If Hondas are blondes, the SCC garage is the Playboy mansion. Which is cool. We dig blondes. Only, once in a while, it's nice to bag a brunette.In the search for something different, we've found a couple of raven beauties-theChevrolet Cavalier and Pontiac Sunfire. Fact is, there's a whole lotta parts available for these domestics; from superchargers and bodykits to serious suspension pieces.
Homegrown in Lordstown, Ohio, the Chevrolet Cavalier and Pontiac Sunfire are solid, dependable transportation for millions. In recent years, however, the cars have built a strong enthusiast following. The car crowd has discovered these cars can be tuned to look downright aggressive and run with the best of them.
The current Chevrolet Cavalier and Pontiac Sunfire were introduced for the 1995 model year. The mechanical twins were thorough revisions of GM's first-gen J-cars, introduced in the early 1980s under the Chevrolet Cavalier, Pontiac J2000/Sunbird, Buick Skyhawk, Oldsmobile Firenza and Cadillac Cimarron nameplates.
The original J-cars were built to combat the growing threat of Japanese compacts in the early '80s. These cars were GM's first attempt at a contemporary, front-wheel-drive small car in the vein of the Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic. The first attempt missed the mark, because the early J-cars were fraught with poor quality, refinement and performance when compared with the Japanese competition.
The 1995 Cavalier and Sunfire share their mechanical roots with the original J-body cars, but are far more attractive, refined and powerful. A 2.2-liter engine with 120 hp or twin cam 2.4-liter (2.3-liters in its first year) engine with 150 hp power current J-body cars.
In the past few years, significant aftermarket support for these cars has developed, much to the delight of sport compact enthusiasts searching for something different. And compared with the now-ubiquitous Japanese tuner cars, they're a refreshing change of pace.
The following pages prove J-bodies can be tuned and fettled with, yielding spectacular results. The Cavalier and Sunfire, particularly in swoopy coupe form, look menacing and sleek with the right enhancements.
Furthermore, the platform won't be replaced until about 2005, when an all-new, worldwide GM Delta platform Cavalier/Sunfire will debut, sharing its guts with the next-generation Opel Astra. This means your Cavalier or Sunfire will look fresh for years to come.