My grandma drove a blue 92 Lumina most of my life. Blue on blue. I just remember the seats being super comfortable and the A/C being ice cold. She stopped driving it around 95k mi. (No idea why). It’s been sitting ever since, would love to restore it some day.
There was something about the exhaust tuning GM did on cars of this era with the 3.1 V6, especially the Euro Luminas and Z24 Cavaliers. They sounded so good and distinctive.
They weren't particularly fancy or quick engines, but they were robust. And you hit the nail on the head - GM knew how to make a pushrod V6 with an addictive stock sound.
Depending on the car. A 3.1 Z24 with 5 -speed was faster than most cars from the late 80s and early 90s. The engine performed very well in that smaller car. The 3.1 delivered nice low end torque in the Lumina, but quickly ran out of grunt as the speed increased. The Lumina and other W-bodies were too much car for the 3.1.
THAT car...more than any other GM...is THE car that demonstrated GM had NO interest in quality interior materials. They saw the Camry. The Maxima was out. Honda's Accord was a thing. Even the fuggin Taurus was available for them to benchmark. GM decided to say 🖕 to all buyers and ignore the competition.
This was back when GM thought replacing chrome with black and red stripes and calling it "Euro" would appeal to European car buyers. They did the same thing with the Pontiac 6000STE, which they delusionally thought of as an Audi and BMW competitor!
FYI.. European styling (at least from European brands.. not Ford Europe) was about a decade behind the times. Take a Volvo 200 series. They were round from the 100 series of the 60s. The 700 series was square in 1982.. only 8 years after Ford/Lincoln introduced square styling in 1974. It took Mercedes and BMW and Volvo until the mid to late nineties to catch up with Ford’s aero stying of 1981 with the Sierra.. 1983 with the Mk VII and Thunderbird.. and 1985 with the Taurus. By which time the Japanese and Americans were switching to angular designs pioneered with Ford’s New Edge.
I had the Z34 version. What a cool car. 205 hp twin cam engine, dual exhaust, hood vents, aero kit. These cars were very roomy and capable. Great for middle class America
A buddy of mine had a Z34 with manual trans. Car was awesome for the time. He was a dipshit and trashed the car. I'm sure it's in a dump somewhere now. The manual trans was a rare option. I’ve only seen one or two others for sale.
@@BIGGIEDEVIL no forced induction on them. They had two sets of camshafts and a timing belt. Quite exotic for the time. They were actually supposed to have more power than they did but they couldn't pass emissions certification testing so they had to be detuned before they went into production.
The FBI bought a bunch of these when they first hit the market. It used to be funny to sit at my dad's office in the VaBeach area and look across the boulevard to the 7-11 parking lot, where there would be a couple of Luminas with blacked-out windows facing our parking lot. The giveaway was the fact that window tint was illegal in VA at the time. The only cars that had it were undercover police vehicles. Sometimes Dad & I would walk across the street to grab a BigGulp and a BigBite hotdog, and it was hilarious to see a grown man crouched in the back seat all by himself, sometimes with telephoto lenses poking out from under a front-seat headrest. Good times.
That's because the design of the Lumina was locked during the early 1980s and not released until 1990. Lol it was already outdated by the time it was finally released.
@@liddlebopeep Eh, right narrative, bad timeline. The Lumina design was finalized in 1985, not the early 80s. It went into production in January 1989 and was released in March 1989, so not 1990 either. It was delayed multiple times, almost an '89 model in late 1988. The Lumina sure as hell wasn't designed in the early 80s. The next gen was designed in late 1990.
It’s funny that cars are no longer “important” to GMs line-up since everyone is into crossovers and SUVs and that Disney is no longer “wholesome and family oriented” anymore. How the times have changed!
@2 Corinthians 4:7-11 Wow, what a rant… it’s incredible that you can pack in the amount of misunderstanding, misrepresentation, and exaggeration about all the various concepts that you did into one comment. You willingly believe anything and everything that you’re told about your supposed “enemies” thereby abandoning all critical thinking abilities. I’m pretty confident that there’s absolutely nothing that anybody could ever say or show you that would result in you thinking differently from how you do now. I truly hope that God helps guide you away from this very dark and misguided path that you’re on. If you continue listening to all the false prophets and demons, they will lead you to the fiery lakes of hell where you will suffer for all eternity. Follow the light and cast out the darkness before it’s too late.
The late 80s/early 90s were all about getting rid of the grille. In part because of aerodynamics but also because it make it look like it was a car that didn’t have an internal combustion engine. Today grilles have gotten ridiculously large.. and with pedestrian safety and high belt lines for rollover protection it simply isn’t as easy to make a car look good without a grille.
Basically like my 1990 Chevrolet Corsica, but in a bigger package and mine had the full guage cluster. That being said it is roomy, efficient, and I like the steering wheel.
My first car was a '90 Corsica LTZ. The only thing I would've changed about that car was swapping the 3 speed auto for a 5 speed. Many good times in that car.
@@biffwellington1782 I never owned a Corsica but had them as rentals from Avis back when they were in production. I always enjoyed driving them and thought that the driver's seat was very comfortable. The place that I have service my cars had one as a loaner just a few years ago...I enjoyed that one too.
My friend's mom had a Lumina, just like they had in this review, even the same interior, when we were in elementary school. My friend got that car passed down to her when she started driving. It was still going good, and probably 15 years old, at that point.
I have 2 of these. One is in mint factory condition always garage kept 89000 mi. Perfect inside and out. The other one has 325000 mi. and a lot of rust but it still runs great. I drive it every day. Simple to work on.
New 1990 Lumina EuroSport 3.1 baby blue with blue interior was my high school car. Went through 3 warranty transmission replacements. Other than that, I put up with my abuse well and ran like a top.
