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Jan 1997
Ford Taurus
The near-invisible DP Taurus makeover – it concerned mainly subtle changes to trim – arrived for the '97 model year, but nobody was buying into it despite a price slash in early '98.In the end, around 4000 Taurus’ found homes in Australia. So, with the all too similarly styled AU Falcon slated for a September ’98 onslaught onto an unsuspecting public, Ford Australia cut its Taurus losses and took a very deep breath...The folly of the Ford Taurus in Australia is a lesson for product planners globally who don’t take local tastes into consideration.And to think it was seriously mooted as a replacement for the EF/EL Falcon.

Dec 1996
Mentor
KIA broke into the Australian small-car market with the attractive and keenly priced Mentor hatchback in late 1996.But what lurked beneath was a front-wheel drive platform based on the 1989-1994 Mazda BG 323, but costed down. So the driving experience was neither very modern nor particularly impressive.Under the bonnet lay a 59kW/120Nm single-cam eight-valve 1.5-litre four-cylinder engine related to the units found in the Mazda 121 bubble and Ford Festiva. With almost 1200kg of car to push around, it had to work very hard to keep up with modern traffic.The styling and body engineering, by an English firm IAD, gave the Kia a European flavour missing from subsequent models, but the cabin, filled with cheap-feeling plastics and trim, seemed older than it really was, and didn’t offer much space for adults in the back.Two models were offered – a basic SLX and well-equipped GLX. The latter included powered steering, windows, door locks and mirrors and cloth trim.

Dec 1996
KJ II/KL Laser
Confusingly also known as the "KL", the KJ II sports a more corporate Ford face grille and minor trim and equipment level changes.The unloved Lynx was killed off.

Nov 1996
Ford 1996 Explorer range
THERE are three things you must remember when considering any pre-2001 Ford Explorer. One: the Explorer

Oct 1996
Jeep Wrangler
The Wrangler name may have only debuted here in 1996, but the model is a direct descendent of the 'General Purpose' (or GP - 'jeep') models Willys and Ford manufacturered for the US Government in the early 1940s.

Apr 1996
XH Falcon ute
Ford grafted a sleek new nose and a rounder roof on the existing XD-XG workhorse to create the EF Falcon-lookalike XH series.The XF-derived cabin received a mild facelift too, but it still looked and felt like an old, old ute from behind the wheel.The S received a standard airbag and the world’s first airbag compatible roo bar to go with it.An upgraded 148kW/353Nm 4.0L I6 engine was introduced, along with a 164kW/366Nm Tickford 4.0L unit in the XR6 (with a reduced payload of 530kg to match).The big news though was the addition of a one-tonne (actually 1140kg) payload in the Outback model, 15 years after Holden first offered it with the HQ.More equipment was creeping into all models, while a raft of special editions began to appear.Special editions:· May 97 – Tradesman: air-conditioning, alloy wheels, decals, bed liner.· July 97 – S Splash: Alloy sports bar, alloy wheels, cruise control, upgraded audio, decals.

Apr 1996
EP91R Starlet
Toyota’s first real light car to be sold locally since the 1960s 700 crashed the burgeoning segment a decade late after stalwarts like the Holden Barina and Daihatsu Charade helped define it, and 23 years after the nameplate’s Japanese debut.The Starlet suffered from indifferent styling and high prices, but when the latter was rectified after Toyota entered the infamous cutthroat price war with the Hyundai Excel and Ford Festiva, sales soared.Against its cheap South Korean rivals, the Starlet offered lively performance from a 55kW 1.3-litre 4E-FE fuel-injected twin-cam 16-valve four-cylinder engine, high levels of refinement, frugal fuel economy, dogged durability and a relatively strong body.The base three-door hatchback Life enjoyed the lion’s share of the sales, but there were other models too available at launch: the sporty three-door hatch Group X and well-specified Style five-door hatchback.All offered a three-speed auto as well as the standard five-speed manual gearbox. Dual front airbags, anti-lock brakes and power steering were desirable options.In July ’97 the range grew with the arrival of a five-door hatch Life model while the Style gained central locking and a tachometer.

