This is pure porn for those of us who get off on buttery smooth floating rides. Appears to ride smoother than my mid 90's Towncar and that makes me incredibly jealous.
mipmipmipmipmip Yes very true. I hate it when they tell me "they dont make them like they used to" Of course, you could travel on modern cars and don't have to be on the side of the road overheating.
@mipmipmipmipmip Not at all...but in 1982, most part stores (and even many rural dealers) likely would not HAVE the then-new serpentine belt in stock. Most cars in that era (indeed, into the mid-80s) still used V-belts.
@Rich Santoro I have never had a car overheat unless there was something seriously wrong with the cooling system. 95 degrees...none of the many pre-1990 cars I have owned had any trouble.
MAAAAN! Getting motion sick just watching this. I'm glad American automakers stepped away from using molasses and marshmallow for suspension in favour of actual springs and struts.
@@67marlins81 I agree these thing are nothing more but tanks and are bulletproof I love these cars and I still occasionally see LTD's on the road today still no often but they are still around
@@zackstopzackstop8091 You got that right. Notice the digital dummy I corrected has since withdrawn his ignorant statement and gone back to hiding beneath his keyboard.....
At a certain age this feature gains a good bit of appreciation. I love my 91 Colony Park. I wouldn't mind one of these fox bodies at all but I much prefer the straight six to the V.
The '79 was the older, original Granada. It had a 3.3 liter, 200 CI 6 cylinder engine, and an optional 4.1 liter, 250 cubic inch 6 cylinder engine. That may have been what you had.
I love these old reviews of comfortable cars that were meant to be comfortable and that’s it. As opposed to today’s cars which all try to do everything at once, MW could have just bright in Ollie Williams to summarize the Grenada’s features: “IT’S QUIET ‘N COMFY!!”
Man this car brings back some memories. My grandfather had one of these, it was brown with a tan vinyl interior. It was then passed down to my mom. It was roomy but that vinyl got really hot during the summer in Missouri.
The Granada wagon was a one-year wonder, since it (and the entire Granada series) was renamed the LTD for 1983 (thus also meaning the Panther-based LTD added "Crown Victoria" to its name to distinguish it from the new Fox-body LTD). When initially introduced, it actually meant the Fairmont wagon had bid farewell.
@@Iegs Mercury also had a wagon version of the Cougar out at the same time, their second attempt since the Montego-based version in 1977. The 1982 Cougar wagon, inherited from the Zephyr series, was equally short-lived and hence replaced for 1983 by the new Marquis wagon, which forced the existing Panther-based Marquis to become Grand Marquis.
@ClassicTVMan1981X Doomsekkar is a hat that was published in the avatar shop by Roblox on October 17, 2013, to celebrate Halloween. It came out of the Big BOOtiful Gift of Destiny, which itself could be purchased for 31,000 Robux. Approximately 283 copies of this hat were given to users. It is a retexture of The Dusekkar. As of April 27, 2020, it has been favorited 4,125 times.
At about 4:25 John suggests carrying a spare for the newfangled serpentine belt. A better suggestion would be having a spare Duraspark ignition module. Far more likely to fail than any belt. Those things failed so often, they should have been held in with Velcro instead of screws for easier replacement.
@@hgpo27 In this era, really beginning around 1977-78, Ford used very, VERY hard and cheap plastic that creaked and rattled even when brand new. They say it had no squeaks or rattles so maybe it just came right off the truck from the factory. Give it a month once it's gone over a few chuck holes. These cars were all rattle boxes. All the way through the mid-1990s they used that garbage plastic. Also, this was when Ford thought it was cute to have the horn be the wiper stalk (don't get me started on having both stalks on the same side of the steering column). You had to press the wiper stalk forward for the horn. The European influence was right, maybe they had the engineers drinking Absynthe from France.
