1981 Talbot Avenger - Last Rootes standing
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 25 มิ.ย. 2024
- The Avenger was Rootes Group's Cortina killer throughout the 1970s, and it although it was a fantastic car, very few survive and only a handful of the final Talbot badged cars do, but this is one of them.
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It started out as the Hillman Avenger
For me it was always a Hillman
Came here to say this
@@robinforrest7680 The best looker in my opinion.
I had the Hillman Avenger.
@@jon8xty1 Yes they were the purest and nicest looking Avenger I think.
I had a 1978 Chrysler Avenger it was a beautiful gold one with a black vinyl roof, I have very fond memories of it. My dad worked in the Linwood factory from when it opened in the early 1960's to when it closed in the 1980's. :)
Always been a big Rootes fan, sadly unappreciated and often forgotten
What a lovely example. 😍 I do like Avengers. Shame that these later ones lost the 'hockey stick' tail lights and bold looking steering wheel with it's round hub.
Between 1986 and 1990 my parents bought a 1980 Talbot Horizon 1.3 LS. Their first hatchback. It still had the blue Pentastar badge on the grille. I recognise the interior door handles on this Avenger as the same ones o. The Horizon and the seat fabric was similar.
So amazing to see a 42 year old product of Linwood still looking and driving as intended.
They got a lot of stick because of the Imp but it was a great little car and there was nothing wrong with the Sunbeam or the Talbot Avenger.
Very famous for appearing in the Steets of San Francisco in Plymouth Cricket guise.
I have travelled in 1971, 1972, 1975 Estate and 1979 Chrysler versions and they were indeed all a cut above.
Great engine.
Over the years I have owned 2 avengers the first a 1972 1500 Super owned from new by my father this was my first car at the age of 17 in 1977 , the 2nd I've had from new in 1980 a 1.6 GLS in moss green met with black vinyl roof and all the std GLS equipment Inc front fogs in a binnacle under the stainless steel bumper , rostyle wheels stainless wheel arch mouldings , bodyside mouldings silver painted front grill chrome door handles and stainless rear trim between the rear lamp clusters which included rear fogs and reverse lamps !
This car runs now an uprated and modernised TI spec engine and exhaust wiith the twin Weber carburetors.
The front suspension was replaced with the Capri 2.8i struts and vented discs and the rear a narrowed Chrysler 2litre beam and discs and the Optional in 1980 rostyle wheels shod with 185/65x13 tyres and yet to the untrained eye the car looks pretty much original
To say the car has been cherished is an understatement!
Growing up in Maidstone, Kent in the 70s and 80s, with the huge Rootes dealership/servicing building (still my favourite video you've done to date!) we saw so many of the Rootes and Talbot cars and vans. So many memories. and just lovely to see this exceptional car still roadworthy. Thanks Matt, another super review.
+1 from me, I also grew up in Maidstone and passed the Rootes garage on my way to school every day ("Olim meminisse juvabit").
I remember that
That Service building is still standing unused today.😢
@@johnsampey344 It's actually being converted to flats. There's a video of it as a disused shell on this very channel.
I always thought of the Avenger as Escort size rather than Cortina size. The Hunter and later the Talbot Solara were rivals to the Cortina.
I agree.
Yep, definitely an Escort rival. The Minx/Hunter and then the Solara were the Cortina fighters.
I think it was originally planned as a Cortina rival but the Mk3 was a bigger car than the Mk2 and so the Avenger fell between the Escort and Cortina in size.
@@Whiters8similar story to the Morris Marina being pitched against an outgoing competitor
@@Whiters8 makes no sense why Chrysler would plan it as a Cortina rival when the 3 year-old Hunter already was their Cortina rival.
The Avenger ended up only 0.2” longer than the Mk1 Escort. Its engines directly rivalled the Escort’s in size and power, rather than the Cortina’s. It was certainly aimed at the Escort.
To note, even the Mk1 and Mk2 Cortinas were significantly bigger than the Avenger. The Mk3 really grew in wheelbase rather than physical size.
And even so, the Hunter was the Cortina rival.
