Subcompacts with a Difference: Pontiac Astre Li’l Wide Track, or Chevrolet Cosworth Vega?

Those who consider the Chevrolet Vega nothing more than a punchline for a tired old joke might be surprised to hear this, but GM’s all-new subcompact earned a lot of respect in its first few years — yes, admittedly, before the engine issues came to light. The editors of Motor Trend awarded the new model their 1971 Car of the Year award, while readers of Car and Driver endorsed their judgement by voting the Vega “Best Economy Sedan” in the magazine’s annual Reader’s Choice Poll in 1971, 1972 and 1973.

Pontiac was the only other GM division to get a version of the Vega. Called the Astre, it was sold in Canada only for 1973 and 1974, and became available in the U.S. the following year. Initially produced in hatchback coupe and Safari wagon body styles, the Astre sported a split grille with inset parking lamps, possibly in the hope that some of the Firebird’s sales success would rub off.

In order to fire up demand for the new little Pontiac, Detroit’s Motortown Corporation created a special edition called the Li’l Wide Track. It included a front air dam, rear spoiler, alloy wire wheels, rear window louvers, an chromed exhaust tip, and decals for the hood, body sides, spoiler, door handles, and wheel centers. The Li’l Wide Track offered no performance upgrades over a stock Astre, appealing solely to buyer’s desire for style and exclusivity. It wasn’t a new idea in Detroit at the time, as automakers grappled with keeping up a sporting image in the aftermath of the muscle-car era.

This 1975 Pontiac Astre Li’l Wide Track, found among the Hemmings Classified Ads, is a two-owner example that still features all of the special trim, with the possible exception of the window louvers. Beneath the hood is the 140-cu.in. Chevrolet OHC inline-four, sporting a one-barrel carburetor and making 78 horsepower, coupled to a three-speed automatic. (A two-barrel carburetor that raised output to 87 hp was restricted to the Astra GT.) The interior features cloth and Morrokide upholstery, and artificial African crossfire mahogany woodgrain on the dashboard, which holds the optional rally instrumentation.

Pontiac dealers could order completed vehicles, or purchase kits from Motortown and install them themselves. The package added a little more than $400 to the $3,079 base price of an Astre coupe, and orders amounted to an estimated 3,000. Jim Wangers, a Pontiac ad man who became known as the Godfather of the GTO, was a key principal of Motortown, and his Sharpie signature graces one of this Li’l Wide Track’s sun visors. The seller maintains that few of the ordered cars were actually delivered, and that this is the only example remaining.

Meanwhile, the Bowtie Division was also looking beyond the factory gates to find a way of injecting some excitement into its subcompact. In this case, the tieup was between Chevrolet and Keith Duckworth at Cosworth Engineering, pursued at the behest of Chevy’s new general manager, John Z. DeLorean. Cosworth developed a twin-cam cylinder head for the Chevy four, in addition to modifications that included Bendix electronic fuel injection, high-compression pistons, high-performance camshafts, solid lifters, shot-peened connecting rods, and a forged and magnafluxed crankshaft. When the Cosworth Vega hit the market in early 1975, the twin-cam made 110 hp, some 40 percent more than the 78 hp of the standard Vega engine.

This 1975 Chevrolet Cosworth Vega, also found among the Hemmings Classified Ads, shows just over 42,000 miles on the odometer, but the seller can’t say if that’s total actual mileage. Like all ’75 Cosworth Vegas, it’s equipped with a four-speed manual, and does not have air conditioning. Black vinyl or cloth upholstery was offered, with white later added to the options sheet. All Cosworths in this first year were painted black with gold striping and badges, and had pressure-cast aluminum wheels. There’s certainly a hint of Trans Am in that engine-turned dashboard.

Production amounted to 2,061 cars, or just about 1 percent of total Vega output, in the model’s first year, and slipped to 1,446 for its second. There would not be a third year. Though the Cosworth Vega was a competent performer, its $5,979 sticker made it more than twice as expensive as a stock Vega, and put it within $1,000 of a new Corvette. Chevrolet’s overseas rivals, like the Datsun 240Z, offered more performance for less money, too.

Interestingly, these 1975 examples for sale on the Hemmings Marketplace are priced within $500 of each other: $14,995 for the Pontiac, and $14,500 for the Chevy. They represent two different approaches to selling performance in the mid-1970s; the Pontiac looks back to the wild graphics of the muscle-car era and revives a name from the heady ’60s, while the Chevrolet embraces modern technology and a European-inspired aesthetic. Both look to be in beautiful condition. So the question is, which would you park in your garage?

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