Dodge Omni/Plymouth Horizon: The American VW Rabbits?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 5 ม.ค. 2024
- Welcome to Auto Chatter! Todays Mega episode is about several cars. What they had in common was they were all based off the Dodge Omni and Plymouth Horizon. We will start with their development and then move on to launch and subsequent cousins like the Horizon, 024, Omni, Charger, TC3, Turismo, Rampage, Scamp, GLH, GLHS and Shelby Charger. I hope you find this one enjoyable, and please give it a Like if thats the case. If you haven't subscribed yet, please consider that as well, and hit the bell to be notified of future episodes! Thank you in advance for giving it a watch!
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OMG, the dreaded and vaunted "Bombni". The shop I worked at named one of our customers cars that because it was constantly in need of repairs. A basically sound concept, this car came with many things new to the market like extra warranties having to be bought to cover things like the electrical system after a year, and this even with Iacocca appearing on national TV ads touting it's long warranty period! What a great salesman he was 😎 It was over-hyped but was still quite popular at first because there was still a large market segment who simply would not buy an 'imported' car never knowing that it was basically that in many ways. It was better than what GM and Ford had to offer at the time, but paled when compared to quality of the imports- especially VW's Rabbit (Golf) and Honda Civic which it competed directly with. Going with an out-sourced drivetrain kept Chrysler's costs down and was wise but also pointed out how financially broke they were.
None of the FWD "Utes" as the Aussies call them was popular here, with American and the rest of the world preferring the small pick-ups instead which were quite popular and which would still sell well here if current government standards allowed that to happen. Nowadays the Rampage is scarce and the Scamp nearly non-existant, yet they were more comfortable and luxurious than the Rabbit version; attributes American's tend to like. The performance car versions also lacked appeal to a public who knew what true 'muscle cars' could do; these were considered almost a joke among older performance enthusiasts. And poor Carrol Shelby was thought to have lost his mind letting his name be used on such a slug for acceleration. It was only the last versions which got back the respect, beating what Ford and GM were selling for 'muscle cars' handily at any given stoplight race 😲Those cars presaged the "Hot Hatch" trend in Europe which never really caught on here.
And yet these were indeed successful cars, and popular for their times as Americans came to understand that they neither needed large cars or the lower fuel economy they gave. They also matured pretty well becoming better cars than they started as beyond the base versions which were always underpowered. In that, they helped change American tastes in cars and showed that indeed we could build good cars worth buying even if the imports had gone ahead and have stayed in the lead. They were the introduction to FWD for many people, who soon found out how good that is in snow conditions. As with most of the cars of this era, what didn't rust out was mostly driven to death and scrapped making them a rare sight today with the best 'special' versions and Utes gaining something of a low-level collector status, more as an example of how life was back then than any real merit these might have.
They were the bridge to the future that Chrysler needed to continue. Being a "Rabbit-clone" of sorts was exactly what was necessary at the time and was something GM totally missed on, but Ford brought us their European Fiesta and later Festiva to capture their share of the market for these kinds of cars. They also hearkened to the modern automotive trend of cars being 'disposable' and not worth keeping for decades nor even loveable to the degree that takes. Just a mostly ordinary car for the masses which faded from memory as they got disposed of...
My suspicions were correct at the end of the vid you would likely chime in on this one! A fantastic post as always and summed them up well!
@@autochatter I know something of these cars (actually a fair amount) but I limit my comments when I have little to no knowledge or interest in the subject. A friend had a Rampage with a 5sp which I drove a few times. If I ever catch back up with him I'm going to ask where it went in hopes of possibly acquiring it.
@P_RO_ Makes sense and I took a guess you would have somthing to share about the Omniverse! I hope you can nab that Rampage. I haven't seen one in the wild in years.
The Simca - Talbot Chryslers...over here in Europe, as kids we hated them! A green or brown simca was the epitome of shitbox, slow gas guzzling heavy POS who rusted and fell apart after 2years😂 my father used to have one he got for free in 88,it was a disaster, they were common but by 91-92 they were gone, all scrapped! parts? impossibile to find. They are those cars you never see on the road today, totally forgotten about, we still have tons of old cars around from that era but those are sadly extinct, one of the disposable symbols of that period when wages were still good(in italy) and people used to change cars every few years, believing a car at 100k km was scrap, the perfect example of 80s throw away mentality
@gillespriod5509 Thank you for a European perspective of the versions over there!
The turbo GLH Omni was one of the most fun cars to drive. So much power for such a light weight.
The only new car I ever bought was an '88 Horizon America. It was a great car, I drove it to over 200,000 miles with only minimal maintenance. It had all the bells and whistles a car needed. It's impossible to buy a car like that today.
200k is a good run for sure! You definitely got your money's worth!
I'm still driving a stripped down 07 ion... it's at 260k and that's in a rust state. It's got crank up windows... its been an awesome car.
@user-qr7ee2cp4y 260k miles?..Prob have replaced the front end links a dozen times! At least they are pretty easy.
@@autochatter fuel injectors at around 225, brakes once, I don't think twice. A/c. Tie rods twice. Struts once. Valve cover gasket, Burns no oil... original clutch. I really baby it. Probably gonna cry when I need to replace it. They don't make stripped down economy cars like that and I don't want a sub compact
@user-qr7ee2cp4y 5 speed Versa is about your only choice now new. I drove around a Ion 3 door for awhile.Manual trans.It think it was a 03 model. What I hated about it was the elec power steering. I think its mech similar to a Cobalt?
One of my best friends regularly borrowed his grandparents Dodge Omni. We were always amazed at how well the thing handled - and now I know why. One of my other friends also had an 83 Charger and that car also surprised us with how well it handled. Not fast by any means (but then most cars were slow back then), but fun to drive comparatively speaking.
My sister in law had a Plymouth Horizon. She called it the Jankster. Hers...was not the nicest example I've ever seen LOL.
My high school math teacher, Mr. Patrick, had two Omni GLH's. One silver, one gold.
I should have put up more pics of different color GLH models. They were not like Grand Nationals!