Am I the only one who’s freaked out to think that the Lumina’s highlighted in this clip are older today than a ‘57 Chevy was when I graduated from high school in the early 80’s……..😲
My wife drives a 2000 lumina on the daily and we absolutely love it. It’s boring, ugly, has freezing cold AC and gets 30 miles a gallon. It is far superior to the Taurus in terms of ease of maintenance and it rides great.
I buffed out the front and back chrome liner strips. They should have a thin layer of protective coating, but once you peel that off, that chrome finish comes through after some wax detailing. Makes the lumina less "plasticy".
I had one of these as a rental around 1991. Overall I liked it, though the one design flaw in these early Lumina's was the tiny glovebox that only Tinkerbell could use. LOL
Did you actually stop the sentence in your head, pause, and then laugh out loud? Or were you just cueing the readers how to respond? Or are you just an 11 year old girl so unsure of herself that she has to giggle at anything she says?
@@chriscornelius2518 I had an '88 Beretta (loved the car), and I though it was odd the drawer didn't spread throughout GM's vehicles. Must have been a different interior design team for the Lumina that didn't talk with anyone else.
I admit, I actually prefer the first generation Chevy Lumina over the second generation model. The first generation in Euro trim was more sportier while the second generation was comfortable but a bit too bland. In fact, I even like the Lumina over the first generation FWD Impala that arrived in 2000 that eventually replaced the Lumina.
Ya had me up until the 2000 Impala. I went from a 94 lumina euro to a 2000 Impala LS. I loved the Impala. Such an improvement over the lumina. I still miss that car. Very happy with my Cruze. Never liked the 2nd gen lumina (or the 2nd impala)
Thank you for sharing!! These are great cars. My mom has a daily driver 93 lumina euro white sedan with the 3.1 and really pack gages. She also owns a 93 lumina euro 3.1 red coupe with bucket seats and rally pack gages. They are good cars. Sedan has almost 300,000 k miles and the coupe has over 300k miles. She has owned them for years. She also used to own a red 93 lumina euro 3.1 red sedan . She loves the luminas lol. Main problem with them is the steering column, the turn signal / high beam leaver wears out and gets hard to operate and the ignition cylinder wears out. My dad pretty much knows these from top to bottom.
Same here. I have a white 93 euro 89000 mi. garage kept 2 owner perfect inside and out. I have another 93 euro with 325000 mi. Still runs great, drive it everyday but the body is going to rust out before the drive train wears out. I love these old cars. Also the 93s had antilock brakes and a temp gage.
I had a 1990 Lumina Eurosport with the 3.1 V6 and upgraded cluster. For a midsize car, it was unbelievably roomy. Car designers of today could take note. (The dash in particular was just HUGE.) The upgraded cluster had an unused warning indicator for ABS, so GM clearly thought about offering it. I was surprised they didn't just offer the superior Buick 3800 V6 instead, although the 3.1 was decently fast and had a nice "bark" to its exhaust. It wasn't bad on gas either. I could get 26 miles per US gallon of gasoline on the highway with ease.
Always thought the Lumina APV van was cool. I do see them around every now and then but that is only a few. Always appreciate the retro review stuff as always. Great video and I do still see the sedan version around a lot still and usually not low mileage as well.
My aunt still has a Lumina Thunder model that she bought off the showroom floor in 92. It is sky blue with the Thunder emblem on bottom door panels and rear deck, body skirts, 3.1litre, 2 Dr, no spoiler. I drive it once a month just to keep it from sitting too long. It has 157,000 miles and still runs relatively strong.
I watched Motorweek throughout the late 80s and well into the 2000s, but never noticed how repetitive John was/is about gauges. I noticed when I started following the retro reviews. The producers should have told him it's ridiculous.
I wonder if back then cars frequently catastrophically overheated and lost oil pressure, even when new. Today every gauge John has ever complained about is in a multi-function display, but there is far less need for them when the MFD will get your attention if your alternator, oil level or pressure, or coolant temperature is out of spec, probably before you could have noticed it if keeping your eyes on the road.
@@6mtzhp55 I'm sure it was a sign of the times. Even in 1990, some cars still had 5-digit odometers, which was more or less an acknowledgement that the cars may not make it further than that. 😂 Comprehensive gauges gave a mechanically-inclined driver a sign that something was wrong. Most drivers couldn't tell what the gauges meant other than the needle being in the red, and even then, probably kept on truckin' until failure. Full gauges were probably meaningful in performance cars. Beyond that, warning lights were probably adequate and more effective for everyday drivers.
I remember seeing this race a Ford Taurus on the beach one time but, oh crap, that was a Tom Cruise NASCAR movie. ‘I’m dropping the hammer! No you’re NOT!!’
@@ktpellas I remember Mello Yello was a big sponsor on Coke Trickle’s car lol. Because rubbin is racin and loose is fast and on the edge Kerwim don’t ya know?
My dad had one of these...memories. A 93 Euro. It had the full gauge cluster and a bit more power, it was a quick car for the time. Fantastic handling and ride but the way that 3.4 would holler when you got on the gas 😂 fun times
3.4? They had a z34 lumina for a bit. I thought the euros had the 3.1. My 94 had the 3.1. But you are right they had a throaty voice when you gunned them.
I always forget these also had the 2.5L “Tech IV”engine vs the more powerful Quad 4 they had at Pontiac and Olds. I can’t imagine how sluggish they’d be with 110 hp.
“What could be more wholesome than Disney and MGM studios?” Asks John. Man steps out of a Time Machine, “John, come over here for a second. You’re not going to believe this”.
I'm in the minority, but when I was in my mid-teens, I thought that the Lumina sedan and especially the minivan were very nice looking. Indeed, the Lumina sedan is way sleeker than the then old Ford Taurus jellybean.
Way better than the bathtub feeling from ridiculously high belt-line of contemporary cars. You feel like you are in a coffin with the slot windows of a Camaro and similar cars.
I used to love these cars though they were reliable nothing couldn't beat the Accord. Did like this generation Lumina it wasn't a bad looking car at all don't see them anymore.
