Ford Taunus

The **Ford Taunus** is a faimily caur sauld bi Ford in Germany an ither kintras. Models frae 1970 onwaird wur seemilar tae the Ford Cortina in the Unitit Kinrick. The model line wis namit efter the Taunus muntain range in Germany an wis first made in 1939 an continued throu several versions till 1994.

## Taunus G73A (1939–1942)/G93A (1948-1952)

The oreeginal Taunus wis a development o the Eifel an uised the same 1172&nbsp;cc fower cylinder ingine but in a langer chassis an a streamlined bouk. It wis the first German Ford tae hae hydraulic brakes. Due tae the war, production wis interruptit frae 1942 tae 1948. 74,128 wur made includin estate caurs an licht vans.

## Taunus M-series (1952–1968)
Frae 1952 tae 1968 aw German Fords wur cawed the Taunus, uisin the model names 12M, 15M, 17M, 20M, an 26M. The "M" is said tae staund for "Meisterstück", in Inglis "Masterpiece". Taunus wis an aa whiles adoptit as the buist-name in export mercats, parteecularly whaur Breetish an North American Fords wur an aa available.

The 12, 15 an 17M models haed a straight-4, later anes a V4 ingine. The 20 an 26M models haed a V6 ingine. The 12, 15, 17 etc. refer tae the ingine displacement; 1200, 1500, 1700&nbsp;cc etc.

Frae 1962 tae 1970, the smawer models 12M (P4) an 12M/15M (P6) haed front wheel drive. Aw ither models haed rear wheel drive.

The follaein models wur affered:

### Smawer line: 12M, 15M
#### First generation 12M (G13) (1952-1959), 15M (1955–1959)

The Taunus 12M presentit in 1952 wis the first new German Ford efter Warld War II. It featurt ponton stylin, seemilar in style tae Breetish Ford Zephyr.

Somethin else the new Ford Taunus 12M haed in common wi its Breetish Ford cousins wis the retention o an auld Ford sidevalve ingine at a time when competitors wur increasingly movin ower tae ohc units.   The Taunus 15M uised a new an mair pouerful ingine:
*12M: 1172 cc, 38&nbsp;hp (28&nbsp;kW), 112&nbsp;km/h (70&nbsp;mph)
*15M: 1498 cc, 55&nbsp;hp (40&nbsp;kW), 128&nbsp;km/h (80&nbsp;mph)

Bouk styles wur twa door sedan, twa door station wagon an sedan delivery.

#### Seicont generation 12M (1959–1962)

No a new caur, but a rework o the 1952 model. Aw caurs are cawed 12M, tho baith ingines are continued (the caur wi the bigger ingine is cawed "Taunus 12M 1.5 litre").

Body styles wur the same as in the 1952 model.

#### Third  generation 12M (P4) (1962–1966)

Same size, but a completely new caur based on the Ford Cardinal project. New bouk, new V4 ingine, front wheel drive. The first Ford caur wi front wheel drive (seicont is Ford Corcel, third is Ford Fiesta). Ingines:
*1.2 litre: 1183 cc, 40&nbsp;hp (29&nbsp;kW), 123&nbsp;km/h (77&nbsp;mph)
*1.5 litre: 1498 cc, 50, 55 or 65&nbsp;hp (37, 40 or 48&nbsp;kW), 135, 139 or 144&nbsp;km/h (84, 87 or 90&nbsp;mph)

Body styles wur twa door sedan, fower door sedan, twa door coupé, twa door station wagon an sedan delivery.

#### Fowert generation 12M (P6) (1966–1970), 15M (P6) (1966–1970)

New bouk, ingines an platform are continued. Again, the caur wi the bigger ingine is cawed **15M**. Ingines:
*12M 1.2 litre: 1183 cc, 45&nbsp;hp (33&nbsp;kW), 125&nbsp;km/h (78&nbsp;mph)
*12M 1.3 litre: 1305 cc, 50 or 53&nbsp;hp (37 or 39&nbsp;kW), 130 or 134&nbsp;km/h (81 or 84&nbsp;mph)
*15M 1.5 litre: 1498 cc, 55 or 65&nbsp;hp (40 or 47&nbsp;kW), 136 or 145&nbsp;km/h (85 or 90&nbsp;mph)
*15M 1.7 litre: 1699 cc, 70 or 75&nbsp;hp (51 or 55&nbsp;kW), 153 or 158&nbsp;km/h (95 or 98&nbsp;mph)

Bouk styles wur unchyngit frae the P4.

