The Chrysler Valiant AP6 is an

automobile A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, Car seat, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport private transport#Personal transport, peopl ...

which was produced by

Chrysler Australia Stellantis (Australia and New Zealand) Pty Ltd (formerly FCA Australia), is the official Stellantis subsidiary in Australia and New Zealand, operating as distributor of Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Fiat and Leapmotor vehicles. Ho ...

from 1965 to 1966. It was the fourth

Chrysler Valiant The Chrysler Valiant was a full-size car which was sold by Chrysler Australia between 1962 and 1981. Initially a rebadged locally assembled Plymouth Valiant from the United States, from the second generation launched in 1963, the Valiant was fu ...

model produced in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

Overview

The Valiant AP6 was released in March 1965, replacing the

Chrysler Valiant AP5 The Chrysler AP5 Valiant is an automobile produced by Chrysler Australia from 1963 until 1965. It was the third Chrysler Valiant model to be produced in Australia. Overview The AP5 Valiant was released in May 1963, replacing the SV1 Valiant. ...

. The Australian model was based on the 1965

Plymouth Valiant The Plymouth Valiant (first appearing in 1959 as simply the Valiant) is an automobile which was marketed by the Plymouth division of the Chrysler Corporation in the United States from the model years of 1960 through 1976. It was created to give ...

with local style modifications carried over from the AP5. As with the U.S model, the AP6 had a new split grille, a new bonnet and new front mudguards. Whereas the U.S Valiant had its

turn signals Automotive lighting is functional exterior lighting in vehicles. A motor vehicle has lighting and signaling devices mounted to or integrated into its front, rear, sides, and, in some cases, top. Various devices have the dual function of illumin ...

in the beaver panel (beneath the grille), the AP6 had its turn signals integrated into the grille. Mechanical changes included a redesigned camshaft, the introduction of self-adjusting brakes and the replacement of the push button gear selector on models with automatic transmission by a traditional lever system. Optional power brakes were made available across the range. A

coupe utility A coupe or coupé (, ) is a passenger car with a sloping or truncated rear roofline and typically with two doors. The term ''coupé'' was first applied to horse-drawn carriages for two passengers without rear-facing seats. It comes from the Fr ...

variant was added to the range in April 1965 and marketed as the Valiant Wayfarer. This was the first Valiant-based coupe utility to be produced by Chrysler Australia. As with the previous AP5 model, station wagon rear styling varied depending on production dates. Early build wagons used 1965 US Plymouth Valiant wagon-style tail lights. At some time in the production run Chrysler Australia invested in new tooling for the wagon rear sheet metal, allowing the use of sedan rear doors. Later style wagons again used vertical style tail lights. The new pressings required revised rear cargo area side windows and rear bumpers were also redesigned. Changes occurred from build number AP6-2W-3107 (manual Safari), AP6-4W-2167 (automatic Safari), AP6-4HW-1418 (Regal Safari) and AP6-4WHV-209 (V8 Safari). The difference in sheet metal is most notable where the rear bumpers on the later versions finish. On early build cars the rear bumper ends lead into a pressing on the lower rear quarter panel sheet metal, whereas on later build cars the bumper has curved ends with a flat sheet metal surface on the lower rear quarters. Valiant V8 models were released in August 1965. A V8 sedan and V8 Safari wagon were offered, both powered by a

V8 engine A V8 engine is an eight- cylinder piston engine in which two banks of four cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration. Origins The first known V8 was the Antoinette, designed by Léon Levavasseur, a ...

with “TorqueFlite 8” automatic transmission. V8 models could be identified by V8 badges, with the V8 sedan having a vinyl roof and the V8 Safari wagon being fitted with a roof rack. Power-assisted brakes were standard equipment. Although it utilized Regal trim and equipment, the V8 was marketed as the Valiant V8, not as a Valiant Regal V8.Gavin Farmer, Great Ideas in Motion, A History of Chrysler in Australia 1946-1981, Ilinga Books, 2010, page 125

Model range

The Valiant AP6 was offered in 4-door sedan, 5-door

station wagon A station wagon (American English, US, also wagon) or estate car (British English, UK, also estate) is an automotive Car body style, body-style variant of a Sedan (automobile), sedan with its roof extended rearward over a shared passenger/cargo ...