Mar 1996
Ford Taurus
In the USA, the original 1986 Taurus, with its European styling and advanced specification, saved the ultra conservative US arm of the Ford Motor Company and helped change American car buyer’s tastes.To know this may help understand why the misguided 1996 Taurus Mk2, which allegedly cost billions of dollars to develop, was so radically designed.It was meant to maintain its predecessor’s reputation for boldness while sustaining its hard-fought market-leadership against Japanese models such as the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord. But many American buyers could not come to terms with the Taurus’ wilfully egg-like looks, and sales stumbled.At least over there, people knew what a Taurus was and where it belonged.From the outset of its Australian launch in early ’96, the orphan Ford’s prestige-segment pricing, relatively tight packaging and front-wheel drive layout also alienated it from traditional Ford buyers (who sooner chose the cheaper, better-balanced Fairmont or Fairlane instead), while its lack of badge credos did it no favours against more established prestige rivals.Still, it was well-equipped (dual airbags, anti-lock brakes, climate control air-con, cruise control, CD player), reasonably powerful, thanks to a 149kW 3.0-litre quad-cam V6 engine, pleasantly refined to drive and quite comfortable.And did I mention its distinctively offbeat styling?

Jul 1995
Ford Mondeo
FORD Australia returned to the medium segment in late 2007 with a sleek new Mondeo. As the third-generation Ford to wear the moniker, it is a different car to the last Mondeo which rolled out of showrooms in 2000, with far more interior space, an upgraded interior and more of an emphasis on driving dynamics.

May 1995
Holden 1995 Commodore Acclaim sedan
BY the mid 1990s, both Holden and Ford had worked hard to make their large sedans and wagons far better

May 1995
K11 Series I
Although available overseas since the early 1980s, Nissan Australia didn’t market the Echo-sized Micra until well into the Mk2 model’s career in 1995.Engineered and built in Britain for European tastes, and offered in three and five-door hatchback guises, the Micra suffered from bad timing.Its British sourcing made it expensive just as its main (and often inferior) rivals from Ford (Festiva), Hyundai (Excel) and later Toyota (Starlet) embarked on massive discounting, effectively pricing the Nissan out of contention.Yet its exceptional spaciousness, peppy performance and excellent economy (especially from the advanced CVT auto optional in the mid-range SLX) should have won it more buyers.The base LX three-door boasted little beyond cloth trim and a radio/cassette player, the SLX five-door gained power steering and split-fold rear seats, and the sporty Super S (so-named to evoke the Mini Cooper S which inspired the design) offered anti-lock brakes, a tachometer, sunroof, bodykit and alloy wheels.All models featured a 55kW 1.3-litre twin-cam 16-valve four-cylinder engine, mostly mated to a five-speed manual gearbox.

May 1995
Laguna MkI
Several importers have represented Renault locally since the French marque arrived here with the Juvaquatre in 1946.In its various guises, Renault Australia has assembled a diverse range of cars in Melbourne, such as the 10, 12, 16, 18, 20, Peugeot 404, 505 and even the Ford TE/TF Cortina wagon.Before its 2001 resurrection by Nissan Australia, a pre-Ford Volvo Car Australia (VCA) had control.The stylish and appealing front-wheel drive Laguna five-door hatchback was to be its almost sure-fire assault on the local prestige market above the bland, Corolla-sized 19.Two engines were offered in the Laguna – the 83kW/168Nm F3R 2.0-litre four-cylinder and the 123kW/235Nm Z7X 3.0-litre V6, the former powering the RXE in either five-speed manual or four-speed automatic guises, and the latter as the auto-only ‘V6’ model.Equipment levels were high – all featured a driver’s airbag, anti-lock brakes, power steering, climate control air-conditioning, central locking, fog lights and a trip computer, while the V6 added cruise control, alloy wheels, power front seats and a rear spoiler.Despite favourable reviews and keen pricing, VCA’s plans went up in a bang along with the French Government’s extremely unpopular decision to test nuclear bombs in the Pacific.The subsequent anti-French fallout hamstrung Laguna sales locally (a Renault 12 was even publicly set alight in protest), forcing VCA – whose international relationship with Renault soured soon after an aborted merger agreement – to drop the franchise in 1996.It was only Renault’s 1999 rescue and control of the near-bankrupt Nissan Motor Corporation that cleared the way for its return to Australia two years later.The second generation Laguna followed from March ’02.

