1970 Chrysler Regal Reviews

In 1977, something remarkable, and even almost unthinkable just a few years earlier, happened.For the first time in decades, a Holden was no longer Australia’s best-selling car for a full calendar year.The HX Belmont/Kingswood/Premier trio was beaten by Ford’s XC Falcon/Fairmont duo, pipped to the post by just 572 units. 53,934 versus 54,506.Released exactly 50 years ago, we take a look at why the car that finally dethroned a Holden changed the face of Australian motoring forever.Developed in the USA to take on the hyper-successful VW Beetle, the original Falcon launched in Australia in 1960, purely to reel the Holden in.Back then, one-in-two vehicles sold in Australia were by General Motors-Holden’s (GMH), and it was making a ton of money for its American parent. Such obscene profits were too much for Ford to ignore.Yet it took 11 versions, over 17 years, for the Falcon to finally achieve its mission.Yes, Ford first climbed to the top for one month only with the then-new XB Falcon in December, 1973, but 1977 was the year of the XC.Here’s the irony. The XC Falcon was drab, lacking the Mustang-look edge of its handsome XB predecessor, which later found international fame as the basis for the original Mad Max movie car.Laughably tiny round headlights didn’t help. And its interior was plain jane boring, replacing the previous, cool ‘waterfall’ fascia that wrapped around the driver years before BMW thought of doing it.The XC also killed off the legendary Falcon GT.Yet Australians still loved it. Go figure. (Hint: the HX was terrible).By any objective standard, but especially global ones, even back in the day, the Australian family cars that are so loved and collectable today were far from great in the 1970s.Based on the same American principles and formula that created what we now dub The Malaise Era, the contemporary Kingswood, Falcon and Chrysler Valiant were oversized yet cramped due to bad packaging, alarmingly thirsty yet comparatively slow (not Valiant) given their large engine capacities, tricky to drive in the wet and on gravel, rust prone, poorly equipped, low on braking ability and inconsistently built.In contrast, a Peugeot 504, VW Passat, Rover P6 or Mercedes-Benz compact were streets ahead for comfort, safety, efficiency, driving pleasure and quality, if not outright performance. Embarrassingly so.With all this in mind, historians reckon the HX was Holden’s worst model to date.The introduction of stricter emissions standards, known as Australian Design Rule 27A (ADR27A) would make the poorer Australian cars even worse.Just as Ford had done, Holden also launched the barely facelifted HX range in July, 1976, sporting a different grille, new instrumentation… and that’s largely it.But the big barge also drove rougher, used more petrol and performed worse than the preceding HJ that was hardly a media darling itself.The critics very publicly savaged the HX and consumers increasingly wary.In contrast, the corresponding XC Falcon boasted big changes to its engines for ADR27A, resulting in output and economy improvement claims of 10 per cent or more.Neither brand’s powertrains could touch the Valiant’s awesomely strong Hemi engines, just to be clear here. However, the Falcon’s were miles better than Holden’s.Note that tighter steering and better-tuned suspension did make the XC the best to drive, whilst that (albeit dubious) dash redesign, expensive exterior sheetmetal restyles and a new nose job also helped make the Ford seem fresher.You know how the XC dropped the GT? Ford replaced it with the Fairmont GXL, and marketed it as a European-style grand touring driver’s car, complete with rarities for the era such as a limited-slip diff, four-wheel disc brakes, alloy wheels and sports suspension.Buyers and critics alike lapped it up. Fairmont’s big rectangular headlights helped a lot too.Largely unrealised at the time, the GXL also softened Australians to the idea of a less-American Falcon.The 1979 XD successor was not far away and, for the first time in the series' history, it adopted visual cues from Ford of Europe's Granada range, rather than from Detroit.The HX’s poor showing, combined with the XC’s more-favourable reviews, must have lit a fire under GMH, because the HZ that replaced it just 15 months later in October, 1977, brought much-improved handling, smoother engines and scores of minor upgrades.More importantly, it ousted Falcon from the top spot the following year.The Opel-derived VB Commodore arrived late in 1978 and the Falcon would not top the annual sales charts again until 1982 – though it then stayed at number one until 1989.Falcon wasn’t even the company’s first roll of the dice.Ford spent a small fortune during the 1950s trying with the UK Zephyr series (fun fact: the first production car with MacPherson strut front suspension), but, though good, it was too expensive against the Holden.Something cheaper and more basic was needed, and Detroit was planning just such a car. In 1958, two Ford Australia execs sighted a Falcon prototype in Michigan and declared: ‘We’ll have some of that, cheers!’, or some such.At the same time, Chrysler, too, invested heavily in Australia, restyling a discarded US Plymouth as the Royal from 1957 to 1963, but sales were sluggish.Its 1962 Valiant successor did far better initially, but The Malaise set in by 1971’s VH series and sales nosedived, forcing Chrysler to exit Australia entirely by the end of that decade.Meanwhile, the British Motor Corporation (BMC) had tried and failed with various Morris and Austin models from the late 1950s, including the Major and Elite respectively, the advanced 1800 of 1966 and its short-lived X6 Tasman/Kimberly replacement from 1970.Long forgotten today, the latter was then succeeded by the also-Australia-only Leyland P76 in 1973. An ambitious task, it mimicked American sedans with big size and power, but struggled to sell despite being more progressive than the Holden/Falcon/Valiant triumvirate.Hundreds of millions in today’s money were collectively sunk by each of the above brands, to no avail, leading to factory closures and job losses.Ostensibly, the XC Falcon won 1977 because it was superior to the HX. But GMH’s biggest enemy lay within.Following the 48-215 hitting the top spot in 1950, Holden become overall market leader three years later.Australians loved “Australia’s Own” car. That this car was owned by one of history’s biggest corporations, yet was heavily bankrolled by Federal and State governments, didn’t matter. Nor did the fact the massive profits generated went to America.By 1960 GMH enjoyed 50 per cent market share. Hubris had set in, as the local operation became infamously rich, complacent, ignorant and combative.But increased competition was just around the corner, especially from Japan. And, after spectacular year-on-year growth since 1948, Holden stumbled with the ungainly HD of 1965. Market share fell to 40 per cent in 1968, 30 per cent by 1973 and 25 per cent in 1976.Perfect conditions for the Falcon to swoop in.Happy 50 birthday, XC Falcon.

