Chevrolet Vega: Encyclopedia II - Chevrolet Vega - Problems

Chevrolet Vega - Problems

Forgotten today is that the Vega was a strong seller, especially in the wake of the Arab Oil Embargo, which drove Americans away from traditional large cars in favor of smaller compacts such as Vega, Pinto and especially foreign imports. Although Chevrolet sold over two million Vegas during its lifetime, the car was plagued with poor reliability and several highly publicized design problems including carburetor fires, engine overheating problems, and premature body rust, which began to affect sales after 1974. The Vega was later dubbed as "the car that began rusting on the showroom floor". Labor/management strife at its Lordstown, Ohio production plant added to the car's woes. Its rival counterpart, the Ford Pinto, was known for ruptured fuel tanks, where the Vega's own defects were the oil-burning engine and body corrosion. To dispell the Vega's sagging sales and reputation, Chevrolet made many internal improvements to the 140 in³ four-cylinder engine for the 1976 model and backed this engine with an unprecedented "6-year, 60,000-mile warranty" at a time when most new cars and their drivelines were backed by one-year, 12,000-mile warranties. By that time, the Vega's sales were sagging further due to new competition from two new small Chevrolet models, including the sportier Vega-derived Monza and the smaller Chevette, which essentially replaced the Vega as Chevy's import-fighter.

In a book later published by John DeLorean who was then president of Chevrolet, he indicated that the prototype car literally fell apart just eight miles into its first road test. Delorean claimed that the car had been designed by GM engineers rather than Chevrolet engineers and said that the car had been forced upon Chevrolet by GM management. He also criticized the engine saying that it, "looked like it had been taken off a 1920 farm tractor."

All these well publicized problems combined with a string of recalls hurt public perception and sales. Forbes Magazine included the Vega on its list of the worst cars of all time.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Problems", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki