Here is the latest instalment of the Ford Fairlane Auto History Series - the ZH. My all time favourite Fairlane. Which is your favourite Fairlane? Please be sure to give the episode a Like 👍 and Subscribe as it really helps me bring you more old car history. Thanks for watching. 👍
gday Mark,,,, a while ago i left a comment suggesting you to do a series on the fairlane/fairmonts of the later 70's ..... i don't know whether you saw that comment or not but the videos lately on those cars have been awesome... grew up in a 78 model ZH marquis that was british racing green with the black vinyl top, light tints, 18" chrome wheels and slightly lowered. Cheers.
@ Thanks very much. I have done all of the Falcons (which included Fairmonts) and now working through Fairlane (ZA to ZH completed). Once I have done Fairlane I will do an LTD series and also Landau. 👍
ZK V8, ZD V8, NC V8 in that order. I had an XE for five years so I'm partial to that era of Ford's. The ZH is badass though. Drive one past a school at home time, the kids would notice it!
For the doubters of the old fashioned leaf springs...Falcons beat the best of the Euros on the world rally stage in 1968...Frank Gardner won the 1967 European touring car championship in a Falcon ..again beating the Euros at their own game..And numerous Bathurst victories on one of the toughest road courses in the world...need i go on..History speaks for itself ! great video Mark..Cheers👍
Out of all the 70s fairlanes, I like the tail lights on the ZH, even more so than the LTD, and the popular full width ZF/ZG tail light treatment. Dunno why, it’s just something that has stood out to me since I was a kid. The ZH is a very cohesive design, where the rear compliments the front, and both ends have prestige. Unlike a lot of other cars that look like 2 different committees worked on each end, in secret…..
These cars are so interesting to American eyes who've never seen one in the flesh. I particularly love how an initial American original style was evolved and morphed into something quite different, and successful. A few of the Brazilian Fords are similar in concept. Your videos are quite valuable and fascinating!
They were ( and still are ) a terrific looking car I remember my godfathers ZH back in the very early 80s. White with dark vinyl roof. He used to say he'd get sunburn on his thighs when driving on long distance trips because of the slanted screen 😂😂😂
I sure liked my ZH 351, also mine had a 9"Traction Lock diff. It was great for towing my 20 ft caravan. I later had Ford F100 springs installed and it handled amazing.
Loved this model, it was so different to what went before (& what came after) so it's a bit of an outlier in terms of style for Ford. A favourite of farmers, rural folk & others who did long distances on indifferent country roads, the Fairlane just ate the miles up with ease & comfort.
I've always liked the ZH design. It really differentiated itself from the Falcon, Fairmont and even the more upmarket LTD. As a kid, I remember one of our neighbours had a Marquis model. Sweet looking thing and those of us who grew up watching the early seasons of Hawaii Five-O (I saw the reruns) were quite familiar with the front end design.
I bought a 1977 ZH Fairlane 500 in 1991, it was a one owner car in bright yellow and black vinyl roof. She had black cord upholstery and five factory mag wheels, also had NO air con because the old man that ordered it new didn't like that, But he did order a sunroof ! AND, a 36 gallon fuel tank. I remember it used to be reluctant to crank the 302 over due to the early cars anti pollution gear. But, what a soft wallowy ride we enjoyed from this beauty. Only sold it because a station wagon is more practicle with our young family and dog !
@@jamesfrench7299 . A few months ago I was getting some fuel, and the bloke at the next pump with a Landcruiser, pressed the presets to put $200 worth in...imagine thinking...I don't think I'll fill up today, I'll just put $200 worth in! Wow, times have changed. I was very happy to fill the tank on my Subaru Impreza for about $60. Still, doesn't stop me wanting a classic ZH Fairlane though...some day. Cheers!
@@robertjefferies8739 giving away your age there. I at least existed when they were new on the lot. I actually was born during the XA model run. March of 73 👍.
@robertjefferies8739 Hi , from another former factory employee , June 1976 , worked in ' End of Line Rectification ' . It ruined my one-eyed belief of FORD's superiority , left after less than 12 months totally disillusioned.
My uncle had a 1977 ZH, in the popular light green colour with the 351 and a sunroof operated with a crank handle. It was an ex Ford executive driven vehicle. It made light work of his regular trips to the TAB and helping us move house, pulling a very full trailer.
G'day Mark. Another awesome video. I've heard of the Ford ZH Fairlane. Looking at the front of the car, it reminds me of our 1968 Mercury Marquis sold here in the USA. 🙂
My family had one of those when I was a kid in the early 90s. It was only a 500, but it had a 351, hotwire mags and heaps of mumbo. But the rust. My God, the rust. I'll never forget when Dad lifted the rear off the ground to rotate the tyres, and then we couldn't open the back doors. She was a write-off after that.
I really enjoy all your videos and exceptional knowledge. It is such a pity that we no longer have a local car industry where we could design, engineer and build cars for our unique country. Skills lost.
@@chriselias307 Thank you. I totally agree re the loss of our car industry never should have happened. When I hear these ads for Let’s Make in Australia it is all too little too late. 🤔👍
@@markbehr88 Party politics aside, it's ironic that the present Labor government is the one now spruiking Australian-made, given that the destruction of the industry was started in 1984 by the Hawke Labor government with the infamous 'Button Car Plan' of Senator John Button, then-Minister for Industry, Technology and Commerce. Button, a former member of the Italian Communist Party, also managed to destroy Australia's footwear and clothing industries. China must have loved that!
Absolutely agree, Ford Australia did more than just manufacture cars and trucks and GM-H as well, all one has to do is delve into a bit of history and they would see that our Australian car manufacturers played a massive role during the Second World War for instance in designing and building machinery as diverse as military equipment such as tanks, Aircraft components, aircraft engines even Ford in Geelong was in the ship building industry! They all contributed in a large way for our Australian war effort, I often think how Australia could be a lame duck in the future as with next to zero of any heavy manufacturing and thanks to our piss poor governments they have kept their heads in the sand and it seems they don’t want to acknowledge any future conflicts in our unstable world, especially may I add with China, as we would really be up S… Creek in a barbed wire canoe with all of our highly trained tradesmen etc being flushed away as we are now a nation of imports! A damn shame indeed!
Great stuff Mark I had 2 ZH Fairlanes loved them still have 2 XCs and I have a BF fairlane as my daily driver and I think it is my favourite fairlane even over the 75th anniversary I owned but it's still in the family with my son in-law Great series mate thanks very much 👍 Cheers Blue
Thanks heaps Mark, this is the Fairlane episode I was hanging out for. My experience with the ZH you might find interesting. Back in the eighties I traded my 360 VK Valiant Regal on a ZH Fairlane 500. The mistake I made there was buying a ZH with a 302 instead of a 351 so obviously the Fairlane felt gutless compared to the Valiant, but the suspension was incredible. A very comfortable ride and nice going through roundabouts with hardly any body roll. The suspension, steering and brakes all seemed to work together unlike the Valiant which was harsh in ride on rough stuff and very prone to oversteer if not treated with respect. A friend of ours at the time bought a HX Statesman Deville so we others driving Ford's rocked up to poke fun at him thinking he had an inferior car. On approach to it I remember thinking that it was quite good looking and then I started noticing how deep the paint was and the great panel fit with even gaps. Inside the dash was so much more attractive and better presented than my ZH and with fantastic vision through those nice slim pillars. We got to drive it, very soft ride and the 5 litre engine had enough poke to suit the car but if you tried to push it above its cornering limits it pretty soon let you know. This was the HX remember. I drove off convincing myself that my Fairlane was a better car and the sales figures backed me up on that right? Now I think back on that and I reckon that overall the Statesman was a better car. My ZH? I sold it privately for a modest profit and bought another Valiant. Thanks for the video again mate.
Thanks. Glad you liked it. The 351 would certainly have performed better but quite a bit thirstier. Similar to your 360, maybe a little better as they were big drinkers. The Statesman was nice enough but the styling of the Fairlane was all over it imo. 👍
Very very interesting. Which felt more - Modern Upmarket Prestigious Finely finished Assembly Comfort Performance Handling Chrysler/Holden Statesman/Ford Fairlane ZH
Thank you Mark excellent, informative report as usual. It's my favourite as well. I considered buying one, but it was a bit big and beyond my financial reach anyway at that time. One of my neighbours had a ZH 500 which was never garaged and parked on the nature strip in front of his house. It was a beautifully styled impressive vehicle. Interesting to see the AU Fairlane which I think looked better than the Falcon. I believe the AU (falcon) was a reliable vehicle with the well optioned Ghia seen as the model to get now.
Great ep! My first ride in a car was in my old mans ZH when I was brought home from the hospital after being born. Got a lot of memories of that car when I was a kid. It took us to school, camping and holidays! Pretty sure that would of done about 400000km+ in its life to. The ZH was retired in 2001-02 and it is still sitting in the shed waiting to be restored but shes pretty rusty.
Thanks very much. Wow. With that history, you HAVE to restore it. When I found my Dad’s 72 Galaxie LTD, I would have bought it regardless of condition (luckily it was pretty good) as these cars are irreplaceable. 👍
The ZG was awesome, but the ZH lifted the bar. My late father purchased a new Marquies, 5.8 in bronze gold, double awesome car. They are worth a lot of money these days for a good one.
We had a desert gold sportsman 4.9l. My favourite childhood car! Such luxury! Our interior seats had a sort of corduroy finish. So much better than our previous 4.2l Holden premiere wagon. We could see out better. It was quiet and sooo much space!
Hi Mark, hope your well, nice big American looking Australian car, looks like the car you could drive long distance with no effort. I like the second styling with the rear black panel between the tail lights and the Ford roundel. The roundel badge were on UK Fords from 1976 as Ford UK brought out the MK4 Cortina and the new FWD Fiesta as these were fitted with the roundel badge and were fitted to the MK3 Capri MK2 Escort and the MK2 Granada ( similar looking Falcon ) in 1977 as the F O R D ended. Nice to see you still have your Fairlane, hope you still enjoy it. As always a great video Take care
@@shaun30-3-mg9zs I never knew the black tail light treatment was the update model until Mark noted it. I thought it must have been a styling thing for the Marquis or sportsman packages, as they were the ones I remember seeing the black treatment on as a school kid. I actually prefer the silver, particularly how it highlights the number plate recess.
