For a long time, the Australian branch of the Ford Motor Company has had a leading trilogy of cars: the Falcon, the Fairlane and the Fairmont. The Ford Fairmont is the middle child of these three. But middle certainly doesn’t mean mediocre or middle-of-the road. The Ford Fairmont’s a fair dinkum beauty.

The revamped version of the well-loved classic is a joy to behold and to drive. From the outside, the Ford Fairmont Ghia is smooth and dynamic, with no hint of the old 1970s smoke-belcher about it – you’d hardly believe it was the same car. And it comes in more colours than just Henry Ford’s favourite shade of black. Perched on top of 17″ alloy wheels and glittering with a chrome grille and dark accent front headlamps. From behind – which is how the drivers of other cars tend to see the Ford Fairmont – it sports a stylish exposed chrome exhaust.

Out on the open road, the Ford Fairmont will do its best to fulfil your racing fantasies. There is plenty of fun on offer with the ZF 6-speed automatic transmission with Sequential Sports Shift. Cornering, and rough surfaces are a breeze thanks to the Sports Control Blade Independent Rear Suspension (IRS), which gives a good combination of on-road comfort and feedback. The 4-channel ABS brakes with Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD) will help you check the Ford Fairmont to swing around a nice tight hairpin (or to stop in a hurry) and the Dynamic Stability Control incorporating Traction Control will keep the rubber firmly on the tarmac. On a long straight, the Barra 190 4.0L DOHC Dual Independent VCT I6 engine inside the Ford Fairmont Ghia packs a powerful 190kW @ 5250rpm punch and a terrific torque of 500Nm @ 3500rpm, giving plenty of oomph to the rear wheels. In short – the Ford Fairmont is ready for some serious, yet sophisticated fun!

Around town, the Ford Fairmont Ghia is well behaved and a pleasure to be in. The 6-disc in-dash CD, 150 watt amplifier and 150 watt sub-woofer sound system with colour monitor will help while away the time spent waiting in the lights, and you and your four passengers will be able to play around with other gadgetry such as the dual climate control, and the large colour TFT screen and trip computer. The leather-covered seats in the Ford Fairmont sedan (are very comfortable to sit on (or should that be “sit in”?), courtesy of the fully adjustable driver and passenger lumbar support seats.

Safety features in the Ford Fairmont are top-notch, featuring the Intelligent Safety System, driver and front passenger airbags with dual stage inflators, side airbags (head and thorax) and pyrotechnic seatbelt buckle pretensioners complete with a beltminder system. And the Ford Fairmont Ghia also knows how to look after itself with the standard Smartshield security system.

Older models of the Ford Fairmont were notorious gas-guzzlers. But is this one? Well, given the average fuel consumption of 10.2 litres per 100 km, I’d say it’s superb for a large car – frugal, in fact. And with some LPG models available, the alternative fuel optoin can reduce your fuel bill that little bit more.

All in all, the Ford Fairmont’s a lovely car.

Current model series include:

• Ford Fairmont Ghia MKII BF
• Ford Fairmont MKII BF

For any more information on the Ford Fairmont, or for that matter any other new car, contact one of our friendly consultants on 1300 303 181. If you’d like some fleet discount pricing (yes even for private buyers!), we can submit vehicle quotes requests out to our national network of Ford dealers and come back with pricing within 24 hours. Private Fleet – car buying made easy!

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