Ford Fairlane
.gif){kind=link}
The Ford Fairlane was an automobile model sold between 1955 and 1969 by the Ford Motor Company in North America. The name was taken from Henry Ford's estate, Fair Lane, near Dearborn, Michigan. Over time, the name referred to a number of different cars in different classes; the Fairlane was a full-size car during the 1950s but became a mid-size car in the 1960s.
The Fairlane lives on to this day in Australia, manufactured by Ford Motor Company as a large luxury sedan. The Australian models began with the ZA line in 1967, based on a long-wheelbase version of the domestically produced Ford Falcon. A more upmarket version of the Australian Fairlane is called the Ford LTD.
1950s full-size car
For 1955, the Fairlane name replaced the Crestline as Ford's premier full-size offering. Overshadowed then and especially now by the contemporary Chevrolet Bel Air, the Fairlane was nevertheless successful and considered quite desirable and stylish. Six different body styles were offered, including the Crown Victoria Skyliner with a tinted, transparent plastic roof, the regular Crown Victoria hardtop coupe with lots of stainless steel trim, a convertible Skyliner, Victoria coupe, and traditional sedans. All featured the trademark stainless-steel "Fairlane stripe" on the side. Power options were a 223 in³ (3.7 L) straight-6 engine and a 272 in³ (4.5 L) V8.
1956 saw few changes; a 4-door Victoria hardtop was introduced, and two new, more powerful V8 options, of 292 in³ (4.8 L) and 312 in³ (5.1 L), the latter available up to 225 brake horsepower (168 kW).
For 1957, a new look gave a longer, wider, lower and sleeker look with low tailfins. A new top trim level was added, the Fairlane 500. For the first time, the lower-level Custom line had a shorter wheelbase than the Fairlane. Engines were largely the same as the year before. The big news for '57 was the introduction of the Fairlane 500 Skyliner power retractable hardtop, whose solid top hinged and folded down into the trunk space at the touch of a button. Unfortunately, it attracted more attention than sales; the option was expensive, somewhat unreliable, and took up almost all the trunk space when retracted. Even so, it required the roof to be made shorter than the other Fairlanes, and the trunk to be larger.
Another facelift for 1958 saw fashionable quad headlights, a grille that matched the '58 Thunderbird, and other styling changes. New big-block V8s of 332 and 352 in³ (5.4) and (5.8 L) replaced the previous largest V8s, and a better 3-speed automatic transmission was also available.
1959 saw a new top-level full-size model introduced, the Ford Galaxie. Lower-level models still bore the Fairlane name. Oddly, the Fairlane 500 Skyliner retractable and Sunliner convertible were officially part of the Galaxie line.
1960s mid-size car
The Ford Fairlane was reintroduced in 1962 to contest the intermediate class, being eight inches longer than the compact Falcon and nearly one foot shorter than the full-size Galaxie. The standard model was a two-door hardtop. The 1962s had a 221 in³ V8, with an optional 260 in³ Challenger V8. The 500 Sports Coupe débuted mid-year and featured bucket seats and a mini console. The 260 was bored out to 289 in³ for 1963.
As the muscle car market took shape, Ford introduced a Fairlane for drag strip racing for 1964, featuring a 427 in³ V8, fiberglass fenders and other lightweight items. The special model, of which 100 were made, delivered 500 bhp and was colloquially known as the Thunderbolt, after a drag racing car.
GT and GTA packages were introduced for 1966, as well as a convertible to join the two-door hardtop. The GT featured a 390 in³ V8 as standard, while the GTA had a SportShift Cruise-o-Matic automatic transmission. The base 390 in³ engine, meanwhile, developed 335 bhp and had a four-barrel carburetor. In c. 60 Fairlanes with a Special Handling package, Ford installed a detuned 427 in³ unit, rated at 410 bhp rather than the 425 of the NASCAR cars.
Minor trim changes were introduced for 1967 as the Fairlane was mildly facelifted. The 289 in³ small-block became standard, with the 390 in³ optional (with either two- or four-barrel carburetor, at 275 and 320 bhp respectively). The 427s were still available, either with a single four-barrel carburetor or dual quad carbs, developing 410 and 425 bhp respectively.
This was the same year that Ford Australia took its compact (mid-sized in Australian terms) Falcon and stretched its wheelbase, giving it the Fairlane name.
A full redesign took place in 1968. The wheelbase remained at 116 in but it grew in other dimensions. A fastback Sportsroof model was introduced, as well as a more powerful Torino series. The GTs were part of the Torino series, with a 302 in³ as standard, with optional engines being the 390 in³ and 427 in³ V8s. The latter was replaced by the Cobra Jet 428, developing 335 bhp. There was even a Super Cobra Jet.
The Torino Cobra GT was introduced in 1969. Basic models featured the 302 in³ V8 and three-speed manual transmission as standard, but bucket seats—which had been standard—became optional. The ’69s tried to capture the spirit of the lightweight ’64s, as a basic car with a lot of power. Options included the 390 in³ and two 428 in³ V8s. The Cobras, meanwhile, had a standard 428 in³ V8 with 335 bhp, and options included bucket seats, hood scoop, clock, tachometer, power disc brakes and 4·30-to-1 gearing.
