Here, guys.....this write-up on old, 70-era Valiants will bring back some of the memories from the cars you and I grew up with. Sure did with me. It will make you appreciate some of the things we have on modern cars that we need, and help make driving a lot easier.....and also appreciate how frivolous and unnecessary other things are.

(Open up the web site for the pictures)


http://www.acarplace.com/cars/classic-driving.html

Although older cars are plentiful, relatively few people have recently driven a classic car (legally defined in most states as a car 25 years old or more). Of the dozens of people who, on seeing our 1974 Valiant, told us that they had driven one, only a very few currently drove any sort of classic, whether it be a Hemi Road Runner or a slant-six Volare wagon. The vast majority have never had the experience of piloting a vintage car, with original engine and brakes, on public highways.



In the early 1980s, it was less common for drivers rely on their brakes, though we still had "minnows" (the zig-zaggers who can cross three lanes three times in three seconds, desparately and usually foolishly searching for an advantage so they can gain one or two carlengths) — they generally didn't cut it so close. They couldn't; brakes have dramatically improved over the years, due to better tires and the widespread use four-wheel power disc brakes. Practically every vehicle now stops quicker than most classics. So, while most people were smart enough to realize that I couldn't bring a 1974 Valiant to a sudden stop as quickly as they could slow down their vehicles, some people took it for granted that I'd have no problem dealing with their swerving in front of me and then slamming on their brakes. On the way back, one Prizm in particular either intentionally or not swerved out in front of me three times - I kept an eye out for him after the first time, and only locked up my rear tires once for him.

This particular Valiant, fitted from the factory with manual disc brakes up front and the inevitable rear drums, could stop faster and straighter than most other cars of its time. It was much more predictable than my old fleet-package Valiant with its power brakes that would instantly lock up all four tires; and better than my old manual-drums Swinger that required an elephant standing on the pedal. That said, a sudden stop does lock at least one of the rear tires with an embarassing but harmless squeal. The car stops straight, and gives me control as it stops.



Control under full acceleration was not a problem, as the Leaning Tower of Power didn't propel me forward under massive g-forces. However, it did allow me to keep up with or beat traffic, and most of the time I accelerated using the 1/3-pedal rule, which causes the TorqueFlite to downshift or to avoid upshifting, depending on the situation. Even with the air conditioning on all the time, there was normally more than enough power to keep going at highway speeds. Around town, the Valiant, with mere three-speed automatic and fewer than 100 horsepower coming from the slant six (it was rated at 100 hp, net, but the carb needs to be rebuilt) was more than quick enough; it was instantly responsive in a way the 172 horsepower Caliber and Patriot are not, and not many people really need much power around town anyway, when the first and second gears are well tuned.

On the way to the Carlisle show, I kept up with normal highway speeds, passing as needed. I only needed to shut off the air conditioning and floor the gas once to pass, going up a hill around one of those drivers who adds 25 mph to his speed as you pass, and then slows back down again immediately afterwards. I also needed to keep it off when getting off the highway and waiting at a traffic light, to smooth out the idle, and when starting back up. This car doesn't like having the air on when it starts up; it seems to need about 30 seconds to get used to idling before air can be used.

On the way back, things were a bit tougher; the temperature had gone up to about 95 degrees, and a pinhole leak appeared in the radiator, so that every now and then, when I could, I would shut off the air conditioner and give the antifreeze a chance to cool down a bit. I also slowed down now and then, particularly when going downhill. On the lighter side, the temperature gauge never went over two-thirds, and not much antifreeze made it out of the pinhole. Still, I'd rather not have to take the radiator out on a car with an automatic transmission, since the transmission cooler lines go through the radiator. It's easy to replace a radiator on a Neon; disconnect the hoses and wires, beat the heck out of the retainer bolts, and it lifts right out.

A few advantages of modern cars become clear. These days, we take a lot for granted. Cars run just fine at idle with the air condtioner on - no possibility of stalling is allowed; indeed, stalling is grounds for a recall. The alternator on modern cars will charge at idle. Radios are now stereo by default, normally with FM, a CD player, and six speakers, as opposed to the common single-speaker AM radio of years past. Safety has gone far beyond the vehicles of yesteryear, which did not even have decent shoulder belts until 1974 (in 1973, most cars had the separate lap and shoulder belts, and the shoulder belts did not slacken to let the driver lean forward), and rarely had shoulder belts for the rear passengers; airbags were exceedingly rare, and impact standards from any angle were not as strong, with seats that, as often as not, failed to provide good whiplash protection. It's no wonder that there are fewer fatalities per mile now, with easily used shoulder belts in every position, airbags coming from two angles, and heavier steel beams in the doors and roof.