Fifty years ago, on July 1, 1976, the worst new Holden up to that point was released, the HX series. And everything changed.Not coincidentally, it was also the date that all new internal combustion engine vehicles except those under 850cc in capacity or with liquid petroleum gas had to comply with stricter emissions standards known as Australian Design Rule 27A (ADR27A).This law proved to be a nightmare for parent company General Motors-Holden’s (GMH) Ltd.With fuel consumption up, power down and prices jumping to cover the extra technology necessary to meet the new regulations over the preceding HJ series, Holden’s engineers struggled to make its 1960s-era engines cope with the required updates in what was the country’s best-selling car line since the early 1950s.Critics and road testers alike savaged the HX as a result, accusing Holden of being cynical and out of touch, though it managed to hang on to the top spot for 1976.“Perhaps we would be better off with dirty engines and improved driveability,” quipped Wheels magazine editor Peter Robinson.Unfortunately for GMH, three unexpected things also happened right around that time that led to fundamental shifts in consumer tastes.Firstly, Japan was ready to launch its next phase of world-beating passenger cars that could easily meet ADR27A, headed by the original Honda Accord that almost single-handedly elevated that country’s entire industry overnight.Others followed in its footsteps, including the Mazda 323 and Datsun Skyline.Yet it was the shock success of the Chrysler Sigma, supplied by Mitsubishi, that became GMH's second big setback, shooting up the charts to a podium finish soon after its 1977 launch, and stayed there for half a decade.The Sigma lured many former and would-be Holden owners away in droves, particularly from the brand's waning Torana and Sunbird models it competed directly against, and even cannibalised Chrysler’s own Valiant in the process. Sigma was an automotive phenomenon that led directly to the iconic Australian-developed Magna later on.And last but not least, arch-rival Ford, which had been nipping at the Holden’s heels with the Falcon since the XB Falcon snatched number one for just one month in late 1973, had pulled out all stops in making the succeeding XC series demonstrably superior. GMH certainly wasn't expecting that.While the change from HJ to HX was little more than a fussier grille, revised instrumentation and several other, mostly minor, alterations, Ford expensively reengineered its engines to make them better than before, not worse. And it also redesigned the Falcon's nose, tail, back doors and dashboard, for a far-fresher look and feel.Plus, the XC launched the Fairmont GXL sports/luxury flagship. In the spirit of the legendary Falcon GTs, contemporary reviewers declared it as one of the greatest Australian-made family cars to date.In stark contrast to the basting the HX endured, XC sales flourished, with the Falcon becoming Australia’s best-selling car in 1977, period – an achievement it managed again from 1981 through to 1989, signalling the start of Ford Australia’s halcyon days.Half a century after the HX’s painful birth, perspective shows us a company grappling to deal fast enough with rapid change – something that Holden would pay the ultimate price for by 2020.Yet, to GMH’s credit, the more-comprehensively changed HZ series that followed in October, 1977, addressed most of the HX’s issues, whilst leap-frogging the Falcon in both sales as well as a driver’s car, thanks to chassis tweaks marketed to great effect using a tagline borrowed from Pontiac in the US called Radial Tuned Suspension.A stunning turnaround, it restored the Holden to the top spot for 1978, in time for the smaller, Opel-based VB Commodore to turn the market on its ear leading into the 1980s.A brief hiccup then largely due to ADR27A, a total of 110,669 HXs were built. And though the series has long lived in the shadow of the massively popular HQ/HJ models before it and the beloved HZ afterwards, 50 years later, its appeal is palpable. Who wouldn't have one?As a colourful piece of Australian motoring history, recognition is deserved. If nothing else, the garish Monaro LE two-door coupe runout edition remains one of the most 1970s things ever to happen in local motoring folklore!And it was the first Holden that actively attempted to minimise its emissions impact. That’s got to be worth celebrating. Happy 50 birthday, Holden HX!

