Development
Engineers from Chrysler Australia and Simca considered modifying the body of a Chrysler 180 sedan and shortening the drive train so they could place the Australian 6-cylinder Hemi engines further back in the body but instead decided to lengthen the nose, as Chrysler Australia apparently felt this created a more aggressive and better-looking car. It also meant fewer changes were needed to "Australianise" the car, making it economical to assemble. Additional, largely cosmetic changes included a new grill, headlights, bonnet and rear panel and taillights.
A brake proportioning valve was fitted to all 4 and 6 cylinder Centuras from factory to compensate for weight transfer during braking . When the car "nose-dived" under heavy braking, a mechanical link connected to the proportioning valve reduced the brake pressure on the rear wheels, to prevent them from locking up and causing the back of the car to slide around. This was typical of many European cars of the time but uncommon in Australian cars.
Chrysler also experimented with fitting a 5.2-litre (318 ci) American-made V8 but decided that the body lacked the rigidity to cope with the larger engine and the V8 version never went into production.
Read more about this topic: Chrysler Centura
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