My dad owned one of these a k Reg 1973 2.5 litre manual model He bought it even after the 73 oil crisis one year old for a relative song. He wanted a good tow car for the caravan Superb inside - my dad sold quality furniture and to say it was more comfortable than sitting at home is no small compliment. My bro and I called it the cornflake packet and he kept it just long enough so I was old enough for me to drive it . I remember that long gate on the gear change and very very solid build but Boy was it expensive on fuel after 73 which is what killed it- the market response to that was for expensive small cars for a while but you felt like a king driving it me taking care not to rev the engine between gear changes! And that tyre so heavy to lift out... the front!!! (completely forgot) Fond memories of a car from another era.
I had the full blown Executive many years ago. Best car i have ever owned. Far more comfortable that the furniture indoors. They were known as the car with a billiard table bonnet.
😂had two in the seventies, second j reg executive auto in bronze, smooth very comfortable and could shift for a car its size ,people criticise them but i loved mine loved driving it, got an s class w221 Mercedes now had it for years but would snap up a good zodiac if i saw one and enjoy both
I worked as a mechanic at the local Ford main dealers in the 60's and 70's,and these were my favourite cars to work on ! When the Essex 3 litre V6 was set up correctly, they were silky smooth and quiet ! Didn't care for the V4 engine though, sounded harsh and was to small for a car that size. Miss those days !
Wish they styled cars today to look like this. I love the look of it. Huge bonnet, big comfy seats. What's not to like? Add in A/C, sat nav, turbo, LED lights, etc.,... brilliant. I'd have one.
An uncle had one of these when they first came out here in NZ. I thought it was wonderful. Took us for a drive in the country doing about 70 mph all the way.
My first car was a Zodiac Executive, a year older but higher spec than this one, featuring a manual sunroof, bench front seat and column shift. It was top of the Ford line-up but really basic by later standards. For example, it had no A/C, no heated rear window, wind-up windows and no steering lock. You'd pretty much have to move up to a Jag to get electric windows, although I do remember Vauxhall had a rival model called Viscount that had them. I thought I was the bees knees because I had a push-button mono radio! Shops like Halfords did a roaring trade in aftermarket electric window kits (which invariably broke inside a month), stick-on rear window heater elements, electrically extending radio aerials and 8-track tape players boasting a princely 5 watts per channel which you could fast-forward but not rewind. But at least we could drive where we wanted, find a place to park when we got there and not have to pay through the nose for doing so. Ah memories!
We had one of these in gold as our wedding limo, to go to the reception. Our wedding was very 70's ! There is a lot of gold, and beige, in our photos....... Yes, I remember they didn't have electric windows, very surprising. You're right about the Viscount, too, which had them all round. Mind you, that was the best thing about it! I did get to drive a Zodiac, on hire, for a day - I really didn't want to give it back! It was thirsty, though, about 16 mpg. I had a Mk 1 Cortina then. To be fair about mpg, even the Cortina (1200 cc) only managed about 25 mpg. That was cars back then. My Skoda Superb diesel, which is like the nearest equivalent to the Zodiac today, (i.e. a relatively cheap big car) can manage 60 mpg on a clear run! I had such a thing about electric windows that I engineered my own on the Cortina, using windscreen wiper motors. People were amazed to see them! I did spend a lot of time repairing them and modifying the design. Eventually I sold the car, and I wondered how long they would hold up for the new owner.
@@oldschoolguy2775 Your comment has reminded me of the electric window kits they used to sell mail order from the classified ads in the motoring press. I admit I tried my luck once but once was enough. An object lesson in how to make your car interior look like crap!
My old man had a coach painted Executive which I got to ride around in as a 18 year old. First car I did a ‘ton’ in. Marvellous car. Quick edit, it was from a dealer called Gates in East London.
My Dad had one of these, wonderful cars. We were on holiday in Cornwall (no self-respecting Brit went on holiday abroad in those days) when it conked out at night on a blind bend, so we had to push it for a mile before we found civilisation. When I think back to what could have happened to us, no lights on the car, no street lighting and a blind bend. Eeek!
I strongly suspect that the reason why there doesn’t seem to be a discrepancy between the colour on the various different panels is that it may have been beautifully resprayed! 😂🤣😂🤣
It was already unusual to see these when I was a kid in the 70s. Always loved the vast appearance of them. I guess they're only the size of a modern Passat
Amazing!! The dreaded tin worm just loves cars from this era, very little in the way of rust proofing. A neighbour of ours had one in the same colour in the early 70's and I thought it was dead fugly! 😂 Not so much the huge bonnet but the rear end killed it. A nice engine those V6's though and easy to work on. My Dad had a 2.5 in a '75 Consul and a 3.0 in a Mk1 Granada in '76, that was a beauty👍. I had a 3.0 Capri GT in '78.