Those 3.1’s were solid, great running engines. I had a 5speed sunbird GT with a 3.1, that was a fun car to have. With factory ground effects, monster torque and dual exhaust (sounded good on the inside) …. however it was a rattle trap with a Tupperware interior, but I was 16 and didn’t care, she ran like a champ👍🏻🏎️
I've seen these cars last only with a lot of work tho. If it wasn't the 3.1L engine breaking down in sort of way....the transmission was always next in line👨🔧
Really? I had an Oldsmobile Cutlass with the 3.1 V6 and drove it with no problems for 200K+ miles. The only problem it had was that the water pump would go out around the 50K mile mark. It was a great car for me.
The 3.1 engine was awesome. The only issues I had with mine was a fuel pump (not really an engine issue) and one coil pack went-quite common for any GM engine that era. Only reason I got rid of the car was because I figured I should get something else. That’s the only reason I got rid of my Montana with the 3.4 engine too.. it ran fine.
All the GM 60 degree pushrod V-6’s, the 2800, 3100, 3400, 3500, and 3900 had some sort of issue, whether it was blown head gaskets, intake manifolds that go bad, or the water pumps. The 3500 and 3900 were probably the best versions of it though and the only ones that used VVT. This engine lineup ran from 1982-2012.
Aye we all experience these cars differently and in different environments. I had this one customer with only 60k miles on a 96' Oldsmobile Cutlass with a 3.1L....Transmission went but everything else was fine😏
Brand New 1990 Lumina EuroSport 3.1 v6, auto, loaded, baby blue with blue interior was my high school car. Went through 3 warranty transmission replacements. Other than that, It put up with my abuse well and ran like a top.
I had a 1992 Euro in the Maui Blue and 16" wheel upgrade. Got nearly $3,000 off of the sticker price at the time. It had the upgraded gauge package too, plus ABS. Comfortable car with lots of room, the upholstery was laughable by today's standards, kind of like mouse fur!
During my childhood my family had two of the Lumina. The Eurosport which is featured here and the standard 4-door Lumina LS Sedan. This edition however was my favorite.
The fact that GM even though of using the iron duke in these is disgusting. By 1990, the Quad 4 was in full production. There is NO excuse as to why this car wasn't available with the Quad 4. I can't even imagine driving this car with the iron duke in it. What an awful experience that must have been. That being said, these cars were great for what they were. And I still see them on the roads from time to time. They did a good job engineering a lot of this car, and it's coupe counterpart. And the gauge issues were fixed a year later. The one I was going to buy had a full set of them and I think it was a 91.
@@MyerShift7 There's always one guy in the chat that's gotta put the Quad 4 down, despite it being one of the most easy to work on 4 cylinders at the time. It also never had many issues. As far as I'm concerned, it was one of the most trouble free and reliable engines GM made, besides the 3800. And besides, the timing CHAIN was the easiest part of the assembly. The biggest complaint I see here is head gaskets, and that was fixed during the first year of production because a vent tube was causing the oil to look like pancake batter when checked at the oil cap.
I had a 1990 regular-old Lumina. Roll-down windows, 3-speed transmission with column shift. I used to take turns at breakneck speeds! It was a great vehicle! I don't know what he is talking about with having to push the pedal down far before the engine reacts. Maybe that was in the 4-speed models. My 3-speed TH-125 snapped your neck back when you barely touched the pedal.
Even though I remember seeing a lot of these in the 90s, the early 90s Taurus's styling and comfort, along with wagon model, helped its sales over the Lumina.
@@Rick2dapper I am actually amazed at how many Buick Century's I see. Believe it or not there's a Citation I see every so often too. I can't tell you the last time I saw an old Honda. I do see a Toyota Celica every so often. I am in Ohio and am surprised any of these cars are still around.
In my early 20's, one August weekend after work ... I went to the airport and parked my old bomb car .. and rented a brand new Lumina Eurosport, white. This was in 1989 and the car was just introduced . I was very surprised that they rented this car to me... so I always wanted to visit Michigan and check out some of the factories ,,,so I took the road trip from MD to Mi (8 hrs) ....The car drove great and I got many stares from other drivers .. after all I was driving in GM country (Western PA, Northern Ohio and Michigan). I will always remember that trip and the Lumina. I told other people what I did after I returned home from the weekend .. they said I was crazy for renting a car, and driving to Mi , lol ... Yes I was .. but they didn't understand. I loved cars and traveling...A few years later I went and worked at the airport as a part time driver.
My dad had one of these and we absolutely loved it but sadly the transmission went out after 250,000 miles. Luckily no intake manifold issues with the 3.1 but I believe that was on later models not the early ones.
@@chriscornelius2518 I think we had that same problem for a little while and then my dad had the belts replaced along with the police and it went away but yes these engines were really hit and miss unfortunately..
My father had one of these as a company car. It had red plush interior. White exterior with a spoiler. I thought it was so cool when I was 11. Lol. It had all the features. Fully loaded.
This cars really was somptueuse , beautiful, amazing i finded personally, why we working not today of this cars style ? I loved the coup of nose in point like that !
I remember working on them. They had issues with the rear disc brake caliper slides. They used to freeze up. Rebuilt many. A few years later they changed the design and they didn’t seem to have the issue.
Friend of mine had a 1990 model and it ran for nearly 20 years. Faded paint. She called it, "Old Yellow." I think it accumulated around 200,000 miles before it croaked.
I had a friend who bought this as his first new car. The first day he drove it to work and opened the driver’s door to go into the office, it fell off the car…………
i'm a 2005-6 graduate these were popular highschool cars its weird seeing the accord pull up because i saw those still past college while the lumina's have pretty much all dissapeared.
Yes, one on the W-body cars; once had a 90 euro like that in Burgundy, matching interior but with the bench seat and column shifter, tachometer. That 3.1 could accelerate!
