Actually, with a two stroke you add a flywheel weight to give it more torque and smooth out power delivery. I have never heard of a cam shaft being added....

If GM bought it in 1948 then they sold it pretty quickly, Textron owned it in 1956 and still do if the 'web is correct.

It's all in the ports with a 2 smoke the ports design are now your cam as are the mechanical exhaust port valve and reed valve help adjust any torque and power.

Great photos, and thanks for them. While I see similar elements between the "HG" and the XA its not an XA. It lacks the slightly ludicrous bulge/ridge to the front guards, and ditto for the 'nose' of the XA's bonnet. No sign of the wrap around front indicator/parkers either.
The rear door line and door handles do give a slight similarity.

One possibility is that perhaps Holden had whispers about what Frod were doing, perhaps from mutual suppliers, and wanted to gain insight into Ford's styling?
Highly unlikely though.

I disagree with your theory Byron, in part anyway.

As they say design is very subjective. You might see elements of the basic XA shape in there somewhere, but others might not.

As I said earlier, to me it looks more like a fat TC Cortina.

Ford Australia have always said that the XA design 'began' in the US in 1968, but given some photos that have emerged in recent times I would doubt their claim.

Have a look at this: https://fordforums.com.a...amp;highlight=xa+design

Go down the page a bit to post #4 also.

It is titled Maverick design proposal 1968 & appears to be a complete clay rendering & even has an XB rear proposal.

There is a lot of Torino in there too.

For this to be this advanced in 1968, it must've begun a lot earlier than that.

Dr Terry

Edited by user Thursday, 23 March 2017 9:12:41 AM(UTC)  | Reason: Not specified

Here's some information on the XA design:

https://www.shannons.com...on-prototypes-exclusive/

I've not heard that one before. Can you quote any sources or links ?

Dr Terry

Yes it's on the Ford forum, but I found it on the web years ago, I may have it somewhere in my notes.
Some of the Ford people go off the rocker about any mention of such a thing, but I am sure that the Mercury it was based on is mainly about the outer skin, we would have a different dash for sure and maybe just maybe put the XY front suspension on it, so I do say it's truly a Aussie car in all, but the foundation of the XA overall style was from a Mercury that never made it into production, so in that sense no it's not a Mercury, but that where it comes from initially I am sure of that.

As for the XD that was what the Aussie boys created, there is no real class in sculpting that, but as to the XC Hardtop some of the yanks would of came down to help our boys with it.

I have an Uncle who worked with Ford USA and he worked with the team involved with creating the Cleveland V8 he told me and he came to Australia once doing testing work in the NT mainly and he had a spac attack as to our servilely backward government at the time, I think it was with P Keating, Ford USA were eager in setting up a program in NT and the back of NSW, but all the red tape and the struggle that went on, so clearly the ALP did not want any business and he said that Ford USA top people were really totally pissed off at how they were so ill treated and packed up for good, veering never to return as such a lazy backward 3rd rate socialist pack of backward bastards and they never came across another country treat them like that in the world ever.

That Uncle was in Australia some years ago retired, but I had the wog badly so I did not go see him, only talked on the phone, but I surely wanted really to talk all about Ford with him.
Maybe I could ask him about that Mercury.

Yes you are correct, but the body work was a fair bit different from the others at times, so a team must of been to do with working on that division.

I think the Comet in 1970-1 got a total new outer skin and for the 1972 Comet Mercury wanted a smaller car platform, so ditching the XA Falcon type thing would make sense for Mercury, all tho it may well of been a plan for our Falcon as well all along, as what would of Ford Aus done without the XA, made a XZ up date on the XY body, such a thing would not cut it against the up dated HQ Holden. not to mention that would a company just sit on it's hands in pixie land thinking that something will just turn up.
Not to mention Ford Aus in them days was trying to totally capitalise on being a fully Aussie car to win customers over like the Holden did and Ford Aus said that the other cars Ford USA had were to big and would of been a failure for Ford Aus.
Football meat pies kangaroos and Ford cars. that was about selling an Australian product.

Look at the Mercury 1960 Comet it's our XK Falcon the rear end is totally different and she has 4 headlights and the 1964 has our XP bonnet.

I am sure that the team that design are people from all over the world who motor company's hire the best in that field, look at the Mustang they got some dude in to do that from Italy. VW got a Italian Porsche to kick the Beetle off thanks to the German Government and Australia got the FX Holden due to our Government and that Holden closest relative is the Vauxhall Opel thing, not a Chev because the Chev have chassis and a big 6 so they can't be related at all.

I don't know why most people think that each car company 'only' uses there own people to design, that to me would be a very backward thing to do as a company, as that would only lead to a company's failure, a cancer much like socialism caught in a vortex of it's own blighted ego driven madness.
The top design people I believe can move around all over the industry's and are not payed as a common wage earner and they don't open there mouth about some things or there career would be destroyed.

Reviving an old thread. This is from Retroautos ( it's on the Shannon's Club forum) This take on the HQ's 'Canadian' origins.

"The quick answer to the question about the HQ being a Canadian design is "no". Having spoken extensively to three of the designers who shaped the HQ in Melbourne, I think they would have mentioned that to me. In fact, the HQ was never designed for left hand drive. Holden's then Chief Engineer, George Roberts, though it too expensive to re-engineer the dashboard for a LHD version due to the integrated air conditioning ducts."