The Ford Falcon Turns 55

In 1959, the first North American Ford Falcon is launched. It was intended as a compact car, and was available in a wide variety of body styles: coupe, sedan, station wagon, shooting brake and even as a pick-up!

The Falcon was an immediate success: in the first year, Ford sold 500,000 of them.

Canada also had its own version of the Falcon, the Mercury Frontenac.

In 1964, the Falcon got sharper edges in an effort to boost sales. However, another Ford product released the same year greatly reduced its appeal...

The last American Falcon was unveiled in 1966, and it will stay the same until its demise in 1970.

But the Australians were not ready to abandon the Falcon. Since 1962, they started modifying the car for their market with bigger brakes and sturdier suspension

In 1964, the first Aussie-designed Falcon rolls out of the factory. It features beefier shocks, bigger headlights and a more robust steering box.

In 1965, sales were less than stellar, since the Falcon had somewhat of a reputation for being unreliable. To prove their car was capable of handling the Australian Outback, Ford took cars off the production line and made them run non-stop for 70 000 miles !

The First Falcon GT came out in 1967. It was equipped with the same 289 ci V8 engine as the American Mustang.

In 1972, the Falcon enters its third iteration. It is radically different from the one that was canceled in the US.

1978 : The Falcon Cobra is launched. It was packing a 305 ci powerplant, and only 400 were produced.

The fourth generation is launched in 1979. It was a lot more angular than its predecessor.

1979 also introduced the world to the Falcon when Mel Gibson drove one in Mad Max.

To prove that this Falcon was impossible to steal, Ford invited four professional thief to try and get away with it. They abandoned after four days.

For the sixth generation, Ford actually thought about using the FWS chassis of the 1998 Taurus. Thankfully, they decided to remain RWD.

In 2002, The Falcon could be optioned with a 4 litre turbocharged inline six producing 320 horsepower.

The very last generation of the Falcon was unveiled in 2008.

The news came in 2013: Ford would discontinue the Falcon in 2016. After 56 year, the Australian icon will be put to rest.

To commemorate the last Falcon to get out of an Australian factory, Ford's performance division (FPV) will launch the FPV 351 GT F. It will pack 470 horsepower out of a supercharged 5 litre V8.