Ford Australia removed 4 cylinder engines from Cortina,s and installed 4.1 litre 250 ci Six cylinders and in some cases 4 speed manual transmissions . They flew , but many got a 5.8 litre V8 dropped in as did Ford Capri,s in Australia, there are many Ford Capri,s driving around with V8s
@ Just to be clear, the four cylinders like the 2 litre were standard. Any V8s (more often 302. My mate had one) were modified and not factory option cars. 👍
Thank you for your great work in doing these videos. I'm sure they are especially interesting to others like me who remember the cars when they were new. I have a lot of catching up to do with your older vids. Cheers😁
As I'm from Germany, this is the only australian car I've seen in reality. Someone imported one of these to Germany in the 80s. Dark blue Marquis, black vinyl roof and black interior, Appliance Striker wheels. Don't know if it was a 4.9 or 5.8? Would be interesting, if it's still alive?
@markbehr88 I remember last time seeing it in the mid nineties, as we moved away from the area. But it looked well cared for. Don't know if ZH Fairlanes were imported to Britain. Maybe a British soldier stationed in Germany brought it and sold it here. It had definitely German plates. Looked great, especially on those chrome Striker wheels with the BF Goodrich tyres.
@@markbehr88 Thought that at the time, because there was a British garrison around 30km away in Germany back in the day. Thanks for your informative Videos. Keep them coming!
Great video again Mark. These were my favourite Fairlane too, even though I'm a one-eyed Holden man. In the trade the mid-model update was known as the 78 update or in the Falcon it was the XC & a 1/2. The ZH was the first (& only ?) time that a Fairlane was released before its Falcon equivalent, because of that, the first 2 months had XB engines with the 302 only having a 2 barrel carb. The 4 barrel Carter Thermoquad was fitted to the ZH motors at XC release (July 76) for ADR27A. I worked on many of these & fitted a/cond to quite a few as well. AFAIK Pre-78 Fairlane 500 had a/cond as an option, but it became standard for the 78 upgrade.
The motoring press kept saying the XB V8's were quicker. Ford insisted the XC ADR27A V8's were quicker. I do know the XC 302 in standard form was pretty woeful, but haven't driven an XB equivalent.
@stuarthaynes1737 That is actually not my car, mine is a standard Fairlane 500 with the Marquis hubcaps. I used this image as it looks just like my car, however, the only readily available image of it was in the driveway under shaded trees - so not good enough to use. I almost bought a Brown Satin P6 years ago. Very nice condition for $5,000. Wish I had of pulled the trigger. My Fairlane is in lovely condition with 100,000 kms. 👍
@markbehr88 Isn't it always the way ? Lol You'll have to share a photo of it Mark. I'd love to see it out of the shade . What I loved about them so much was the American Styling . Sure , I mean the Statesman was nice and a very attractive looking car from the HQ to the HZ in the Caprice ofcause but the Fairlane and the LTD just had that edge on the Statesman , in refinement and that interior space, the LTD left holden for dead with that rear leg room. You know , I cabr help but wonder how different things would have been if Holden would have launched the WB style Statesman in 1975 or even 77 instead 82 . As you'd know , they did have that design on paper, but went with the shape they released . I bought my P6 in 1982 from my now ex mother in-law for $7500 with only 67,000 kms on it as it was getting to big for her . I felt like a king driving it . Everywhere you'd go , people would look . I had a permanent grin on my face. I'll find a pic of it and share it with you . She was a glamor complete with white wall tyres . I sold her in 1988 the StGeorge Motor Auctions that I worked for . Fury Ford bought her for $12,000 and put $16900 on her She was only $17650 in 1978 when bought new . P.S sorry for the long reply .
Hello Mark Behr, long time since I saw you at the dealership in Bathurst , so it’s great to see you still passionate about cars. I was a rep calling on the dealership with service products and dealership warranty support products, at that time. Cheers
@@robertjohnston3658 Very cool Robert. Yes, still mad about cars. That hasn’t changed. I hope you’re well? I remember Bill Dando at Bathurst and later, Peter Terry (went to their new showroom opening). A long time ago now. 🤔👍
@ That’s a shame. He was a great guy. The bulk deals I used to do with him when he was at Rockdale. Calibras, Novas, Apollos. All the hard to shift stuff. Full page ads, special price. He was a good retailer. 👍
Back in 1977 I used to drive a ZH Marquis, just like the one @ 9:16, well it wasn't mine as I was a 4th Apprentice Mechanic working in a panel shop, I used to drive it to Sorrento (vic) towing a trailer to do building work on the bosses holiday house he was building!
Thanks Mark love the content. Never a fan of this model and in 1977 my brother and I disliked it that much we talked our dad out of buying a Marquis and getting a Fairmont GXL which was awesome.
I remember being a teenager in the seventies travelling to my Uncle' farm in Southern Darling Downs in my sister' boyfriend ZH doing 160 kph on single lane country roads. It just did this easy quiet safe sturdy and stable. No fuss big comfortable Australian Ford luxury V8.. Great cars
@@steveskrobot9496 Well, the title is ZH Fairlane not P6 LTD. If you’ve been following along, I have said I will do a separate series. Also, did you actually watch the episode as the P6 appeared twice in this episode?🤔
@@markbehr88 I did see the P6 pop up for 1 second and that gave me the idea you have plans to feature it seperately. You didnt need to feel sour over my comment. I was not picking on the video. Being an educational video, I thought you may have mentioned the crown jewel when the image popped up. Thats all I was meaning.
So classic of Aussie cars to have an old American style at least five years before, but in this case, it’s ten years! Still it’s a classic tank car and agree it’s a kind of iconic. With just a 302 and all the pollution gear I’d have thought it was slow, but I guess it was a beast, especially compared to the HX Holden’s 202 c.i. Six.
@@markbehr88 I heard dealers offered to illegally disconnect the HX pollution gear as buyers immediately noticed the power plunge. It was ridiculous. Ford at least redesigned the heads to cope and the Chrysler’s hemi sixes just required minimal changes and were least affected by 27a.
@@jamesfrench7299 Yeah, a mate's Dad had an HX Premier. 202 six. A gentle and modest man with taste, but soon enough, the local mechanic just suggested they'd remove the hoses - or block three black hoses. But the big American V8s got smashed too. I heard that 400 c.i. engines were barely making 150HP stock, and in those barge bodies!
Quite a few years back, I was at a car swap meeting in Footscray. An old man was trying to sell his ZH Fairlane, but had no takers. As I was about to leave in my XC Fairmont, he offered the Fairlane to me for only $500. I declined the offer but think about the nice car I missed out on.
@@Low760 Thanks. The ZH actually had great brakes. Having driven many thousands of KM in them they never let me down once. I can’t say that about my AU1 Fairlane brakes, which I would only rate as fair. 👍
A small handful of cars left the factory with bench seat, column auto with a pull out centre armrest. Some had 500 badges some didnt. Funeral services and hire cars got them. Not many but i have seen a dozen.
@@LeopoldoNotarianni-rk9vvThe buckets and column shift was the standard fitment in the 500. The T bar was an option. Split bench was on first release Marquis. I am sure they would have been bench seats as a fleet option. The 500 badges were on the first release but not on the updates. The only exception was I have seen the 500 badge on the boot on some of the updates incl my Sportsman but not on the front guards. 👍
Hi mark.Another great video A neighbour down the road owned a huge farm but lived in town. He had one from new. It was always caked in dirt & mud he drove it hard. He also had it for a long time so l can vouch for the fact they were durable.
I bought a 1977 Marquis in about 1996. I bought it because it was one of the few 6 seater cars that I could afford. Our fourth child was just born and my 1974 Toyota Corona MkII was only a 5 seater and no where near big enough. I liked the look of the Marquis and it did work as a family car. Only real problem was fuel consumption was terrible. It was a 4.9L V8, did not have a lot of power, especially not by modern standards, but it used a lot of fuel. But I have always thought that it was a car that was pleasant to the eye to look at.
@@mikevale3620 who wants that ? What do you need cruise control for ? Do you have trouble keeping your foot on the throttle pedal ? It also doesn't have touch screens, blue tooth, internet, infotainment, GPS navigation and a whole bunch of other superfluous claptrap and that is the whole point.
I had a 78 ZH Fairlane. Dark metallic clue with a light grey vinyl roof. 351 Cleveland and T-bar auto. A very comfortable, very competent vehicle with a massive boot and excellent towing ability. I kept it for 13 years and deeply regret the decision to sell it. If it had one failing, it was the design of the door handles, which would break with monotonous repetition. In every other respect, it was brilliant. Great road presence and a mile-eater without peer. Like I said, I'm so sorry I ever talked myself into parting with it :(
The first photo at the start of this video is of a Mercedes Benz 1418 truck. It was owned by John Arnold. I was an apprentice diesel mechanic at the time and knew John and this truck well. He carried Fords from Broadmeadows to Brisbane once a week.
We had a very late ZH Marquis metallic blue with black vinyl roof. Power front seats in crushed velour with deep cut pile carpeting. It was our first air conditioned car and my father would either have it on full blast or not at all. The 351 could barely breathe with the pollution equipment. We only ever saw 15mpg at best. But a commensurate highway car. A wonderful looking car. I later saw it and it had been horribly mistreated- so sad.
Thank# Mark, my uncle had a blueish Marquis with vinyl roof, a very nice car to ride in. Ford did swing like a pendulum from rounded to square riggers & repeat with the 3rd & 4th gens. _ps: imho you'd have to be a bit of a trainspotter to call the 'upgrade' visually significant _
My uncle had a light blue with black vinyl roof ZH Fairlane 500 with 351 and T bar auto. I definitely remember FORD letting as opposed to the blue oval and I remember him saying that it was a '78, so I'm guessing a late Series 1. It was damn nice! I think I remember that it sat on Jellybean style wheels. I don't remember interior material, but I'm pretty sure it was black. While I may prefer the ZC, the ZH was definitely a high point in styling and has its own imposing presence
Mark does it again 10 out of 10 mate. Love the ZH's. Bet that sportsman was one you wished you held on to very rare bird these days. Tho im sure the current chocolate brown fairlane would ease the pain
Loved our 1979 ZH, did several hundred thousand Ks in it and the only real issue was chewing out front ball joints with monotonous regularity; lots of those kms were towing a 3 tonne tri-axle Horse Float, which it did with ease.
