Chrysler’s Drifter arrived late and left the party early

Between April 1977 and November 1978, Chrysler Australia rode the waves of surf culture with its Drifter panel van, ute, and of all things — the Charger.

Like Holden’s Sandman and Ford’s Sundowner, the Drifter’s advertisements promised an endless summer — leisure, freedom, power, speed, sea, surf and sex — no matter how far you lived from the beach.

The Drifter van and ute were fast-track creations.

I spoke with Chrysler/Mitsubishi Australia’s retired design manager, Dennis Nicolle about how they were developed.

Dennis recalls:

“We needed a surf-type vehicle fast.

“Because we were third on the scene, we had to have something that stood out.

“We gave it bold colours, big stripes, carpet in the back, bucket seats and a Charger grille.”

Chrysler’s design team sketched dozens of stripe combinations. Those which turned upwards had the most visual impact.

But Dennis thought the right-angled stripes made the van look too high and bulky.

Thinking about it more, he took inspiration from the tail of a Qantas 747. He says:

“I saw how the flying kangaroo was silhouetted against the red paint of the tail.

“It was swept up at an angle and really lifted the look of the plane.

“I did some sketches.

“Instead of the stripe having a right angle bend up the side of the vehicle, I angled it.

“And that’s how the Drifter got its stripes.”

What happens to the cars we test?

By the time the Drifter was released the surf van/ute craze had peaked.

Less than 500 Drifter vans and utes were sold.

The name was also applied to some of the last Charger body shells.

And yet, despite its late entry and short time on the market, the Drifter’s rarity, blazing graphics and bright colours has ensured its place in our popular culture.

David Burrell is the editor of retroautos