I had the honour of parking with this very model down at The Classic in Silverstone last year. A beautiful example and a real credit to the owner
My second car was a 1.3 talbot avenger, replacing a 15 year old mk1 escort. It was 4 years old and only digits away from the one featured. My friends described it as pooey brown, but it had the vinyl roof and cloth trim so was quite 'luxurious'. It was faster than a 1.3 mk1/2 escort and the ride/handling was much better, much more forgiving. I did over 70k miles in mine and eventually gave it up for an alfasud I still have. Very robust, simple to maintain and cheap to run. I ragged it to within an inch of its life, and remember having a new head gasket fitted for......£35!! Fond memories of a simpler time. Great way to learn how to drive at a speed that was accessible.
Growing up in the 1970's I saw a lot of them. The 1st the Avenger badge on the front was rectangular, then they upgraded it to a circle, thats was vital information for a kid. I remember the day I saw the Talbot version in a garage in Renfrew near where it was built. As a car mad youth who took down number plates and could name every car being sold in the UK this was big and I saw it 1st. On the Monday morning I remember explaining to my mates the massive upgrades.A totally different steering wheel, a new front end, dials that where round not the rectangular old speedometer that was a orange line that went up to the speed it was doing but the most important change in our book was the rear L style lights had changed and me and my mates where upset as we liked the old rear lights but we gave it a pass as it had these new fangled rear fog lights which really impressed us. Thanks for the memories dude
@@TomAlter1000 Yes your right I remember it being rectangular but must have got it mixed up with my mates dads Austin land crap that was the 1 that moved up
Seeing you drive that in the streets of Coventry close to the heart of Rootes. Perfect.
Around the Cannon Park area of the city I see.
The door mirrors look like they're placed in different positions, but they're not! My dad had one with "J" lights in the early 80's. He had just ground in the valves, and refitted the cylinder head and went for a test drive. A drunk driver in a Capri crashed into him. I was a 5 year old child in the front passenger seat, I remember the mangled door being ripped open to save me.
Memories of being driven to school in 1987 in Yeovil in a brown mid ‘70’s Hillman Avenger Estate with brown vinyl.
I own a 74 Sunbeam Avenger 2dr with the 1.3 liter although it originally had the 1.6 that the previous owner apparently blew up. The 1.3 is a lovely little engine and the gearbox is so smooth and easy, the rest of my specific car is quite hinky since its been done up in the 90's "My Summer Car" style. I'm hoping to get that thing back on the road this summer if all goes well, or at least try and get it going under its own power, which it didn't do yesterday.
My dad bought one off a neighbour in '73 so we could go on holiday as the Vauxhall Victor was away having yet more new tin welded to it. We got to the Norfolk Broads ok but came back on three cylinders and a disintegrated door handle. It soon went.Every journey an adventure!
I had a brand new yellow Chrysler Avenger 1.3 as a company car, XCK 621R. The model I had didn't have reversing lights, you had to go up a model for those but the lights were in the rear light clusters complete with non-functioning bulbs and wiring. The only thing that was missing was the switch screwed on the side of the gearbox, it even had the wiring plug to it so I bought a switch, screwed it in and plugged it in, hey presto, reversing lights! On one occasion I drove it flat out for 600 miles in a single day and it never missed a beat. My father in law was so impressed that he bought a new one, ACU 372V, but his was a blue 1.6 badged as a Talbot and had better spec. with a vinyl roof and fancy wheel trims.
I once had an L-reg fleet special 2-door, the one with everything stripped off it - no temperature gauge, no fresh air vents, no passenger sun visor, no Hillman badge on the bonnet, a stamped aluminium grille badge, etc. That also had no reversing lights but it still had the bulbs in the back lights!
Came here by random ... and you, Mr.Furiousdriving, left me stunning all over . Yes I do knew this very intelligent Brit automobile was sold as Talbot in its last move but was also known as Plymouth Cricket , Hillman & Sunbeam Avenger , even Dodge Arrow for Venezuela and Colombia markets , still Chrysler Avenger for NZ and Australia. Yes I recognize how accurately genius is your test drive because I owned twice this marvellous dependable car , zero troubles, never left me stranded whilst 20 years of ownership. Yet I'd like to make you know what I even didn't mention 'til here : we were the lucky customers which had near 300,000 units (yeah three humdred thousands) assembled at Chrysler's facility plant in Argentina since 1971 until 1981 , exactly the same engineering and phases as the UK's did . The truly amazing was domestic Volkswagen when adopted Avenger's line and rebadged it as Volkswagen 1500 and Volkswagen 1500 Rural (the estate) until year 1991. A #1 reliable automobile , that's the meannimg of every Avenger in our Southamerican region , cheers !
