1963 Falcon Convertible: August 2008

1963 Ford Falcon Futura ragtop's $2470 base price

The 1963 Ford Falcon Futura was the runaway hit among the Big Three's new 1960 compacts: cheap to buy, cheap to run, utterly conventional.

But though Falcon made big money as a "consumer" car, Chevrolet's radical Corvair Monza quickly uncovered an even bigger market for sporty compacts with bucket seats, floorshift, and sprightly acceleration.

Ford, as it happened, was thinking sporty, too, so the Falcon was dressed up when Monza sales quickly took off. The first result was the 1961-62 Futura, a two-door sedan with a mini-Thunderbird buckets-and-console interior. Pushing harder for '63 was a separate Futura series with new convertible and hardtop coupe body styles. Both of these came two ways: six-cylinder standard and, at mid-season, V-8 Sprint. The Sprint package added $130 to the regular ragtop's $2470 base price, but was worth every penny. The reason was Ford's year-old 260-cubic-inch Challenger V-8, a revvy, modern design with 164 horsepower versus 101 for the mainstay 170-cid six. Even better, the V-8 could team with Falcon's first four-on-the-floor manual.
Sprints also came with good-looking wire wheel covers, tachom-eter, and bright engine rocker covers. A mid-year introduction limited convertibles to just 4602 (versus 31,192 standard Futuras), but the Sprint was a potent image boost for Falcon, especially as the basic 1960 styling was still intact. Adding even more luster were the Sprint hardtops that competed with distinction in European rallies during 1964-65.

But the Sprint wouldn't last beyond 1964. The reason was that Ford introduced an even sportier compact that year: the wildly successful Mustang.

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Ford Straight-6 engine

Ford's first straight-6 engine was introduced in 1906 in the Model K. Production ended in 1907. Henry Ford did not like this car, which had a habit of tearing its transmission up. The next Ford six was introduced in the 1941 Ford. The company continued producing straight 6 engines until they were replaced in the mid-1990s by more compact V6 designs. However, Ford's Australian Branch manufactures these engines for their Falcon range to this day.

In 1961 the 170 CID (2.8 L) became an option for the Falcon line. The original 1964½ Ford Mustang used a 101 hp (75 kW) version. The Econoline van and Ford Bronco received a heavier duty version with mechanical valve lifters. This engine had four main bearings and can be identified by the three freeze (core) plugs on the side of the block. The 170 was dropped from production in 1972.

Leo Carrillo Beach 1963 Photoshoot

The park has 1.5 miles of beach for swimming, surfing, windsurfing, surf fishing and beachcombing. The beach also has tide pools, coastal caves and reefs for exploring. Giant sycamores shade the main campgrounds. The park also features back-country hiking.

Nature walks and campfire programs are offered and a small visitor center has interpretive displays. During the summer, children's programs are available. The park was named after Leo Carrillo (1880-1961), actor, preservationist and conservationist, served on the California Beach and Parks commission for eighteen years, and was instrumental in the state's acquisition of the Hearst property at San Simeon. He was related by blood and marriage to a long line of distinguished original Californians. Leo's greatest fame came from his portrayal of Pancho, the sidekick to Duncan Renaldo's Cisco Kid, an early 1950's TV series.

August 2008 = 45 years after the 1963 photoshoot. Same place...Leo Carrillo Beach Malibu, CA

1963 California Surf Lifestyle

Top 100 Hits of 1963/Top 100 Songs of 1963
1. Surfin' U.S.A., Beach Boys
By the end of 1963, the Beach Boys had recorded three full LPs, hit the Top Ten as many times, and toured incessantly. Also, Brian began to grow as a producer, best documented on the third Beach Boys LP, Surfer Girl. Though surf songs still dominated the album, "Catch a Wave,"