Mean car, I had one once, when the V6 died I put a 289 V8 from a XR Falcon in it, made it a beast, lovely cars shame about the distributor drive issue.
My dad had one. There was 7 of us, mum, dad and 5 kids. We went for a day out and bumped into my aunt and uncle with their 6 kids. My dad gave them a lift home, 15 people in the car 😂
Remember going in one of these when I was around 16, it was a taxi. The owner of the firms daughter picked me up, she was a couple of years older than me and I had a massive crush on her when we were at school. Remember it like it was yesterday and can still remember how smooth and comfortable the car was. Great video, brought back some happy memories 👍
My dad had the Executive version in a light metallic blue after he sold his JagMk2, ended up backwards in a side road after trying to take a roundabout at the same speed as the Jag! I remember it being huge but its actually probbaby smaller than the last of the Mondeos.
Also nicknamed a Daganam Dustbin 😂 I also hired a Zephyr 6 one for a week's holiday with my mates. Bench seats back and front, column gear change, it just swallowed 6 and our luggage for a week in a caravan at Skegness. Happy simpler days!!
My eldest brother had the estate version which was massive, which was ideal having six kids and boating equipment was ideal. It was white with a vinyl roof, eight track plus roof rack. We were a Ford family but not anymore, this when they made cars you wanted
Oh the memories …. I worked on the Deep Sea Fishing Trawler Marretta back in the early 1970’s sailing out of Fleetwood (Lancashire) … when we got paid (in cash!) we were called 3 day millionaire’s … because we had 3 days off before our next fishing trip (to Iceland) because I was from Manchester I used to get a taxi home to Manchester from Fleetwood ( it was £5.00) and I always got a gold Ford Zodiac exactly like this one …. I really felt like a millionaire when my mates watched me arriving home in one of these … Ahhhhh Memories ….
Lovely. When I was a Kid in Nairobi in 1966, these came out. I remember the Kenya original number plate KKS 007. Not a personal plate, they registered it properly. Happy days.
Used to get them down the auction at Hounslow £80 in the 70s. Dad had a good few tough old barges. Great engine . Proper bench seat and column change. So cool
Yeh mate, snap ! Bought a few of these in the 70’s at Warwick Car Auction round about the £50 mark. Omitted to bid for a Lotus Cortina down there one week for £80 !!! Still makes me cringe thinking about it.
2 weeks after passing my driving test in a Mini I was asked to drive a Zephyr 6 with Abbot estate conversion. Surprisingly easy to cope with the size as you could see the corners of the bonnet clearly. Only big difference was the handling. Comfortable but did not like taking corners fast. The exterior is superb. Pity about the dashboard.
My dad had one, also a mrk 3 Zodiac, the three was a nicer car. The four is famous for the destruction of rear tyres if you carry any weight and the motors were also good at burning oil at around 70,000 mls. We couldn't wait to see the arse end of it. Had a great car after that, a Valiant, hemi 245, then a 74 Ford Fairlane 500, probably the best car my father ever owned, tough, seriously reliable and above all, massive.
My Father bought a white one in 1973.It sounded great due to wide bore rear exhaust,it was automatic and was not easy to start, it had an automatic choke that was temperamental.
I had one of these,it was like driving a huge sofa and cornered like it as well,the police got rid of them because of their road holding or lack of it.
I have an early childhood memory from the 1970s of the chimney sweep who came to clean out our chimney turning up in one of these. He had a large barrel shaped hoover, which he kept in the boot.
In NZ these 3 litre Essex engines were installed in the lower spec Zephyr, which propelled them (with a manual 4 speed) to exactly 103mph. I know, because flat out that was the top speed of my commercial traveller car along the Ruakaka Flat near Whangarei in the Nth Island. Acceleration was brisk, but the valve clearances were a tad clattery as a design feature apparently. Great four wheel discs! Good handling. A VERY LONG bonnet in front of you. Quite a different car to the preceding Mark111 inline six! : )
My Uncle had a Zodiac Executive in white. Just remember all the clocks in the car(Loved it as an 8 year old) The rear reflector with concealed petrol flap was so cool
When I was 12 or 13 years old I used to walk past a large posh house with one of these parked outside. I honestly thought it was the best looking car ever and I said, one day I'll have one of those. This never happened, because I couldn't find a decent example once I passed my test. I'm 66 now and still think they look fantastic.
A nearby neighbour in my sreet owned a brand spanking new one of these back in the day. It was a gorgeous ice-blue type colour. Very few of these were seen in the my part of the South Wales Valleys back then I can assure you. My neighbour owned a few local shops so probably not short of a bob or two.