+Eric Fortune Crossovers are a scam by car companies to make more money. Here's why: back in the day, you could buy something like an Escort or Focus wagon for only a small amount more than a sedan version of the same car, but today, an Escape is only the size of a theoretical Focus wagon, however, they charge you the price of a Fusion for it. An Edge, which is based on the Fusion, is way more than a Fusion. Then you also have the disadvantages of poorer fuel economy because they aren't as aerodynamic as cars, and the handling on them isn't as great either because they sit higher. And subjectively I find them ungainly and ugly.
Rare variant of the granada, fun fact: late 70s to early '80s Fairmont/Zephyr, Mercury Capri, and the Granada were all proudly built on the FOX-Platform. Not every foxbody is a mustang!
this was a car that, if you timed the brake pedal oscilllation/application right you could get the front bumper to scrape off the ground or the bump stops - did that with the sedan version of this car
No, it's a midsize. (Note that when the Fairmont it's based on showed up, it was considered COMPACT.) Running gear the same as the 1981-88 Thunderbird.
105" wheelbase....is firmly in compact car territory by modern standards. A 2005 to 2012 Nissan Sentra has a very similar wheelbase and is only little bit smaller than this car (due to the short overhangs of the Nissan) That Granada was styled to look like a barge but was not large at all.
I drive a 2008 crown victoria lx. It doesn't bounce nearly as much as this car but it still feels like you're floating down the road when you drive it. Such a comfortable ride.
the slightest braking or left-right maneuver induces bouncy, floaty hilarity straight from one of those moonwalk things for kids at every carnival and fair. Classic early 80s car.
This car was a refresh of the Ford Fairmont introduced in 1978 - from the rear doors back, the wagons are all but identical. As a tidy downsize of the big 1970s American sedans and wagons, this Granada was a bridge to the more modern, rounded look that was to follow in 1986 with the introduction of the Taurus/Sable. If you were looking for solid, sensible cars, albeit not very exciting, these Fords were not the worst you could buy. Keep in mind this was before "sport utility" and "minivan" were in the automotive lexicon. The eventual successor for the Granadas and LTD IIs, and everything on the Panther-platform, was the very successful Taurus/Sable introduced for the 1986 model year. The station wagons in particular looked positively space-age compared to the square boxes they replaced, and to some degree, the shape of the that car has held up well over three decades.
People complaining about the suspension, I kind of like soft suspension you can go over potholes and not even feel anything, newer cars you go over railroad crossing and feel like the cars going to fall apart.
That car ain't soo bad. Worse could of been a 1976 pontiac. I think 1976 was the worst of the malaise era when the cars were still heavy, but still kept the iron duke engine that produced little torque.
I wish the 1981-82 Ford Granada/Mercury Cougar (non XR7) were available with the 5.0 liter V8, I'm sure these cars would've done well in the acceleration runs.
From 0-60mph the Ford Granada wagon with the 3.8 Liter V6 did so in 14.3 seconds, in 1982 that was a fair showing, in the quarter mile run it did 19.9 seconds at 71 mph, another fair showing.
My uncle had the sedan, I recall you had to push the blinker lever in to honk the horn. I remember him driving off in a hurry one time with the muffler dragging on the ground, lol.
Ford sure got a lot of miles out of the Squire name. For a while you could even get a Pinto Squire and later an Escort Squire. Shame they never did an Aerostar Squire to take on the woody Dodge and Plymouth minivans.
My dad bought a new Granada and when I looked underneath, it was totally covered with surface rust. I don't know if they just forgot to paint the underside or if all the cars came like that.
I remember reading somewhere that Ford offered the Fairmont sedan with a 302 and a four speed. Imagine a Fairmont with Mustang GT underpinnings. That would be fun!
Yes, for 1978 and '79 only; for 1980-81 the 302 was replaced by the smaller 255, which almost nobody seems to love. With the exception of the 1982-87 Lincoln Continental, the 302 would not appear in a Fox-body sedan again until the 1984-85 LTD LX.
