Jump to content

Ford Falcon- a reflection as it ends after 56 years with Australian manufacturing.


Recommended Posts

Ha ha Bazinga, ya got me.. :)

 

If you google what was going on in the 1980s with Falcon in Australia versus South America

you'd smile an be saddened in the one go. Ford depending on where you were in the world,

Falcon was either a relic from the 1960s or an up to date copy of the UK's Granada.

 

In another reality it could have and probably should have evolved to become

a RWD version of what Chinese Taurus is today.

Edited by jpd80
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Our's, of course but I find the Argentinian one appeals to my idiosyncratic side. It's still a Falcon in essence, and I didn't discover it until rather late into my fascination with Fords/Cars- that was an interesting day translating Spanish web pages lol.

 

I have drawn up a (I draw cars too) platform basis for 3 different Falcons; A US one, an Aussie one and a spartan Argentinian one, incorporating elements which made the original special to begin with ( big interior volume compared to smaller external, clean, sleek styling and simplicity ) then adding attributes which made them popular in their respective markets, or in the US case what that market now goes for.

Sometimes I have too much time on my hands, but it's always been an enjoyable hobby.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I wish Ford had kept the Falcon name in the US for much longer than it did, instead of replacing it with the Maverick, then Fairmont, then Tempo, then Contour. The 1960's US Ford Falcons are very appealing no me.

 

Names were disposable then. If a car ends up tired and undesirable they usually just changed the name. Traditionally cars were just a single design in an array of various bodystyles and wheelbases with model names applied as trim levels. Also, names used to get shuffled around a lot. The Fairlane name for example used to be a top end Ford model. It dropped in seniority when the Galaxie came out. Fairlane moved to the intermediate line in 1962. In 1968 the Torino displaced the Fairlane as the top model. By 1972 Fairlane was gone in favor of the more popular Torino name.

 

The Falcon became a dowdy uninteresting car in the US by the end of the 1960's. It was not that much more to buy a Fairlane, Torino or Mustang. By 1969, sales of the new Maverick eclipsed it. In a hopeless attempt to save the name, the Falcon namelate got affixed to a base model Fairlane/Torino in 1970 1/2 with framed door and window glass with limited options. The Falcon died right there. Maverick was popular especially after the 4-door model was introduced. Mavericks in Mexico were even badged as Falcon Mavericks because they just love to hold on to old names south of the border. After the Granada was introduced the Maverick started loosing popularity. The Granada was actually supposed to be named Maverick replacing the original bodystyle but Mavericks kept selling well enough. The ultimate replacement for the Maverick ended up beng the Fairmont. Fairmont did well until it was neglected in the early 80's while trying to market uplevel versions as the Granada and LTD. The Fairmont was also competing against smaller FWD GM X-cars and K-Cars but Ford was always behind it seemed until the Tempo was introduced for 1983. Meanwhile, replacing the Fairmont and Granada with the LTD name and some restyling lifted sales until the Taurus came out to steal the show for 1986. By the 2000's the Taurus became a joke for being long in the tooth and out of step. So the Fusion steps in with a new mid-sized design with an all new name. So basically when a car is neglected to a point that it is unpopular, it almost requires a name change so people do not auttomatically associate the old product with the new.

 

In the case of Civic, Accord, Camry and Corolla, their makers provided quality reliable product for decades along with refreshes and generational redesigns enough to make the nameplates as immediately recognizable as a desireable product and always amng the top sellers in their class.

Edited by StangBang
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

That Argentinian Falcon always fascinated me. I think that Ford built the 292 V8 in Argentina many years after it was discontinued in the US.

 

I was always amused at the running changes to the original 1960 bodystyle to update it to look modern. It ultimately ended up with a Euro styled front end with a louvered black grille with a centered Ford blue oval, flush composite headlamps, wraparound parkinglamps, larger ribbed wraparound tri-colored taillamps, new bumpers with black rub strips and rubber end caps, black bodyside mouldings, window and door trim, Euro-style road wheels, and an all new dash which looked very similar to the first generation Ford Ranger.

 

Falcon_10.jpg

 

interior07.jpg

 

original.jpg

Edited by StangBang
Link to comment
Share on other sites

At the same time we had the Mark 4 & 5 Cortinas (TE and TF) available with 2.0 Pinto engine and Falcon crossflow I-6

 

So we can see that Falcon adopted that styling direction to align with European trends at the time

and probably where the Argentine Falcon sourced some of its lights and instrument pod...

