THE SONOMA COUNTY FALCONS FOR FUN CHAPTER
In my last article, I described the
events that led to Ford’s involvement in the Monte Carlo Rally, and other rally
events. The Ford Motor Company fully sponsored the Falcon Rally teams that were entered in
the 1963 Monte Carlo event. With the three rally teams in place for the Monte Carlo event,
Ford had to quickly develop modifications to the "Sprint" version of the Falcon
to make it a worthy competitor in the world’s most famous rally event.
John Holman from the Holman & Moody company was contacted by Ford to develop the Falcon Rally cars. He only had 3 months to develop a car that would be competitive in the challenging rally event. The rally car was based on the new Falcon Sprint. The Sprint was the hot ticket with its new 260 V-8. Holman and Moody made the following modifications to the 63 Sprints:
Cobra engine kits that boosted the horsepower from 164 hp to 260 hp.
Front disc brakes for improved brake performance and stopping ability--11.5-inch Bendix-Dunlop discs, and 11-inch drums.
Modifications to the pitman and idler arms to quicken the steering ratio--17-to-1 compared to the stock Sprint’s 27-to-1.
An additional rear leaf spring to reduce axle wind-up and improve the stability of the suspension.
A limited-slip 9" rear differential with 4.51 gears--borrowed from the Galaxie.
The above chart contains vehicle information and performance specifications for 1963 Stock and Monte Carlo Sprints as tested by Car and Driver Magazine in 1963.
The original Holman and Moody setup included two shocks at each wheel. However, after some initial testing, single Koni shocks were installed. The additional leaf spring was about half the size of a full spring. It was installed not to stiffen the suspension, but to reduce axle wind-up.The interiors of the rally Falcons were quite interesting. The driver’s seat was a full wrap-around competition seat that held the driver in position. The floor board on the driver’s side was recessed in order to allow for more pedal travel that was needed to accommodate the heavy duty clutch. Both the clutch and brake pedals were modified for competition driving.The only instruments for the driver were the fuel gauge and a 7,000 RPM tachometer. There was no speedometer because drive gears for a Falcon with a 4:51 final drive ratio had not been developed. The entire dash panel had been painted a flat black.
The front passenger seat was reserved for the navigator, and a full array of rally instruments were installed to perform navigational duties. The main instrument at the Navigator’s disposal was a Halda Speedpilot. This served as both the odometer and speedometer.