(first posted 1/28/2013) It’s rather remarkable that this car managed to appear when it did. In late 1978, when Chrysler Corporation was in the depths of its worst crisis to date, this swoopy, rebodied Horizon coupe debuted–and indeed, continued on through many years of production. You would never know how common these cars once were, as nearly all of them have disappeared from the face of the earth. But there’s still one in my neck of the woods.
Before we begin the TC3’s story, we have to go back to its source: the 1978 Plymouth Horizon. Along with its badge-engineered Dodge Omni sibling, these mini-Mopars brought FWD fuel efficiency to Chrysler Corporation’s decidedly thirsty and out-of-date lineup–and all thanks to Simca, which Chrysler had purchased in more flush times. Thanks to their familiarity with space-efficient, fuel-efficient cars like the 1204 (CC here), the resulting “Omnirizon” duo were a fresh breath of air compared with the bulky mid-size Fury and that recall-champeen, the Volaré.
It may have looked suspiciously like a Volkswagen Rabbit–and indeed, utilized a VW-built, 1.7L (104.7 CID) inline four–but the Horizon sold well. I’m sure that came as a relief to many C-P salesmen, who previously had to convince customers to purchase a Volaré over the much more modern Ford Fairmont, or the 1971-vintage Fury over a newly-downsized Malibu or B-body Impala. Finally, here was a Mopar product people wanted rather than settled for! The $3,976 five-door hatchback sold a healthy 106,772 units in inaugural 1978, but didn’t stand alone for long: The companion TC3 sport coupe joined it for the 1979 model year.
The Horizon TC3 was basically a 96.7″ wheelbase, 2+2 coupe version of the Horizon five-door. It shared much with its sibling, including its 70-hp, four-cylinder engine, transmissions and much of the undercarriage. Nonetheless, it certainly appeared different on the outside, and looked very modern for the late ’70s. One you got behind the wheel, though, you knew it had a lot in common with the five-door, with which it shared the entire dashboard. Interiors and exteriors were suitably colorful; after all, this was before Silver Car Fever overtook motordom.
At a starting price of $4,864, the 2,195 lb. sportster cost a bit more than the more Rabbit-like Horizon. Naturally, a wealth of factory- and dealer-installed goodies were available for a price. While the 70-horse engine was no hot-rod powerplant, I imagine it performed somewhat decently considering the TC3’s light curb weight. Actually, it was the sportiest thing to be found in C-P showrooms and a model sorely needed by Plymouth, as the mid-size Fury had departed in 1978.
In 1979, in the Plymouth corner of the showroom, you had the Volaré (at least it was available in coupe, sedan and wagon versions), the Horizon five-door and the Horizon TC3–and for cars, that was it, unless you count such captive imports as the Sapporo (CC here) and Arrow. Poor Plymouth: Just a few years earlier, they had the Fury, Barracuda, Belvedere, Road Runner, Satellite and luxury VIP. Now at least they had a fun, sporty offering like this in their shrunken product line. By late ’70s standards, the TC3 was a nice little sports coupe. Just don’t confuse it for a GTX or ’68 Barracuda Formula S.
As I was checking out our featured CC, I was surprised to see the Horizon badging. I didn’t know the early ones were anything other than TC3s. Even after writing for CC for over a year–and being a car nut of the highest order for the previous thirty-one–I can still learn something new! This one still has what appears to be a factory-installed sport stripe. Obviously it is faded, but I think it was originally navy blue, silver and white. Although the paint is equally faded, it appears to be Cadet Blue Metallic, a 1979 factory color.
Despite costing about $400 more than an equivalent five-door Horizon–a not insignificant sum back then–the TC3 sold respectably in its first year, with 63,715 built. No doubt many were loaded up with lots of appearance and comfort options, including stripes, two-tone paint, power steering, power brakes and A/C. Seats came in either cloth or vinyl. The Premium Interior Package, shown in red in the third and fourth photos from the top, turned your TC3 into a near-Cordoba inside. Just don’t ask for Corinthian leather. Our CC here has the standard Custom all-vinyl trim.
