lae
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,045
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Jul 22, 2007 21:38:58 GMT
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Hi all, I'm new here Yes, despite the lamentations of my housemates (who complain that the rorty exhaust wakes them up when I go for a 4am drive), my university tutors, my mechanic, my neighbours and pretty much anyone who is over the age of 40, I have bought a Hillman Avenger GT. Apparently a pretty crummy family saloon in its day, to me it somehow seems like a nice retro Detroit-styled car, especially with the GT stripes and metallic olive paint. Also I can finally be free from the tweed-jacket and pipe-smoking world of MG ownership (damn you Midget... failing your MOT just before I put you up for sale... )  Perhaps not the best angle (shows up all the rusty bits too) but I think it's quite a nice looking car. It's also very quiet and comfortable, and somehow the floorpan isn't rusted at all, so it's structurally good. It's running a bit rich at the moment, but I'll sort that out tomorrow. The only things I'm not happy with are the splits on the top of the dash and the fairly high fuel consumption (my MG got like 40mpg, this gets nearer 30, but I'm sure I can get this higher with a few tweaks). Insurance was fairly ridiculous at £970 but that's £400 cheaper than the cheapest quote I got for my MG. Another thing I'm worried about is the lack of tuning parts. I had two whole books devoted to tuning and race-prepping my MG Midget (I never got round to it due to lack of funds) and another book on the engine. This car seems to be fairly limited, and other than stealing parts from the Avenger Tiger I'm stuck for ideas... if anyone could tell me anything about tuning Avengers or what parts from other cars will fit easily into them, I would be grateful. I was (and still am) thinking about a Rover V8 conversion but I have no idea how easy this would be to do... I could steal the engine, gearbox and prop from a P6 and have the propshaft shortened to fit... no idea where the rear axle would come from though, I don't imagine the stock one is up to the job... Also does anyone know of any companies near York (in Yorkshire, genius) which fit rear seatbelts? Mine currently has none, and I'm worried that anyone in the back seat will headbutt me in the back of the head with quite some power if I have a crash... Here's the concept pic. I haven't done the quarter-bumpers, GT badges (I plan to steal the cool orange ones from the 1275GT Mini) or bullet mirrors, but the paintjob and chrome grille are there (I saw some old concept sketches of the Avenger with a chrome grille and it looked really cool) and I moved the Hillman badge from the bonnet to the grille. And yes, I know the stripe is a little wonky, I'm not so good with paintshop pro. And it doesn't have nice wheels yet, but I haven't found any 70s style wheels that I actually like yet... does anyone know a company that makes retro aftermarket wheels?  |
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Last Edit: Jul 29, 2007 21:22:12 GMT by lae
Currently:
Mk1 Focus blandmobile
Formerly:
1969 MG Midget
1972 Avenger GT
1981 Datsun Cherry
1989 Corolla
1979 Mercedes W123 200D
1995 Ford Falcon
1996 Ford Telstar (bet you had to google that one)
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Jul 22, 2007 21:43:28 GMT
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 Fantastic car ! housemates,tutors,mechanics and neighbours - what do they know ? ? i know sod all about tuning these but fear not , someone will be along very shortly to help you out there  Oh and more ( a lot more) pics please Oh and welcome too
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Mike
East Midlands
Posts: 3,387
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Jul 22, 2007 22:16:39 GMT
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Welcome, excellent car! Is it a 1500? Going the Tiger tuning route might not be such a bad option, and it'll get you lots of ideas and help i would have thought.
Oh, and we need more pics!