In 1970, the P6 is replacit bi the Taunus TC (see belaw).

### Bigger line: 17M, 20M, 26M
#### First generation 17M (P2) (1957–1960)

Growin prosperity in postwar Germany encouragit Ford tae affer a line o bigger an mair expensive caurs. The caur wis as lang as (tho significantly narraeer than) the Breetish Consul Mk2, but a different caur. It presentit a style seemilar tae American 1956 Fords, featurin substantial (at least bi European standards) tailfins.  The transatlantic flamboyance o the caur's stylin gained it the soubriquet "Baroque Taunus".  Unuisually for middle cless German caurs o this period, it wis available wi aither twa or fower doors.  The competeetion noticit, an frae 1959 it wad acome possible tae buy an Opel Rekord wi fower doors.

The P2 uised a ohv ingine wi 1698 cc an 60&nbsp;hp (44&nbsp;kW). A maximum speed o 128&nbsp;km/h (80&nbsp;mph) wis quotit.  A road test o the time commendit the smoothness o the three speed aw-synchromesh manual transmission seestem.

#### Seicont generation 17M (P3) (1960–1964)

Completely new bouk in vera modren style. The leuk o the caur remindit some creetics o a bath tub, an it consequently gained the soubriquet "Taunus Badewanne".  At a time when competitors boastit that aw fower corners o the vehicles wur visible frae the driver's seat, the new Taunus insteid affered a streamlined form.   In Germany, housomeivver, the concept o streamlinin in caurs wis associatit wi nairae passenger cabins reminiscent o the 1930s an o the still popular Volksagen Beetle.  The new Taunus, housomeivver, providit greater interior width than its predecessor despite bein nae wider on the ootside.  Awtho the 1.7 litre version wis launcht wi the same 60 PS pouer ootput as the ootgoin model, the new model wis a full 10&nbsp;km/h (6&nbsp;mph) faster, which wis attributit tae impruivit aerodynamics an a lichter boukshell.

Three ingine sizes wur nou affered:
*1.5 litre: 1498 cc, 55&nbsp;hp (40&nbsp;kW), 136&nbsp;km/h (85&nbsp;mph)
*1.7 litre: 1698 cc, 60 or 65&nbsp;hp (44 or 48&nbsp;kW), 138 or 140&nbsp;km/h (86 or 88&nbsp;mph)
*1.8 litre: 1758 cc, 70 or 75&nbsp;hp (51 or 55&nbsp;kW), 148 or 154&nbsp;km/h (92 or 96&nbsp;mph).
A vera successfu caur.

#### Third generation 17M (P5) (1964–1967), 20M (P5) (1964–1967)

New boou, new ingines. 17M nou gets a V4 ingine:
*1.5 litre: 1498 cc, 60&nbsp;hp (44&nbsp;kW), 140&nbsp;km/h (88&nbsp;mph)
*1.7 litre: 1699 cc, 65 or 70&nbsp;hp (48 or 51&nbsp;kW), 145 or 150&nbsp;km/h (91 or 94&nbsp;mph).
New 20M gets a V6 ingine wi 1.8 litres an 82&nbsp;hp, or 2.0 litres (1998 cc) an 85 or 90&nbsp;hp (63 or 66&nbsp;kW) wi a tap speed o 158 or 161&nbsp;km/h (99 or 101&nbsp;mph).
Again, a guid sellin caur.

#### Fowert generation 17M (P7) (1967–1968), 20M (P7) (1967–1968)

New boou, ingines an platform are continued. Vera big, vera boxy, vera American. Rear lichts nae langer mountit at corners. Sportiest TS-model wi fake air scoop on bonnet an new bigger ingine. No the caur which European caur buyers desire. A complete failur.

The ingines o the 17M/20M P5 are continued wi ae ane addition on the tap end. It is the 
*20M 2.3 litre: 2293 cc, 108&nbsp;hp (79&nbsp;kW), 170&nbsp;km/h (106&nbsp;mph).

