(first posted 3/17/2012) You have to hand it to GM. The 1980 X-bodies were by all accounts an unmitigated disaster. Yet they took that very same platform, updated and enlarged it, and turned it into the new A-body, which lasted for fifteen years and by the end, was a relatively well built, reliable car. The Celebrity was Chevrolet’s version.
The Celebrity was introduced in January 1982 as a late ’82 model. It had the same 104.9 inch wheelbase as the Citation, but an additional 11″ of length and conventional three-box styling made it look very different. The added length put it in the mid-size class, competing with the Malibu for the same customers.
It was initially available only in sedan and coupe versions. The standard engine was a 2.5L, 151 CID four cylinder with 90 horsepower. Optional engines included a 2.8L, 173 CID V6 with 112 horsepower and a 4.3L diesel V6 with 83 hp. All ’82 Celebrities had a three-speed automatic as a manual transmission was not available at first. Due to the late introduction, only 19,629 coupes and 72,701 sedans were sold.
Not much changed for ’83, although you could no longer get an eight-track tape player. With the full model year, sales were up with 139,829. 1983 was the last year for the rear wheel drive Malibu (shown above), so the Celebrity would have Chevy’s mid-size slot all to itself shortly.
Station wagons arrived for 1984, replacing the discontinued Malibu Classic wagon. Unlike the Malibu, the Celebrity’s rear windows actually rolled down. All Celebrities received a restyled front fascia with a taller grille. There was also a new optional H.O. version of the 2.8L V6 with 130 hp.
An attractive new trim level, the Eurosport, was available on all models and included sport suspension, 14″ rally wheels (the aluminum wheels seen on the coupe above were optional) and blacked out grille and trim with red accents. ’85s were much the same, although the H.O. engine’s carburetor was replaced with fuel injection.
1986 Celebrities were restyled both front and rear with slightly smoother fascias. The diesel was history. Plain and Eurosport versions continued to be offered in coupe, sedan and wagon versions. The Celebrity really hit its stride this year, with almost 405,000 sold. Unfortunately for Chevy, the Ford Taurus would soon steal the Celebrity’s thunder.
1987s got new composite headlights, but not much else changed. The four-cylinder was still standard, with the 2.8L V6 optional. Sales were down to 362,000. One new model was the Eurosport VR.
The VR included a monochromatic exterior with matching alloy wheels, plus a custom interior. It was strictly an appearance package, although a supercharged V6 like the Buick GN would have been interesting. It looked awfully sporty though, with a large front air dam, side skirts and a grilleless nose. The package was even available on the station wagon. The above image is from eurosportvr.com, which has much more information on these special Celebritys.
The Celebrity was six years old by this time, and smoother, more aerodynamic designs like the Ford Taurus, Mercury Sable and Honda Accord made it look more dated than it really was. The Celebrity had smoother front and rear styling than earlier in the decade, but the jelly bean look was in and the ‘sheer look’ that GM had applied to most of its cars in the early 1980s was becoming passe.
I was a kid when these were new, but I only knew two people who had a Celebrity. Our pastor had a base sedan much like the one above, only in navy blue. It was later traded in on a Corsica. The one I was more familiar with was a Eurosport sedan that a friend’s parents had.
It was a pretty sharp car in dark gray with the black and red trim. I probably rode in it but don’t remember doing so. It was an ’87-’89 model as it had the composite headlights. It was eventually traded in on a dark red ’93 Grand Voyager with a red interior.
The 1988s were essentially the same. The Eurosport VR continued and was now available as a coupe, though it remained a low-production car. The special interior featured on the ’87s was eliminated and all VRs had regular Celebrity interiors. Celebrity production had been trending downward since 1986’s high, and output for ’88 was down to a little less than 260,000.
This was the last year for the coupe, with only 11,909 built. 1989 was a short model year and the last year for the sedan, as the 1990 Lumina was waiting in the wings to replace the Celebrity. In 1990, only the wagon returned, with a revised 3.1L V6 with 135 hp. It was joined later in the year by the Lumina APV minivan, which ultimately replaced it.
To the end, the Celebrity provided traditional six-passenger seating and a variety of trim options. I suspect that the sedan was especially attractive as company cars and rentals. There’s no breakout between base vs. Eurosports, but I imagine the lion’s share were standard sedans. The Eurosport that my friend’s parents had was the only Eurosport I recall seeing back when they were new. I also remember seeing a lot more Cutlass Cieras and Centurys than Celebrities. Northwest Illinois and Southeast Iowa liked their Oldsmobiles and Buicks, especially in the ’80s.
