1986 Plymouth Horizon....Opinions.

[thrashingcows]

My two teenage daughters are getting their licensees this year and youngest daughter loves old stuff especially anything to do with the 80's. So she said she wanted a car with "character" so I started looking for something economical in the late 70's to early 90's mopar compact. Well I found a little 86 Horizon that is being sold as a non-runner...carb issues from what the guy stated about symptoms, may need CV joints and a repair to a broken exhaust pipe, and few other minor things.

So just curious what peoples feed back on these little cars, goods/bad, things to look out for and consider if I was to pick it up for her.

Thank you for your input.

 

[jct]

From what i've heard the electric fan likes to stay on after you shut off the car and drain the battery

 

[LeBaron1973]

Send a PM to dobalovr as he probably sold them new and could give feedback.

 

[mr. fix it]

Negative Norman here

It's cool that your daughter(s) wants something with character but they were little turds on wheels...

Depending on the engine, if they previous owner used the wrong oil would starve the top end of the engine and it would wipe out the overhead camshaft (5w30) was the oil used but back when new most shops would use 10w30 and it was too thick to get through the small oil feed channels.
The carbs are problematic & if I recall correctly they were carburated electric solenoids that failed.
you need a special OTC tool to adjust the air mixture which located in the worst possible place.
The cooling fans as indicated if the battery was weak would drain the battery.
The magnetic pickup coils for the distributor failed frequently along with head gasket failures very 20-30,000 miles
Timing belts were easy enough to change if that's a plus but if they broke you would be in big trouble.
Be ready to learn how to replace the door handles.
They broke very easily.

Oh & they were susceptible to torque steer in wet conditions...
And the brakes were weak...

Anything else?

Personally I wouldn't let my daughter drive one when compared to newer cars with ABS brakes...
IMHO, I would find here a Toyota or Honda as a daily driver and you will be happy all around.
(Queue the flame job)

 

[CBODY67]

To me, the last gen K-cars were much better and nicer cars. Plymouths, Dodges, etc. This would be the later versions of the non-turbo 4 cyl cars. LeBaron coupes were pretty nice, too. 4cyl non-turbo 5-speeds were a nice package. Some issues with engine oil leaks, but there were also some tricks to putting on the covers and gaskets that usually seeped.

Some related issues with head gasket sealing at one end of the block, but that was when they were new, so should not be a big issues at this time (after about 5 different revisions of the gasket itself).

AND, by observation, those bodies were pretty stout in a crash. Better than expected, it seems.

I suspect that parts might be easier to find, due to the longer production run, than the Horizon. The Horizon was a good car for when it was around, but the later stuff, to me, was a good bit better and nicer. AND, when they're done with it, you can do some mods and upgrades and then have you a reliable and FAST car to drag race, if you might desire.

Just some thoughts,
CBODY67

 

[jct]

Dodge Rampage would be a fun car

 

[Big_John]

2 door or 4 door and what engine?

I've had three and I really liked them. I'm racking my brain to remember issues, but most were pretty typical stuff for that era. Exhaust would break down at the junction to the exhaust manifold because of the rocking of the engine. The 2.2 engines It was a big donut gasket that would blow out. I never experienced any head gasket issues, but my 2.2 did wear out a camshaft. The outside door handles broke easily, so it was always a high priority to fix the driver side on a 2 door because the passenger side could break at any time.

If it's a rust free car, I'd say to buy it. They are very easy to work on and parts were cheap (can't say now). If it's a 2.2, figure on changing a timing belt before letting her loose on the street.

 

[68 4spd Fury]

I had an 85 Omni I bought new and drove almost 200k. It was overall quite dependable and very good in snow, but did have to change the head gasket around 100k. I see you'r in Canada, be careful of rust on these, bumper brackets, frame and fuel and brake lines seem to be prone. Also, if the door hinges wear out, as I recall these were welded in to the body and hard to change. However, might want to move the date range to the 90's and up, airbags were standard by then and ABS was a popular option.

 

[Turboomni]

If it were me I would get my Daughter a Shadow or something a bit more robust than the Omni or Horizon. The Omni is a tin can really which is good for power to weight but a New Subaru WRX is 3400 lbs compared to 2400 in the Omni.
The version here was the first year I believe with a VW engine which was really bad. The Chrysler 4 was the last engine designed by the same gentleman that designed the slant 6. Last year for the Horizon/Omni was 1990. Here is what Consumer Reports thought about them in 78

I have this on my wall in the garage next to my Omni glhs.

