Here’s how the Chevy Beretta became known for more than just stealing a gun maker’s name
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- Опубликовано: 3 окт 2024
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In this episode I provide the history of the Chevrolet Beretta, as well as its 4-door siblings, the Corsica and Canadian-only Tempest. After surviving a lawsuit for using the same name as an Italian gun manufacturer, the Beretta and Corsica were the second highest selling cars in America soon after their debut in 1986, but could still only maintain enough sales to last until 1996.
This is the first episode I have completed since returning from a 3-week road trip for my other channel about the Plymouth Prowler. More episodes from that trip will be uploaded to that channel over the coming weeks. Here is a link:
/ @patrickomeara9420 
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Still have my 1993 Beretta GTZ.
Fun fact, the 1990 Indy featured at 6:24 in this video is currently in my garage with 4,004 miles.
Couple things. First, the manual transmission was available in all model years of the Beretta. It was, however, never offered with the 3100 V6 or the 1991-1993 V6 powered GTZ. Also, the Quad/V6 manual transmssions weren't supplied by Getrag but rather designed and engineered by them, while manufactured by Muncie.
Additionally, the Quad4 output wasn't ever reduced to meet any emission standards, but rather to curb the failures of the head gaskets and cracked heads, prevalent on earlier engines. The 1993-1994 Quad4 HO had much smaller valves and intake/exhaust ports which left more material on the head.
Those 2.8 and 3.1 V6 engines used in those cars were some of the best sounding 6 cylinders Ive ever heard to this day. Im not sure what gave them that sound but it was close to a V8 rumble
Install a turbo muffler either engine will have a more aggressive sound. Did that with my square body 1987 Z24 with the 2.8 V6. That cpe I really miss owning these days.
I gutted the cat on my '89 GT and man did it sound even better then!
More of a snarl than a V8 rumble, but truly one of my favorite engine sounds of all time. Even better in the Fiero.
I would say they are certainly very recognizable sounding; but they were not technically great. Not compared with the 3800 series.
Dynomax muffler go perfect on these
I loved when these cars inevitably got their exhaust, or header leak, made them actually sound kinda angry and intimidating.
Yea they were great cars for teens because they sounded great but no longer had any power.
Got cute pictures I would love to get
The gurgle as I called it
In high school a classmate had one and I remember that sound. His had a manual transmission and he was always peeling out after school.
I got to see the convertible's body flex problem firsthand, as a young apprentice technician working for a large Cadillac dealership in '97. At the time, GM still had GM Technical College campuses (IIRC, they went to pure computer/correspondence courses in '98/'99), so for a few months the dealership sent me to the school in Fairfax, VA on Mondays and Tuesdays of each week. Our instructor had a bunch of stories about everything from GM's early electric car prototype (I think pre-EV1) to classic muscle cars, and the school had a bunch of GM vehicles that were not able to be sold, to include the Beretta convertible and even a brand new Corvette that had its floorpans crushed when it was being delivered to a dealership.
The instructor showed us why the convertible was never sold, by slamming the door and showing the lack of rigidity in the body. He also showed us a lot of other cool things, such as setting off an airbag in the parking lot and watching it fly up in the air.
Wow that beretta you saw sounds like something you'd see in an old looney toons cartoon.
neat! when I was in high school they had a buick leslobber that had been donated to the high school auto class for the same reason as the corvette you mentioned. it didn't even have 10 miles on it. after the class got their usefulness out of it, the instructor invited the local fire department to demonstrate their extraction tools on it and a few other cars that had been donated. it was a doorless convertible in a matter of minutes.
Probably a good reason why the Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme convertible had a roll bar on it. And being a W body they were bigger and built a bit more substantially (they are the premier choice for demolish derbies today).
I went and saw a Toyota Celica convertible at a dealer in the 90's, the panel gap from the bottom of the car to the top of the door narrowed noticeably...yowsa.
That roll hoop had no support to it, stamped piece of flat steel with shitty plastic over it. Someone could lean on it and bend it over. I think it was only there for the door handles not to look ridiculous.
