One of the most well known names in autodom is poised to get its first major overhaul in nearly thirty years. Ford’s Crown Victoria, introduced in 1979, has had only minor changes since its introduction, but a new plan by Ford to overhaul the crown jewel of its fleet is apparently in the offing. Thanks to government assistance – Australian basically – the new Crown Victoria will be a clean break from this model and will help to spawn extra models for siblings Mercury and Lincoln. Yes, you may not have considered a Crown Victoria up to this point, but the approaching new “Crown Vic” will change your decision about that.
You have to go back all the way to the late 1970s to when “downsizing” was a term used by the auto industry to describe a shell game where enormous autos were dropped down a nick in size to sit on a platform slightly smaller than the prior model. Indeed, thru the 1970s Ford’s full-size offerings the LTD/Galaxie 5 hundred were large beasts of burden. By the then new Galaxie 500 Crown Victoria was released at the end of the decade, Ford was playing catch up to General Motors who had earlier mastered the entire downsizing strategy.
Initially, the Crown Victoria had a broad appeal for drivers wanting a giant automobile with all the accoutrements. As time went buy the vehicle grew less and less fascinating as client tastes changed, but the Crown Victoria’s style failed to. As a pursuit, central authority, or fleet auto the Crown Victoria has done very well, but Ford has only made modest improvements to the automobile over the years. Indeed, America’s two automaker has invested significantly in trucks, vans, SUVS and select cars, but the Crown Victoria quickly began to show its age. Today’s model is awfully outmoded and it hasn’t had a comprehensive refreshing in more than a decade, so an overhaul is warranted.
Ford’s impetus for change is coming from an unlikely source: a foreign govt. According to stories sources, Ford’s Australian operation has received a $1.4 billion Grant from Australia to build a production and research facility which will be used to design and build several new models. One of the Australian autos slated to take advantage of this move will be the Ford Falcon, a full sized vehicle which will become the foundation of the all-new Crown Victoria.
While some have theorized the the new Crown Victoria will be built in Australia and imported to the U.S, this is improbable to happen. Instead, Ford will expand the Falcon’s production to at least one U.S. plant, make some technical refinements, and sell the car as a Crown Victoria. It will be targeted to police departments and fleet buyers primarily with some residual sales for private buyers. In addition, the Crown Victoria will spawn a new Mercury Gran Marquis while a little stretched and much more elegant version of the vehicle will become the replacement for the current Lincoln City Car.
Yes, the Crown Victoria is well past its useful age. Thanks to some aid from down under, the 2010 model should be a refreshing change. At least Ford hopes you will think so.
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