In May 2019, my ex-wife and I were taking a walk early on a Saturday morning and passed a Chevrolet Chevette parked at the end of our street. That was reason enough to finally complete this blog entry.
“… one of America’s best known cars …”
1987 was the final year for the somewhat antiquated rear wheel drive Chevette—in North America, at least. The 1.8-liter diesel engine was no more, but otherwise little was changed from 1986.
The only engine available was the L17 1.6 liter/98 ci inline four with a Holley 6510c two-barrel carburetor and 65 bhp, but you did have a choice of transmission: the standard four-speed manual, an optional three-speed automatic ($450), or an optional five-speed manual ($75). Mileage with the standard transmission was 28 city/34 highway by the day’s standards (24/31 by today’s measures). With a 12.2-gallon gas tank, Chevette owners could expect a 305 to 340 mile range with a 10% fuel reserve. Predictably, 0-60 mph took a little under 16 long seconds.
The Chevette was a small car, classified by the EPA as a sub-compact. Curb weight for the sedan was 2,137 pounds, with a 97.3-inch wheelbase, a 164.9-inch overall length, a 61.8-inch width, and a 52.8-inch height.
The truly “base” Chevette had been gone since 1985, but standard equipment was spare even on the supposedly upmarket CS. For your $5,495 base price (about $15,900 in 2025 dollars), you got four doors, a rear hatch with a single strut, rack and pinion steering, front disc and rear drum brakes, and P155/80R13 tires (a size still available from Kumho) on 13-inch by 5-inch steel wheels. Inside were vinyl front bucket seats, vinyl rear bench seats, and a floor console.
Options & Production Numbers
Because the standard equipment was so spare, there were a lot of options. Optional exterior and mechanical equipment included power brakes ($105), power steering ($225), an engine block heater ($20), and a custom exterior package ($154). Inside, the buyer could add air conditioning ($675), a tilt steering column ($125), custom cloth bucket seats ($130), a rear defogger ($145), and an AM/FM stereo radio ($119).
Despite being on its last legs, Chevrolet still sold a little over 20,000 Chevette sedans in 1987, along with slightly more than 26,000 coupes.
The View From 2025
Chevettes rarely appear in the Hemming’s Motor News classifieds, on eBay Motors, or on Bring a Trailer—BaT has sold a grand a total of three over the years. Mecum did auction a nice looking 1987 Chevette CS hatchback sedan with 47 miles early in 2025—for an astounding $30,000.
Make mine Silver Metallic, please. Something inoffensive seems appropriate.
Last updated April 2025.
Eighties Cars 
I always likes these cars and figured when I was a kid that it would be my first car. I ended up with a Honda Civic instead.