Valiant Spotters Guide

After the Plymouth Valiant turned out to be a success in the United States (starting with its 1959 introduction), Chrysler released Australia's first locally-assembled Valiant, the RV1 (R-series). It was officially unveiled by South Australia's Premier, Sir Thomas Playford, in January 1962[citation needed] and was assembled at Chrysler's Mile End facility.

The R-series Valiant was an instant success. Not everyone was taken instantly by the car's styling, but the general consensus[vague] was that the car had a modern, almost space age quality about it.

Also notable was the Valiant's performance with 145 brake horsepower (108 kW) from the 225 slant-6 engine. This was a lot of power compared to the competing Holdens and Fords, which offered only 75 bhp (56 kW) and 85 bhp (63 kW) respectively.

Transmission options were a floor-shifted three-speed manual with a non-syncro first gear, or the pushbutton-operated three-speed TorqueFlite automatic. Options included a heater-demister unit, as well as a "Moparmatic" deluxe pushbutton transistor radio.

The R-series Valiant was the first Australian car to come with an alternator instead of a generator, and instead of coil springs, the Valiant came with torsion bar suspension. Brakes were hydraulic 9 in (229 mm) drums front and rear. The R-model had a simulated spare wheel outline on the bootlid, but the spare wheel was actually under the floor of the boot.

The base model sold for £1299.