There are other safety features most modern-car drivers take for granted - even me, before I returned to the days before 1990. Many years ago, the safety engineers did a study of Washington, DC taxi drivers, and found that a third, high-mounted brake light prevented accidents; that light soon became required equipment (you can feel free to question the science or logic there). People now expect that. They also expect blindingly bright tail-lights and brake lights; what the government didn't do, though, is improve headlight standards or require amber turn signals, so the old Valiant was fine there. We do recommend, following Rick Ehrenberg's advice, upgrading your bulbs if you have an older car, to match the modern ones; an LED-powered third brake light can make a huge difference.

Our classic car did have one major concession to modern safety: radial tires, which may not last as long as they would on a car designed for them, but still provide better cornering and stopping than the bias-plies the Valiant came with (it still had two when we got it, but they were hardly in preservation condition).

The big safety problem with modern cars “the loose nut behind the wheel,” and it's a big problem. In a 1974 Valiant, there's not much to distract your attention, other than perhaps the alternator gauge, and one really only pays attention to that at very slow speeds (or at a stop). Back in the 1970s and 1980s, precious few people actually had portable phones or even walkie-talkies; CB radios were a popular option, but most people did without them, or just listened in. Talk radio was not nearly as distracting; there were preachers, but very few preachers of pure hatred. Today, AM radio can contribute to road rage, but in the 1970s, it was far less likely (and there were still stations broadcasting music over AM). Other distractions were minimal: the average car had no tape deck, a simple radio with two ***** - single-function *****! - and five buttons, no navigation system, no trip computer, no trip odometer, no cellphone, no CD player, no cupholder, no center console to hold food, and no radar detector. The CB radio, with its microphone on a cable, was as bad as it got - unless you had a passenger. Distractions were far fewer, and people drove far better as a result. Not only that, but you knew that you couldn't stop on a dime, or indeed, in a straight line!

Getting back to the point - what is it like to drive one of these cars?

You get in, and the bench seat offers little resistance, providing you with a surprising level of support as you sink into it, support that's matched to your body. The seating position is upright; the back of the seat does not recline, but the entire bench can, with difficulty, be moved forward or backward. The steering column is also fixed, at just the right height, if you happen to be just the right height. The key goes into the column as with modern cars, teeth up - like your house, and unlike the GM product down the street. Chrysler used two keys then, one for the ignition and doors, the other for the trunk, in case you used valet parking and wanted your trunk to be safe. GM used one for the door and one for the ignition, primarily to drive you crazy (you had to switch keys every single time you got in and started up), but also in case you wanted someone to be able to get into your car but not start it.

After shutting off the air conditioner - which would stall the engine if turned on too quickly after startup - you push the pedal quickly to the floor once, let it up, and then turn the key with your foot down just a little on the gas, and it starts up nicely. With the car idling smoothly, you use the stalk-mounted gearshift to go into Reverse, wait a moment for it to engage, then press the gas; the engine revs a bit before you actually start to move, and then it's smooth sailing. After getting out of the driveway, you can put the air conditioner on, and the engine will be just fine, especially if you don't stop at a light for a long time; that can bring a rough idle as the old battery fails to provide the needed current, with the old, underperforming original 33-year-old alternator unable to keep up. Yes, newer cars have much more powerful alternators, able to charge at idle; this car doesn't.

Our Valiant’s carburetor needs to be rebuilt; it was rebuilt, but by an incompetent mechanic, and the mixture is very rich at the moment. We do plan to do this, and will try to videotape it as well. We do remember the slant six as being able to idle quite nicely with the air conditioning on, and of course the 318 could do the same, but we also remember shifting into neutral to keep the revs up in the rain and at other times when the engines - either six or eight - were not feeling quite up to par, for whatever reason.

The ride is not too floaty on this compact car, and it is a bit busy but not too busy; it is similar in some ways to a 300M or PT Cruiser GT, fairly firm, albeit with far less ability to turn corners. Cornering does feel pretty good until you start to push, and then you realize that pretty much any current passenger vehicle will outhandle a 33 year old, unmodified slant-six Valiant, despite its well-tuned torsion-bar suspension (this particulary vehicle had its front lowered slightly and is equipped with radials). Push the car and you get an insane degree of body lean. Still, it feels good going around normal turns, on those big, high-profile tires - on those little fourteen inch wheels, smaller than just about any current production vehicle, but pretty big for the time, when the muscle cars were only on fifteen inch steel rims.