A Premium Appearance Package, Sport Package and Rallye Equipment Group were also available. The latter included a rear spoiler; rally wheels, with bright lugnuts and trim rings; and sport suspension. As far as engines were concerned, you were stuck with the 1.7-liter four, but you could specify an automatic if you didn’t want the standard four-speed manual.
The original owner (who perhaps is still the current owner) must have worked at the Rock Island Arsenal, as indicated by the faded but still distinctive sticker on the left side of the bumper. My parents were members of the Arsenal Golf Club in the ’80s, and I remember that their Volvos had similar ID stickers to allow access to the base. By the mid-’90s, they did away with them, and you simply told the guard at the front gate where you were going. After 9/11, they got ID cards instead of a sticker.
Here’s a fun fact: this car was sold by the same local C-P dealer as another 1979 Mopar product featured here on CC, this 1979 Chrysler Newport. It’s cool to imagine them sitting on the showroom floor together!
Here’s the back seat. As you can see, GM was not the only company that used Multi-Fade™ interior components in the ’70s. The vinyl is in very nice shape, but the moldings have faded to a dirty-white/gray color. Initially I wondered what the button on the interior panel was for, and then I realized that it must be the release for the fold-down back seat.
I first saw this car back in 2007-08, when I would frequently take Iowa Street in Davenport to get to work. I tended to avoid Brady Street, as I didn’t care for the five-minute traffic lights that are rife along that arterial road. So one day I took a slightly different route, and saw this light blue TC3. This was in my pre-camera-in-the-car, pre-CC days, but I remember thinking that that was a rare bird these days. Just a few weeks ago, I remembered that there was a neat old car in that area (I didn’t remember that it was a TC3, just that it had been something interesting), and I had to check and see if it was still there. I was fairly sure it would be–it just had the look of a car that has been a part of the neighborhood for a long time–and I was pleasantly surprised to see it in the very same spot.
And check out that blue vinyl interior! You can tell from the nice seats and ample fake wood on the dash and doors that the TC3 was a cut above the regular Horizon in its standard, no-frills version. And check out that copy of Der Spiegel on the passenger seat. For a minute I thought I was in Eugene! Another thing you won’t see on a late-model car is a floor-mounted automatic, sans console.
The Horizon TC3 continued much the same for 1980, when 67,738 were sold. In 1981 a no-frills Miser model was added, but sales stumbled, first to the tune of 36,312, and then to an all-time low of 12,889 for 1982. However, that was pretty much the same story for every other make: Due to the ongoing recession, no one was very interested in buying a new car, least of all at the current double-digit interest rates. Yikes!
In 1982, the coupe lost its Horizon moniker and became simply TC3. The very next year it was renamed Turismo. Also appearing in ’83 was a sportier “2.2” model, which received a 94-hp, 2.2-liter inline four in place of the 1.7. In addition to the larger engine, it received a fake hood scoop, stripes, “2.2” decals and rallye wheels.
I would also be remiss not to at least mention the Turismo’s pickup pal, the Scamp. These cool vehicles were offered for only a short period of time. While the Dodge was available between 1982 and 1984, the 1983-only Plymouth variant was especially scarce. A neat idea and cool utility, these have always reminded me a bit of the VW Pickup sold at about the same time.
The Turismo carried on for several more years, earning itself a 1984 slight facelift with a smoother nose and other minor changes. Also available was a Duster Package with “Duster” decals on the front fender and 13-inch Rallye wheels. The niece of my parents’ friends used to babysit me in the mid-to-late ’80s and she had a Turismo like this one, though I don’t remember if it was a Duster or not. I rode in it at least once, and I remember thinking it was pretty cool.
Between 1984 and 1986, the Turismo sold in the high 30K- to low-40K range despite minimal changes. It was a nice package: a reliable Horizon with sportier sheet metal, two doors and an attractive price. The last ones were built in 1987, when less than 25K came off the line. By that time, the price had risen to the tune of $7,199.
But like all cheap and cheerful cars of the ’70s and ’80s, many of them were used, abused and then disposed of. They used to be everywhere, but this blue example is the first one I recall seeing in nearly ten years. Good to know at least one is still on the road!
