The Ford Falcon is a front-engine, rear-drive six passenger compact car produced by Ford from 1959 to 1970, across three generations. Introduced on September 2, 1959, the Falcon was a sales success for Ford initially, outselling contemporary rivals from Chrysler and General Motors, from October 8, 1959, the Falcon was offered in two-door and four-door sedan, two-door and four-door station wagon, two-door hardtop, convertible, sedan delivery and Ranchero pickup body configurations. For several years, the Falcon name was also used on passenger versions of the Ford Econoline van.
The Falcon's television marketing featured the first animated appearances of the characters from Charles Schulz's acclaimed comic strip, Peanuts, with announcer contribution from Paul Frees.
Variations of the Ford Falcon were manufactured in Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile and Mexico. Early Mexican built versions of the Ford Maverick used the Falcon Maverick name.
Second generation (MY 1964–1965)
The second generation 1964 Falcon, launched in 1963, featured revised, more squared-off styling. Later in the 1964 model year, Ford's new offering for that market was launched: the Ford Mustang, based heavily on the Falcon's unified frame design. TV commercials now used the character Hazel as well as the Peanuts cartoon characters. The Ford Motor Company was a sponsor of the show, and also sponsored The Ford Show during the late 1950s. For the 1964 year, Ford added a Sprint Package, which gave the Falcon the Fairlane's 260 V8, a stiffer suspension, and a louder exhaust. Because the Mustang had the same options that the Sprint had for only a small amount more, the Sprint never caught on. Even with the addition of the 289 V8 in late 1964, the Sprint was overshadowed by the Mustang, and was discontinued after 1965. The Mustang dealt Falcon sales in North America a blow from which they would never recover. Front suspension was coil springs pivot-mounted on upper arms plus double-acting absorbers. Six-cylinder cars had four-lug hubs with 13-in steel wheels. V-8 cars got five-lug wheels. For 1965, changes were minimal, including a simpler grille and revised side trim on deluxe models. Production ended on June 26, 1965, for convertible Falcons. A padded instrument panel, power steering, power brakes, a radio, a remote-control trunk release, and a parking brake warning light were optional.
From 1965, the three-speed Cruise-O-Matic automatic transmission was available. Front seat belts were standard.
Source: Wikipedia
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