I am a 42 year old guy who is obsessed with normal cars. I was a little kid back in the 1980s but even then I was very opinionated about the cars I both did and did not like. While most little kids used to bring in Goosebumps and Judy Blume to school to read during " free read hour" I was probably the only second and third grader who brought a consumer reports or various Automotive dealership brochure to read. Even though my parents tried to teach me to never talk to strangers I usually didn't unless I like their car and would have 15 and 20 minute long conversations with total strangers in the parking lot of Sears in Publix about the strangers cars. There were very very few American cars that I like back in the late 1980s with the exception of the Ford Taurus and definitely the Chevrolet Corsica / Beretta. I remember all the " heartbeat of America" commercials. I think what first intrigued me was the design of the taillights. I remember watching the commercials and wondering if the tail lights really lit up and looked test cool as they did in the ads? I even remember the first time that I ever saw one in real life. My mom sister and I flew to Cleveland from Miami and were driving through the Avis parking lot. When I spotted it I almost jumped out of the little Jitney thing. When we got to the Rental Desk the agent set a set of GM keys on the counter and I just knew my prayers had been answered. I have been praying that we would get that gray Beretta that I saw in the parking lot. To my horror when I saw the tag on the key it said 88 celebrity. My little 8 year old heart just shattered. I told my mom that I didn't want the boring celebrity and begged my mom to ask the man to give us the Beretta. The agent looked at my mom and said that if she did choose the Beretta it would be about $15 per day cheaper and would be much better on gas. He must have misunderstood her hesitation as a sign of disinterest so we've been told her that he would knock off $20 per day and admitted that they were having difficulty renting it out because it was only a two door. We ended up getting it and I was in love until I realized that it didn't even have a cassette player and both my mom and sister complained that even though the car only had like four thousand miles on it the cheaply-made interior was already squeaky and falling apart. They also noticed that there were trim pieces in the trunk that were seriously misaligned and the cargo net with missing a couple of its tension pegs we're missing causing anyting you put under it to slide to the back of the trunk. The car looked cool and sporty on the outside but I remember the dashboard feeling like it was weird looking and of course it squeaked like crazy. I also noticed that several of the burgundy-colored panels didn't match some of the other burgundy-colored Plastics. I asked my mom if they were supposed to look like that and she told me no that the car must have been made on a Monday or Friday. Although it looked a lot cooler on the outside then the boxy Camry we headed home I just remember how noisy and old the car felt and sounded. Squeaky and old especially for a car that was almost brand-new. I think the later Corsica and Beretta models were much improved over the earlier versions. When I was in high school I had two friends that were twins and whose father worked for one of the giant Chevrolet Geo dealerships down here in Miami. For their 16th birthday they both received brand new Chevy Corsica. The new Malibu which was the replacement for the Corsica I just come out so I'm sure the corsica's had been seriously clearanced. My friend Christian got a really pretty maroon one and his brother Gilbert got a nice navy blue 1. It was weird because although both corsica's were brand new Gilbert's Corsica always seem to have both minor and major mechanical issues while Christians red Corsica never had an issue. I've heard that it was the same thing with the Beretta which of course makes sense since they were mechanically identical but it definitely seeing that poretta's went extinct far quicker than the Corsica ever did. Although not as often as before I still see the Corsica every now and then but I honestly can't remember the last time I saw a Beretta IRL? I didn't realize that the Beretta came in so many different configurations until a few years ago when somebody was posting a bunch of old motor weeks. If I ever had a large amount of disposable income I would definitely love to have a collection of weird Misfit vehicles. On that list of vehicles there would definitely be a burgundy Beretta with burgundy color keyed alloy wheels.
Wow!! I enjoyed reading your reply ...almost described myself exactly!
Like the best thing for me was getting the new monthly motor tend magazines and CR magazines each month in the 80s and 90s.
I used to beg my dad on weekends to go to new car lots and look at the new cars on Sundays when the dealership was closed so we could look at the new models and occasionally we would go on a Saturday and test drive one😜
I was 12 when the Beretta came out.
Immediately...I was in love with the outside(but I also was in love with the Grand Prix, Cutlass Supreme, Buick Regal coups of the late 80s.
Same story almost similar to yours...we went on vacation to LA in 89 and I was hoping for a Beretta rental because they were everywhere, but instead we ended up with a maroon 2 door regal, so not bad.
Unlike your celebrity story we kept the Regal instead of trading it for the beretta.
My parents ultimately ended up buying 2 Pontiac Grand Prixs(1 was a white 89 2 door and the other was a 90 maroon 2 door) both had the 3.1 and were great cars we made many memories in and learned to drive in.
As close as I ever got to a beretta was having one as a rental(lol) in 1996.
It was a white 2 door base with 3.1 and man that thing would scat!!
I had so much fun in that car for a week.
Again similar to your story...I had to female friends in high school that their dads bought them 2 new Berettas when they were seniors.
1 had a 91 maroon with 3.1 and the other had a 92 electric blue with 3.1.