 

[odcics2]

LOL!!! Yeah, the L body failed the "turn the steering wheel hard and let go" test.
I am still waiting to see anyone perform that test in public.

My 1987 performed great for many years, until I was hit hard on I-75.
But I walked away from it...

 

[Turboomni]

Don't get me wrong ,I owned a 86 Omni glh turbo (only car I ever bought new) and own a Shelby Omni glhs.now but would not not put my daughter in it and wave good bye. These cars are a hoot in turbo form but not safe in my opinion compared to more recent cars.

 

[BIGBARNEYCARS]

My fleet today consists of a 1983 Plymouth Scamp 2.5L TII pickup(Dodge Rampage), a 1987 Chrysler Lebaron TI coupe, and ah 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan 3.3L. And those three are revolving az D.D.s and I would feel confident in jumping in any of them and driving them non stop to the Shaky Town 'Cept for ah few napz along the way. Total Mileage on all three iz right at 150K, with the lowest being 2K and the highest being 71K, and total investment iz under then 20K for the 3. If I have any complaint at all it would be that two of those transportation pieces are now over 25 YO and The state of N.C. where I now call home sayz they are antiques soooo every year I pay an increased tax on there now increasing value?, thank you very much N.C. Jer

 

[rkrochen]

These had issues but is no different than similar “disposable” cars of this era. Manufacturers were making these cars as cheap as possible and they didn’t stand up as well as the more expensive cars. Depending on what is wrong it could still be a decent car. I would be very concerned with the fact that it won’t run due to perceived carb issues who knows what you will find.

 

[Triple Pickle]

I’ll keep my opinion short. Hell no! I wouldn’t put a young girl in a pile of junk like that.

 

[mrfury68]

Carb issues will have you pulling your hair out. Dont know if parts or techs are around these days that can, or want, to work on them. I did back in the day and it was no fun. If you like the late 80s to early 90s Mopars look for FI Aries / Reliant, Shadow / Sundance, LeBaron GTS or GTC, or Acclaim / Spirit. These fuel injected cars were much more reliable & better built than the Omni / Horizon. Larger brakes & better suspension, not to mention nicer looking, made these a much nicer car. There are still nice examples to be found today. My son just bought an 87 LeBanon GTS , 2 owner 90K mile survivor for $1400.

 

[Kernel Sanders]

I loved my lil 82 Horizon. It had a 1.6l Peugeot engine with a 3 or 4sp manual (don't remember now)

I think I changed the oil once in the years I drove that car lol. the only issues I really ever had with it is finding a new serpentine belt for the Peugeot engine and the clutch cable broke. I could get it to 130km going down a long hill hahahaha I must say though stability was very good except in the winter when the rear being too light would want to be in front of you when going around a corner.

The clutch started to go when I crashed it when someone cut me off one winter... like I said the *** of the car wanted to be ahead of you when its slippery out

 

[MoPar Maniac]

I had an early Omni with the VW block and Chrysler head. The carb problem was usually the rubber spacer under the carb falling apart. And the aspirator tube would rot out. Had no problems other than that.
Had a 81 Charger 2.2. The transaxle is lubed separately from the transmission unlike later models. Don't ask how I found out.
It was a great car.

 

[Turboomni]

My friend bought the first year omni glh non turbo in 1984 which got me hooked. One of the first cars with 50 series Goodyear tires,big for the time 15 inch wheels. Handled like a go cart. The rear axle had trailing arms. Each side had one bolt holding it to the frame. They used a cheap bolt. He was driving down the road at 55 mph.straight line. The bolt let go and half the rear end left the mounting point. The car flipped at 55 on its roof and slid till it stopped. There was a recall on this.

 

[70bigblockdodge]

Tough little cars. I had a half dozen 2/4 door. The rear shock towers rot out from wheel well. Carb was rubber isolated, that's a genus idea. Stupid electric eye like a POS Mallory uni-light will leave you stranded.
It all builds character.
Don't buy a Toyota or Honda. No young girl worth her salt wants a washing machine at 16 years old.
I would suggest a Neon but sounds like that might be too new for her taste

 

[MarPar]