CAR OF 1967 VAUXHALL VICTOR FD

Vauxhall’s 1967 FD was rather more radical than people tend to think these days. The car featured ‘Coke bottle’ styling – three years before Ford launched its Cortina MkIII – plus two new overhead-cam slantfour engines of 1599cc and 1975cc. There were also coil springs all round and doublewishbone front suspension.

‘Sleek scorchy new Victor’ was how Vauxhall marketed the car at the 1967 Motor Show. ‘It’s the great ’68 symbol.’ Some customers probably felt a little scorched, because though the car was stylish, the engines and general build quality were less than wonderful. An estate version arrived in 1968, as did the 3.3-litre engine from the Cresta, marketed as the Ventora, and that was genuinely swift. However, the following year came the VX4/90, with uprated engine, twin Stromberg carbs and Rostyle wheels. Lusty stuff…

By the time production ended in 1972, 198k Victors and Ventoras had been made alongside 14,277 VX4/90s. Try finding one today, though!