Victor Meldrew had a red 1500 GL Hillman Avenger
Thanks Matt, what a charming little car! These were never sold in Australia, so I'm not really familiar with them. Last year (September 2022) when on holiday in New Zealand, I almost jumped out of my skin when I saw an immaculate yellow Avenger just like this one. I wasn't close enough to see if it was Chrysler or Talbot. It was at Pak N Save supermarket at (I think) Whangarei on the North Island. An older woman was driving it, I wondered if she had owned it from new? It looked really well cared for. They were assembled in NZ.
The lion image on the headlight glass was Lucas's symbol at the time, quite different to the Peugeot lion, BTW.
Bought a '74 Avenger @ 2 years old, and ran it to 100k with minimal issues. One of the best cars I have owned, and many times better than the Cortina of that era.
That's a blast from the past! They were very rare here in the Netherlands. That steering wheel is straight from the Talbot Horizon and Simca 1308, as far as I know.
My Chrysler Avenger had same wheel plus door bins in front. The lack of a glove box always annoyed me
Fond memories of my grandads '74 1.6 Hillman Avenger estate! Great car to drive and so reliable! The car I passed my test in!
Salute , I passed my test in my Father's K reg Avenger estate.
@@buickmclean8163 same her with my dads 73 Avenger 1250 deluxe estate (none of your fancy accessories like carpet or a radio here!). I passed my test in it in 77 and have great memories related to it
@@grahamhassall3408 But you did get a foot mounted dipswitch if I remember correctly ? : )
I owned an early Avenger (possibly a 1970 model, from memory) for a short time in the 90's. It was well past its prime, and I ended up selling it at an auction for next to nothing. I do remember hunting in a wrecker's yard for that quarterlight window for the back door, which was missing when I bought it. I didn't have the rubber seal that went with it, so just glued the used replacement part to the window frame with silicone rubber sealant. The things we do when we are young and penniless :)
Also produced in Brazil under the name of Dodge Polara. We didn't have the four-door version around here. Thanks for sharing !
My first car in 1989 when I was 19 was a Hillman Avenger 1600( DL or HL. I can't remember at this point).
The first car I drove solo was a Chrysler Avenger around 1982 when I was still a child. It was a hire car and my dad let me drive it around Clarach Bay Holiday Village which was private land.
Considering how much the Avenger is linked with my motoring past I know precious little about it and never felt an emotional attachment to it like later cars.
I had one of these in 1991 when it was 11 or so years old, it was as new condition and only 16k miles and it was extremely rare then. I never went looking but it was my friends elderly fathers car and he gave up driving, I got it cheap because basically nobody wanted it. It was basic, but ran beautifully. The interior was typical Talbot, which I quite like. Sadly a drunk driver collided with it while it was parked, and it was a write off.
I remember this car from my teenage days as the Hillman Avenger.
I preferred the MK1, the Hillman badged version.
I'd forgotten that by this stage the memorable hockey stick rear lights of the original Hillman version had been dispensed with. I recall Victor Meldrew was an owner of a crimson Avenger, and had problems visiting his local garage.
Yea I remember that episode. Very funny.
Yes ,poor old Victor was booked for ' kerb crawling' in one episode when his Avenger was playing up!
My first car was a 1979 Chrysler Avenger GLS 1.6. it was very modern when I bought it. Have good service but the plastic dash and cloth seats suffered from sun damage. This example is in remarkable condition. I'd say it's main rival was the Ford Escort while the Hunter was pitched as a rival to the Cortina and Marina.
I'm a bit late to the party, but thanks for this review Matt. My dad had a Hillman Avenger, N-reg (1974, I believe), until I was about 8. He used to service it himself and even bought the salvage when it was written off after a shunt. It was a rich, dark red with cream leather seats. Only joking, the seats were trimmed in vinyl and would absolutely fry your legs on a hot day. I remember the fuel gauge didn't work, so my dad would work out his consumption in a little book he kept in the car. It was so spartan there was no stereo, though that never seemed to bother us on trips to the coast. I dented the offside wing lap-driving it into the garage, not long before my dad got a company car and sold it to an old fella who came round to view it with his son. When I left home many years later the red mark was still on the garage door frame. Great memories.