When you think about it, this car is what saved Chrysler. It wasn’t a profit machine but it managed to do something even bigger. Iacocca wouldn’t have stood a chance at the loan guarantee had they not shown they were capable of producing a successful, appropriate small car for 1978-1980. Their success at the Omnirizon twins gave credence to Iacocca’s veiled plans to transform their product line with fuel-efficient front-drive cars built in America starting just one year later. They were that close to rollout but without the twins no one would back them financially it’s doubtful Chrysler would have lived to bring the K-Car to market.
Oh I agree 100% We would probably be talking about Chrysler like we do AMC today if not for these little cars.
@@autochatter awesome
this might have got the ball rolling to save Chrysler but the caravan is what really saved them.
Dodge has spent all their time on hellcats that sell less than 10k a year instead of something that sells hundreds of thousands
I was working in the parts and service departments at a Dodge/Chrysler/Plymouth dealer when the 87 Omni America line was introduced. We would have 2 truckloads of them delivered to the dealership per week. Popular color was Garnet Red. We would line them up sometimes 12 identical cars and would regularly sell out of them by the weekend. We were working overtime to do the PDI's. 4 or 5 would get picked up by customers on Saturdays. It was surreal how many we sold. And they were not fleet sales.
Chrysler upped the content and lowered the price ,and the ad campaign with Iacocca I would assume helped too. Car seemed like a pretty good deal then. Bet sales wasnt making much on them besides financing and rust and dust packages LOL. In 96, a competing Nissan dealer to where I worked was selling new regular cab trucks with ac and a radio for like 7k .They couldn't keep them on the floor.
these cars looked good, especially the GLH version
Seems like that's the Omni many think of...Even though they were not around long. I thought the Shelby Charger looked better, but I've always been more of a 2 door car guy.
@@autochatter from the GLH, I like the look of the sporty body kits, rims and the black color; seems aggressive reminds me of today's sporty European and Asian hatchbacks. I am a sucker for squarish cars and even though I am not a super VW fan, I do like their 70s 80s Rabbit models
@@ManiaMusicChannel I like VWs too, but mainly the aircooled ones. The GLH had that sleeper element to it I admired. Imagine lining up with one then with your sports car and getting trounced thinking it was some rental car Omni.
@@autochatter the Beetles and VW Buses are legendary anywhere in the world, well engineered vehicles. The Omnis/Horizons being econoboxes nobody would think anything special about them, but it's not even the speed for me, it's the design and look; simple, utilitarian, small and most important to me squarish
Sounds like you would like my Minifridge episode...Nissan Cube,Kia Soul,Scion Xb@@ManiaMusicChannel
These cars were definitely the right car for Chrysler at the right time. Simple, straight forward cars that kept the lights on at Chrysler. Wishing that they would do something like that now.
I dont know what Chryslers future is gonna be like now under Stelantis.
I bought a used 1983 Shelby Charger in 1985 and it was definitely an upgrade from the Corvair I'd been driving. It turned heads and the girls liked it, but in actual fact, without the turbo it didn't have a lot of thrust. At least I was smart enough to buy the aftermarket warranty because that car needed it!
My Dad had an Omni GLH Turbo with manual. That car was wicked quick in my early teen years.
It would have been a great sleeper then!
My parents had a blue 1986 dodge Omni GLH and that was a great little car.
I've always had a soft spot for the Omni/Horizon. My parents had a 1981 Omni O24 in the early 90's. It was the earliest car I can remember riding in. They replaced it in 1991 with a Chrysler LeBaron GTS, which was my favorite car my parents owned as a kid.
I have had a lifetime love of air cooled VWs for prob the same reason LOL.
Great show as usual ! I used to see these Omni and Horizons everywhere back in the 80s . These were good little cars back than . 😊
Thank you! I appreciate the support! Yeah...They were interesting cars!
Within a period of 33 years and 2 different countries I owned 3 Horizons and 3 Omnis. Super comfortable bucket seats on later models, great ergonomics, practical hatchback, good ride, great on the twisties with added GLH tires, rims and suspension. Super reliable. Two lasted well over 200k. The one nagging problem were the fragile, easy to break, outer door handles.
Fragile outside door handles has been a popular option on Toyotas since the 90s!
@@autochatter
On Toyotas, that's surprising..
@aguerra1381 I've seen more Camrys and Corollas from the 90s and into the 2000s with broken outside door handles, than you could shake a stick at LOL.
Cool how you got the movies corresponding with their respective year. Nice touch.
Just setting the stage! I felt this one was missing little pop culture references, so I improvised.
Great video 📹 👍. I remember as a kid my parents bought a 1979 Plymouth Horizon TC-3. It had the VW Rabbit 🐇 engine, and I am pretty sure it was a 5-speed. Pop put darn near 500k miles on it. Unfortunately the transmission lost 1st,3rd,&5th. Not to mention the cheaply made door handles that broke. A friend of his bought it, had the transmission fixed, and the handles. He put at least another 100k miles on it until it met its fate when someone didn't stop and plowed into it.
After the '79 TC-3, they bought a 1985 Dodge Omni with the 2.2 & 5-speed. Another great car. Handled like a dream. Unfortunately, I totaled it the first day of my driving permit when I panicked, I was stopped making a left hand turn, and looking in the rear view mirror I see a Semi trying desperately to stop coming down the hill.I punched the gas, cutting in front of an oncoming car, oversteered, and totaled it into a tree at 7mph. Yup 7 miles an hour.
I've had a few friends with these cars in high-school and the ones with the turbos were a blast.
Thanks for the look back down memory lane!😎🇺🇲🇺🇲🇺🇲🇺🇲😎
Thanks for the great comment and I'm glad you enjoyed it.
We liked those cars back in the day. They were cheap, solid and reliable.
Had a Scamp...should have NEVER sold it. Someone I date in HS had a Horizon. What a great car! Roomy. Comfortable. Reliable. Great in the snow! I love all of the variants. If I could have a museum collection...I would collect all of the late 70's through 80's Chrysler/Dodge/Plymouth cars. If I could build a dream car...I would merge a talking Laser with a Scamp GT.
Awesome! A former Scamp owner! I honestly haven't seen a Scamp since the 90s. The talking Chryslers were neat. I had some 80s Nissan Zs that tried to have a one way conversation with you too.
I had an 89, bought it for $100. A couple times I used it to move, even fit a half size refrigerator inside it. I loved the stupid thing.
Can't go wrong spending a 100 bucks on a car!