The engine feels pretty capable; the torque helps, this being an old-fashioned, torque-biased engine that gives a quick boost right off the line. Indeed, the slant six is surprisingly responsive at normal speeds, only really failing when extended power is needed (or on the highway, at serious speeds). Even then, you find that, with extra effort, you can keep up with just about any normal driver; most people never go fast enough to tax an old hundred-horsepower slant six pushing a three thousand pound car with a three-speed hydraulically-shifted automatic. The engine has plenty of reserve at the legal 65 mph limit.

That is perhaps the greatest surprise - you know that the Valiant is not competitive with a modern car in what used to be its class when it comes to handling and acceleration; the numbers are pretty clear. A Toyota Corolla with a similarly sized interior, lengthwise at least, and a bigger trunk can get to sixty in 10 seconds or less, while getting 30-40 mpg (in both cases assuming a stick-shift). Here in Bergen County, New Jersey, most people drive upscale vehicles; it seems that there are more BMWs than Fords. Yet, amidst all the Lexuses, Mercedes, BMWs, and other high-powered luxury cars, the Valiant always holds its own. People might have two or three hundred horses under the hood; they might drive cars that can reach 60 mph in under six seconds; but they normally go from 0-60 in 20 seconds or more; and they leave traffic lights at a leisurely pace that the Valiant has absolutely no problem matching. Cornering is also generally no problem. It amazes me that people will spend tens of thousands of dollars extra to get a car that can corner like a demon, and then spend their time driving it at a pace that would not challenge an old economy car. The one thing people do use is their superior brakes.

The windows are much easier to roll up and down than manual windows in newer cars; the triangle windows up front are very convenient and we miss them in modern cars, though they'd probably increase drag too much. The smooth shifting is surprising given the total lack of torque management; the instant kickdowns are also interesting given the pure-hydraulic system. The engine is very quiet, except under load. We missed the fender vents of older, non-air-conditioned cars, but one can't have everything. The trunk is also small for a car of this size, sacrificed for the low, long, and sleek look; the Duster had a much bigger trunk. Wipers are effective and short so they don't wear out often.

Going to the motor vehicle inspection station, on a 95 degree summer's day, the Valiant’s air conditioner held up quite well, despite having been converted to the new refrigerant (for the price of an ounce or two of R12). We had no issues with idle quality, though we found it far easier to restart (when warm) with the air conditioning off. Inspection at this New Jersey station - now run, thanks to Governor Whitman, by Parsons employees, who are similar to state employees except that there are fewer of them, so that inspections take much longer than they used to, or at any remaining state-run stations - was rather painful. There were no signs indicating where people should go if they had a "collectible" car, and I was redirected a few times, before being told I needed a little voucher. I went into the main building, filled out a little form, presented it to a clerk, got back a little printed form, and then re-presented myself. After about half an hour I asked again, and discovered that nobody knew I was waiting except for the one guy who had disappeared. (There is no shade and no bench at this part of the station). When someone finally discovered I was waiting, he apologized but there were four cars that had been put into the computer, and I had to wait for them all to be inspected. After half an hour, he copied the information from the little voucher onto a pad, then went to put it into the computer; nothing was unique on that voucher other than the odometer reading, which he had to verify anyway, making the whole process somewhat unnecessary. Then I had to drive one mile, come back, have the reading reverified (another ten minutes), and then wait just 20 more minutes for a sticker. Overall, it was two hours at the inspection station, which, incidentally, had no signs pointing to the highway; I ended up taking a rather suboptimal route back. Two hours seems excessive to swap stickers and verify the working of the odometer, but at least the Valiant performed well throughout the trip, despite the heat of the day. I even got to give a jump-start to one of two stranded motorists whose modern cars failed from the long hot idle (people getting normal inspections only had to wait 35 minutes, but even that can be a long time in 95 degree heat). The other one just had to wait for their engine to cool down.