Good looking car, no question. . I was privileged to own VGB493R ( or 2R Memory is screwed) not a Zodiac,a Mk1 Granada 3.0 Litre ghia Mk 1 Biggest regret of, my automotive life was letting go of my beautiful Granada. Neptune Blue, Black Vinyl roof, sweeny( style) spotlights, gold alloys❤️.
My dad had the same car in that exact colour...as a kid....I still remember that the rear reflectors went the full width of the back. Which as 8 year old, I thought was the coolest thing.
My dad came home one day from work in Dagenham and old us about the enormous bonnet on this new model they had started making. The lads had got a bonnet on the floor and put a small table and four chairs on it and four of them sat around it. Sounds like fun. One of his mates was taking bits of cortina home everyday, with help, to put a car together at home, freebie!
Loads of my family worked in halewood building the escort. The trick they had was to order a popular, get the order number and by the time it came out of the plant it had every extra you could get 😂
@@robinburn4974 It's a very old joke. A bloke in the army posted jeep parts home every week... or else the guy down the docks, where security guards used to search his wheelbarrow on his way home every night - found nothing. Turns out the guy had stolen thousands of wheelbarrows.
Father had four "Mark of Distinction" Mk IV Zodiacs. His 1966 manual in black cherry (£1268) spent weeks in the dealership's workshop, going through a simply massive number of modifications and recalls. The 1968 silver fox automatic replacement got 14"radial tyres to replace the 13" cross plies, and that wonderful star atop the bonnet. Both had the black vinyl interior in which we sweltered during the summer months. The other two, venetian the amber gold, were Executives, with leather, electric windows and ariels were wonderful.and trouble free - though used no less petrol!
Owned 3 Mk4 Zephyrs and loved them.But was always under the back end winding on the "self adjusting" brake calipers.Also the McPherson struts had to be plated always.But still loved 'em.
Saw one of these in country Victoria (Aust) when I was in secondary school (late 60's). All others Zephyrs in town were single headlilght versions. Interesting car. Enjoyed the video. Many thanks, but need an aspro for my headache after following the rapid and jerky camera work.
Can remember learning to drive in my older brothers zoddy…other than being huge (in the day), I remember thinking there should be another gear between second and third (4sp column shift) as the gap was so large the revs dropped right back. Also remember crawling around underneath it loving the independent back end
We had a lot of these in NZ. It was found they could swallow any US V8 and soon it was hard to find a V6 powered one. I have seen everything from a 253 Holden to big block ford and chev engines in them. The best swap was probably the 289-302 engines hooked up to the original 4 speed as they were not much heavier than the V6.
@Gavin Pruden oz and no certainly had some of the best cars of that era - I’m envious - back here in Uk the 3 litre Essex v6 was a big engine , only bettered by the rover( Buick) v8 and the jag 4.2 and v12 , most of us had to put up with Ford cortina’s with low powered 4 cylinders although they seemed quite rapid for the time , these zodiac 3 litres were fords ugly duckling but now with older eyes I can see the appeal of em - all the old stuff is getting rare now - wish I’d known back then! 🍻 cheers
Yeah, as a 'kid' I could never understand why the poms would design and build a car with a big enough engine bay for a V8 then go and drop a little V6 in there. Made no sense to me. At least carry the Mk3 straight 6 over. Weird.
@David Ireland. I think it was all down to government vehicle taxing brackets and maybe what markets Ford were gonna try and sell these zodiacs into - the Uk has always been a sad ass country when it comes to motoring - I really do envy you growing up where you did at that time - the 3 litre Ford capri’s were strong though , had many a good race in mine back in the day - Good memories but sad looking back now living in todays sterile hell .
We called them the Dagenam Dustbin noted for hi fuel consumption.At one time I used as V four version to pull a bike trailer to and from a scramble meeting and ran out of petrol miles from any where in desperation I tipped half a gallon of expensive methanol normally used for motor cycle racing,which saved the day until I reached a regular fill up.During this methonal journey the car behaved badly as methonal is vey low calory needing big main jets and runs cool. Anyway after filling with regular unleaded the car seemed to run cleaner and sweeter as if it had had a good de coke.
Used to pass a car showroom with Mk 4s on the way home from junior school. They looked enormous. I don't think anyone would call the Zephyr/Zodiacs pretty cars, though the bathtub Mk I is of its era.
A lot of people criticise these, but I think they're really cool, very imposing. Even if you can see the similarity with the Cortina aft of the windscreen.
Great video, lovely car - I remember these in the days of my youth, there was a Zephyr 4 and a Zephyr 6 then they brought out the Zodiac, it was always a dream car of mine along with that Rover V8 (P3????) The big 3.5 litre.