This takes me back. As a kid I was always a fan of the Avenger and often pestered my dad to get one if he couldn't get the Chrysler 2 Litre or a 180, he couldn't afford it with a mortgage, 2 jobs and kids so he didn't. They were very popular in the 70's. It wasn't until the later 80's that I got to drive a rather tired one to a festival, for some reason I ended up being the only one with a valid licence at the time and had insurance and the others would 'pay me back for the petrol used', they didn't. Anyway I still have very fond memories of these cars, even the one I drove that had... err interesting behaviour as far as some of the controls were concerned, I did mention that it was very tired. Many thanks for sharing Matt, this brought a smile to an older fart who thankfully had the chance to drive an original all those years ago.
My parents had a succession of Avengers as company cars from my father's transport business. The first was a bronze saloon, with the conical glass on the instruments and the big chunky rotary switches. The second was a bright blue estate, and the third was a sort of gold metallic estate. They were also sold in the US as the Plymouth Cricket.
Great video! That is NOT a Peugeot trademark on those headlamps , yes the Chrysler Pentastar logo is present at the top corner, but that Lion is Joseph LUCAS trade mark that was used until around 1983. That Lion logo appeared on many Lucas headlights in the 70s such as MK1 &2 Capri, Austin Princess & MK1 Granada.
Great video, I always liked the Avenger but actually prefer the facelifted version over the original. Very popular as police patrol cars on 'T' and 'V' plates, no doubt because they were inexpensive but pretty tough and reliable. According to the Avenger Sunbeam Owners Club production actually continued into early 1981, which I have read elsewhere. When the Avenger officially became a Talbot in 1979 it seemed to take a while for the Chrysler pentastar badge to be replaced. Apparently dealers were provided with Talbot badges to replace the Chrysler ones they had on new cars in stock, but it seems like many of them did not bother!
Between 1969 and 1976 Dad always had a new company car every August with the new reg. He had four Escort Mk1s but then in 1974 I went with him to collect a Hillman Avenger 1500 super from a Rootes dealer in Gloucester. It was pure luxury compared to the Escorts, as mentioned full door cards for one. It was metallic turquoise with white vynil seats! Sadly he left that job and it was back to Ford Escorts.
Seem to recall BT had a large fleet of these late Tablot Avenger Estates in the early 80s in the old BT orange.
My parents owned a special edition Hillman Avenger, called a Top Hat. It was electric blue with a white vinyl roof and automatic gearbox. They are now extremely rare apparently. I was shocked to learn that so few Avengers have survived, they were a good car.
I had one of these back in the day, VWM 311L. It was a really nice car.
My dad's work Friend had one Identical to this car ..
I believe his was a 1.6 GLS automatic.
Both gentlemen worked for The Rootes Group my Dad worked 32 years there.
My other uncle worked at Rootes Ryton Plant he took tours around the factory the days of the Talbot Alpine and Solara and the big barge car..Tagora..He had at least 5 brand new cars over a period of years Imp or Sunbeam Hunter and Avengers 1976 was his last one Pinky coloured one with vinyl roof
Even I worked as a part time valeter at Cheylesmore garages.. I got to drive a few cars..
I grew up with my dad owning a Hillman hunter 1500 DL 1973 car in Lilac with black vinyl roof NOE 442M. I had the odd driving lesson and my sister too..
He then splashed his hard earned cash and bought a brand new Talbot Horizon 1985 1.3LX omg C409 URW its still out there some where.
Even I owned Hillman Avenger 1.6GL I gave £40 for it Spent £100 on mot work and drove it about Coventry Some guy went in the back of me Funny it was Id Decided to sell it I got £50 from the guy who tapped my rear end A light cluster from Scrap yard for £3 quid fixed it myself and straightened the chrome bumper out and had a sale of £325 Quid.
Great video to watch after the Friday from hell... Insurance companies..
Now that's how a classic car review should be done!!
Small quirks us anoraks love to know and a very in-depth history of the mark as is and has been.
Well done indeed 😊
Very underated but great car would love to own.
I love the ambient sound recorded along with the video, you can hear the engine work and all the squeaks and rattles
I had a Hillman Avenger, a Morris Ital, a Morris Marina, Austen 1100, Vauxall Viva van, and all those cars took me through to nearly the turn of the century. Peace be unto you.
I'm German, and when I first visited England in 1980, there were quite a few of those around.