(My fav was the blue one)
Neither took care of them especially the one with the blue one...she let Everyone drive it and they ragged it out after about 3 years. It was either stopped or full throttle nothing in between and I always thought that was so sad considering it was given to her as a brand new car and I was driving at the time and 85 cavalier 4 door 😩
Wow your comment is so long I mean somebody can't even read your comment.
Best thing I've read this year. Classic
I still remember vividly their 1988 advertisement about the Chevy Corsica. It depicted first a submarine landscape with beautiful sharks cruising in the foreground. Then with a tidal wave a Corsica was washed ashore with all its beauty and glory. Meanwhile a male narrator with a deep and fateful voice announced: "Discover a new species! The 1988 Chevrolet Corsica!" I thought it was a smashing advertising coup, to create buzz among the target audience, young, and young at heart males. I know it resonated in my heart tremendously.
What good timing, I just took my 91 Beretta out of winter hibernation today
I had a '91 GT. What color's yours? Mileage? I miss mine!
I love your videos. Please make one for Mercedes 190E. My parents used to have them when I was a child. Back in the early and mid 90s
@@mactheknife7049 I'm guessing its primer gray from where the paint peeled off a year after buying it
I had a friend in high school that her parents gave her their Red GTU in the early 90’s it was such a cool car.
@Shawn Bishop I bought a new red 1989 for my wife back then. The red was a special color and brighter than the red on the regular Beretta's. Plus, the Goodyear Gatorback tires did help a lot with the handling.
Is it realible
I own '95 2.2 L4 Beretta with Z28 like nose/lights :) Over 380 000 KM mileage, European version. I'm it's 3rd owner, first one was older mister from Netherlands who drove this car till 2016. In 2017 second owner bought it from him and he brought it to Poland, I bought it from him in February, this year. I enjoy it, it's not GT, GTU or GTZ, it's simple, base model and I love it :)
Those 2.2's don't really die, they just get louder and louder.
I owned a 1989 Beretta. Just the regular coupe with the 2.8 engine, which was pretty peppy. I loved the sound of that engine and the digital readout on the dash was cool. Definitely the coolest car I’ve ever owned. Thanks for posting.
I owned a 89 Beretta with the 2.8 V6 and a 94 Beretta with a 3.1 V6... These were my 2 first cars and I miss them both.
I had a Black '88 Beretta GT for over 9 years 2.8 V6 5 speed digital dash red interior and a Blackrose Metallic '94 Beretta Z26 3100 V6 auto 3 years until a girl turned out in front of me and totaled it ,but that accident helped me buy my first new car Jalapeno Green Metallic '13 Spark LS helped me build credit to buy my second new car Red Rock Metallic '15 Camaro 2LT then I found my dream car a Synergy Green Metallic 2011 Camaro RS sometimes I think about that Black '88 Beretta GT :)
Holy crap dude, I had the same exact 2 cars!! The '89 was white and the '94 was green. Lost both of them in Hurricane Isabel around 2004. I had oversized valves, a gutted cat and an intake in the '89 w/ a 5 speed and took down a few mid to late 80's Mustang GT's.
The Beretta and Corsica did pioneer the use of daytime running lamps in the United States in 1995. I recall seeing them on new rental cars during a trip to San Diego. They were a rental car staple back in the early to mid 90s. I had a couple Corsicas as rental cars and they did the job...got me there and back. They were pretty innovative styling wise in 1987 and one early ad had a man driving one home after picking it up at the rental counter. Unfortunately, I think the fleet car label stuck at that point.
Welllllllll a lot of GMs had the DRLs at that time because Canada mandated it and they offered it in both markets.
Pioneering DRL's, Wow!, I'm impressed!
I had a 92 and I wired my aftermarket fog lights to the empty DRL spot in the fuse block.
They only used drl because they were already required in canaduh... Aha the Corsica was actually meant to be a rental only vehicle.
I had a "last year" 1996 Corsica back in the day.. 2.2 auto.. bought it used in 2000.. didn't expect much from it being just a Chevy but it turned out to be one of the best cars I ever owned.. drove that thing til 2013 when it got rear ended while it was parked.. they really were solid and reliable cars for their time.. it never let me down.
Seeing car videos on perfectly regular late 80s to early 2000s cars is just so addictive for some reason. Why not a pickup truck? The GMT 400 series trucks?
that would be a hell yeah on the gmt 400 i had a 91 chevy k1500 i loved that truck it had the 350 with a manual transmission
Those are still pretty popular and still around
what an unexpectedly wholesome settlement between the two companies 👏
For real.