Had one of these luminas same year same color 1990 eurosport 3.1 litre multi port fuel injection had 461 000 kilometers on it when I parted with it by far the best car I've ever owned... the brand more people depend on chevrolet
They benchmarked a legend and a maxima for the proportions and interior, made for an impressive looking package, they should have benchmarked the quality too.
I've owned six vehicles so far, A 95 Chevy C2500 95 Dodge Caravan 91 Chevy S10 96 Plymouth Neon 02 Toyota Sienna 93 Chevy Lumina And you guessed it my Chevy Lumina was the best and is still currently my daily driver
My brother bought one of these in 1998 for $500 that had 200,000 miles on it and drove it for another 92,000 miles before the engine gave out. Not bad.
My step-dad had a 92' euro coupe, sis had a 96' and my best friend at the time had the dustbuster. I'm not against any of em, but I prefer the euro sedan in blue or black. Still a neat car, and love seeing some still on the road when they are.
Still looks good today but cant remmebee the last time i saw one on the road.Didn't realize how low the hp was. Drove a friend's when it was new and remember the brakes on it seemed horrible when I was playing around with it around town...seemed to take a long time to stop.
I had a 93 Lumina Euro 2 door and it was one of the best cars I've ever owned, had 285,000 miles and still ran great, it was just rotting to pieces after 17 years so i had to junk it.
My grandma drove a blue 92 Lumina most of my life. Blue on blue. I just remember the seats being super comfortable and the A/C being ice cold. She stopped driving it around 95k mi. (No idea why). It’s been sitting ever since, would love to restore it some day.
We daily our 2000 lumina. 20 years old and drives like new.
I had a 91 model, and sometimes you could see your breathe because the AC was so cold.
There was something about the exhaust tuning GM did on cars of this era with the 3.1 V6, especially the Euro Luminas and Z24 Cavaliers. They sounded so good and distinctive.
They were very good engines too. I've seen many approaching 300,000 miles .
They weren't particularly fancy or quick engines, but they were robust. And you hit the nail on the head - GM knew how to make a pushrod V6 with an addictive stock sound.
The 3.1 cars did sound good, they just couldn't back up the sound with actual performance.
And Fiero
Depending on the car. A 3.1 Z24 with 5 -speed was faster than most cars from the late 80s and early 90s. The engine performed very well in that smaller car. The 3.1 delivered nice low end torque in the Lumina, but quickly ran out of grunt as the speed increased. The Lumina and other W-bodies were too much car for the 3.1.
THAT car...more than any other GM...is THE car that demonstrated GM had NO interest in quality interior materials. They saw the Camry. The Maxima was out. Honda's Accord was a thing. Even the fuggin Taurus was available for them to benchmark. GM decided to say 🖕 to all buyers and ignore the competition.
Exactly! I had two GM (Pontiac) cars back in the 80s and they were the WORST cars I’ve ever owned! I’ve NEVER considered buying one ever since…..🤨😏
@@MyerShift7 And oddly enough a lot of their customers were happy because they didn't know any better. Brand loyalty can be a slippery slope.
@@MyerShift7 yep and it’s why ppl flocked to Japanese makes in droves. Better built, better reliable, better value.
@@briantorres7339 you forgot to mention better sushi
GM already proved they didn’t care with the ‘76-87 Chevette interiors. The whole car actually. Corporate incompetence at it’s best!
This was back when GM thought replacing chrome with black and red stripes and calling it "Euro" would appeal to European car buyers. They did the same thing with the Pontiac 6000STE, which they delusionally thought of as an Audi and BMW competitor!
I know.
Far too reliable to be European.
FYI.. European styling (at least from European brands.. not Ford Europe) was about a decade behind the times.
Take a Volvo 200 series. They were round from the 100 series of the 60s. The 700 series was square in 1982.. only 8 years after Ford/Lincoln introduced square styling in 1974.
It took Mercedes and BMW and Volvo until the mid to late nineties to catch up with Ford’s aero stying of 1981 with the Sierra.. 1983 with the Mk VII and Thunderbird.. and 1985 with the Taurus. By which time the Japanese and Americans were switching to angular designs pioneered with Ford’s New Edge.
@@calvinnickel9995 As the saying goes, an '80s/'90s GM car will run poorly longer than many other cars run at all.
@@calvinnickel9995 GM vehicles were the least durable, worst quality of all. Only seriously budget conscious people would even consider buying one.
@@texan903 Then how are there so many still on the road?
I had the Z34 version. What a cool car. 205 hp twin cam engine, dual exhaust, hood vents, aero kit. These cars were very roomy and capable. Great for middle class America
I had red one. I seriously miss my z34.
A buddy of mine had a Z34 with manual trans. Car was awesome for the time. He was a dipshit and trashed the car. I'm sure it's in a dump somewhere now. The manual trans was a rare option. I’ve only seen one or two others for sale.
Yeah the Z34s were very sharp
Super charged 3.4?
@@BIGGIEDEVIL no forced induction on them. They had two sets of camshafts and a timing belt. Quite exotic for the time. They were actually supposed to have more power than they did but they couldn't pass emissions certification testing so they had to be detuned before they went into production.
The FBI bought a bunch of these when they first hit the market.
It used to be funny to sit at my dad's office in the VaBeach area and look across the boulevard to the 7-11 parking lot, where there would be a couple of Luminas with blacked-out windows facing our parking lot.
The giveaway was the fact that window tint was illegal in VA at the time. The only cars that had it were undercover police vehicles.
Sometimes Dad & I would walk across the street to grab a BigGulp and a BigBite hotdog, and it was hilarious to see a grown man crouched in the back seat all by himself, sometimes with telephoto lenses poking out from under a front-seat headrest. Good times.
MAN!!!! I had a 90 Eurosport in blue during high school, the suspension on this car was unbelievable!!!!
