As Ford celebrates 100 years in Australia, the Blue Oval’s automotive and cultural impact down under can’t be overstated.
Try finding an Aussie without some kind of Ford story from their own history. Probably you’ve owned one – or your parents, grandparents or even great grandparents – from the Model T through to any number of Falcons; then from the Territory SUV to the all-conquering Ranger ute.
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You’ve watched Fords battle Holdens on Mount Panorama, and its logo grace the Geelong Cats’ striped AFL shirts since 1925 – the world’s longest-running partnership in professional sport, don’t you know.
Maybe you or a family member worked at Broadmeadows or other Ford Australia manufacturing sites; or were/are on the tools at one of Ford’s 240 dealer sites. It’s hard to think of an Australian working mechanic who hasn’t battled inside the engine bay or been underneath something sporting the blue badge.
A golden age
As a kid in 1981, I remember my old man bringing home a new Mark IV Cortina; his first Ford since owning an Anglia as a teenager. Twenty years later, my own 1984 Falcon XE earned me my first ticket after a traffic cop suggested I didn’t have proper control of the vehicle. My plea of wet road, near bald tyres and rear-wheel drive failed to reduce my fine. I replaced it with a 1986 XF GL wagon, which I swear was roomier than my Sydney unit at that time.
To celebrate its 100 not-out in April, Ford Australia hosted a “History in the Making” event at Melbourne Showgrounds. This showcased a selection of road and racing cars from the brand’s century, then went bang-up-to-date with the global debut of its new Ford Ranger Super Duty.
Designed and developed in Australia (although it’ll be built in Thailand), this most-hardcore of Rangers hits showrooms in 2026 with 4500kg towing capacity, GVM of 4500kg, GCM of 8000kg, and estimated payload around 2000kg. This helps it trump the likes of Ford’s own F-150, the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and RAM 1500. It’s also the first time Ford’s “Super Duty” name has been applied to any vehicle outside of North America. Go Australia.
Everyman’s car
The historical event was hosted by that most Aussie of Ford enthusiasts, actor Shane Jacobson, who brilliantly combined fun, passion and nostalgia as a classic Ford owner himself – a 1970 ZD Fairlane. The important suited folk were duly interviewed, including Bill Ford, executive chair of Ford Motor Company, and great grandson of founder Henry Ford.
“Australia was one of the first markets we established outside North America,” Bill Ford said. “It was a key moment in making Ford truly global.” He made mention of Ford Australia’s innovative streak, including the origins of the world’s first ute, brought about by simply listening to a customer.
It’s an oft told story, but worth repeating. Back in the 1930s, an Aussie farmer sent a letter asking Ford to build a vehicle that “could go to church on Sunday and take the pigs to market on Monday.” Local designer and engineer Lew Bandt took on the challenge, developing a two-door coupe-utility with integrated cargo tray in 1934, based on the Ford Model A truck.
Bandt’s own light beige 1934 Ford coupe ute – a vehicle he helped restore and was tragically killed in while driving it in 1987 – was on display as part of the celebrations. It’s poignant that the legacy lives on with the Australian-designed and engineered Ranger ute being our best-selling vehicle for three years running. Ford Australia remains the country’s largest automotive employer, with a team of 1500 employees nationwide.
Ranger Super Duty trucks hauling a giant caravan and heavy tractor best demonstrated Ford Australia’s current golden child: the ute and Ranger-based Everest make up a mighty 90 per cent of all Ford’s local sales. But it hasn’t always been this way.
Remember when Aussies bought hatchbacks, sedans and wagons instead? On display were a range of Falcons from across the decades, an old Model T truck, an Escort panel van, numerous Mustangs, a graceful big 1964 Zephyr, and a Mk2 Cortina GT.
And despite being victims of questionable design choices in the 1990s, we even found some love for a body-kitted 1997 EL Falcon GT, a 1993 white Capri XR2 Turbo (with period three-spoke alloys), and the holy grail of EB Falcons – the 1992 IndyCar Pace Car with bright purple and blue body graphics. Different times.
