Wednesday, September 1, 2010

50 years of the Australian Ford Falcon


In September 1960 Ford Australia released the XK series Falcon. It was initially offered only as a four door sedan, in both Falcon and Falcon Deluxe trim levels. The XK was essentially a right hand drive version of the North American model, although local country dealers often included modifications such as heavy duty rear suspension (5 leaves) and larger 6.50 x 13 tyres. Ford finally had a serious contender to the Holden in the family car category. The first Falcon was exceptionally popular – half a million people packed Ford dealerships to see the sleek newcomer. Plus, XK Falcon sales doubled Ford’s share of the Australian car market!

The American Falcon was phased out over 1969-71 but the Australian Falcon has continued to the present day, exclusively for Australia and New Zealand, and over 3 million have been sold.

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