@@tonymercer265 Spot on. The P5 was a straight six 3 litre. The P5 B was a v8 3.5 that went on into everything for many years. The B was for Buick as it was a scaled down size engine of Buick design. I had a P5B and it was a lovely car. The easy way to tell the two apart apart from the year of build was the extra lights in the front wings of the B.
I worked as a mechanic in the '70s and the garage used to service a couple of these. Really awkward engine to service, especially the V4 as it was situated really at the back of the engine bay and had the spare tyre positioned at the front of the bay. You could hardly see the engine never mind work on it. And these were the days of adjusting tappets, points and so on. Rear brake callipers prone to seizing every day etc etc. Well insulated and quiet interior though, and when steering it seemed as though the enormous bonnet kept pointing straight ahead, and the scenery and road was turning around and disappearing under the car.
Me and my mates had a black one same model in the early 1970s fantastic motor this on is a beautiful example how could Britain build cars like this until British Leyland came along and devastated the car manufacturing business
Had an aubergine mk4 exec bench seat sun roofed version a h reg car 1 year old drove it for 16 years to 116000 miles never problem as long as serviced frequently .sold it in 1987 for a nice profit .superb car.
I did a bodyshell swap on one of these back in the day; biiiiiiig job, took a while as I had to paint it first. Lovely car, colour was rich dark brown, can't remember its proper name.
My dad owned one of these a k Reg 1973 2.5 litre manual model He bought it even after the 73 oil crisis one year old for a relative song. He wanted a good tow car for the caravan Superb inside - my dad sold quality furniture and to say it was more comfortable than sitting at home is no small compliment. My bro and I called it the cornflake packet and he kept it just long enough so I was old enough for me to drive it . I remember that long gate on the gear change and very very solid build but Boy was it expensive on fuel after 73 which is what killed it- the market response to that was for expensive small cars for a while but you felt like a king driving it me taking care not to rev the engine between gear changes! And that tyre so heavy to lift out... the front!!! (completely forgot) Fond memories of a car from another era.
I had the full blown Executive many years ago. Best car i have ever owned. Far more comfortable that the furniture indoors. They were known as the car with a billiard table bonnet.
I had the E. Never had furniture as good, or wide
My dad had the executive back in the 70s fantastic car to drive
I had one, loved it. I was an apprentice pipefitter, so by the time I had paid for petrol I almost had to become teetotal 🤔
Same for me. Like a mobile gentlemen’s club.
Good for 53 years old , certainly a wonderful survivor.. Those bonnets were huge to see over.
Keep it stock and natural ❤️🙏🙌
Had one in the seventies,called it the flight deck Ford because of the bonnet 🤭
Rode in the back of my friend’s dad’s back in 1971, it seemed as big as a cruise ship inside!
😂had two in the seventies, second j reg executive auto in bronze, smooth very comfortable and could shift for a car its size ,people criticise them but i loved mine loved driving it, got an s class w221 Mercedes now had it for years but would snap up a good zodiac if i saw one and enjoy both
I worked as a mechanic at the local Ford main dealers in the 60's and 70's,and these were my favourite cars to work on !
When the Essex 3 litre V6 was set up correctly, they were silky smooth and quiet ! Didn't care for the V4 engine though,
sounded harsh and was to small for a car that size. Miss those days !
Had a v4 in a transit about 1980 ridiculous 🇦🇺
Wish they styled cars today to look like this. I love the look of it. Huge bonnet, big comfy seats. What's not to like? Add in A/C, sat nav, turbo, LED lights, etc.,... brilliant. I'd have one.
An uncle had one of these when they first came out here in NZ. I thought it was wonderful. Took us for a drive in the country doing about 70 mph all the way.
My first car was a Zodiac Executive, a year older but higher spec than this one, featuring a manual sunroof, bench front seat and column shift. It was top of the Ford line-up but really basic by later standards. For example, it had no A/C, no heated rear window, wind-up windows and no steering lock. You'd pretty much have to move up to a Jag to get electric windows, although I do remember Vauxhall had a rival model called Viscount that had them. I thought I was the bees knees because I had a push-button mono radio! Shops like Halfords did a roaring trade in aftermarket electric window kits (which invariably broke inside a month), stick-on rear window heater elements, electrically extending radio aerials and 8-track tape players boasting a princely 5 watts per channel which you could fast-forward but not rewind. But at least we could drive where we wanted, find a place to park when we got there and not have to pay through the nose for doing so. Ah memories!
Fantastic comment with great history of days gone by, many thanks for that 👏👏👍
We had one of these in gold as our wedding limo, to go to the reception. Our wedding was very 70's ! There is a lot of gold, and beige, in our photos.......