#### Fift  generation 17M (P7.2) (1968–1971), 20M (P7.2) (1968–1971), 26M (1969–1971)

Shrinkin sales o the P7 are forcin Ford tae affer a restyled caur ae ane year later. Ford is sae affrontit bi the failur o the last year's model that the new caur is again cawed **P7**. Here, tae avoid confusion, it is cawed **P7.2**, whiles it is cawed **P7b**.
The name "Taunus" nae langer uised.
26M, introducit in 1969, is the tap o the line version wi new bigger ingine (2.6 litres), bigger brakes, dual heidlicht, pouer steerin, an the maist luxurious trim level.
The ingine programme is enlairged; nou thare are twa base ingines (V4 an V6) in sax displacement sizes an nine pouer stages:
*17M 1.5 litre: 1498 cc, 60&nbsp;hp (44&nbsp;kW), 135&nbsp;km/h (85&nbsp;mph)
*17M 1.7 litre: 1699 cc, 65 or 75&nbsp;hp (48 or 55&nbsp;kW), 140 or 150&nbsp;km/h (88 or 94&nbsp;mph)
*17M 1.8 litre: 1812 cc, 82&nbsp;hp (60&nbsp;kW), 153&nbsp;km/h (96&nbsp;mph)
*20M 2.0 litre: 1998 cc, 85 or 90&nbsp;hp (63 or 66&nbsp;kW), 155 or 160&nbsp;km/h (97 or 100&nbsp;mph)
*20M 2.3 litre: 2293 cc, 108 or 125&nbsp;hp (79 or 92&nbsp;kW), 170 or 180&nbsp;km/h (106 or 112&nbsp;mph)
*20M 2.6 litre, 26M: 2550 cc, 125&nbsp;hp (92&nbsp;kW), 180&nbsp;km/h (112&nbsp;mph)
Please note: The 17M 1.8 litre uises a V6 ingine. The 2.6 litre ingine is optional on 20M, but staundart on 26M.

##### Ford 20M RS

Ford 20M RS Coupé made in Germany as a (2300 S) P7b an (2600) P7b.
In the 1968 Lunnon-Sydney Marathon Ford uised three Ford 20M RS frae Germany an Belgium. In 1969 a Ford 20M RS wan the Safari an as well occasionally a Capri wis seen wi wirks involvement.

This is the last specifically German Ford. In early 1972, it is replaced bi the new Consul an Granada.

## Taunus TC (1970–1976)

In 1970 a new Taunus, the Taunus TC, wis introducit, as a twa- or fower-door sedan, station wagon (or *Turnier*) an coupé. It wis vera seemilar tae the Breetish Ford Cortina Mk III but athoot the "coke bottle" belt line. An aa, the Taunus wis available as a coupe, a boukstyle that the Cortina wis niver made in.

Baith caurs wur developit unner the auspices o Ford o Europe, an maist major components includin key pairts o the boukshell wur identical (TC means "Taunus Cortina", tae show the similarity o the caurs). Frae 1976 Taunus an Cortina models wur identical in aw but name, 'Taunus' bein the name uised in left haund drive (LHD) markets, an 'Cortina' in richt hand drive anes, awtho the Cortina name wis uised in LHD Sooth Korea an Taiwan. The Mk III wis sauld in Scandinavie, alangside the Taunus an aw.

The Ford Taunus TC series wis conceivit in the late 1960s tae be a "warld caur" alangside its technical siblin the Cortina Mk III, wi construction an design wirk takin place on baith sides o the Atlantic. As wi the design o the first generation, it wis done unner the supervision o Semon "Bunkie" Knudsen, o umwhile General Motors fame. The caur is aften elknamit "Barock 2" (pointin back tae the Taunus P2 series o the late 1950s, commonly kent as the "Barock-Taunus") or "The Knudsen Nose" bi its German awners acause o the pointy huid scoop that, as the legend haes it, wis put thare on direct order frae Knudsen. Itherwise the major design wirk is rumoured tae hae been done bi German caur designer Luigi Colani, wha did design concepts for BMW's motorcycle diveesion in the late 1970s an aw.

## Taunus Mark III (1976–1982/1994)

As frae the 1976 model year the Taunus an Cortina wur essentially the same caurs, except for specification changes an trim levels. The Taunus TC alang wi the Cortina Mk III an thair successors hae been producit in slichtly updatit forms in Europe, Argentinae an Asie (some Cortinas wur biggit unner license bi Korean automaker Hyundai) wi the last Turkis Otosan-Taunus leavin the factory in the mid-nineties. Housomeivver the major components remained basically the same throu the entire production run ae receivin minor bouk chynges wi the biggest re-ingineerin in the 1979 model year, which involved a facelift (identical tae the Ford Cortina Mk5 update).