and 2-door

coupé utility A coupé utility is a vehicle with a passenger compartment at the front and an integrated tray#cargo tray, cargo tray at the rear, with the front of the cargo bed doubling as the rear of the passenger compartment. The term originated in the 19 ...

body styles in ten models. * Valiant manual sedan (AP6-2) * Valiant automatic sedan (AP6-4) * Valiant Regal sedan (AP6-4H) * Valiant V8 sedan (AP6-4PV) * Valiant Safari manual wagon (AP6-2W) * Valiant Safari automatic wagon (AP6-4W) * Valiant Regal Safari wagon (AP6-4WH) * Valiant V8 Safari wagon (AP6-4WHV) * Valiant Wayfarer manual utility (AP6-2U) * Valiant Wayfarer automatic utility (AP6-4U) File:1965 Chrysler AP6 Valiant sedan (41469892431).jpg, Chrysler AP6 Valiant sedan (with aftermarket wheels) File:Chrysler Valiant AP6 Wagon (16934780705).jpg, Chrysler AP6 Valiant Safari wagon File:1965 Chrysler Valiant AP6 Safari Wagon (16919719098).jpg, Chrysler AP6 Valiant Safari wagon - early build. Note US 1965 Plymouth Valiant wagon style tail lights with amber turn signals, and rear bumper ends that finish against pressing in lower body panel. File:1965 Chrysler AP6 Valiant Safari station wagon - late build.jpg, Chrysler AP6 Valiant Safari wagon - later build. Note vertical style tail lights and rear bumper with curved ends that finish against flat body panel. Later build wagons also used sedan rear doors, necessitating revised shaping of rear cargo area side glass, and body trim. File:1966 Chrysler Valiant (AP6) Regal sedan (2015-07-06) 01.jpg, Chrysler AP6 Valiant Regal sedan File:1966 Chrysler Valiant (AP6) Regal sedan (2015-07-06) 02.jpg, Chrysler AP6 Valiant Regal sedan File:1965 Chrysler AP6 Valiant Regal sedan (6335402099).jpg, Chrysler AP6 Valiant Regal sedan interior File:Chrysler AP6 Valiant V8.jpg, Chrysler AP6 Valiant V8 sedan File:1965 Chrysler AP6 Valiant V8 sedan (45637928601).jpg, 273 cubic inch V8 engine as fitted to Chrysler AP6 Valiant V8 File:1965 Chrysler AP6 Valiant V8 Safari station wagon.jpg, Chrysler AP6 Valiant V8 Safari wagon File:Chrysler AP6 Valiant Wayfarer utility.JPG, Chrysler AP6 Valiant Wayfarer utility File:Chrysler AP6 Valiant Wayfarer utility (6336707048).jpg, Chrysler AP6 Valiant Wayfarer utility

Engines and transmissions

Straight-six engine A straight-six engine (also referred to as an inline-six engine; abbreviated I6 or L6) is a piston engine with six cylinders arranged in a straight line along the crankshaft. A straight-six engine has perfect primary and secondary engine balanc ...

was fitted to all models except the Valiant V8, which was powered by a

. Three speed manual and three speed automatic transmissions were offered.

Production and replacement

A total of 43,344 Valiant AP6s were produced prior to its replacement by the

Valiant VC The Chrysler Valiant (VC) is an automobile that was produced in Australia by Chrysler Australia from 1966 to 1967. It was released in March 1966, replacing the Chrysler AP6 Valiant. The VC was the fifth Chrysler Valiant model to be produced in A ...

in 1966.Elizabeth Tuckey and Ewan Kennedy, Chrysler Valiant, 1996, page 37

References

{{Chrysler Valiant Cars of Australia Valiant vehicles

Valiant Valiant may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film * ''The Valiant'' (1929 film), starring Paul Muni * ''The Valiant'' (1962 film), directed by Roy Ward Baker * ''Valiant'' (film), a 2005 film about British homing pigeons Television ...

Cars introduced in 1965 Cars discontinued in 1966