On the track
Ford Australia’s motorsport was rightly celebrated too, with current Supercars drivers Cam Waters, James Courtney, Will Davison and others arriving in full racing garb. Then they rolled out the big gun. Five-time Australian Touring Car Champion and three-time Bathurst champ (all with Ford), Dick Johnson.
Footage of the great man’s rock-caused crash while leading 1980’s Bathurst 1000 in his Tru-Blu XD Falcon brought back memories. The Australian public donated $72,000 to help rebuild the car, a sum matched by Ford CEO Edsel Ford II, who’d called into Channel Seven as part of the fundraiser.
Such a story and the iconic footage – part of Australian sporting folklore – can build brand desire and loyalty. I’m sure I wasn’t the only one who sought out a square-edged early 80’s Falcon sedan (mine was blue, like Dick’s) because it had echoes (if not the wide wheel arches) of that famous big four-door racer.
At the centenary, the real Tru-Blu Falcon burbled past packed Showground stands as Dick watched on.
Proving he’s a comedian and a gun driver, Jacobson recounted the time Dick was interviewed about a problem with the car which had caused its retirement. “It was an electric issue,” he said. “The conrod went through the alternator.” Brilliant.
The future of Ford Performance’s racing was highlighted with a reminder of Ford’s return to Formula 1 in 2026, while its Mustang Dark Horse R was on display, ahead of the Mustang Challenge one-make series also launching in Australia next year. Parked beside was the Ranger Raptor which snared the Production 4WD class at last year’s Finke Desert Race.
Older legends were found inside. The Moffat Ford Dealers XC Falcons which formation finished at the 1977 Bathurst 1000 were staggered across a chequered line (they look more incredible with each passing year); while Moffat’s Coca-Cola-liveried 1969 Trans-Am Mustang was one of many to be shown by the always-excellent Bowden Collection. Such a low, menacing race car from the peak muscle period.
Moffat’s 1971 XY Falcon GT-HO Phase III which won the 1973 Australian Touring Car Championship also stole hearts, as did the one-of-four XA GT-HO Phase IV parked beside.
There was the 2006 Bathurst 1000-winning Triple Eight BA Falcon of Craig Lowndes and Jamie Whincup; the 2003/04 BA Falcon which won back-to-back V8 Supercar championships in Marcos Ambrose’s hands; and to mix things up, a 1968 XT Falcon GT rally car which completed the London to Sydney Marathon twice, scoring podiums each time.
Fine wines
Other curios included a pair of replica Mad Max Interceptors: a “Big Bopper” 1974 XB sedan, and a Main Force Patrol (MFP) XB Falcon 500; an 1896 Quadricycle replica of the first car Henry Ford developed and built; an original “Dalgety” 1926 Model T built in Geelong in the old Dalgety wool store; and the 2002 fibreglass Ford Territory R7 Concept, which pre-dated the production car by two years. Proper Ford aficionado stuff.
If you love your Fords, the brand also launched its Heritage Vault as part of the celebration. This is an online resource (at fordheritagevault.com) which is home to more than 2500 brochures and images of Ford models sold in Australia from 1925. The colour brochure on the 1974 Falcon Overniter – a baked acrylic aluminium caravan you put on a Falcon ute’s tray and sleeps four – is a particular highlight. How many of those survive?
It’s free to browse, but be prepared to go down a nostalgia rabbit hole (as I did) and write off the rest of your day. Especially as it also houses more than 16,000 digital items from Fords globally, such as brochures, photos and regional issues of the Ford Times magazine.
A nice touch at the 100-year celebration was hearing from generations who’d worked for Ford Australia, engineering and building the cars that are part of all our histories. Video messages from Ford owners – young and old, classic Fords and new – remind of the enthusiasm the brand generates, despite the local manufacturing plants now all shut down.
“Any time a family member turns 100, it’s a big deal,” said Bill Ford. “This is a very big deal for us; Ford Australia has meant so much to our company over the years. The products have been amazing. We’re going to be a family business for a long time. We’re not just another nameless, faceless corporation.”
Bill Ford ended by reminding that what the brand doesn’t do is “boring vehicles.” He said Ford Australia mirrored this principle. “We do exciting, emotional vehicles, and we’ll leave the boring stuff to somebody else.”
Long may that continue.