1964 Ford XM Futura Coupe 'Modified'

Description

In 1964, Ford announced a revised Falcon, the XM, with facelifted front sheet metal featuring more chrome, repositioned tail lights plus a simulated air scoop on the bonnet.  Also making headlines was the introduction of the two-door hardtop coupe that helped give the Falcon an edge over Holden, who took a further four years to introduce a two-door model of their own.  Three separate trim levels were available, starting with the base Falcon, mid-range DeLuxe and the luxury Futura.  The suspension came in for some much-needed revision, with new front upper wishbones, coil-over shock absorbers, stronger ball joints and axle shafts, along with improved engine mounts, making the Falcon better able to withstand Australia's rough roads.  Another big improvement was the addition of the 200-cid Super Pursuit motor (joining the existing 144-cid six and 170-cid Pursuit motors in the line-up) while two-speed electric wipers replaced the old fashioned vacuum-operated system of earlier Falcons.  Inside, Ford made the seats more robust, using better quality vinyl upholstery and - it was claimed - there were altogether around 1,500 improvements made on the XM.  Heavily promoted at the time as "The Golden Quality Falcon", the XM had undergone extensive testing on the Eyre Peninsula in some of the toughest driving conditions imaginable and answered many of the quality control issues of earlier models.  In total, some 47,132 XM Falcons were made in two years of production and few survive today in decent condition.