shape, surrounded by an attractive chrome bezel. Valiants built after January 1, 1968, also got new front shoulder belts as standard. For 1969, a new one-piece, full-width grille, new taillights and trim were featured. Standard engines were unchanged, although refinements in the Chrysler "clean air system" (formerly "clean air package") produced better operating economy from the six-cylinder engines. Improved drum brake self-adjusters, a more efficient power steering pump, and improvements to the optional Sure-Grip differential were also highlighted. Starting with cars built on January 1, 1969, front seat headrests were now standard. 1969 Valiants got new rectangular side marker lamps with federally required integral reflectors. For 1970, the Valiant was carried over with detail changes, including a new black plastic grille sculptured differently from 1969's metal item. The central portion protruded flush with the forward edge of the hood, while the remainder of the grille was set back from the front plane. The two-door sedan was dropped, replaced by the new Duster coupe (see below). For all except export Valiants, the base 170 engine was replaced by a new version of the slant-six. The 198 gave better performance than the 170, and was less costly to make, since it used the same cylinder block as the 225. The Valiant was virtually unchanged for 1971; small revisions included removal of the center grille emblem and a new kind of finish treatment on the grille surround. It now had a blacked-out look instead of the previous argent silver treatment. For the 1970 and 1971 models, exterior and interior trim were slightly revised, and there were engineering changes for better driveability, improved soundproofing and decreased emissions, the latter in compliance with regulations mandated by the newly created Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) implementing new devices such as an EGR valve and an activated charcoal evaporative emissions system. The 1971 Valiant eventually set sales records with 256,930 calendar year deliveries, so there was little motivation to change it for 1972. Only details of the taillights and grille were altered for the 1972 Valiants. New surface-mount sidemarker lamp-reflector units replaced the more costly previous flush-mount items. Beginning in 1971, a badge-engineered version of the wheelbase Dodge Dart Swinger called the "Valiant Scamp" was offered. This used the Dart Swinger two-door hardtop body shell with Valiant front sheet metal and dual taillamps carried over from the 1970 Dodge Dart. 1972 saw the Valiant's best sales ever, with