Overall, classic American cars have a lot of good features, but it's easy to see why the world moved forward. Driving them is fun; owning them is fun; and they are enjoyable in some ways newer cars are not. Older cars provide a more mechanical experience in many ways, bringing the driver closer to the mechanisms, with no computer mediating the relationship; you have to fiddle with the carburetor, one way or another (especially if you've converted back to a manual choke, as many people did “back in the day”). They usually have a very different feel from modern cars, with more torque and (unless you get a muscle car) less horsepower; they give more kick in the pants and less actual acceleration in sprints.

PostscriptThe ever-helpful slant six and automotive lighting expert Daniel Stern provided this advice, which we will be following (and tracking on the valiant.org site):

1) Carburetor. You'd do much better to replace the existing carburetor with a better one than to waste the effort and time trying to make the present carb work. 1974 was the first year for the Holley 1945, and it is a *terrible* carburetor in about a dozen ways. The previous Holley 1920 wasn't the world's best carb, but it was much better than the 1945. Some variants of the 1920 were quite excellent. Many variants of the alternative Carter BBS were quite excellent. Some variants of the later 1945 were quite excellent. But the first few years of 1945 are junk.

2) Choke: Yes, the '73+ electric assist chokes don't work very well. And they're nonadjustable. Get a #1234 electric choke kit, which works much better and is fully adjustable. http://www.slantsix.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=12996

3) Stalling: Yes, the slant-6 is prone to hot-start/hot-idle problems, and A/C aggravates them. You can greatly alleviate these problems with a few rather easy steps. Make sure you have the proper 3/8" thick insulator type carb base gasket installed, consider installing the factory heat shield p/n 5214 558, put in a set of NGK ZFR5N extended-nose spark plugs (remember to remove the metal ring washers before installing the plugs on '63-'74 slant-6 engines!), and do the fuel line mod. http://www.slantsix.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=15778

4) Driveability: You may want to deactivate the EGR. This was the second year for valve-controlled EGR on the slant-6, and it tends to make the engines doggy/gutless. This modification will be facilitated if you go to a pre-1973 carb, which has no provisions for operating an EGR system. You will certainly want to bypass the OSAC valve! This is a widget mounted on the air cleaner housing. You'll find a vacuum hose running from the carb to the widget, and from the widget to the distributor vacuum advance. Reroute the vacuum advance hose so it goes directly to the carb without stopping at the OSAC valve, and you will lose the hesitation, sag, and slow throttle response around town. Try it, you'll like it -- a lot.

5) Air conditioner: One bit of forgotton knowledge from the old days is that when you are running the A/C and you are stopped for more than a few seconds, don't leave it in Drive...shift to Neutral! This speeds up the engine slightly, which does several beneficial things. It reduces the likelihood of stalling, it spins the alternator faster, it spins the A/C compressor faster, and it spins the radiator fan faster. You will quickly develop the habit of watching the cross traffic's light and dropping back into Drive just as the cross yellow turns to red. [Note to Dan: I’ve done that since 1982!]

6) There are mods you can make without too much expense or effort that will greatly increase the A/C system's performance, especially now it's been regassed with R134a, and greatly reduce the parasitic drag of the compressor upon the engine. More detail upon request.

 

Seeing that Valiant reminded me of the 1970 model used in the movie Duel playing chicken in the California mountains with that out of control semi, true you can't appreciate modern cars until you drive a classic, my 1970 Plymouth Road runner is a blast to drive until you step on the manual four wheel drum brakes, no more fun at that point.

 

Yes, Chrysler-designed drum brakes of that era were awful...more so than Ford or GM. They tended to fade out severely....and occasionally get drum chatter.

Was your Road Runner the classic purple (in Violet)? Dodge called it Plum Crazy. I always liked the cartoon bird graphics and "Beep-Beep" horn.

 

Cars were made in the 70s? I thought horse drawn carriages and covered wagons were the rave at the time...



Honestly, there are a lot of people that would rather fix an old car than get a new one, for a variety of reasons; none of which I can think of for myself.

Your review reiterates my concerns and priorities.

 

No, Philip...this was not one of my reviews, although it is not a lot different from what I would have said myself. I just copied it and passed it on.

 

Oh... Cool. Thanks for the clarification.

 

Where the Model T-Rex more popular then the Brontosorous Motor Werkes cars at the time? jk

 

My memory may be off but as I recall cars with generators wouldn't charge at idle. That's why we considered alternators such a tremendous modern improvement.