There were three of these vehicles at separate times with wildly different experiences. My eldest brother’s first new car was a first year Plymouth Horizon TC3. It turned out to be a horrible car that broke repeatedly from new, he hated the thing. Years later, my youngest brother got a great deal on a Dodge Rampage and it was very reliable and fun to drive. Around the same time, that same brother bought a Shelby Charger GLHS. That car was insanely fast for the time and I nearly put it against a utility pole when the torque steer hit on my first drive. The Shelby looked and drove great and it regrettably was totaled when it was hit by a drunk driver.
Yeah the GLHS was a handful to keep straight if you were going flat out. Rowdy little car!
They were very solid cars and many of them ran for hundreds of thousands of miles.
I saw some high mileage examples and some that had alot of problems with relatively few. I would guess the manual ones especially would have the most longevity potential.
Very informative. Admirable storytelling. Thanks for keeping these cars alive that most have forgotten about.
Thanks Rob! Fun story to tell! What's your next vid on?
I had a blue and silver 1984 Dodge Shelby Charger....my first new car. Loved it. I paid $10,800 Canadian for it.
The first cars to come factory standard with 50 series tires
I do sometimes wish I waited one year as the 85 Shelby Charger had the turbo. But that said I still loved my Shelby Charger.
I did put a nice Alpine car audio system in mine.🙂
Was definately the coolest Charger trim level then.
I've had 4 Omni's including a GLH, GLHS and one with the wood applique and roof rack.
I didn't even lookup the market on GLHS ones today. They made so few, they got to be worth some bucks now. Never cared for the wallpaper look myself LOL.
In 1984 I was shopping for a new to me compact car.
I was looking at a used Horizon and a Dodge Colt.
The salesman said the Colt was more reliable.
So I bought a 1981 Dodge Colt.
Turned out to be a good reliable car.
My wife's first car was a 84 Colt. It was a good one for her too.
4 speed twin stick
@@roberthaldeman5312 Yes! 4 gears with a 4x4 like high/low selector.
Wasn't the Colt really a Japanese car (mitsubishi)? The Horizon was an American car with a German engine, the engine block actually had a VW logo cast into it.
@@TheOtherBill Yeah...The Colts were Mitsubishi from the start. Import in disguise...But Chrysler advertised them then even back in the 70s as imported Japanese cars. The Omni/Horizons all had VW/Audi engines untill the optional 2.2 liter Chrysler engine was available.
We owned a 4 door Omni with the VW motor and automatic. It was well worn out. Keeping the engine running was a full time job. And it ate outside door handles constantly. Other than that, the rest of the car was pretty good. It was replaced by a Dodge Lancer 5 door hatchback with a 2.5L automatic. That was actually a very good car. It gave very good service. That in turn was replaced by a 89 grand caravan with the Mitsubishi v6 with the 4 speed automatic. Again a very good van. The main weak point was they all ate brakes. New brakes every 12 to 16 thousand miles.
In 1986 my new wife and I bought a 1981 Plymouth Horizon with 5 speed. It was actually pretty nice, for one month. On the day we sent in the first payment on it, the car was killed in a head-on collision with a Dodge Ram SUV. We were lucky to survive, but we did. The next car we got was a 1982 Dodge Omni. It had a few dings on it but otherwise seemed sound. The car wasn't much of a problem, except when the spider gears in the differential started eating each other. I replaced those gears and it was good, but not a nice car.
It's amusing that the 2.2L turbo engine put out 140 HP, and my 2012 naturally aspirated 2.0L engine in my 2012 Focus puts out 143HP. The early 80's was such a difficult time for the auto industry with additional emissions controls and having to learn 4 cylinder engines.
Very well done video. I missed info about the Plymouth Arrow while leading up to the Omni.
Thank you for sharing and the compliment! I never owned one of these, but was around them a long time and it was a fun one to make. Engine power has come a long way since the 80s for sure. My Miata is normally aspirated and has more power than those GLHS models. The Arrow cars and trucks were rebadged Mitsubishis like the Dodge and Plymouth Colts. Thought about a mention, but couldn't figure out a good place to include them in the tale. I guess the 024 and TC3 basically replaced them...and the Scamp replaced the Arrow truck. I guess you could say my script was reaching a " edited for television" moment, as it was getting on the longer side.
@@autochatter - You're welcome. Yes, it is a quite extensive video and I learned some things. I've been a car nut my whole life, and I've worked on cars for over 40 years now. This is an unusual range of vehicles. Not particularly popular anymore in memories nor conversations. That, and I also lived through it all. That's why I appreciate it so much.
By the way, my wife and I are still married. It will be 39 years in April.
@@1001Hobbies Thats awesome and congrats! We just rang in our 27th Aniversary of her putting up with me! I think the nostalgia angle of these seem to be attracting views.
Not only did the Ford Focus have twenty more years of experience with a four-banger, OHC design, by then, the engine management electronics got considerably more sophisticated and far LESS expensive, there was far less reliance on vacuum controls, and variable valve timing became more or less standard. In particular, engine antiknock control was much improved, which enabled a much higher compression ratio on the same 87 octane gasoline, which likely accounts for most of the increased power output. BTW, I had, for five years, a 2014 Ford Focus with that terrible "Dual Clutch" gearbox setup (it went to the dealer several times), but no complaints about the 2.0 liter engine, which was rated at 164 ponies (probably due to a higher rpm at peak power output).
How far did the 2.2 turbo go? They had decent power output for their time, but weren't known to live all that long.
Had a Dark Garnet '86 Onmi 4dr. built in Belvidere, Ill.
Best new car I have ever had. NEVER had a single trip back to the dealer for warranty. Replaced one A/C hose, and tires in eight years.
Never should have gotten rid of it!!!
1984 I went off to College in Wisconsin in my new Omni GLH in red! I loved that car!
It looked good in red!
@@autochatter the Omni GLH cost around 9,000$? But the tires were very expensive to replace. Driving like a teenager guy I went through a lot of them. Low profile tires are not great for Wisconsin winters back in the day!
@Mark.G475 I think they were a odd size which made them more money. Probably not as bad as buying tires for a Plymouth Prowler later!
