Gmc does not build many cars like the GMC Chevette: a 2/4-door sedan / 2-door coupé utility (GMC 500) with 1.6L I4, built from 1992 to 1995 when airbags, anti-lock brakes and Japanese build quality became the world standard.
How it came about
The GMC Chevette is a small family car which was manufactured from 1992 to 1995 by General Motors do Brasil specifically for the Argentine market, where it was sold by both Chevrolet and Renault dealers. This was the result of a deal having been made whereby Argentine CIADEA-made Renault Trafics were sold as "Chevrolets" in Brazil in return for GM do Brasil being allowed to export Chevettes to Argentina.
The Chevette was a variation of the General Motors T-car platform which includes Opel Kadett, Chevrolet Chevette and Isuzu Gemini. Offered as a 2-door sedan and as a 4-door sedan, it was powered by a 1.6-liter overhead camshaft engine with a 1.8-liter Isuzu diesel engine available as an option. A pickup version of the Chevette was sold in Argentina as the GMC 500. The Chevette was the only sedan car to be badged as a GMC. (In North America, the GMC brand solely marketed light duty and heavy duty trucks until the late 2000s when the company added crossovers.) It was replaced in the Argentine market by the Chevrolet Corsa in 1995.
The hardware
Under the skin sits 1.6L I4; other versions carried different engines, listed in the specification table below. The gearbox is a 5-speed manual. These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.
Family and rivals
Where it sits in Gmc's history is not in doubt: the Opel K 180 came before it; the Chevrolet Corsa followed it; it was built at São Caetano do Sul, Brazil. On a showroom list of its day it stood against the Mercedes-Benz C-Class, the Subaru Impreza, the GM (General Motors) Hummer H1. Its Gmc stablemates include the GMC Canyon and the GMC Sierra EV.