Avengers for sale around the world...

[avengertiger]

heres one closer to home for you paddy in fermanagh,bitter green gls tidy wee car,it might be one that came from an asoc member some time ago.
http://cars.donedeal.ie/for-sale/vintagecars/3512531

im still tryin to find the killinascully epsiode were they raced an avenger!!!!

[Paddy75]

Aye I seen on the latest ASOC magazine an article from a Mr Robert Nutter, that AveGLS auto was owned by this ASOC member, bought in 2004 from a Mark Rose, also previously owned by Andy Wilson when it won 'Best Avenger' at an ASOC national day and in turn was sold to a Mr Alan Wylie of the Lakesiders, and a wily price he is looking for it!
It was havily restored by Robert after he bought it from Mark Rose. I'm not much of an automatic fan, that 1500cc I'd guess is a BW35, 3 speed 'box. So if I won the lotto - and there is ?4.2mi as yet unclaimed from someone in Co.Down! Not me though!
I'd be more intrested in Kermit!

I see also someone in ASOC spied a tidy looking brown/bronze MK1 Avenger on a transporter heading north on the English M6 ''..RLD860L where was it going?..''
A transporter north on the M6 carrying Audis (likely diesels) hmmm, oh I wonder where they are going! Very likely Cairnryan or Stranraer!
As I say about 1/3rd of Avengers & Sumbeams sold in Blighty head 'o'er the sea.'

I was at an old tractor auction last Saturday and there was a 1964 Singer Gazelle offered. The yoke the Avenger replaced, it looked well and had an overdrive. Of course it had a GB plate!

Irish damp, buckaroo drivers, bad roads, high mileages, not changing the oil and ''..aye that'll do the very besht' she is shpot on btw bhoy..'' setting the timing by ear - is why there are few classics that matured in Ireland.
Every time I'm on a ferry heading back towards Ireland, there is at least one GB reg'd classic on the boat. Sure when I crossed with my Avenger I thought I must have been the only lad with a 'Hillman' on the boat.
Then I saw a SuperMinx go by!

[avengertiger]

thats right i had a feeling it was roberts old car,it will be 100% so,he is fussy he has the most original and clean tiger in the uk.
thats the way it is with classics at one stage i was back and forth probably every 3 months with something i brought 4 avengers and a lotus sunbeam back from uk,2 mantas,rs 2000,anglia,kadett coupe,sr kadett i hated the ferry but always enjoyed the road trips had some good craic on them.

[Paddy75]

Surely, it is fun for the trip I have to say I enjoyed the run and I know for again to check the damn coolant!
I see there is a 'beam with the Imp engine forsale. Even with the big, front facing radiator they still overheated! Granda had one for about 2 weeks - it overheated! The Imp lads go mad for the slightly modified all-alloy OHC engine on them and I see the seller is reminding the racing fraternity of the 4.4 diff - oh I know where there is a 4.4 diff on a 1250 Avenger!
The 1.0 Sunbeam or Imp could do 50mpg, you just had to know that the thermostat had opened on a short run, made damn sure the coolant was clean, generally bend-over-backwards to keet them going...
No, the dropping of a modified Imp engine was not the happiest of Avenger/Avenger off-shoot stories!
I believe there is one Sunbeam in NZ? No folks they were not a hatchback as you might think 'liftback' and they were a lot more driveable and comfortable than a Fiesta (sorry Dan!) although they did have a rep' for rust - ahhh blame Chrysler again!

Take a look at the engine bay, see an ever so slight similarity (not the engine!) there?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1980-TALBOT-SUNBEAM-LS-1-0L-RALLY-CAR-HILLMAN-IMP-ENGINE-DONOR-/160826748602?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item2572056eba

[oldschool]

Yes Paddy, under the bonnet looks the same as the Avenger. I bet an Avenger GLS front could be fitted, would make it a very handsome hatch...a Sunbeam Avenger...lol

[Paddy75]

I seen on Ebay a couple of years ago a Sunbeam with MK2 Avenger front panels fitted 'Avebeam' the seller called it. Oh yeh the 1600cc GLS engine is what you'd want alright, bigger manifold the four stud carbie mount to take a CD175 I believe.
I was trying to find LIJ 5558, a neighbours 1979 1600 GLS Avenger that he sold to an old Farmer about 1990 or so. Likely the Farmer would have 'ditched' it so I was hoping to find the remains - 3.70 axle, GLS engine to rebuild and apparently it had a really good 'box. I discovered that after the Farmer had died it went to a son-in-law, a Bricklayer, it got tortured to death!