My first car was a 1981 Dodge Omni 024 with 75k miles on it in 1986. Black with Silver accents and a RED, RED, RED interior. That VW engine worked hard, but because it was a bog standard VW engine parts were plentiful which was a good thing because it had lots of problems. I don't remember how many times I replaced the AC compressor. The car was hilarious in that it couldn't decide if it was an Omni 02 or a TC3 because it had a mix of badges on the body. Ended up getting more in trade-in on my first new car than I had invested in the 024 after 2 years, so thats kinda cool.
LOL..Your post reminds me of some wacky new cars I saw coming in fresh off the truck at dealers I worked at. Saw a Firebird come in....Black interior but had a beige Camaro back seat. Saw a Mustang once come in with different style rims on each side of the car! Oh and all red interiors were kinda awesome!
At 19, I had a '79 Plymouth Horizon.
I remember pushing that car more than actually driving the beast!😠
I daily drove several late 80's turbo 2.2 Dodge Daytona's and Plymouth Laser's. Auto and Manual's was fun to drive, cable shifter was a little sloppy; T-Tops out was fun on warm summer nights. I was a kid in my early twenties and these was cheap to insure while fun to drive.
Reliable and great fuel mileage; would blow headgaskets if you beat on them hard and was older. Easy to change the gasket out and never happens again.
My buddy had the mini van 2.2 turbo manual version; they was a hoot to buzz around in while empty.
Needed high octane fuel on hot days, running a/c and loaded with people.
I had to V6 to V8 swap F body Camaro's and Firebird's in order to afford to buy and insure them.
Problem was, they then became too valuable and someone would talk me into selling it.
G body V8 swapped Cutlass's was easier to hold onto for a while longer. Diesels was easiest to swap and drove the best after wheel and tire updrade.
Best thing you could have done with those was swap the diesels out!
Ahh - Memory lane as most of the cars mentioned here were parked outside of my house at one point or another. My mother was the owner of a 1976 Chevrolet Chevette 2 door. It was her second car, and she drove that until she purchased her first brand new car, a 1985 Plymouth Horizon, (Black w/grey interior). This would be the car that I learned how to drive, in a local cemetery - Hey, who could I hurt? When she went to the dealership in 1985, the salesman talked her out of the car she wanted, a Plymouth Turismo. So two years later she went back and bought a 1987 Plymouth Turismo automatic (White with maroon interior). She loved that car, it was sporty (looking), and was pretty good. The warranties back them were amazing and some of the best in the business, 7 years/100,000 miles which was unheard of in the 80's. I followed suit a few years later after totaling my first car on a rainy night. I got a 1985 1/2 Plymouth Turismo 2.2 (Grey with Red interior). Mine was a 5speed, with twin sunroofs and louvers over the massive back window. Many a fun time was had in those little cars - mine eventually succumbed to a leaky head gasket that was too much to fix. So, I just kept driving it with a case of oil in the trunk to fill as needed. Thanks for another episode full of memories.
You are quite welcome, and the cemetery joke? My kinda humor 😂!!! Thanks for catching a few of these now.
Miss my 84 dodge rampage Shelby...thing handled great reasonably fast 13 in quarter
I liked the Omni/Horizon design. It was simple and remarkably roomy for the footprint, not uncomfortable to ride in, but enough gremlins that Spielberg could have made three more movies.
LOL...So you shouldn't fill one up after Midnight?
I had an 86 Shelby Charger in black while in college. I sold it to pay tuition, as I really didn’t need a car on the FSU campus. It was a fun car, and while I always wanted a 66 Shelby GT350, at least I can say I owned a real Shelby.
Who WOULDNT want a 66 Shelby GT350? :) I appreciate the comment!
Had a Shelby Charger for a while. It was a pile of fun.
That's cool. I think your only the second or third comment that had a Shelby Charger.
Finally, Dodge has a competitor to the El Camino.
Ext cab trucks and rising 4x4 popularity killed off all those utes here in the 80s.
So close to greatness! Decent little cars, but they’re almost all gone because Chrysler didn’t quite put in the right amount of effort in the malaise.
I’m doing a rampage rebuild right now!
I'd say they put in ENOUGH effort lol. They sold enough of them! Rampage huh? That's cool. Rare enough now to be a star at Cars and Coffee.
I had a 1983 Rampage back then (in Canada). That thing was amazing. I gave shit to Camaros with it. With the manual four speed it could do 110 km/h (68 mph) in second. As for third and fourth gear, I have no idea, the speedometer stopped at 140 km/h (87 mph) and the needle would stop at 137 km/h (85 mph) because of USA legislation in those days. It got the needle to the blocking pin in third. It was not that powerful, but it was very light and the final drive in the gearbox was pretty high, it was a pain even in first gear in slow trafic. The only issue was that it was not a full car with only two seats and not a full truck because of the small box. BUT… I loved that thing and still miss it today.
I know that you'll enjoy yours. But if you need to change the transmission, make sure that you get one with the proper final drive gearing, the one from the Omni econo-box is a LOT slower. I made that mistake.
Loved my Rampage!!!
They were interesting!
Keep up the good work.Just subscribed.
We had a 1986 Omni SE in cream and gold 2 tone.Nice little runner back in the day.Mom's last car.Thanks for the memories.
Thank you very much! I'm glad you enjoyed it and hope it brought back some happy memories!
We bought a 1980 Plymouth Horizon 4sp, no A/C or P/S but with the heavy duty suspension and sunroof. An excellent car with great reliability. I ordered a 1984 Dodge Omni GLH with A/C - hammered it hard for over 100,000 miles and 15 years with zero complaints. Another great car that far outlived my friends equivalent Fords and Chevys. Only weak link was the A/C lines leaked refrigerant.
Chryslers quality game was so much better than the decade before by then from what I read.
I had a Omni with the 2.2 liter four cylinder. If you accept it for what it was it was a great little car.!
My mom owned a TC3. It was black. ❤
My mother bought her 1990 Plymouth Horizon in March 1990. She's 85 now and gave up driving a few months ago; so she donated the Horizon to charity. She had stopped working in 1995 and drove the car only a couple hundred miles per year after that. The car had just under 60K miles on it when the charity picked it up.
Wow...Hope whoever gets it realizes what a nice survivor they have!
I'm not a know it all but I consider myself knowledge about car history but I've never heard of the Plymouth Cricket. So that's worth me subscribing right lol! I think this channel will become VERY POPULAR!
