Ford’s British Invasion
The story on how Ford spread its wings and entered the British market.
Back in 1903, Henry Ford’s fledgling Ford Motor Co. was aiming to put the world on wheels—wheels with the Ford name on them! One of the first overseas markets that Ford set his sights on was the United Kingdom, specifically jolly old England. In late 1903, a trio of Ford Model A runabouts was exported to England and proved to be quite popular. Later, Ford set up manufacturing facilities for the legendary Model T—fitted with right-hand drive to comply with the British road rules, of course—in England.
As American cars continued to improve and to get larger, the ”Yank Tanks” were a bit unwieldy on narrow urban British streets. Like other British car makers, Ford started to design vehicles that were more suited to the British suburban road system that were smaller in stature, were economical to own and operate, and were reliable.
At the end of World War II, Ford, like other car makers in England, was anxious to get back into production of civilian automobiles. Two prewar models, the Anglia (previously known as the Eight) and the Prefect (formerly the Ten) were put into production. While cars in the United States were becoming modern in their looks and their mechanics, those British who could afford a motorcar were happy just to get a new machine and were content with the cars’ prewar design well through the 1940s.
To raise much-needed capital in the years after the war, Ford of England started contributing to a growing export market. Primary markets were members of the Commonwealth, but a few Ford Anglias and Prefects were exported to the United States. Even in a car-hungry market, these under-powered compacts were a hard sell as American drivers wanted full-size vehicles for their postwar families. Americans also wanted more horsepower under the hoods than these British Fords could provide.
In 1950, a new English Ford Consul was introduced that featured modern and new slab-sided styling, unibody construction, heavier use of chrome trim and moldings (including a toothy vertical grille design) and a bit more power under the hood. A new overhead-valve, four--cylinder engine rated at 47 hp from its 1.5 liters offered enough pep for these cars to operate at U.S. highway speeds, and by 1953, the new Consul was being imported into the United States.
One of the most important contributions to the automotive world that the new Consul provided was the improved strut-style suspension designed and championed by Ford engineer Earle S. MacPherson. These new MacPherson struts were suited well for city driving, and also performed well on country roads. MacPherson strut-equipped Consuls became noted for their great handling and comfort in a small car package.
Ford of England really started to push its exports on U.S. drivers with the 1954 models. That year, three basic lines of British Fords were marketed in the United States, starting with the totally redesigned and all-new Anglia/Prefect series. Powered by a new overhead-valve, inline four-cylinder engine of 1172cc rated at 36 hp, the Anglia and Prefect were adequate for around-town driving. The Anglia was offered as a two-door sedan while the Prefect came as a four-door sedan. For 1956, the 100E Series was introduced on the Anglia and Prefect, and both models were offered in Standard and Deluxe versions. There was also the addition of a pair of station wagons, the base Escort and the deluxe Squire. As with U.S.-built Fords, the Squire feature faux wood side trim and a bit more bright trim and interior appointments. These models continued basically unchanged until 1959, when only the Deluxe trim was offered for the Anglia and Prefect; both station wagons were retained.
Joining the Anglia/Prefect in 1954 was the slightly larger Consul Mark I series. As with the lower-priced Anglia/Prefect, it also featured slab-side design as well as unibody construction. For those who liked sunshine, the Consul was offered as a convertible to accompany the four-door sedan. Priced at around $1,920, the Consul was among the lowest-priced convertibles available in the United States. This series employed the 47-hp,1.5-liter inline OHV four. Minor updates and trim variations continued for 1955 and 1956, with the Mark II series introduced mid 1956. Offered as the Series 204E, these models had updated styling and a 1.7-liter four that was now rated at 59 hp, giving it more power to keep up with most American cars. Both the four-door sedan and the convertible continued with the Mark II models, which would continue to be produced into the early 1960s.
For the top-of-the line experience in British Fords, the 1954 Zephyr Mark I was brought to America. A bit larger than the Consul and powered by a 68-hp inline six, the four-door sedan was about as luxurious as a British car owner could hope for, and for those with a flair for the dashing and sporty, a convertible was also offered. Where the Anglia and Consul both featured front grilles that were rectangular, the Zephyr stood out with its raised center section. Prices started at just under $1,900 for the four-door sedan, pricier than the domestic Ford Customline sedan with a six, while the convertible was tagged at $2,265, about $100 more than the base price of a full-size Ford Sunliner convertible!
In 1955, an upgraded trim package marketed as the Zodiac was introduced and added about $210 to the price of the base Zephyr sedan. For this extra money, the customer would receive a bit more chrome trim, upgraded fabrics, more sound deadener and some snazzy two-tone combinations. During the 1956 model year, Zephyr introduced its improved Mark II models as Series 206E. With an improved six-cylinder engine rated at 86 hp and displacing 2552cc, these cars were actually quite powerful and competitive on American roadways. Base models still carried the Zephyr nameplate with the deluxe Zodiacs being quite popular, despite price increases in 1957. That year, the Zodiac convertible’s port-of-entry (P.O.E.) price was set at $2,910, considerably more than a V-8-equipped domestic Fairlane 500 Sunliner convertible.
A concerted effort to market British Fords primarily through select Mercury dealerships was launched in late 1957. In January 1958, the recently launched (and failing) Edsel Division was merged with the existing Lincoln-Mercury corporate body, thus creating the M-E-L Division of Ford Motor Co. Under this umbrella, Ford placed its European automotive product sales, marketing, and service teams that would include the Anglia, Consul and Zephyr lines, as well as the popular Taunus models produced by Ford of Germany.
With few exceptions, sales of the British Fords barely registered in the overall U.S. sales race. During 1958, which was a generally dismal year in U.S. automotive sales, Mercury sales people often touted “Made in America” in press releases and published statements, rankling those dealers trying to sell British-built Fords.
Imports were gaining favor with American car buyers during the late 1950s. The 1957 import totals reported by “Ward’s Automotive Yearbook” totaled 259,343 units while the same sourced reported that 1958 saw that number jump by more than 60 percent to 430,808! Import sales continued to increase during the prosperous 1959 calendar year with growth by more than 64 percent to a whopping 668,070 cars!
During this time period, other British makes, particularly sports cars from Jaguar and Triumph and MG, were making successful inroads to the American car scene. Meanwhile, more pedestrian European makes such as Renault, Mercedes-Benz, Fiat and Opel were also making their mark on American roads. Of course, the king of the imports during the late 1950s and 1960s was a little wonder called Volkswagen. Still, Ford of England continued to produce proven models that found popularity in the home market as well as other nations in the British Commonwealth, such as Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
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