THE MK4 ZEPHYR & ZODIAC RANGE
The Zephyr 4 launched with a price tag of £933 which was £96 above the cost of the MK III Zephyr 4 at the time. The engine used in the Zephyr 4 was the same unit that Ford were using in the Corsair at the time, a four cylinder in 60-degree "V" formation with overhead valves. The engine capacity of 1996cc was capable of producing 88bhp at 4750 revs. The car came as standard with a four speed manual gearbox, but with the option of a 3 speed automatic transmission.
The Zephyr 6 was launched with a price tag of £1005, nearly £100 more then the MK III that was currently available. This was fitted with a 6 cylinder in 60-degree "V" formation engine, with 2495cc capacity. This larger engine than the Zephyr 4 produced 112 bhp at 4750 revs. The car was fitted with a 4 speed manual gearbox, but with the option of either overdrive or a three speed automatic transmission.
In November 1971, as the MK IV range was coming to an end, Fords launched the Zephyr Special. The car was based on the Zephyr 6 Deluxe, but featured over riders, wing mirrors as standard, fabric upholstery, Zodiac style wheel trims and a push button radio. The car was painted in Uranium Blue, with a parchment white vinyl roof. Only 1000 versions of this model were made, and very few now remain. Fords ran a competition through all the dealers to find a suitable name to call their 'Special Zephyr', the winner deciding just to reverse the words and name it a Zephyr Special.
The MK IV Zodiac was priced at £1220 on the official launch date of the 20th April 1966. Fitted with a V6 engine, this was larger than fitted in the Zephyr, providing a cubic capacity of 2993cc, which produced 136 bhp at 4750 revs. This gave the Zodiac a considerable advantage over the other Marques when it came to speed and acceleration. Capable of over 100 mph, it could reach 60mph in 11 seconds, and was equally impressive with acceleration in both third and top gear. The car was priced with a manual 4 speed gearbox, but the option of an overdrive unit or 3 speed automatic transmission was certainly encouraged by the dealership, and a large amount of the Zodiac Range were sold as automatics. The main difference externally was a change in the suspension set up, with a resulting change of wheel size from 13" to 14" wheels, and a body line trim fitted along both sides. The very early models did not have the bonnet cross fitted. The interior was also changed with a padded steering wheel and use of wood veneer on the dashboard.