@@markbehr88In 1978 I got my first full time job working for Ford NZ in the Head office in front of the Seaview Plant. NZ was operating under national price controls at the time and every imported vehicle had to be individually priced up based on a formula from landed cost, and submitted to government for approval. That was my job. I remember there were thousands of vehicles imported from Australia every year. I don’t recall exactly how many, but I remember I could do about 20 per hour, and it was a full-time job, with overtime! A lot of 4cylinder Cortinas as we were short of local assembly capacity at the time, but also V8 Falcons (only 6 cylinder assembled in NZ) and body styles not made in NZ - coupes, vans and Fairlanes. I distinctly remember pricing up quite a few coupes, even some Cobras, and many vans including Sundowners. I don’t distinctly remember Fairlanes, as they were not “hero cars” but with NZs rural wealth, I am sure there were quite a few. I wonder if any of those cars mentioned survived……
Hi Mark great video mate. My mum's father had a 76 model zh fairlane same colour as your 1. Growing up in the 80's i remember, it had sheepskin seat covers and the wheels on it were very similar to the general lees wheels. It was a 351 car with jewel exhaust and t bar auto. I love that car and it sounded amazing. Cheers ✌️👌👏🫶😎
@@biv351 a few round my area as a kid had those wheels too. Hurricane is what I think they were called. The volante style wheel on the sportsman lived on for an impressive stretch - my wife’s grandfather bought a new ‘83 ZK sportsman that had them.
Hi mark, sorry for the late reply. Thanks again for your message. I googled the name of the wheels and you are right. Those are the wheels that were on my grandfathers 76 zh fairlane. Cheers 👌✌️👍
@@commodorenut Globe Volante appeared on the Sports Luxury Car in Ford offerings. Eg. Fairlane Sportsman Fairmont S Pack Falcon 20th Anniversary Four Stud Cortina S Pack TE Escort GS Rally Pack Mark II
Hello Mark , excellent presentation on the ZH fairlane. I have been watching all your episodes on all the other car brands that you have put up ,the ZH of the day did stand out compared to previous models. I will be very interested in the episodes when you get to the N series of fairlanes as I have a NL concord (06/98) with just over 130000kms red top 6 cylinder and working air ride rear suspension, a great car to drive. I look forward to the next lot of presentations you have.
My neighbour had one brand new he was a minister his wife was told never drive it when raining he was extremely fussy about his beloved zH Blue with light grey vinyl top He eventually bought his wife a little run about so they Fairlane was definitely driven only on a Sunday I was surprised to see one Friday afternoon The minister came home in a beautiful white zJ Fairlane 5*8 brand new then Less than 6months later I was in extreme shock he traded it in on corona CSX sedan 😓😓 cheers great channel 👍👍✌️✌️🐨🦘
@@stephentaege6255 Thanks. Sound like that Minister lost his marbles at the end or maybe it was the fact the taxpayer was no longer footing the fuel bills? 🤔
Hi Mark another great video , but you forgot to mention in the competition the 1974 - up Toyota Crown, which our family car was , you still see them around in Aussie country towns today , still running and not rusted out.
Thanks. The Fairlane was the top seller, then the Volvo range, then Statesman. I think Crown volume would be much less again. Of the Crowns I like the 71/72 with the fibre optic tail lights best. 👍
@@markbehr88 my uncle in his xb sedan 4.1 auto and my father , had a a little 100 mile a hour race , in the 70s , the XB falcon could not keep up with crown 2600 4 speed , even though the engine stats , show differently. I remember that day, my Uncle could not believe the crown pulling away , being a very proud Ford man
@ Interesting. I drove an early Crown many years ago. It might have been a bit tired as I would describe the acceleration as “ok”. It was an orange car with the fibre optic tail lights. Wish I had of bought it. I put an orange Crown in a Shannons ad a little later. 👍
@@markbehr88 I loved that Shannons ad , thanks Mark for making it happen. But thats interesting was it a 4 speed manual ?? Our family had 3 crowns 2 x 1974 and a 70 models and all manuals, my father was a panel beater /spray painter in Sydney and loved a quality paint and finishes on cars . I learnt how to drive on one of the 74 in the 80s, a 4 speed manual , for its day , it was not slow for a 6 . Every time I go to Japan, I love seeing all the Crowns . I remember seeing a old guy proudly polishing his crown on the side, of the road in Osaka . That 72/73 model you speak of, did have nicer tail lights, I agree , but the full size chrome bumpers and bigger front on the 74 looked good too . Its a Shame Toyota has turned the Crown name plate , into a suv in the USA market.
I used to work in a car wash back in the 90s, man the non power steering versions of this car had the heaviest steering of any car I've ever parked- truly bicep building stuff!
G'day Mark, Another great video I thoroughly enjoyed. In our neighbourhood early 80's Sunshine, in Benjamin st at the time. There was this ZH Marquis in that Silvery Blue colour & those hubcaps with the red crntres looked stunning. What I distinctively remember is was a high end car , look so Americana, had S.A plates on it. I remember the S.A plates nothing I seen before made out of plastic & taking up the whole area between the tail lights. Also the name Marquis, non of the boys knew how to pronounce it something that wasn't taught at Sunshine Primary School back in the day. Great video Cheers Louis Kats 👍
@@markbehr88having a classmate with the name of Marcus, I too can confirm that many of us called it “Marr-quiss” (stirring him up with mispronunciation) instead of “mar-key”
A great car was the ZH and LTD. A lot of people loved em. And the people who had the XC Falcon also put the ZH front end on the car, and some even put the V8 shocker on as well.
@@js-amg I’ve seen several utes and vans with the ZH and P6 fronts on them. Doesn’t really work as well as a statesman front on a Holden commercial, for the level of perceived prestige reasons that Mark noted when comparing the HX,
The American styling cues have always appealed to me (probably because they are a bit different, so slightly more "exotic" than what we are used to seeing everywhere) and the ZH is my favorite Fairlane. My next favorite is another American-ish looking model, the NC, and I have a '93 Sportsman Ghia as a classic, and someday hope to also be able to afford a ZH. In my younger days I had a '73 Rambler (AMC) Matador with the 360ci V8, and its styling (particularly the rear) is kind of similar in some ways to the ZH. Loved the video Mark, and will definitely watch lots of your others too. New subscriber here. Cheers!
There were quite a few AMC models sold in Australian in the 1970s such as the Matador, Javlin and Hornet but I can't remember who sold them , maybe Chrysler Australia.
@@JosephCowen-fz8vj . They were imported and assembled here by AMI (Australian Motor Industries), whom were also importing Toyota in the early '70's when my dad bought his '72 Toyota Corona. Not sure what dealerships they were being sold through though. Cheers!
@phillipevans9414 good to know, I just couldn't remember where they were sold, but there were a few on the roads back in the 1970s , Matador,s with AMC 360 V8s my mate had a Javlin and another friend had a Hornet with a 401 ci V8 in it . I did notice the AMC straight six lived on in the Jeep 4.0 untill not too long ago .
My old man had a gold coloured 302 powered version, with the column shift and bench seat. He loved that car, and kept it for a decade only to trade it in for a a Suzuki swift in 2005.
Thanks Mark, I agree that the ZH was the outstanding model. I could have bought one in Townsville in 1985 for $5500, but didn't. AH WELL. Where did the Siver Monach fit in the ZH series, you could do a whole episode on one of those,
Hi Mark this was great yes they were fantastic cars hope you do one on your walnut glow Fairlane. Also luved the view of your mates VG 770 hope to see that again thanx
They certainly LOOKED to be the biggest Fairlane ever, apparently a later one was actually bigger, according to 'Motoring Box'. Very American looking as you said. For the reasons you mentioned, the two earlier models did look a bit Falconi-sh. Those earlier models suffered from a lot of body flex. I remember when there were still a few around they all had whiffely panels. This model seemed to conquer that problem. You do still see a few of these around too.
They look bigger than they actually are. I was just in a car park next to a bunch of modern SUVs, 4wheel drives and random angry kitchen appliances and my Fairlane looked as small as a 1960s British sports car. A lot of modern cars are like giant monster trucks and their owners don't realise it.
Many things determined the Clevelands performance; exaust system, transmission, state of tune, mods, amount of options, body Style, etc. They may have been modified, had emission gear removed, etc. there's rarely any two the same. Hence the feedback that some found them gutless, and other's didn't.
It would have been good if someone had tested back to back, the stroked Holden V8 in the HSV VS GTS and the VT HSV stroked Holden V8 against the Chevrolet LS 5.7 . Just to see the difference, efficiency, sound, performance and design differences. I suspect these stroked Holden V8's from HSV will become one of the most sort after, even compared to the AWD HSV version of the Monaro and the 7.0 litre HSV. ?
This was interesting. I saw so many American Ford/Mercury/Lincoln parts on this generation. The wheel covers, the exterior mirrors, the seats and more. It was American based indeed. I see it grew in size as well. This model is full sized. I see they got luxury features like the power seats, the power windows, and more. This finally was on the game. I like how you shared the American LTD of the time to the Australian model. I saw the Marquis name as well. I did not know about that. It seems Ford in North America at Mercury was using the same nameplate as Australia at the same time. The instrumentation really looked quite American as well. I see you own one as well. The hood ornament is the same one they used for LTD in the United States during that time. It appears Holden was trying to make its way but had issues. You stated the segment was changing as well. It seems the European cars invaded Australia the same way they did in the United States. The video was good. I liked the footage and the information and content. The effort is appreciated.
I had one in the 90s. A 302 model. I loved it initially but found out it was a rust bucket. The borg warner diff crapped itself, cracking a spider gear, fuel consumption averaged 20L/100km, and being from late 70s, the v8 was strangled by emissions. The 351 was the one to get with the 9 inch. I miss my torana, but not the ZH.
Another great video Mark - thanks! Regards the rear doors, I thought they (most model LTDs/Fairlanes) used the same doors as the comparable Falcons, which is why they always had the extra sheet metal in front of the wheels arches as the doors were never made longer to accommodate the extended wheel bases?