John alluded to it but let's call this what it is: it's a Fairmont wagon with some nicer trim (even the flimsy stuff) and a slightly tighter front end. Same 1978-esque square styling, same space, same chassis and same floaty ride and braking. The 1983 LTD II was also based on the original Fairmont but that came with a new 'aero' shape, especially the front end, which helped pave the way for the all-new front drive Taurus in 1986.
back in the mid 90's my dad bought one of these when from NY to SC. he had pieced an exhust together with flex pipe so it would pass inspection which fell off half to sc. it burned so much oil he had to reschedule fill at ever time we stopped for gas. we were waiting for the school bus once and a man ran up and pounded on the to tell my mom that there was fire under it. we ended up selling to one of our neighbors and my parents bought a caravan.
Basically the predecessor to the Taurus wagon. And man can that thing bounce. But yeah this definitely the car your parents drove you to school or to grandma's house on Christmas in.
I had the coolest fairmont wagon thats basically the same car with different front end, I had the 302 and automatic with 2.50 rear end, it would never shift into 3rd gear, but it could do 45 in first and burn the tires all the way up to that speed lol. had a edelbrock carb and headers and interior from a 84 cougar, wish I still had it lol
I love the body bounce and especially the dive and bounce on brake tests. Your coffee would be on the roof and anything in the back would be in your lap and on the dashboard! Including your kids and dog as no one wore seat belts back then! Reminds me of of when Clark drove the Family Truckster off a ramp. LOL!
I wish cars still bounced like that. I will never understand why Detroit has to tune all suspensions for track testing! At least make a programmable suspension available for those of us that still want to float around in comfort.
The Ford Granada Wagon was a one year only model, in 1983 it became the mid sized Ford LTD and Mercury Marquis Station Wagon, the only change was the front end became more sloped, and the body style ran til 1986 when it was replaced by the Ford Taurus and Mercury Sable.
That is what suspension is all about. Lettig the car float. Nobody seems to understand that anymore. People all want perfect road holding as if they are in a race every day. Brakes could have been better, though.
Well, I am 53 and I do not see what age has to do with it. It is just a factual statement on what the purpose of suspension is on ordinary day to day cars.
Legend has it that this Granada is still this day jiggling a bit after that brake test.
I think it hit the junkyard about 30 years ago.
That nosedive is also legendary.
😂
The 55mph stop looks like he was driving a waterbed! Lol 😁
hahahahaah..excellent.
American suspensions!
😄😄 Thanks for a good laugh! Spot-on observation. Suspension made out of jiggly gel.
@@jessicah3450 this Ford Granada is nice suspension. Great classic wagon
@@jessicah3450 Ford Granada is autentic american wagon
Look at that car bounce around it looks like the tests were done on the moon.
The moon doesn't exist.
In the cruising shot beginning at 2:33 the camera car was bouncing like crazy too.
This is pure porn for those of us who get off on buttery smooth floating rides. Appears to ride smoother than my mid 90's Towncar and that makes me incredibly jealous.
brthdan Surprising that they'd have ever built a wagon that soft and floaty, since the whole point of a wagon is carrying loads.
Its still use as a case study for the NBA!
Good Lord! That braking test was the scariest thing I've seen in a while!
I know lol
Damn car went sideways lol, imagine braking that hard from 70-80 mph lol
Just remember this is the same company that brought you the Pinto! lol
Dad is driving, you'll be okay
Scary was 10 years later when some teenager bought it for $900 with 'worn' shocks
The guy has been doing car reviews since before I was born, WOW! Talk about dream job 😍
Same here. Born in '84
He the best since mwk begins 1980?❗
When he was born the Dead Sea was just sick.
Man, I need a car with suspension that soft. That's just amazing.
The presentation of this is so rough even compared to just a few years later. Great stuff!
Did they take the shocks out before testing?
No, they switched them out for the ones in Uncle Buck's car.
NESherv Ha!
Horrid bounce!
Lol..... I did notice it bouncing like a ball!
Good for a hearse, you gonna need one after ride in this thing
Seems this car shipped with springs but no dampers.
I needed Dramamine to watch the whole review.