My grandfather bought 4 of these that his company were selling off. I think $2500 a piece in 1992. He loved them
Amazing how affordable used car used to be
@@gtemnykhthey were probably 1/2 the price if sold at a used car dealer
i put 100k + on one and it was fun to drive and reliable...im still an owner of a z34 version
I love the Lumina Euro 3.4 sedan
The older I get the more I appreciate 90’s GM Vehicles! I feel like they looked older new than they do old lol
That's because the design of the Lumina was locked during the early 1980s and not released until 1990. Lol it was already outdated by the time it was finally released.
People could still work on them back then.
I didn't appreciate the Lumina when new either, now I would love to have an old Euro version👍
This episode aired in spring 1989...🤦♂️.
@@liddlebopeep Eh, right narrative, bad timeline.
The Lumina design was finalized in 1985, not the early 80s. It went into production in January 1989 and was released in March 1989, so not 1990 either. It was delayed multiple times, almost an '89 model in late 1988.
The Lumina sure as hell wasn't designed in the early 80s. The next gen was designed in late 1990.
It’s funny that cars are no longer “important” to GMs line-up since everyone is into crossovers and SUVs and that Disney is no longer “wholesome and family oriented” anymore.
How the times have changed!
true
@2 Corinthians 4:7-11 whoa, if you're saying that much, imagine if we're talking about PBS..😂
@2 Corinthians 4:7-11 EPIC RESPONSE!
@2 Corinthians 4:7-11
Wow, what a rant… it’s incredible that you can pack in the amount of misunderstanding, misrepresentation, and exaggeration about all the various concepts that you did into one comment.
You willingly believe anything and everything that you’re told about your supposed “enemies” thereby abandoning all critical thinking abilities. I’m pretty confident that there’s absolutely nothing that anybody could ever say or show you that would result in you thinking differently from how you do now.
I truly hope that God helps guide you away from this very dark and misguided path that you’re on. If you continue listening to all the false prophets and demons, they will lead you to the fiery lakes of hell where you will suffer for all eternity. Follow the light and cast out the darkness before it’s too late.
@@EyeonthePrize247its sad how a lot of people are like that now. I wish we all could use common sense but some people cant.
Those 3.1 engines sure gave a shriek when you got on the throttle. That's one thing I definitely remember about the 93 I had 15 years ago.
Lumina APV would make a really nice EV. Most EVs still haven't figured out what the front grill should look like
The late 80s/early 90s were all about getting rid of the grille. In part because of aerodynamics but also because it make it look like it was a car that didn’t have an internal combustion engine.
Today grilles have gotten ridiculously large.. and with pedestrian safety and high belt lines for rollover protection it simply isn’t as easy to make a car look good without a grille.
Basically like my 1990 Chevrolet Corsica, but in a bigger package and mine had the full guage cluster. That being said it is roomy, efficient, and I like the steering wheel.
My first car was a '90 Corsica LTZ. The only thing I would've changed about that car was swapping the 3 speed auto for a 5 speed. Many good times in that car.
@@biffwellington1782 I never owned a Corsica but had them as rentals from Avis back when they were in production. I always enjoyed driving them and thought that the driver's seat was very comfortable. The place that I have service my cars had one as a loaner just a few years ago...I enjoyed that one too.
My friend's mom had a Lumina, just like they had in this review, even the same interior, when we were in elementary school. My friend got that car passed down to her when she started driving. It was still going good, and probably 15 years old, at that point.
I have 2 of these. One is in mint factory condition always garage kept 89000 mi. Perfect inside and out. The other one has 325000 mi. and a lot of rust but it still runs great. I drive it every day. Simple to work on.
My brother got 292,000 out of his '90 (gave $500 for it in 1998 when it had 200K on it) No rust worries in desert dry Arizona.
I had a 90 Lumina EURO 3.1, ŴHAT A GREAT CAR. 198,000 miles
New 1990 Lumina EuroSport 3.1 baby blue with blue interior was my high school car. Went through 3 warranty transmission replacements. Other than that, I put up with my abuse well and ran like a top.
Am I the only one who’s freaked out to think that the Lumina’s highlighted in this clip are older today than a ‘57 Chevy was when I graduated from high school in the early 80’s……..😲
My wife drives a 2000 lumina on the daily and we absolutely love it. It’s boring, ugly, has freezing cold AC and gets 30 miles a gallon. It is far superior to the Taurus in terms of ease of maintenance and it rides great.
I buffed out the front and back chrome liner strips. They should have a thin layer of protective coating, but once you peel that off, that chrome finish comes through after some wax detailing. Makes the lumina less "plasticy".
Our 86 taurus wagon seemed so European back then ...gold over tan velour and a fine riding and crisp handling wagon! Quiet and smooth!
I had one of these as a rental around 1991. Overall I liked it, though the one design flaw in these early Lumina's was the tiny glovebox that only Tinkerbell could use. LOL
It's odd because the Corsica and Beretta had big gloveboxes..
Tinkerbell had a tight glovebox?
Did you actually stop the sentence in your head, pause, and then laugh out loud?
Or were you just cueing the readers how to respond?
Or are you just an 11 year old girl so unsure of herself that she has to giggle at anything she says?
@@gavinvalentino6002 "the tiny glovebox that only Tinkerbell could use" This line I've always remember from a Motor Trend review.
@@chriscornelius2518 I had an '88 Beretta (loved the car), and I though it was odd the drawer didn't spread throughout GM's vehicles. Must have been a different interior design team for the Lumina that didn't talk with anyone else.
My aunt had a Lumina. In white.
She called it the “Lemona.” 🍋
I admit, I actually prefer the first generation Chevy Lumina over the second generation model. The first generation in Euro trim was more sportier while the second generation was comfortable but a bit too bland. In fact, I even like the Lumina over the first generation FWD Impala that arrived in 2000 that eventually replaced the Lumina.
