I love the design of our cars with one exception. I would like them to be about 4-6 inches wider. The extra butt room would be welcome and I think the roof height would have a more scale correct look. What do you think?
Twice the stock Horse Power would have been nice. But hey then it would have been an 84 Z28.
Just one? But I'm changing so much now as it is...
I think a lower/wider stance with bigger/wider tires would be nice. You have to remember how long it used to take cars to go from paper to production; there were essentially designed in the late 70s and there was to be a regulation ride height, but that never came to pass. Some design cues we may like/not like, such as headlight size, had more to do with regulations of the day than a designer really wanted it this way.
Do all that and I think you'd have a Chevrolet Celebrity....LoL
Just change what ever you want, I have. Wanted to chop the roof but then it would be impossible to drive since everyone's head would be out the sunroof.
On the inside my car looks like a fighter jet.
Only thing I would change would be gm would either sell all the rights to sell ALL parts as oem reproduction wise or do it themselves.This would alleviate the brick wall we hit trying to find things.Off a touch from changing the car,but being the market seems to focused on muscle reproduction and there is a small demand for our stuff in comparison but so be it.Tired as idk what long day.
I am good with my 84 as is. I have been contemplating a serious drivetrain swap (6 speed LZ9), but not gonna happen anytime soon. Once I get the head back on will drive and enjoy for a bit. Yeah right, will be modding the whole time...
Ron, I am not sure GM will ever do that for these cars. They want us to buy Cruzes, Sonics, Volts and Sparks. Re-creating the tooling to press out our parts is expensive, and I am sure the original dies have been destroyed given that Lordstown has been through Cobalts and now Cruises since our cars rolled out of there...
The automatic transmission, it should've came with a 4spd auto instead of a 3spd auto.
how about a rear wheel drive version with a small v8? i know gm had the camaro and firebird but a little smaller car with some horsepower would have given those fox body mustangs some competition. i think the 80s mustang and cavalier convertables actually look similar to me. in fact i am thinking about buying a fox body vert because of the similar looks and the availability of parts. you can find anything you need for those cars unlike are j-bodys. i know the hunt is half the fun of these cars but it would be nice sometime to just go online and order what i need!
Within the timeframe of design and production, I would have made the reclining bucket seat on my Z24 hatch be able to recline less (be more upright) in the least reclined/upright mode. My current '86 lays too far back and I feel like I am in an Apollo or Gemini capsule awaiting takeoff. Very uncomfortable if driving.
I don't recall my '85 Sunbird hatch seat laying so far back when it was 2-3 years old. Either the Z24 seat hinge has developed some 'slop' due to age, or the Sunbird was indeed different, or I am getting old. Or a combo of all the above.
Other changes within grasp of GM and the time period:
-backlighting of the L headlight switch and R wiper/DF pods for digidash interiors
-equal length halfshafts from the get go
-cupholder or two in the center console
-Some better welds and rustproofing inside the door bottoms- I think GM knew by '85 there was a problem
-Power retracting sunroof option, not that childish manual pop up/removeable model (I'll admit that would have lowered headroom, so an issue there for an already cramped car).
HP / torque on turbos and V6s was considered good for the day. No complaints from my end withn the context of the 1985-87 period, but base engines were anemic even for the standard of the day. They needed 10-15 more HP.
(Quoting a past member)-"Never underestimate a First Gen"
Wild speculation keeping in mind the thinking of the time...
Ford was seriously considering the Probe to be the replacement for the Mustang while experimenting with Turbo 4 vs V8. The SVO experiment was a sales failure as was the Probe. Some say GM was considering replacing the Camaro with a FWD vehicle but had problems finding transmissions that would hold together with higher hp engines. I know the Sunbird Turbos only got the 4 speed from the Citation the first couple of years because GM did not have anything on the shelf that could take the torque and survive a warranty period.
If the SVO Mustang would have been a sales success, you may have seen new higher hp variants on the Sunbird Turbo and Z24 models. That, and as gas prices stayed low, people just wanted v8s. Look at the Thunderbird TC of the time same deal, V8 vs Turbo 4.
The turbo cars should have had oil and liguid cooled units right from the start, with fan and coolant turbo timers. Intercoolers would have been a nice option as well. Studs instead of stretch bolts to hold the engine together, and the 7449 computer instead of the 6430 out of the box would have save me a lot of hassle.
I saw a tiny bullet point in a 1987 Car and Driver article on changes/updates (something to that effect) that had a Turbo Sunbird SE 2 door with a factory intercooler. Was listed as 180 HP. Never saw it mentioned in print after that. Equally intriguing to me was a for sale car ad in a major north Jersey newspaper circa 1988 of just such a vehicle.
But I think GM was tired of turbos blowing up and had moved on the Quad Four, so production never came to be...A great 'what if'!
(Quoting a past member)-"Never underestimate a First Gen"
