Always tended to get family hand me downs when cars weren't worth trading in. Got dad's 2-door '92 Century w/ the 3.3L that he bought new, routine serviced by the local shop, had 80K on it when I got it. Rode great, didn't use oil, undercarriage was like new/ no rust, cloth interior hardly worn, no dash cracks. Clear coat was intact but looked like somebody used a broom to clear snow off it, actually considered repainting it. Great work car.
Had 125K on it in '07 w/ no issues, not even oil when sitting in two lane traffic around dawn waiting for a truck to make a left turn a Durango nailed the rear end, prolly 30-35. Broke the seat back, damn near ended up in the back seat, have 3 damaged discs in my neck (forever) and the car was totaled. Only got $1300 outta it. Not pretty but have to admit that was a damn good car.
Later, was waiting to get my sister's '91 Cutlass sedan w/ 3.1L, great condition and well bought off a granny. Never happened, quickie lube didn't tighten the oil filter and engine went kaput, BIL didn't know any better to pull over right now when the light came on. That was one nice car too, I woulda drove the hell outta it.
I understand the bad rep but I liked 'em for what they were.
I had two Celebrity's - wife had a an Iron Duke 4 base model, and later I had a Eurosport with the Iron Duke 4. Both were reliable, cheap to repair. But power of the Iron Duke 4 it did not. The Europort I had as a company car in beverage sales, drove it hard. I sold it with almost 250K on it shortly after replacing the timing chain.
They were great winter/snow cars in WI at the time. I was out in several storms (snow or ice) and with good tires never had an issue.
The bottoms of the doors rusted out fast
Unkillable. If the Cavalier is a cockroach, the Cutlass is a Palmetto bug.
With creative shopping and cross-polenation from all of the cars built on this platform, I think a guy could gin up something not horrible. Like a 90's sedan with some flavor of Quad 4, stiffened up rear sway bar, seats that don't suck, etc.
But then it's like, why not do that with something that doesn't suck so hard out of the gate? So, no.
'85 Cavalier was another family hand me down, ran like the Energizer Bunny, ya couldn't kill it. Over 53 mph it got kinda buzzy tho, but 'eh. Sold it w/ 186K miles when I got dad's 80K Century, next owner wrecked it. 
I'm seeing a lot of "no's" from people that think the Miata is the answer for everything. That is a concept I cannot fathom.
My vote is an emphatic yes.
The A-body GM is the ultimate sleeper. it's so tame on the outside but using factory parts can be built just about any way you want it.
All wheel drive? Sure. Find a 6000 trans and diff.
Lift it for rally? U-van struts.
Big brake kit? Grab it off a '93-'96 F body.
Stupid enough to think a car needs a manual? The getrag will bolt in.
Want a crazy engine? No problem you can bolt in a quad-4, SD4, 3.4 TDC, L67, or caddy 4.9 v-8.
Do a burnout in front of a cop and he'll pull over the teenager in the civic next to you.
You guys need to have a little imagination around here...
Had a 1996 Ciera sedan w/3.1L V6. Purchased at 34K miles. Put in a K&N drop-in air filter. MPG went from 27 freeway to 29.8. Hated the thing, abused it, but it surprised us! Would bark the tires from 1-2 after that. Not much performance aftermarket available. Put rear progressive resistance coil springs for a Ciera wagon on it. Kept the rear end from sagging at WOT launches. Car would do 65 MPH in 2nd gear. Had to replace alternators every 55K or so due to open end shaft bearings. Never a problem with transmission, CV joints or suspension. Did great in snow and mud! Head gasket went at 177K; found antifreeze in crankcase. Got rid of it for scrap $$. With routine maintenance and lack of aforementioned abuse, probably capable of 250-300K on original powertrain. YMMV. 
The GM A-body wasn't an exciting platform, but not a bad one by any means. The later 6000STE and Eurosports hung in there fine with anything else of the day and general price range. International Series Cieras were cool amd could be had w/ the 3.8 V6.
The convertible that keeps geeting posted is a W body, totally different car that slowly replaced the A body.
I wouldn't mind a wagon with a 3800. I see two that are remarkably rust free. One is a Century that I pass driving to work that goes down the parkway about 60 miles each way daily. I can't imagine how many miles it has but it's still shiny and clean.