@@lizandian Thanks. The LTD has longer rear doors. For the P6, if you look at the image in the episode, you can see the extra length and also that it has a gradual upsweep, not the kick up like the XC Falcon and Fairlane. 👍
Hello and greetings from the USA ! Interesting video on the Fairlanes. Not much info on these cars ( or Aussie cars in general ) on this part of the globe, so its nice to look at videos on the various cars. Interesting to note that the wheelbase as stated was 115 inches...by contemporary American standards, this would have been considered a mid-size car ( most full-size yank tanks spanned 119-122 inches between the wheels, some even longer). As a side note, maybe you could do a video explaining the alphabetic designations of Australian vehicles ( HG, ZA, FG, etc.) . I am quessing it has something to do with registration purposes, but don't really know. Anyways, thanks for an interesting video. Best, DW.
Thanks. The model designations are not related to registration, more so the manufacturer does that to identify model series (the designations are up to them). Generally a platform will have a prefix like (Falcon X ) and then the various model updates (not yearly updates like in the USA) will follow - XK, XL etc) and when a new platform comes in like XA they may restart (but never repeat the series so you won’t have two completely different XA models over time for example). When a major new platform arrives it normally gets a new prefix like AU or FG. If you look at the Falcon or Commodore playlist you will get some idea. 👍
Yes because the name of Australian cars from the big 3 rarely changed like Falcon from 1960 to 2017 there is always a two letter designation Falcon went 1960 XH,XK , XM,XP, 1966 XR,XW,XY 1973 XA,XB,XC 1979 XD,XE, XF 1988 EA,EB,ED,EF,EL 1999 AU 2002 BA, BF 2008 FG, FGX built up to 2018. Same with GM Holden and Chrysler Australia. Holden used H for many years and Chrysler/Valiant/Dodge used V prefex . It just tells you the year model around about.
@@JosephCowen-fz8vj Thanks for explaining the designations to me. A shame the manufacturing has gone away.. Progress, I guess ! You made some pretty cool machines.
@ I drove it after being up all night at a leadership weekend, and then a long day of sessions….between Ballarat and Deer Park, before they smoothed it all out.
@@markbehr88 Mark the colour is brown satin. I too had a an update zh fairlane colour was rare fireglow red with white vinyl roof and the 5.8 351 with cream interior by the way how is eb project going cheers.
Hey Mark, just something constructive, can we call the update badge what it is known as - a blue oval, instead of a roundel? Roundel conjures up the BMW propeller logo, and there's no place for them in a luxury Ford video 😄
With ZH boot fins Holden had fit them on HV Kingswood but drop fins n went with HJ model as HV model never went into production. Like Fairlane/Marquis dash then sporty Fairmont, I reckon pastel colours like mint green brings luxury to Fairlane especially Marquis but i do like brown over the other 3 colours in Sportsman. I do wonder if the Lincoln name was ever considered? Like most brands the last model range brings best in design n features like ZH.
Here is the latest instalment of the Ford Fairlane Auto History Series - the ZH. My all time favourite Fairlane. Which is your favourite Fairlane? Please be sure to give the episode a Like 👍 and Subscribe as it really helps me bring you more old car history. Thanks for watching. 👍
gday Mark,,,, a while ago i left a comment suggesting you to do a series on the fairlane/fairmonts of the later 70's ..... i don't know whether you saw that comment or not but the videos lately on those cars have been awesome... grew up in a 78 model ZH marquis that was british racing green with the black vinyl top, light tints, 18" chrome wheels and slightly lowered. Cheers.
@ Thanks very much. I have done all of the Falcons (which included Fairmonts) and now working through Fairlane (ZA to ZH completed). Once I have done Fairlane I will do an LTD series and also Landau. 👍
ZK V8, ZD V8, NC V8 in that order.
I had an XE for five years so I'm partial to that era of Ford's.
The ZH is badass though. Drive one past a school at home time, the kids would notice it!
@ I have a ZK 302. Love it. 👍
For the doubters of the old fashioned leaf springs...Falcons beat the best of the Euros on the world rally stage in 1968...Frank Gardner won the 1967 European touring car championship in a Falcon ..again beating the Euros at their own game..And numerous Bathurst victories on one of the toughest road courses in the world...need i go on..History speaks for itself ! great video Mark..Cheers👍
I have to agree ,this was my favourite Aussie Fairlane as well..
@@ramonmartin4908 You have excellent taste! 😀👍
I agree the ZH is one of the best looking fords ever
@@7272jasons 👍👍
It's a great day when there is another Mark Behr Video launched!
@@AloisKunzz Thank you. Not sure my wife agrees! 😀👍
Especially the V8 snort in the intro followed by Mark cuing up to speak lol😅
@ 😀👍
Out of all the 70s fairlanes, I like the tail lights on the ZH, even more so than the LTD, and the popular full width ZF/ZG tail light treatment. Dunno why, it’s just something that has stood out to me since I was a kid. The ZH is a very cohesive design, where the rear compliments the front, and both ends have prestige. Unlike a lot of other cars that look like 2 different committees worked on each end, in secret…..
@@commodorenut I agree. What a terrific looking car. 👍
The ZH taillights have a personality to them.
@@jamesfrench7299 nailed it 👍
I like the fairlane tail lights but absolutely not as much as the LTD
@ Fair enough. I like both too. 👍
When I was a kid living in a country town, these were the aspirational cars for farmers. They still look fantastic.
For sure. I agree with you. 👍
These cars are so interesting to American eyes who've never seen one in the flesh. I particularly love how an initial American original style was evolved and morphed into something quite different, and successful. A few of the Brazilian Fords are similar in concept. Your videos are quite valuable and fascinating!
@@machpodfan Thanks very much. Glad you like them. The Brazilian Fords are interesting for sure. 👍
They were ( and still are ) a terrific looking car
I remember my godfathers ZH back in the very early 80s. White with dark vinyl roof. He used to say he'd get sunburn on his thighs when driving on long distance trips because of the slanted screen 😂😂😂
@@chriss1905 Very cool. Not the sunburn though. 👍
I sure liked my ZH 351, also mine had a 9"Traction Lock diff. It was great for towing my 20 ft caravan. I later had Ford F100 springs installed and it handled amazing.
@@chrispulham4779 Excellent 👍
Loved this model, it was so different to what went before (& what came after) so it's a bit of an outlier in terms of style for Ford. A favourite of farmers, rural folk & others who did long distances on indifferent country roads, the Fairlane just ate the miles up with ease & comfort.
@@sentimentalbloke185 Well said. 👍
I've always liked the ZH design. It really differentiated itself from the Falcon, Fairmont and even the more upmarket LTD. As a kid, I remember one of our neighbours had a Marquis model. Sweet looking thing and those of us who grew up watching the early seasons of Hawaii Five-O (I saw the reruns) were quite familiar with the front end design.
@@ssadelaidian3811 Agree. Great show too Hawaii Five O. 👍
Exactly
Thank you, Mark. Beautiful cars.
@@michaelguerin56 Cheers. I agree. 👍
I bought a 1977 ZH Fairlane 500 in 1991, it was a one owner car in bright yellow and black vinyl roof. She had black cord upholstery and five factory mag wheels, also had NO air con because the old man that ordered it new didn't like that, But he did order a sunroof ! AND, a 36 gallon fuel tank. I remember it used to be reluctant to crank the 302 over due to the early cars anti pollution gear. But, what a soft wallowy ride we enjoyed from this beauty. Only sold it because a station wagon is more practicle with our young family and dog !
@@billjackson4703 Wow that sounds like a great car and the first non air car I have heard of. Great colour combo. 👍
As the 68' Mercury is among my favourite cars ever,this really appeals to me a real beauty.
@@teebird94 Very cool. Glad you liked it. 👍
Excellent Mark. 127ltr tank would have been handy with the 351. I love all of the Fairlanes. One day.......
@@coalfacechris1336 Yes, for sure. 👍
$200 to fill up these days. You can have it.
@@jamesfrench7299 . A few months ago I was getting some fuel, and the bloke at the next pump with a Landcruiser, pressed the presets to put $200 worth in...imagine thinking...I don't think I'll fill up today, I'll just put $200 worth in! Wow, times have changed. I was very happy to fill the tank on my Subaru Impreza for about $60. Still, doesn't stop me wanting a classic ZH Fairlane though...some day. Cheers!
@@jamesfrench7299 I'm happy with my EcoLPi FG mk2 Falcon ute. LPG at 95c.
@@railtrolley if you can find an LPG filling station in your area.
This is also my favourite model as well I worked briefly at Broadmeadows during the building of the XCs
@@robertjefferies8739 That would have been cool. I love the XC Fairmont hardtop. 👍
@@robertjefferies8739 giving away your age there. I at least existed when they were new on the lot.
I actually was born during the XA model run. March of 73 👍.
@robertjefferies8739 Hi , from another former factory employee , June 1976 , worked in ' End of Line Rectification ' . It ruined my one-eyed belief of FORD's superiority , left after less than 12 months totally disillusioned.
I was out with the XL.
My uncle had a 1977 ZH, in the popular light green colour with the 351 and a sunroof operated with a crank handle. It was an ex Ford executive driven vehicle.
It made light work of his regular trips to the TAB and helping us move house, pulling a very full trailer.
Very cool. Great combo. 👍
G'day Mark. Another awesome video. I've heard of the Ford ZH Fairlane. Looking at the front of the car, it reminds me of our 1968 Mercury Marquis sold here in the USA. 🙂
@@jasoncarpp7742 Hi. Yes, I put that in the video for that reason. Very similar. 👍
@markbehr88 Ripper! I don't know what the aft end resembles.
@@jasoncarpp7742 I think it was its own design at the back? 🤔👍
My family had one of those when I was a kid in the early 90s. It was only a 500, but it had a 351, hotwire mags and heaps of mumbo. But the rust. My God, the rust. I'll never forget when Dad lifted the rear off the ground to rotate the tyres, and then we couldn't open the back doors. She was a write-off after that.
@@I_AM_SPADA That’s a shame. Luckily my Brown Satin Fairlane 500 update is rust free. 👍
I really enjoy all your videos and exceptional knowledge. It is such a pity that we no longer have a local car industry where we could design, engineer and build cars for our unique country. Skills lost.