One of the biggest car makers in the world has reportedly forked out billions in warranty claims over the past year. Stellantis, parent company of brands like Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Peugeot and Jeep has paid out the equivalent of more than $10 billion in global warranty expenses for the 2025/26 financial year. This tough reliability run has seen Stellantis begin a complete reset of its processes to get on track. The big news out of this reset is that the brand will launch its first model riding on its new STLA One platform next year. The brand said the platform will underpin up to 30 new vehicles in the small and mid-size SUV categories. This will equate to more than two million sales annually by the time 2035 comes around. Stellantis also said it is targeting improvements to quality even before this new platform gets underway. “If we do the right things earlier in the program, that means that when we get closer to launch we’ll have fewer problems,” Stellantis propulsion systems testing and analysis lead Mark Christie told Auto News.  “The product life target for powertrain components is 10 years and 150,000 miles (about 240,00km).”The brand is plotting the launch of 23 new and updated models in the next four years across its portfolio. It has been a turbulent time for Stellantis in recent years with the departure of Chief Executive Officer Carlos Tavares and subsequent appointment of Antonio Filosa.The brand reported a $37 billion net loss earlier this year.Reports indicate focus will shift to Fiat, Jeep, Peugeot and Ram, but other brands in the group will benefit from the technology acquired.Peugeot recently unveiled its all-new E-208 GTI fully-electric hot hatch in what will be an early test for Stellantis' change of direction.  