... and sea shanties for the road.
LOL
Now I know why I was car sick.
lol jinx
John Davis must be an awesome poker player..... his ability to lie convincingly is almost frightening.
Ford: please sell are pos. mgmt: sure....no problem..sigh.
Our*
Ha ha....so it's not just me.
If the wagon was blacked out so we couldn't see what he was on about, you'd swear he was talking about a Mercedes or BMW
Of course comparing this car to other offerings in 1982, it probably wasn't that bad. Cars of that era were almost universally terrible.
Man good thing they alerted us to carry a spare belt on long trips. lmao!!! brake test was hilarious!!! bouncy bouncy
mipmipmipmipmip Yes very true. I hate it when they tell me "they dont make them like they used to" Of course, you could travel on modern cars and don't have to be on the side of the road overheating.
At least it has a freaking spare tire, unlike many new cars in 2017.
@mipmipmipmipmip Not at all...but in 1982, most part stores (and even many rural dealers) likely would not HAVE the then-new serpentine belt in stock. Most cars in that era (indeed, into the mid-80s) still used V-belts.
@Rich Santoro I have never had a car overheat unless there was something seriously wrong with the cooling system. 95 degrees...none of the many pre-1990 cars I have owned had any trouble.
you sound like the Red Rubber Ball song by Cyrkle, from the 60s :)
MAAAAN! Getting motion sick just watching this. I'm glad American automakers stepped away from using molasses and marshmallow for suspension in favour of actual springs and struts.
I'm not! I had to buy an old-ish car to get that floaty ride back.
These cars, as a kid, literally made me sea sick.
@@Gazdatronik Lincoln Town Car to 2011.
favor *
I like soft cars but these looks uncomfortably soft. Is that possible? We’re these dangerous due to their handling?
She's floating on air..Love it , just like them crown vics... Owned 4 of them....I miss the 70's 80's 90's
I remember driving the "boats" of the seventies and early eighties. I used to love that "floating feeling" lol scary to look at now.
there was FLOATY/CREAM like the 70s cadlliacs - and then there was BOUNCY - this was a fucking bouncy castle!!
I love these retro videos.
Did you see when they put the brakes on it teeter totted back and fourth LOL. Epic
Tom Hertz That's definitely the funniest part of the video. I like the part where it pulls to left when the brakes are locked up lol.
John has definitely aged better than the Granada. I haven't seen one of those on the road in years.
My grandmother had a LTD wagon (1st car she ever bought new). Had the 3 way hatch. White w/ wood grain sides. Lot of memories of that car.
Hers was an '83, correct?
I read that as Ford Grandma Wagon
Yeah. Definitely a granny car.
BCJDM Hahahahahahaha
It just needs an "I ❤ Bingo" bumper sticker.
Not just a Granny Wagon its a tank ;)
BCJDM me too x)
its a great gar.. my friend drove it across canada and slept in it in Vancouver for 2 years
When Ford just put a different front clip on the same old wagon and suddenly it was a "new" model. 81:Fairmont 82:Granada 83: LTD
LT[ur]D
@@100percentSNAFU I guess that's why our '77 racked up over 530,000 miles on the original engine. Idiot.....
@@67marlins81 I agree these thing are nothing more but tanks and are bulletproof I love these cars and I still occasionally see LTD's on the road today still no often but they are still around
@@zackstopzackstop8091 You got that right.
Notice the digital dummy I corrected has since withdrawn his ignorant statement and gone back to hiding beneath his keyboard.....
@@67marlins81 Man that was fast
Best looking wagon ever!
That is a SOFT suspension.
No kidding!! In the braking test it looked like a bloodhound..tail up, nose to the ground!
The new Lincoln’s have nothing close to a luxurious ride like this.
I didn't know getting seasick from a car was luxury... These are fox bodies though, so some Mustang parts should whip it into shape.
Did they fit shocks to that car or were they an option?😄
At a certain age this feature gains a good bit of appreciation. I love my 91 Colony Park. I wouldn't mind one of these fox bodies at all but I much prefer the straight six to the V.