@@chriselias307 Thank you. I totally agree re the loss of our car industry never should have happened. When I hear these ads for Let’s Make in Australia it is all too little too late. 🤔👍
@@markbehr88 Party politics aside, it's ironic that the present Labor government is the one now spruiking Australian-made, given that the destruction of the industry was started in 1984 by the Hawke Labor government with the infamous 'Button Car Plan' of Senator John Button, then-Minister for Industry, Technology and Commerce. Button, a former member of the Italian Communist Party, also managed to destroy Australia's footwear and clothing industries. China must have loved that!
@ My thoughts exactly. Joe Hockey didn’t help either! 🫣
@@markbehr88 Agreed. Incompetent people meddling in things about which their knowledge is, at best, minimal.
Absolutely agree, Ford Australia did more than just manufacture cars and trucks and GM-H as well, all one has to do is delve into a bit of history and they would see that our Australian car manufacturers played a massive role during the Second World War for instance in designing and building machinery as diverse as military equipment such as tanks, Aircraft components, aircraft engines even Ford in Geelong was in the ship building industry! They all contributed in a large way for our Australian war effort, I often think how Australia could be a lame duck in the future as with next to zero of any heavy manufacturing and thanks to our piss poor governments they have kept their heads in the sand and it seems they don’t want to acknowledge any future conflicts in our unstable world, especially may I add with China, as we would really be up S… Creek in a barbed wire canoe with all of our highly trained tradesmen etc being flushed away as we are now a nation of imports! A damn shame indeed!
Great stuff Mark I had 2 ZH Fairlanes loved them still have 2 XCs and I have a BF fairlane as my daily driver and I think it is my favourite fairlane even over the 75th anniversary I owned but it's still in the family with my son in-law
Great series mate thanks very much 👍
Cheers Blue
@@BluesShed Thanks very much. Look after those great Fords! 👍
A favourite uncle had one of these, always had V8 Fords, a late 1950's Ford Customline, an early 1960's Fairlane 'compact' and others. Beautiful cars.
@@ChrisStumer Sounds like a top bloke. 👍
Thanks Mark for the drive down memory lane! No better way to take that drive than in an Aussie built Ford. Thanks again mate 👍
You bet. 👍
Thanks heaps Mark, this is the Fairlane episode I was hanging out for. My experience with the ZH you might find interesting. Back in the eighties I traded my 360 VK Valiant Regal on a ZH Fairlane 500. The mistake I made there was buying a ZH with a 302 instead of a 351 so obviously the Fairlane felt gutless compared to the Valiant, but the suspension was incredible. A very comfortable ride and nice going through roundabouts with hardly any body roll. The suspension, steering and brakes all seemed to work together unlike the Valiant which was harsh in ride on rough stuff and very prone to oversteer if not treated with respect. A friend of ours at the time bought a HX Statesman Deville so we others driving Ford's rocked up to poke fun at him thinking he had an inferior car. On approach to it I remember thinking that it was quite good looking and then I started noticing how deep the paint was and the great panel fit with even gaps. Inside the dash was so much more attractive and better presented than my ZH and with fantastic vision through those nice slim pillars. We got to drive it, very soft ride and the 5 litre engine had enough poke to suit the car but if you tried to push it above its cornering limits it pretty soon let you know. This was the HX remember. I drove off convincing myself that my Fairlane was a better car and the sales figures backed me up on that right? Now I think back on that and I reckon that overall the Statesman was a better car. My ZH? I sold it privately for a modest profit and bought another Valiant. Thanks for the video again mate.
Thanks. Glad you liked it. The 351 would certainly have performed better but quite a bit thirstier. Similar to your 360, maybe a little better as they were big drinkers. The Statesman was nice enough but the styling of the Fairlane was all over it imo. 👍
Very very interesting.
Which felt more -
Modern
Upmarket
Prestigious
Finely finished
Assembly
Comfort
Performance
Handling
Chrysler/Holden Statesman/Ford Fairlane ZH
@@LeopoldoNotarianni-rk9vv The Chrysler for performance, the Statesman for modern, finish and assembly and the Fairlane for the rest.
@@area51isreal71 thank you.
@@area51isreal71 which felt the most prestigious...
Snob factor
My 3 Dream cars: P6 LTD, XC Cobra and Landau.
Good choices. 👍
Thank you Mark excellent, informative report as usual. It's my favourite as well. I considered buying one, but it was a bit big and beyond my financial reach anyway at that time. One of my neighbours had a ZH 500 which was never garaged and parked on the nature strip in front of his house. It was a beautifully styled impressive vehicle. Interesting to see the AU Fairlane which I think looked better than the Falcon. I believe the AU (falcon) was a reliable vehicle with the well optioned Ghia seen as the model to get now.
Thanks. Yes, AU was super reliable and durable. I agree the Fairlane looked better than the Falcon. 👍
Great ep! My first ride in a car was in my old mans ZH when I was brought home from the hospital after being born. Got a lot of memories of that car when I was a kid. It took us to school, camping and holidays! Pretty sure that would of done about 400000km+ in its life to. The ZH was retired in 2001-02 and it is still sitting in the shed waiting to be restored but shes pretty rusty.
Thanks very much. Wow. With that history, you HAVE to restore it. When I found my Dad’s 72 Galaxie LTD, I would have bought it regardless of condition (luckily it was pretty good) as these cars are irreplaceable. 👍
The ZG was awesome, but the ZH lifted the bar. My late father purchased a new Marquies, 5.8 in bronze gold, double awesome car. They are worth a lot of money these days for a good one.
Very nice. 👍👍
We had a desert gold sportsman 4.9l. My favourite childhood car! Such luxury! Our interior seats had a sort of corduroy finish. So much better than our previous 4.2l Holden premiere wagon. We could see out better. It was quiet and sooo much space!
Very cool. My brown car has those seats too. 👍
Thanks for another great video Mark.
The ZH is my favourite Fairlane too, also love the AU Fairlane. Both have great road presence
@@PPT2000 Thank you. We are aligned. 😀👍
Hi Mark, hope your well, nice big American looking Australian car, looks like the car you could drive long distance with no effort. I like the second styling with the rear black panel between the tail lights and the Ford roundel. The roundel badge were on UK Fords from 1976 as Ford UK brought out the MK4 Cortina and the new FWD Fiesta as these were fitted with the roundel badge and were fitted to the MK3 Capri MK2 Escort and the MK2 Granada
( similar looking Falcon ) in 1977 as the F O R D ended. Nice to see you still have your Fairlane, hope you still enjoy it. As always a great video Take care
@@shaun30-3-mg9zs Thanks Shaun. No doubt the Ford Australia stylists took their inspiration from those UK models. 👍
@@shaun30-3-mg9zs I never knew the black tail light treatment was the update model until Mark noted it. I thought it must have been a styling thing for the Marquis or sportsman packages, as they were the ones I remember seeing the black treatment on as a school kid. I actually prefer the silver, particularly how it highlights the number plate recess.
Ford Australia removed 4 cylinder engines from Cortina,s and installed 4.1 litre 250 ci Six cylinders and in some cases 4 speed manual transmissions . They flew , but many got a 5.8 litre V8 dropped in as did Ford Capri,s in Australia, there are many Ford Capri,s driving around with V8s
@ Just to be clear, the four cylinders like the 2 litre were standard. Any V8s (more often 302. My mate had one) were modified and not factory option cars. 👍
Thank you for your great work in doing these videos. I'm sure they are especially interesting to others like me who remember the cars when they were new. I have a lot of catching up to do with your older vids.
Cheers😁
@@inthebush3 Thanks. Please tell your car mates to Subscribe too. 👍
My favourite Fairlane also. Best looking edition from Ford, ever.
Was looking forward to this, thanks once again Mark.
@@mrdoiii Thanks. We agree. 👍
As I'm from Germany, this is the only australian car I've seen in reality. Someone imported one of these to Germany in the 80s. Dark blue Marquis, black vinyl roof and black interior, Appliance Striker wheels. Don't know if it was a 4.9 or 5.8? Would be interesting, if it's still alive?
@@cossieboa5717 Wow. That’s pretty good. You would imagine if they went to all that trouble that it hopefully is alive and well in Deutschland. 👍
@markbehr88 I remember last time seeing it in the mid nineties, as we moved away from the area. But it looked well cared for. Don't know if ZH Fairlanes were imported to Britain. Maybe a British soldier stationed in Germany brought it and sold it here. It had definitely German plates. Looked great, especially on those chrome Striker wheels with the BF Goodrich tyres.
@ Could be an ex UK car. 🤔👍
@@markbehr88 Thought that at the time, because there was a British garrison around 30km away in Germany back in the day. Thanks for your informative Videos. Keep them coming!
@ Thanks. 👍
Great video again Mark. These were my favourite Fairlane too, even though I'm a one-eyed Holden man. In the trade the mid-model update was known as the 78 update or in the Falcon it was the XC & a 1/2. The ZH was the first (& only ?) time that a Fairlane was released before its Falcon equivalent, because of that, the first 2 months had XB engines with the 302 only having a 2 barrel carb. The 4 barrel Carter Thermoquad was fitted to the ZH motors at XC release (July 76) for ADR27A. I worked on many of these & fitted a/cond to quite a few as well. AFAIK Pre-78 Fairlane 500 had a/cond as an option, but it became standard for the 78 upgrade.
The motoring press kept saying the XB V8's were quicker. Ford insisted the XC ADR27A V8's were quicker. I do know the XC 302 in standard form was pretty woeful, but haven't driven an XB equivalent.
Thanks very much. That is interesting re the XB engines. 👍
I have driven both. My 78 Fairlane is the 302 and it goes well. Better than XB 302s I have driven. 👍
116 kw 4.9 litre Y code two barrel
162 kw 5.8 litre T code four barrel
151 kw (or 140 kw depending on which magazine you believe 4.9 litre V8 P code)
@@markbehr88
My friend had the earlier Two Barrel XB engined ZH Fairlane 500.
Just 116 kW.
Very Good Car
Most reliable
Your brown Marquis is in beautiful condition . I had the P6 1978 LTD in the Brown Satin . Loved that Colour .
