By Classic Yorkshire contributor Tony Lofthouse
The closure of Vauxhall’s Luton plant earlier this year brought back memories of a ‘game changer’ moment for the company in 1975 – the launch of the Chevette.
The Chevette, the first British-built hatchback of its size, started life in Bedfordshire before moving production to Ellesmere Port. The Chevette (and Cavalier range, also launched in 1975) is credited with turning around Vauxhall’s fortunes.
After struggling to keep up to the likes of Ford, along came this new supermini, based on General Motors ‘T Car’ platform and using the template of the Opel Kadett C.
Extensive research went into getting this new Vauxhall right and, in May 1975, the new Chevette went on sale with a starting price of £1,593.
The Chevette was sold under the slogan ‘It’s whatever you want it to be’ and came with a whole new fresh look. Remember the ‘shovel nose’ front!
There was a lot riding on this new car as bosses strived to reverse faltering sales from Vauxhall’s tired range in the mid seventies.
The first Chevettes came as three-door hatchbacks with a 1256cc engine. In 1976, two and four-door saloons were introduced and an estate version followed, but all used the same sized engine.
It was a huge success, becoming the UK’s best-selling hatchback between 1975 and 1978. At the same time, production of the once popular Vauxhall Viva range was drawing to an end.
The car’s stock rose even further when Vauxhall Dealership group, Dealer Team Vauxhall, pushed for the development of a racing version.
In 1978, the Chevette HS, powered by a 2279cc twin-cam engine made its debut. It was followed by the 150 bhp HSR to keep the brand rally competitive into the eighties.
A string of successes followed including winning the British Open Rally Championship for drivers in 1979 and manufacturers’ crown in 1981.
These high performance models gave the humble 1.3l hatchback bags of kudos amongst young driver.
Over 415,000 Chevettes were sold in the UK over 19 years and sales in its early years was followed by successful sales for its big brother, the Cavalier.
But, by the early eighties, rivals were coming up fast in its rear view mirror! Notably, cars like the Fiesta and Metro as well as its stablemate, the Nova (launched in 1983).
Competition was fierce in the small car market, but records show the little Chevette helped breathe new life into Vauxhall Motors at a critical time and kept many thousands of car workers in jobs.
Looking back, 1975 proved a memorable year for Vauxhall.
The quality of the later cars was an issue. The plant at Luton was worn out. I went from working with Opel to Vauxhall in about 84/5 when Moore’s of Hull closed. The difference was amazing!