That holds true even more so today. I see Cieras and Centurys every day, but Celebrities are scarce enough for me to notice. I found the blue one in January and the white one just a couple of weeks ago (both are on the Cohort). It seems like Celebrities rusted a lot faster than their corporate cousins, as I remember seeing rusty ones frequently in the mid ’90s. Regardless, the Celebrity was good for Chevrolet; they sold a lot of them. Ironic that a troublesome little car like the Citation could be used as the base for a successful car line.
Note: a rerun of an older post.
It never occurred to me that you could still get an eight track player as a factory option until 1982.
By the time the Celebrity and kin were retired, GM knew what they were doing and the tooling was paid off. Like Chrysler’s F-body which was morphed into the M-body and virtually printed money as the luxury Chrysler Fifth Avenue, GM’s X-body paid off big.
Having driven all three- Malibu, Citation and a Celebrity, I’d take the Malibu every time! The Citation was such a disaster that didn’t have to be, and the Celebrity just failed to impress me. I had a salesman who bought a new Celebrity wagon and had more issues with that car than any he’d ever owned, so I’ll take a Malibu.
Somehow a ribbon speedometer on a “sport” version does not compute for me….
My dad bought an 86 Celebrity Eurosport Wagon in 1986 when I was 17. It was dark blue, and looked just amazing with the blackout trim, rally wheels, and red accents. It attracted a lot of attention. Soon enough teenage me totalled it (and myself) and Dad replaced it with a new 87 Eurosport sedan. I eventually inherited it in 1992 then soon after began a spring ritual of bondo, sanding, and painting the rocker panels. Nice riding, driving, and roomy cars these Eurosports were. I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen one (nothing at all last long in our Vermont winters)
Growing up in the 80s, these were everywhere.. Mostly the Cutlass Ciera cousin, but plenty of Celebritys too. My buddy’s folks had a Eurosport wagon, loved riding in it. I was sad when it blew a head gasket, and the engine was in pieces in the cargo area. If I was older I’d have bought it from them and fixed it.
Starting with a 1990 Pontiac 6000 SE wagon in 1996, I’ve always had at least one A body in my driveway. Currently have 3. Including my 1989 Celebrity which I bought in 2003. These were getting rare on the road back then. I park it winters to keep it structurally sound. Summer daily driver. 315k and still runs excellent. Super reliable, and so cheap and easy to work on when I need to. Here it is as of right now, at work. It’s never been able to be garaged, so it’s got plenty of sunburn and some rust at the bottom. Don’t have to worry about scratching it. One of these years I’ve thought about fixing the rust and trying the Rustoleum paint job. If if works, great, if not, then no real loss.
These are the kind of cars that I wish were still made.
Good post, Tom.
I still see Celebritys fairly often. What I rarely see now are the pre-facelift versions, though they were everywhere when I was growing up.
I see them as honest but basic cars. I’ve written about the Eurosport coupe, but my most popular Celebrity post is about the final year of the Celebrity sedan:
https://eightiescars.com/2016/08/27/1989-chevrolet-celebrity-sedan/
Always liked these the least of the 4 As.
It is interesting that Chevy was the first to retire their older car but that more upscale Olds/Buick hung on to theirs for another full design cycle. I am assuming because Chevy sold small cars and trucks they did not need the same level of crowding other divisions had. (Hence why they never offered an H, instead keeping the Caprice).
The only brand-new car my parents ever bought was an ’84 Celebrity wagon. They had been thinking about a new car for years but could never agree on one, so they just kept putting money aside and were practically able to pay cash for it (the minimal loan was paid off in a few months).
They special ordered the car from Max Murrell Chevrolet: cream beige with a brown interior, split front seat, floor shift and console (they didn’t really look like buckets), upgraded CL trim, 2.8 V6, A/C, AM/FM cassette, cruise control, gauge package and heavy-duty suspension. No power windows or locks (which would have come in handy) since my Dad didn’t want to spend any more than he had to, and “it’s just something more to break.” No tilt wheel either, which annoyed me whenever I drove the car since the steering wheel was set low, and I often banged my knees getting in and out of the car.
They had for 10+ years, and it proved decently reliable for an 80s GM car. I think the power steering gave them trouble a couple of times. With the V6, it could get out of its own way, but the steering was so numb you had no idea what the front tires were doing. Not a car that encouraged enthusiastic driving. I avoided sitting in the back seat because the metal GM lap belt buckles would dig painfully into my hips.
It was an OK car, more reliable and better on gas than the ’70 Chevrolet wagon it replaced, but nothing special. The ’85 Honda Accord sedan my sister bought a couple of years later, which was a honey of a car, showed just how far GM had fallen behind.