A co-worker of mine casually mentioned that he owns a beige 1989 Chevrolet Celebrity sedan. That’s enough for me to write a blog entry.
“contemporary front-drive technology”
For 1989, Chevrolet’s Celebrity mid-size sedans and wagons were little changed. The major news was that the five-speed manual transmission that (very) few bought was no longer available and that the coupe had been discontinued.
Standard power on the Celebrity remained the Tech IV 98 bhp 2.5 liter/151 ci inline four with throttle-body fuel injection. The LB6 125 bhp 2.8 liter/181 ci V6 with multi-port fuel injection was available for $610. A three-speed automatic transmission was standard on both engines, but buyers of the V6 could add a four-speed automatic for an additional $175.
With these two engines and curb weights in the 2,750 to 2,800-pound range, the Celebrity was not a fast car. 0-60 mph with the four was a little over 13 seconds, while V6 owners got to 60 mph about two seconds faster.
Mileage with the base four was 23 city/30 highway (21/28 by today’s standards) while owners of the top-of-the-line V6/four-speed automatic combination could expect 20 city/29 highway. With a 15.7-gallon fuel tank, Celebrity V6 drivers could expect a range of between 310 and 350 miles with a 10% fuel reserve.
Standard equipment on the $11,495 Celebrity (about $24,100 in 2019 dollars or about what a 2019 Chevrolet Malibu LS sedan goes for) included power steering, power brakes, 14-inch wheels on P175/75R14 tires (a size now tough to find), and a Delco AM/FM stereo radio with digital clock. Adding the V6 and the four-speed automatic brought the price up to $12,280, or about $25,700 in today’s dollars.
By 1989, Chevrolet was moving to Preferred Equipment Group option packages as a way to reduce the number of equipment combinations. The Celebrity’s option packages were:
- Air conditioning, auxiliary lighting, exterior moldings, floor mats—($931 with the 2.5 liter inline four/$957 with the 2.8 liter V6)
- Air conditioning, auxiliary lighting, exterior moldings, floor mats, power door locks, gauge package, cruise control, tilt steering wheel, and intermittent windshield wipers—($1,565 with the 2.5 liter inline four/$1,591 with the 2.8 liter V6)
- Air conditioning, auxiliary lighting, exterior moldings, floor mats, power door locks, gauge package, cruise control, tilt steering wheel, and intermittent windshield wipers, sport remote mirrors, AM/FM stereo cassette with digital clock, power trunk opener, and power windows—($2,062 with the 2.5 liter inline four/$2,088 with the 2.8 liter V6)
Adding the Preferred Equipment Group 3 to a Celebrity with the V6 and the four-speed automatic brought the price all the way up to $14,368, or about $30,100 in today’s dollars.
The most glamorous option for the Celebrity continued to be the $230 Eurosport package, which included the F41 sport suspension and P195/75R14 tires (a size still available thanks to Hankook and Kumho) and 14-inch rally wheels. The exterior featured blacked out window trim and red center stripes on the protective rubber door and bumper molding; fender and trunk emblems were red rather than the standard chrome. Eurosports also featured unique red emblems on the interior door panels and dash and a black steering wheel.
Other optional equipment included two-tone paint ($55), aluminum wheels ($195), an engine block heater ($20), cloth bucket seats with a console ($257), and a six-way power driver’s seat ($250).
1989 would end up being the last year for the Celebrity sedan—the wagon would soldier on for one more year. I think of these cars as honest but basic; they aren’t really being collected, though I did see an early (1982-1985) coupe at an AACA show a few years ago. Celebrities sometimes show up for sale in the Hemmings Motor News classifieds or on eBay Motors—as I updated this entry in February 2019, there was a 1988 Gray Celebrity wagon with 24,000 (!) miles for sale in Hemmings for $6,500.
Make mine Black, I think.
Other A-bodies in this blog:
Updated February 2019.
Eighties Cars 