1972 Plymouth Cricket / Hillman Avenger - My Car

At first glance, this car is a Plymouth Cricket. The badge on the bonnet hood says Plymouth. The logo on the grille is Plymouth. There’s a Plymouth badge on the dashboard, a Plymouth Cricket badge on the boot trunk, and American plates that proclaim it’s a 1972 Plymouth Cricket. 

But look a little closer, and it doesn’t quite line up...

For a start, it’s right-hand drive. Surely the Americans wouldn’t build a right-hand drive car for their right-hand lanes? The steering wheel offers another clue - the centre of it is a Sunbeam logo. So what’s going on?

“It’s a Hillman Avenger, but I’ve converted it to American spec with lights and badges so it’s technically a Plymouth Cricket,” owner Fred Troop told us. “Like a baby muscle car, really”.

It’s true - the Hillman Avenger went by many names depending on the market and, perhaps surprisingly, the more aggressive name (Avenger vs Cricket) was reserved for the UK. But whether you know it as the Plymouth Cricket, the Hillman Avenger, the Dodge Polara, the Chrysler Sunbeam, the Sunbeam 1300, or any other name, it was all essentially the same car.

The first iterations of the car - like this one - came with a 1,248cc engine good for “about 90bhp on a good day”, per Fred, which is sent straight to the rear wheels. Not a lot of power by stretch, but its roughly 850kg weight means it’s still nimble enough. “If I wanted to, I could do donuts around roundabouts,” says Fred.

So with what it is out of the way, the next question is an easy one. Why?

“I did it because I wanted a muscle car but I can’t afford one,” Fred said. “This is the cheapest alternative.”

As good a reason as any, if you ask us. But that’s only part of the story. 

When he said “the cheapest alternative”, it turns out Fred wasn’t joking. Having bought it for £200 from a Welsh farmyard when he was 13 years old , he’s spent the last five years working on it. “I spent most of my teenage years restoring it. I learned to weld on it.

“It’s been on the road for two years, so it has a bit of wear and tear but that’s how it goes.”

We’d wager that there aren’t many 13-year-olds who buy a car and spend their formative years restoring it, patiently waiting for the day they pass their test until they can drive it. And Fred certainly does drive it.

“I track day it as much as I can. The last one was about two weeks ago, which is why it’s filthy at the moment.

“I drag race it as well. I live in Scunthorpe so I go to Blyton Park, but I’ve been to Santa Pod and all over in it because I just want to enjoy it as much as I can.

“I try to daily drive it as well, if the weather’s decent.”

The bucket seats and roll cage that peek through the windows confirm not only this, but that it definitely isn’t a stock Plymouth Cricket as first glances suggested. But in any case, an over 50-year-old car, restored over the course of five years, and which gets regular track usage is cool in our book, regardless of power. Speaking of, how does it drive?

“It accelerates quite well to say it’s only got 90bhp, and it handles spot on because it’s got rally springs on the front and sports suspension on the back.

“Visibility out of it is terrible, but other than that it’s not fast but it’s fun. It’s one of those cars that just puts a smile on your face.”

There aren’t many 19-year-olds that (willingly) drive cars from the early 1970s, so does Fred have any plans to upgrade in the future?

“That’s my baby - that’s like my child. I could never get rid of it. All the work I did myself - it’s not perfect, but as I’ve done it myself I’m proud of it.”

And who can blame him. A mini muscle car. A Diminutive Toretto. That’s as good a start to a driving history as any, and we hope he can enjoy it for many more years to come.