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If there is one car that stands out from the crowd it has to be the Ford Consul Mk,1, it really did change the face of motoring, it was fresh,though one would have thought it had just come across the Atlantic rather than from across town in Dagenham. George Walker a designer from Ford USA has been said to have been the person responsible.
Another strange fact was that in the late forties people either loved Fords or they hated them, perhaps it was the sit and beg Anglia and Prefect, the Consul changed peoples views of Ford, though not part of this there was also the Zephyr and the Zodiac, we were just throwing off the shackles of war and there were these three opulent models sitting in the local showroom.
The trio were ground breaking models with monocoque bodies which did away with a separate chassis, the passenger’s benefited from sitting between the axles which improved considerably the handling.
The first time for Ford, Earle Macpherson struts incorporating coil spring damper and suspension upright as one unit, okay Ford did not fit Disc brakes but hydraulic braking was applied to all four wheels.
Oversquare four cylinder engine made the most of relaxed taxation rules for the Consul.
Technically there was never a Mk1 Consul, it became so after production ceased and the Mk2 arrived, which we will deal with later.
Our Mk1 arrived on 2 January 1951, without a heater, that was extra, a 3 speed column change with syncro on 2nd and top, but the really brill thing was the front bench seat.
Half of Dagenham’s production was exported, which is not bad considering nearly a million of the combined models were made, naturally for unknown reasons Ford stuck to the ridiculous Vacuum operated windscreen wipers, there was an umbrella handbrake under the dashboard the later was minimal with speedo, battery charging and Fuel gauges.
At the back one got leaf spring suspension with a live axle.
There was a couple of specialized builders, Abotts of Farnham produced an estate version and Crayford a convertible. The official one was from Carbodies
Technical info, 1508cc engine, 4 cylinder producing 47bhp, the Consul was tested at 72 mph and could do the 0-60 in something like 28seconds, petrol consumption was around 26 to the gallon, I love this and a gallon cost about the equivalent of 20cent, yep a whole gallon.
You probably can get most spares though belonging to a dedicated Ford Club, would make life easier, there is given the age of the Consul quite an active buy and sell market, it is only a humble Ford but they do not come cheap, once again there is no great chorus shouting RUST, RUST.
In October 1953 all cars received restyled bright work with interior and equipment improvements, February 1956 saw the end of the line for the Mk1.
Before plunging into the Mk11, having been looking through the Ford Car Clubs there is not too much for the Mk1, the Mk11 does considerably better, as for sales and wanted, the answer is YES. Yes, these cars seem to be well and truly loved, spares for MK11 sites suggest not a problem, as a lover of Classic Cars I am thrilled.
Well the Mk11 arrived in 1956, how Dagenham coped with all the changes it must have been a challenge, if you look at the Mk11 it is an unadulterated copy of transatlantic models, actually the thunderbird and the fairlane it even managed to make the Mk1 somewhat old fashioned.
There is a story, well in 1956 I could be found hitch hiking on the A40 between Wales and London, One thing there wasn’t much money around doing National Service, and Ted would try to get home as much as possible, well the other side of Cheltenham what should pull up was a brand new Mk11 Consul, which took me as far as Tetsworth, the man had just picked it up from the dealers, pity I couldn’t afford a camera in those days.
The Mk11 had a shelf life of 6 years, the Consul range was uncomplicated, one got this transatlantic copy which it must be said tended to have a waggly tail which probably gave some interesting drives.
The power was up, to 1703cc though it was the old Mk1 engine bored out, braking improved, well by 1961 front discs were standard with a vacuum servo, and a better spec, after a short time the roof line was lowered which made the car even more desirable, one even got two tone paint jobs, just in case you thought I had forgotten them there was also a Zephyr and a Zodiac version. The three cars were known as the Three Graces.
To launch the Mk11 Ford hired Tottenham Hotspurs ground in White Hart Lane, can’t imagine the place was packed out, but that would depend on the number of “others” that came with the dealer’s, apparently it was a successful launch.
Suspension was no different to the Mk1 and the gearbox was the same three speed column change with syncro on second and top, there is one slight niggle, Ford have obviously spent a few millions developing what is a smart modern car but whoever could not manage to junk the vacuum windscreen wipers, lets not dwell on such things.
Top speed was now 79 to 80 mph and you could enthusiastically get to 60 mph from zero in 23 seconds and petrol disappeared at the rate of 22 mpg
There was of course an Estate version and a Carbodies convertible, which was quite popular.
There are a good number of clubs catering for the Consul, well also Zephyr and Zodiac plus an independent club, there is so much you would need to go surfing. I actually saw door panels at one site
You may wonder why I manage to give details of these clubs, well whilst we have a friendly helpful committee and club member’s the one thing we do not have is enough cars for these specialized one make clubs to flourish, and of course trying to get spares in Ireland can be difficult, so it makes sense to join a UK club for the benefits and of course the buying and selling of your chosen model. However you will not find another club like KMC
Have a look at this site if you can www.fivestars.co.uk
I was informed that one should remember to salute our Chairman’s Dagenham made Anglia if it passes by.
Ted Lay tedlay@gmail.com
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