I had a 79 Ford Granada. Bought it in 97 from a elderly lady. It only had 22 thousand miles on it. That thing was a beast with the 4.0 straight 6.
i dont thinkk it had a 4.0 L6 pretty sure they all had3.8 essex v6
hmm i was wrong
:)
The '79 was the older, original Granada. It had a 3.3 liter, 200 CI 6 cylinder engine, and an optional 4.1 liter, 250 cubic inch 6 cylinder engine. That may have been what you had.
Wow...I thought NO ONE knew the optional engines on these crapboxes anymore. It was such a dark time in American car history.
Watching makes realized the how much Motorweek has improved over the last decades.
Great comedy relief to see this.
I love these old reviews of comfortable cars that were meant to be comfortable and that’s it. As opposed to today’s cars which all try to do everything at once, MW could have just bright in Ollie Williams to summarize the Grenada’s features: “IT’S QUIET ‘N COMFY!!”
Love the Retro Reviews. Please, keep them coming!
Man this car brings back some memories. My grandfather had one of these, it was brown with a tan vinyl interior. It was then passed down to my mom. It was roomy but that vinyl got really hot during the summer in Missouri.
I loved the Fairmont! My family had one, plus the Mercury version. Lasted forever.
Props to Motor trend the camera work at 2:34 was amazing . Almost CGI but better!!!
Motor week :)
I like the guerrilla-style photography in that scene
***** Boat like LOL
The Granada wagon was a one-year wonder, since it (and the entire Granada series) was renamed the LTD for 1983 (thus also meaning the Panther-based LTD added "Crown Victoria" to its name to distinguish it from the new Fox-body LTD). When initially introduced, it actually meant the Fairmont wagon had bid farewell.
rip all of those
@@Iegs Mercury also had a wagon version of the Cougar out at the same time, their second attempt since the Montego-based version in 1977. The 1982 Cougar wagon, inherited from the Zephyr series, was equally short-lived and hence replaced for 1983 by the new Marquis wagon, which forced the existing Panther-based Marquis to become Grand Marquis.
@ClassicTVMan1981X Doomsekkar is a hat that was published in the avatar shop by Roblox on October 17, 2013, to celebrate Halloween. It came out of the Big BOOtiful Gift of Destiny, which itself could be purchased for 31,000 Robux. Approximately 283 copies of this hat were given to users. It is a retexture of The Dusekkar. As of April 27, 2020, it has been favorited 4,125 times.
At about 4:25 John suggests carrying a spare for the newfangled serpentine belt. A better suggestion would be having a spare Duraspark ignition module. Far more likely to fail than any belt. Those things failed so often, they should have been held in with Velcro instead of screws for easier replacement.
Glad to know Ford took some advice from Zapp and Roger, and introduced More Bounce to the Ounce for the 1982 model year.
That is how a car suspension should work! I love ultra soft suspensions. Not available anymore. The last good ones were on hydropneumatic Citroëns.
not for a second - the creamy rides of 70s cadillacs were better than this bouncy castle
"Almost everything about the interior spelled quality".."It's nice-looking plastic wood, mind you.."LMAO
1982 braking standards right there!!
yah these old reviews on bad cars are hilarious
waait! you get breaks...we are talking about ford right??? This is costly optional extra. No brakes came with the 65-ish mushtang.
Fred Flinstone, feet on asphalt breaks..!
@@MarcelloTheBandit Exact same brake system as a 5.0 Mustang.
How did we all not die from car wrecks in the early 80's?
The cars were too slow to have a proper crash
@Gator Johnso Slow means safe, even when you have no idea what's going on around you? You sound like a zombie.
@Gator Johnso what does slow and careful have to do with one another?
We actually knew how To drive, that is all
Because idiots couldn't text and drive back then.
"Almost everything about the interior said 'quality'" Ooookay.