The once-mighty Chrysler brand appears to be on the cusp of a product-led comeback with the appearance of an all-new mid-size SUV at last month’s Stellantis Investor Day.But the covers weren’t pulled off a physical car, rather the sharp-eyed enthusiasts at moparinsiders.com may have spotted one of the three new models scheduled to appear for the brand by 2030, hiding in plain sight within the presentation given by Stellantis Group CEO Antonio Filosa and Head of North American Brands Tim Kuniskis.The presentation confirmed Chrysler’s sole current model, the Pacifica people mover, would be joined by three new arrivals competing in “high-volume compact SUV segments”.Designed to reinvigorate the brand, they are set to “increase affordability with sub-$30K entry points” and “deliver multi-energy options for freedom of choice”.The goal? A 60 per cent growth in sales volume from 143,000 units last year to around 225,000 sales in 2030.And the car moparinsiders believes it has spotted is a production version of the two-row, five-seat Airflow crossover-style SUV scheduled to arrive in 2027.Appearing in a video supporting the powertrain section of the presentation, a Chrysler crossover was spotted and the publication believes it matches descriptions of the Airflow provided by journalists who recently attended a private preview inside Stellantis’ Product Design Dome in Auburn Hills, Michigan.Chrysler showed a pure-electric Airflow Concept at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas in 2022. But this car appears to be a more upright and angular design rather than the organic, curvy look of the concept.The nose features vertical LED headlights, an 'illuminated wing' badge in the centre and a full-width LED lighting strip above with the rear end showing long vertical tail-lights on each corner.Chrysler has confirmed the Airflow will ride on Stellantis’ new scalable ‘STLA One’ platform, which opens up the possibility of multiple powertrain options and the video vehicle shows a front transversely-mounted internal-combustion engine .Moparinsiders has theorised it could be the turbo-petrol ‘Hurricane4’ engine already used in the Jeep Grand Cherokee with the group’s EP6-based turbo hybrid system and a pure-electric system also in prospect.The Stellantis Group’s ‘Fastlane 2030’ initiative includes introduction of more than 60 new or redesigned vehicles globally by 2030 (23 in North America). The emphasis on North America is a clear rebalancing of the corporate scales at Stellantis, with former CEO Carlos Tavares widely perceived to have favoured the group’s European brands including Alfa Romeo, Fiat, Citroen, Opel and Peugeot, with his successor Filosa now leaning into its US nameplates - Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram.Chrysler’s new positioning statement is “Practical, Reliable, Comfortable Mobility for Everyday Life”, the brand looking to target the 35 per cent of buyers it believes look first for these brand attributes.

Diesel isn't dead after all: Why the owner of Peugeot and Jeep is making up for lackluster EV sales with diesels.

You hear the term all the time, but what is a muscle car? To be honest, there’s no hard and fast definition. Just as a coupe can be either a two-door or four-door car depending on your point of view, different enthusiasts will describe the muscle car concept differently, and there’s a range of debatable points on offer.

This common Australian Highway Patrol car ceased to exist as a new car several years ago, but a rebirth is now rumoured.A report from the Detroit Free Press states that the Chrysler 300 sedan is coming back.Chrysler boss, Christine Feuell, told the Detroit Free Press the company needs to expand beyond its current people-mover range in the US and a return of the 300 sedan is a possibility.“I believe the car segment is ripe for growth and resurgence,” Feuell said.She described a “high level of confidence in our road map and ability to launch these products.”It is believed the Halcyon concept car, which debuted in 2024, could form the basis for the reinvented 300.This means it’s likely the 300 will be an electric car and built on parent company Stellantis’ STLA platform that underpins electric vehicles such as the Dodge Charger EV, Jeep Recon electric off-roader and Jeep Wagoneer large SUV.It would likely be closely aligned with the Charger EV. This means it could use a mega 100kWh battery paired with 400-volt charging architecture and electric motors that churn out a monster 500kW and 850Nm, with a claimed range of 420km and a 0-100km/h time of 3.3 seconds…ooft.  That’s a big jump in performance from the 350kW/637Nm 6.4-litre Hemi V8 from the old 300 SRT Highway patrol cars that helped them sprint to 100km/h from a standstill in the mid-4.0 second range.There is no guarantee that if the Halcyon concept becomes a reality that it will be adopted by Highway Patrols around Australia with the diesel-powered BMW 530d currently on duty.The BMWs are powered by a 3.0-litre turbocharged six-cylinder diesel that generates 195kW and 620Nm — enough to produce a 5.7 second 0-100km/h sprint — while sipping just 4.7L/100km.

In nearly 140 years of the motor vehicle, history records only two Australian cars that truly left their mark on the world – even to this day.

It’s often said by car enthusiasts that you’re not a real car guy until you’ve owned an Alfa Romeo. Perhaps, but there’s an Australian variation on that theme: You can’t be a proper car bloke (or gal) until you’ve owned a V8.

Have you ever categorically committed yourself to something only to then have second-thoughts and try to get out of it? It can be awkward at a social event or work occasion, but it may be incredibly difficult if you’re a multi-billion dollar car maker.