There were a lot of Avengers in this part of the country due to there being a 'David Prentice' dealership in Castlewellan at the time. Although Prentice sold Volvos they also had some sort of deal going on with Rootes/Chrysler and so I'm hearing (last night again) ''..oh I had a GT I bought out of Prentices', they were a really good driving car..'' To which I reply ''..do ye have it in a ditch?..''

Damn N. of Irl 'Farm Quality Assurance' Scheme, its only a pointless joke-job creating... grrrr!
All the ditch fillers have been crushed thanks to an arshole with a clipboard! Classic car owners and 'Childer' are mighty pissed-off!

Yep 'Sunbeam Avenger' the European left-hookers had this badge:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NOS-Sunbeam-Avenger-Sunbeam-Chrome-Script-Badge-Hillman-Chrysler-Talbot-/330750592418?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item4d024585a2

[oldschool]

Hey Richard and Paddy, that nice poo Avenger Wagon didn't sell at auction...is on eBay now....

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Hillman-Avenger-1500-de-luxe-Estate-1972-/251087701146?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item3a75fe449a

[oldschool]

Check out this Talbot Sunbeam Lotus on eBay...looks pretty tidy...

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Talbot-Sunbeam-Lotus-1980-/330753423268?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item4d0270b7a4

[Paddy75]

It does indeed look like a nice one. Lotus Sunbeams are some bit of kit alright I wonder has anybody dropped a Lotus engine into an Avenger!? Keeping the engine right though can be a bit of work and you really have to know what you are doing with them.
Heard the story about a 1980 Talbot Avenger in my locality that could do 125mph last night again, it apparently had a home-made 5-speed (using the avenger gearbox) 'box and a Tiger-ized engine. The Cops could never catch it! They just saw an Avenger shaped blur flying by.

Was at the Kilcoo classic run yesterday evening where I met a guy with his 1975 Avenger 1600 DL in day-glo orange! It also had a local plate, GIJ 2144 (jealous!) I was over the moon! Really good to see two of them together. His boy was very intrested in the round clocks dashboard and the silver strip over the roof rail! The local newspaper photographer took a few pictures of them together commenting, ''..sick of seeing Escorts..'' yep, true!
I left the Avenger guy my old brochures and I'll get them back off him at the Claragh show in end-July.

Anyhow he (the orange Avenger owner) told me he reckons I have sticking piston rings. That overheating incident on the M40 driving it back from London. DAMN-IT!

The Wagon Avenger is for sure a good one. It didn't sell at auction so the seller is trying his luck on Ebay. I can only imagine he thinks its worth ?3.5k+ or something. Clean 2-doors or GT/GLS's are worth that and more standard models, well about ?2-2.5k I'd guess as the classic market seems to be over the peak.
Typically the UK classic market follows boom/bust recession cycles. Prices peak at the start of recessions as older people retire early with a big redundancy cheque then once those buyers have spent there is a glut of sellers thinking 2k too high.
Often too owners get 'flattered' by the insurance companies telling them 'oh your car is worth 4k' this is just a ploy to bump-up your premium. They tried that with me, lets say it just didn't work!

[Paddy75]

Oh yeh! Poo-brown! Hey it was the 1970's, like soicalisim* it seemed like a good idea at the time!

* Not being political there that 'soicalisim' quip leads to the typical hillarious colours BL esp. used to use.
Hmm okay so we have our super-stylish Allegro Estate Wagons, lets paint them day-glo green, yeh groovy! How to improve the Maxi's byre doors! Paint 'em mustard!
'Safety Colours' for the people!

Hmmm next time you take a dump, ''..I need to drop a Sandalwood!..''