Ya had me up until the 2000 Impala. I went from a 94 lumina euro to a 2000 Impala LS. I loved the Impala. Such an improvement over the lumina. I still miss that car. Very happy with my Cruze. Never liked the 2nd gen lumina (or the 2nd impala)
Thank you for sharing!! These are great cars. My mom has a daily driver 93 lumina euro white sedan with the 3.1 and really pack gages. She also owns a 93 lumina euro 3.1 red coupe with bucket seats and rally pack gages. They are good cars. Sedan has almost 300,000 k miles and the coupe has over 300k miles. She has owned them for years. She also used to own a red 93 lumina euro 3.1 red sedan . She loves the luminas lol. Main problem with them is the steering column, the turn signal / high beam leaver wears out and gets hard to operate and the ignition cylinder wears out. My dad pretty much knows these from top to bottom.
Same here. I have a white 93 euro 89000 mi. garage kept 2 owner perfect inside and out. I have another 93 euro with 325000 mi. Still runs great, drive it everyday but the body is going to rust out before the drive train wears out. I love these old cars. Also the 93s had antilock brakes and a temp gage.
I had a 1990 Lumina Eurosport with the 3.1 V6 and upgraded cluster. For a midsize car, it was unbelievably roomy. Car designers of today could take note. (The dash in particular was just HUGE.) The upgraded cluster had an unused warning indicator for ABS, so GM clearly thought about offering it.
I was surprised they didn't just offer the superior Buick 3800 V6 instead, although the 3.1 was decently fast and had a nice "bark" to its exhaust. It wasn't bad on gas either. I could get 26 miles per US gallon of gasoline on the highway with ease.
I had one of these. Loved it. Luminas were tough cars and they were charming in their own weird way.
My aunt had this exact same car model and year but the color was a light yellow. I have not seen a single one on the road in years!
Always thought the Lumina APV van was cool. I do see them around every now and then but that is only a few. Always appreciate the retro review stuff as always. Great video and I do still see the sedan version around a lot still and usually not low mileage as well.
Lumina sedan ande Lumina Coupe is beautifulls and great cars, Lumina APV is my favorite
@@fernandorocha8459 Same. Good cars.
I love my '93 APV Its like sitting in a LazyBoy going down the freeway at 70
I drive a 3.1 92 lumina. Im about to get the transmission rebuilt in two weeks. One day i plan on engine swapping it. Its a great car.
My aunt still has a Lumina Thunder model that she bought off the showroom floor in 92. It is sky blue with the Thunder emblem on bottom door panels and rear deck, body skirts, 3.1litre, 2 Dr, no spoiler. I drive it once a month just to keep it from sitting too long. It has 157,000 miles and still runs relatively strong.
3:55 John: WHERE OUR LUMINA FALLS FLAT IS WITH ITS STANDARD GAUGE CLUSTER! LOL
I watched Motorweek throughout the late 80s and well into the 2000s, but never noticed how repetitive John was/is about gauges. I noticed when I started following the retro reviews. The producers should have told him it's ridiculous.
I wonder if back then cars frequently catastrophically overheated and lost oil pressure, even when new. Today every gauge John has ever complained about is in a multi-function display, but there is far less need for them when the MFD will get your attention if your alternator, oil level or pressure, or coolant temperature is out of spec, probably before you could have noticed it if keeping your eyes on the road.
@@6mtzhp55 I'm sure it was a sign of the times. Even in 1990, some cars still had 5-digit odometers, which was more or less an acknowledgement that the cars may not make it further than that. 😂 Comprehensive gauges gave a mechanically-inclined driver a sign that something was wrong. Most drivers couldn't tell what the gauges meant other than the needle being in the red, and even then, probably kept on truckin' until failure. Full gauges were probably meaningful in performance cars. Beyond that, warning lights were probably adequate and more effective for everyday drivers.
@@6mtzhp55 you assume people pay attention to their cars warning lights. Rookie mistake.
1:28 Chevrolet Lumina commercial are live at the Disney-MGM Studios Theme Park in Orlando, Florida in 1989.
My first car was a 1997 Lumina. It definitely was an improved version of this. I loved that car.
It's amazing that this much body roll was common and acceptable back then!
Compared to older boats that thing was taut!
👍🏽✊🏾
I remember seeing this race a Ford Taurus on the beach one time but, oh crap, that was a Tom Cruise NASCAR movie. ‘I’m dropping the hammer! No you’re NOT!!’
Yep, it was called Days of Thunder
@@ktpellas The rental car race scene between Tom Cruise's(Lumina) and Michael Rooker's(Taurus) was pretty classic 🙂
@@ktpellas I remember Mello Yello was a big sponsor on Coke Trickle’s car lol. Because rubbin is racin and loose is fast and on the edge Kerwim don’t ya know?
We had car trouble.....I believe it was the radiator.
@@unconbentional2044 lol 😂
My dad had one of these...memories. A 93 Euro. It had the full gauge cluster and a bit more power, it was a quick car for the time. Fantastic handling and ride but the way that 3.4 would holler when you got on the gas 😂 fun times
My brother had a cutlass with that 3.4 engine in it. Thing was a little beast, quick car!
@@mikem4696 Yessir!! I wanted a Cutlass myself when I turned 16..Dad vetoed that real quick lol
3.4? They had a z34 lumina for a bit. I thought the euros had the 3.1. My 94 had the 3.1. But you are right they had a throaty voice when you gunned them.
I always forget these also had the 2.5L “Tech IV”engine vs the more powerful Quad 4 they had at Pontiac and Olds. I can’t imagine how sluggish they’d be with 110 hp.
Not much worse than a Celebrity which had the same engine with a three speed I'm pretty sure.
“What could be more wholesome than Disney and MGM studios?” Asks John. Man steps out of a Time Machine, “John, come over here for a second. You’re not going to believe this”.
A Bright And Wholesome Light
That interior would be delicious with some cream cheese frosting
My parents still have their 92 lumina
NICE!!
I like these quiet older episodes; without the silly graphics and annoying music they use now.
Thank you for the GM footage. It is always appreciated. The second generation Lumina( 1995) was better.
Yeah it was..by alot...I have a 98 2 door version mc
@@Jag-leaper NIce! That generation of Monte Carlo is pretty rare. Take good care of it brother!
