The Top Ten Fords of All Time

Top Ten Fords

In case you haven’t noticed, the American auto manufacturers have been taking a lot of heat lately. It seems like everyone wants to jump on them and beat them while they are down for what many have labeled complacency or poor business management or even downright incompetence. Well, all of the criticism probably isn’t undue, but American auto manufacturers are fighting a fairly tough economy, as well as whatever problems they may have brought upon themselves.

In any case, this post isn’t meant to be apologetics for the auto manufacturers. What it is meant to be is inspiration and maybe a little hope for the American auto consumer. American auto manufacturers have historically been great innovators who have made significant impacts on automobiles worldwide. First and foremost among these innovators is the Ford Motor Company (oddly enough the American manufacturer currently in the best financial shape). So today, in honor of this company of innovation, and perhaps to gain a little support for the boys who brought us so many great American auto masterpieces, I’ve compiled a list of the top ten Fords from throughout Ford’s illustrious history. You may not agree with them all, or even with any of them, but it is hard to argue that each car on this list didn’t impact the auto world in some way.

Have fun reading the list and, whether you think I’m a genius or whacked out of my head on psychadelic pharmaceuticals, drop a comment and let me know what you would add or remove from the list. Here goes.

Ford’s All-Time Allstars

10. The 1927 Ford Model A

I remember the first time I drove one of these things down to the gin mill to pick up a bottle of hooch and a flapper with great gams. Yeah, this jalopy sure is keen. Seriously, this was the first Ford to use the standard set of driver controls. With conventional brake and clutch pedals and throttle and gearshift, this car was the model for, well, every Ford to follow. The Model A also came in no less than sixteen body styles, many with substyles of their own.

9. 1957 Ford Skyliner

Okay, maybe you think I’m nutty already, but this car was miles ahead of its time. Not only was this car responsible for styling features that found their way onto Thunderbirds, Galaxies, and Fairlanes until 1965, but it had a retractable hard top, a feature later incorporated into the Mitsubishi 3000GT Spyder and the Mercedes-Benz SLK in the 1990s. A retractable hard top in the 1950′s? That sucker might as well have flown.

8. 1955 Ford Thunderbird

The first car in which I saw Suzanne Summers… No, I mean, the first Thunderbird. The 1955 Thunderbird was created as a response to Chevy’s Corvette. This car was so special it was given its own class, the personal luxury vehicle. Though not actually a sportscar, this two seater was equipped with a V8 and could zip aaround the land yachts then dominating the roadways at a top speed of around 120 mph.

7. 1932 Ford V8

They could have had a V8, so they did. In 1932 Ford began producing the new model B. Luckily for all the motorheads out there, they also began producing a car then called the Model 18 but now commonly referred to as the Ford V8. This was the first instance of a v8 being used in a low priced car and, kicking out an awesome 65 hp… well, they had to start somewhere.

6. 1965 Shelby GT350 Mustang

What if Caroll Shelby’s name had been Damien Venom, or something like that? Though he would have had fewer friends, the Venom GT350 Mustang sounds much cooler. Anyway. This was a special Ford in that it was the beginning of a long standing relationship with an awesome mod guy. The two have since produced some of the meanest machines to hit the American highway.

5. 1949 Ford

They sure had some catchy names. Though they could have used a good ad firm to spice up the label, the 1949 Ford was a huge styling upgrade for consumers wanting a more modern Ford. Known as ‘The Car That Saved Ford’ this car brought style in bucketloads with the traditional large fenders disappearing into the body and the engine pushed forward to make for more interior room. Saved Ford, hmmm, maybe they should re-introduce… naw, it’d never work.

4. 1948 Pickup

Which, by the way, is a much more time consuming game than 52 card pickup. The first of the F-Series trucks that have since dominated the marketplace, this is the truck that made pickup trucks pickup trucks. These trucks came in models F-1 through F-8 ranging from 1/2 ton to 20,000 to 22,000 GVWR. If you wanted to spring for all the options you could get a foot pedal operated windshield washer, a passenger side windshield wiper and sun viser, and a passenger side tailight. Now that’s high class pickup trucking there.

3. 1986 Taurus

Known as the car that saved Ford. Wow, was that Deja Vu? No. You mean they needed more than one. Anyway, this is the second car that saved Ford. Aside from saving Ford (again) this car brought aerodynamic designs, as well as many innovations, to American automakers. The Taurus introduced a slightly curved dash that brought controls into easier reach and fetaured controls that were identifiable by touch alone, adopted by pretty much all automakers, in order to allow the driver to keep their eyes on the road. Next in our list, the car that saved Ford.

2. 1964 Mustang

Okay, maybe its not the car that saved Ford, but its sure as hell didn’t hurt them. This car has gone on to be the best selling American sportscar so many times it might as well be the only American sportscar. This is the car that a whole generation saw as their generations car. It departed from the styling of their father’s cars and represented freedom and the open road and, well, you know, it was and still is, freaking awesome. When you say America and you say car this sucker is what is going to pop into most people’s minds. Now that’s an acheivement.

1. Ford Model T

And, number one on our list, Barrack Obama. Oops, sorry, wrong list. The Ford Model T is the car that started it all. Without this boxy baby we would be trying to design airbags that fit in ox yokes. Though not Ford’s first automobile, it was the one that made the car something that everyone could own. Every morning that you go out and warm up the Mustang as opposed to the mustang, you have the model T to thank.

I hope you enjoyed my list of the top ten Ford’s of all time. Be sure to sign up for the RSS feed so you can get updates for other lists and articles and, hopefully, every now and then, a tip that can save you money when you go to buy your next car. Remember to drop a commment and tell me what car I left out that you think is deserving.

And have a great day.

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