[elhigh]

Hi,

Don't be too hung up on the brand. You're a GM fan and that's great, but remember the Chevette (still chuckling over the "brilliant idea" juxtaposition) was built by Isuzu under design license from Opel. And the Geo Metro is also ostensibly GM as it was part of the family, but it's a Suzuki Swift or Cultus anywhere else in the world.

For your first car, get a beater you understand. If you're well versed in EFI, then the world is your oyster as far as cars are concerned, at least for anything built after 1992. I'm with the guys who mentioned Cavaliers and Cobalts, you can have a very nice ride for modest money. Not paper route money, but maybe McDonald's money. They aren't the quality and drivability disasters that older Chevettes used to be, so you have a fair chance at not spending a lot of time walking involuntarily.