Chrysler does not build many cars like the Chrysler Drifter: a 2-door panel van / 2-door coupé utility with 265 cuin 6-cyl, built from 1976 to 1978 as the oil crises and the first emissions rules rewired the industry. Its designer of record is Dennis Nicolle.
Where it came from
The Chrysler Drifter is a panel van and coupé utility produced by Chrysler Australia from 1977 to 1978. Chrysler Australia added a panel van to their Chrysler CL Valiant range in April 1977, and a few weeks later they introduced the "Drifter Pack" as an option on that body style. The Drifter Pack included a Chrysler Charger grille, quartz halogen high beam headlights, a sports steering wheel, radial ply tyres, styled wheels and special exterior paint and decal treatment with colour-coded bumpers. The 4.3 litre Hemi 265 engine and a four speed floor shift manual transmission were standard on the Drifter. In spite of its option pack status, Chrysler marketed the model as the Chrysler Drifter without using the name "Valiant".
The Drifter pack was also available on the Chrysler Valiant Utility, which was also marketed as the "Chrysler Drifter". The Drifter styles of the panel van and utility body ended when Chrysler Australia discontinued the CL series. The 1978 CM Valiant range did not include these styles. The brief life of the Drifter was marked by low sales, as competition from comparable offerings from Ford and Holden was stiff. Chrysler Australia also used the Drifter name on a special edition Charger Drifter, released in 1978.
Under the skin
Under the skin sits 265 cuin 6-cyl; other versions carried different engines, listed in the specification table below. The gearbox is a 4-speed manual. The layout matters: a front engine drives the rear wheels, the classic proportion — long bonnet, cabin set back — that most people picture when they picture a sports saloon or a grand tourer. These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.
In context
Where it sits in Chrysler's history is not in doubt: it was built at Australia. On a showroom list of its day it stood against the Lotus Esprit, the Ford Fiesta, the BMW 3 Series. Nearby in the Chrysler catalogue sit the Chrysler Falcon and the Chrysler Chronos.
The money
MotorJury scores cars on the United States complaint and recall record, and the Chrysler Drifter has none: too old, too rare, or never sold there. Its value today is a collector's question, decided by provenance and condition rather than by a class average.