Vauxhall Chevette HSR
Graham is never going to sell his Chevette HSR, not after 20 years, one restoration done and another waiting just around the corner…
‘I love the noise, smell and unique looks – a grandad’s car turned into a boy racer!’
‘My parents moved to Wales in 1981 and I remember seeing an HSR competing and thinking “Wow, that’s a goodlooking car”. I’ve always liked them since then really. I had a Chevette rally car first and it was far better handling than any other car I had before. It was brilliant, but costing too much money to carry on rallying it and I had to call it a day.
‘ When I came to break the car, I sold the indicators to the chairman of the Droop Snoot Group and mentioned that I would like to find an original HSR to restore. He told me that he knew of one coming up for sale – they never get advertised, that’s the thing. I went to see the car, and bought it straightaway.
‘I just wanted to blow the car over originally because the lacquer on the paint had gone, but as I started, I found things that I thought could be made better, so I ended up stripping it to bare metal and starting again.
‘I put it back together almost as original, but I did fit it with my rally car’s vented discs, four-pot calipers and Bilstein dampers. I also put in a bigger radiator – the original is just too small – and moved the expansion bottle; Vauxhall located it poorly and it causes air locks.
‘I’ve since put some rear springs from a 1300 on it, too – they are softer, which the Chevette prefers.
‘I used to take it to the Castle Combe Rally Day every year, and Chatsworth rally show, too – I’ve done about 10,000 miles in it. I’ve done a few track days in it, too, though as it has become more valuable, I’ve just used it for local drives, classic car shows and Droop Snoot Group meetings.
‘I’ve got a non-sunroof roof skin, which I’d like to fit at some point. Although it has had the sunroof in it from new, it isn’t really the sort of car that should have one, in my opinion, so my plan is to fit the new roof skin when I give it another re-spray fairly soon.
‘I love the noise, the smell and the unique looks; compare it to a standard Chevette and it looks completely different – a grandad’s car turned into a boy racer! It probably is one of the best-looking Group 4 cars of its era, especially when compared to Escort MkIIs a.
‘It’s promised to my daughter and will never be sold.’