1970 – 1977 Chevrolet Vega: When Stars Go Nova
I’m part of a generation of people who grew up equating American cars with junk. It’s easy to see why when GM, Ford and Chrysler offered no shortage of examples in the ‘70s. The sentiment may have been stronger during the ’70s in places where the Big Three had no or few factories like in Southern states. Where I grew up in NASCAR crazed North Carolina may have been the rare exception. Our Northern relatives were steadfast in their GM loyalty, even as it was clear that factories were closing around them due to market shifts. By the time I was able to drive in 1984, I was already leaning toward a Honda or Toyota. The horror stories I would hear from my Dad and other adults about their brief flirtations with small American cars was enough to scare any would be car buyer away from a second hand Nova, Pinto or Vega.
The H-body Vega has always been one of the more interesting American small cars. It was GM’s first attempt at a modern small car to counter the VW Beatle and the coming wave of Japanese Imports. Along with Pontiac’s Astra, the Vega’s design suggested a more upmarket approach to the subcompact. Instead of looking like a grocery cart (Japanese Imports) or a scoop of ice cream (VW Beatle) with a hatch, it had the fully realized proportions of a proper coupe with a sporty fastback profile. This trait alone made the Vega look more substantial than other American small cars of the era, like the Ford Pinto or the ungainly AMC Gremlin – not to mention the captive Chrysler imports like the Plymouth Cricket. Only GM’s captive imports under the Buick brand offered buyers a more attractive proposition.
The miniaturization concept continued inside with a interior that looked as close to the Camaro as possible, down to the four spoke steering wheel and tach gauges. Woodgrain or the diamond glitter panel framing the instrument cluster on Cosworth models was more evidence of Chevy trying to connect it’s small car with the ever popular F-bodies. Little touches like bucket seats, a concealed compartment in the floor and nylon carpet made the Vega feel big car like and practical. The homely looking sedan was generally the least expensive version starting at $2,090 in 1971. The sedan was offered with limited options from the Décor Group and was the only version of the Vega that could not be had in GT trim.
That overall look of substance was part of a GM philosophy that saw small car design as just a larger car shrunk down. The approach made sense considering that potential buyers saw small cars as cheap. Before the major restyle later in the decade it resembled a mini Camaro from the front. GM’s engineering solutions were not as fully realized as the design prompted a string of fix as you go patches and recalls. It got so bad that many cars were experiencing engine failure before making it to the one year mark, prompting many to wonder if Chevy ‘s Vega was really a Nova by definition. By 1972 6 of 7 cars that rolled off the line were subject to recall. Needless to say the Vega’s troubles combined with those of Ford’s Pinto gave the small American car a bad reputation that would haunt the Big Three for decades. Sales peaked in 1974 at 460,374 only to drop to 78,402 in the final year of production in 1977. Even now, the Big Three’s contemporary small cars have been a failure, despite vast improvements in quality and performance. It seems that reputations die hard.
Still, its easy to forget that when new the Vega was revolutionary. It almost came with a rotary engine! As a small car, it like its larger brethren was a live axel rear wheel drive set up with a 2.3-liter four-cylinder engine. The aluminum block SOHC design was relatively advance as GM engines went circa 1970. Sporty GT variants got a dual carburetor version of the 2.3 that started out with 110 hp in 1970 and by the final year of production was down to 84 due to chasing more stringent emissions regulations. Vegas came with a 3 speed Powerglide automatic transmission or 3 and later 4-speed manuals. They also had front disc and rear drum brakes (like most ’70 era cars) and rolled on 13′ steel wheels with 6′ wide tires.
As a two-passenger door only car, the Vega came in an interesting kammback wagon, sedan and proper coupe. Chevy touted it’s kammback wagon as a 9 passenger car in advertising! A sporty GT trim would be offered, but it used the same 2.3 liter engine of the lesser trims (but with an extra carburetor). The Vega did have a near 50/50 weight balance and a lowered center of gravity that gave the potential of good handling. With a multi-link rear suspension similar to the Chevelle, Vega could have been seen as a drivers car in the European tradition. Real performance came with the 5 speed Cosworth Vega and its advanced twin-cam engine.
What’s interesting is that while Chevrolet was experiencing quality control issues during production, it was planning for a performance variant as early as 1970. John Z. Delorean’s influence was not enough to fix quality issues before launch, but somehow sealed the deal for the groundbreaking Cosworth Vega. Its debatable if the Cosworth was a effective enough halo car for the Vega brand, but it’s influence could. not have hurt the Vega GT’s image and ultimately sales.
True to form, GM stuck with the Vega for a whopping 7 model year with only marginal improvements. Each year was a gradual step up in reliability, at the expense of buyers. Initially GM might have blamed quality issues on the UAW strike at the Lordstown, OH factory in 1969 that delayed production. That however would not account the multitude of problems that continued to haunt the Vega for most of its production life. The ’74 and ’76 model years would see the biggest changes with hundreds of big (electronic ignition) and small refinements (grille, lights etc.). The subtle makeover and line up reshuffle for 1976 was not enough to keep pace with more modern (and reliable) front wheel drive cars that were arriving from Japan. By then the Vega’s quality had improved but it’s legacy is not one of advance engineering or risk taking as it should have been, but one of poor quality and corporate complacency by GM. It’s a tired tale that just seems to repeat itself. Heaven help GM when people stop buying big trucks and SUVs.
Autopolis 
Great article! It could touch on the Canadian badge-engineered variant called the “Astre”, for model years 1973-1974, then arrive to the U.S. in 1975. Note: the 2-speed Powerglide was known as the “Torque Drive” without a clutch and required manual shifting. There was also the full-automatic 2-speed Powerglide.
Markets change. The Mustang at 500,000 in 1965 was down to 125,000 in 1972 (see a pattern) and it was transformed into a Pinto based shrunken T-Bird. You failed to mention this in your article which invalides your claims
All 1975 small car sales were down from 1975 on (except the Pinto) which led Chevy to drop the nameplate and ramp up production 50% the newer smaller Chevette. The Vega sold no less in its final year than the more expensive Monza in 1977. Your claims are myth.