Sued for 250 million, settled for a 500k donation, lol
Man, I always wanted a Beretta. The name alone sounds cool, even when I found out it was also the name of a handgun. I remember being 8 and being a nosy kid that liked cars, I would peek into my neighbors Z26 a lot. I don’t think he mind as much, but I barely saw it move.
was the sane back in the day I used to look at my neighbors cars especially this old 80s golf gti Volkswagen I used to see sit there and once in a while he would take it out and drive it and I would have weird names for the cars lol
The fact that Beretta is also a gun manufacturer only makes GM's Beretta even cooler.
If I had a good paying job, 1990s I would look at a Beretta. I think later years had a convertible version. The Dodge Duster V6 coupe was + too in the era.
Loved the Beretta and the Video. Thank you for talking about these weird, forgotten about cars when nobody else does
Big Car has similar videos, but most of what he talks about are cars that weren't sold here in the States. Which is fine by me because I know these cars from video games like Gran Turismo
I bought a 1988 Beretta in June of 89. It was a good car, no major problems ever. It had 230,000 miles when I finally sold it.
The Lincoln Mark 8 LSC I wanna see. One of the best Lincolns
Mark VII maybe?
You read my mind.
I had both a Corsica and Beretta back in the 90s.The Corsica was my school car back in 1989.Not too bad cars.Nice that both GM and Beretta worked things out
I used to drive a 93 Pontiac Bonneville SSEi just after High School into my 20’s I never see any from that generation anymore, and would love to see an episode done on the Bonneville.
I remember that car! I never had one, but I loved that car when it came out! I think it was one of the first cars with heads up display.
I love that generation SSEi, they were big and had that supercharged 3800. Just like those big mid 90s Buick Riv's with the 3800 sc. So cool to have a quick big car.
I had a 94, loved it! 288000 mi, only replaced the wear items and the supercharger front seal. All cars should have HUD
I've got a 2003 SSEi and the 10th gen SSEi isnt common anymore either. It's a super nice car
I took my driving test in a 93 Pontiac Bonneville SE
Berrata had those one of a kind door handles. Its sad we don't see more around. My friends sister had that early 90s bright yellow Berreta that was nostalgic af 3100 v6
I had a 1992 Beretta base model with the 3.1 V-6 and 5 speed manual. I loved that car! It was my commuter car to college. Had plenty of power and got great fuel economy. Had over 180,000 miles when I got rid of it.
Def looking forward to the Celebrity video.
And it's cousin the Oldsmobile Gutless Ciera
We had one in 96. Was such a mess of a car. Then my girlfriend went and bought one in 03 on her own. Passing on a z26 beretta and a 80’s Monte Carlo. I’m a car guy and told her that I should look over any car she was looking at. That car was nothing but problems too. Both would stall out when making a left turn.
Yes please!! My first car was an 89 Celebrity with those BEAUTIFUL “euro spec” headlights and the “iron duke 4tech” engine. I learned how to change oil and many other money saving maintenance things with that car. I miss that car. It was tough.
I had a 1988 Celebrity that my friend gave me. It’s was a clapped out old econobox, but we had a lot of good trips and adventures in that slow, old Celebritard.
This may be the first time in recorded history that “looking forward to” was in the same sentence as “Chevrolet Celebrity”.
I worked at a Chevy dealership as a car salesman in 1988 87 88 actually we sold Berettas like crazy they were extremely popular if folks didn't want to buy the Camaro they either bought the Beretta or they bought the Chevy cavalier z24 they were nice cars affordable. The Corsica kind of was popular it wasn't really much of a car but at the time the Beretta was pretty cool
Awesome to see you included the Feretta in there! I'm the current owner of that car and if anyone wants to learn more about it they can feel free to check out the video I've made on it.
I loved my Beretta GT, it also had a 5 speed getrag that shifted beautifully. It was quick, efficient, handled well, and unlike coupes today had a usable backseat.
I had a base 93 with a 3.1 auto. 92 beretta GT 3.1 5speed and a 93 z24 cavalier 3.1 5 speed. Loved all of them. 93 has the most miles, 220,000 when I sold it and still very reliable. Loved the sound of those engines
Perfect. My ex-wife and I had a 96. It was ok. I loved the rocking seat feature. Wished it had cruise.
I had a 1989 Beretta GT when I was 24. Early 90's. It was BADASS for its time. Mine had the digital dash and power everything. Fun to drive and very reliable.
I had one of the same year, was fully kitted out too as it was a GM dealer demonstrator car before I bought it.
Can't believe how little it took to be happy back then.
This reminds me of when an old coworker of mine and I went out for lunch on our lunch break back in 2002. I was driving a 2000 Camaro, and he had a 1990 base model Beretta. He made a big left turn across a four-lane road and gunned it, looked over at me and said "Man I'm glad I drive a sports car" My reaction was simple: 😐😐😐
I actually spotted a Beretta roughly 6 months ago. I took photos of it since I had never seen one before lol. It looked great for its age, so I bet the owner really values it.