Yes, I remember they didn't have electric windows, very surprising. You're right about the Viscount, too, which had them all round. Mind you, that was the best thing about it! I did get to drive a Zodiac, on hire, for a day - I really didn't want to give it back! It was thirsty, though, about 16 mpg. I had a Mk 1 Cortina then. To be fair about mpg, even the Cortina (1200 cc) only managed about 25 mpg. That was cars back then. My Skoda Superb diesel, which is like the nearest equivalent to the Zodiac today, (i.e. a relatively cheap big car) can manage 60 mpg on a clear run!
I had such a thing about electric windows that I engineered my own on the Cortina, using windscreen wiper motors. People were amazed to see them! I did spend a lot of time repairing them and modifying the design. Eventually I sold the car, and I wondered how long they would hold up for the new owner.
@@oldschoolguy2775 Your comment has reminded me of the electric window kits they used to sell mail order from the classified ads in the motoring press. I admit I tried my luck once but once was enough. An object lesson in how to make your car interior look like crap!
My old man had a coach painted Executive which I got to ride around in as a 18 year old. First car I did a ‘ton’ in. Marvellous car. Quick edit, it was from a dealer called Gates in East London.
My Dad had one of these, wonderful cars. We were on holiday in Cornwall (no self-respecting Brit went on holiday abroad in those days) when it conked out at night on a blind bend, so we had to push it for a mile before we found civilisation. When I think back to what could have happened to us, no lights on the car, no street lighting and a blind bend. Eeek!
I strongly suspect that the reason why there doesn’t seem to be a discrepancy between the colour on the various different panels is that it may have been beautifully resprayed! 😂🤣😂🤣
Looking at the very bottom of the front grill..............................that is.
Yes - straight over the rust on the bottom of the doors...
@@ACD54 that seems a rude thing to say, - do you actually know that to be the case? I mean why would they want to?🤔
@@philtucker1224 well the rust is older than the paint. Someone has filled the bottom of the doors and painted them. Cheap job.
@@ethelred2648 oh right, I didn’t know that but it’s good to get that sort of information out before it goes to auction…
It was already unusual to see these when I was a kid in the 70s. Always loved the vast appearance of them. I guess they're only the size of a modern Passat
Amazing!! The dreaded tin worm just loves cars from this era, very little in the way of rust proofing. A neighbour of ours had one in the same colour in the early 70's and I thought it was dead fugly! 😂 Not so much the huge bonnet but the rear end killed it. A nice engine those V6's though and easy to work on. My Dad had a 2.5 in a '75 Consul and a 3.0 in a Mk1 Granada in '76, that was a beauty👍. I had a 3.0 Capri GT in '78.
Mean car, I had one once, when the V6 died I put a 289 V8 from a XR Falcon in it, made it a beast, lovely cars shame about the distributor drive issue.
My dad had one. There was 7 of us, mum, dad and 5 kids. We went for a day out and bumped into my aunt and uncle with their 6 kids. My dad gave them a lift home, 15 people in the car 😂
Remember going in one of these when I was around 16, it was a taxi. The owner of the firms daughter picked me up, she was a couple of years older than me and I had a massive crush on her when we were at school. Remember it like it was yesterday and can still remember how smooth and comfortable the car was. Great video, brought back some happy memories 👍
My dad had the Executive version in a light metallic blue after he sold his JagMk2, ended up backwards in a side road after trying to take a roundabout at the same speed as the Jag!
I remember it being huge but its actually probbaby smaller than the last of the Mondeos.
Also nicknamed a Daganam Dustbin 😂 I also hired a Zephyr 6 one for a week's holiday with my mates. Bench seats back and front, column gear change, it just swallowed 6 and our luggage for a week in a caravan at Skegness. Happy simpler days!!
Skegness
Wow what memories.
👍👍👍👍👍👍
@@zeus-mt7wx for sure, but a different lifetime ago, soon discovered the joys of the Costa's without a Zephyr in sight. Simpler days!
@@zeus-mt7wx
Skeggy!
Had one in the 60s,great car in size ,comfort and power.
My eldest brother had the estate version which was massive, which was ideal having six kids and boating equipment was ideal. It was white with a vinyl roof, eight track plus roof rack. We were a Ford family but not anymore, this when they made cars you wanted
Beautiful. My dad bought a black one in the early 70s, us kids thought we were royalty in it!
Oh the memories …. I worked on the Deep Sea Fishing Trawler Marretta back in the early 1970’s sailing out of Fleetwood (Lancashire) … when we got paid (in cash!) we were called 3 day millionaire’s … because we had 3 days off before our next fishing trip (to Iceland) because I was from Manchester I used to get a taxi home to Manchester from Fleetwood ( it was £5.00) and I always got a gold Ford Zodiac exactly like this one ….
