The Chevette used as its basis GM's World Car, "Project 909" — what would become the T-car program, so named because the vehicles shared GM's T platform. With the well-known problems of its predecessor, the Vega, which included production issues, reliability problems, and a serious propensity for corrosion, the team reworked the international platform such that the Chevette shared not a single body panel with another T-car and reworked the underbody extensively to enhance corrosion protection. The Chevette's 1.4-liter base iron-block engine weighed 59 lb less than the Vega's much-heralded aluminum-block engine.