The Taunus/Cortina wis finally replacit bi the Sierra in late 1982. The Sierra carried ower the Cortina/Taunus OHC Pinto Ingines an RWD configuration but wis itherwise an aw new caur wi independent suspension aw roond.

The Taunus an Cortina models are vera easy tae service an share a lot o mechanical components wi the ither European Ford caurs o the period (excludin the Ford Fiesta), makin them extremely easy tae fix, awtho thay are nou a rare sicht in even the mercats whaur thay wur maist popular. For ensaumple, the Breetish Cortinas o this generation sauld mair nor 1,000,000 units, but little mair nor 2,000 wur in circulation bi 2006.

In 1982 production o the Taunus ceased in Europe; it wis replacit bi the Ford Sierra. Production continued in Argentinae till 1984, whaur a coupé version (effectively a twa-door saloon) remained in the line-up richt till the end (whilk in Germany the coupé wis dropt efter the 1975 facelift), an at Otosan in Turkey, whaur a restyled version o the last model continued in production till 1994.

## Production in Argentinae

The Taunus wis producit in Argentinae frae 1974 up till the end o 1984, when the production assembly wis sauld tae Turkey tae manufactur the Otosan Taunus. The Otosan factory an aa came tae tak ower the tuils for manufacturin the previously Sooth African-biggit Cortina mk V-based Ford P100 pick-up truck, awtho buildin it wi thair awn loadin bed wi foldable sides (reminiscent o the Peugeot U10) an its awn front end wi dual square heidlichts an a colourmatched  grille. The Argentine models haed different ingines than the European versions, awtho the "Pinto" 2.0L OHC straight fower wis the base ingine. Options wur the North American 2.3L "Lima" ingine which wis derived frae the "Pinto" ingine but thay differ in several specs. The biggest ingine available in the Argentine Taunus wis a updatit version o the auld Falcon straicht sax-cylinder ingine.

Prior tae introduction the reborn "TC1" efter a year o road testin receivit impruivements tae creetical chassis components due tae the hairsker roads o landwart Argentinae an a lot o pairts wur re-selectit for ease o availability awtho maist o it still haed tae be importit frae European Ford plants. Ane o the maist significant technical differences is that the Argentine Taunus caurs uised Dana rear axles, as opposed tae the European Taunus an Cortinas that uised Atlas or Salisbury rear axles, individually dependin maistly on ingine size.

The Argentine models producit wur the "TC1" in 4-door saloon versions (2000L, 2000GXL an 2300GXL) or 2 door fastback coupè (2300GT an 2300GT/SP) frae 1974 tae 1980. The "TC2"/Cortina Mk 4 wis niver producit, switchin insteid tae the "TC3"/Cortina Mk5 bouks directly an awso introducin the uniquely Argentine facelift-version o the fastback coupe wi the "TC3" neb an its awn taillichts ae foond on this version.

Baith saloon (2.0L, 2.3 Ghia an 2.3 Ghia S) an Coupè (2.3 GT, 2.3 SP an 2.3 SP5) wur produced, bein the ae coupè bodies iver made uisin the TC3/Mk5 stylin. Nae estates or 2 door saloon wur iver producit. 4 an 5 speed manual an 3 speed automatic transmissions wur available, the last twa ae on 2.3L-ingined models.

Even tho the Taunus/Cortina is no a uisual sicht onymair in mony kintras wur it uised tae be a best-seller, it is indeed pretty common in Argentinae, whaur a nummer o Clubs keep the caurs in tap condeetion, but it is an aa a regular transport wi mony faimilies in the kintra.

Ford startit production o the Sierra in 1984, replacin the Taunus definitely in 1985 an continuin production till 1993, athoot iver updatin its stylin as Europe did.

## References

## External links

* Nice green Ford 20M Taunus in the Winlinton Garage, Scotland 
* Pimp-My-Taunus.com : French Ford Taunus site 
* thesportscoupe.com: Ford OSI and other Coupés 
* Club Taunus in Argentina
* Dutch Ford Taunus GT and Ford OSI page 
* Austrian Ford Taunus site (English language) 
* German Ford Taunus site
* German Ford Taunus-Board (mainly German language, but also English and others)
* German site for M-series 1952 - 1972
* Swiss Ford Taunus site
* Hungarian Ford Taunus site 
* Ford Taunus m Club Turkey 
* Fordtaunus Tc