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Rob M
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,915
Club RR Member Number: 41
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Jul 22, 2007 22:19:33 GMT
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Nice car fella. These were well represented in the 70s on the track and were relatively successful. Many people believe that the lumps powering the Avenger were better than the Ford Crossflow. Holbay Engineering, back in the 70s, and Chrysler themselves had a sport and tuning division and were turning out some seriously quick Avengers, much quicker than the Tiger versions. Fuel consumption is going to come as a shock to anybody brought up on modern machinery. In the days of much cheaper fuel, 20 to 30 to the gallon was no big deal and the average family MK3 Cortina 2.0 ltr was only good for about 25 mpg anyway. The car wasnt overly crummy when new, it was just overwhelmed sales wise by the Escort which had the slickest marketing machine known to man behind it. Ive owned a very early base model 1250cc and can tell you that it was every bit as good as an Escort, if not revvier and quicker. You have a damn good car there! |
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lae
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,045
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Jul 22, 2007 22:51:01 GMT
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Fuel consumption is going to come as a shock to anybody brought up on modern machinery. I find that offensive  I may only be 19 but I've never owned a car that's less than 30 years old! I reckon I could get the fuel consumption down a bit by fitting an electric fan and getting rid of the engine-driven one and by having a nice little tool-roll instead of my massive toolbox. It's apparently quite reliable so I doubt I need the mass of tools that I had for the MG. Sorting out the carbs should help too. Also in my old D&T class I managed to make a perfect fibreglass copy of a bootlid for my MG so I don't see why I can't do the same for the body panels on this... they're just a bit bigger. And for all your purists complaining about me messing about, you can curse word off - I'll keep the original panels anyway, and a lighter (therefore more fuel efficient and faster-accelerating) car means I'm more likely to keep it. Plus I can sell fibreglass copies to restorers for some extra beer vouchers. And yes, it is the 1500 model. I was thinking about similar late 60s/early 70s saloons and this is actually the best one for me. Think about what other cars were around at that time - - Morris Minor - I've had enough of early 60s cars, and it's slow - Morris Marina - don't like the look, also slow with the 1.3 A-Series (plus I've had enough of that engine), and I've heard that it handled like a bag of poo - Austin Allegro - The name alone makes me laugh (and consequently snort beer all over my keyboard) - Austin Maxi - ugly, grandad-mobile and FWD - Ford Escort - yeah, nice, if I could afford the insurance, let alone the ridiculous prices they reach - Vauxhall Viva - I actually quite like these, but I couldn't find any for sale and they're slightly ugly - Mark 2 Cortina - based on the ancient early 60s floorpan of the original, and expensive to buy - Mark 3 Cortina - I really wanted one and I looked at quite a few, but they were asking WAY too much just because it had been on the telly, plus even the 1.6 was slower than my 1.5 Avenger, and used far more petrol, and the asking prices for even the crappiest 1.3s were way more than the £1200 I got the Avenger for more pics tomorrow, I promise |
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Currently:
Mk1 Focus blandmobile
Formerly:
1969 MG Midget
1972 Avenger GT
1981 Datsun Cherry
1989 Corolla
1979 Mercedes W123 200D
1995 Ford Falcon
1996 Ford Telstar (bet you had to google that one)
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Patina
Part of things
I Leave LARGE Carbon Footprints. Sorry !!!!
Posts: 78
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Yeh more photo's please. That is bloody cool though. Well done.
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'67 Mk1 Ford Cortina - Full Ratter.....AND.....'65 Toyota Stout - Restoration In Progress |
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Sounds like a well researched purchase, and an attractive one at that. 30MPG sounds fair, its when it gets lower i worry. you could always get summat smaller or diesel engined etc for daily duties later. Insurance is a lot, again, getting it on a classic policy limited miles and shopping high and low (which i know can be a right pain when ya young or live in a silly big city like me) may work for you... Wooo, we just need mre pics now!  |
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 it doesn't matter if it's a Morris Marina or a Toyota Celica - it's what you do with it that counts |
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Jul 23, 2007 14:40:04 GMT
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That's top drawer. My family had a '76 estate in the same colour with the same front end and we only got rid of it in 1998! I learnt to drive in an Avenger and wished we'd kept ours. These are the best looking ones. Waxoyl it, fit twin carbs and enjoy!
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Jul 23, 2007 19:28:15 GMT
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Lovely car! I remember watching that one, was interested to see what it made. We had an L-plate 1500 4-door GL when I was a kid, nowt so racy as a GT though!
For tuning bits anything intended for the Talbot Sunbeam should fit, as that's basically a shortened Avenger. There's a 1600TI which should be a good pattern as to what you could do.
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lae
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,045
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Jul 23, 2007 19:45:31 GMT
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fit twin carbs and enjoy! It's already got twin carbs, and thanks for the advice on using Talbot Sunbeam parts, I hadn't thought of that more pics tomorrow, probably. Maybe I just got hit with a £200 bill from a garage who did the work on my MG to get it through its MOT... ouch. On the positive side, the guy who did the welding said he would repair the broken hood frame for £25 (much better than forking out £150 for a new one). I need to learn how to use that TIG welder sitting in my wardrobe  |
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Currently:
Mk1 Focus blandmobile
Formerly:
1969 MG Midget
1972 Avenger GT
1981 Datsun Cherry
1989 Corolla
1979 Mercedes W123 200D
1995 Ford Falcon
1996 Ford Telstar (bet you had to google that one)
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lae
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,045
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Jul 23, 2007 19:47:38 GMT
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Lovely car! I remember watching that one, was interested to see what it made. Ah you recognise it from ebay! Yeah I paid £1270 for it (after offering the seller £1300 in person... thankfully he refused and saved me the cost of the train ticket to collect it) |
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Currently:
Mk1 Focus blandmobile
Formerly:
1969 MG Midget
1972 Avenger GT
1981 Datsun Cherry
1989 Corolla
1979 Mercedes W123 200D
1995 Ford Falcon
1996 Ford Telstar (bet you had to google that one)
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Jul 23, 2007 20:47:36 GMT
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Some linkage: www.asoc.co.uk/ Avenger and Sunbeam OC Some phonage: Skip Brown Cars, Tarporley, Cheshire 01829 720492 What they don't know about modified Avengers and Sunbeams isn't worth knowing!!! That is FABULOUS. I had an ex-road rally 'Venger 1600 back in the late 80's, what it lacked in outright power it made up for by being devastatingly quick round the twisties. I remember having a 20+ mile dust-up with a then-new S2 RS Turbo and he couldn't get me off his back bumper. |
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lovely. I do like these a lot. I was looking for a Avenger or Hunter when I gave up ad bought a Mk3 Cortina instead. I think I got the last sensibly-priced one!