There you are! My Old School GM brother from another mother! You and I seem to share the same taste in cars. Have a great day!
@@jasonrogers6346 You have a great day as well.
My cousin has a 2nd gen. It's an allright car but I perfer the impala which replaced it.
I'm in the minority, but when I was in my mid-teens, I thought that the Lumina sedan and especially the minivan were very nice looking. Indeed, the Lumina sedan is way sleeker than the then old Ford Taurus jellybean.
Way better than the bathtub feeling from ridiculously high belt-line of contemporary cars. You feel like you are in a coffin with the slot windows of a Camaro and similar cars.
I used to love these cars though they were reliable nothing couldn't beat the Accord. Did like this generation Lumina it wasn't a bad looking car at all don't see them anymore.
They lasted about as long tbh... as they aged the kept pace with how many I seen over the dwindling years
Had one of the euro sports and it was a good vehicle also reliable .
Those 3.1’s were solid, great running engines. I had a 5speed sunbird GT with a 3.1, that was a fun car to have. With factory ground effects, monster torque and dual exhaust (sounded good on the inside) …. however it was a rattle trap with a Tupperware interior, but I was 16 and didn’t care, she ran like a champ👍🏻🏎️
I've seen these cars last only with a lot of work tho. If it wasn't the 3.1L engine breaking down in sort of way....the transmission was always next in line👨🔧
Really? I had an Oldsmobile Cutlass with the 3.1 V6 and drove it with no problems for 200K+ miles.
The only problem it had was that the water pump would go out around the 50K mile mark.
It was a great car for me.
The 3.1 engine was awesome.
The only issues I had with mine was a fuel pump (not really an engine issue) and one coil pack went-quite common for any GM engine that era.
Only reason I got rid of the car was because I figured I should get something else.
That’s the only reason I got rid of my Montana with the 3.4 engine too.. it ran fine.
All the GM 60 degree pushrod V-6’s, the 2800, 3100, 3400, 3500, and 3900 had some sort of issue, whether it was blown head gaskets, intake manifolds that go bad, or the water pumps. The 3500 and 3900 were probably the best versions of it though and the only ones that used VVT. This engine lineup ran from 1982-2012.
Aye we all experience these cars differently and in different environments. I had this one customer with only 60k miles on a 96' Oldsmobile Cutlass with a 3.1L....Transmission went but everything else was fine😏
@@Doc1855 Me too. 93 Corsica 3.1 with 210,000 miles still running strong.
My first impression of the lumina van my parents had when i was a kid was that was as close to a space ship as i would ever get.
I am currently the proud owner of 2 1994 Z34s one black the other red both under 60k miles. Love them both!
I had a 2dr Lumina EuroSport. Loved it!
Man, to this day I still want a Dustbuster van.
Brand New 1990 Lumina EuroSport 3.1 v6, auto, loaded, baby blue with blue interior was my high school car. Went through 3 warranty transmission replacements. Other than that, It put up with my abuse well and ran like a top.
I had a 1992 Euro in the Maui Blue and 16" wheel upgrade. Got nearly $3,000 off of the sticker price at the time. It had the upgraded gauge package too, plus ABS. Comfortable car with lots of room, the upholstery was laughable by today's standards, kind of like mouse fur!
During my childhood my family had two of the Lumina. The Eurosport which is featured here and the standard 4-door Lumina LS Sedan. This edition however was my favorite.
The fact that GM even though of using the iron duke in these is disgusting. By 1990, the Quad 4 was in full production. There is NO excuse as to why this car wasn't available with the Quad 4. I can't even imagine driving this car with the iron duke in it. What an awful experience that must have been.
That being said, these cars were great for what they were. And I still see them on the roads from time to time. They did a good job engineering a lot of this car, and it's coupe counterpart. And the gauge issues were fixed a year later. The one I was going to buy had a full set of them and I think it was a 91.
@@MyerShift7 There's always one guy in the chat that's gotta put the Quad 4 down, despite it being one of the most easy to work on 4 cylinders at the time. It also never had many issues. As far as I'm concerned, it was one of the most trouble free and reliable engines GM made, besides the 3800. And besides, the timing CHAIN was the easiest part of the assembly. The biggest complaint I see here is head gaskets, and that was fixed during the first year of production because a vent tube was causing the oil to look like pancake batter when checked at the oil cap.
God it’s been years since I’ve seen one of these
Go to your local trailer park. You'll see em. On blocks. With no windows. And 3 different colors of paint.
I had a 1990 regular-old Lumina. Roll-down windows, 3-speed transmission with column shift. I used to take turns at breakneck speeds! It was a great vehicle! I don't know what he is talking about with having to push the pedal down far before the engine reacts. Maybe that was in the 4-speed models. My 3-speed TH-125 snapped your neck back when you barely touched the pedal.
My grandfather had a Lumina or two for his company vehicle. I remember he used it a few times for personal use and it rode so smoothly. Great cars!
Even though I remember seeing a lot of these in the 90s, the early 90s Taurus's styling and comfort, along with wagon model, helped its sales over the Lumina.
I once owned a '94 Lumina base sedan with the 3.1L V6. Great car. By '94, they had added ABS brakes.
Crazy thing is 30 years later: accords of this era still are on the road & not many chevy or fords
Must depend on the area, because I still see quite a few 80's and 90's GMs on the road around here, but never any Hondas.
I only see the old camrys from this era now.
@@chriskrueger8225 It may depend on the area. I see plenty of accords from the early 90s.
@@Rick2dapper I am actually amazed at how many Buick Century's I see. Believe it or not there's a Citation I see every so often too. I can't tell you the last time I saw an old Honda. I do see a Toyota Celica every so often. I am in Ohio and am surprised any of these cars are still around.
@@BigWheel. Those camrys will never die. 1990’s Camry 🟰 the automobile version of Michael Myers
LOVE 90's GM!! Absolutely love the Lumina, all of em haha. Always thought the 2.8 and 3.1 sounded neat lol.