Thank you! It's not perfect as I'm a Student as well as a Medicore Teacher too?.I said the Cricket was a Simca design but it was UK Rootes. Got the year wrong on when the Dodge Colt launched...Was 71 but I mis spoke and said 73.. I really appreciate the optimism. Had a few lately get some serious views (for me), so we will see where this goes. I dont think Doug Demiro needs to get worried yet.
Before the Cricket came out, Chrysler had been quietly selling the Roots/Hillman Imp, a rear-engine car that looked like a children's Corvair, as well as the Simca 1000, and then the 1100 (both of which were seen as Peggy's car on Mannix) , in the USA. That all had to stop as U.S. regulations grew more challenging.
@@pcno2832 Thank you! I myself wasn't aware untill you and another person earlier mentioned that. The numbers sold of those pre Cricket vehicles here had to be tiny too.
@@autochatter Very busy man yet still puts out quality content. Doug might not worry yet but who knows. Just don't forget about us little people when you get to the top lol!!!!!!!😂😂 Cheers man!
@95blahblahhaha Thanks. Maybe someday I'll see someone rocking a Auto Chatter T shirt!
My sister had a Dodge Omni. I remembered that the A/C controls were to the left of the steering wheel. So the front passenger had no control of the cabin temperature and fan speed, and was completely at the mercy of the driver to set those. Very strange. 9:13 shows this.
Yeah it was...and I think I forgot to mention it in this video LOL.
Thanks for including the Shelby history which usually gets left out. I had an '87 Shelby Charger and 2 '87 Charger GLHS cars back in '97. I still have one of them. They were fantastic cars and easily wiped the floor with almost everything on the street, you'd have to spend a LOT more to out compete it. They responded great to minor tweeks too, changing the computer, adding more boost, larger exhaust and got great fuel economy too! They were the first tuner cars.
You are welcome! I try to go for the major points with these vids...Cause I know a fan of whatever I chat about will point out a ommision otherwise! But I don't go all Doug Demiro pointing out how unique some bolt was LOL....And for the record I love his vids! Shelby really helped with the whole turboed Chrysler cars. The Shadows later, Spirit R/T, and eventually the SRT Neon.
@@autochatter Yes sir, I agree completely. I've had an 86 Omni GLH turbo, a '87 shelby charger turbo, an 84 daytona turboZ, an 88 Daytona ShelbyZ, 2 '87 GLHS cars (still have one), a GLHS converted Rampage, still have an 87 Shelby Lancer, had an 88 CSXT Shadow, still have an 89 CSX Shadow, had a '91 Spirit RT, and an '05 SRT4. The only ones I did not have is an omni GLHS, an 87 CSX, and the '89 V8 Shelby Dakota truck. Very cool cars in my opinion, a LOT of fun, great fuel economy too which other performance cars of their day did not have.
That's a impressive list of Mopars! I'm going to do the Shadow,Spirit, and Neon at some point. Try to mix it up a bit as I go LOL. I want to say Shelby assisted with the development of the Viper too? I suspect you would know.
@@autochatter Yes, the turbo cars kept increasing in price so they were ditched in lieu of the Viper but he also made some Shelby vipers and Shelby Durangos later.. it's funny the turbo 4 cyl formula was to return a decade later with the SRT4s but the turbo 4 cyl cars were still being made and sold in Mexico.. The SRT4 cars were incredible. I worked for Chrysler at the time and got to go to the SRT launch in Irvine where we got to race the SRT cars along with their respective "competition," there were none..
@mediamain6 I could see that. I was impressed around 2004 when some guy with a SRT4 started reving his engine at a stoplight when I had my 350Z. He wasn't willing or able to do a aggressive launch and I never abused my car...But having more torque , I could afford to be less aggressive off the line. I maintained superiority untill the race was over some 25 mph over the speed limit, but was impressed what that "Neon" could do. If he really didn't care about his clutch, he could have jumped me and made that stoplight drag alot closer...Maybe even beat me.
I had a few, also had a Duster a brown plymouth Turismo.
Had a 1981 Horizon red with 2.2 engine and black corduroy interior, black trim and alloy wheels . Put a lot of miles on it and sold it to my sister-n- law who put many more miles on it before its final trip to the junkyard.
The life and fate of many of them I'm sure. Nice trim combo.
My grandpa had a blue Omni with the original door handles, before they redesigned. The rear doors allegedly wouldn't open from the inside, but I think the child door locks were on.
I think child locks were mandatory by the mid 80s?
In 1987, I bought an Omni that was supposedly made in Kenosha with the 96 HP 2.2. It cost me $8100 through an overseas dealer in Korea. The car was nice up to about 8500k miles. That's when everything started to go. The car did have a defective clutch that was replaced under warranty at 7k miles. The clutch also replaced at 23k miles and again at 50k. For the time, it wasn't a car. Nowadays, I drive a 2021 KIA Soul EX, and at 58k miles, all I have had to do is regular maintenance.
.We had a 84 omni and an 86 horizon, which was fitted with a factory CD player. The 86 had two 3 point rear seatbelts, lap belt in middle. That was in Canada 😃
A CD player then?...FANCY!!!!
@@autochatter yep, only one speaker in each front door. Skipped when wind touched the car. Personally, i think our old 86 lebaron gts had the best radio I've ever seen in a cheap 80s car. Only cassette but 300 watts, proper eq, 10 speakers.
@scottbogfoot I used a Sony Discman with a adaptor for my first CD player..Skipping was common.
17:50: I owned a 1986 version of the GLH Turbo, in this same red color. Mine was fully race-prepped by the original owner (a guy from Quebec who ran a custom hydraulic shop in Detroit), built for SCCA Pro Rally. My engine computer was something 'special' from the Chrysler 'skunkworks', and I assume it was a development ECM for a Shelby Turbo S, since it would hold a higher boost for a short period of time. I'm assuming I had roughly 180 HP. It used to detonate pretty easily, so I had to mix my fuel 50/50 with Sunoco 93 octane and 100 octane unleaded racing fuel. That car had enough power to scare me at times....
Underhood, it was cramped, and a real hassle to work on. But I was nearly always the fastest of the 2-wheel drive cars when I rallied it. Sold it off years ago to some guy near Chicago. These cars are rare today, due to the fact that MOST of them were raced, and eventually crashed.