[oldschool]

Here's another Avenger wagon on eBay...this time the mighty Chrysler 1300...and still no door pockets...lol
Hey Paddy, did they have a 4.11 diff like the 1600 wagon or the 4.25 or 4.4?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/chrysler-avenger-estate-/200777894693?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item2ebf4b8b25

[Paddy75]

Seen that one, reminds me of the same D.o.E Yellow one an uncle-in-law had. I see its an early MK2 that still had the rod-linkage throttle, and badged 1300 DL, Super, GL instead of 1.3 LS, GL, GLS.
Don't we all wish Chrysler didn't launch the MK2 untill this time! Oh don't get me wrong, the MK2 was a good car, and the Avenger was a coke-bottle car. Seriously, they really should have left at least the Avenger rear ends well alone!

Heyy has the epilepsy inducing seat pattern! The 1970's - the decade taste forgot!
I'd guess the instruments were taken from a GLS!

I don't know what ratio the back axles in the later Wagons had and I all I do know is that in the mid-70's the 1300 went from 4.37 to 4.11 and the 1600 from 3.89 to 3.70, likewise the S5's on got a steeper ignition static advance curve. The 1300cc started still with 4.37, 4.11 was first used on the 1300cc TC (GT) then S5 on 4.11 with the SC 1300.
S6 onwards I think the 1600 went to 3.70:1. I see the 1975 (S5) 1600 DL I came accross was at 3.89:1. (Second digit in the service code.)
I can only assume the 1300 MK2 went to 3.89:1 (sedan) as they upped the crt to 8.8:1 on the MK2 ''..to improve torque and economy..''

I see too that there is a MK1 indicator stalk on Ebay that the seller doesn't know what its for! I seen them sell for ?50! He is looking for ?15. If its an issue getting them in NZ I can bid on it and send it on. I did post the link to it on ASOC so likely it'll sell. I have a spare already.

Next week I am going to trawl the local-ish breakers yards to see if there are any Avenger bits still about. I really should rip the engine/box and axle out of that field-find. 4.37:1 diffs are getting scarse.

[Paddy75]

Progress. They were good and the MK2 had roof bars too. The Avenger Estate Wagons, the best looking load-luggers of the time? Ceartanly beat the Allegro Estate!

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VINTAGE-1970s-CAR-ADVERT-Chrysler-Avenger-/120938067712?pt=UK_Car_Parts_Vehicles_Automobila_ET&hash=item1c28787700

Still though I wish... I wish Talbot had done a swan-song run of MK1 shaped Avengers for the last 1,000 - no make that 10,000, with the Ford 5-speed 'box! While I'm at it, also with the Peugeot 1.9 XUD engine!

[oldschool]

I have a spare column multi-function switch too. What kills them is no relay in the circuit for the head lights, so all the current goes through the fuse box, light switch and dip/high beam contacts in the column switch, burning them out over time.
Have just put a relay in Scarlett...mounted the box on the inner guard, cut the wires, add eyelets and hook up...a bonus is...the lights are brighter!!

[Paddy75]

Nice job Oldschool (Richard? Sorry I'm a terrible dose with names, I would not make a great detective - ''..aye yer honor, him there with the head...I proceeded to batter him aboot the napper with the hurley then..'')

So thats why (when the seller knows what they are for!) they are a fierce price on the 'bay. I see no intrest on ASOC, kinda suprized about that I thought I was being the good boy scout tipping Avenger owners off and not telling the seller what it was for. I seen those bid up to about ?50.

As for electrical faults I see the main feed wire from the starter to the fuse-box likes to come loose and kill the motion at 50mph! The engine would die and for a few seconds the 'No Charge' light would burn as the alertnator 'flywheels' its rotors energy.
I guess the last owner was using this as an anti-theft device! A nip with the pliers cured that.

Right, for sure modernising the head lamps circuitry would be a good idea! The halogen lamps do pull a bit more current too. Its funny when I look into the fuse-box of a modern car, there are more relays and fuses than a 1960's bottling plant control-board!
The pre Oct73's had three fuses! All at 35A. If one of them blew you had for sure also a switch or two burned out with it!

Sometimes progress is good!
Still though I personally think the catalytic converter was bullshit. Ford had nearly mastered the lean burn in the late '80s. Remember the Escort (MK4) 1.4 lean burn CVH, or the Sierra 1.8 CVH? If you ran them on 4* or super unleaded they ran very well. Toyota too had the cat alternative nearly perfected also, although a Carina E with scorched exhaust valves was often seen (or you could smell!)
All the twatalitic converter 'converted' was a 5-10% increase in consumption.