1982
@@hgpo27 Even in 1982 Honda and Toyota interior quality was lightyears ahead of Ford.
@@joe6096 don't see anything wrong with the interior
@@hgpo27 In this era, really beginning around 1977-78, Ford used very, VERY hard and cheap plastic that creaked and rattled even when brand new. They say it had no squeaks or rattles so maybe it just came right off the truck from the factory. Give it a month once it's gone over a few chuck holes. These cars were all rattle boxes. All the way through the mid-1990s they used that garbage plastic. Also, this was when Ford thought it was cute to have the horn be the wiper stalk (don't get me started on having both stalks on the same side of the steering column). You had to press the wiper stalk forward for the horn. The European influence was right, maybe they had the engineers drinking Absynthe from France.
Quality was NOT job 1
Pretty good looking wagon, I wish we still got wagons nowadays, but people hate them now lol
Jag, BMW, and Mercedes still make em
+Eric Fortune Crossovers are a scam by car companies to make more money. Here's why: back in the day, you could buy something like an Escort or Focus wagon for only a small amount more than a sedan version of the same car, but today, an Escape is only the size of a theoretical Focus wagon, however, they charge you the price of a Fusion for it. An Edge, which is based on the Fusion, is way more than a Fusion. Then you also have the disadvantages of poorer fuel economy because they aren't as aerodynamic as cars, and the handling on them isn't as great either because they sit higher. And subjectively I find them ungainly and ugly.
Maestro_T Those Crossovers as well as a lot of modern are made out of Plastic.
Maestro_T
There actually is a Focus wagon:
media.caranddriver.com/images/media/51/2015-ford-focus-st-diesel-wagon-inline2-photo-658422-s-original.jpg
AE86 of Mt. Akina Nice. What kind of Ford Focas wagon is it.
Vomit bags were optional for motion sickness
Ahhh the days when car reviewers actually were concerned with ease of repair of a car.
because they used to break all the time
@@jonahpeacock2561 They still do, even more so now. 🙄
Very beautifull this Ford Granada wagon
I love the floatiness of American cars of old. It feels amazing on long cruises. Like riding on a cloud.
That long break test was scary 😟 AF ! Now imagine it loaded with people & luggage 🧳!?!? Would look like that scene outta Vacation ! 🤣
Rare variant of the granada, fun fact: late 70s to early '80s Fairmont/Zephyr, Mercury Capri, and the Granada were all proudly built on the FOX-Platform. Not every foxbody is a mustang!
everyone is harping on it in the comments but I really love how the front crossmember and the muffler almost smash the ground on stop
this was a car that, if you timed the brake pedal oscilllation/application right you could get the front bumper to scrape off the ground or the bump stops - did that with the sedan version of this car
My god.. that brake test is scary... that's a monster..I didn't think that thing would stop!
I loved those old station wagons
Our wagon was an Oldsmobile Cutlass Cruiser, but the RWD one. Baby blue, because apparently that was the only colour you could actually get them in.
'Midsized' that things almost large enough to be classed as an aircraft carrier.
You should take a look at what was "mid sized" before 1975, hell, how about full sizes before '78
Pre-1977 wagons were aircraft carriers compared to that thing.
No, it's a midsize. (Note that when the Fairmont it's based on showed up, it was considered COMPACT.) Running gear the same as the 1981-88 Thunderbird.
105" wheelbase....is firmly in compact car territory by modern standards. A 2005 to 2012 Nissan Sentra has a very similar wheelbase and is only little bit smaller than this car (due to the short overhangs of the Nissan) That Granada was styled to look like a barge but was not large at all.
My 91 Colony Park is much larger but would gave been considered a midsize in the 70s.
Mustang GLX had the same sad V6 optional the next year, 1983, through 1986. Carbureted then throttle body injected.
I can just imagine dad's mile wide grin as he pogo sticked home in his new Granada wagon.
Oh god. We had one of these. Brings back memories and not good ones.