That's cool! I have a large Cars and coffee near me but never see any GLHs
I didn’t know the Cricket had a mascot. Road Runner, Duster… look out!
Must have been short lived..Read about it from a few sources..Couldnt find any pictures or ads with it.
I had an 88 omni. It was white with red interior. 2.2, 5 speed. It was given to me from an elderly woman who i was building a porch for. I jokingly told her that I'd take that lil dodge and she told me that it had been vandalized, someone punched a hole in the tank and stole the gas, but she went inside and brought me the title and keys. The next day i showed up with a battery, 5 gallons of gas, soldering iron and solder. I dumped a little gas into the throttle body and that car fired right up. So I got underneath it, soldered a quarter over the hole in the tank, poured the gas in, saw it wasnt leaking and i took the tag off my truck and drove it home. I ran that lil car for 7 months and other than a tune up, it never gave me a moment's trouble.
A little horse trading! The ONLY way that story would be cooler is if she had a Porsche 911 instead of a Omni LOL.
@@autochatter lol your reply made me think of the movie "Dream Machine" with Corey Haim. But nah, no dead husband in the trunk, no bad guys after me etc lol. I think by 88 they had the bugs mostly worked out of those L body cars, the addition of the fuel injection as well as general improvements over the years bc at least in my case it was a good car. After I sold it, I continued to see it around for several years. But us car guys do that...fix it, run it, and sell it lol
R.I.P Corey Haim
I remember during the first couple years, the Omnirizon was sold with a throwback wood-decal applique "paneling" framed in chrome...many also had a chrome roof rack to complete the garish look.
I was never a fan of the wallpaper wood.
I purchased a new 82 Rampage and just loved it. I drove it for 16 years to work. I wanted a yellow one with an automatic and no A/C but the factory was on strike at that time so i ended up with yellow factory air and a 4 speed. The A/C ate up clutches and never worked right. The 4 Speed went through 3rd. gears synchro's as i always put it into 3rd. first to get into reverse otherwise it grind reverse gear. Other than that it was one of my favorite vehicles. If they were still made I'd buy another one.
It's too bad they didn't still make them when the turbo models started hitting the scene later. Would have made for a even more interesting little pickup. Guess that "new" Chrysler 4 speed had some issues? Thanks for the comment and giving my little show a watch.
I learned to operate and drive a manual from a 1984 Dodge Omni GLH and a 1984 Dodge Caravan. My parents were one of the first in town to buy a Caravan when they came out.
My Father in law had a 5 speed Voyager or Caravan he used to tell me about. I learned stick on a 80s Dodge Colt.
I had the 84 Rampage, 5 speed. Was a fun little car.
That's cool! I think the extra headlights looked good on those.
I enjoyed your delivery, so subbed.
The fastest Daytona/Charger you'll ever see was the one Dee Dee drove on "Hunter"!
I met my future wife in 1990, and her sister had an Omni in the almost-rust burgundy red color. I'd never been close to one, but since it DID look like a Rabbit somewhat, I took a look under the hood and there was the big VW emblem cast into the valve cover. I just knew it was a rebadge deal between VW and Chrysler, but of course it wasn't. I couldn't remember the model year, but I guess it had to be around a 1981.
In 1983 the local J C Penney ran a big raffle drawing to give away an 024 donated by Gene Reeves Dodge-Chrysler-Plymouth in town. I was 13, and HAD to win that thing because even though I couldn't drive I knew the ladies would be all over me with that sweet ride. I guess I was going to invite one over to sit in it with me and pretend we were cruising. Yeah, when my wife said "Yes, I'll marry you", I was pretty shocked.
Thank you! There was a time when I was younger and thought that Omni was a VW clone too! Especially since GM would have the same car with different badges and grilles on them....Or Chevys that were Toyotas or Suzukis. Guess you didn't have to win the car to win the girl! Seems like a 80s movie story!
The Omni & Horizon were the first USA made transverse FWD cars.
Yes they were.
My sister had one of the Chargers and we lived in Louisiana. The seats were red and every time she got in the car and out the dye in the seats would come off on her cloths in the summer.
Hopefully someone got her some seat covers!
Cool :)
Had an 84 omni glh. Lots of fun, wish I still had it
Yesh..Seems like a car then that would be blast for the cash.
Good job. Subscribed.
Thanks! I really appreciate it!
One of the best features of my TC3 was a supple suspension with long travel and gas shocks. I didn't know a small car could be that comfortable. Maybe the French (Simca) had a hand in the suspension philosophy.
I'm sure it played a factor. The Renault Alliance had a cushy ride for being such a small car too...But was a leaner in corners lol. The French have had some interesting suspensions as they worked on the XJ Cherokee one too and it came out pretty nice. I reviewed a old Motorweek video on the TC3/024 when putting this together, and it wasn't a steller handler in their testing. Mr Shelbys Charger versions later did better.
"Welcome To Auto Chatter" ~ Narrator
I think you were watching it before I gave it a official look!
My family had a horizon, it was a great car for the money
They had nice seats for the class and the interiors overall seemed kinda plush.
@@autochatter the velour seats make the interior
@@holden3 I'm sure they did!
Ford's new imported Fiesta sold 81,000 in 1977, 78,000 in 1978 and 69,000 in 1979. The Escort made the Fiesta obsolete in 1980.
Yeah but I liked those German Fiestas
These cars were everywhere at one time . I had a 81 ' that I called the " Omlet " 😊
LOL..Ive never heard that nickname for one!
Got that name from a good friend at the time 😊
@@louislepage5111 My first car was a pumpkin orange 79 Toyota truck. Eventually was running amps, had 8 inch speakers in the doors ( they wouldn't roll all the way down anymore because of it), and custom speaker box in the rear. I called it the Thumpkin.
@@autochatter Nice 😁
Chrysler pulled a reverse John Lennon and took the Cricket name from the Beetle.
Lol!
Bought a used 82 Plymouth Horizon four door. When you have little cash and need something dependable it got me to work every day. Went on to get a Dodge Daytona.
Cool..Im sure I'll do a Daytona vid eventually
They were made in Belvidere Illinois. Someone said that the shipping charges were as much to ship one to Belvidere Illinois dealers than it cost to ship one across the country. 😊
LOL Might have been! Shipping charges might have been a set amount for all...Whether it was 2k miles away or......2.
