Australian’s can thank Charles Smith
for ensuring the country had a worthy competitor
to the ever popular Holden’s of the 1960’s.
Prior to 1955, Ford Australia had been assembling
British made Zephyr’s, but in 1955 the
decision was made to manufacture the Zephyr
entirely in Australia. In 1958 Smith, then
Ford Australia’s managing director, took
a trip to the US and, upon seeing mock-up’s
for the new compact Falcon being designed for
the US and Canadian markets, quickly realised
this was much better suited to Australia than
the dowdy Zephyr. Two years later the XK Falcon
made its debut, and became an instant success,
in many ways appearing far more modern that
the FB/EK Holden’s that were still sporting
1950’s style tail fins.
Both the XK and
its successor, the XL, were entirely US designs,
although some modifications were made to ensure
suitability to Australian driving conditions.
Australian designers continued to look at ways
of improving the car, particularly in light
of some minor reliability issues mainly relating
to the tough Aussie conditions the cars were
operating in. Changes ushered in on the XM
included modified front and rear suspension
layouts and improvements to the braking system,
clutch, rear axle, engine mounts and exhaust.
To prove just how thorough the design team
had been, Ford management (under the leadership
of Deputy Managing Director Bill Bourke) devised
a very clever marketing initiative, the Falcon
XP “Durability Run”.
Five
Falcon’s were pushed to the limit around
Victoria’s You Yang’s proving facility,
the goal was to rack up an incredible 70,000
miles at an average speed of 70 miles per hour!
Despite the audacity of the undertaking, and
the fact that some of the cars rolled, after
8½ days all five would finish, with
an average speed a little over 71 mph. Little
wonder the XP would take out that years “Wheels
Car of the Year” award. The XR was to
follow, ushering in the era of the GT, but
by 1971 the US had taken the decision to drop
the Falcon from it’s line-up. More than
up to the challenge, Ford Australia were to
design the wonderfully modern XA, arguably
the first All Australian Falcon (albeit that
Ford designers had spent the summer of ’68
working in the US on a clay model). Improvements
such as four-wheel disc brakes were added to
subsequent XB and XC models, the XC bringing
Ford arguably Mount Panorama’s most famous
victory in 1977.
Leading for most of the race, Alan Moffat’s (number 1) car started
to experience mechanical problems and was limping
to the finish. Colin Bond, following in the
number 2 car, quickly closed the gap. In a
remarkable display of sportsmanship he remained
behind Moffat, riding as wingman to ensure
Ford would take out a 1–2 victory,
and the ultimate photo opportunity.
Also see: Bathurst Memorable Moments } The Ford Falcon Story. |
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1960 - 1962
The XK was the first Falcon released, and was based very
much on the equivalent U.S. Falcon, copying its styling
almost without change. More >> |
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1962 - 1964
The tail lamps were revised and the rear roof line was
changed to reflect Ford's Thunderbird style theme. More >> |
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1964 - 1965
The XM was another styling facelift of the original XK,
with a much heavier and impressive front grille. More >> |
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1965 - 1966
The XP was the last facelift of the original Falcon and
featured an aggressive, squared off look to the front
end and more solid styling overall. More >> |
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1966 - 1968
The new XR range again followed a US design, hoping to
capitalise on the phenomenal success of the Mustang. More >> |
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1968 - 1969
The XT Falcon was a mild restyle of the previous model,
with a barely altered grille, but distinctive new tail
lamps, circular lamps still, but cut by large rectangular
indicator lenses. More >> |
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1969 - 1970
The XW represented the first real attempt to more definitely
differentiate the Australian Falcon from the styling of
its U.S. equivalent. More >> |
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1970 - 1972
The XY marked the apogee of the second generation Falcons,
superior in performance to its competitors, better built,
fitted with a range of locally designed six cylinder engines,
and in GT form, producing the ultimate and fastest Falcon
of them all. More >> |
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1972 - 1973
The XA model was the first Falcon completely designed
and built in Australia. More >> |
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1973 - 1976
The XB featured a slight restyle of the previous model,
featuring a cleaner but more aggressive front end with
a forward sloping bonnet. More >> |
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1976 - 1979
The XC was a further re-style of the third generation
Falcon. The refined look was achieved by reducing the
slope of the grille and introducing large rectangular
headlamps. More >> |
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