It’s time to revisit a recurring theme here at CC, that of American cars in Europe. In this instance, something to please fans of Fords of the 1970s; two 1972 Ford Country Sedan wagons found in different locations. We’ll start with the less preserved of the two, posted recently at the Cohort by Guillaume Vachey.
As can be seen, the car sits at the “Euro Repair” shop, which seems to be taking its sweet time getting the car back on the road. If they’re trying at all, that is. At least that’s the impression I get from an accompanying comment on the post, originally in French: “It’s been there since 2015, without the tires and next to an Ascona A…”
I’ll have to trust Google Translator I got that right.
Sadly, there was only one image posted of the green Country Sedan (Yes, that’s Ford’s name for the model), but one can see that its location didn’t invite for multiple shots. So, why not complement this entry with more shots from the Cohort I might have missed? There! Another 1972 Ford Country Sedan found in a Helsinki show by Corey Behrens, and posted in 2022. And this one going by the affectionate “Lucille” name, if I go by the cursive lettering on the fenders.
But wait, is this “Lucille” the same one we featured back in 2015? An unexpected follow-up? That time, the car was making its way across the Atlantic to reach a new home in Germany. Has it found a new home since then? Even a new nation?
(Update: It’s still in Germany, and still owned by Philipp. Check comments below.)
In any case, the sight of any of these 1970s Detroit machines is quite an attraction in the Old Continent. And why, despite the difficulties in keeping one around, they’ve their following. We all love to be different, if we can afford it. After all, Kei cars and the like have in recent times made their way stateside. We all know the feeling, to one degree or another.
For now, I’ll wave “Lucille” goodbye, and will close with this shot featuring prominently the car’s “Forward thrust” (Ford’s name for these pointy beaks) front treatment. Quite a sight nowadays, in Europe and elsewhere.
Related CC reading:
Difficult to keep running and around I can only imagine. Right now a few of us on a Ford Truck forum are trying to help a fellow in La Rochelle France restore his 1961 F-100 with the 223ci six. How it ended up there, how he got it, and why he got it I have no clue. Obviously his major problem is sourcing parts for that old truck which have to come from the U.S. Shipping being the killer, such as a gearbox, as we can find him the parts here.
His latest reply on the forum: “At this stage of my truck renovation, I wanted to thank all the forum members who take the time to help me by sending me technical information, photos and encouragement. I find the same kindness there as on certain forums in France; the passion seems to have no geographical borders and, in these times when the world seems to no longer understand or speak to each other, it feels good to have this kind of exchange, so once again thank you !”
Anything except common wear items for my daily drive have to come from the UK, used, new simply doesnt exist. 1 week delivery time airfreight, new suspension bushings for my classic from the same country same delivery time but that supplier shut down the originals did 58 years the new ones will out last me.
My Dad had a ’73 Ranch Wagon he bought new, it replaced a ’69 Country Squire but was actually better equipped than the Squire…having our first air conditioning, power locks (manual windows) AM/FM stereo, trailer towing package and a 400/2bbl instead of the 351. Our ’73 was the last of our really large wagons, it was traded in ’78 for a smaller Caprice Classic wagon which ended up as his last wagon since 1961. Minivans soon took over but as only my youngest sister was still at home we missed that trend, Dad went down in size maybe too much with his new ’84 Pontiac Sunbird (which ended up being the worst car he ever owned..new to junkyard in 7 years (going through 2 engines) despite regular dealer maintenance.
Wonder why they had the flush AMC door handles such a short time…our ’73 had “normal” non-flush handles, including the rear tailgate. I have a habit of naming things for the first car I saw them on, like the “a” pilar rear view mirrors which I first saw on Mercedes Benz, so call them “Mercedes mirrors” (though I’m sure that’s not correct term).
The roads are pretty narrow in Pennsylvania, where my parents are from, but nothing like some of those in Europe. Somehow people contend with pretty large vehicles there. We used to have someone “on assignment” from one of our locations in Europe, most often Santa Palomba but also Vimercate Italy, they’d stay 3-5 years so we got to know them pretty well. One guy was from Hursley UK bought a Dodge Ramcharger, which though not an overly long vehicle is certainly wider than other passenger vehicles (truck or bus excepted) which he intended bringing back with him…I sometimes wonder how he was able to deal with it over there. Of course it is intended as an offroad vehicle where width is also probably an issue. Though one of my friends also owned one and he mentioned that the turning radius was much smaller than you’d expect for such a large vehicle…probably by design, though I wonder how many steering racks went bad trying to make that movement while going slow or maybe not moving at all.
I visited Norway and Finland about 10 years ago, and I was surprised by how many old American cars I saw there. I later learned that there’s a certain subculture in the Nordic countries that is really into those cars. In Helsinki there’s even a weekly car show near the harbor where they show them off. That looks to be where the pictures of the blue car were taken.
Sweden is probably the country where this subculture is most predominant.
As well as big gatherings there are cruisenights frequently in numerous small towns. Dressing up in period clothing is also part of the fun.
Here’s a fine site run by a guy in Kristiansand, in southern Norway (boy, Norway is a beautiful place!); much of the focus is on old Amerian iron, and there are tons of pics of car shows, with many old US cars (this site also has a great library of old US and European auto brochures):
http://www.lov2xlr8.no/
Links below to their car shows, these folks are *really* into it… lots of US muscle and luxury cars, but also plenty of “plain Jane” models, too:
http://www.lov2xlr8.no/show.html
There is also something of a US – inspired “biker” culture in Norway, and also in the rest of Scandinavia; many pics of that on this site, too…
Dude in the Stetson driving the red ‘Vette photo bombing Lucille in the 3rd and 5th photos must be a lot of fun. I guess the thinking is that if one is going to go to a “foreign” car show, you might as well dress in the charming native costumes of said foreign land. 🙂
The blue one reminds me of the coroner’s arrival, in The Streets of San Francisco.
A Quinn Martin Production.
Tonight’s Episode: Soliloquy for a Sasquatch.
Lucille’s owner here. She’s still with me. After doing a winter trip to the Arctic circle in Lucille (covered over on Autoblog) before the pandemic the whole family including all three classic cars relocated to Finland in 2001.
This pics are from the only time we made it to Helsinki’s monthly Friday night cruising.
Currently Lucille is undergoing massive engine upgrades including higher compression pistons and a roller cam and will hopefully roar back into the midnight sun this summer…
Feel free to shoot an e-mail with any questions!
Thanx for the shoutout Phillip! .
Good to know Lucille is in good hands .
I look at the first one sitting forlorn and wonder why ? these are dead simple cars in every way and are a breeze to keep running and once you’ve disabled the E.G.R. valve and thermatic spark retard they’ll actually run rather well .
-Nate
These were my favorite versions of the big Ford full-size wagons, the 1970-74 versions, with the peak of style in 1971, IMHO! I especially like that the original owner of “Lucille” went for the plain sided “Country Sedan” version instead of the faux woody look of the “Country Squire” version! Which has me wondering, would the one sitting in France be for sale, how much is it, and what would it cost to ship it back home to the USA? Yes, I’m dreaming, but a man can dream, can’t he?
I’d like to get a look at the “Torino”, convert parked next to it!
Saw one of these at a show recently different front clip but from the A posts back same car