The Ford Zephyr was an executive car manufactured by Ford of Britain from 1950 until 1972. With its luxury variants, the Ford Zodiac and Ford Executive, it was the largest passenger car in the British Ford range from 1950 until the Consul and Granada replaced the line in 1972.
Ford Zephyr at a glance
| Maker | Ford of Britain, Dagenham |
|---|---|
| Production | 1950–1972 |
| Shown | Earls Court Motor Show, 1950 |
| First production | Consul, 1 January 1951 |
| Significant for | first mass-produced British cars with MacPherson struts |
| Marks | Mark I to 1956, Mark II 1956–1962, Mark III from 1962 |
| Mark II nickname | the Three Graces, with the Consul and Zodiac |
| Luxury versions | Zodiac and Ford Executive |
| Replaced by | Consul and Granada |
This page is based on English Wikipedia only.
History of the Ford Zephyr
MacPherson struts and the Three Graces
The Mark I Ford Consul and Zephyr models were first displayed at the Earls Court Motor Show in 1950, and they were the first mass-produced British cars to use MacPherson strut independent front suspension, a system widely used today. Production began with the Consul on 1 January 1951 and the Mark I ran until 1956. From April 1956 the Mark II Consul, Zephyr and Zodiac went on sale and were known as the Three Graces. That range was popular and finished its run in 1962, when from April the Mark III Zephyr 4, Zephyr 6 and Zodiac arrived.
A stronger third generation
With the Mark III the Consul name was dropped and the car’s place in the Ford UK range was filled by the first four-cylinder Ford Zephyr. While the Mark II Zephyr and Zodiac shared the same body, with the Consul having a shorter front end and bulkhead, the new Zodiac and Zephyrs of 1962 shared few body panels. With the Mark III Ford finally sorted out the problems that had beset earlier cars, with Mark I axles and Mark II gearboxes particular weaknesses, and the Mark III proved popular and the most durable of the range, selling at a rate equal to or better than the Mark II in Britain and overseas.
The end of an era
The Zephyr was the last car to be independently designed by Ford of Britain: closer integration with Ford-Werke of Cologne had already started with the Transit and the Escort, and its replacement, the Consul and Granada, would be a genuine pan-European effort. Although the Zephyr never went into American production, a very limited number were imported into the United States. The Zephyr name had first been used in 1936 on the Lincoln Zephyr, a smaller companion to the full-sized Lincoln, and it returned later on the Mercury Zephyr and, in 2006, on a new Lincoln Zephyr that became the MKZ the following year.
Design and features
- MacPherson struts: the first mass-produced British cars to use them.
- Three Graces: the Mark II Consul, Zephyr and Zodiac of 1956.
- Zodiac and Executive: the luxury versions of the range.
- Last independent Ford of Britain: the end of purely British design.
Ford Zephyr versions
- Zephyr Mark I (1950–1956): the first generation.
- Zephyr Mark II (1956–1962): one of the Three Graces.
- Zephyr 4 and Zephyr 6 (1962): the four- and six-cylinder Mark III cars.
- Zodiac: the luxury version of the range.
- Ford Executive: the final luxury variant.
The Zephyr was the six-cylinder brother of the Consul and was replaced by the Granada. More Ford vehicles are in the Ford collection.
Sources
- Ford Zephyr, English Wikipedia: generations, suspension, name history