I can always be counted on to wax nostalgic whenever a Chrysler L body or K derivative crops up here. They were cheap, they were more fun to drive than one might rightfully expect, and they were everywhere through the mid ’90’s. There were several in my extended family , either as second (or third) cars, as kids cars or as throwaway commuters. They’re universally remembered fondly, both for their strong points and the often comedic value in their failures. For me the Omnirizon is what yesterday’s VW is for Paul. I’d be sorely tempted to bring one home if I found just the right one. Let’s just hope I don’t.
I didn’t see it mentioned, but why were these cars named TC3 and 024? I’m guessing they were the internal development codes assigned to the cars and Chrysler was trying to ape GM’s success with the Z/28.
Sometimes it works, I suppose, but I would have liked to seen regular model names from the beginning (which I guess they eventually acquired with Turismo and Charger). With the names they got, I always wondered about Horizon TC1 and TC2, as well as Omni numbers 001 – 023.
My sister had a 2.2 charger as a first car. It got great gas mileage over 40 on the highway. Other than that it was awful. It had horrible torque steer. One time I was at a y in the road and could not see if anyone was coming thanks to the sporty? Plastic covered rear Windows. I started forward and she told me someone was coming so I gave it the gas and it turned on its own running through a fence and garden and killing a yard knome. This was the second front wheel drive car I ever drove first being a giant Eldorado. I was used to a Ltd. That car ripped the wheel from my hands. I wasn’t holding on tight as I was used to car that didn’t do that. To this day I hate and distrust front wheel drive and refuse to own one. It also rode poorly and bumps and frost heaves in the road became menaces. One time I ran over a frost heave at about 70. One I had run over in the Ltd with no more than a smooth little bounce many times. It almost killed me as it made me hit my head on the roof and almost knocked me out.
It broke all the time. Door handles, carb issues, the window lovers fell off. It was easier to put it in neutral and push it out of a space than find reverse. It was a really awful minimalist car. It got good gas mileage, but the repair and insurance costs made it a fare more expensive car to own than my 78 Ltd. She kept it a couple of years, but had to sell it when I moved away and she broke up with her boyfriend Frank and had no one to fix it. At least the styling was ok and not derivative like the 4 door.
Always thought it was strange that they kept these cars around for several years after introducing the Dodge Daytona (etc). They were almost identical in size.
I had an ’87 Dodge Charger, which is Twin sister to the Plymouth Turismo. It was a fun car and quite reliable. I bought it slightly used with low miles on it. As a young kid I enjoyed it, it was a fun car, but hardly a match to the totaled ’85 Monte Carlo SS it replaced. It held up rather well, especially with a young guy driving it, until somewhere around 70k miles, it started falling apart. I promptly placed a for sale sigh in the window and it was quickly gone, to become someone else’s problem. Great looking little car, peppy enough, and good on gas. Mine was silver.
I needed a car in 1981 and I looked at new versions of all of these.
The smartest thing I ever did was buy a 1972 Dodge Dart for $400. I put in a new radiator and after that it ran perfectly. It got me through to 1985 when I bought a NEW Honda Prlelude. I sold the Dart in the fall of 1986 for $195.
I bought the Prelude in June so I didn’t get the Fuel Injected 1986 model in September.
My grandparents neighbor had a blue one like this (it might have been a dodge) many years ago.
I had completely forgotten about the Horizon coupes! I had to take a second close look at the first picture and confirm my puzzlement by scrolling down, as I had not commented on this article the first time around.
These prefigured the Daytona by years, but I thought they were rather interesting when they came out.
However, something about them just looked cheap and had this cobbled together look about them that their four door hatchbacks didn’t have, at least not as bad. Perhaps it’s the overabundance of sharp angles, which are cheaper to manufacture than complex curves and bulges, even for that time period.
They did not age well, but how many (cheap) cars from that era did?
These always seemed like cheap and cheerful cars. I actually prefer the cars before the ’84 restyle (by which point the G-body Daytona / Laser twins seemed to render them obsolete, anyway).
I looked at one of these as a new-to-me purchase (in trying to unload the unloved family Tempo I had inherited), but my buddy Fred talked me out of it. Said they seemed like “flimsy” Chevy Monzas (which, themselves, hardly seemed like robust beasts). Pretty soon, Fred and my brother would say “ping” (for the sound of something breaking or snapping) when we’d see one of these in traffic.