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1941 Wolseley Not Rod - 1956 Humber Hawk - 1957 Daimler Conquest - 1966 Buick LeSabre - 1968 Plymouth Sport Fury - 1968 Ford Galaxie - 1969 Ford Country Squire - 1969 Mercury Marquis - 1970 Morris Minor - 1970 Buick Skylark - 1970 Ford Galaxie - 1971 Ford Galaxie - 1976 Continental Mark IV - 1976 Ford Capri - 1994 Ford Fiesta
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Jul 24, 2007 11:46:49 GMT
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many engine options and tuning available here sunbeam 1600 ti on twin 40s with cam and bvh could see you 130bhp you want more go for lotus 2.2 lump and zf box although gboxs getting pricey now due to rally guys.i have five of these and a lotus sunbeam plenty of lowering gear and exhausts and ford stud patteren for wheels is handy to
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lae
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,045
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Jul 24, 2007 16:38:21 GMT
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As promised, some more pics of the Avenger just after I bought it and dropped it off at my parents' house for storage until my new lease started (my house at the time didn't have a garage so I thought it best to keep it with my parents who also promised to take care of it (but clearly didn't as the mileage hadn't moved when I came down to collect it))  looks nice from this angle  not quite as nice from this one...  ... but pretty good from this one  the floorpan and underside is surprisingly neat  large boot, complete with student-style tool roll made from an old pair of jeans and with an ancient pedal-powered Singer sewing machine that we have in our garage for some reason  time warp interior, complete with cigar lighter and casette player. The ride is surprisingly comfortable and quiet. If you look in the rear view mirror, you can even make out the top of my head  the throbbing heart of the monster, powered by a whole 65-ish-maybe-if-I'm-lucky roaring horses. Sounds a bit like an old Cuban air conditioning unit from the inside, but I'm assured that it sounds nice from the outside. And yes, I am aware that the flame-trap is almost upside-down. I've fixed that now  rusty bits on the bonnet and wing, but the rust has been neutralised. Note the wing mirror that turns around when travelling over 35mph - I have tightened that up now  a rusty bit that has been poorly covered up with white paint. I'll get around to fixing this soon enough  a big dent in the driver's door. I'll fix this (or have it fixed) soon too |
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Currently:
Mk1 Focus blandmobile
Formerly:
1969 MG Midget
1972 Avenger GT
1981 Datsun Cherry
1989 Corolla
1979 Mercedes W123 200D
1995 Ford Falcon
1996 Ford Telstar (bet you had to google that one)
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stealthstylz
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 14,961
Club RR Member Number: 174
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Jul 24, 2007 17:21:00 GMT
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Looks ace hopefully i'll be joining the ranks of rootes owners soon hehe
Matt
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lebowski
Part of things
Hillman Avenger, Clan Clover
Posts: 488
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Jul 24, 2007 19:43:09 GMT
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Join the Avenger Sunbeam owners club and there's a guy there who imports the 1850cc brazilian versions of the engine. These can be taken to around 2 litres and a good amount of power.
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Jul 24, 2007 19:48:52 GMT
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SPUNKTASTIC I tell you...... SPUNKTASTIC.
LOVE the colour too.
Ahhh and screw the non belivers.
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Jul 26, 2007 21:04:13 GMT
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Ive got some NOS for the Avenger somewhere
Rear NS 1/4 panels
Door skins
Also
Hunter slam panel and front valence
Door skins
Rootes chrome trim in origional bags
Talbot Sunbeam door (Nos)
Talbot NS wing
1302 Beetle wing os rear
Hunter boot and bonnet
and I think its either hunter or avenger NS rear 1/4 estate
All NOS
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Jul 26, 2007 21:15:02 GMT
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Gorgeous car!! Love it, I've always liked twin headlamped avengers. I'm 18 and at uni, so I share your pain! Just finished my first year. As soon as my first loan payment went in last September I went straight out and bought an imp Who's your insurance with? Sounds pretty cheap bearing in my your only 19?? As for the engine.... Is it the same lump as a Sunbeam rapier? In which case you could fit it out to the Rapier H120 spec, which was 1725 standard bottom end IIRC, but with alloy Holbay head, and weber twin 40s? |
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I may only be 19 but I've never owned a car that's less than 30 years old! 
