Australian Car Spotters Guide - 1971

There was a collective sigh from Valiant aficionadosin 1971 with the release of the all-new VH, particularly with those salivating for new Chrysler sheet metal. The previous models had always looked sensational, but the all-Australian designed VH clearly departed from the 1960’s and embraced the 1970’s, much as the pintuck suit made way for flares and wide lapels. Somewhat modest in comparison to the investment in the development of the Hemi engine, Chrysler spent a still very sizable $22 million on the development the new Valiant, the company determined to lift their market share from 12%.

A new star rose on the Australian motoring scene in 1971, with the arrival in the VH Valiant range of the short wheelbase, fastback Charger. Chrysler's TV campaign featured the young adults at whom it was targeted, waving at one as it swept by them and shouting "Hey, Charger!" - one of the more memorable TV ads of the time, it created a cliché that haunts today's owners... Charger won Wheels magazine's Car of the Year award for 1971 and was widely acclaimed by others of the motoring press, as well as the public. Australian Motoring News described it as "...the most handsome car Chrysler has ever produced, and probably the best looking car ever produced by an Australian manufacturer". This style-setting 70s icon came in four model guises - standard, XL, 770, or the all muscle R/T. The first of the serious track pack R/T Chargers was the E38.

The Ford Escort Mark 1 Update ran from 1971 to 1975. Both the 1100 models were discontinued, while for the 1300 models the Standard and Super models were replaced by the L and XL respectively.

Across the entire Falcon XY range, improvements were made to the seating, safety equipment and steps were taken to provide a smoother, quieter ride. But of course the houours (and the reason the XY is best remembered so fondly today) goes to the 351ci (5.7 liter) engine.

The XY GT version featured some more external changes over the previous XW model, one of the most obvious being the addition of a ram-air duct, called a 'shaker", which protruded through a hole in the bonnet and force-fed the 600 cfm four-barrel carburetor with air. Also, the Cleveland engine was by now standard equipment on all GT’s, although Ford still gave figures of 300 bhp at 5400 rpm and 380 lb.ft. of torque at 3400 rpm. The standard fuel capacity was 16.4 gallons and the larger 36.4 gallon capacity was available if required. The XY GT turned out to be the most desirable of the whole series, excluding the GTHO models, because as a road car, it had very few peers - if any - certainly none among Australian produced cars.

There were minor styling changes to the ZD, the last of the original body shape before the release of the ZF Fairlane in March, 1972. The Ford stylists gave the ZD a much bolder grille treatment, it being styled on the then successful US Ford Lincoln. The tail lamps were also revised, and now featured a horizontal seperator. This blended well with full width garnish attached to the rear boot-lid, helping make the ZD look much wider than it actually was.

The HG Holden model range included: Belmont Sedan, Belmont station wagon, Belmont panel van, Belmont utility, Kingswood sedan, Kingswood station wagon, Kingswood utility, Premier sedan, Premier station wagon, Brougham sedan, Monaro coupe, Monaro GTS coupe, Monaro GTS 350 coupe.

This model was arguably a high point of GMH styling, and an Australian classic. They still proliferate the Australian landscape (an icon of cars that were "built to last") in their various configurations of body styles and engine combinations. Even in the seventies, a new Holden was a major Aussie event, that drew a lot of excitement. The HQ series represented the most significant redesign of the Holden since the forties.