Edsel — Why Ford's Fourth Brand Lasted Only Three Model Years

Edsel at a glance

The man behind the name

Edsel Ford was born in Detroit on 6 November 1893, the son of Henry Ford. He became president of the Ford Motor Company on 11 July 1919 and held the post until his death on 26 May 1943, aged 49. He bought the Lincoln Motor Company in 1922 and was responsible for the Lincoln-Zephyr and the Lincoln Continental. He designed the body of the 1927 Model A, which sold almost five million cars in four years. As president of the Detroit Arts Commission he also commissioned Diego Rivera's Detroit Industry murals. The Lincoln side of his work is told in the history of Lincoln.

The E car and the search for a name

Ford wanted a fourth brand to compete with General Motors and Chrysler in the middle of the market. Development of a new car began in 1955 under the code name "E car". Ford became a public company on 17 January 1956, and the Edsel Division was formed in November 1956 with Richard E. Krafve as general manager and a planned network of 1,187 dealers.

The name took a long search. The advertising agency Foote, Cone & Belding produced about 6,000 candidates, and the chairman Ernest Breech rejected the list. The marketing manager David Wallace and a colleague even asked the poet Marianne Moore for ideas, and her unofficial suggestions included "Utopian Turtletop" and "Mongoose Civique". In the end the company chose the name of its late president, although Henry Ford II objected. Four early favourites, Citation, Corsair, Pacer and Ranger, became model names.

E-Day and the 1958 range

The cars went on sale on "E-Day", 4 September 1957, and a television special, The Edsel Show, followed on 13 October. There were seven models. The Ranger and Pacer used Ford Fairlane bodies on a 118-inch (2,997 mm) wheelbase. The Corsair and Citation shared Mercury Monterey and Montclair bodies on 124 inches (3,150 mm). The Roundup, Villager and Bermuda were estate cars on a 116-inch wheelbase.

Two V8s powered the range. The Ranger and Pacer had a 361 cu in (5.9-litre) engine of 226 kW (303 hp). The Corsair and Citation had a 410 cu in (6.7-litre) V8 of 257 kW (345 bhp) and 644 Nm. The Citation weighed 1,950–2,041 kg, so it had about 126–132 kW per tonne on these figures; the power-to-weight calculator works out the same for any car. The Teletouch system put the automatic gearbox buttons in the centre of the steering wheel. Other features included a rotating-dome speedometer, a warning for a preset speed and a remote boot release.

Prices in 1958 ran from US$2,529 for the cheapest Ranger to US$3,390 for a Corsair. Teletouch cost US$231 on the Ranger and Pacer, and air conditioning US$417 on the Ranger. The Corsair is covered in Edsel Corsair 1958–1959 history and specifications.

Why the Edsel failed

The timing was poor. The 1957–1958 recession cut sales of medium-priced cars just as Edsel arrived, and buyers were starting to turn to economy cars such as the Volkswagen Beetle. The prices overlapped with both Ford and Mercury, so buyers were unsure where the car fitted. The vertical "horse collar" grille drew wide criticism.

Quality made it worse. Edsels were assembled on the same lines as Fords and Mercurys, some cars left the factory unfinished, and some dealers never fitted the parts supplied with them. The Teletouch system had reliability and safety problems and was dropped for 1959. Ford had not tested the car with buyers before committing to it. In January 1958 the Edsel Division was merged into a combined Mercury-Edsel-Lincoln division.

Even so, the 1958 launch was large by the standards of new brands. The 63,110 American sales, plus 4,935 in Canada, were the second-largest first year for a new brand after DeSoto in 1929.

1959, 1960 and the end

For 1959 the range shrank. The Pacer and Citation were dropped, the Corsair moved to a Ford-based chassis with a 120-inch wheelbase, and the Villager was the only estate left. Sales fell to 44,891 in the United States and 2,505 in Canada. The 1960 cars, only the Ranger and Villager, were redesigned to share more with Ford and included a convertible Ranger. They were built only until 19 November 1959, when Ford announced the end of Edsel; 2,846 were made.

From September 1957 to November 1959 Ford sold about 116,000 Edsels. For the years 1955–1959 the Wikipedia article gives the loss as more than US$250 million in one place and US$350 million in another. Spending on development, advertising and launch from 1955 to 1957 is put at about US$400 million. Ford gave dealers and owners credits to offset the fall in used-car values. The compact planned as the Edsel Comet was sold instead as the Mercury Comet, without Edsel badges, and outsold the entire Edsel range.

Collecting an Edsel today

Today the brand's rarity is its appeal. The most numerous model is the 1959 Ranger, with 30,258 built; the Citation convertible of 1958, with 930, and the 1960 Ranger convertible, with 76, are among the rarest. Teletouch cars are the most typical of 1958, while 1959 models are simpler. Ford's own history is told in the history of Ford, the related brand is in the Mercury catalogue, and the Edsel models are listed in the Edsel catalogue.

Edsel timeline

Landmark Edsel models

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