Hillman Avenger

For the pre-1964 Sunbeam-Talbot or Sunbeam-Talbot-Darracq cars see Sunbeam Car Company#Post-war

Hillman Avenger
Overview
Manufacturer	Rootes Group Chrysler Europe
Production	1970-1981
Body and chassis
Body style	2-door and 4-door saloon 5-door estate 3-door hatchback
Powertrain
Engine	1248 cc/1295 cc/1498 cc/1598 cc Straight-4
Chronology
Predecessor	Hillman Minx
Successor	none

The Hillman Avenger was a sub-compact car originally manufactured under the Hillman marque by the Rootes Group, and later made by Chrysler Europe. It was produced under various guises and badges over a production run of 11 years. It was initially produced at Rootes' plant in Ryton-on-Dunsmore, England but was later assembled at the company's Linwood facility near Glasgow, Scotland.

1970 - The Hillman Avenger

Introduced in February 1970, the Avenger was significant as it was the first and last car to be developed by Rootes after the Chrysler takeover in 1967. Stylistically the Avenger was very much in tune with its time; the American-influenced "Coke Bottle" waistline and semi-fastback rear-end being a contemporary styling cue, although from an engineering perspective it was conventional, using 4-cylinder all-iron overhead valve engines in 1.3 L or 1.5 L (later uprated to 1.6 L) capacities driving a coil spring suspended live axle at the rear wheels. Unlike any Rootes design before it, there were no "badge-engineered" Humber or Singer versions in the UK market. The Avenger was available in 2-door and 4-door saloon or 5-door estate body styles. The Avenger was widely praised for good handling characteristics, it was considered a significantly better car to drive than rivals such as the Morris Marina.

The engines and transmissions were all new and owed nothing to its larger brother, the Hunter or "Arrow" series. The Hunter engine used just three main bearings whereas the Avenger has five, providing a stiffer crank support. The Avenger was a steady seller in the 1970s, in competition with the Ford Escort and Vauxhall Viva. Chrysler wanted the Avenger to be a "world car", and took the ambitious step of marketing the Avenger as the Plymouth Cricket in the United States. Poor build quality and unreliability, plus apathy towards small cars amongst buyers in the United States, saw it withdrawn from that market after only two years.

1972 - Introduction of more bodystyles

1972 Hillman Avenger Saloon with "Hockey Stick" rear light clusters

The existing Avenger models were joined in February 1972 with the basic fleet Avenger, which was offered with either 1250 or 1500cc engines. The fleet Avengers did not even have a sun visor for the front seat passenger.

In March 1972, the five-door estate versions of the existing 1250 Deluxe,' 1250 Super,' 1500 Deluxe and 1500 Super were now offered alongside the existing four-door saloon models.

A two-door saloon version was then introduced, and its trim would follow that of the four-door. Styling of the two door was similar to the 4 door, but the side profile was more subdued.

The car was extensively marketed in continental Europe, first as a Sunbeam. It was without the Avenger name in France, where it was known as the Sunbeam 1250 and 1500; later the 1300 and 1600. Some northern European markets received the car as the Sunbeam Avenger.

Chrysler's South American operations also built and marketed the car. In Brazil it was known as the Dodge 1800/Polara (it utilized a larger stroke 1800 cm³ version of its motor), and in Argentina, where it was the Dodge 1500. The station wagon was known as the Dodge 1500 Rural, while 1800 cm³ versions there were badged as the Dodge 1500M.

Other countries to market the car were South Africa (where it used Peugeot engines) and New Zealand.

Despite the humble underpinnings, the Avenger was a successful car in motorsport; it was a frequent strong achiever in the British Touring Car Championship owing to the "tuneability" of its engine. The road-going version, the 4-door Avenger Tiger, is now a sought-after classic car.

The Avenger Tiger

Avenger Tiger

Named to evoke memories of the Sunbeam Tiger, the Avenger Tiger concept began as a publicity exercise. Avenger Super 4-door cars were modified by the Chrysler Competitions Centre under Des O' Dell and the Tiger model was launched in March 1972. Modifications included the 1500 GT engine with an improved cylinder head with enlarged valves, twin Weber carburettors and a compression ratio of 9.4:1. The engine now developed 92.5 DIN bhp at 6100 rpm. Suspension is also uprated, whilst brakes, rear axle, and gearbox are from the GT.