Back then, there were many cars in the UK you wouldn't see in mainland Europe as they were either specific UK models (like the Vauxhall Cavalier, looking like a terrified Opel Ascona with its Manta headlights) - or cars of manufacturers like the Rootes Group that had basically given up on the mainland European market....or much of the BL range that never made it across the Channel.
Nan & pop showed up in a rental. I think around 1971. It was the relatively new Hillman Avenger with hockey stick taillights. The one they had was very basic. It had no passenger visor or lighter. Pop smoked and had to use his own lighter and remember to bring it along. He wasn't impressed. He'd had a Super Minx and he thought the Avenger tinny & plastic. I think this was shortly after the time Chrysler took over.
Nobody at the NA dealerships seemed to know how to keep the Plymouth Cricket's carb tuned.
Very overlooked, the Avenger , originally with Hillman badging, although it was aiming to compete in the fleet market with the Cortina’s and Marinas of the world , it also generated the Hillman Avenger Tiger , usually painted in bright yellow with very 1970s black decals , but these were aimed at the R S Escort range.The Tiger name came from the earlier Sunbeam Alpine Tiger which had an American Ford V8 instead of the standard 4 pot 1725 cc.
Avengers were 1500 or 1600 cc, even the Tiger, they never had the 1725.
@@paulpaintshop103 didn’t say the Avenger had 1725cc . If you read the text again , you will see I was referring to the Sunbeam Alpine sportscar of 1960s . The Tiger variation of that car had the Ford V8
@@martinclapton2724 I restored one a few years ago
These were everywhere when I was a child & I was in a good few as well from the early Hillman to the later Talbot.
My first car was a Hillman Avenger 1250 DL - PCW 879 J - Loved that car
I actually love the inside and outside look of it
Love this review, my dad had 3 of them during the late 70's early 80's, the last one was written off in a head on on a blind bend, my dad walked away with just a cut knee!! We loved ours. My dad got a marina estate after the accident, he hated it and got a Cortina Crusader Estate! Very rare that, we had it for years till it fell apart.
My dad had an early Hillman Avenger in blue. It was the car that brought me home from the hospital after I was born. He sold it to friend who used it until it dissolved some time in the mid 80’s
Thanks Matt, really good to see one again with a Talbot badge, they were a good car, I think rust and apathy seems to have killed most of them off, there’s a big following for BMC, Ford, Vauxhalls of the 60’s, 70’s but Rootes cars seem to be still lagging behind.
I had a Talbot Samba which was a great car but they were never a rootes car of course just a rebadged Pug 104.
You don’t see many Avengers of any badge description, and there’s probably fewer of the Talbot badged ones.
That one looks in very nice condition.
The Talbot logo on the grille has been retrofitted, it would have had the Chrysler Pentastar from factory until the end of production.
@@TomAlter1000 are you not thinking of the Sunbeam that got a new grille and Talbot logo for the last 9 months of production. Part of the Peugeot takeover of Chrysler uk was that Chrysler kept the rights to the Avenger so any cars produced would have to carry the Pentastar logo although with a Talbot script on the bonnet.
@@TomAlter1000 ok, shame it never made it onto any of the publicity material.
At BT in the early 80s they had a couple of Avenger Estates in the car pool - if you preferred the newer FWD Ford Escort Estates (which it seems everybody did!) you had to get up very early in the morning! I used my own car, Ford Granada 2.8i GL, for the luxury, and took the mileage money! 😂
That brings back memories 😮
My dad had one of these in red in the 1980s. That video brought back memories.
My first car in 1981 and the one i passed mydriving test in was a 1976 vintage Hillman Avenger estate 1300 deluxe , red with tan leatherette interior, I managed over 25,000 miles in that car in the 16 months I owned it,
It had a few quirky bits and pieces not seen theses days like steering column mounted rotating headlight switches on one side and on the other side of the steering wheel mounting indicators stalk/ horn and an identica rotary one that operated the wipers with a push function you needed to pump to squrt/dribble water onto the screen totally useless at speeds over 30mph, the engine was lively enough for a young novice like myself at the time , being an estate with folding rear seats much courting was achieved ha ha many a happy time was had,
My second car was a Ford cortina the Avenger having been traded in when the oil consumption became almost on par with the fuel , At over 120,000 miles the Avenger had suffered the trials of new and heavy footed learner/novice very well never letting me down at all , my only reminder from those days is the ringing in the ears I have from the road /engine /wind noise of that little engine flat out at ....ahem "motorway speeds officer" 85 ish mph 😊
My old neighbour had a taxi business in Poole vack in the 70/80's. He had 4 Transut minibuses and 6 Maxis but replaced the Maxis with Avengers and said they were much frowned upon by his drivers but they were very reliable and cheaper to run!
