Ford Fairmont |
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Wikipedia: Ford Fairmont
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History
The following section is an excerpt from Wikipedia's Ford Fairmont page on 13 September 2019, text available via the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
The Ford Fairmont is a compact car that was produced by Ford for the US and Canada markets for the 1978 to 1983 model years. The debut of the Fairmont and its Mercury Zephyr counterpart marked the launch of the long-running Ford Fox platform that would underpin twelve additional models and stay in production until 1993. Offered in a variety of body styles, the Fairmont succeeded the Ford Maverick, and was replaced by the front-wheel drive Ford Tempo for the 1984 model year.
In April 1973 the American EPA released its comprehensive list of fuel economy results. In October of the same year the 1973 oil crisis started. At the time Ford's North American product line included the subcompact Pinto and Mustang II, and the compact Maverick, but replacements for all of these models would soon be needed. At the same time Ford of England's Cortina line was in need of refreshing, as was the Taunus model built by Ford of Germany.
Changes were also happening at Ford's executive level, as William O. Bourke, ex-chairman of Ford of Europe and one-time managing director of Ford of Australia, was made executive vice president of North American Operations and Robert Alexander, previously with Ford of Europe as vice president in charge of car development, moved to same position in the States.
Hal Sperlich was vice-president of Product Planning and Research at Ford. A proponent of downsizing, Sperlich conceived of a "World Car" that could be sold in both Europe and North America as a solution to the needs of the various divisions.
In December 1973 Ford President Lee Iacocca formally approved development of Fox platform. The name of the platform was borrowed from the Audi 80, sold in the US and Australia as the Audi Fox. Ford's European executives, many now back in the States, considered the 80 their class-leading subcompact competitor and made it the baseline reference for the new platform.
Although the Fairmont would be the first Fox-based car to reach the market, development was guided by an anticipated sport coupe to be based on the new platform.
Development started in early 1973 on both a short-wheel base version to replace the Pinto/Cortina/Taunus lines and a long-wheelbase version that would become the Fairmont. By 1974 the difficulties faced in meeting the conflicting regulatory requirements in different markets and differing production methods used by the various divisions had killed the world car idea. In 1975 North American Automobile Operations took over development of the Fox platform from Sperlich's Product Planning and Research group.
The first running Fox/Fairmont prototype was a modified Cortina with a MacPherson strut and torsion bar front suspension.
A Fairmont Futura coupe built on 15 November 1977 at the Mahwah, New Jersey factory was the one-hundred millionth vehicle produced by Ford.
A 1980 Fairmont station wagon converted to an electric vehicle by Electric Vehicles Associates Inc. and renamed the EVA Current Fare Wagon was evaluated by the US Department of Energy from March 1980 to November 1981.
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Futura Photo courtesy of Image*After View photo of Ford Fairmont Futura - 139KB |
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1979 Ford Public Relations Photo SALES LEADER - Fairmont enters the the 1979-model year as the most successful new-car nameplate ever introduced by a domestic manufacturer and Ford's top-selling car line in 1978. Offered in a full range of two- and four-door sedans, station wagons and a sporty two-door Futura model, the Fairmont represents a new generation of Ford Division products designed for 1979 and beyond. A 2.3-liter engine is standard, and a new four-speed overdrive manual transmission is available for Fairmont's optional 3.3-liter (200-CID) Six and 5.0-liter (302-CID) V-8 engines. View photo of 1979 Ford Fairmont - 3.3MB |
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1979 Ford Public Relations Photo SPECIAL VALUES - Ford dealers are offering Special Value option packages with discounts ranging from $220 to $238 off suggested retail prices on specially equipped 1979-model Granadas, Fairmonts and Fairmont Futuras. Discounts of up to $350 are also available on specially equipped F-Series Explorer light trucks. The 1979 Special Value cars shown from left to right are the Ford Fairmont, Granada, and Fairmont Futura. View photo of 1979 Fords - 2.1MB |
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Modified Photo ©2012 Bill Crittenden Green Street Cruise Night: September 10, 2012 View photo of Modified Ford Fairmont - 4.9MB |
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Modified Photo ©2012 Bill Crittenden Green Street Cruise Night: September 10, 2012 View photo of Modified Ford Fairmont - 4.6MB |
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Modified Photo ©2012 Bill Crittenden Green Street Cruise Night: September 10, 2012 View photo of Modified Ford Fairmont - 4.1MB |
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Modified Photo ©2012 Bill Crittenden Green Street Cruise Night: September 10, 2012 View photo of Modified Ford Fairmont - 3.7MB |
| Date | Document Name & Details | Documents |
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| 3 March 2008 | NHTSA Recall 08E019000 Intercontinental Auto Parts ALG 44/1, Purolator F10024, 1978-1980 Ford Bronco, 1977 Ford Country Squire, 1977-1980 Ford E-Series, 1978-1982 Ford F-Series, 1980 Ford Fairmont, 1979-1980 Ford Granada, 1977, 1979-1980 Ford LTD, 1980 Ford Mustang, 1975 Ford Pinto 1979 Ford Ranchero, 1977-1980 Ford Thunderbird, 1980 Lincoln Versailles, 1975 Mercury Bobcat, 1977, 1979-1980 Mercury Capri, 1977, 1979-1980 Mercury Colony Park, 1977-1980 Mercury Cougar, 1977, 1979-1980 Mercury Grand Marquis, 1979-1980 Mercury Monarch, 1980 Mercury Zephyr FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP National Highway Traffic Safety Administration | Recall Page - 1 page |
