78 Classic Car Mart Spring 2016
“The MkII's transatlantic styling proved a huge hit with the buying public who
now had several brand new body colours to choose from”
all three models and quite a few items of painted
exterior trim, especially on the revised Consul-
badged model, were now chrome plated or made
of stainless steel. As well as all three models
now featuring a redesigned rectangular shaped
dash layout in place of the original semi-circular
affair, the revised Consul also received a pair of
easy to identify Anglia 105E-style tail-lights. Half
way through 1961, the year optional disc brakes
were fitted as standard, the Deluxe version of
the four-cylinder Consul was now offered as the
slightly better equipped 375.
E.J. Abbott of Farnham produced an estate
version based on all three models, a spacious
conversion that even found favour with the Royal
Family. Carbodies built a limited number of now
very desirable convertibles, although very few of
the latter have survived. MkII production came
to an end in 1962 after Ford had produced over
680,000 versions of its top selling big saloons.
The Three Graces finally bowed out in April of
that year and were replaced by a very different
looking range of MkIII Z-cars.
ENGINE
The four- and six cylinder engines fitted to the
Consul, Zephyr and Zodiac are of an all cast iron
construction and over the years have proved
reasonably robust, providing the oil and filter
have been changed regularly. Many owners
have successfully modified their cars to run
on unleaded petrol and judging by favourable
comments from members belonging to the MkII
Consul, Zephyr and Zodiac Owners’ Club, this
has proved to be a worthwhile conversion. One
important item to check on all engines, whatever
the size, is the condition of the fuel pump. This
is a mechanical unit mounted on the side of the
block and not only contains a removable gauze
screen in a glass bowl, the pump also providing
vacuum assistance for the Three Grace’s
notorious vacuum powered wipers.
Whether it’s a four- or six cylinder powered
MkII you're looking at, an engine with worn bores
will chuff a copious amount of blue smoke out
of the exhaust and worn big ends will knock
like a woodpecker on steroids. Excess white
smoke could indicate coolant is getting into the
combustion chamber via a cracked block or
cylinder head and main bearings past their best
will rumble like mad while the engine is idling.
The best way to check if a MkII’s engine has
been looked after is to take the dipstick out
and check the condition of the oil. If it’s black
and thick and whiffs of petrol, then the stuff
has been in the sump too long and if there are
any white streaks in the oil, it’s probably been
contaminated by coolant. As well as a cracked
block or head, coolant may have entered the oil
ways via a leaking head gasket, as the two-
bladed fan as fitted to these four- and six-cylinder
engines is woefully inadequate and can lead
to the engine overheating in some conditions.
To get over this problem, some owners fit a
thermostatically controlled electric fan, an easy
and very worthwhile DIY fix.
All models, regardless of whatever sized
engine is under the bonnet, were fitted with a
single carburettor topped with a gauze-filled air
cleaner. A few six-cylinder cars were equipped
with a Raymond Mays tuning kit featuring
a triple carburettor set up, alloy head and
modified manifolds. Rare survivors fitted with
this performance modification are now highly
desirable and suitably expensive.
TRANSMISSION
All MkII Consuls, Zephyrs and Zodiacs were fitted
with a column change, three-speed gearbox.
Overdrive was offered as an optional extra, as
was automatic transmission. Gearboxes and
rear axles can go on for donkey’s years without
any attention other than an oil change as per
the service manual. Overdrive should engage
smartly when the switch is flicked and automatic
‘boxes should change up and down without any
slipping or jolting. Even if the auto ‘box drives