2025 will see the 50th anniversary of the launch of two significant cars into the UK car market – the Vauxhall Chevette and the Vauxhall Cavalier – both of which were destined to not only help turn-round the fortunes of Vauxhalls UK operations, but also benchmarking new standards in their individual sectors of the car market.
Vauxhall Chevette – MAY 1975
- New Vauxhall Chevette went on sale on 1 May 1975, priced at £1,593 and from 1975 until 1978 the Chevette was the UK’s best-selling hatchback.
- Initial production centred at Vauxhall’s Luton, factory, but Chevette assembly was later moved to the Ellesmere Port plant in Cheshire to allow production of the larger Cavalier and Carlton models to be moved to Luton from the Opel plants in Belgium and Germany.
- More conventional two and four-door saloons, and three-door estate variants joined the Chevette line-up from June 1976. A van version, based on the estate and called the Bedford Chevanne, was also built, and badged as part of GM’s Bedford commercial vehicles marque.
- Production of the Chevette finally finished in 1984. A total of 415,000 Chevettes were sold in Britain.
Vauxhall Cavalier – OCTOBER 1975
- May 1975 production commences at GM’s huge Antwerp plant.
- Vauxhall Cavalier Mk I unveiled to dealers on the 29th September 1975 in Studio 6 at the Elstree Film Studio’s.
- Formal launch at Earl’s Court 15th-25th October 1975
- Initial UK model range consists of 1600L 2 & 4 door Saloon, a 1600GL 4 door Saloon and a GL 1900 2 door Coupe which featured a deep front spoiler. The 1900 engine was an option on the GL Saloon.
- UK production of the Cavalier commences with the first car coming off the Luton production line on 26 August 1977 driven by Eric Fountain Vauxhall’s Manufacturing Director.
- 1981 production discontinued – over 248,000 were sold in total over a six-year production run.
- Mk II Cavalier front-wheel drive Cavalier introduced on 26 August 1981.
- Britain’s second-best selling car (behind the Ford Escort) in 1984 and 1985
- Vauxhall sold 807,624 units of the Cavalier Mk II between 1981 and 1988.
- Vauxhall Cavaliers Mk III went on sale in saloon and hatchback versions on 14 October 1988.
- Outsells Sierra in Britain in 1990, becoming Britain’s second-best selling car behind the Ford Escort in 1992.
- Calibra launched 1989.
- Vauxhall Motorsport Cavaliers win the Manufacturers’ Championship in 1992
- October 1995, after twenty years and three generations, the Vauxhall Cavalier came to an end when it was replaced by the Vectra.
Story in Detail:
In 1974, Vauxhall Motors publicised news of an exciting design project that was based on a restyled Opel Kadett platform which had been launched in Brazil in 1973 with a later hatchback added to the model range. This hatchback only body style was launched in Britain in May 1975 – as the Chevette three-door hatchback in base and L model variations. Both had an improved version of the 1,256-cc OHV engine from the Viva, with a similar four-speed gearbox, rear-wheel drive, independent front suspension, rack-and-pinion steering, and servo-assisted, dual-circuit brakes. Initial standard equipment included a two-speed heater fan, radial tyres, reversing lights, heated rear window, and reclining front seats.
Initial production was centred at Vauxhall’s Luton, Bedfordshire, factory, but Chevette assembly was later moved to the Ellesmere Port plant in Cheshire to allow production of the larger Cavalier and Carlton models to be moved to Luton from the Opel plants in Belgium and Germany.
The vehicle was intended to fit into the Vauxhall range below the Viva, and was initially available in its hatchback version. With its Pontiac-inspired ‘sloping nose’ and inset headlamps, the UK version looked very different from the Opel Kadett and was very well received by the motoring public.
It went on sale on 1 May 1975, priced at £1,593 and from 1975 until 1978 the Chevette was the UK’s best-selling hatchback.
The Chevette’s spritely 1.3-litre engine small bodyshell, light steering, clutch, and gear change, as well as good visibility, allowed for good performance.
More conventional two and four-door saloons, and three-door estate variants joined the Chevette line-up from June 1976. A van version, based on the estate and called the Bedford Chevanne, was also built, and badged as part of GM’s Bedford commercial vehicles marque.