A distinctive colour scheme with a matt black bonnet bulge, rear panel and side stripes was standard, set off with "Avenger Tiger" lettering on the rear quarters. Other colours were also produced, however.

Road test figures demonstrated a 0-60 mph time of 8.9 seconds and a top speed of 108 mph. These figures beat the rival Ford Escort Mexico, but fuel consumption was heavy.

All Avenger Tigers were assembled by the Chrysler Competitions Centre and production figures are vague but around 200 of the initial mark 1 seems likely.

In October 1972 Chrysler unveiled the more "productionised" mark 2 Tiger. The Avenger GL bodyshell with 4 headlights was used. Mechanically identical to the earlier cars, the bonnet bulge was lost, and there were changes to wheels and seats. These cars went on at £1350. Production was around 400. Only yellow and red were available, with black detailing.

1976 - A rebadge to Chrysler and a facelift

In 1976 the Avenger was rebadged as a Chrysler. It also gained a comprehensive facelift which included a new frontal treatment and a new dashboard. Both treatments looked similar to those of the Chrysler Alpine. The greatest change was at the rear where, on the saloons, the distinctive "hockey-stick" rear lamp clusters were dropped in favour of a straight "light-bar" arrangement. The top of the former "hockey-sticks" had body-coloured metal in their place.

1977 - The Chrysler Sunbeam hatchback

Series 1 Talbot Sunbeam Lotus in an unusual colour scheme; this example started life as an undercover model for Manchester police. Photo courtesy of Steve Conry, Avenger & Sunbeam Owners Club.

In 1977, a hatchback variant was introduced, known as the Chrysler Sunbeam. This was based on a shortened version of the Avenger's floorplan, and was intended to compete in the lower "supermini" class. Initially three engines were available: a 930cc Hillman Imp-derived unit and 1300 and 1600 Avenger units. A sporty "Ti" version was soon introduced, also with a 1600 engine.

The model's name was a revival of the Rootes Sunbeam marque, which had recently been killed off along with the final Sunbeam model, the Rapier.

In 1979 Chrysler unveiled the Sunbeam Lotus at the Geneva Motor Show. Developed in conjunction with Lotus with rallying in mind (because none of the existing models were competetive) and utilising a 2200cc Lotus engine, the road-going version of the rally car was not actually ready for deliveries to the public until after the Peugeot buyout (see below), and thus became the Talbot Sunbeam Lotus. At first these were produced mostly in Lotus's then tobacco-sponsorship colours of black and silver, although later models came in a turquoise and silver scheme.

1979 - The Talbotization and the end

Towards the end of the 1970s, the Avenger was being increasingly outclassed by the new generation of modern front-wheel drive hatchbacks such as the VW Golf, Renault 14 and Fiat Ritmo/Strada. In 1978, Chrysler Europe went bankrupt and was taken over by Peugeot, which rebranded Chrysler models as Talbots. The Avenger and Sunbeam survived, rebadged once again, although unlike newer Talbot models such as the Horizon, they retained the Chrysler "Pentastar" badge, instead of the Talbot logo featuring a letter "T" inside a circle. Production continued until 1981, when Peugeot closed the Linwood production plant.

Not all was bleak during this time; the Talbot Sunbeam Lotus enjoyed further development and won the World Rally Championship for Talbot in 1981.

Post-1981 - Afterlife in Argentina

Production of the model continued in Argentina until 1990, as Volkswagen acquired the tooling from Chrysler when the latter withdrew from South America. Volkswagen re-badged the then Dodge 1500 as the VW 1500. Under Volkswagen it received its final facelift, gaining a sloping front grille which was more in vogue in the early 1980s. This vehicle was very popular with taxi drivers, but by the end of 2001 they had all met the 10-year age rule on Argentine taxi vehicles. An Avenger-based pickup truck called the Dodge 1500 Pickup was made in Uruguay, but the conversion failed to properly account for structural rigidity and they literally broke apart.

External links

• Help save one of the few Talbot Lotus Sunbeams left in the UK
• The Avenger and Sunbeam Owners Club
• The Sunbeam Lotus Owners Club
• Hillman Avenger Club of Ireland
• Avenger/Cricket/Sunbeam page at Allpar.com
• The Hillman Avenger / Plymouth Cricket web page
• Site for Simca/Chrysler France products
• Avenger web page
• Worldwide Avenger portal
• "What is a Sunbeam Lotus?"
• Brief history, with illustration, of the Sunbeam Lotus