I really felt like a millionaire when my mates watched me arriving home in one of these … Ahhhhh Memories ….
As I child my dad bought one in red. Affectionately known as "the fire engine". Regularly broke down so he got rid.
Used to absolutely love these cars as a wee boy . Proper early 70`s bank robber car .
@gordon Campbell Don 't forget Z-CARS !
I loved the big horizontal lights all the way across the back.
Lovely. When I was a Kid in Nairobi in 1966, these came out. I remember the Kenya original number plate KKS 007. Not a personal plate, they registered it properly. Happy days.
Used to get them down the auction at Hounslow £80 in the 70s. Dad had a good few tough old barges. Great engine . Proper bench seat and column change. So cool
Yeh mate, snap ! Bought a few of these in the 70’s at Warwick Car Auction round about the £50 mark. Omitted to bid for a Lotus Cortina down there one week for £80 !!! Still makes me cringe thinking about it.
@@yesman2755Mate have you seen how much the Lotus Cortinas are going for now 😳 I think l paid £600 quid for mine back in the day 😆
2 weeks after passing my driving test in a Mini I was asked to drive a Zephyr 6 with Abbot estate conversion. Surprisingly easy to cope with the size as you could see the corners of the bonnet clearly. Only big difference was the handling. Comfortable but did not like taking corners fast.
The exterior is superb. Pity about the dashboard.
My dad had one, also a mrk 3 Zodiac, the three was a nicer car. The four is famous for the destruction of rear tyres if you carry any weight and the motors were also good at burning oil at around 70,000 mls. We couldn't wait to see the arse end of it. Had a great car after that, a Valiant, hemi 245, then a 74 Ford Fairlane 500, probably the best car my father ever owned, tough, seriously reliable and above all, massive.
My Father bought a white one in 1973.It sounded great due to wide bore rear exhaust,it was automatic and was not easy to start, it had an automatic choke that was temperamental.
Yep, my automatic choke didn't work properly and after the garage 'fix' it kept flooding the engine and then didn't want to start at all.
I had one of these,it was like driving a huge sofa and cornered like it as well,the police got rid of them because of their road holding or lack of it.
I have an early childhood memory from the 1970s of the chimney sweep who came to clean out our chimney turning up in one of these. He had a large barrel shaped hoover, which he kept in the boot.
Dads friend had a metallic blue one with the Meissner performance kit in SA. Performed very well those years
In NZ these 3 litre Essex engines were installed in the lower spec Zephyr, which propelled them (with a manual 4 speed) to exactly 103mph. I know, because flat out that was the top speed of my commercial traveller car along the Ruakaka Flat near Whangarei in the Nth Island. Acceleration was brisk, but the valve clearances were a tad clattery as a design feature apparently. Great four wheel discs! Good handling. A VERY LONG bonnet in front of you. Quite a different car to the preceding Mark111 inline six! : )
My dad had the 1973 zephyr, in a purple / navy blue colour .I loved those wheel caps too ,so stylish ,unlike nowadays
That takes me back a few years. I passed my driving test in one of these cars...But it was manual column change.
It was like driving a hotel around.
My Uncle had a Zodiac Executive in white. Just remember all the clocks in the car(Loved it as an 8 year old) The rear reflector with concealed petrol flap was so cool
I had one of these and it's predecessors the MK2 and MK3. I loved them dearly.
Mk lll the best of the lot
When I was 12 or 13 years old I used to walk past a large posh house with one of these parked outside. I honestly thought it was the best looking car ever and I said, one day I'll have one of those. This never happened, because I couldn't find a decent example once I passed my test. I'm 66 now and still think they look fantastic.
fabulous car! love the mk4
use to have one in the 80s
My dad had a metallic blue Zephr. It looked very similar to this. I always remember the twin headlights and the bench seats.
You don't remember the twin headlights because the zephyr never had them.
@@billmower4165 maybe it was a zodiac🤔
A nearby neighbour in my sreet owned a brand spanking new one of these back in the day. It was a gorgeous ice-blue type colour. Very few of these were seen in the my part of the South Wales Valleys back then I can assure you. My neighbour owned a few local shops so probably not short of a bob or two.
It's absolutely gorgeous! From Canada, never seen one in person before
Had two of these, a white one and a grey one 1966 one 1967, lovely cars especially when you're only 17 and just passed your test lol
Good looking car, no question. .
I was privileged to own VGB493R ( or 2R Memory is screwed) not a Zodiac,a Mk1 Granada 3.0 Litre ghia Mk 1
Biggest regret of, my automotive life was letting go of my beautiful Granada.
Neptune Blue, Black Vinyl roof, sweeny( style) spotlights, gold alloys❤️.