@stuarthaynes1737 That is actually not my car, mine is a standard Fairlane 500 with the Marquis hubcaps. I used this image as it looks just like my car, however, the only readily available image of it was in the driveway under shaded trees - so not good enough to use. I almost bought a Brown Satin P6 years ago. Very nice condition for $5,000. Wish I had of pulled the trigger. My Fairlane is in lovely condition with 100,000 kms. 👍
@markbehr88 Isn't it always the way ? Lol
You'll have to share a photo of it Mark. I'd love to see it out of the shade .
What I loved about them so much was the American Styling . Sure , I mean the Statesman was nice and a very attractive looking car from the HQ to the HZ in the Caprice ofcause but the Fairlane and the LTD just had that edge on the Statesman , in refinement and that interior space, the LTD left holden for dead with that rear leg room. You know , I cabr help but wonder how different things would have been if Holden would have launched the WB style Statesman in 1975 or even 77 instead 82 . As you'd know , they did have that design on paper, but went with the shape they released .
I bought my P6 in 1982 from my now ex mother in-law for $7500 with only 67,000 kms on it as it was getting to big for her . I felt like a king driving it . Everywhere you'd go , people would look . I had a permanent grin on my face.
I'll find a pic of it and share it with you . She was a glamor complete with white wall tyres . I sold her in 1988 the StGeorge Motor Auctions that I worked for . Fury Ford bought her for $12,000 and put $16900 on her She was only $17650 in 1978 when bought new .
P.S sorry for the long reply .
@ Sounds like a great car. My ZH and ZK are in storage. I really want to get them out so I can drive them again. 👍
Hello Mark Behr, long time since I saw you at the dealership in Bathurst , so it’s great to see you still passionate about cars.
I was a rep calling on the dealership with service products and dealership warranty support products, at that time.
Cheers
@@robertjohnston3658 Very cool Robert. Yes, still mad about cars. That hasn’t changed. I hope you’re well? I remember Bill Dando at Bathurst and later, Peter Terry (went to their new showroom opening). A long time ago now. 🤔👍
@ Peter was a great guy in my opinion and I actually bought the last HSV GTS ever made from him and enjoyed the beast for a few years!
@ Is Peter still around? I hope so. As you said, he was a great guy. 👍
@ I am now in WA , so not in contact , but I will think it unlikely as he had numerous health issues about 15 years ago
@ That’s a shame. He was a great guy. The bulk deals I used to do with him when he was at Rockdale. Calibras, Novas, Apollos. All the hard to shift stuff. Full page ads, special price. He was a good retailer. 👍
Back in 1977 I used to drive a ZH Marquis, just like the one @ 9:16, well it wasn't mine as I was a 4th Apprentice Mechanic working in a panel shop, I used to drive it to Sorrento (vic) towing a trailer to do building work on the bosses holiday house he was building!
@@brianlove8413 Very cool. You would have felt ten feet tall. 👍
@@markbehr88 I nearly was with the ridiculous platform shoes I had back then! :-)
@ The fashions were out there. 👍
@ 😂
Awesome!!! 1,000 x more fun 2 own than all the new crapboxes!!! 👍😊💥
@@Aliens_Gonna_Get_Ya Thanks. Agreed. 👍
Must attract looks.
They drive like a sports car.
A sports car that can take a family on a picnic. Ask Hoges.
Thanks Mark love the content. Never a fan of this model and in 1977 my brother and I disliked it that much we talked our dad out of buying a Marquis and getting a Fairmont GXL which was awesome.
Thanks. I love the GXL and the Marquis. 👍
i have three all will be for sale soon i love them .
@@lostinspace699 Very cool. Try to keep at least one. 👍
My Favourite Fairlane is the 1964 model. To me they are sheet metal artwork.
If you watch the ZA episode you will see a 64 model. 👍
I remember being a teenager in the seventies travelling to my Uncle' farm in Southern Darling Downs in my sister' boyfriend ZH doing 160 kph on single lane country roads.
It just did this easy quiet safe sturdy and stable. No fuss big comfortable Australian Ford luxury V8.. Great cars
In its element. 👍
I ❤ Fairlanes...
@@user-qs4xw7ye5s So do I. 👍
I think this generation of fairlane is one of the most American inspired Aussie car
@@MaliqueGowley Most definitely. And the P6 LTD. 👍
Im very surprised you didnt show the flagship model LTD. You must have another video coming surely!
He does a whole separate video for the LTD.
@@steveskrobot9496 Well, the title is ZH Fairlane not P6 LTD. If you’ve been following along, I have said I will do a separate series. Also, did you actually watch the episode as the P6 appeared twice in this episode?🤔
@@chuckselvage3157 Thank you. That will be coming down the track. 👍👍
@@markbehr88 I did see the P6 pop up for 1 second and that gave me the idea you have plans to feature it seperately. You didnt need to feel sour over my comment. I was not picking on the video. Being an educational video, I thought you may have mentioned the crown jewel when the image popped up. Thats all I was meaning.
@ All good. I did mention it a couple of times though. 🤔
I had V8 ZH Marquis. Loved it.
@@rodchaffey3552 Great cars. 👍
So classic of Aussie cars to have an old American style at least five years before, but in this case, it’s ten years! Still it’s a classic tank car and agree it’s a kind of iconic. With just a 302 and all the pollution gear I’d have thought it was slow, but I guess it was a beast, especially compared to the HX Holden’s 202 c.i. Six.
The HX Statesman was only available as a 5-0 V8, but still, it was slower than Fairlane.
They weren’t fast but a 302 would do 17.3 sec for 1/4 mile, 351 more like 17 flat. HX 202 3 days, 11 hours 😀
@@markbehr88 I heard dealers offered to illegally disconnect the HX pollution gear as buyers immediately noticed the power plunge. It was ridiculous. Ford at least redesigned the heads to cope and the Chrysler’s hemi sixes just required minimal changes and were least affected by 27a.
@ Yes ADR27A was the HX downfall. 🤔
@@jamesfrench7299 Yeah, a mate's Dad had an HX Premier. 202 six. A gentle and modest man with taste, but soon enough, the local mechanic just suggested they'd remove the hoses - or block three black hoses. But the big American V8s got smashed too. I heard that 400 c.i. engines were barely making 150HP stock, and in those barge bodies!
Quite a few years back, I was at a car swap meeting in Footscray.
An old man was trying to sell his ZH Fairlane, but had no takers.
As I was about to leave in my XC Fairmont, he offered the Fairlane to me for only $500.
I declined the offer but think about the nice car I missed out on.
Wow. They were very undervalued for a long time, as were the ZK models. I told my friends “you better buy these now”. They didn’t. I did. 👍
12:08 out brake!? Man the American brakes would be downright scary given the size of the ford brakes at the time! Great video.
@@Low760 Thanks. The ZH actually had great brakes. Having driven many thousands of KM in them they never let me down once. I can’t say that about my AU1 Fairlane brakes, which I would only rate as fair. 👍
@@markbehr88 my Laser KE has very ordinary brakes not dangerous though -just.
@ No good. 🤔
A small handful of cars left the factory with bench seat, column auto with a pull out centre armrest. Some had 500 badges some didnt. Funeral services and hire cars got them. Not many but i have seen a dozen.
@@LeopoldoNotarianni-rk9vvThe buckets and column shift was the standard fitment in the 500. The T bar was an option. Split bench was on first release Marquis. I am sure they would have been bench seats as a fleet option. The 500 badges were on the first release but not on the updates. The only exception was I have seen the 500 badge on the boot on some of the updates incl my Sportsman but not on the front guards. 👍
Hi mark.Another great video
A neighbour down the road owned a huge farm but lived in town. He had one from new. It was always caked in dirt & mud he drove it hard. He also had it for a long time so l can vouch for the fact they were durable.
Thanks. Yes, great country cars for sure. 👍
I bought a 1977 Marquis in about 1996. I bought it because it was one of the few 6 seater cars that I could afford. Our fourth child was just born and my 1974 Toyota Corona MkII was only a 5 seater and no where near big enough. I liked the look of the Marquis and it did work as a family car. Only real problem was fuel consumption was terrible. It was a 4.9L V8, did not have a lot of power, especially not by modern standards, but it used a lot of fuel. But I have always thought that it was a car that was pleasant to the eye to look at.
Yes, they weren’t economical but on a trip with a light throttle, not too bad. At least that is my experience with my 302 ZH. Very good looking car. 👍
The best car ever made.
@@Hydrogenblonde Fair enough. 👍
That's a big statement. It didn't even have a cruise control.
@@mikevale3620 who wants that ? What do you need cruise control for ? Do you have trouble keeping your foot on the throttle pedal ?
It also doesn't have touch screens, blue tooth, internet, infotainment, GPS navigation and a whole bunch of other superfluous claptrap and that is the whole point.
@@mikevale3620 Yes, you had to drive it yourself! 🫣
@@Hydrogenblonde It is actually a car not a big computer. 😀👍
I had a 78 ZH Fairlane. Dark metallic clue with a light grey vinyl roof. 351 Cleveland and T-bar auto. A very comfortable, very competent vehicle with a massive boot and excellent towing ability. I kept it for 13 years and deeply regret the decision to sell it. If it had one failing, it was the design of the door handles, which would break with monotonous repetition. In every other respect, it was brilliant. Great road presence and a mile-eater without peer. Like I said, I'm so sorry I ever talked myself into parting with it :(
Yes, a shame to let it go. Touch wood I have had no issues at all with my door handles. 👍
The first photo at the start of this video is of a Mercedes Benz 1418 truck. It was owned by John Arnold. I was an apprentice diesel mechanic at the time and knew John and this truck well. He carried Fords from Broadmeadows to Brisbane once a week.
@@philipjames4151 Very cool. I love the photo. 👍
@@markbehr88 That photo must have been taken in May/June 1976, as it has ZH & XB side by side, prior to the XC release.
@ Yes. Last of XB. 👍
This was my first car about 30 years ago.
Platinum blue.
My friends called it the Fairstar.
@@colonelflagg9669 Great first car. 👍
We had a very late ZH Marquis metallic blue with black vinyl roof. Power front seats in crushed velour with deep cut pile carpeting. It was our first air conditioned car and my father would either have it on full blast or not at all. The 351 could barely breathe with the pollution equipment. We only ever saw 15mpg at best. But a commensurate highway car. A wonderful looking car. I later saw it and it had been horribly mistreated- so sad.
