WELL. I finally got a chance to go to New Brunswick and look at an 87 wagon...
and I'm the new proud owner .
It's a 2.0 4 cyl, automatic, power windows/locks, wonderful little car.
for $450 it was a steal! The car's in too good of shape for that price.
298k on it. It was a wonderful 2 hour drive back to Truro from Moncton in it.
I'm going to fix it for my girlfriend. It's going to be a little car for her to drive, and for us to get to the drag strip, and cruising in.
The fact it's for long cruises and Brittany means it's going to have to be reliable.
Right now the plan is just to stick my z24 kit on it(got hood, bumper, and headlight panel trim already), clean it up, and fix the rust + small problems.
There's some rust in the passenger side K frame(have a spare one from the hatch), and the rear crossframe is just gone(have one from hatch and my 94 parts car.

Down the road, I want to swap the drivetrain though. Just for the reliability of having something newer. Might just rebuild the 2.0 however.
I'm thinking either an ecotec with 4 speed, or just a 2.2 or something.
Has to stay 4cyl and automatic for the woman haha.
I'm just starting this thread to show the progress of what this wagons going through!
(I miss the '88 I had out west a little.)

I'll take more pictures tomorrow, but here are some!



I now currently own 1982 v8 hatchback, 1986 z24 parts car, 1987 wagon, 1990 3400 daily driver z24, and a 94 z24 parts car.
Starting to have quite the j-body family haha.

+1!!!

Wonderful Wagon!! Amazing what you can haul in them!! I Hauled a couple of 1x8x8's home they were tossing out at work the other day. Just fit with the Lift-gate shut!!

'87's were the first year with the Aluminum head and Distributor-less ignition.



........................................................................

You have nothing to worry about reliability wise from the 2.0, as long as you take care of it that motor will outlast the car. If I was you I'd leave it in there and just give it a bit more pep with a better exhaust from the exhaust manifold(if it has the T-manifold) back and intake.

It's gonna look bad ass with that z kit on it.

Thanks guys!,
The wagon is getting moved out to the camp, as it won't be drove for a while. Me and Brittany are going to work on it out there though on the weekends.
I put the z24 headlight trim on it so far and it looks good.
My plan is going to be to fix up the z24 bumper + hood, paint it , and stick it on.
I need to find some summer wheels to it too, that'll really change the look of it.
I just CAN'T get over how good the car works though. starts up no problems. no sounds, asbolutely nothing wrong so far exept the rust
The rust problems means I'll be digging out my K-frame from my 94 and rear axle to clean up to stick on this car.
Here's some pics because the guys at v6z24 decided to bash the wagon saying it was junk and their girlfriend would kill themselves if they had to drive a 30 year old wagon.

Nice looking car!!!!!!!!!! My wife would have driven a 30 year old car back when were going out, but now she will only drive the J convertible for fun. And as far as the 2.0, it will outlast the car as Spike J said. Once again NICE looking car!!!

Now you're just showin off!!!

Nice.

We need a J body calender.

Nice wagon !.............your girlfriend is kinda cute too !

Rebuild the 2.0 - it's a terrific little engine that will take care of you as long as you are willing to take care of it !




~ Mike ~

Now isn't that a dowdy ya do!! Most poor ole 1st gens have to live their senior years been gently driven by old farts trying to remember fond memories. I do believe this particular wagon doesn't fall into that category. Nope. First time I've ever seen a Cavalier Wagon actually Blush.....
Yep, I agree with the status quo on here. Looks like you've got mild (Z24) & WILD (V-8), how about a plain ole docile harmless 2.0 for the wagon.
Variety is the spice O' Life!!

On another note, I was shell shocked today folks!! I went to the local Autozone to get a Thermostat for my 84 2000 Sunbird. I walked out the door completely dumbfounded with the box in my hand ........they had it in stock!! I never find anything for my Pontiac stocked anymore. Spark Plug Wires - Special Order, Distributor Cap & Rotor - Special Order, Coil - Special Order. And this Thermostat is the oddball that fits in the T-Neck fitting - no housing to remove, no antifreeze to drain! I'll remember this one for a long time!! S t r a n g e



............................................................................

Thanks guys

We've been just putting away at work on this thing slowly, mostly due to it won't being drove for a little bit, and the hatchbacks more important.
But turns out it might be getting drove sooner then we thought. So we ended up cleaning it up more, and just farting around.
The air filter was completely clogged, which was completely disgusting. Low on a few fluids but no big deal.
I'm going to have to buff up the fender, and re-paint the side mirrors black due to the original owners.
I think I might be buying dodge neon SRT-4 wheels for this thing though(which'll look really good on it in my opinion)
They're only $100! The downfall is they're scratched to hell and stuff, but nothing sandpaper, spot putty, and paint can't fix.
Here's a quick pic of it in the garage with my hatch.


...I can't get over what a difference the Z24 headlight trim on the car did for looks. What a small little thing to make it look that much better haha

Alright so,
The wagon is a no-go anymore. It had some rust problems(here in Nova Scotia, rust is unavoidable), but it's a tad bit worse then I thought.
Finally put it up on a hoist to check the car out and work on it..... The cars completely caving in on itself. All structural points are gone, and where the K frames and rear axle connect, are rusting out. It's fixable, but not worth it haha. It's a huge shame but at least I have an awesome parts car now . It's funny though because the lower control arm is just about popped out of the K-frame and some kid in a riced out car cut my dad off that was following me so I started making him angry when he was behind me by speeding up when he could pass me, or slowing down to 40km when there were vehicles going by on the old highway. ANYWAYS, long story short on that, I ended up just giving that wagon everything it had on a straightaway down a hill, and it wasn't that much slower then buddies car. These 2.0's are sweet !(Incredibly dangerous thinking about it afterwards, with the control arm about to pop out + such.. but funny none the less)

ANYWAYS. So this meant I had to get my girlfriend another vehicle, and she wanted a J, so....
TA DA! I know it's not a first gen, but figured I'd still post in here


It's a 1994, 4 door, 2.2 automatic. 154k on it, with tinted windows, power locks, and little to no rust!
The only rust on this car is some surface rust on the passenger side front door, and little small places.
It's an Alberta car so win! With the price I couldn't say no.
My plans for this is to make it look more appealing to her, so I'm throwing on my PH2 z24 kit on it(my 93 z24 parts car is same color. ), new wheels, fix driverside fender, use a hairdryer to remove ABS emblems and side molding, and clean the snot out of it.
Car works and feels like new! I was quite surprised.

Just figured I'd post an update in here and let you all know the wagon is just for parts now .... Quite a shame really

Another "Mixed Emotions" post. I am both happy and sad for you at the same time.

But, you do have a nice daily for the g/f and a parts car. Sounds like a win/win