The 1960 Valiant was created in a skunkworks, resulting in a car which beat the best Ford and General Motors could make. It took an inordinate share of American sales, and was Chrysler’s sole US-based success in most countries.
Chrysler started exporting cars to Argentina through Fevre y Basset in 1959; three years later, they formed a joint venture to make the local Dodge Valiants with a 225 cubic inch slant six and three-on-the-tree manual transmission. It had few frills.
In 1965, the newly-renamed Chrysler Fevre Argentina started making a luxury version of the Valiant called the Coronado, a name from Chrysler’s European limousines, as well as a sporty Valiant GT using twin single-barrel carburetors. In 1966, they added a floor shift and single two-barrel carburetor to the GT.
| 1968 | Metric | “English” |
|---|---|---|
| Height | 1.40 m | 55.1 |
| Length | 5.01 m | 197.2 |
| Width | 1.86 m | 73.2 |
| Wheelbase | 2.81 m | 110.6 |
| Power | 145 bhp | |
| Torque | 30 kgm | 215 lb-ft |
| Fuel Capacity | 68 L | 18 g |
| Spark Plugs | Champion N14Y | |
| Antifreeze | 12 L | 3.2 gal |
| Compression | 8.4:1 | |
For 1968, the Valiant was replaced by essentially the same car but renamed to 3700GT and restyled to match that Spanish Valiant derivative. Next came the 1969 Dodge Polara—essentially a Valiant (now 3700GT), between the 3700GT and Coronado. Both the Polara and Coronado used a vinyl roof, front disc brakes, and the 225 slant six engine. The Dodge Polara GT, which replaced the Valiant GT, used a two-barrel Carter BBD 4300S which boosted power from 145 to 155 bhp, and torque rose from 215 to 220 lb-ft.
A new 1970 Dodge Polara had a four-speed floor-shift option, while an automatic was only available as a Coronado option. A new Dodge GTX luxury coupe, under its vinyl roof, used the dual-carb six or a 318 cubic inch V8 with a four-speed manual; the 318 was rated at 212 hp (gross), with 308 lb-ft of torque. The US net measurement for that engine was 150 hp.
The stripes on the Polara R/T were clearly taken from the Challenger R/T in the United States.
The 1972 Dodges were restyled with new grilles, lights, and gauges, with a choice of interior color—it had been black only but now beige was available, too. Gauges could be white with black letters, or black with white letters. The Polara Coupe’s standard front discs became optional, though. Corsa reported that the base Dodge Polara coupe ran a 12.1-second 0-62 with a 107 mph top speed with its two-barrel six.
For 1974, the Dodge Coronado automatic became standard rather than optional. A new Polara R/T was launched, shorn of the vinyl roof. The slant six was upgraded to 174 bhp, with 246 lb-ft of torque (still not using net figures). The car was well equipped; a new Holley Argelite RX 7218A carburetor replaced the Carter, and it had bigger front disc brakes (with an 11-inch/278mm disk). Corsa reported 0-62 mph in 11.5 seconds.
Diesels became optional in 1977, but the Polara, Coronado, and GTX were all shut down when Chrysler Argentina closed in 1979.
| 1972 Coupe | |
| Height | 1.425m |
|---|---|
| Length | 5.024m |
| Width | 1.904m |
| Front track | 1.420m |
| Torque | 30kgm 217 lb-ft |
| 1972 Polara R/T | |
| Carb (either/or) | Holley 7001-GT Carter BBD 3400s |
| 0-62 mph | 12.1 sec |
| 0-87 mph | 25.9 sec |
| 0-1 km | 34.6 sec |
| 1974 Polara R/T | |
| Compression | 8.5:1 |
| Torque | 34 kgm@2400 246 lb-ft |
| Horsepower | 174@4400 |
| Carburetor | Holley Argelite RX 7218A |
| 0-62 mph | 11.5 sec |
| 0-87 mph | 25.4 sec |
| 0-1 km | 33.5 sec |
The Brazilian Polara was not a renamed Valiant.
It was a renamed Hillman Avenger, instead. The Avenger, a rear wheel drive car developed in England, was globally popular; Chrysler even set up an assembly line in Iran, where it was called the Paykan.
If anything, the Hillman-based Polara may have looked more upscale than the Polara.
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