I always called the Corsica the Chevy Coarse it sucks...lol
I bought a Black ‘89 GTU in May of 1989 off the showroom floor and I miss that cheaply built car almost every day! Loved it so much!
These cars were beautiful, I can remember back as a 5 year old seeing them run around brand new, they sounded like they had flowmasters built in. They were the most popular cars on hotrod magazine along with the dodge Shelby csx and pontiac grand am gt 😀😎
My first car was a 1991 Corsica, loved that car to death... literally. It was my grandmother's car, she gave it to me in 2004 when she bought a new car. Lots of great memories, a couple of near death experiences (car was pretty quick), I will forever have a place in my heart for the Chevy Corsica.
I still own an '87 Fiero GT. Still looks awesome!
Brings back memories. A friend had an 89 in HS back in the mid 90's. I had a 1986 Pontiac 6000 2 door back then. You just don't see these two cars anymore.
If the GTZ were available today with the 3.8 Series 2 motor, I'd buy it gladly.
Dig around online, good,clean examples from $2-3000
Chevy needs to bring back the baretta gtz coupe they sounded Goooood 😍
3800 engine would make it too front heavy. I'd still rather the Quad4 in a more refined and/or turbo state.
@@rjcolombe I had friends with the quad 4 they had head gasket problems...
@@TimeforchangeTrudeaumustgoEndb yeh, the quad 4 had lotsa problems. i also heard they snapped timing chains frequently too.
I remember driving my late uncles Z26 and thinking, damn that’s actually kind of fast. More importantly, it looked freaking great in that purple color. RIP to him and the Berreta.
The 90 Beretta with the Quad4 and 5 speed manual was a blast to drive and looked awesome 👍👍,I haven't yet seen a video of the stylish yet forgotten 77-78 Plymouth Arrow GT.
I owned a Beretta, I had some mechanical and electrical issues at first, but could never resolve the paint problems. Thank God the primer was decent and did not rust. The door handles did not react well with Canadian wintertime. Despite some of its quirks, for a young fella that just needed a decent car, it filled its bill well.
I bought this car new 1990 GT with 3.1 V6 electronic digital dash and 16” aluminum wheels. My first new car and I loved it until the paint started to peel off of it. I never bought another Chevy until 2014 Malibu and haven’t looked back since. Great video 🙏
I have recently found your channel and love it!! You are covering my generation of cars! Had a 91 cavalier z24 a 92 mazda 323 hatch a 92 Elantra, the list goes on. But my favorite car was my first. 1984 Pontiac 6000 STE. Absolutely loved it. Wish I still had it. I would love to see a video on it. Thanks for the great information in your videos. Keep it up.
I had a 1988 Chevrolet Corsica in LT trim with every single option available, I drove that car well past 350,000 miles, I loved the 2.8 liter V6 engine. My friend had a Beretta with the manual transmission, later on I had a 1988 Beretta GTU with the digital dashboard.
Another great video. I love the amount of detail and information you pack into these!
I owned the corsica , Beretta, cavalier, all them models back in the day! They all had the V6 option motor ! Also had the sunbird too ! All GT formats ! I miss them now. Wish I still had them today . Great cars from the 80's and 90's! Great video! 👍
Loved the video. I had a '94 Z26 in teal (of course every car in the 90's was available in that color). Loved that car.
Had a friend that drove one of those too. Couple years later he got a nice IROC.
Rest in Paradise Sam
My mother bought a Chevy Beretta in 1989 with about 2500 miles on the odometer. It was nice looking and refined for the time. The engine was quiet though not particularly powerful, and it looked very contemporary compared to other GM cars at the time. The problem was the interior was fragile and anything that could break, broke. Map pockets, even the strap holding the driver seat snapped. Other bits just simply fell off. To make it worse the paint just fell off the car and corrosion started taking hold. The eagle GA tires that came with picked up every nut, bolt and screw in the road. When the tires were finally replaced a few years later every one of them had about 20 plugs in them. The car finally met its demise when my sister ran it low on oil and seized up the engine. This was not an uncommon fate in my household as a kid as no one knew how to add or change oil in a car.
The Beretta’s base engine was 2.0 liter until 1990 when it became the 2.2. Both barely had enough power to get the 3200 pound car out of its way.
Neat! I had the same color Z24 as 3:04! Brings back memories!
It's B&O RR guy again!
I had a 88 V6 Beretta bought new.
