by David Burrell – – –
It’s the 60th anniversary of the VC Valiant.
Released in March, a month before the HR Holden made its debut and seven months in advance of Ford’s all new “Mustang bred” XR Falcon, the VC was a deftly-styled Australian update of an American design that had been around since 1962.
Chrysler Australia’s advertising positioned the Valiant as a cut above a Holden or Ford. It was not a hollow boast. Many of the interior appointments in the base Valiant could only be found in the so-called luxury models of its competition. The brochures, which can be found in the AMHF’s collection, reinforced the “cut-above” message.
The VC was the first Australian Valiant to have significant styling input from Chrysler Australia’s small but very talented design team. To the basic bodyshell they added a formal roof line and squared-off fenders, creating a dignified visual appeal for buyers who wanted others to know they had spent extra dollars to buy a Valiant.
Where the Valiant had always had an advantage was under the bonnet. For it was there that lurked Chrysler’s powerful 3.7 litre (225 cubic inches) slant six-cylinder engine. The Ford and Holden sixes were no match for Valiant’s 108 kw (145bhp) output.
Plus, the Valiant could be had with a 4.4 litre V8 engine (273 cu.in). Holden and Ford could not match that. Well, not until the V8 arrived in the XR Falcon. The V8 came as a separate model, with all the Regal’s “luxury”, plus a vinyl roof and floor shift automatic as standard.
Trouble was, drum brakes were standard, and there was no option of disc brakes. Motoring journalists of the day complained about the lack of discs in a 160+kph car. Said Barry Cooke in the June 1966 edition of Modern Motor:
“Chrysler remains the only one of the Big Three to stand against disc brakes.”
He added that
“Chrysler can’t hold out much longer against pressures of public opinion and motoring writers.”
By November the VC had its discs as an option, however these were restricted to the V8.
But by then the new longer, lower, wider and much more attractively styled XR Falcon was in Ford dealerships. It had discs as an option on every model and a V8 available across the entire range. The local power and styling race had begun!