These days, the looks of a yellow, early-model 024 or TC3 really do it for me.
My Dad bought a red Omni two door (but not an 024)… Probably a 1980 or 1981. White vinyl interior. I can still remember the smell even though I wasn’t more than 3 years old. He loved the gas mileage, and I hated that big glass rear window letting the sun in on my head. He sold it to a friend and I cried when he sold it. It destroyed itself two weeks after he sold it.
While the design may not be the most coherent thing ever, I still like it–especially the window arrangement in the rear. That distinctiveness was lost when they went with the huge blanked panels in the ’84 restyle though. There is an appealing lightness to the design, due at least in part to the crisp origami angles and the huge glass area.
Never drove one or had one in the family, but the family of a good friend of mine had a close relative of this car, a red Charger coupe. Not sure of the year. I do remember the rear seat being kind of claustrophobic, even as a 9 year old kid. I much preferred their other vehicle, an early 80’s K5 Blazer.
I actually bought one of these cars new in 1979 when I was 19. It was the “fire orange” with blackout bottom stripe, spoiler, honeycomb alloy wheels and a 4 speed manual. The dealer added a sunroof. Rally package I think they called it. I paid $6,200. It was a lot considering how little I could have paid for a Ford Pinto.
I drove it until 1985. I had added a digital stereo and 6×9 speakers in the back in each of those inset panels in the rear seat. It was in perfect condition when I traded it in for a 1985 LeBaron GTS Turbo. It had 96,000 miles on it when I traded it in.
I loved that car. I got Goodyear GT radials and it sure could take a corner with those sticky tires. I remember paying $400 for a set of those tires. No small sum in 1979!!
I’ll never forgot get my TC3! It was a head turner.
While I had my share of family cars over the years, I’m back to fun cars. I now drive a Subaru BRZ, which in a small way reminds me of the fun I had in my TC3
My mother bought one of these in 1982. She was concerned that her 72 Duster was getting on and she wanted a new car. She was 67 at the time and recently retired and I suggested the 4 door, but she liked the look of the TC3 in orange, and as she said, she wouldn’t be riding in the back seat anyway. She got the 2.2 engine with the 4 speed. The Duster was the only automatic she had owned, and she preferred to drive standard. She kept it until she stopped driving in 1996. It was not driven a lot, but still it had no major repairs and was completely reliable for 14 years. We sold it to a friend who needed some inexpensive reliable transportation and it served him well.
I’m pretty confident those same window winder crank handles and armrests survived into the mid 1980s in the Mopar parts bin. Too bad they couldn’t spare a couple for the back seat of this Horizon. Thanks for the repost.
When I was 17 I paid $1500 for an Omni coupe. my best friend, at the same time, paid the same amount for a Renault Fuego. The difference in the two vehicles were great. The French car was smooth, stylish, fast, and sleek. The Omni felt slow, boring, and outdated . I coveted the Fuego until it started falling apart in horrific ways. The cooling system leaked. The electrical system went haywire, resulting in a rotten egg smell. I learned to appreciate the Omni. It didn’t matter much anyhow, as I soon totalled it after losing control on a gravel road and rolling it into a ditch.
Back then there was actually a dark metallic blue Horizon in San Francisco with a vanity license plate: BEYOND. I was driving on Oak Street one day and it was right in front of me. I was driving my 1956 Plymouth convertible, not having gotten one of my own two Horizons yet (1978 and 1988).
This is one of those popular common cars that were everywhere, but I had never had a chance to even ride in one. Amazing. Everyone I hung around were getting VWs, Toyotas, Datsuns and Fords. Interesting how in retrospect, you realize that a popular car could be all around you, but you had no experiences with it. Kind of an odd feeling.
Back in the day I bought a rampage 2.2 with a 5 speed and liked it. It ate a carburetor and then fifth gear. So, it was fixed and traded in for a new 89 Nissan hard body that I did not enjoy. I am slowly rebuilding a neglected 89 Grand Voyager SE Turbo mobility van purchased in 17.