@@autochatter Not an uncommon practice. The loading and unloading processes and terminal dwell time are huge expenses for any transportation company, while the line haul is often a marginal cost. Often, longer hauls will use rail, which is far cheaper than truck. A transportation company might give a flat rate to gain the automaker's business, or the auto company might eat some of the cost for longer, more expensive hauls to maintain their market share against competitors and prevent claims of price-gouging by dealers and customers. This is still a pretty common practice.
Oh, a trip down memory lane - I bought a 1982 Dodge Rampage, yellow with light brown two tone. I wanted an economical car, but also was moving cities, so used the truck to move all my worldly possessions, 1300 kilometres away. But after moving, I realized I never used it as a truck, and was limited to a driver and a passenger. So, it got sold. I did like it's uniqueness though.
I think the rise of extended cab pickup popularity hurt the sales on these and the Rabbit Pickup. I'm glad you enjoyed the nostalgia as that's somthing I aim for .
I have a 1983 miser truck slant six it’s a fun truck and it’s in really great condition for a 41 year old truck
That's cool! Slant sixes are neat.
I wish auto manufacturers would offer a stripped down economy car like these... maybe I'm the only one who bought them....
Its crazy what a "base" car is considered now!
My 81 Omni blew the head gasket on its first long trip. I had better luck with an 85 Horizon that was going strong at over 100000 miles until I totalled it in a crash.
Well hopefully you walked away from the wreck.
I remember those little cars had optional V8s. That seemed like an enormous amount of horsepower relative to weight. Maybe I am mis-remembering this, but I kept up with things pretty well as a teenager. The Dodge Colts were good cars, as I recall. No one then had heard of Mitsubishi, but they made a lot of color TVs sold under various store brands.
The Turbo ones were not V8s, but had horsepower on par with some of them then. Mitsubishi made alot of electronics...Still does LOL.
A GLHS would be fun to restore.
It would.Havent seen one in awhile though..Big Cars and Coffee in my area too.
The Mitsubishi Dodge Colt was sold starting in 1971, the same year as the Plymouth Cricket. Just saying as you stated 1973 which is incorrect. The Simca 1100 was also familiar to Americans as it was sold thru Plymouth Dealers in the USA from 1968 till 1970. The Hillman Avenger was produced in South America well into the 1990's as the Dodge Polara and VW 1500. (VW acquired the Chrysler South American unit). The Omni and Horizons were fantastic little cars. Our family owned about 8 of them over 10 years. The sales numbers for 1978 comparison is a bit of apples and oranges as the Pinto and Chevette had 12 months of sales, where the Omni and Horizon only had a short half year of sales being launched in January of 1978. Another misstatement made is suggesting that Chrysler got "Government Loans' in a bail out. That is not true. Chrysler was able to borrow all it's funds from a group of banks. (one being what you showed on that big Check Iaccoca at 8:23 mark is presenting, to the US Trust Company of New York, a bank) The US Government guaranteed the debt, it basically served as a "co-signer". No US funds were loaned by the Government to Chrysler. The Omni American was partly created by the Boston Consulting Firm, Bain and Company headed up by Mitt Romney. They used their consulting, marketing and manufacturing skills to create a package for Chrysler to economically produce the Omni and Horizon as a value car. the content specifically added all in high volume were able to increase the gross margin for the cars production and allow Chrysler to lower the price. My brother worked for Bain at the time. Moving production of the Omni and Horizon actually had nothing to do with the Acquisition of AMC. Chrysler knew in 1986 that they didn't have production capacity to continue the M body cars and the Omni and Horizon. They were all slated for cancellation in the 1987 model year. Chrysler in 1986 began talks with Joe Cappy, President of AMC to do contract manufacturing work by AMC to build Chrysler Products. The agreement was only for 3 years as the M bodied cars and Omni and Horizon would end. AMC had excess capacity as the Renault cars weren't selling well. The 1987 model year (starting in Summer of 1986) was the start of the three year period with the M bodies moving first. Omni and Horizon began the plant conversion in Summer of 1987 before the acquisition AMC took place. Another words,, the concept of moving M bodies and Omni and Horizon was a deal that was struck before the March 1987 acquisition deal was announce. A fight among the AMC shareholders on the price per share started in August of 1987 with the deal being finalized and completed in January 1st, 1988. There was much unjustified Anger by the UAW workers in Kenosha when Chrysler closed down the plant after the 1989. Claims by many was that the 3 year promise was broken. There's disagreement of when the time clock began Ticking. Chrysler's position was they agreed to produce three model years of cars in Kenosha 1987 thru 1989 which would equal three years. Kenosha ended when the New Yorker 5th Ave, Fury, Diplomat and Omni and Horizon ended, the 1989 model year. The end of the Omni was also the end of AMC Kenosha plant.
Wow...I apologize for the inaccuracies on my part! Fascinating read! Makes sense to me now why the Omni/Horizon production continued long after their replacements already hit the market. I am truly humbled by your knowledge of all of this!
Chrysler took Roy Axe the Chrysler UK designer who was on charge of the Alpine and Horizon designs over to the USA
GggggrrrrrATE stuff my friend
I have to say i am honored 🙏🏽 to be an early subscriber to what will no doubt be an at least 200k Subscriber channel .
Loving the opotomisim! Thank you for putting up with me for this long!
@@autochatter All True buddy👌🏽 ... so Thank You!
My father had a 1980 Horizon 4dr with the 1.7 and automatic. He got it as a daily driver because his big Chrysler used too much gas.
Gas mileage was king then.
The Cricket was not a Simca.
It was a British Hillman Avenger
Yes...For some reason I thought it was a Simca design..My apologies.
Thank you for the video. That was an interesting history. I recall seeing the French version( Simca) in books and magazines back then and now I can make the connection. They milked this car and the platform to stay alive. My mom had 1987 Dodge Omni. I hated that car. I really did. I used to call it "compact trash". I admit I was a teen and I did not understand to know better as I do know. I wanted her to buy a Oldsmobile Ciera at the time and she came home with this gray Dodge Omni. This car struggled to get up to speed on the highway and expressway. I can appreciate this video and have an understanding I did not have back then. This was Chrysler's cash cow as they used it to rebuild and get back on track. I did grow up to get my Oldsmobile. I have two in my driveway today. Thank you for the video.
