Radwood On A Budget: 1987 Chevy Cavalier vs 1989 Merkur XR4Ti

Welcome back! Today we’re checking out a couple more budget-friendly ’80s classics, and I know a lot of you already have your fingers hovering over the “vote” button for one of them. But condition is everything here, so you might want to read the descriptions and check out the ads before committing.

Yesterday, condition was important too, or at least previous possible damage. The Acura’s salvage title gave a few of you pause, but it still won the vote. It probably is the nicer car, but I’d like to know why it has a salvage title before making the decision. Then again, I’d also like a peek underneath the Grand Prix to check on its rust situation.

Salvage titles are a funny thing; a car was considered junk, but now it’s considered a car again. And I know it’s not even an option to get a salvage title everywhere; my buddy Stephen Walter Gossin has told me that it’s nearly impossible to wrest a car from the grips of the junk man in North Carolina. By contrast, California and Oregon both hand out salvage titles like candy, which is why that Acura doesn’t worry me too much.

Even a clean title is no guarantee of a car’s condition, of course. You can do all sorts of cruel things to a car and still have it run through Carfax as clean as a whistle. But sometimes, a car is cool and interesting enough that questionable condition and a sketchy ad can be overlooked, and sometimes a car is interesting but not terribly cool, but has been cared for well enough to make it a compelling deal. That’s the short version of today’s entries; now let’s look at the details.

1987 Chevrolet Cavalier RS Convertible – $2,500

Engine/drivetrain: 2.0-liter overhead valve inline 4, three-speed automatic, FWD

Location: Goldsboro, NC

Odometer reading: 68,000 miles

Operational status: Runs and drives great

After Chrysler brought back convertibles for the 1982 model year, its competitors in Detroit wasted no time lopping the tops off their own cars. Ford introduced a convertible Mustang in 1983, and GM had ASC create convertible versions of its J-body Chevy Cavalier and Pontiac Sunbird the same year. First-generation Cavaliers are pretty thin on the ground these days anyway, and the convertibles were uncommon to begin with, which makes this car quite the rarity.

It’s an RS model, the fake-sporty version of the Cavalier, with red and black trim, fancy steel wheels, and zero extra horsepower. It’s powered by the standard-issue 2.0-liter pushrod four, which will make the same meager amount of power until the end of time, and a TH-125C automatic, which will happily mush its way through its three gears for just as long. It has only 68,000 miles on it. The seller bought it from an elderly woman not too long ago, and went through it mechanically to get it roadworthy. They also put new tires on it, so it should be ready to rock.

The previous owner had the top replaced and the seats reupholstered, so it’s in fine shape inside as well. I can’t be sure what’s under that dash cover, but considering the rest of the car’s condition, I’m sure it’s fine. There were so many different instrument panel designs on these old Cavaliers that you’re never sure which one you’ll see; I had two 1985 Cavaliers and they both had completely different dash layouts from this one, and each other.

It’s clean and shiny outside, but it’s missing a couple pieces of trim. Glued-on trim from the ’80s doesn’t stay put forever, even on a well-kept car like this. But they’re not asking some crazy amount for this car like so many low-mileage ’80s rides, so we can overlook some trim.

1989 Merkur XR4Ti – $2,500

Engine/drivetrain: Turbocharged 2.3-liter overhead cam inline 4, five-speed manual, RWD

Location: St. Louis, MO

Odometer reading: 175,000 miles

Operational status: I’m going to be charitable and assume it runs and drives

In the first of several red or yellow flags in this car’s ad, the seller has it listed as a Ford Sierra. That’s not entirely inaccurate; the Merkur XR4Ti was, in fact, a US-market version of the Ford Sierra, but it’s not a Euro-market car as the seller seems to be implying. Ford imported the Sierra for its Merkur sub-brand, sold in Lincoln-Mercury dealers, to compete with other European imports, sort of a classier version of the Mustang.

The XR4Ti came with only one engine: a turbocharged Lima 2.3 liter four, similar to the Thunderbird Turbo Coupe and the Mustang SVO, but without the intercooler. This one has a five-speed manual transmission. The ad is really light on details; all it says is “needs some work.” I’m going to go ahead and assume it runs and drives, but that may be a rash assumption.

The condition of the interior is something of a mystery as well. The ad includes seven photos taken inside the car, and not a single one of them shows the driver’s seat at all. And this is the only view we get of the passenger’s seat. I have to assume they’re both trashed and in need of new upholstery or outright replacement.

Outside, it’s got some signs of what could be serious rust. You can see it starting to peek out around the corners of the plastic cladding on the doors and wheel arches. The car wears Pennsylvania license plates, and that’s not a place known to be easy on cars. Even worse, as a 1989 model, this car lacks the XR4Ti’s best exterior feature: the big two-level rear spoiler of the earlier cars.

This is going to be a frustrating one for a lot of you, I know; the Merkur is a lot more desirable on paper than the Cavalier, but it’s also in what could be considerably rougher shape. So I guess that’s what it’s going to come down to: would you rather take the nicer but less fun car, or take a gamble on the sketchy one?

(Image credits: sellers)