Following the introduction of the Astra in 1980, the Chevette line-up was gradually slimmed down in terms of both trim options and body styles. By the time of the Nova’s launch in 1983 only the four-door saloon and the three-door estate versions (in two trim levels) remained on sale until the end of production.
Production of the Chevette finally finished in 1984. A total of 415,000 Chevettes were sold in Britain.
Vauxhall Cavalier Mk I
Vauxhall decided in the early 1970’s to replace the Vauxhall Viva HC with an upmarket new model which was to be bigger in size and although more expensive, would be capable of holding its own in the highly competitive mid-range sector of the market and be capable of challenging the Ford Cortina – well that was the dream!
Vauxhall wanted to increase its share of the growing company car market and saw this new model as a prime contender to help it do so. The target launch date was set for the autumn of 1975 and a new name was planned – Cavalier. By replacing the Viva and increasing the size of the new mid-range car, Vauxhall would have the perfect complement for the new Chevette.
In February 1974 Vauxhall’s previous model plans were merged into the U Car project, a decision that saved the firm 2 years of development and £50m and Luton’s Design Department set about adapting the Opel version of the U Car to produce a hugely distinctive superb new Vauxhall model – the Cavalier – a true icon of the 1970’s.
The car was first unveiled to dealers in Studio 6 at the Elstree Film Studio’s. The launch involved an ice Rink with 6 cars being moved around the new the ice. The launch involved actor Patrick Macnee best known for his role as John Steed in The Avengers and The New Avengers, leading the grand reveal and interestingly, also at the launch was the full cast of Monty Python (Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gillham, Eric Idle, Terry Jones and Michael Palin) who were promoting their newly released film Monty Python and the Holy Grail as well as joking about the common market and Eric Idle also performed a song. After the dealer launch the cars were put in the underground car park at Elstree Studio for a few days before the cars were taken in secret to Earls Court, where they were destined to make a sensational impact.
The initial UK model range was made up of a 1600L 2 & 4 door Saloon, a 1600GL 4 door Saloon and a GL 1900 2 door Coupe which featured a deep front spoiler. The 1900 engine was an option on the GL Saloon and not initially a model in its own right. Initial demand out-stripped supply very quickly and soon GM were having to look to increase production. All new Cavalier at this time were built in Belgium, at GM’s huge plant in Antwerp. UK production of the Cavalier at Luton commenced with the first car coming off the line on 26 August 1977 driven by Eric Fountain Vauxhall’s Manufacturing Director.
Following its launch in October 1975, the original Cavalier began to make an impact and gain ground in the British market, with 30,000 sales placing it as the 13th best-selling car for 1976. It climbed to eighth place the following year with more than 41,000 sales, peaking at seventh place in 1978 with over 55,000 sales. It was still the seventh best seller in 1980, though sales for that year had dipped back to just over 41,000 as the economy entered recession. Over 248,000 were sold in total over a six-year production run.
Vauxhall Cavalier Mk II
After a four-year gestation period, the new front-wheel drive Cavalier was introduced on 26 August 1981. Unlike the previous generation, the Cavalier Mk II had no styling or engineering difference from its Opel sister the Ascona C, differing only in badging and trim. On its launch, it offered class-leading levels of fuel economy and performance which had previously been unseen in this size of car.
Following the British public’s reluctance to embrace the Ford Sierra’s radical styling in 1982, the Cavalier overtook the Sierra in sales and outsold the Sierra in 1984 and again in 1985, although the Sierra had comfortably outsold it in 1983. The Sierra narrowly outsold it in 1986, and a facelift for the Sierra at the start of 1987 helped Ford build a wide lead at the top of the large family car sector as nearly 140,000 Sierras were sold that year, while Cavalier sales fell below 100,000.
It was Britain’s second-best selling car (behind the Ford Escort) in 1984 and 1985, and at its peak, this version of the Cavalier came with the choice of 1.3 or 1.6 L engines derived from the smaller Vauxhall Astra (also sold as the Opel Kadett), while for 1983 a 1.8 L engine was launched, which had electronic fuel injection. A diesel of 1.6 L was added about the same time, while the 1.8 L was supplemented by a 2.0 L for the 1987 model year.