 

TF Cortina:

New%20Cortina%2010.jpg

Edited by jpd80
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was always amused at the running changes to the original 1960 bodystyle to update it to look modern. It ultimately ended up with a Euro styled front end with a louvered black grille with a centered Ford blue oval, flush composite headlamps, wraparound parkinglamps, larger ribbed wraparound tri-colored taillamps, new bumpers with black rub strips and rubber end caps, black bodyside mouldings, window and door trim, Euro-style road wheels, and an all new dash which looked very similar to the first generation Ford Ranger.

 

Falcon_10.jpg

 

interior07.jpg

 

original.jpg

 

That looks like something Vladimir Putin would be chauffeured in as an example of Russian pride.

 

It also looks like someone smashed their car in an accident, bought a bunch of parts in a junkyard from other cars and "made it fit".

Link to comment
Share on other sites

At the same time we had the Mark 4 & 5 Cortinas (TE and TF) available with 2.0 Pinto engine and Falcon crossflow I-6

 

So we can see that Falcon adopted that styling direction to align with European trends at the time

and probably where the Argentine Falcon sourced some of its lights and instrument pod...

 

TF Cortina:

New%20Cortina%2010.jpg

Oh no! This will bring that Jellymold character back with a 3 page drunken rant...

 

Blah blah blah Cortina blah blah blah Cortina. Blah blah blah Cortina blah blah blah Cortina. Blah blah blah Cortina blah blah blah Cortina. Blah blah blah Cortina blah blah blah Cortina...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Pretty sure S550 isn't an upgrade of S197, but rather a whole new platform.

 

Define all new....the S550 is based on the S197 with a new rear end on it and other things changed. its not a clean sheet design...if it was, someone needs to talk to Ford.

 

Much like the EUCD morphed into the CD4 for the Mondeo

 

A whole new platform would be the Mazda based CD3 Fusion moving to the CD4 platform.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Lord, that Argie steering wheel is bad. Kill it with fire.

DSC00684.jpg

 

Yeah it runs perfectly in line with the craptastic cruise control A-frame steering wheelsl used on Fords starting in 1984. You had to forgo ordering cruise control to get a nice steering wheel in the Mustang. All other Ford cars used this wheel with and without cruise control. Even Full sized Ford trucks and Rangers used A-frame steering wheels.

 

I hated those A-frame steering wheels so much that in my 1985 Tbird I removed it and installed a later Tempo four spoke wheel with cruise control. Then when I aquired the 1984 Tbird several years ago from my step-mom, i removed that A-frame wheel and installed a four spoke from an 83 model.

 

I never understood why Ford would not design cruise control switches that could be incorporated into sport steering wheels. Ford addressed it in 1986 with new wheels for the Mustang and Tbird that had a round center with two thick spokes, but they were not that sporty and still rather thin rimmed.

Edited by StangBang
Link to comment
Share on other sites

At the same time we had the Mark 4 & 5 Cortinas (TE and TF) available with 2.0 Pinto engine and Falcon crossflow I-6

 

So we can see that Falcon adopted that styling direction to align with European trends at the time

and probably where the Argentine Falcon sourced some of its lights and instrument pod...

 

TF Cortina:

New%20Cortina%2010.jpg

The designer of the original 1955 Thunderbird William P. Boyd was sent to Australia from Detroit for a few years in the mid-1970's to work on the Falcon project to help bring the design in line with the boxy European Ford convention that came to be. Jack Telnack was President of European Design in Europe since 1974 after serving in Australia since 1966 as a chief designer. He ultimately influenced European, American and Australian Fords to abandon old American influenced hodge podge Coke bottle designs for a boxy straight edged look. European Fords used to look like miniaturized American Ford sedans. Australian Falcons had evolved from the orginal American Falcon look of the 1960's to a look that appeared to be a variation of the early 1970's Ford Torinos. By 1977 all the European Fords squared off their look from the Taunus to Cortina to the Granada. 1978 America gets the boxy Fairmont and 1979 Australia gets their boxy Falcon. As long as it takes design to from concept to production, you can see this plan was well thought out for the design influence to be global. It was not something that was quickly adapted as a trend for American and Austrailian Fords to adapt European design. Design to production was typically four to five years in those days so American Fairmonts were on the drawing board as early as 1974. Edited by StangBang
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 7 months later...

My father's first car after moving to the United States in 1963 was a 1962 Falcon wagon. I don't know if it had the 144 or 170, but it did have a 3 speed manual. I remember standing on the bench seat between my parents. He kept it until December 1969 when it had about 90,000 miles and was running on 4 cylinders.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...