Another great video Matt!
My first car was this!! Amazing car, loved mine ❤ Escort rival not Cortina. Great to see a video on it, thanks 👍🏻
Yes, the Avenger was an Escort competitor, not Cortina. Even the Mk1 and 2 Cortinas were the next size up. The Arrow range was the Cortina competitor.
As mentioned in the video, the Avenger started life as a Hillman, became a Chrysler, then a Talbot, but also been sold as a Sunbeam, Plymouth, Dodge and VW. Has any car been sold under so many different marques?
My first car was a 1976 Avenger estate in beige. It was a 1600 and my friends and I had many happy hours of mainly sideways driving in it, in the wet you used to look out of the passenger window to see fowards. Wish I still owned as it would be worth a few quid now.
I always loved the avenger since I first seen it in an old Elmar's guide on all the cars from european brands in the 1970's
We never got these down in Australia, but instead, as a rival to the Cortina, we had, for a short time, the KB180 (fitted with either a 2.0 litre 4 or Australian Chrysler Hemi 6) known here as the Chrysler Centura. When the Hunter died a slow painful death, it was replaced with a Chrysler badged Mitsubishi Colt/Galant.
the Avenger is so often forgotten. the Cortina got all the love, the Marina got all the flack and the Avenger went through the middle like the Viva. they were a good solid reliable well mannered cars which after a rear-end chop became the Sunbeam.
back in the day one of the most desirable car upgrades for this generation was an aftermarket/home made centre console, a great place to mount all your extra gauges and CB Radio (that's after the mandatory go-faster stripe down the side).
a mate had one of these. nobody did plenty of miles on the back seat but he did plenty of hows your father on it!
What a shame there are so few left these days, Avengers were a really good car in their day.
I had a 76/7 Chrysler Avenger, was one of the first with straight back lights and big headlights. Was a mix of Mk1 and Mk 2 parts and you often only got right part by taking the old part to a dealership. Was my 1st car and I loved it
My dad had a 1974, avenger estate he was never the best at maintaining cars. If he heard a noise, he would turn the radio up. But it would get once a year service and MOT but he kept his cars for absolutely years his previous car was a Vauxhall Victor,101 from 1965 he give me the victor which I promptly run into the ground but the avenger was so new and different it was like being in something from the space age 10 years of never breaking down, brilliant memories, thank you
Ooh, a tach. Love it!
The Avenger actually started out as the Hillman Avenger, with round head lamps and L shaped tail lights, and a couple of different dashboard designs if I remember correctly, it was facelifted when it became the crysler avenger
Deluxe had a long speedo in an all vinyl finish, the Super was similar with a silver panel and the GL was totally different with three round clocks.
Was it just me or did Matt miss out the Hillman badging entirely? Surely most Avengers were badged Hillman?
@@garywilton1514 They were badged Hillman until 1975. From 1975 to 1978 (or so) they were badged as Chrysler. After that they were badged Talbot on the bonnet, but retained the Chrysler pentastar badge on the front grille (my dad had one of these), because the PSA Group built them but Chrysler still owned the rights to the design. The very last models were fully badged as Talbot, like the one in the video.
@@garywilton1514 No he did make reference at times but this video was about the Talbot Avenger. The first generation of Avengers were indeed Hillmans.
@@levelcrossing150 ? Just watched the film again and can’t recall any mention of Hillman at all, let alone on several occasions (“at times” as you say). And no Matt doesn’t just talk about “this “ Talbot version, he goes through the Avenger’s history from design to the end of production.
One of the best cars I’ve owned
I'm showing my age now; I remember Bruce Forsyth in the TV adverts, waxing lyrical about the electronic ignition (a big deal in the 70s)...
Not seen one of those for a long time, so good to see you review one. I remember a neighbour of my grandparents had one. A metallic blue GLS on a T or V plate. Think it had a light beige interior. The chap who owned it kept it in immaculate condition. Often wonder what happened to it when he passed away. He had that and I think we had our 1970 Austin 1100 at the time, so I was probably a bit jealous!
