Ford Taunus | |
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Overview | |
Manufacturer | Ford Germany |
Production | 1939–1994 |
Body and chassis | |
Class | Mid-size car |
Chronology | |
Predecessor | Ford Eifel, Ford Köln (midsize) Ford Rheinland (full size) |
Successor | Ford Sierra (midsize) Ford Granada (full size) |
The Ford Taunus is a family car that was sold by Ford Germany throughout Europe. Models from 1970 onward were built on the same basic construction as the Ford Cortina MkIII in the United Kingdom, and later on, the two car models were essentially the same, differing almost only in the placement of the steering wheel. The model line was named after the Taunus mountain range in Germany, and was first made in 1939, and continued through several versions until 1994.
The Ford Taunus G93A was a development of the Ford Eifel, and used the same 1172 cc four cylinder engine, but in a longer chassis and a streamlined body. It was the first German Ford to have hydraulic brakes. First introduced in 1939, production was halted in 1942 due to the war. Production recommenced in November 1948 after the British Occupation had ended. [1] In total, 7,128 pre-war Taunuses (G93A) were made, including estate cars and light vans, followed by 76,590 post-war models (G73A). [2]
From 1952 to 1968, all German Fords were called the Taunus, using the model names 12M, 15M, 17M, 20M, and 26M (on some Scandinavian markets, for a short while the branding 10M was used on a slightly better-equipped export version of the early Taunus, which is said to be the precursor of later uses). The "M" is said to stand for "Meisterstück", in English "Masterpiece", but that word was found to be already registered by another German automaker. Taunus was also sometimes adopted as the brand name in export markets, particularly where British and North American Fords were also available.
The 12M, 15M, and 17M models had an engine, which in the first 12M was a carryover of the sidevalve (flathead) engine from the first Taunus series, and beginning with the 15M, it was replaced by an overhead-valve design similar to the British Ford Consul engine. With the introduction of the new 12M line (internal code P4) for 1962 came the V4 engine, which starting in late 1964 with the larger 17M/20M became the base engine for the Taunus M-series. The 20M and 26M models had the Ford Cologne V6 engine, which is basically the same engine design with two extra cylinders added. The 12, 15, 17, etc. numbers refer to the engine displacement; 1200, 1500, 1700 cc, etc. However, a few exceptions from that rule were made, such as 17M 1800, which was powered by the V6 in its smallest displacement and the 20M 2300S (in the later P7 series), which used a 2.3-litre version of the same engine.
From 1962 to 1970, the smaller models 12M (P4) and its successor 12M/15M (P6) had front wheel drive. All other models had rear wheel drive.
These models were offered:
The Taunus 12M presented in 1952 was the first new German Ford after World War II. It featured ponton styling, similar in style to British Ford Zephyr.
Something else the new Ford Taunus 12M had in common with British Fords was the retention of an old side-valve engine at a time when competitors were increasingly moving over to overhead-valve units. [3] The Taunus 15M used a new and more powerful engine:
Body styles were two-door sedan, two-door station wagon, and sedan delivery.
The second generation 12M was not a new car, but a reworking of the 1952 model. All cars were called 12M, though both engines were continued. The car with the bigger engine was called Taunus 12M 1.5-litre.
Body styles were the same as in the 1952 model.
The new Ford Taunus 12M P4 was similar in size, but a completely new car based on the Ford Cardinal project: New body, new V4 engine, front-wheel drive. It was the first Ford car with front-wheel drive (second was the Ford Corcel, third was the Ford Fiesta). Engines available included:
Body styles were two-door sedan, four-door sedan, two-door coupé, two-door station wagon, and sedan delivery.
The Ford Taunus P6 came with new bodies, whilst engines and platform were continued. The car with the bigger engine was now called 15M again. Engines available included:
Body styles were unchanged from the P4.
In 1970, the P6 was replaced by the Taunus TC.
Growing prosperity in postwar Germany encouraged Ford to offer a line of bigger and more expensive cars. The Ford Taunus 17M of 1957 was as long as (though significantly narrower than) the British Consul Mk2, but a different car. It presented a style similar to American 1955 Fords, featuring substantial (at least by European standards) tailfins. The transatlantic flamboyance of the car's styling gained it the sobriquet "Baroque Taunus", showing styling influences from the North American Mercury Monterey of the same time period. Unusually for middle-class German cars of this period, it was available with either two or four doors. [4] The competition noticed, and from 1959, buying an Opel Rekord with four doors was possible.
The P2 used an overhead-valve (OHV) engine with 1698 cc and 60 hp (45 kW). A maximum speed of 128 km/h (80 mph) was quoted. A road test of the time commended the smoothness of the three-speed, all-synchromesh manual transmission system. [4]
The Ford Taunus P3 had a completely new body in a very modern style. The look of car reminded some critics of a bath tub, and it consequently gained the soubriquet "Taunus Badewanne". [5] At a time when competitors boasted that all four corners of the vehicles were visible from the driver's seat, the new Taunus instead offered a streamlined form. [6] However, in Germany the concept of streamlining in cars was associated with narrow passenger cabins reminiscent of the 1930s and of the still popular Volkswagen Beetle. [6] The new Taunus, however, provided greater interior width than its predecessor, despite being no wider on the outside. [6] Although the 1.7-litre version was launched with the same 60 PS power output as the outgoing model, the new model was a full 10 km/h (6 mph) faster, which was attributed to improved aerodynamics and a lighter body shell. [6] The front end styling is reminiscent of the 1961 U.S. Ford Thunderbird and Lincoln Continental.
