Post-War Fords

Generally, Fords built in Canada mirrored their American counterparts. At times, a body type may have been omitted from Canadian production, but still offered in limited numbers as an import.

However, there was one was one leading deviation by post-war Canadian Fords from the U.S. pattern. That concerned all the 1954 Fords. It was for that year the U.S. discarded the old flat-head V-8 to introduce the new more powerful ohv V-8.

Ford Motor Company of Canada did not offer the new engine until the 1955 models. So, the 1954 Canadian-built Fords retained the old flat-head V-8. For 1952 and 1953, all Ford used the 239 cid 110 hp engine.

However, the 1954 Customline and Crestline series got the larger 255 cid version, rated at 120 hp. That was the engine the two upper lines of Meteor had used.

When the new V-8 came to Canadian Fords, it was the 272 cid engine rated at 162 hp. No power-pack or other engine options were available.

Finally, after a 15-year delay, the six-cylinder motor was available as a delete option in the early spring of 1956.

In any 1957 Fords which did not have the six, the new V-8 appeared. It displaced 272 cubic inches like the American-made Fords. However, the power rating was only a 190 hp in Canada, but 205 in the U.S.

In subsequent years, engines in Canadian Fords were similar to American models. Some power ratings may have differed, and some optional engines may not have been obtainable in Canada.

After, the Canada-U.S. Auto Pact came into effect in 1965, a greater quantity of the models not made in Canada were imported duty-free from the States. The Mustang and Thunderbird are two examples.

On very rare occasions, dealers would concoct a variation from the normal production model. In 1968 and 1969, at least one Ford dealer sold a special Custom two-door sedan model. It featured a vinyl-covered roof, and the LTD front end with hidden headlights. This was an unusual combination of prestige in the very bottom end of the full-size Ford range.