That would have been a great colour combo. Sad it was mistreated later on. 🤔👍
Thanks brother Mark,
@@GrantCarter-m4d Pleasure. 👍
Beautiful colours and combinations offered. No comparison to the restricted boring color schemes on most of today's cars.
Yes the modern cars offer any colour you want as long as it is a shade of metallic grey.
Agree. 👍
Yes, or silver, black or white. 🫣
Thank# Mark, my uncle had a blueish Marquis with vinyl roof, a very nice car to ride in. Ford did swing like a pendulum from rounded to square riggers & repeat with the 3rd & 4th gens. _ps: imho you'd have to be a bit of a trainspotter to call the 'upgrade' visually significant _
@@UncleJoeLITE Thanks. I am a train spotter when it comes to these. 👍😀
Or rivet counter. Count me in.
@@jamesfrench7299 👍
Although I am a Valliant fan. The Zh is my favorite Australian car ever.
@@brentfairlie9159 I can see why. 👍
My uncle had a light blue with black vinyl roof ZH Fairlane 500 with 351 and T bar auto. I definitely remember FORD letting as opposed to the blue oval and I remember him saying that it was a '78, so I'm guessing a late Series 1. It was damn nice! I think I remember that it sat on Jellybean style wheels. I don't remember interior material, but I'm pretty sure it was black.
While I may prefer the ZC, the ZH was definitely a high point in styling and has its own imposing presence
@@MuscleCarLover Yes, great cars. It would have been a very late first series car. 👍
Mark does it again 10 out of 10 mate. Love the ZH's. Bet that sportsman was one you wished you held on to very rare bird these days. Tho im sure the current chocolate brown fairlane would ease the pain
Thanks very much. 👍I did miss my Sportsman so bought the chocolate brown one in 2007. They were cheap then.
Loved our 1979 ZH, did several hundred thousand Ks in it and the only real issue was chewing out front ball joints with monotonous regularity; lots of those kms were towing a 3 tonne tri-axle Horse Float, which it did with ease.
@@rcflighttestengineer5636 Excellent 👍
Beautiful Car not many or None came to New Zealand
@@geoffreybidois6157 I’d say small numbers probably did but very few. 👍
@@markbehr88In 1978 I got my first full time job working for Ford NZ in the Head office in front of the Seaview Plant. NZ was operating under national price controls at the time and every imported vehicle had to be individually priced up based on a formula from landed cost, and submitted to government for approval. That was my job. I remember there were thousands of vehicles imported from Australia every year. I don’t recall exactly how many, but I remember I could do about 20 per hour, and it was a full-time job, with overtime! A lot of 4cylinder Cortinas as we were short of local assembly capacity at the time, but also V8 Falcons (only 6 cylinder assembled in NZ) and body styles not made in NZ - coupes, vans and Fairlanes. I distinctly remember pricing up quite a few coupes, even some Cobras, and many vans including Sundowners. I don’t distinctly remember Fairlanes, as they were not “hero cars” but with NZs rural wealth, I am sure there were quite a few. I wonder if any of those cars mentioned survived……
@ Very interesting. I went to that plant once and loved the Ford V8 stained glass windows from the 1930’s I assume. 👍
Hi Mark great video mate. My mum's father had a 76 model zh fairlane same colour as your 1. Growing up in the 80's i remember, it had sheepskin seat covers and the wheels on it were very similar to the general lees wheels. It was a 351 car with jewel exhaust and t bar auto. I love that car and it sounded amazing. Cheers ✌️👌👏🫶😎
@@biv351 Thanks very much. 👍
@@biv351 a few round my area as a kid had those wheels too. Hurricane is what I think they were called. The volante style wheel on the sportsman lived on for an impressive stretch - my wife’s grandfather bought a new ‘83 ZK sportsman that had them.
Hi mark, sorry for the late reply. Thanks again for your message. I googled the name of the wheels and you are right. Those are the wheels that were on my grandfathers 76 zh fairlane. Cheers 👌✌️👍
@@commodorenut
Globe Volante appeared on the Sports Luxury Car in Ford offerings.
Eg. Fairlane Sportsman
Fairmont S Pack
Falcon 20th Anniversary
Four Stud
Cortina S Pack TE
Escort GS Rally Pack Mark II
Hello Mark , excellent presentation on the ZH fairlane. I have been watching all your episodes on all the other car brands that you have put up ,the ZH of the day did stand out compared to previous models. I will be very interested in the episodes when you get to the N series of fairlanes as I have a NL concord (06/98) with just over 130000kms red top 6 cylinder and working air ride rear suspension, a great car to drive. I look forward to the next lot of presentations you have.
Thanks very much. Glad you enjoy them. Will certainly be doing those later models soon enough. 👍
My neighbour had one brand new he was a minister his wife was told never drive it when raining he was extremely fussy about his beloved zH Blue with light grey vinyl top He eventually bought his wife a little run about so they Fairlane was definitely driven only on a Sunday I was surprised to see one Friday afternoon The minister came home in a beautiful white zJ Fairlane 5*8 brand new then Less than 6months later I was in extreme shock he traded it in on corona CSX sedan 😓😓 cheers great channel 👍👍✌️✌️🐨🦘
@@stephentaege6255 Thanks. Sound like that Minister lost his marbles at the end or maybe it was the fact the taxpayer was no longer footing the fuel bills? 🤔
Hi Mark another great video , but you forgot to mention in the competition the 1974 - up Toyota Crown, which our family car was , you still see them around in Aussie country towns today , still running and not rusted out.
Thanks. The Fairlane was the top seller, then the Volvo range, then Statesman. I think Crown volume would be much less again. Of the Crowns I like the 71/72 with the fibre optic tail lights best. 👍
@@markbehr88 my uncle in his xb sedan 4.1 auto and my father , had a a little 100 mile a hour race , in the 70s , the XB falcon could not keep up with crown 2600 4 speed , even though the engine stats , show differently. I remember that day, my Uncle could not believe the crown pulling away , being a very proud Ford man
@ Interesting. I drove an early Crown many years ago. It might have been a bit tired as I would describe the acceleration as “ok”. It was an orange car with the fibre optic tail lights. Wish I had of bought it. I put an orange Crown in a Shannons ad a little later. 👍
@@markbehr88 I loved that Shannons ad , thanks Mark for making it happen. But thats interesting was it a 4 speed manual ?? Our family had 3 crowns 2 x 1974 and a 70 models and all manuals, my father was a panel beater /spray painter in Sydney and loved a quality paint and finishes on cars . I learnt how to drive on one of the 74 in the 80s, a 4 speed manual , for its day , it was not slow for a 6 . Every time I go to Japan, I love seeing all the Crowns . I remember seeing a old guy proudly polishing his crown on the side, of the road in Osaka . That 72/73 model you speak of, did have nicer tail lights, I agree , but the full size chrome bumpers and bigger front on the 74 looked good too . Its a Shame Toyota has turned the Crown name plate , into a suv in the USA market.
@ Hi. I think the ad car was an auto but the one I tried to buy was a four speed manual. 👍
I used to work in a car wash back in the 90s, man the non power steering versions of this car had the heaviest steering of any car I've ever parked- truly bicep building stuff!
@@Andronicus2007 Really? Power steering was standard? I had a 4.9 V8 XC Fairmont without power steering and it was very heavy as you say. 🤔👍
@markbehr88 Maybe it had failed, or didn't have enough fluid in it.
@ Could be? 🤔
G'day Mark,
Another great video I thoroughly enjoyed.
In our neighbourhood early 80's Sunshine, in Benjamin st at the time.
There was this ZH Marquis in that Silvery Blue colour & those hubcaps with the red crntres looked stunning.
What I distinctively remember is was a high end car , look so Americana, had S.A plates on it.
I remember the S.A plates nothing I seen before made out of plastic & taking up the whole area between the tail lights.
Also the name Marquis, non of the boys knew how to pronounce it something that wasn't taught at Sunshine Primary School back in the day.
Great video
Cheers
Louis Kats 👍
@@louiskats5116 Thanks Louis. Yes, some people would say “Marr Quiss”. Those big SA number plates were also on my brown ZH when I bought it. 👍
@@markbehr88 👍👍👍
@@markbehr88having a classmate with the name of Marcus, I too can confirm that many of us called it “Marr-quiss” (stirring him up with mispronunciation) instead of “mar-key”
@ 😀👍
A great car was the ZH and LTD. A lot of people loved em. And the people who had the XC Falcon also put the ZH front end on the car, and some even put the V8 shocker on as well.
@@js-amg Great cars. Please leave the Fairlane and LTD fronts off Falcon though for those that do such things. 🤔👍
@@js-amg I’ve seen several utes and vans with the ZH and P6 fronts on them. Doesn’t really work as well as a statesman front on a Holden commercial, for the level of perceived prestige reasons that Mark noted when comparing the HX,
👍
The American styling cues have always appealed to me (probably because they are a bit different, so slightly more "exotic" than what we are used to seeing everywhere) and the ZH is my favorite Fairlane. My next favorite is another American-ish looking model, the NC, and I have a '93 Sportsman Ghia as a classic, and someday hope to also be able to afford a ZH. In my younger days I had a '73 Rambler (AMC) Matador with the 360ci V8, and its styling (particularly the rear) is kind of similar in some ways to the ZH. Loved the video Mark, and will definitely watch lots of your others too. New subscriber here. Cheers!
Thanks very much. I will do a series down the track on the AMI assembled AMCs. 👍
There were quite a few AMC models sold in Australian in the 1970s such as the Matador, Javlin and Hornet but I can't remember who sold them , maybe Chrysler Australia.
@ They were assembled in Bertie St, Port Melbourne by AMI - Australian Motor Industries and sold by Rambler dealers. 👍
@@JosephCowen-fz8vj . They were imported and assembled here by AMI (Australian Motor Industries), whom were also importing Toyota in the early '70's when my dad bought his '72 Toyota Corona. Not sure what dealerships they were being sold through though. Cheers!
@phillipevans9414 good to know, I just couldn't remember where they were sold, but there were a few on the roads back in the 1970s , Matador,s with AMC 360 V8s my mate had a Javlin and another friend had a Hornet with a 401 ci V8 in it . I did notice the AMC straight six lived on in the Jeep 4.0 untill not too long ago .
