Chris Keating has uploaded this 1960 Australian Falcon introduction film to his You Tube channel, and it’s a good watch. There’s lots of detailed shots of the the new assembly plant and the manufacturing plant where engines and other parts are created, circa 1960-style. Watching cars get built from the component level is a good exercise now and then, especially to remind us why manufacturers don’t like to design and build all-new cars from scratch any more often than necessary, as so much has to change in the complex manufacturing process.
The Falcons fell apart on Aussie roads – literally. It will always amaze that the superior Valiant – transmission, engine & suspension leagues better – failed to sell as well.
Heck, the Valiant won European design awards. Still, the market found the styling controversial vs. the mundane slug Falcon.
I had to chuckle when the video talked about the testing of the new Falcon. It turns out that the Ford hadn’t tested the car sufficiently on Australian roads, which is why early Australian Falcons had so many problems. To Ford’s credit, it did stick with the car and make serious improvements by 1964.
I had a girlfriend with an XL Falcon sedan, so I got to spend some time with it. The early Falcon gets derided for being McNamara’s low-cost blandmobile, but I actually like the styling. Reminds me of the Quicksilver/1960 fullsize which I love and which also gets derided. Prefer the XK rear window, though. Issues on hers had already been sorted re: front susp, etc. No seatbelts which kept the sphincter tight on longer 110 km/h trips. It was a slug, but neither of us were revheads.
A late friend told me that in the early 1960s while he was studying architecture and planning at Adelaide University in South Australia,he had a part time job in a large Ford dealership as a car detailer.He started work and the manager pointed to a new bright pink Ford Falcon which was to be presented to the winner of the Miss Australia Quest being held in Adelaide that year.He was told to do an extra special detailing job on that Ford and after polishing the car he lifted the bootlid and vinyl floormat and discovered something he had not seen on any other Falcon model.So in the boot/trunk there was a 4×4 inch by approx 1 inch raised object,pink like the rest of the car.He called the workshop manager over and then the manager and they were puzzled as to what this could be.They grabbed a chisel and prised the object from the floor,it was a sandwich! One of the workers on the production line had left his sandwich in the boot and the car was then through the spray booth with the sandwich intact and sprayed pink.People ate lunch on the line in those days.
Your story makes me feel hungry.
I’m fairly sure some found their way to the UK,I saw RHD Falcons in a London showroom in the 60s.Dad had 2 both LHD though Mum never felt OK driving a left hooker solo
The MK2 Zephyr ute had a double floor pan sedan and convertable sandwiched for extra strength the Falcon didnt.
XP Falcon Wagon used ‘torque boxes’ right? ..the XP SW seemed quite a strong vehicle
That was part of the improvements Geeber mentioned above, they put the stronger 63-1/2 hardtop floorpan under all the Aussie Falcons that included the torque boxes, heavier gauge metal etc.
The failure of the original Falcon lead to the establishment of the You Yangs proving ground that would later host the 70,000 mile durability test – not on the high speed bowl as Dearborn assumed, it was still under construction, but on the ride & handling circuit that didn’t have any straight or level asphalt.
People had longer attention spans back then didn’t they? Thanks, that was interesting.
The complexity and expense of launching a new platform and all the trouble and expense of working out the “bugs” sure brings home the reason that Ford used the Falcon platform for so many variations – 18 per Paul.
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/automotive-histories/automotive-history-fords-falcon-platform-from-falcon-to-versailles-in-18-different-wheelbase-lengthtrack-width-variations/
Very interesting – and I love the terribly proper way of speaking back then too!
I looked out for the narrator’s name at the end, which was Peter Whitchurch. He also narrated the official films for the Official 1965 to 1967 Bathurst 500 races by the sounds of things. He has that old style Australian accent that is almost British, perhaps he was British, but a lot of Australian born people used to talk like that, TV Presenters, Politicians, Judges, Teachers etc. It started to die out in the late 60s. A lot of upper class Aussies and Kiwis sounded more British than the British 🙂
Last year I drove past the Geelong plant, shown in the film at 4:40. The facades of the various buildings adjacent to Melbourne Rd still look exactly the same. I’ll have to go back again and observe both plants before ford production ends in Australia forever. It’s sad to see the final chapter to such a long lasting and successful venture come to a close. ‘Progress’ as they say.
My first car was a ‘XA’ series 1973 Falcon 500 sedan, bought back in 2004 when I was 17. I loved it, and it would always receive admiration from others everywhere I drove it. The XA series was significant in that it was the first Falcon designed specifically for the Aussie market. It bore a strong resemblance to the Torino of the same era, which was initially considered and then rejected as a suitable replacement for the venerable falcon. I think there was some concern regarding the length of the overhangs on the torino. I’ve got a lot of old magazine articles featuring concepts and clay models of XA prototypes. One in particular recycled the old falcon doors (the doors being the most expensive body components to tool) capped either end with more contemporary bodywork. Very bizarre!
Since then I’ve owned a 1987 XF Falcon GL sedan, and a 2003 BF Falcon XT sedan. All 3 cars had a variation of the 250ci straight six, and they were all wonderful cars to drive. Perfect cars for highway cruising, and built tough as nails.
I’m happy to share any pics, history, and reviews about old Aussie cars. I’ve got a giant box full of old ‘Wheel’s’ magazines from the late 50’s to mid 70’s. I usually get stuck into them for hours if I get tempted into reading them. lol
I had an XA Fairmont all original with the 250, tombstone seats and those crappy looking flower-petal wheel covers. Enjoyed it until a VG Hardtop caught my eye. Would love to see the concepts and clays you mention.
I’ve been hammering my 02 BA recently. Springvale road in the rush hour!
I do Springvale Road for the beef pho sometimes. That Saturday shopping traffic is an f-bomb.
princes highway to donvale. the fast bits.
I can’t get enough of these old manufacturing films. I’m always amazed at how intricate the machinery is: casting, finishing, stamping…someone had to design and build all that!
+1 Hope CC will run more
Love watching those industrial processes but Yow! The guy operating the casting ladle had bare hands and just glasses!
Molten iron is scary as can be, these days you’d be wearing a firesuit and hood in case there was a splash.
She’ll be right mate
Enjoyed the film!
I always hear that so many cars fail in Australia as they are not up for the conditions. But, it appears that by 1960 there were some pretty typical city and suburban conditions that you’d find in the U.S. And, I’m not aware salt / snow / winter grime conditions are common in Australia.
Do some cars enjoy a relatively soft life on good roads, garaged conditions, etc?
In 1960 there were heaps more unpaved roads than there are now. Also the highways between the capitals were single lane and rather potholed in a lot of places. The XK Falcons that were sold in capital cites and stayed there would have been fine. The ones that were sold in the country to farmers etc were the ones that caused Ford all the headaches. These days you would really have to go out of your way to find a road that would that would damage a new car.
Oz roads are similar to North American standards now but were pretty bad back in the day. In Queensland in the late 70s even the main coastal highway was atrocious, serious potholes and there were sections where you’d have to drop a wheel onto the dirt shoulder when a truck passed the other way.
A road trip to the Outback was a national pastime and people expected their cars to be able to handle the nasty conditions out there. It was the 1980s before the national highway circling the continent was completely paved.
As it happens, I’ve just picked up another Peter Whitchurch film, this one covering the build of a Ford quadricycle replica in 1963 – will be uploaded to my YouTube channel just as soon as the telecine transfer is done…