Like old Vauxhalls? Like classic rally cars? Like homologation specials? Right this way
Perhaps it’s a symptom of spending too long in the classifieds, though it can often feel like all the motorsport specials have been dug up. That Escort Twin Cam, so-and-so’s Audi Sport Quattro, the really-final-last-one-off Delta Integrale. It’s becoming ever harder to get genuinely excited about a ‘find’ because so many of them have already been discovered. Sometimes more than once.
The HSR was a 1980 evolution of the 1976 Chevette HS. The latter, as plenty of PH will know, was a homologation car; the newly created Dealer Team Vauxhall wanted a rally car to beat the rear-drive Escorts in the mid-70s. So the 2.3-litre slant four was crammed into a Chevette and a cult classic created almost overnight. Wasn’t a bad little rally rascal, either, with all that grunt and lightweight agility. Pentti Airikkala won the 1979 British Rally Championship driving one.
The HSR modifications aimed to keep the Chevette competitive against the competition, introducing the superb wide bodykit that permitted the fitment of chunkier tyres to the racers . The rear axle was revised as well, with more pickup points for the suspension, presumably offering up a bit more control over lumps and bumps and during the lurid powerslides the Vauxhalls became famous for.
As was so often the case with homologation specials, the HS didn’t sell well; a buying public gripped by the misery of the '70s wasn’t much interested in a souped-up Chevette. So it’s believed that a lot of HSR road cars were built from HSes left unsold in showrooms.
Certainly it still looks eminently presentable while still boasting plenty of original features like the dealer stickers, tartan seats and decals. We’d bet those new carbs and exhaust have the engine running better than ever. And that the steering wheel has many stories to tell of 35,000 miles. The bootful of spares looks like a treasure trove of Chevette paraphernalia.
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