The Chevy Vega was supposed to be the common person's coupe that saw the brand into the post-gas crisis future. If you could believe it, GM even pegged the Vega as their direct answer to the Toyota Corolla and the original Beetle. Yeah, it doesn't take a genius to figure out how that endeavor went. Some even argue the Vega was the worst model in the history of Chevrolet. But a lousy car can attempt to better itself if the manufacturer has any shame.
But at least one person at General Motors had a good sense to try and squeeze some performance out of what was otherwise an emissions-choked beached whale of a mid-size coupe. Indeed, the Lordstown Assembly plant in Lordstown, Ohio, was built for the express purpose of building the Vega, only for workers to slap an anemic pair of 2.3-liter straight four-engines, the standard of which for 1975 made a measly 78 horsepower. Ironically, that's roughly the same power output made by a modern-day Mitsubishi Mirage, but at least that has a modern stereo and a warranty.
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