FAMILY TIES!
THEY HAULED HERDS OF KIDS, TOWED TRAILERS AND NOW THEY’RE TREASURED CLASSICS
Ford’s blocky-looking XD-and-on series may have trailed Holden’s then new Commodore into the market by a whole year, but in the end that didn’t matter. Ford in fact ran a slightly panicky ad campaign across the Commodore launch, effectively telling people they should wait until the new-gen Falcon was in market before making any rash decisions.
When it was launched, things got off to a rocky start. Sister magazine Wheels famously withheld its Car of the Year award that year – something of a slap to the industry as a whole, and to Ford in particular, given all the hoopla with its brand new baby.
However the series was a sales success and there was little question that it had some practical features that won it friends out there in the market. In practice it turned out to be
a strong distance car, with good clearances on rough roads and a particularly capable towing platform – given the right powerplant.
By the time the XE series rolled into view, Ford was dominating the family/f leet car segment and had scored a much-publicised award from the Industrial Design Council of Australia for the entire Falcon, Fairlane and LTD range. Things were definitely looking up.
With Holden’s successful launch of the SL/E Commodore variants, it was also becoming abundantly clear there was a demand for a limousine in sedan clothing – without going to the full extent of a Fairlane or LTD. And that in part was what the Fairmont Ghia ESP (European Sports Pack) was all about. This was pretty much a proverbial ‘one with the lot’.
Given Ghia (aka Carrozzeria Ghia) was a brand that made
“IN PART WHAT THE FAIRMONT GHIA ESP WAS ABOUT WAS THAT IT WAS PRETTY MUCH ONE WITH THE LOT”
“THE BIG NEWS HOWEVER WAS THAT FORD IN AUSTRALIA INEXPLICABLY WAS WALKING AWAY FROM V8S”
its name in Europe, you could argue the ESP tagging was a tautolog y, but then again car companies have often not been rewarded for subtlety in their marketing. In any case Ford was trying to underline a point. With this generation you scored coil rear springs tied to a Watts linkage – on its own a major leap from the traditional cart spring layout. Okay, it wasn’t an independent rear end, but it was a step in the right direction.
Along with the new rear end, on this model you scored Bilstein dampers – just like some of the fancy Euro makes – plus disc brakes all round. Drum rears were still very much in the market for ‘lesser’ models. The suspension meanwhile was finished off with a slightly lower stance, along with beefed-up coils and anti-roll bars.
When it came to engines, there was news on a couple of fronts. First, Ford was making a fuss of the recently-developed alloy head on the old 4.1lt long six. This remained a torquey plugger rather than a rev ver, and the ongoing development had refined its manners. A Weber carburettor was the choice for the 1982 Ghia ESPs, though later variants of the powerplant scored injection.
The big news however was that Ford in Australia inexplicably was walking away from V8s, so this generation was your last chance to get one in a locally-built car – for a while at least the 302 and 351 remained your choices.
While the six was only offered with a three-speed auto, 302ci ESPs had a choice between autos and a four-speed manual. In theory the 351 was only offered with three pedals, but owner groups swear a couple of special orders made it through with automatics.
Inside, Ford went to town. A full six-pack instrument cluster was on offer, upgraded stereo, unique trim and the big highlight – Scheel front seats. Those pews are now worth thousands on their own and helped to make a real visual break from lesser models.
In addition to the badging, the final visual cue was the gold ‘snowf lake’ 15-inch rims. Other Fords were to wear similar items, but Ghia ESP experts say there are some slight differences with the 1982 batches and it pays to get an expert to cast an eye over them if you’re uncertain about getting the real deal. Evidently one of the ‘tells’ is the date stamping.
Production numbers for the XD-XE ESP series as a whole is very low. We’re talking a little over 1000. However when you
“MINE HAD A RESPRAY ABOUT 15 YEARS AGO AND I LOWERED IT A LITTLE TO MAKE IT SIT A LITTLE NICER. THAT’S ABOUT IT”
drill down into these, the Fairmont Ghia ESPs, the figures are tiny and it pays to know what you’re shopping for. Silver or red with the two-tone paint scheme were the most popular colours, while there were a handful of white cars, plus the graphite on graphite scheme.
How they drive will depend very much on what you’re expecting of them. They were never intended to be an all-out performance car, but rather a quick cruiser with (depending on the spec) excellent towing ability.
The owners of the two examples you see here are Jason and Simon Vassiliou.
“We just grew up with them I suppose and always wanted one,” says Jason, who owns the silver six. When it came to buying his example, he waited till the right car showed up and then pounced. “I jumped on a train to Shepparton and had a look and then drove it home. It was sitting under a tarp in someone’s shed.
“Mine had a respray about 15 years ago and I lowered it a little to make it sit a little nicer. That’s about it.
“It drives well – the dream is always the eight – but these days tr y to find any ESP in an eight or a six. It’s pretty hard.
“It’s really comfortable, even compared to modern cars. Particularly in the rear. The Scheel seats (up front) are nice and firm and suit big people. It’s the little things that get you on these.
“The body is an XE that was across Falcons to Ghias, so it’s all about the extras.”
Simon adds, “They’re Ghias, so they came with all the options, it’s an 82 car but it’s got a lot of modern features like power steering and air conditioning.
“There was a Falcon ESP but most people went with the Ghia. That meant gold rims, 15-inch snowf lakes, trim around the outside, the Scheel front seats. The motors weren’t anything special.
“The two-tone colours were only one year – 1982 – with charcoal lowers. In 1983, when the V8s stopped, they went back
to one colour and fuel-injected the six.
“We couldn’t afford these cars when they were new.”
Jason adds, “Dad always said buying a house comes first, and he was right!” While the house was being paid off, Jason owned numerous XDs and XEs, sometimes painting them in Ghia colours and dressing them up with gold snowf lake rims. “People would offer to buy it, so I’d sell it and do the next one. We were always tinkering.”
Like his brother, Simon bided his time before jumping at the chance of buying the right car. “The car was in NSW and I did the deal over the phone.
“I mentioned to the wife the night before that I’d bought a car and a one-way ticket to Sydney.
“It only had 97k on the clock. I drove it back down the Hume, it was great.”
So what do you look for when you’re in the market for one of these? Research is everything. The brothers warn that you need to check out the detail, including the all-important Option 54 on the build plate. Ford has a good historical service, but it can take time for the info to come through. So if you’re looking at a potential purchase it can be crucial to go in with someone who knows the series – as always, joining a club can be a smart move.
The Fairmont ESPs may not be the quickest car on the planet, but they’re pretty hard to beat as a luxury family cruiser from an era when we were spoiled for choice when it came to locally-made cars.