How much do you like your Cavalier/Sunfire?

[J-Ri]

I think I can

Understeer is the tendency for the car (usually FWD due to weight distribution) to try to continue going straight ahead when you try to turn. Like if you're on ice, you turn the wheel, and nothing happens. Same thing, just not as extreme. Oversteer is when the back end can't keep up with the front and you end up spinning, which is much more common on RWD cars. If you watch any racing, understeer is "tight" and oversteer is "loose".

The reason negative camber helps understeer is that when the sidewall starts to roll over, you loose a lot of the contact from the center of the tire, and the small contact patch doesn't have enough traction, so the tires begin to slide sideways. When I had 195/75/14 tires on it, I got some "road rash" part way up the sidewall of the RF. I still remember that corner . Negative camber makes the tire roll over to where more of it is contacting the road. With my 205/55/16 tires and the improved alignment, I've got a few scrapes on the tread that starts up the sidewall, but nothing like the taller tires with the factory alignment. I'm sure the smaller aspect ratio helps a lot, but camber helps too. I'll have to see what happens when I put my 195/75/14 snow tires on it.

I just checked my tread depth today after about 4k miles (? I should keep track of these things), and the inner shoulders on the front tires are worn 1/64th of an inch more than the center and outside. I think properly rotated, they should wear normally. Or maybe I just need to corner faster to make the outer shoulder wear more

[mexiNAMEDsqueak]

Cornering faster is always the answer lol. Thanks for clearing that tid bit up. It helped . I only have bad oversteer...it made me almost hit the median once. The way I stopped from doing that is I let off on the gas and then hit it again. It was crazy because it allowed me to stop me from going sideways and got me to go straight again.

[chuckfnf]

i have a 99 cavy z24 convertible
i bought it with 70k on it or somewhere in there
the passenger window motor burnt out which was a couple hundred bucks
on occasion the driver window leaks but its not a big deal
the stock radio sucked so i swapped it which was a pain the the ass
it currently has 118k and is having issues with stalling and hesitation but i think its due to burnt spark plug
i really like the car despite minor issues
the convertible top is great, quiet motor with no issues

[oneroundko]

Put love it and 1 problem every 50k (starter, in this case).

I probably should have said I "like it" because of some of the rust issues and the tightness of the engine, but because it's been so good to me, I mostly can't complain.

[Katie2702]

Welllll....
It's not the best or the prettiest. I have neglected it since my dad died, but she's still special!!! Everyone laughs at it though because the side drivers side mirror is hanging off, i have a huge dent in the back passenger side door, and i live in south georgia so the sun has damaged a lot of the paint . Money's so tight right now so I'm not really about to put a lot into it. Hopefully one day I'll be able to post a picture and not be too ashamed..lol

[HeWhoKillz]

pshhh.....this car would be half way decent if it didn't have so many problems with it. Even though its an 1989 with the 2.8 v 6 and only at 79000 miles since it was kept nice by my grandma, you would think it would atleast idle right. I've gotten 200000+ out of my corolla and this cavalier just acts lazy. Its loud and obnoxious and the 2.8 doesn't sound much stronger than the 1.6 4 cyl in my corolla ha. Anyone know how to check the temperture sensors on these older cavaliers???

[ChevyGirl1982]

I Love both mine. My 2002 is still around 70% factory and I've never had a major problem with her other then the fuel filter needed to be replaced 2 years ago. Any other issues I've had have been normal wear and tear type situations. She's got 333000 Kms on her and still running on her original clutch. My 1993 has 61000 Kms on her and is prob still 80% original. I've only had her clutch replaced, cause whoever had her before me blew it, hence why lack of Kms. Oh and also the entire shock/strut system and that's because the same moron thought it was a smart idea to put her 3 inches from the ground.

The Cavalier gets a bad rap and i'm sure it's either got to be someone getting unlucky with theirs, preference, or just simply that some people don't like Chevys, compact cars etc. I've been told more then once depending on the day of the week the car is manufactured also plays a role in how great the car will perform down the road. I've known a lot of people who had them and loved them, I grew up with my parents having them and the only time I've had people make fun of mine (mainly the 2002) is because they disliked Chevys, preferred trucks etc, the funny thing is they've never owned one! The Cavalier is and was a very good little performance car, great on gas, affordable to fix. It was one of Chevrolet's top sellers and I have no idea who's idea it was to discontinue it, I don't like either of the successors but that's my opinion, I've been told with the right care you shouldn't have any major issues getting a Cavalier to 600,000 Kms. I have a bet with myself to hit 500,000 with my 02 personally. There are def some disadvantages tho as nothing is ever perfect, my 02 is rough looking on the outside cosmetic wise, in the process of having the rust and paint job fixed but my 93 looks near new cosmetic wise, I'm having her painted right now, there was nothing wrong with the original paint I just wanted a change.