Valiant Signet 1967 Logbook

1967: - Manufactured somewhere in Detroit, probably in the second part of the year.

1968: - After quite a long gap (prior or after importation?), first registered as 3942 QB 51 in October.
Little is known of the first years, but seems to have been well treated. Signs of a few "dings" later to appear, but nothing serious. [A bit of a long shot really, but if you happen to have information about this particular period, let me know!!!]

1972: - Car on sale at S.A.O. - a Simca-Chrysler dealer installed on the car park of the Carrefour supermarket in Montesson. My dad is looking to replace his power lacking Simca Ariane. The car seems to meet his requirements: cheap, comfortable, with a good sized boot. The "small" 6-cylinder engine is more powerful than the Ariane's 4-cylinder engine, yet still economical to run. Some hesitation before eventually buying it (it seemed "too good to be true"). New registration 1491 JQ 78.

Out: Simca Ariane	In: Plymouth Valiant

1972 - 1978: Serves as a daily driver to do school runs and supermarket shopping. Also numerous trips to Caen in Normandy, Excenevex in Haute-Savoie, and Argeles in the south of France.

August 1974: -Returning from holidays. Hit while parked overnight in Albi. Driver side door badly damaged. The panel beater's error in ordering the paint means that the whole left side of the car is spayed with a darker shade of grey.

1978: No longer used as a daily driver, only as holiday car, or for week-ends.

1982: Returning from holidays (again!), hit at a traffic light by a woman driving under the influence of tranquilizers and alcohol who jumped the red light. Her car is a write-off. She has hit the last 20 cm the rear side of the Plymouth, causing it to spin, but with little damage: the rear light lens is ejected, almost intact, but the bulb is still working. There is a small dent on the side, so another trip to the panel beater is required. Back lens glued back together, and a long quest for a new one starts...

1985: Finally find a rear lens! Purchased from a 1967 Signet on sale for spares - the car seemed to have been used by a circus...

1986: Still going strong mechanically, but interior and exterior are showing signs of neglect and age. Upholstery cleaned, small interior repairs, carpet changed. Small rust areas treated. Car resprayed. New stereo installed. Non mecanical parts prove impossible to find. Source and buy Haynes Manual from a specialist bookshop in Paris.

1992: Retired as a familly car and gained "collector" status. Will no longer be used for holidays and long journeys. Both to protect the car from accidents and because of (unfair?) concerns about its reliability. No longer requires a Tax Disc!. Still used for week-ends, rallyes and treasure hunts.

2002: Still going after all these years. Now dry stored and re-registered. Becomes an exhibit in the Plymouth Valiant Virtual Museum. Fitted with a stainless steel exhaust.

2003: Changed water pump and reconditioned radiator. Discovered that one hubcap has been damaged by another user of the storage garage. Sigh! Bought replacement hubcap. Bought various parts on Ebay and US dealer. Relieved to see that the number of reporductions parts available for the 67' 4 doors sedan is slowly increasing, but still a long way to go.

2004: Projects for this year: replace interior carpet. Purchase used/ NOS / reproduction wheel arch mouldings.