I had two Avengers and i would dearly love another
I had a few of these. The front nearside chassis rotted terrible at the tie rod, all of mine did. I guess thats why so few survived. Definitely an escort rival (and better). A really clever design idea came in the rear seats of the estate version. The seat was double hinged so that the seat pad could be extended to form a pillow slightly raised from the rest of the flat bed, great idea ive never seen used elsewhere, but meant you could sleep in it when you'd run out of petrol (or your chassis had broken). The only (old) car i had in the '80's i have real affection for.
Oh chassis easily mended with a length of 3x2 timber screwed into the channel : ).
You could the buy the front chassis part cheaply in the 1990's Peace be unto you.
Too short. Such a rare car deserves more time.
I had a Chrysler Avenger 1300LS in Chestnut brown, "The Flying Turd". No rev counter on the Chrysler variant, the LS being a very lowly model in the range at the time. Vinyl seats too. I still loved it and would love one now but finding decent examples is difficult, many remaining cars can now be swept up with a brush and dustpan and carried away in a carrier bag or two...
Yes, remember these. They certainly seemed to disappear from the roads very quickly. Don't remember seeing many after about 1990. The example in the video is a very nice example.
My dad had a Hillman Avenger ex Police car from Somerset back in the early 80's. Always liked that car.
I remember my dad being friends with a mechanic who worked at the local Rootes dealership which was only 20 miles away from the Linwood factory. He said all cars coming from Linwood had to be gone over checking every bolt on the PDI as a lot were never tightened up! One car even arrived with base model trim and wheels on one side and the other had GLS wheels……quality control was not high on priorities. All the strikes and theft eventually killed things off, I heard they would damage cars coming off the line so it had to go back to get repaired and that meant overtime, no wonder it came to an end.
In Portugal the Avenger was badged as Sunbeam. My mother bought a new one in 1976, a 1600 S. In the early 80s she moved to FIATs (ughh) and I drove this gorgeous car until 1991 when I suffered a terrible accident with it, a taxi driver almost killed me in Lisbon downtown
Great memories, i grew up in being driven around in varrious avengers
IIRC the Avenger also pioneered the use of structural adhesives in its body construction. Now, if you could find/drive a (very orange) Avenger Tiger....
My dad had a hillman avenger in metallic green, probs about 86/87. Thanks for the throwback!!
What a rarity ! Years since I saw an Avenger..but despite mentioning scores of derivatives you never said HILLMAN, the name it bore for the longest period ! Thanks for reviewing these automotive treasures for us.
My Dad had one. When it rained our feet got wet!
Iremember my Roots Rapier back in the sixties!, wish I kept it longer. This was a 2 door twin carb 1500cc 1957 model.
It outclassed most cars that siize at the time!
Ah the second Avenger. Not the original Hillman Avenger with the boomerang rear lights and the weird drum-shaped switches for lights and wipers sticking out of the steering column. My grandpa had a couple of "real" Avengers.
I have not-so-fond memories of having to drive a Talbot Avenger when I had to go and visit a customer as part of a summer job. I borrowed a colleague's Avenger and it was clapped-out, totally and utterly. He'd parked it on the wrong side of a busy road, facing up hill, in a fairly small parking space with cars parked ahead and behind. Try driving a car that you've never driven before, whose clutch bite point is unknown (and almost non-existent: the clutch was so badly worn), when you have to set off uphill, starting on the wrong side of the road so you need both directions to be clear before you can go. I spent a minute or so nudging the car back and forth so I was pointing out of the space and had a fairly straight route to set off, then waited for a gap in the oncoming traffic, pulled out half way across the road and waited for someone to let me join the traffic. It was the only way: I'd still have been there now if I'd waited for both directions to simultaneously let me out.
The car was a wreck: the clutch seemed to slip if I applied a shade too much power, and there was a throbbing at about engine-rev speed which may have been stick-and-slip of the clutch as the engine rotated, due to warped flywheel. The gear selection was very hit and miss: sometimes it would go into third and sometimes if wouldn't - maybe worn synchromesh. And the brakes... Well at least my colleague had warned me to brake earlier than I would do normally, and I'm glad for the warning because the brakes didn't really work and pulled to one side and juddered badly. I wonder whether that car passed its next MOT.
Fantastic chassis. I wish I still had one.