Emissions system was crap.
I am a former CSX employee too.
Note,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,FORMER!
@@jeffreymcfadden9403 yeah, I had constant egr issues. Must have been replaced 5 times under warranty haha
I hated them Square cut wheels
I’ve always wanted that car. Z24 in that color.
Three of my highschool best friends drove berettas. So many good memories in those cars. 1995-1998.
THAT'S MY Z24 @ 6:55!
I feel so honored.
cool ass car, congrats
I remember being in middle school in Miami, FL. and there was a canal that ran alongside the school. On most days, the canals clarity was very poor but one day it ended up being clear and someone spotted a Beretta sitting at the bottom! Of course, the authorities were notified and the car was fished out of the canal. It seemed to have been there for what looked like YEARS. I don't know how true it was but rumors around the middle school hallways was that there was a body in the trunk of the vehicle. Ever since then, whenever I see a Beretta, I always think back to that day and seeing that car fished out of the canal.
ANYWAY, I recently came across your channel and I just binge watched all your videos. Really enjoying the content, great job! As for an idea of a future episode, I vote for the Neon. My father purchased a white base mode (with the grey bumpers) back in '94 and it was completely stripped of literally any sort of add on (not even a cassette deck). However, it was a zippy little thing for the time and handled quite well for what it was. I remember seeing Neon's all over the road for years and then one day POOF they seem to all be completely gone from the streets?!? Weird..
You need to do a video on the Mitsubishi Eclipse! In 1997 it was THE car to have and then just a few years later all gone, and now mitsubishi is part of nissan. Quite a story
I had a Spyder. Loved that car.
The Eclipse was manufactured for 22 years, what are you smoking?
The Mitsubishi Starion is my favorite.
Buy American made not china
@@jodavidson4767 you do know those are Japanese brands... No cars in US were ever made in china, and most of the Japanese cars are made in America. Nissan has a factory in Canton MS. Lots of nice job$ for American workers.
I had a black 88 Beretta with the V6 engine. I loved the car, it always felt fun to drive. You never forget your first. 😊
I would like to see something on the 1985 S-10. I had one with the 2.8 L V-6 that was a long wheel base with factory overload springs and a 4 speed standard trans. It also had a skid plate from the factory but it was 2 wheel drive. It was an ungodly tough truck. Almost put 300,000 miles on it.
I started working at the Chevy dealership when I was in high school by the time 1987 rolled around 88 I was a car salesman in college we sold brand new s10s like you described but we had to use ones we used to buy in bulk a lot of the auto parts stores would buy them to deliver parts with those little trucks ran forever tough as nails
My mother owned a Beretta GT back in the day - she loved it. White with red interior. I recall it had a digital guage cluster...rather funky for its time. Had a good motor in it, too...lots of jam. To this day she still sighs about getting rid of it. She often said it was the best car she ever owned.
My cousin got a purple Beretta in high school. Twenty years and 300K miles later she still was driving it.
Her plan was when the engine or transmission went out she would get a new car.
She ended up trading it in because it just wouldn't die.
the last sentence.😄😄😄😄
@@sebastianabsolution655 Mine too! I traded my 90 GT after 7 years and 240K miles - nothing ever went wrong with it - it was just time for me to upgrade to something fancier. It was a solid car.
My first car was a 2007 Monte Carlo SS, I haven’t seen a single one since I sold mine. I consider this pretty surprising because I loved that car. Great power.
I love your channel, great content and I could listen to you talk about anything for hours 😉
I had an 89 Beretta GT, it had a cool digital dash. I loved the car's looks. Although the performance wasn't bad, it was a tad underwhelming. Mine was older when I got it and it had electrical issues. Once the cruise control stuck at about 75 MPH! I sold the car to a college student for a grand who drove it from Detroit to Florida .
I hit and killed a deer with my Beretta one night. I still joke about killing a deer with a car named after a gun.
You get to officially say "I killed a deer with my Beretta".
I took one out with my Chevelle, but not near as catchy to say!
My second car as a teenager was an 88 Beretta with the 2.8 V6. Lots of fond memories of that car. Fun to drive. Not a bad looking little car. Got pretty good gas mileage. Well, I went from a huge 77 Buick to the Beretta so I thought it was great MPGs.
In 2004 I bought a 1995 the last year they made this one. It was a base model but actually pretty quick on it's feet for what it was.
Last yr was 1996 have 1 in my driveway now
@@bodhizafa7125 - 1995, 1996 same thing. The 96 was made in 95 so it kinda comes out to be the same difference.