Fantastic car. I would most definitely get that rust on the lower doors fixed! The rest of the car is amazing! Really lovely 😍 👌
My dad had One of these back in the late sixties
I remember sleeping on the parcel shelf at the back
When we come back from The beach
I remember as a young man back in 69 loading up the boot of my bosses and new Zepher mk4 and thinking just how big these cars were.
wonderful condition.. I remember seeing these in the early 70s as a kid.. never thought of them as a handsome car..
These came out when I was a ford apprentice we used to take out the spare wheel and climb in there to work on the engine
"A Zodiac!"..."I like Jags, they're my favorite"
Old man had 3 of these, D reg F reg J reg took us as a family all the way to Benidorm in 69……still think of that trip 53 years later, beautiful cars…
My dad had the same car in that exact colour...as a kid....I still remember that the rear reflectors went the full width of the back. Which as 8 year old, I thought was the coolest thing.
Absolutely lovely 👍🏻
Excellent demo video too. Very well presented. 👍🏻
great memories of driving one of these ...great car
My Dad had one in black with a manual gearbox, what an awesome looking car it was.
One of my favourite cars when I was a kid.
My maths teacher had one of these when I was a kid on 1972 it was metallic blue, and looked stunning!
My dad came home one day from work in Dagenham and old us about the enormous bonnet on this new model they had started making. The lads had got a bonnet on the floor and put a small table and four chairs on it and four of them sat around it. Sounds like fun. One of his mates was taking bits of cortina home everyday, with help, to put a car together at home, freebie!
Loads of my family worked in halewood building the escort. The trick they had was to order a popular, get the order number and by the time it came out of the plant it had every extra you could get 😂
Didn't Johnny Cash sing a song about that
@@robinburn4974 It's a very old joke. A bloke in the army posted jeep parts home every week... or else the guy down the docks, where security guards used to search his wheelbarrow on his way home every night - found nothing. Turns out the guy had stolen thousands of wheelbarrows.
Loved these cars as a kid, my opinion hasn't changed.
My dad had a silver one, beautiful car, luxurious and so nice on long journeys.
Father had four "Mark of Distinction" Mk IV Zodiacs. His 1966 manual in black cherry (£1268) spent weeks in the dealership's workshop, going through a simply massive number of modifications and recalls. The 1968 silver fox automatic replacement got 14"radial tyres to replace the 13" cross plies, and that wonderful star atop the bonnet. Both had the black vinyl interior in which we sweltered during the summer months. The other two, venetian the amber gold, were Executives, with leather, electric windows and ariels were wonderful.and trouble free - though used no less petrol!
I think these cars are beautiful, always have since seeing them as a young boy in the 70's.
That Essex V6 sounds sublime !
As a kid at the time I judged the comfort of cars by how thick the seats were.......boy - they're thick seats - just as I remember them!
I owned a Zephyr 6 same design. Drove like a dream and plenty of power too.
Owned 3 Mk4 Zephyrs and loved them.But was always under the back end winding on the "self adjusting" brake calipers.Also the McPherson struts had to be plated always.But still loved 'em.
Saw one of these in country Victoria (Aust) when I was in secondary school (late 60's). All others Zephyrs in town were single headlilght versions. Interesting car. Enjoyed the video. Many thanks, but need an aspro for my headache after following the rapid and jerky camera work.
father bought one new in 1966 still owned it when he passed in 2017 pity he let it rot away but had to many good memories to get rid of it
Love the dash layout tried to make something similar for my Mk 2 Capri ghia years ago, had I seen one would have looked for one out of the Zodiak.
Back in 71 to 73 i drove hundreds of this model in the factory .Moving here and there .
You just don't see them anymore.
This old girl is a is great car you don't see and it shows children of today what classic car what it's like a real gem in ford' s crown.
My dad once came home with the executive version of one of these, because a bloke he met in a pub needed about £60 to pay his rent. 😂🤣
Did he double the cars value by filling up the tank?
Can remember learning to drive in my older brothers zoddy…other than being huge (in the day), I remember thinking there should be another gear between second and third (4sp column shift) as the gap was so large the revs dropped right back.
Also remember crawling around underneath it loving the independent back end
Back in the day I used to cruise about in one of these with its owner in Hastings NZ, it was a GT? & had a 351 v8 & did mean as burnouts.
We had a lot of these in NZ. It was found they could swallow any US V8 and soon it was hard to find a V6 powered one. I have seen everything from a 253 Holden to big block ford and chev engines in them. The best swap was probably the 289-302 engines hooked up to the original 4 speed as they were not much heavier than the V6.
