And one of these might still be running like this one we featured here with over 500,000 miles on it.
Car Carrier of the Day: The Cricket Invasion
– Posted on February 8, 2023
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Captive European imports were some of my favorite “furrin” cars. They were more popular than other imports in the Midwest for a couple reasons (a) it was easier to find an American-branded dealer than an import dealer in a lot of areas, and (b) it was perceived as somewhat less traitorous than buying a car with an actual foreign nameplate.
These Crickets weren’t very good cars for Americans, though. They stopped selling them in ’73 and I think every last one disappeared from the roads before 1980.
They sure disappeared fast, even in Southern California they were a rare sight by 1978. The Arrow was far more popular. A little strage the transporter is a Chevy L-80, I was expecting a Dodge C series.
According to Canadian automotive historian James C. Mays, Canadian songwriter Bobby Gimby was employed by Chrysler Canada, to market the Cricket here. There’s the image below, but I don’t have any other evidence of Gimby’s contribution to the car’s marketing. Before my time, unfortunately.
Gimby’s big claim to fame here, was he was the writer of the most popular song associated with Canada’s centennial in 1967. Beloved then, but cheesy as anything now.
Alas, found some English and French print ads featuring Gimby.
Wow. As a visitor to and huge fan of Expo 67, I have to say that I have many fond Expo memories…none of which include the tremendously cheesy theme song.
My condolences to Canadians in 1967 😉 I’ll bet that was hard to get out of ones head.
The theme song for the Ontario Pavilion at Expo ’67 was definitely more tolerable. And quite catchy. The film projected in the pavilion won the 1968 Academy Award for ‘Best Live Action Short Subject’. ‘A Place to Grow’ is the tagline on the latest Ontario licence plates.
The Expo 67 theme song I remember was called something like “Hey Friend, Say Friend” or the French equivalent. I was there as a 2 year old! (and visited what was left of it in later years, Man and His World, many times). Not much is standing anymore except La Ronde amusement park and the awesome Habitat 67 housing complex, designed by now-legendary architect Moshe Safdie when he was a college student.
My family had a ’71 Cricket too! I needn’t say it didn’t last long, it was toast by 1976. Dealers couldn’t stand these things from what I’ve been told – nothing on it interchanged with other Mopars and mechanics were unfamiliar with it. Parts were often needed but rarely in stock.
Correct. Bobby Gimby’s ‘Canada’ was the unofficial populist-choice song most Canadians adopted as the song they associated with the centennial year celebrations. Not, the official theme song for Expo ’67.
Somehow the fact these were offered in the US had eluded me until now,
UK wise they were always a bit overshadowed by ford and vauxhalls offerings of the time (escort Mk1/2 and viva) but fans would argue that they are apparently far nicer to drive than both of those, that does have the flip side of a good example commanding a fraction of the price of an equivalent escort, even the Tiger variant.
Definitely not the weirdest rebadging of the avenger though, that award would go to VW of Argentinas 1500, of all the unlikely tie-ups
I recall that in the late eighties, Avengers were pretty close to the bottom end of desirability in the second hand market. You could pick up a runner for just a few hundred quid.
The Plymouth Arrow did not sell well in the East. The situation was so bad that the leftovers models just would not move no matter how much Chrysler Distribution in New York tried. I offered a suggestion, “Buy one, get one free.” I doubt that the dealers would have even taken them that way! Terrific automobiles – four people would sit in the ofur-seater and it would sink on its suspension.
British TV series, “Keeping Up Appearances” from 90’s has a lower class family with a non-running Hillman Avenger as “yard art”.
No matter it’s foibles the name Cricket sealed its fate from the get go. Similar to the name Yaris that sounds like a strange being from Lord Of The Rings.
I always laugh at the name “Yaris” because in Armenian “Yaris” is one way to say “My dear.”
It was still better than “Echo” though (which was called the Yaris in some other markets, or else “Vitz” which was another strange name).
I wonder if that many even still exist?
Hillman Avengers, still lots on the road over here and more being found tucked away in sheds every month and revived, better cars than BL was offering and on par with UK Ford and GM cars of the era.