Nov 1994
Ford 1994 Laser LXi 4-dr sedan
FORD really dropped the ball with its third-generation KF Laser of 1990. Sure, its Mazda 323-derived

Nov 1994
Ford 1994 Laser LXi Liata 5-dr hatch
FORD really dropped the ball with its third-generation KF Laser of 1990. Sure, its Mazda 323-derived

Nov 1994
X3 Excel
The X3 was the third generation Excel that really put Hyundai, “driveaway” pricing and the light-car segment on the map in Australia.Hugely successful right from launch, the X3’s rounded good looks, spacious interior and savvy marketing appealed to a wide demographic, especially young, female drivers.Almost everything was new, including the Hyundai-designed Alpha II 65kW 1.5L 12-valve four-cylinder engine, longer wheelbase and dual-link rear suspension.The result was a more powerful, dynamic and refined light car.The five-door hatch and four-door sedan came in LX or GLX spec, while the three-door versions were known as Sprint and GX.The limited “Classique” sedan arrived in October ’96 sporting anti-lock brakes, followed by a small facelift and trim changes in April 1997.In December ’97 all Excels were fitted with a more powerful 74kW 1.5L twin-cam engine.But the overwhelming majority sold was the Sprint, enticing buyers with free air-conditioning, driveaway pricing and – from late ’98 – standard power steering.In April and December ’99 the Sportz Pack also included a CD player, alloy wheels and rear spoiler to the Sprint and GLX models.But the Excel’s reputation was tarnished as reports of suspect durability arose during 1998.And the aggressive discount price war with the Toyota Starlet and Ford Festiva has cheapened the brand and depressed resale values – much to Hyundai’s dismay today, which offers palpably better quality vehicles.The Excel name was jettisoned when it was replaced by the much-improved Accent in July 2000, reflecting Hyundai’s desire to distance itself from its former Golden Goose.

Sep 1994
Ford 1994 Falcon GLi 5-dr wagon
TO say that the EF Falcon saved Ford Australia's bacon is an understatement. A multi-million dollar

Aug 1994
AY Telstar
A minor facelift – featuring a new grille – a standard driver’s airbag and more standard features arrived with the AY series.But déjà vu struck for Telstar fans as Ford began to slowly phase out the 2.0L sedans and hatchbacks when the more dynamic but less refined HA Mondeo arrived from Belgium during the middle of 1995.Throughout ’96 only the V6 models remained, until the far-improved HC Mondeo finally lay the badge to rest locally late in that year.

Aug 1994
GE Series II
A minor facelift, featuring a new grille, revised trim, a standard driver’s airbag and more standard features than before summed up the GE series II.A cheaper MX-6 model was added, without the 4-wheel steering system, anti-lock brakes, cruise control, sunroof and CD player. Also, the 626 hatchback gained a leather-trimmed Luxury model.At the other end of the spectrum, a new entry level 626 Deluxe sedan was introduced, losing the cruise control and power windows of the previous base model 626. A value-added Eclipse 626 appeared in mid-’95. Ford Telstar versions of the GE II were known as the AY, and were on sale until July ’95 (when the HA Mondeo replaced the AY Telstar sedan) and late ’96 respectively (when the AY Telstar hatchbacks were usurped by the HC Mondeo).

Jul 1994
ST Probe
The front-wheel drive Ford Probe debuted in the USA in 1988.It was based on the third-generation (1987-1991) Mazda 626 Coupe (MX-6 in Australia), and was built alongside it at Mazda’s Flat Rock, Michigan plant.Australians had to wait until the Probe Mk2 of 1994. Again spawned off the MX-6 (the fourth-generation 1991-1997 edition), the Ford differed from its Mazda stablemate by being a three-door hatchback rather than a two-door coupe.And speaking of design, it is actually historic for being the first production car in the world with styling overseen by a woman (Mimi Vandermolen). How she overlooked the name then remains a mystery.Only the single four-seater model made it locally, powered by a 121kW/213Nm 2.5-litre quad-cam 24-valve V6 engine mated to a four-speed automatic or five-speed manual gearbox.The Probe 24V’s long list of standard features included dual front airbags, anti-lock brakes, air-conditioning, alloy wheels, an alarm, cruise control, power steering and power windows.However, sales were slow as the sports car segment – then dominated by the Toyota Celica, Honda Prelude, MX-6 and Holden Calibra – began to slide against the tide of compact 4WDs.

Ford