I drive a 2008 crown victoria lx. It doesn't bounce nearly as much as this car but it still feels like you're floating down the road when you drive it. Such a comfortable ride.
Look at young John Davis! What a legend he's turned into!!
Ah, Jonathan Davis before his days as Korn's lead singer.
Lmao I never made that connection
We've come a loooooooong way!
Yes we have... "unique feature, the glass lifts separately from the rear door" oooooooohhhhhh
The Bel air wagon with the power rear window and drop down door beats it with cool points
I really dont think so. We've gone backwards. There are new cars out there that would be belittled by this granada. And this vehicle is just awful.
LRulesTheWorld A 5 year old used car from any brand with 70,000 would be better than this car when it was new.
MAN_ON_WHEELZ
That was noteworthy in an era when 1 piece hatches were becoming common.
the slightest braking or left-right maneuver induces bouncy, floaty hilarity straight from one of those moonwalk things for kids at every carnival and fair. Classic early 80s car.
I forget how soft and spongy the rides were in 1980's cars. Bouncy, bouncy, bouncy.....And OMG the front end plow!
Peter griffins car
XdreamR
Nope. Peter's car is closer to a '79 LTD Country Squire
*hey lois*
Late 70s Ford LTD wagon
And the Belchers' car too
Yep it is the Griffin’s car exactly
This car was a refresh of the Ford Fairmont introduced in 1978 - from the rear doors back, the wagons are all but identical. As a tidy downsize of the big 1970s American sedans and wagons, this Granada was a bridge to the more modern, rounded look that was to follow in 1986 with the introduction of the Taurus/Sable. If you were looking for solid, sensible cars, albeit not very exciting, these Fords were not the worst you could buy. Keep in mind this was before "sport utility" and "minivan" were in the automotive lexicon.
The eventual successor for the Granadas and LTD IIs, and everything on the Panther-platform, was the very successful Taurus/Sable introduced for the 1986 model year. The station wagons in particular looked positively space-age compared to the square boxes they replaced, and to some degree, the shape of the that car has held up well over three decades.
People complaining about the suspension, I kind of like soft suspension you can go over potholes and not even feel anything, newer cars you go over railroad crossing and feel like the cars going to fall apart.
Look at that bounce! Lol!
We had the Ford LTD wagon with wood side trim. Riding in strike. :)
Oh my god I think that Granada is still bouncing today because of that braking test.
"The Malaise Years" never seemed so appropriate.
That car ain't soo bad. Worse could of been a 1976 pontiac. I think 1976 was the worst of the malaise era when the cars were still heavy, but still kept the iron duke engine that produced little torque.
Love it, MW! Keep 'em coming. :)
Granada, that was one hell of a weekend.
I wish the 1981-82 Ford Granada/Mercury Cougar (non XR7) were available with the 5.0 liter V8, I'm sure these cars would've done well in the acceleration runs.
I would like John Davis to go back to talking like this & delete his HI-LOW tone that he picked up a few years ago.
Fun fact: the tailgate design was shared with Ford Australia in their 1979-1988 Falcon XD/XE/XF station wagon
From 0-60mph the Ford Granada wagon with the 3.8 Liter V6 did so in 14.3 seconds, in 1982 that was a fair showing, in the quarter mile run it did 19.9 seconds at 71 mph, another fair showing.
Wow, what a nice car!
It’s amazing that Ford came out with the Ford Taurus a couple of years later LOL
Un clásico. Con ganas de poder tener uno.
Man I can't wait til it's available here
Car(mini land yacht) almost bottoms out on braking! Gotta love 1980's cars.
My uncle had the sedan, I recall you had to push the blinker lever in to honk the horn. I remember him driving off in a hurry one time with the muffler dragging on the ground, lol.
Fairmont/Zephyr took some cues from European models (recall the Fox platform was named since the benchmark for the Fairmont was the Audi Fox).
If the Ford Country Squire wagon was a bit too big for you, here is the slightly smaller alternative!
