The late 1950s were the proving ground for U.S.-built compact automobiles that would take traction in the 1960s. Plymouth’s entry was the Valiant, whose first generation was in production from 1960 to 62. The cars had unibody construction, but they also had “love it or leave it” looks in terms of Virgil Exner’s styling. The seller has a 1962 Valiant Signet 200, which was the top-of-the-line model, and it was restored by a previous owner about 25 years ago. Located with a dealer in San Bruno, California, this Slant-Six hardtop is available here on eBay for $14,000. A tip of the fedora goes to “Curvette” for another cool tip!
When the Valiant debuted, it carried no Plymouth badging, though Plymouth dealers sold the car. That changed in 1961, and the Valiant was officially a Plymouth for the next 15 years (1976). Dodge added their version of the auto in 1961-62, named the Lancer, but switched to the Dart nameplate with the redesign in 1963. First-generation Valiant sales were lukewarm compared to the Ford Falcon and Chevy Corvair and Nova. Demand perked up by more than 40% in 1963 when the styling of the cars became more mainstream.
The sportiest and most well-appointed of the 1962 Valiants was the Signet 200, a 2-door hardtop. More than 8,000 copies were made, including the seller’s nice example. The vehicle was restored in the early 2000s, and some liberties were taken to improve the quality of life in the passenger compartment. The interior is nicer than what I believe Plymouth offered, and vintage air conditioning was added along with an aftermarket sound system. Power windows were also included, something that no Valiant ever had from the factory.
Under the hood lies a 225 cubic inch “Slant-Six”, which was optional over the base 170. The car has Chrysler’s TorqueFlite automatic transmission, which should be push-button operated. The body, paint, and most everything else appear to be shipshape, and the sale will net the next owner a stash of extra parts, which are mostly trim pieces. While they may be a bit unorthodox to look at, the Valiant was always a solid and reliable product.
The 1962’s were not Exner’s work.They were forced apon him by the new boss Newberg thinking GM was downsizing all their cars and those under Exner had designed these and he was forced to use them.But..Exner is who took the fall for the cars he did not design.Corporate politics need a fall guy..Exner fell…
Newberg was the fall guy for the size; it actually came from the engineering-led nature of the corporation. The engineers got as much space into a smaller package. If they’d gotten the styling right, they might’ve pulled it off.
It’s too bad they chose to update the interior. It really hurts the car’s value as an antique. The upholstery, power windows and sound system are terribly out of place.
My Dad had a 1961 Plymouth Valiant white 4 door push button automatic i don’t remember which 6 cylinder it was. I know it was clean looking. The 2dr i like on the outside not too much inside. These cars were based models to move families around. This is too fancy interior the dash and guages are dead on like my Dad had. Ok.. the AC is a plus we won’t mine having that back then. Otherwise its a very neat and clean looking Plymouth and I wish the seller good luck. 🇺🇸🐻