Three engine sizes were now offered:
The Ford Taunus P5 came with a new body and new engines. The 17M now gets a V4 engine:
New 20M gets a V6 engine with 1.8-litres and 82 hp (61 kW), or 2.0-litres (1998 cc) and 85 or 90 hp (63 or 67 kW) with a top speed of 158 or 161 km/h (98 or 100 mph). Again, it was a good selling car.[ citation needed ]
For the new Ford P7, there was a new body; engines and platform were carried over from the P5. Rear lights were no longer mounted at corners. The 20M-model had a fake air scoop on the bonnet and a new, bigger engine.
The engines of the 17M/20M P5 were continued, with only one addition on the top end. It was the
Shrinking sales of the P7 forced Ford to offer a restyled car only one year later, and the new car was again called P7. Rear lights again mounted on corners. Here, to avoid confusion, it was called P7.2, sometimes it is called P7b. The name "Taunus" no longer used.
The 26M, introduced in 1969, is the top-of-the-line version with a new bigger engine (2.6-litres), bigger brakes, dual headlights, power steering, and the most luxurious trim level. V6-engines were slightly revised. The engine programme is enlarged; now, two base engines (V4 and V6) in six displacement sizes and nine power stages are available:
The Ford 20M RS Coupé was made in Germany as a (2300 S) P7b and (2600) P7b. In the 1968 London-Sydney Marathon, Ford entered three Ford 20M RS from Germany and Belgium. In 1969, a Ford 20M RS won the Safari and occasionally a Capri was seen with works involvement.
This is the last specifically German Ford. In early 1972, it is replaced by the new Consul and Granada.
In 1970 a new Taunus, the Taunus Cortina (TC), was introduced. Ford offered a two- or four-door sedan or a five-door station wagon/estate (identified like previous Taunus estates as the Turnier). Between 1970 and 1975, for the first Taunus TC, a fashionable fast-back coupé was also included in the Taunus range.
This model also formed the basis of the Cortina Mk.III, but with different door skins and rear wing pressings from the "coke-bottle" styling of the Cortina. In addition, there was never a Cortina III equivalent to the fast-back bodied Taunus TC coupé. The Taunus TC and Cortina Mk.III were both developed under the auspices of Ford of Europe, and most major components including key parts of the bodyshell were identical.
At the end of November 1975, in time for the 1976 model year, production began of the Taunus series "GBTS". The Taunus and Cortina Mk IV were in most cases now almost identical, apart from regional variations (in terms of specification changes and trim levels).
The Taunus TC along with the Cortina Mk III and their successors have been produced in slightly updated forms in Europe, Argentina and widely across Asia by Ford or their local co-operators. Cortinas were also built in small numbers starting with the predecessor Cortina Mk II throughout the model series' European/east Asian lifespan under license by Korean automaker Hyundai. This led to the Cortina 80 at the end of its production life serving as a starting point for the first Hyundai Stellar which succeeded the Cortina line in South Korea, handing over some major technical components such as the steering rack and the transmission propelling shaft to the otherwise non-Ford successor.
In 1982 production of the Taunus ceased in Europe; it was replaced by the Ford Sierra. The Sierra carried over the Cortina/Taunus OHC Pinto Engines and RWD configuration but was otherwise an all new car with independent suspension all round.
The Taunus was produced in Argentina from 1974 up until the end of 1984, when the production assembly was sold to Turkey to manufacture the Otosan Taunus. The Turkish car, easily distinguishable because of its remolded front and back panels continued in production until 1994.
The Ford Cortina is a medium-sized family car manufactured in various body styles from 1962 to 1984. It was the United Kingdom's best-selling car of the 1970s.
The Ford Sierra is a mid-size/large family car manufactured and marketed by Ford of Europe from 1982–1993, designed by Uwe Bahnsen, Robert Lutz and Patrick Le Quément — and noted for its aerodynamic styling producing a drag coefficient of 0.34, a significant improvement over its predecessors.
The name Ford Corsair was used both for a car produced by Ford of Britain between 1963 and 1970, and for an unrelated Nissan-based automobile marketed by Ford Australia between 1989 and 1992.
The Ford Consul is a car that was manufactured by Ford of Britain from 1951 until 1962. The name was later revived for a model produced by Ford in both the UK and in Germany from 1972 until 1975.
The Ford Taunus V4 engine is a 60° V4 piston engine with one balance shaft, introduced by Ford Motor Company in Germany in 1962. The German V4 was built in the Cologne plant and powered the Ford Taunus and German versions of the Consul, Capri, and Transit.