This is the 80s...
LOVED the 2-door performance coupe I think they called it Z-34 with the cool exhaust!!
I drove these when I sold cars and loved them , wish I had a new one rite now !
My in laws had a van exactly like the one on the turn table. It was a giant TURD!
In my early 20's, one August weekend after work ... I went to the airport and parked my old bomb car .. and rented a brand new Lumina Eurosport, white. This was in 1989 and the car was just introduced . I was very surprised that they rented this car to me... so I always wanted to visit Michigan and check out some of the factories ,,,so I took the road trip from MD to Mi (8 hrs) ....The car drove great and I got many stares from other drivers .. after all I was driving in GM country (Western PA, Northern Ohio and Michigan). I will always remember that trip and the Lumina. I told other people what I did after I returned home from the weekend .. they said I was crazy for renting a car, and driving to Mi , lol ... Yes I was .. but they didn't understand. I loved cars and traveling...A few years later I went and worked at the airport as a part time driver.
My dad had one of these and we absolutely loved it but sadly the transmission went out after 250,000 miles. Luckily no intake manifold issues with the 3.1 but I believe that was on later models not the early ones.
There was also issues with squeaking in the engine. I had a Venture and it blew up at 120k miles. It was babied all it's life.
@@chriscornelius2518 I think we had that same problem for a little while and then my dad had the belts replaced along with the police and it went away but yes these engines were really hit and miss unfortunately..
@@chriscornelius2518 kinda sounds like you neglected to change the timing belt if it had one
@@J.Gainez No timing belts on these. Only chains. The later 3.1s did have manifold issues. Like the late 90s malibu.
I don't know why the Lumina, was put on the Bonneville, 88. Lesabre platform.
Drag race to the Lunch meeting . Days of Thunder. Taurus vs. Lumina.
Late 80s to early 90s sedans had the perfect mix of hard angles and wedges and curves
I had a 91 Lumina Eurosport back in 96 when I was 18. Great memories.
I had a black 1990 Lumina Euro 4 door with red interior, front bucket seats, floor shifter and full gauge cluster.
Thou shall not compare a Chevy Lumina to any Honda Accord.
Exactly, Accord's are rusty crap.
@@Welcometofacsistube ever tried to maintain your car properly?
@@runoflife87 no amount of maintenance will stop honda junk rusting into oblivion within 2 years.
@@Welcometofacsistube JDM Hondas lasted 20+years without major corrosion issues here, in Russia.
Yeah, because these things didn't rust at all? What Harley Davidson deafened day dream are you living in?
My father had one of these as a company car. It had red plush interior. White exterior with a spoiler. I thought it was so cool when I was 11. Lol. It had all the features. Fully loaded.
Lumina Euro 3.1 is one of my favorite cars of all time.
Mine too. I have 3 of them. All run great.
As a 36 year old dad, I’d rock that van today lol
This cars really was somptueuse , beautiful, amazing i finded personally, why we working not today of this cars style ?
I loved the coup of nose in point like that !
I remember working on them. They had issues with the rear disc brake caliper slides. They used to freeze up. Rebuilt many. A few years later they changed the design and they didn’t seem to have the issue.
Friend of mine had a 1990 model and it ran for nearly 20 years. Faded paint. She called it, "Old Yellow." I think it accumulated around 200,000 miles before it croaked.
Mommy's old 94 EuroSport 🥰😍 love that faux V8 sound of the 90 degree V6
That Chevy Lumina was a good runner I had one with 180000 miles same engine and trans
I had a friend who bought this as his first new car. The first day he drove it to work and opened the driver’s door to go into the office, it fell off the car…………
A Z34 coupe with a 5-speed is the only configuration one needs to get these second hand
IF you can find one 😥😥😥😥😥😥😥😥😥😥😥😥
These were all over back then. Now I can't remember the last time I saw one in the wild. I bet most of them have been recycled into Kias by now.
i'm a 2005-6 graduate these were popular highschool cars its weird seeing the accord pull up because i saw those still past college while the lumina's have pretty much all dissapeared.
The official car of when GM completely gave up
My first car in 2000!
Yes, one on the W-body cars; once had a 90 euro like that in Burgundy, matching interior but with the bench seat and column shifter, tachometer. That 3.1 could accelerate!
Had one of these luminas same year same color 1990 eurosport 3.1 litre multi port fuel injection had 461 000 kilometers on it when I parted with it by far the best car I've ever owned... the brand more people depend on chevrolet
I had a 1990 Eurosport with 3.1 v6 and it was best car I ever had,it was bullet proof
They benchmarked a legend and a maxima for the proportions and interior, made for an impressive looking package, they should have benchmarked the quality too.
I've owned six vehicles so far, A
95 Chevy C2500
95 Dodge Caravan
91 Chevy S10
96 Plymouth Neon
02 Toyota Sienna
93 Chevy Lumina
And you guessed it my Chevy Lumina was the best and is still currently my daily driver
My brother bought one of these in 1998 for $500 that had 200,000 miles on it and drove it for another 92,000 miles before the engine gave out. Not bad.
I had this exact car in 01 it was a lot of fun to drive.
My step-dad had a 92' euro coupe, sis had a 96' and my best friend at the time had the dustbuster. I'm not against any of em, but I prefer the euro sedan in blue or black. Still a neat car, and love seeing some still on the road when they are.
Dat members only jacket.
My Dad had a 1990 Euro and had a turning circle of a football field.
Still looks good today but cant remmebee the last time i saw one on the road.Didn't realize how low the hp was. Drove a friend's when it was new and remember the brakes on it seemed horrible when I was playing around with it around town...seemed to take a long time to stop.
I had a 93 Lumina Euro 2 door and it was one of the best cars I've ever owned, had 285,000 miles and still ran great, it was just rotting to pieces after 17 years so i had to junk it.