Thank you! I love the cars with interesting stories that are sometimes more fun than the car itself! Is a bit ironic isn't it that Lee Iacocca and Chrysler ads throughout the 80s was "Buy American"....Just don't ask if your car may have been based off a French platform or have a drivetrain built in Europe somewhere LOL.
@@autochatter This is true. I kept seeing it in books and magazines and was young at the time and I kept wondering why does that look like Dodge. and now we have the rest of the story. The other interesting thing is Stellantis today in 2023.
@OLDS98 one thing I didn't get into was why there was pretty much identical Plymouth and Dodge versions. Dodge dealers could be standalone then while Plymouth was always paired with Chrysler. Plymouth was a option to put a customer on who wanted a Chrysler, but it was too much $$$.
@@autochatter It was always like that for decades. Think about this: The 1980's Dodge Diplomat, The Plymouth Gran Fury and Chrysler New Yorker Fifth Avenue. They were all the same M body car and were the same other than grille, trim, and features. They had so many cars like that. I had no idea why because Plymouth became the value brand and Dodge the sport brand and Chrysler was the be the luxury brand then Eagle was thrown into that situation. I guess Chrysler was trying to get value out of its platforms. Chrysler was not alone in doing this. GM and Ford did it too. It really became obvious at Ford with Ford and Mercury and then later Lincoln.
@OLDS98 I'd say the 1970s is when alot of these once more independent divisions started sharing so much, they just became clones of each other. Plymouth,Oldsmobile,and Mercury started becoming redundant. At least Olds tried to rebrand itself, but you know all too well how that worked out.
My 1st car was a used 80 omni..had alot of fun with it even with all the problems i had with it
1st cars...Great memories....And sometimes it was good to keep some duct tape in the trunk, just in case!
@autochatter I MISS that car..couldn't lock the doors in the winter...endless carb replacements and still had to spray the carb before a cold start to prevent a stall.. a couple of transmissions..but still LOVED it
@@brianhornak5937 I totally get it!
@autochatter I never understood the carb issue..a new one..normal for a day or 2 then back to the same problem
@@brianhornak5937 I dunno. My first car (a 79 Toyota truck), had a carb that would go from running great to not hardly at all....and then run fine again...Sometimes for days straight.
Forget about the Simca influence; by the time the Omni/Horizon came out, they had no resemblance at all to a Simca. The design of the Omni was so close to the Rabbit's that it's a wonder Chrysler was never sued for copyright infringement
I agree! I remember even years ago they had a VW engine. At one point if someone told me VW designed the car for them based off their own Rabbit, I would have believed them.
11:55 The Simca engine was a bigger version of the engine in the Simca 1100/1200, the cars that inspired the European Chrysler Horizon in the first place.
Yes..The Simca design was the backbone of the Omni/Horizon. I'm not surprised the 1.6 Simca was a punched out version of the earlier one.
My first car was an 87 Horizon. It was a piece of crap, but I'd give anything to get it back
I think one my Sister in Law had was a 87 too. By "coincidence", it was also a piece of crap LOL.
I had an 84 Turismo 2.2.... Loved it until I unfortunately totaled it.....
Huge lack of understanding about Chrysler Europe operation in Europe.
The Alpine and Horizon were under chief designer Roy Axle at Chrysler (Rootes) UK although using the Simca 1100 floor pan. The French Simca arm of Chrysler Europe had designed the Chrysler 180 which had been a sales and reliability disaster so the Simca design department had relegated to a secondary position.
The Alpine didn't replace the Hillman Avenger but the older Hillman Hunter and Simca 1301 and 1501.
Roy Axle transferred to Chrysler US when the European division were sold off. Roy Axle was responsible for the brief rebirth of Rover in the 1990"s before they were destroyed by internal politics under BMW ownership.
My apologies..The Chrysler Europe thing had alot of twists and turns and I was not really versed with any of it prior. Like the Cricket (the Hillman) was still produced by Citreon after they bought Chrysler Europe?
All automobile companies purchase and evaluate vehicles that they compete against in the market. It doesn't mean they are reverse engineering to clone it.
I'd agree with that. In this particular case they "studied" a Mark one Golf really hard .
My Latin teacher said Omni Miser translated to "Totally Wretched", which she declared truth in advertising.
😂 No wonder I found that name so amusing!
Always had issues with the front tire tread feathering.
Those poor front tires were doing all the work! Thank you for the comment and view!
The early ones had VW-AUDI engines and transmissions, so kinda sorta Rabbit-ish, at least in that way. Otherwise, cheap and kinda crappy. I had a 79 Omni that I did a ton of DIY work on.
Yeah..It was technically a Audi engine...But I think VW owned them by then.
@@autochatter I remember both symbols stamped, possible in multiple places on the engine and possibly transmission.
vwvortex"dot"com"slash"attachments"slash"img_1775-jpg(dot)92456/
I was wondering if you would mention the Scamp considering most people don't even know it existed or as the Valiant hardtop of the 1970's. I applaud you.
Thanks! Yeah the Rampage and Scamp were short lived oddities. The Rabbit pickup wasn't exactly a best seller either.
@@autochatter Though slow as molasses in January, the Rabbit Diesel 'pick-up' could wring out well over 50MPG driven gently which is remarkable even today, and the gasoline versions were nearly as frugal. We could use that today for sure!
@@autochatterYour right, they were not at all common and you could consider yourself lucky to see one.
Not great vehicles but good. I had a 87 Omni, 87 Duster ( 2 door Omni), Parents had 84 New Yorker w/ Mitsubishi, (k) 84 Voyager w/ Mitsubishi ,88 Caravan 3.0.
That's alot of Mopar!
What the...? The green Alpine looks almost identical to the Chevy Citation hatchback. Also, am I seeing fiber optic headlight signals on the front of the hood of the Omnis and Horizons?
Lol..I noticed that too.That look apparantly was trending. That Chevy Chevette but newer thing.
That angular hatchback look also showed up in the Rover SD-1, sold as the Rover 3500 in this country, and on the '78-'79 Century and Cutlass "fake hatchbacks". It seems to have influenced the Pontiac Aztec as well.