It was known as a Hillman Avenger in New Zealand 🇳🇿
Thanks, Matt! I always love your enthusiasm and fair assessment of ALL cars. You don't disdain any car, and simply see them for what they are, how well the vehicles served their purpose, and their historical context and place. Its always a pleasure to see such enthusiasm for a car that may not be a modern supercar / hypercar, BUT might actually be more important for its role in the mass production market along with its contemporary rarity. Few thought about saving the ubiquitous models! I would be over the moon seeing a Plymouth Cricket (one of its various marketing names in Federalized form) here in the USA. An absolute pleasure as always!
Great video, Matt! The restyle of the front of the car and the dashboard I think originally took inspiration from the most 'modern' car in the range at the time that the Avenger went from being a Hillman to being a Chrysler: the Simca 1307/Chrysler Alpine, which had a forward-sloping grille and headlights, and typically Simca switchgear, especially the spindly column stalks. Brushed nylon upholstery and full-height doorcards were not uncommon even by the mid-1970s, and really depended on the trim level/specification. The crazier interior colours were also a feature of GM Europe cars of the same era (including burnt orange and leaf green), imitating the colours available in the parent companies' US cars. Others have pointed out the reason for the lack of surviving Avengers: the mechanicals were unbreakable, but the rustproofing was not good.
I live in New Zealand, and we had the Hillman Avenger here which was assembled at a plant . We also had the Chrysler Alpine which was bigger in size. I think they were known also as Talbots ?. My father owned a Hillman Avenger Estate in the 1970s.
Lo Matt, yet another informative vid. My dear old Late Dad had one of these back in the day. It was about 10 years old when he got it and was by that time a rust bucket. That said it was plush inside and it ran very well. It had 2 weird symptoms 1/ when you were parking after a journey you had to run the car on full choke for a few seconds or it wouldn't restart in the morning .2/ The front chassis crossmember completely rusted away so the car did weird things when it went over bumps. It finished up in the knackers yard. "Beyond economical repair" as they say. Thanks for the vid and the opportunity for a wee trip down memory lane.
Looks great, door gaps and alignment look factory.
You forgot that it was a Hillman Avenger as well, I had a1500DL I miss that car it was fantastic.
My first car was a Hillman avenger 1973 ,in aquamarine,1250 hl ,a absolutely brilliant car .great video , furious driving 😎
Rootes products never seemed to get the credit they deserved. If I'd known you were going to drive past my house you could have called in for a cup of tea 🍵
My dad had the gold collored stationversion of the Sunbeam Avenger in the 70s .
I remember it as a comfy and silent car with plenty space .
I worked at Rootes in 1973 working on the Avenger we had in the few months I was there numerous strikes a disinterested workforce a man I knew was an inspector in the paintshop he told me couldn't be bothered to check every car for missed paint. Some cars only made it outside to the car park but somehow got damaged and a team of body men repaired sometimes fairly major panel damage there was a constant stream of cars awaiting repairs.
Though I've very rarely seen an avenger (I basically can only remember a bright green Chrysler or Talbot GL saloon from when I was very much younger), I really quite like their look with the coke bottle-influence in the rear. Maybe even in the 1970s not the height of modern, but just, well, a neat looking and fairly stylish mid-size car. Much like the Morris marina, I would say the avenger ended up as sort of an "in-between car", rivaling higher spec-escorts and lower spec-cortinas after the cortina moved more up-market with the mk. 3-generation? Ford very much was the ruler for segments back then, even though their cars were not necessarily that much more special. Marketing played a big part in that, I think. Anyway, thanks for this review in orange!
Had a 1300 Super 1974, found it busy & undergeared, intolerable at 70; unlike my mate`s Marina 2 1300 Super (76) which was better on fuel + had cloth seats - in fairness the later 1.3 Avengers had the 3.89 ; 1 axle & cloth seats, I never drove one of those so perhaps an unfair comparison. Great video as ever though !
This is a great video on a car that’s unjustly panned or forgotten.
However, one thing I can’t understand is why everything I’ve ever read about the Avenger compares it to the Cortina… when *the Avenger was almost identical in exterior size to the Mk1&2 Escort* and was much smaller than the contemporary Mk3 Cortina.
The larger Hunter and then Alpine/Solara were the company’s Cortina rivals.
Why the Avenger is assessed the same way, as a Cortina rival, baffles me. Taken against the Escort, it was a far more competitive model and superior in many ways.
I had the Chrysler Avenger back in the 80s it was a great driver & served me well for many years, I eventually sold it for twice the money l bought it for.