanted to go in the 2000s.
danrawkz Mine have the three speed auto and lockup torque converter makes it "shift" a fourth time and it is quiet on the road. I get 30 mpg average and 36 highway with 203k on original engine and tranny.
@@3656761 my 2000 is a 3 speed and it is the absolute slowest piece of shit car I've owned. It only has 80k and it's in great shape but holy shit is it a boring car
In my childhood these often roamed the streets in my school area. I always thought they look like soapboxes and I still do. Also in the North I see more of these stranded in winter than anything else from Japan or Germany. Thankfully GM learned this and the new Cruze is a far cry from the Cavalier in a good way.
People continue to knock the cavalier like it was a car that broke down right after you drove it home. That's hardly the truth. The 1995 was a better car than the previous generation by far. I've seen plenty with well over 200k on them and still going strong. It's called maintenance! People are so eager to exercise because it maintains their health, but won't maintain their cars as if they don't need them...good luck with that! I have an 89 Z24 cavalier convertible that I take on long road trips no problems...why because we maintain it (fun car)! My mother has a 2004 KIA van, and she's had more problems with that piece of @&$# than I've had with a car that's 15 years older. Do you know why they use cheap plastics in cars like this? Because 98% of Americans don't actually need a car that has a suede covered dashboard, and those that do are generally the ones who think they deserve it while making 10.00 an hour.
Still take my garage kept 2000 Z/24 Cavalier on long trips also and its mint condition plus i just installed the GM Performance Parts Eaton supercharger kit. I dont race it but it does throw you back when you row the gears! Had mine since day 1 and never had a check engine light on or nothing, and only things that were replaced were the water pump, drivers window regulator and reverse light switch! Always did like the 89 convertibles and I took a picture just this past summer with an older couple that had an 89 z24 convertible that was in mint original condition and was painted the same color is my car and it was kind of nice seeing the two together. As a ex 18yr GM mechanic, I saw home or Chevy Cobalts in the shop and I did Cavaliers.
+sleepybird09 Oh heck no! Love that car and after 16yrs its still fun to drive! I would like to get the rare 4 door Z/24 sedan and supercharge that also. Also added a functioning Camaro SS ram air hood to make it look a little more aggressive but I'm not trying to make it look like an ricer. I think you can see a pic if you click on my picture? The Z/24 is more of a weekend/ nice day car now. She served well as a daily driver till 2008 and now sits in the garage next to the DeLorean. Is that your Camaro on your profile?
+sleepybird09 Yeah I would like to make a video of it when it's all done since its finishing up a restoration I've been doing for the last 6 years. Reworked to whole car. It was an abandoned car out in Malibu California and sat abandoned since 1994 until I bought it in 2004. After I completely rebuilt the fuel system I drove it around for a while the check the durability of the still original equipment and it ran well until the clutch slave cylinder went out and that's when I decided to tear it down and completely redo it. the whole interior of the grey leather was completely shot and the headliner was falling out, and the engine look like total hell. So that's when I decided to cut and strip the whole car and put it all back together and build it better than new plus I did a lot of customization to the stuff as well but not taking away from originality. Alot of people like to talk trash about this car to talking about how unreliable the car is and how slow it is. Why does any car have to be fast!? I think it's quick enough for what it is and the only and real performance upgrades was a custom cold air intake setup and a set of stainless steel headers and full stainless steel exhaust system with no catalytic converters. My Z/24 is fast, especially since I bolted the supercharger on it and had the PCM reprogrammed and now it puts out 210 horsepower and 205 foot pounds of torque from 150 horsepower and 155 foot pounds. Your Camaro is still awesome though and definitely a collectors item since it's the 30th anniversary and I used to have a 1997 30th anniversary package but mine wasn't the paint scheme like yours. When I work for General Motors 418 years before becoming a heavy equipment mechanic I remember being the only one allowed to take care of the 97 30th anniversary heritage Appearance Package Camaro and it sat on our showroom forever and I was the only one allowed to take it out of the shower room and take it back to the shop and detail it after hours. Those were fun days. Earlier you mentioned about a sedan cavalier? You didn't mean the rare z24 sedan right? Btw is your z28 a six speed or automatic?
Currently driving a 2000 Pontiac Sunfire 2.2L/3spd auto. 252,000 mi. and still going strong. We've had the car for 10 years now and as the OP has stated general maintenance is key. It has a wrinkled hood from a deer hit that the previous owner never fixed, and the paint is shot on the roof and rear decklid spoiler. Going for 300K!
You make a really valid point. Economy cars are often bought by people who don't have the money or knowledge to do proper upkeep on their cars. They drive them hard. They beat them up. They fall apart. When economy cars are driving by people who can actually afford to own a car, they tend to last longer. I treat my Mirage like it's a Rolls and I expect it to last a very long time.
I remember being a kid when these came out thinking they looked so futuristic and modern. All the "cool" people were buying them like a trend. Now I look back and laugh at how awful and ugly they are now.
My mom had one when she was a teen. It was a lemon though. Steering wheel wasn’t on straight. Up was down and down was up on the radio. Not to mention it absolutely loved to eat transmissions. IT WAS BRAND NEW