Ford sure got a lot of miles out of the Squire name. For a while you could even get a Pinto Squire and later an Escort Squire. Shame they never did an Aerostar Squire to take on the woody Dodge and Plymouth minivans.
My dad bought a new Granada and when I looked underneath, it was totally covered with surface rust. I don't know if they just forgot to paint the underside or if all the cars came like that.
I remember reading somewhere that Ford offered the Fairmont sedan with a 302 and a four speed. Imagine a Fairmont with Mustang GT underpinnings. That would be fun!
Yes, for 1978 and '79 only; for 1980-81 the 302 was replaced by the smaller 255, which almost nobody seems to love. With the exception of the 1982-87 Lincoln Continental, the 302 would not appear in a Fox-body sedan again until the 1984-85 LTD LX.
Saw one on the street in LA; looked like something f rug om another time AND planet
My grandmother had an 82 GW, it had the 200cu I6, it was ssoo ssllooww!
I might just look for one of these. Might be good deal. Definately want the Squire.
John alluded to it but let's call this what it is: it's a Fairmont wagon with some nicer trim (even the flimsy stuff) and a slightly tighter front end. Same 1978-esque square styling, same space, same chassis and same floaty ride and braking. The 1983 LTD II was also based on the original Fairmont but that came with a new 'aero' shape, especially the front end, which helped pave the way for the all-new front drive Taurus in 1986.
back in the mid 90's my dad bought one of these when from NY to SC. he had pieced an exhust together with flex pipe so it would pass inspection which fell off half to sc. it burned so much oil he had to reschedule fill at ever time we stopped for gas. we were waiting for the school bus once and a man ran up and pounded on the to tell my mom that there was fire under it. we ended up selling to one of our neighbors and my parents bought a caravan.
Basically the predecessor to the Taurus wagon. And man can that thing bounce.
But yeah this definitely the car your parents drove you to school or to grandma's house on Christmas in.
that thing rocks back and forth like a real boat
I had the coolest fairmont wagon thats basically the same car with different front end, I had the 302 and automatic with 2.50 rear end, it would never shift into 3rd gear, but it could do 45 in first and burn the tires all the way up to that speed lol. had a edelbrock carb and headers and interior from a 84 cougar, wish I still had it lol
I love the body bounce and especially the dive and bounce on brake tests.
Your coffee would be on the roof and anything in the back would be in your lap and on the dashboard!
Including your kids and dog as no one wore seat belts back then!
Reminds me of of when Clark drove the Family Truckster off a ramp. LOL!
So that's why they call old American cars boats. It look like it need some shocks bad.
I wish cars still bounced like that. I will never understand why Detroit has to tune all suspensions for track testing! At least make a programmable suspension available for those of us that still want to float around in comfort.
Agreed!
My dad had a Granada sedan when I was a child. It was slow as hell.
That bounce needs a beat to it. it comes with the springs rock so you don't have to customize it.
Last thing I need on a long trip is a bad belt in one of those infamous out of the way gas stations where you need a key to the restroom
The Ford Granada Wagon was a one year only model, in 1983 it became the mid sized Ford LTD and Mercury Marquis Station Wagon, the only change was the front end became more sloped, and the body style ran til 1986 when it was replaced by the Ford Taurus and Mercury Sable.
the only station wagon I rode in as a baby was a 1979 Toyota Corolla my grandmom drove a used 79 Cadillac Coupe Deville when I was a youngster
So, the Granada wagon replaced the Fairmont wagon for '82. Yet, the LTD wagon replaced the Granada for '83. Rapid progress!
All correct.
That is what suspension is all about. Lettig the car float. Nobody seems to understand that anymore. People all want perfect road holding as if they are in a race every day. Brakes could have been better, though.
True, but in those days people did not use safety belts and you were a real man if you dared driving with lots of alcohol in your blood.
Well, I am 53 and I do not see what age has to do with it. It is just a factual statement on what the purpose of suspension is on ordinary day to day cars.
I prefer the European Mk2 Granada. Looks a bit similar but has proper suspension.