An even more powerful version, the Torino Talledega, was created to compete on the NASCAR Grand National speedways. Only 754 were built. Like the Plymouth Superbird, the Sportsroof-based Talledega got a sloped nose and flush grille. The 428 in³ V8 was standard, but mated to a C-6 Cruise-o-Matic automatic transmission.
In Bunkie Knudsen's era, the Fairlane grew again in 1970, now with a 117 in³ wheelbase. The largest engine was now a 429 in³ with four-barrel carburetor and 360 bhp, on the Torino Cobra. Different heads were optional and gave the Cobra 370 bhp and higher compression. Other options included the Cobra Jet Ram Air 429, though Ford quoted the same horsepower output, and the Drag Pack rated at 375 bhp. However, the ’70s were slower than the ’69s, and race teams were forced to run the older models.
Falcons appeared in 1970 as a low-spec version of the Fairlane, making them the first intermediate-sized Falcons.
As the muscle-car era drew to a close, the 1971 Fairlane engines were downgraded. Engines now began with a 250 in³ six, with 302 in³, 350 in³ and 429 in³ V8 options. However, the Boss 429, the most powerful (375 bhp) engine, was no longer available. It was the last year of the Cobra and the convertibles.
The 1972s, the last of the line, placed emphasis on luxury rather than power. After this, the Fairlane name was used only on luxury, long-wheelbase versions of the Australian Ford Falcon.
Australian Fairlanes
Ford Australia introduced the Fairlane (ZA series) in 1967 as its most luxurious domestically built model. The Australian Fairlane was not a muscle car, but instead a luxury, long-wheelbase version of its mainstream Falcon. There were limited imports of the American Ford Galaxie 500 as the absolute top of the range.
Fairlanes had in fact been sold in Australia since 1960 as the company's top model line there. Initially, the 500 sedan was offered, but this was joined in September by the Ranch Wagon. These featured a 332 in³ unit.
From April 1962, a 221 in³ engine was offered instead. The Ranch Wagon was deleted at the end of 1963, while there were two sedans for 1964, with either a 260 in³ or a 289 in³ unit. The ’64s were the last imported Fairlanes.
The ZA series, from March 1967, was equipped with either a 200 in³ or 289 in³. The smaller engine was available as a manual or automatic, but the larger one was only an automatic.
Annual model changes to the ZB in March 1968 saw the 289 in³ grow to 302 in³, the top model being the Fairlane 500 with the larger engine.
The facelifted ZCs of 1969 (from July) had the Fairlane Custom as the base model, with either a 221 in³ or 302 in³ engine. The range-topping 500 model featured either a 302 in³ or 351 in³ V8. Interestingly, the ZCs featured stacked headlamps, which had been a feature of Fords in the early 1960s.
The ZDs were released in November 1970 for the 1971 model year. The base engine became a 250 in³ unit, while the 302 and 351 remained, the latter found only in the Fairlane 500. Externally, there were new tail lights.
An all-new, 100 per cent Australian-designed Fairlane was launched in April 1972, with swoopier bodywork, but there were criticisms that it looked too much like a four-headlamp version of the basic Falcon. The ZF Fairlanes were joined by an even more upscale LTD, with hidden headlamps and vinyl roof. Model names remained the same (Custom and 500), as did the engine choices, as the previous model year. The 1973 ZF also saw the last manual transmission; afterwards, all Fairlanes would be automatics.
November 1973 saw the next series of changes, to the ZG series. The changes were mainly cosmetic, with a four horizontal bar grille and revised tail lights.
An anniversary model was released in 1975 with the 302 in³, but otherwise the range stayed the same as the ’74s.
The ZH addressed earlier complaints about the Fairlane being too close to the Falcon in May 1976. The designers retained the same central section but put on lengthened front and rear ends, giving the car more bulk and a luxury impression. The range-topping LTD went further upmarket with a fancy, Rolls-Royce-inspired grille. Another sign of the upmarket move was the 500 becoming the basic trim (the Custom was deleted), and the Fairlane Marquis being the upscale version. ZH also moved to the use of the metric system to denote the engine sizes: the basic engine was the 4·9 L, with a 5·8 L option.
Ford would wait until May 1979 before updating the Fairlane to the ZJ series. This model was a leap ahead into the new decade, with squared-off lines and a six-light bodyshell, clearly distinguished from the new Falcon of that year. The trim levels were deleted: there was now only a single Fairlane, with 4·9 L or 5·8 L V8 engine choices. In October, recognizing the fuel crisis, Ford introduced a Fairlane with a 4·1 L inline six from the Falcon.
There were some minor changes for 1980, but the cars were still the ZJ series.
The ZK of 1982 saw the deletion of the 5·8 L V8, which was the first sign the company would no longer offer bent-eights in the local line-up.
The following year, the 4·9 L V8 was deleted, although Ford introduced a fuel-injected version of the six to compensate for its market-place absence. The revised ZLs of 1985 (launched October 1984) kept the two six-cylinder engine options. It was only at the end of 1986 that the carburettor version of the Fairlane was deleted.
June 1988 saw the next major revision: the Fairlane's straight edges gave way to gentle curves.