There were of course three versions of the Econoline, including the Pickup ( CC here), the “Station Bus” passenger van, and the cargo van. Which is of course what vans are ultimately mostly about.

Just like with the Falcon itself, Ford’s compact trucks were highly pragmatic. Without giving too much away the Corvair compact trucks had an even shorter lifespan than the Corvair itself, the reason being the Econoline: it was to the Corvair van what the Falcon was to the Corvair. They were technically ambitious, and had some superb dynamic qualities, thanks to fully independent suspension front and rear, balanced weight distribution, and resultant good handling, braking and steering. We covered the Transporter in depth here and the passenger VW Bus Samba here.Ĭhevrolet’s entry in the 1961 compact truck market was the Greenbrier passenger van ( CC here), the Corvan cargo van, and the Rampside Pickup ( CC here), based on the rear-engine Corvair, of course. There was simply no comparable vehicle on the market, that combined such superb space utilization, carrying capacity, economy and an un-truck-like ride to boot. It would be a mistake to underestimate the impact of the VW Transporter in the US during the fifties. Of course not for good, but that’s another (mini-van) story. By 1971, Dodge and Chevrolet followed the leader, and the compact van was dead.

Ford, the leader in the field, pulled the plug first in 1968 and replaced the compact Econoline van with the first full-sized van, conveniently parked across the street here. Although compact passenger cars more or less became a permanent mainstay, the compact trucks were a short-lived phenomena.

After essentially building only “full size” cars and watching the imports eat away over 10% of the market in the later fifties, Detroit launched the great compact counter-revolution.Īnd there were analogues to the compact sedans: compact forward-control vans, and even pickups. Never before and never again would the Big Three make such a dramatic expansion to their model lines. Updated ) 1960-1961 were the two most significant single years in the history of the American Automobile industry. Options for this 1961 Ford Falcon include: Headlights, Turn signals, AM radio, rearview mirrors and 4 doors for easy entry.( first posted. If you are looking for flashy, loud or extreme horsepower then let me show you something else but, if you are looking for cool well my friend, you found it. The inline 6 cylinder runs like a sewing machine and the 3 speed transmission shifted on the column or 3 on the tree as we used to call it, shifts smoothly. Someone took the time and money to make sure this car is right. This beautiful classic looks great in baby blue with a medium blue interior. 18 cents for 9/10 of a gallon and the Falcon used each gallon efficiently. Plenty of room for a small family, a trunk large enough to luggage and a cooler for the roadside picnics.

The choice for just good, basic transportation was filled with the Ford Falcon. This 1961 Falcon is as cool as it comes and this from someone who thinks that that back doors are just for minivans! In 1961 the choices in new autos ran the gambit between high horsepower and economy cars. Now it has been said that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Gateway classic cars of Nashville is Happy to digitally present to you this 1961 Ford Falcon.

61 ford flacon for sale