2003 Chevrolet Cavalier VL from North America - Comments

Just got it today. Looks OK so far, but considering that it was the cheapest car on the gm lot, it looks great. 2-door gloss black with a 5-speed. 140hp.

Dealer assured me that the car would be covered by roadside assist for 3 years and 5 on the drivetrain. I have it on a 4-yr lease, so I'm hoping to trade it in for a 2007 olds hybrid at that time!!!

My MAIN COMPLAINT is the non-compatibility with most aftermarket cd/mp3 players. I'm going to put in a fm modulated changer because I don't want to spent the big bucks to do a radio relocate. You'd think gm would let you put a kick ass deck in the dash without having to relocate the radio!!!

Nice looker... especially for the low sticker price. Dealers are all crooks.

It's pretty fast, but it's not a muscle car. I bought it for driving to work and maybe making a few roadtrips. I didn't buy it to win races.

I think with some nice aftermarket rims, this car will look awesome.

The cabin is a little gloomy, but whatever...it's a standard car.

I call it my "Glorified Rental Car"

You don't need to do a radio relocation to install an aftermarket stereo in a Cavalier. If you remove the factory unit, you will only lose the door chime and interior light dimmer feature. You can also buy an aftermarket wiring harness with an integrated computer module that allows the door chimes and interior dimmer to continue working. The wiring harness costs roughly $35 and can be obtained at most auto sound shops.

I put an after market radio in my '03 Cavalier utilizing the chime-module/harness-adapter that the previous reviewer descrived. Mine is just a no-frills stereo with a CD player. I am not interrested in people hearing me on the other side of the neighborhood. With the chime module, I also needed an installation kit to allow the new stereo to fit in the stock radio slot. The wiring part was easy; it was the dash board that was an absolute nightmare to get apart. I had to take apart the complete, and I mean the complete, dash board. I found a detailed procedure for it on the web. I consider myself very handy with these types of things and have in fact put in many car stereos. I have to honestly say though, that I would have had some considerable difficulty with this one, had I not found that dash disassembly procedure. It was an involved job, but went very smoothly with the disassembly instructions. Unfortunately, I do not remember where I found it, but it is on the web somewhere, on a site that has dash disassembly procedures for several cars. I used instructions from an earlier year Cavalier, but it is the same dash and worked fine. Good luck, and be sure to take your time and do the job right. You only want to do it once, I can assure you. The top portion of the dash which comes out in one piece is extremely delicate, so be very gentle and provide plently of support when you take that out.