1965 Chrysler Valiant AP6 Regal Sedan

Description

Big meant better during the 1960s and the AP5-AP6 series were certainly more substantial in appearance and more powerful than their Holden and Falcon rivals. Width across the Valiant's vinyl-trimmed front seat measured 1445mm which was a little narrower than a Falcon, but Holden didn't catch up until the arrival of its curvaceous HD model. AP5 automatics also didn't suffer the intrusion of a gear-lever, with ratio selection via buttons mounted vertically on the dash behind the driver's right hand. AP6 models were the first automatic Valiant's to use a conventional, column-mounted selector. The AP5 dash with its asymmetrical cluster of gauges looks a little strange and some potential owners will prefer the more conventional AP6 layout. Away from a standstill, the torque of the 3.6-litre 'Slant Six' would leave its rivals in a haze of rubber smoke. Axle-tramping from 0-60km/h in an AP6 manual took around 6.0secs, with the automatic just a whisker slower. As timed by Modern Motor in August 1963, 0-96km/h in an AP5 manual sedan occupied 13.1secs - 0.8 better than a manual EH Holden with the highly-regarded '179' engine. Workshops relying on repairs to 'Slant Six' engines and transmissions for their survival would long ago have succumbed to bankruptcy. From new it was common for these units to exceed 200,000km without major problems. Production numbers for the AP6 totalled 43,344.