Remember Malaise Era rear-wheel-drive econoboxes from Detroit? A couple of decades back, Pintos and Chevettes were buzzing all over the place, cheerfully dropping drivetrain parts and rusted-out body panels on the pavement in the process. By now, just about all of them have met their fate in the cold steel jaws of The Crusher. Given that the average lifespan of a Chevette was best measured in five odometer figures (and many of the survivors are now getting raced to death), it was quite a pleasant surprise to find this '79 four-door in Alameda's West End (not far from the very UnMalaise 1960 Chevy Bel Air).
The MSRP for a '79 Chevette 4-door hatch was $3,914. That's pretty much as cheap as you could get back then, although you could spring for an extra $300 and get a '79 Fiat 128 hatchback! Hmm...
This one is in standard beater condition; the only reason it hasn't been crushed is most likely that nothing expensive has gone wrong with it for 15 years. Hey, this would make a good 24 Hours of LeMons car!
Find a lower bidder to make that taillight lens. Lower! Even lower than that!