More than an old car #215: Ford Galaxie

As part of my clearing the archives, I finally found some momentum to dig some pictures from the archives..this 1964 Ford Galaxie 500/XL Club Victoria was something that i wanted to write about for a while!

First introduced in 1959, the Galaxie name denoted the highest trim level on the Ford Fairlane and was a mrketing attmept to appeal to the excitement surrounding the 'Space Race'. As such, 1959 Fords had the long name of Fairlane 500 Galaxie. Ford advertised safety features, with an optional seatbelt, padded dashboard and a deep-dished steering wheel. Bodywork changed over the years, with 1960 models having backward-facing A pillars and reduced tail fins for 1961. It also marked the return of the square-roof hardtop coupe known as the Galaxie Club Victoria.

In 1962, the Galaxie name was applied to all of Ford's full size models, with the Fairlane name shifted to an intermediate model. In an effort to stimulate midseason sales, Ford introduced a group of sporty cars along with a "Lively Ones" marketing campaign, which included the Galaxie 500/XL; Ford stated in the sales literature that XL stood for 'Xtra Lively'. 1962 models did not have any more tail fins, and the taillights were set lower in the rear panel. 1963 saw the reshaping of windshields and improved aerodynamics. In 1964, lap-style seatbelts became compulsory and XL models received new thin-shell bucket seats with chrome trim.

A few engine options were available, but this unit was powered by a 5766 cc (352 cu in) FE V8 engine, allowing it to reach a top speed of 184 km/h with an acceleration of 10.2 seconds [0-100 km/h]. It had dimensions of 5329 x 2032 x 1410 mm and weighed in at 1808 kg, with a fuel consumption of 21 litres / 100 km.

Production of the Galaxie line ended in 1974, with 58,306 Galaxie 500/XL Club Victoria coupes made in 1964. Ford of Australia did source Galaxies in late 1964 from Ford of Canada, and these units featured a different dashboard style compared to the US version like this unit. 1964 Galaxies were sold here previously with a retail price of 13,890 Malayan and British Borneo dollars (S$48,641 today), but only for the 6-cylinder 4-door sedan.This particular unit was assembled in Dallas, before it ended up in Australia at some point in time and likely converted to RHD before being imported here. It does not appear much however, but if you're lucky to catch this around, at least you will know a little more about this American oddity!

More than an old car #214: Citroen Xsara

Writing these days honestly comes in a series of bursts, and also an overarching need to clear my eternal backlog. It is high time that I write about this 2001 Citroen Xsara that is unbelievably still surviving here!

First released in 1997, the Xsara (pronounced sa-ra) replaced the ZX for which it shared a similar platform. While it was only available as a 5-door hatchback, a 3-door hatchback and a wagon version were introduced later. There was a facelift in 2000, with larger almond-shaped headlights, new grille with larger logo, an improved tailgate opening mechanism and a stiffer suspension, among other things. Interestingly, Citroen collaborated with Microsoft to develop the limited-edition Xsara Auto PC. Auto PC was part of a line of PC-compatible products designed around the Microsoft Windows CE 2.0 operating system. The main innovation of the Auto PC was its use of voice recognition technology, enabling the vehicle to respond to oral commands and to talk to the user by means of a voice synthesis system. One could not help but draw parallels to in-car voice recognition systems that are common today..

The Xsara was powered by a 1361 cc TU3JP i4 engine, allowing it to reach a top speed of 172 km/h with an acceleration of 14.8 seconds [0-100 km/h]. It weighed in at 1116 kg, with dimensions of 4188 x 1705 x 1405 mm and had a fuel consumption of 14.7 km/litre.

Production of the Xsara ended in 2006, after the Europe-market hatchback in 2004 and the Dongfeng-Citroen version in 2005. Truth be told, there is nothing really unique about this car: it was as bread-and-butter as it could be. However, a rally version was lined up for the World Rally Championship between 2001-2005, and scored a total of 24 victories under the hands of Sebastien Loeb and his teammates.

Xsaras were sold here in 1997 by Motorviva Minerva Pte Ltd, where it retailed at S$109,888 (S$161,741 in today's prices). Interestingly, the car was the top prize for an island-wide treasure hunt in 2001 (by then the facelifted version). This particular unit is noted to be the last one remaining, and it does not appear to be scrapped any time soon. Trying to keep an old French car in a car-unfriendly land is no mean feat, and part of me wonders what do the owners see in this vehicle that compels them to apply for the COE renewals. Hopefully, you will have the chance to see this rarity one day!