At its launch, the MK2 Cavalier was well received by the motoring press, and like its predecessor was the catalyst for another surge in Vauxhall sales. In 1981, just over 33,000 MK1 and MK2 Cavaliers had been sold in the UK, although it was still Britain’s seventh best-selling car. A year later, sales more than trebled to over 100,000 cars as Britain’s fifth best-selling car. In 1983, it attained more than 127,000 sales (some 7% of the new car market) and was the fourth best-selling car, although it still trailed behind the new Ford Sierra. For 1984 and 1985, however, it was Britain’s second best-selling car, with more than 130,000 sales each year, comfortably outselling the fifth-placed Sierra. In 1986, it was narrowly outsold by the Sierra, which then underwent a major facelift and became available as a saloon for the first time, and gained a wide sales lead over the Cavalier for the next two years.[32]
Vauxhall sold 807,624 examples of the second-generation Cavalier between 1981 and 1988. By December 1989, it was the third most common model of car on British roads,
Vauxhall Cavalier Mk III
The final generation of Cavaliers went on sale on 14 October 1988, as Vauxhall’s version of the Opel Vectra “A”, available as a saloon and hatchback. During 1989, the new Cavalier’s floor-pan was developed to produce a new coupe – the Calibra, the first Vauxhall coupe since the original Cavalier coupe was discontinued in 1981.
In place of the Mark II Cavalier’s angular exterior was now a more rounded appearance, reflecting the change in styling tastes throughout Europe at this time. There was also a new economical 1.4 L petrol engine. The biggest changes to the range were the addition of 2.0-litre, sixteen-valve engines, better known as the “red top” or XE. This was fitted to the GSi 2000 and later SRis. Also made available was a four-wheel drive system, fitted to a 2.0i model (8 valve SRi spec) and on a version of the GSi 2000.
There were two diesels available: a 1.7 L, 60 hp (45 kW) from launch, and an 82 hp (61 kW) 1.7 Isuzu-engined turbodiesel from 1992. The early Sri’s were fitted with the 2.0 eight-valve engine from the previous Cavalier model, which produced 130 hp (97 kW) without a catalytic converter.
Despite the lack of an estate body style, the Cavalier topped the large medium family car sales charts in Britain in 1990, narrowly outselling the Ford Sierra, while Rover was beginning to phase out its Montego in favour of the new Rover 400 Series and later the more upmarket 600 Series. Other strong contenders in this sector included the long-running Citroën BX and Peugeot’s highly regarded 405.
Having first outsold the Sierra in Britain in 1990, it was Britain’s second-best selling car behind the Ford Escort in 1992. It did not lose top spot in its sector until it was overtaken by the Sierra’s successor, the Mondeo, in 1994.
The Calibra, launched in 1989, was well received, notably for its sporty although cramped interior (largely based on the interior of the Cavalier) and its streamlined styling which in turn enabled the Calibra to have the lowest drag coefficient of the period at 0.26 for the 8v model (0.29 for the rest) – a record it held for the next 10 years.
The Cavalier was used in the British Touring Car Championship from 1990 to 1995. The Cavalier was competitive, with Vauxhall Motorsport winning the Manufacturers’ Championship in 1992, but the strength of the competition, and bad luck, conspired to deny John Cleland the Drivers’ title in both the 1991 and 1992 seasons, finishing 2nd in 1991 and 3rd in 1992 – the latter a result of a dramatic final-race showdown, culminating in a collision between Cleland and rival Steve Soper.
The Cavalier was replaced by the Vectra in 1996, although privateers such as Richard Kaye and Jamie Wall would continue to use them until the end of the 1997 season.
After twenty years and three generations, the Vauxhall Cavalier came to an end in October 1995 when it was replaced by the Vectra, though sales continued for about a year afterwards and several P registered versions (August 1996 to July 1997 period) were sold.
For further information please contact the Vauxhall Cavalier and Chevette Clubs PR Officer Nigel Hughes – email [email protected] or phone 07702 904497