Thanks for the video. My first car as a teenager was a 1988 2.8 L Corsica with the peeling paint recall :)
Thanks for this video. One correction. The manual transmission was available in 1988 with a V6. My first Beretta was a 1988 GT 5-speed with a v6.
Great video, don’t know how I stumbled upon it but I’m not disappointed. I had both a Corsica LTZ and Beretta Base , brings back memories and would love the opportunity to buy another Beretta , although with a V6 5 speed combo. Surprisingly, my Corsica was pretty quick for what it was, and the stability of that car saved my life once when i had to make a split second decision at 60mph to snap the wheel to avoid a semi that crossed the center line coming at me head on.
I would love to seea video on the Ford EXP/Mercury LN7.
I loved my LN7, and thought it was a perfect car.
I had a 1988 red GTU with ground effects, it had a digital dash and a moon roof, standard transmission. I remember it had a nice stereo, cassette player that stopped on every song when you fast forward. It made me way cooler than I was in high school.
Would like to see the Toyota Cressida please!
me too since i own one lol
Yeah, I saw one 30 years ago. Would also want to know why they weren't so well known
My mom drove a 88 Corsica she inherited from my grandma. I got her Corolla (my first car) I got the better end of that deal. The Corsica always felt awkward Numerous blind spots, the windshield distorted around the edges which meant you had check twice before you turn. You had to take your hand off the wheel to turn on the wipers and a mist swipe took several seconds for the wipers to wake up and you had the hold the control the whole time. My biggest memory was 100 hundred yards from the house going around a corner and the engine just quit like it had been shut off and wouldn't restart. I walked home came back a few minutes later and it started right up. It was something wrong the fuel injector electronics. The Corolla on the other hand got me through college for a time I was putting 1000 miles per week on it and it never let me down.
Another one I owed and would to see a video on .. the "Hyundai Scoupe"
I enjoy how the settlement shook out. "I give you gun, you give me car" 👌🏻🇮🇹
Can you do one on the Chevy trailblazer? It had to have been the most rebadged car in recent memory, sold as an Isuzu, Saab, Oldsmobile, Buick, and a GMC
Seen the Saab version recently , badge engineering at its finest
Blech. After the S-10 and K series Blazers were done, they were junk.
I still have my '04 Bravada (Olds); it's been good to me.
The trailblazer is now a subcompact crossover with three cylinder engines. It sells pretty well though, regardless of what you think of it.
Compass was a Lancer
That Chevrolet commercial for back in the day hits my soft spot.
I worked in a chevrolet dealership body shop during this Era. The Beretta and the Corsica had a minor (huge) problem with the doors falling off due to poor hinge design. I probably replaced a few hundred sets of door hinges under warranty.
At the time, my 1995 Corsica that I owned for 7.5 years (from late 2001 to mid 2009) and 113K miles was the car that left me stranded the least. As flawed as it was, I loved that car. My particular example had maybe 1 or 2 options (AC and power locks); manual mirrors and windows, non-adjustable steering wheel, and an AM/FM radio (not even a tape player). The Corsica is the only car I can remember that I've seen on the road in the past 20 years that has not been modified with over-the-top visual modifications.
My father bought my mom an 87 GT. I was in high school at the time, and absolutely loved that car. It was surprisingly quick!
Do the 87-91 Calais / Grand Am N-Body. They all literally vanished off the face of the earth!
Truly. You even forgot the first two years '85-86.
I've had an 86 Calais 2 door since 1994 and see an 88 Grand Am lurking around Tucson at various spots like the P.O. and Ace just running daily duty.
When I was in Sherman Oaks last week I got pictures of an 87-88 Buick Skylark that's in my friend's neighborhood and has been there for years, paint all faded to surface rust, body straight. It's mobile as it's parked in different places whenever I visit. That's a handful of three: the only ones I have seen for several years.
There's a Facebook page for the early N Bodies that's pretty active though. And Old Cars Report Price Guide actually has a price and value listing for the Calais. Last issue their listings only went to 1982. Hagerty Insurance didn't list my Calais when I went to buy insurance for it and set a replacement price for my policy.
I've been around too long. These were just used cars a couple years ago weren't they ?
Owned a chevy corsica and that was a great car. The size was excellent and had good back and front seat area while not being to big. The v-6 was excellent also...Turned out to be very dependable
I had a new 1990 GTZ with the 180hp Olds Quad 4, that was a fun little car = PEACE LOVE n HIPPYNESS!