 

Gosh, that brings back memories. My family had a green with green vinyl top Valiant. In hindsight it was pretty much a terrible car. The "air vents" below the drivers dash that you opened with a handle would leak water in the rain, the brakes were terrible, the steering was a joke but it was mechanically very, very reliable. In fact my brother went to change the oil one day after a year of owning it and when we opened the drain *nothing* came out. The engine still ran fine, we filled it up and it ran for a couple more years. Slant-6 was amazing.

Good times...

 

Even alternators, which replaced generators in the early 1960's, weren't always up to snuff. On cars with voltmeter/amp gauges (and most cars had them back then), idling at night with the lights on, you could actually watch the needle go left of center (discharge) and the dash lights get dimmer when you stopped. Sometimes the radio would also lose a little volume. Having the A/C on, of course, made it worse because it added extra drag...efficient, low-drag compressors had not been invented yet. What you did to keep the battery from draining was shift into neutral and give it a little gas while stopped....this increased gas consumption but helped the battery.

You also had to often shift into neutral and give it some gas while in cold, wet conditions until the engine warmed up because carburator ice would make it stall. The manifold heat-riser systems were supposed to prevent this from happening buy usually didn't work.

(When I was flying light airplanes, we had a carburator heat control on the dash that, fortunately, DID work most of the time, and prevented icing).

 

No arguments there. The Slant Six, though noisy from the mechanical lifters and rather unrefined, was the very definition of durability itself....especially teamed with the TorqueFlite transmission, which was far better than the old 3-speed manual. The durability of the Slant Six was roughly comparable to that of modern Honda and Toyota engines......an average life of 200,000 miles; this, in an age when the average motor was junked or rebuilt around the 90,000-100,000 mile mark....and started to burn oil from worn rings around 70,000 or so.

 

That brings back memories. I had a 1969 Dodge Dart GT with a 273ci V8, automatic, a/c, vinyl top, red-line tires (remember them?), and full wheel covers. That was about the only options. MSRP was $3,721, and for some very odd reason I still remember the VIN, LP23D9B191545. Don't ask me why I remember the VIN. The interior looked pretty much the same as the Valiant except the Dart had vinyl buckets. I drove that Dart all over the place as I courted my future wife from 1970-1973. I added a Craig 8 track stereo with speakers in the doors and back shelf, and felt it was a high class sound system. New 8 track tapes were $5 at the time. It was a nice looking car and was perfect for cruising on Friday and Saturday nights to the local Steak n' Shake and White Castle, back when they still had curb service. You'd cruise the drive ins with your honey riding shotgun and that is where you would have your dinner. As you'd back up into the parking space the curb servers would sprint to your car, hoping to beat their competition to get the order and a tip. Contrast that with your local burger joint today. And it cost less than $5 to fill the tank up. It is different now with higher quality cars, but is it any more enjoyable? Don't know that it is.

 

Unfortunately its not but purple is on the short list when I develop a budget for restoration, the bird graphics on the fender as well as the shark on the sides of the Air Grabber hood scoop are pretty cool, do you remember the movie Duel Marshall?

 

My parents had a Valient. I remember riding in it but the sold it in the early 80s for $100 to a church friend. I was around 10-12 years old. They also had one of those Voxhal cars or however you spell it. My autie had her Valient in Maui with the push button gear select all the way up to the late 80s, maybe early 90s if you can believe that.

 

The correct spellings, BTW, are VALIANT and VAUXHALL. The Valiant and Dodge Dart shared body shells and drivetrains (and were available, later on, in Duster and Demon coupe versions). Early Plymouth Barracudas up to the late 60's were ecentially also coupe versions of Valiant sedans, especially the 64-66 versions. Tom Magliozzi, from the famous "Click and Clack" duo that has the "Car Talk" website and show, had a '64 Dodge Dart he kept for decades....the car was as reliable as sin, but often the butt of jokes....they tend to mix a lot of jokes in with their car advice.

The Vauxhall is a British name that essentially represents GM's British arm, as Opel reprsents their Berman arm. The Saturn Sky and Pontiac Solstice, for example, have a British Vauxhall VX Lightning counterpart.

I myself learned to drive, BTW, on a push-button Valiant, in 1968. Later my dad got a manual-transmission one, and I was able to learn a clutch (though I had already had some practice on some manuals in my friends' cars). The only real surprise was the Valiant's non-synchro first gear on the column shift.....I was used to all-synchro gearboxes (naively, I thought they were all thay way), so of course I got a loud crunch the first time I tried to downshift into first without stopping. I learned quickly...and fortunately it did no damage to the tranny.