This model was part of GM's family of compact "J-cars", along with the new Opel Ascona, the Australian Holden Camira, the Brazilian Chevrolet Monza, the Japanese Isuzu Aska, and the North American Chevrolet Cavalier, Pontiac Sunbird, Buick Skyhawk, Oldsmobile Firenza (which made use of a Vauxhall nameplate from the 1970s), and Cadillac Cimarron. In the United Kingdom, the new Cavalier was a huge success and challenged the supremacy of the Ford Cortina as the company car of choice. Indeed, it went on sale only a year before the Cortina was discontinued.