Ah, my father had a Corsica as a company car in 1996. Everyone in my family hated the ugly red interior, but it held itself together surprisingly well. Around 2001, the company sold it at a discount to my father and it became my mother's car once her Dodge Colt Vista died. Around that time, the paint started flaking and peeling pretty bad to the point of needing a repaint, but I don't recall any mechanical issues. I don't know if that red interior made it worse, but I always remember it being sweltering in the Corsica's back seats. My mother never liked the Corsica, but she also protested getting a sedan and wanted another minivan or SUV. Still, most of my late-toddler years and early elementary school years were in the back of that Corsica on the red hot fabric.
In all, I was never impressed with the Corsica and was excited when they bought a used '92 Ford Explorer around 2003, but in hindsight the Corsica wasn't a terrible car and that Explorer ended up plagued with mechanical issues. I also disliked the Dodge Stratus that my father's company made him drive after the Corsica, but the Stratus had the personality of a doorknob.
The Corsica survived long enough to be my older brother's first car around 2004, and it gained scents that definitely let people know a teenage boy used it. I vaguely recall some mechanical issues starting to crop up, but by 2006 my parents sold it to the local police for a bait car. I think it was sold to another private citizen around 2007.
I'd love to see an episode on the Pontiac G6 or G8
This brought me back to my childhood👍🏾Thx
Here's one I wanted to own and would to see a video on .. the "Isuzu Impulse"
Definitely on my 80's purchase/want list! But hard to find a really nice one, since they were not sold in big numbers to begin with...
I used to own a 1989 Chevrolet Beretta GT and had the car for only 14 years with 169,000 miles. The weaknesses of the Beretta in general are having rear drum brakes, 3 speed automatic transmission, cloth interior, no power mirrors, OHV 2.8L V6 engine, exterior side view mirrors were painted black, no ABS, and front wheel drive. But what was great about the Beretta GT coupe is the six gauge clusters.
Can u pls do the Acura Legend, Acura RL.
My mom had a Celebrity wagon with the 2.8 V6. It felt pretty quick to me, but it was the first car I ever drove. So I had nothing to compare it with
My first car was the 1989 Berretta GT, blue with the 2.8 L engine. My friends said it would not last for 70K miles. They were wrong, it went to 240K and lasted 14 years. With studded snow tires, it performed well in snow and on ice during Ice storm 1998(Plattsburgh ny to Montreal Canada). It was a good solid car and had an engine that would not stop. It also got 30 mpg highway on Super gas which turned into a lower cost per mile than regular gas. It was a great car. The Grand Am GT that followed it, was a pig and never made its fuel economy numbers..
Volkswagen Quantum Syncro Wagon... I owned a 1986 version in tornado red. A gorgeous, fun car. Somewhat rare.
Your videos are incredible. Just discovered your channel with the Subaru XT video, however my family had a Beretta about 14ish years ago and remember my mom taking me to school in it. Seeing these old videos bring back memories. It used to be red, someone tried to paint it blue so it came out a flat plum purple, it did turn a few confused heads. Oh yeah, none of the gauges worked except for the digital speedometer.
That old thing also went through more oil than anything I can relate to which was how it met its demise soon after we sold it. Locked it up solid and to the scrap yard it went.
I absolutely loved my ‘96 Beretta. The long doors were kind of a pain at times, but I still miss that car.
Fun fact. Around 2001 I worked for Burch oil delivering home heating oil. The owner of the Italian gun manufacturer had a house in Prince George’s county Maryland that I delivered heating oil to. In the garage they actually had a Chevy Beretta with the tag reading Beretta. Lol. Never met the people though.
Still remember that rumble whenever my mom drove off for work in her red 89 Corsica sounded soo badass when I was a kid and still does today.
I loved the shape of all of these cars . With the blacked out windows they looked so cool and the Malibu replacement looked horrible in comparison.
I had a good friend who bought a new 88 GT..2.8v6 5 speed. Silver with gray interior. Digital dash. Great looking and sounding car. Unfortunately it had lots of quality issues.
OMG yes I was waiting for this video. I’ve had a 93 Gt with the 3.1 and a 94 z26 with the 3100. Hell I even used to be on bstuff, a forum for beretta owners. Been to a couple meets, good times.
Both the Beretta and Corsica would make good first cars right now. Simple, practical, and economical. The 1992-1996 versions would be great if you want the safety of antilock brakes(which were standard).
I worked at gas station back when i was in high school, one thing i can remember is it was rare to see a corsica that sill had a gas door on it. I don't know if it was a widely known failing part or what, but damn near every corsica that came in had the little door missing that covered the gas cap. also my buddies mom had a z26 beretta it was a pinkish color, he put 2 12 inch pioneers in that thing and she rocked.
Very, very well-produced video! Always liked the Beretta! I learned a lot I didn't know from this video!