Starter classic: Ford Taunus 17M (1965-’68)
This forgotten German Ford is worth a second look
THIHE name Taunus comes from a mountain range north of Frankfurt in Germany and was first used on the G93A that was produced by Ford Germany between 1939 and ‘42. Many German Fords followed and the one highlighted here was officially designated the P5. It used the same 1,7-litre engine as its predecessor, the P3 – which we tested in 1961 – with the P5 making its appearance not long afterwards, in 1965.
PACKAGING
The P5 is larger than the P3, and features a more modern onepiece grille that replaced the P3’s twin-headlamp nose. There is interior space aplenty, with bench seating for five to six thanks to the column-mounted gearlever. The sedan swallows more than 600 litres of luggage, while the station wagon utilises a flat load area to afford it nearly 1 900 litres of packing volume. The front bench has two three-point seatbelts, but nothing for other passengers, so you might want to retro-fit more belts.
The suspension system utilises the standard leaf springs and a live axle at the rear, with Macpherson struts up front. The steering is a recirculatingball arrangement.
An oddity spotted in our 1965 test revealed an electrical system that still used a 6 V battery. This issue was rectified in 1966 when a 12 V system accompanied an engine upgrade. Braking is a mix of discs at front and drums at the rear.
POWERTRAIN
The 1,7-litre inline-four gave way to a compact V4 design also displacing 1,7 litres. It was a 60-degree Vee with a short stroke, while a single balance shaft was used to smooth the imbalance. According to reports at the time, the newer powertrain was still not particularly refined. This engine soon grew to a 2,0-litre capacity and also formed the basis of the 2,3- and then 3,0-litre V6 engines that were very popular for tuning in the 1970s and onward (and often transplanted into VW Kombis).
A four-speed, all-synchromesh gearbox is easy to use – typical of Fords from those days – and it transmits 54 kw and 129 N.m of torque to the rear wheels.
WHICH ONE TO GET
Station wagons are very spacious, but the sedans are more elegant. There were also coupés sold until 1967. They’re the most collectable, but tricky to find.
WHAT TO WATCH OUT FOR
Rust and missing parts. The headlamps and grille may be difficult
to replace if the car has been involved in an accident. Due to the relative unpopularity of the V4 engines, some may have been retro tted with simpler straightfour Kent powertrains.
AVAILABILITY AND PRICES
Sales of new Taunus vehicles from 1965 to ‘68 totalled a sizeable 8 060 units, but not many of these models have survived, especially compared with the far more plentiful (and popular) Cortinas. Prices vary from a few thousand rand for high-maintenance cases to R50 000 for an original example. We spotted one 17M and one 20M for sale in the classi eds (above).