@Gavin Pruden oz and no certainly had some of the best cars of that era - I’m envious - back here in Uk the 3 litre Essex v6 was a big engine , only bettered by the rover( Buick) v8 and the jag 4.2 and v12 , most of us had to put up with Ford cortina’s with low powered 4 cylinders although they seemed quite rapid for the time , these zodiac 3 litres were fords ugly duckling but now with older eyes I can see the appeal of em - all the old stuff is getting rare now - wish I’d known back then! 🍻 cheers
#oz and nz
Yeah, as a 'kid' I could never understand why the poms would design and build a car with a big enough engine bay for a V8 then go and drop a little V6 in there. Made no sense to me. At least carry the Mk3 straight 6 over. Weird.
@David Ireland. I think it was all down to government vehicle taxing brackets and maybe what markets Ford were gonna try and sell these zodiacs into - the Uk has always been a sad ass country when it comes to motoring - I really do envy you growing up where you did at that time - the 3 litre Ford capri’s were strong though , had many a good race in mine back in the day - Good memories but sad looking back now living in todays sterile hell .
A Cleveland would be good in one.
Well, remember these as rot boxes, but, the odd one is clean! Nice looking motor geezer! Okay!!
Ohh, and can you have a good, invasivley looking good in the boot foor u?.
I had a mk4 Zodiac in the 80s, lovely car, best car I had for many years.
I remember those days. Everything has become an antique just like yours truly. 😎
The Zephyr had the single headlights.
I used to get taken to School back in the 70s in one of these.
I knew someone who had a hearse version of the mk4 in pink metallic, quite a sight around town and plenty of space for the shopping.
We called them the Dagenam Dustbin noted for hi fuel consumption.At one time I used as V four version to pull a bike trailer to and from a scramble meeting and ran out of petrol miles from any where in desperation I tipped half a gallon of expensive methanol normally used for motor cycle racing,which saved the day until I reached a regular fill up.During this methonal journey the car behaved badly as methonal is vey low calory needing big main jets and runs cool. Anyway after filling with regular unleaded the car seemed to run cleaner and sweeter as if it had had a good de coke.
Used to pass a car showroom with Mk 4s on the way home from junior school. They looked enormous. I don't think anyone would call the Zephyr/Zodiacs pretty cars, though the bathtub Mk I is of its era.
A lot of people criticise these, but I think they're really cool, very imposing. Even if you can see the similarity with the Cortina aft of the windscreen.
my brother had one here in new zealand with a 289 ford v8 went well
Great video, lovely car - I remember these in the days of my youth, there was a Zephyr 4 and a Zephyr 6 then they brought out the Zodiac, it was always a dream car of mine along with that Rover V8 (P3????) The big 3.5 litre.
P5B, P6 and SD1.
@@tonymercer265 Spot on. The P5 was a straight six 3 litre. The P5 B was a v8 3.5 that went on into everything for many years. The B was for Buick as it was a scaled down size engine of Buick design. I had a P5B and it was a lovely car. The easy way to tell the two apart apart from the year of build was the extra lights in the front wings of the B.
@@timnewman6529 I restore them for a living.
I worked as a mechanic in the '70s and the garage used to service a couple of these. Really awkward engine to service, especially the V4 as it was situated really at the back of the engine bay and had the spare tyre positioned at the front of the bay. You could hardly see the engine never mind work on it. And these were the days of adjusting tappets, points and so on. Rear brake callipers prone to seizing every day etc etc. Well insulated and quiet interior though, and when steering it seemed as though the enormous bonnet kept pointing straight ahead, and the scenery and road was turning around and disappearing under the car.
Same colour as our old Cortina 1600E, great memories
Me and my mates had a black one same model in the early 1970s fantastic motor this on is a beautiful example how could Britain build cars like this until British Leyland came along and devastated the car manufacturing business
Had an aubergine mk4 exec bench seat sun roofed version a h reg car 1 year old drove it for 16 years to 116000 miles never problem as long as serviced frequently .sold it in 1987 for a nice profit .superb car.
My dad had a 1966 Mk4, would love to own one just to see what they were actually like to drive
I did a bodyshell swap on one of these back in the day; biiiiiiig job, took a while as I had to paint it first. Lovely car, colour was rich dark brown, can't remember its proper name.
Lovely old motor.
There is room for a V12 in that engine compartment. Very nice car. 👍
Very comfortable car and good cruiser. I got my drivers licence using this car. I love it.
when i was a boy in the 70's my neighbour had a purple zodiac .. it was huge compared to all the other cars in the road
1970 model should have the walnut dashboard.What was shown was the early version
If this car could speak the story it could tell would be amazing..
Most of these rotted away years ago as cars did back then so good to see it.
I had the Executive, beautiful car
Had the Zephyr version for several years, nice.
Had 1 the same, very comfortable car. Is huge inside
Here in New Zealand a few owners fitted a 289 ci v8 mustang engine made it a lovely car to drive