This was the last Rootes Motors car we saw in the US. By the time it was manufactured Rootes was 100% owned by Chrysler. (Chrylser had also acquired France's Simca brand and merged them together under the name Chrysler Europe. Why a struggling US brand would buy two struggling European brands is a mystery to me. In 1978, after just 11 years, Chrysler sold the Chrysler Europe company to Peugeot for $1.00.)
This turned out to be the one and only car developed by Rootes under Chrysler's ownership. In the UK this car was called the Hillman Avenger. In Europe it was meant to compete with the Ford Cortina and Morris Marina. In the US it was supposed to take on the Chevy Vega, Ford Pinto and just about everything from Japan.
The automotive press in the US actually liked the car. It handled well, was roomy, got decent gas mileage and, in theory, was easy to maintain and get parts for because of the large number of Plymouth dealers in the US.
The problem was that the build quality was atrocious and when they broke down, which was often, many Plymouth dealerships had no idea how to repair them. To make matters worse, the Japanese had started introducing small cars that were well put together and didn't break down. The Cricket never really stood a chance. By 1972, after just 3 model years, it was withdrawn from the US market. (Some leftover 1972 cars were sold as 1973s.)
This was meant to be an economy sedan and in that regard it hit the mark. While it handled well, it was slow and you could never really get it going fast enough to enjoy its handling characteristics. Like the Marina, which was being sold as an Austin in the US, the interior was roomy and much nicer than those found in the Japanese cars of the day. Nice, but few people bought economy cars for their interiors. In Europe Chrysler offered some performance versions of the Avenger, but we never saw them here. That's too bad, as from what I've read, they are fun cars to drive.
There are very few Plymouth Crickets left in the US. Chrysler replaced it with Mitsubishi products in the US and it very quickly became an orphan. Once Chrysler sold its European operations to Peugeot, parts, which weren't all that easy to get in the first place, became impossible to come by. (Virtually any part for a Cricket would have to come from Europe now and even there they're getting tough to find.)
This car appears to be in very good condition. Crickets rusted, but this doesn't appear to have any serious rust. The only scary thing about this car is the price. There isn't one listed. I hope, just because it's old and rare, the seller doesn't think this is worth a ton of money. This is the type of car you'd buy cheap, rarely drive, but bring to shows. It would attract a lot of attention from English car fanatics and Mopar fans.
Located somewhere in Wisconsin, click here to see the Craigslist ad.