My old man had a gold coloured 302 powered version, with the column shift and bench seat. He loved that car, and kept it for a decade only to trade it in for a a Suzuki swift in 2005.
Oh, the humanity! 🫣
Thanks Mark, I agree that the ZH was the outstanding model. I could have bought one in Townsville in 1985 for $5500, but didn't. AH WELL. Where did the Siver Monach fit in the ZH series, you could do a whole episode on one of those,
Thanks. The Silver Monarch was a top level LTD. Available in two colours over its life in the P6 LTD. I will cover LTD in a separate series. 👍
Terrific!
@@donsheehan5144 Thanks. 👍
The update grille looks a lot better, i don't remember seeing many though.
@@Gokizzmass half of 1976, 1977 and half of 78 for pre update grille and half 78 and half 79 for update grille. 👍
@@markbehr88 I meant the latter ones, i didn't see many with the black grille.
@@Gokizzmass Yes, I understood it that way. You had two full years of early production and 1 full year of the later one. Hence more early cars. 👍
Hi Mark this was great yes they were fantastic cars hope you do one on your walnut glow Fairlane. Also luved the view of your mates VG 770 hope to see that again thanx
@@McKav Thanks. I will. It is in storage at the moment. 👍
@markbehr88 & really enjoyed the roadtrip with your ML great colour
@ Thanks. 👍
They certainly LOOKED to be the biggest Fairlane ever, apparently a later one was actually bigger, according to 'Motoring Box'.
Very American looking as you said. For the reasons you mentioned, the two earlier models did look a bit Falconi-sh.
Those earlier models suffered from a lot of body flex. I remember when there were still a few around they all had whiffely panels. This model seemed to conquer that problem. You do still see a few of these around too.
They look bigger than they actually are. I was just in a car park next to a bunch of modern SUVs, 4wheel drives and random angry kitchen appliances and my Fairlane looked as small as a 1960s British sports car. A lot of modern cars are like giant monster trucks and their owners don't realise it.
Yes, like an EH versus a new Corolla. 🤔
Yes, you are right. There were bigger ones later. 👍
USA Mercury Cougars and Montego models shared both styles of wheel covers shown. We never got the sweet wheels shown on the Sportsman model.
Thanks. I recall that now you mention it. 👍
I had one of these as a paddock basher haha
Poor thing 😢
@markbehr88 I know. I got it for $450 in the late 90s and absolutely trashed it. It was actually in decent condition when I got it. 😢
@ Geez. Worth a few $ now (in good condition). 🤔👍
@@markbehr88 she's long gone mate. Scrapped unfortunately
@ RIP. 🙏
Many things determined the Clevelands performance; exaust system, transmission, state of tune, mods, amount of options, body Style, etc. They may have been modified, had emission gear removed, etc. there's rarely any two the same.
Hence the feedback that some found them gutless, and other's didn't.
@@noelgibson5956 Makes sense. How they were run in too made a difference. 👍
It would have been good if someone had tested back to back, the stroked Holden V8 in the HSV VS GTS and the VT HSV stroked Holden V8 against the Chevrolet LS 5.7 . Just to see the difference, efficiency, sound, performance and design differences.
I suspect these stroked Holden V8's from HSV will become one of the most sort after, even compared to the AWD HSV version of the Monaro and the 7.0 litre HSV. ?
The Gen 111 was strangled though at launch. When I get to VT I will cover that off. 👍
This was interesting. I saw so many American Ford/Mercury/Lincoln parts on this generation. The wheel covers, the exterior mirrors, the seats and more. It was American based indeed. I see it grew in size as well. This model is full sized. I see they got luxury features like the power seats, the power windows, and more. This finally was on the game. I like how you shared the American LTD of the time to the Australian model. I saw the Marquis name as well. I did not know about that. It seems Ford in North America at Mercury was using the same nameplate as Australia at the same time. The instrumentation really looked quite American as well. I see you own one as well. The hood ornament is the same one they used for LTD in the United States during that time. It appears Holden was trying to make its way but had issues. You stated the segment was changing as well. It seems the European cars invaded Australia the same way they did in the United States.
The video was good. I liked the footage and the information and content. The effort is appreciated.
@@OLDS98 Thanks very much Olds98. For the next episode there is a major departure where Europe meets the USA. 👍
@@markbehr88 I look forward to it. It has been interesting. I saw a lot of late 60's Mercury in this model.
@ Thanks. Most definitely re the Mercury. 👍
I had one in the 90s. A 302 model. I loved it initially but found out it was a rust bucket. The borg warner diff crapped itself, cracking a spider gear, fuel consumption averaged 20L/100km, and being from late 70s, the v8 was strangled by emissions. The 351 was the one to get with the 9 inch.
I miss my torana, but not the ZH.
Sounds like you had a bad run with yours. Mine has been terrific. 👍
One sexy looking ford Fairlane when I seen one as a teenager my first thought was gangster fat Tony.. I want one
@@michaelbyrnes7944 They are one of the best looking Fairlane models out there. 👍
They were very comfortable on a long trip the seats were made different in those days.
@@grantlee2975 As were the cars 😀👍
Another great video Mark - thanks! Regards the rear doors, I thought they (most model LTDs/Fairlanes) used the same doors as the comparable Falcons, which is why they always had the extra sheet metal in front of the wheels arches as the doors were never made longer to accommodate the extended wheel bases?
@@lizandian Thanks. The LTD has longer rear doors. For the P6, if you look at the image in the episode, you can see the extra length and also that it has a gradual upsweep, not the kick up like the XC Falcon and Fairlane. 👍
When I bought my VF Valiant 318 Regal it had Fairlane hubcaps on widened rims .
Really? Interesting. 🤔👍
I think you just wanted to say “Valiant”. 😀👍
@@markbehr88 You are very astute 🙂. It really did have Fairlane hubcaps though .(for a while)
@ Fair dinkum Fairlane caps. 👍
@markbehr88 Too right " sport " .
Have a Cream ZH Sportsman, cut the roof off as it had the factory Sunroof to go on my XB sedan.
Eek. I hope it was a rusty car to do that to it. 🫣
Hello and greetings from the USA ! Interesting video on the Fairlanes. Not much info on these cars ( or Aussie cars in general ) on this part of the globe, so its nice to look at videos on the various cars. Interesting to note that the wheelbase as stated was 115 inches...by contemporary American standards, this would have been considered a mid-size car ( most full-size yank tanks spanned 119-122 inches between the wheels, some even longer). As a side note, maybe you could do a video explaining the alphabetic designations of Australian vehicles ( HG, ZA, FG, etc.) . I am quessing it has something to do with registration purposes, but don't really know. Anyways, thanks for an interesting video. Best, DW.
Thanks. The model designations are not related to registration, more so the manufacturer does that to identify model series (the designations are up to them). Generally a platform will have a prefix like (Falcon X ) and then the various model updates (not yearly updates like in the USA) will follow - XK, XL etc) and when a new platform comes in like XA they may restart (but never repeat the series so you won’t have two completely different XA models over time for example). When a major new platform arrives it normally gets a new prefix like AU or FG. If you look at the Falcon or Commodore playlist you will get some idea. 👍
Yes because the name of Australian cars from the big 3 rarely changed like Falcon from 1960 to 2017 there is always a two letter designation Falcon went 1960 XH,XK , XM,XP, 1966 XR,XW,XY 1973 XA,XB,XC 1979 XD,XE, XF 1988 EA,EB,ED,EF,EL 1999 AU 2002 BA, BF 2008 FG, FGX built up to 2018. Same with GM Holden and Chrysler Australia. Holden used H for many years and Chrysler/Valiant/Dodge used V prefex . It just tells you the year model around about.
@@JosephCowen-fz8vj Thanks for explaining the designations to me. A shame the manufacturing has gone away.. Progress, I guess ! You made some pretty cool machines.
Thanks for helping me understand the series designations. We just go by the model year.
@ 👍
dad had the marquis same color as in the add, they had a very opulent interior, how many marquis were made Mark
Cool. They made 6067 Marquis. 👍
@@markbehr88 wow thats more than i thought they were prone to rust though
@ For sure. 👍
That would have to be the biggest Fairlane ever made, it certainly looks like it. What is the kerb weight?
@@tonxbezzina7015 They weigh around 1700 KG. 👍
Yes easily the biggest despite being loosely based on the earlier ZF and ZG.
I own a LTD P6 . Great car
Terrific. 👍
I agree as I own a 1976 zh and 1976 p6 Ltd 😅👍
@@danielm2415 Cool 👍
@markbehr88
You got a review on Ford P6 Ltd's?
@ Coming in a future series. 👍
This is the first car I ever drove!
Pretty good first car to drive. 👍
@ I drove it after being up all night at a leadership weekend, and then a long day of sessions….between Ballarat and Deer Park, before they smoothed it all out.
@ Would have been a good drive. 👍
Hello Mark. I think the paint on your chocolate brown ZH is called ' WALNUT GLOW' .
Nothing like glowing walnuts, old chap 🧐
Yes, I think you’re right. 👍
😀👍
@@markbehr88 Mark the colour is brown satin. I too had a an update zh fairlane colour was rare fireglow red with white vinyl roof and the 5.8 351 with cream interior by the way how is eb project going cheers.
@ Thanks. That sounds right. Walnut glow was on XB and earlier. 👍
I had a 78 marqis with 6 seater 302 $700 back in 2010
@@nickprostizenovski6948 So cheap. They were undervalued for a long time.
Hey Mark, just something constructive, can we call the update badge what it is known as - a blue oval, instead of a roundel?
Roundel conjures up the BMW propeller logo, and there's no place for them in a luxury Ford video 😄
Sure 👍
With ZH boot fins Holden had fit them on HV Kingswood but drop fins n went with HJ model as HV model never went into production. Like Fairlane/Marquis dash then sporty Fairmont, I reckon pastel colours like mint green brings luxury to Fairlane especially Marquis but i do like brown over the other 3 colours in Sportsman. I do wonder if the Lincoln name was ever considered? Like most brands the last model range brings best in design n features like ZH.
@@JimmyShields-z2h While Lincoln was never used there was a Continental option for a half vinyl roof that travelled over the rear doors. 👍