The Ford Cologne V6 is a series of 60° cast iron block V6 engines produced by the Ford Motor Company from 1962 to 2011 in displacements between 1.8 L; 110.6 cu in (1,812 cc) and 4.0 L; 244.6 cu in (4,009 cc). Originally, the Cologne V6 was installed in vehicles intended for Germany and Continental Europe, while the unrelated British Essex V6 was used in cars for the British market. Later, the Cologne V6 largely replaced the Essex V6 for British-market vehicles. These engines were also used in the United States, especially in compact trucks.
The Ford Sidevalve is a side valve from the British arm of the Ford Motor Company, often also referred to as the "English Sidevalve". The engine had its origins in the 1930s Ford Model Y, and was made in two sizes, 933 cc (56.9 cu in) or "8 HP", and 1,172 cc (71.5 cu in) or "10 HP".
The Peugeot 305 is a medium-sized car produced by the French automaker Peugeot from 1977 to 1989. It was offered as a four-door saloon, five-door estate, and as a three-door van derivative.
Ford of Europe GmbH is a subsidiary company of Ford Motor Company founded in 1967 in Cork, Ireland, with headquarters in Cologne, Germany.
The European Ford Granada is an executive car manufactured by Ford Europe from 1972 until 1994.
The Ford P100 is a car-based pickup truck that was built by Ford from 1971 to 1995, initially in South Africa, and later Portugal. It was based on medium-sized Ford passenger cars, originally the Cortina/Taunus and from 1988 the Ford Sierra. Initially marketed as the Ford Cortina Pickup, the P100 name was adopted in 1982. The P-100 name had previously been used on a small North American panel van in the 1960s.
The Ford Taunus G93A is a small family car that was produced by Ford Germany between 1939 and 1942 in succession to the Ford Eifel. It was the first car developed at Cologne by Ford Germany which previously had built cars originated by Ford businesses in the US or the UK. Production began on 30 April 1939, with the first car exhibited to the public in June 1939, less than six months before the outbreak of war in Europe.
The Ford Taunus P1 is a small family car which was produced by Ford Germany from 1952 until 1962. It was marketed as the Ford Taunus 12M, and, between 1955 and 1959, as the larger-engined Ford Taunus 15M. The company produced a succession of Ford Taunus 12M models until 1970, as the name was applied to a succession of similarly sized cars, but the first Taunus 12M models, based on the company's Taunus Project 1 (P1), remained in production only until 1962. In that year the Taunus P1 series was replaced by the Taunus P4 series.
The Ford Taunus 17 M is a middle sized family saloon/sedan that was produced by Ford Germany between August 1957 and August 1960. The Taunus 17M name was also applied to subsequent Ford models which is why the car is usually identified, in retrospect, as the Ford Taunus P2. It was the second newly designed German Ford to be launched after the war and for this reason it was from inception known within the company as Ford Project 2 (P2) or the Ford Taunus P2.
The Ford Taunus 17 M is a middle sized family saloon/sedan that was produced by Ford Germany between September 1960 and August 1964. The Taunus 17M name had been applied to the car's predecessor and it would apply also to subsequent Ford models which is why the 17M introduced in 1960 is usually identified, in retrospect, as the Ford Taunus P3. It was the third newly designed German Ford to be launched after the war and for this reason it was from inception known within the company as Ford Project 3 (P3) or the Ford Taunus P3.
The Ford Taunus 17 M is a middle-weight family saloon/sedan that was produced by Ford Germany between 1964 and 1967. The entire range was first presented in September 1964 and volume production of the two and four door saloons/sedans began in November 1964. The "Turnier" version followed in January 1965 with coupé bodied cars coming along some time later.
The Ford Taunus 12 M is a range of large family saloons/sedans that were produced by Ford Germany between 1966 and 1970. There were two different engine sizes in the 12M. Two larger engines were available in the otherwise very similar Ford Taunus 15 M. From the outside the 15M was differentiated by its grill and rectangular headlights from the 12M which had round front lights. A complicating feature was the availability, at extra cost, of one of the larger engines from the 15M in the 12M.
The Ford P7 is a range of large family saloons/sedans produced by Ford Germany between autumn 1967 and December 1971. The P7 was marketed as the Ford 17M, Ford 20M and Ford 26M.
The Opel Rekord P1 was a large family car introduced in August 1957, in time for the Frankfurt Motor Show, by Opel as a replacement for the previous year's Opel Olympia Rekord. It was larger than its predecessor and featured an eye-catching US-style wrap-around windscreen and rear window, reminiscent of its General Motors Luton-built cousin, the Vauxhall Victor F, which had appeared in England a few months earlier.
The Opel Rekord Series A is a large family car introduced in March 1963, by Opel as a replacement for the Opel Rekord P2. It was fractionally shorter but also wider than its predecessor with a wheelbase approximately 10 cm longer.
Preceded by: Ford V8 G78 Ford Rheinland | Taunus 17M/20M/26M (1957–1971) | Succeeded by: Ford Granada |
Preceded by: Ford Eifel Ford Köln | Taunus G73A/G93A (1939–1951) | Taunus 12M/15M (1952–1970) | Ford Taunus (1970–1982) | Succeeded by: Ford Sierra |