1980 Chevrolet Chevette 4 door Hatchback
This was a good, practical family car. It didn’t run especially well and it didn’t look especially nice, but it was reliable. I owned it for over three years spanning the time from when I lived in San Diego to when I lived in Naples, Italy.
The photo above was taken at my house in South Bay San Diego in the summer of 1987. I still had the Chevy Luv at the time.
Read The History
1980 Chevrolet Chevette 4 door Hatchback Specifications
| Purchased: | – From Auto Dealer summer of 1986, San Diego, California – Sold to Private Party, 1990, Naples, Italy |
| Features: | – 1.6 Liter Four Cylinder Engine – Brown Exterior Four Door Hatchback – Brown Interior – Air Conditioning – Automatic Three Speed transmission – AM/FM Radio |
| Custom Options: | – Aftermarket Cruise Control – Added “third eye” brake light |
| Comments: | Okay Car, economical to operate, but nothing particularly outstanding about it. |
| External Reference: | Wikipedia Entry for Chevrolet Chevettes |
Photo Gallery
I don’t have any more personal photos of this car, but here is a Chevy-produced postcard showing off this car.
1980 Chevrolet Chevette Factory Brochure
Cover page for a factory 1980 Chevrolet Chevette brochure.
Most pages in this brochure are two-page spreads.
There was a lot of usable cargo room but limited by the low overhead.
Decent enough style for the time, comparable to what other US car manufacturers were putting out. I though the foreign car manufacturers had nicer designs.
The interior was actually pretty comfortable for a small car.
The dashboard was simple and functional.
I do believe this was the first year that cars staring using extensive electronic controls. Our Chevette had HEI ignition and an electronically controlled carburetor.
Having an automatic transmission was a nice touch. Most foreign car makers were producing manual transmissions in their economy cars as standard with automatic transmissions a pricey upgrade. This car was the least expensive car we found with an automatic.
Nice touch with the “Build Your Own” meme.
Index
Introduction
1977 Chevrolet LUV (Isuzu Luv Series Six) Pickup Truck
1979 MG Midget 1500
1980 Chevrolet Chevette 4 door Hatchback
1988 Isuzu LS SpaceCab Pickup Truck
1976 Alfa Romeo Alfetta 1.6 Four Door Sedan
1978 Mercedes Benz 200D 4 Door Sedan
1991 Volvo 240 Sedan
2004 Isuzu Rodeo LS SUV
2000 Volkswagen New Beetle GL 2 Door Hatchback
2009 Nissan Versa 1.8S Hatchback
2013 Nissan Versa 1.6SV Sedan
2015 Jeep Cherokee “Latitude”
2024 Thor Scope 18G RV
Final Thoughts and Table of Changes
[…] basis over an eleven year period for family visits. My more memorable trips were made with the MG Midget I briefly owned, but ghosts of my frequent commutes are everywhere along the I-5 […]
Yikes, trying to comment and somehow ended up in your WordPress control panel. That was weird!
So anyway, found someone that’s owned a few cars like me,although I have ya beat by around 20 LOL.
Read most of your R. Garwood story. Geez that sucks.