Ford Falcon (Australia)

The Ford Falcon is a full-sized car which has been manufactured by the Ford Motor Company of Australia since 1960. From the XA series of 1972 onward, each Falcon and range of derivates have been designed, developed, and built in Australia, following the phasing out of the American-influenced Falcon of 1960 to 1971, which had been re-engineered locally as the XK to XY series for the harsher Australian conditions. The luxury-oriented Ford Fairmont model joined the range from 1965. Luxury long-wheelbase derivative versions called the Ford Fairlane and LTD arrived in 1967 and 1973, respectively (with production ending in 2007).

The Ford Falcon and its derivates have been Australian-made best-sellers, with over 3,000,000 sales in seven generations to 2003, almost exclusively in Australia and New Zealand, but also South Africa. Along with its closest Australian-made rival, the Holden Commodore, the Falcon has dominated the ranks of taxis in Australia and New Zealand, as well as police car and company fleets.

Ford Falcon (XE)

The Ford Falcon (XE) is a full-size car that was produced by Ford Australia from 1982 to 1984. It was the second iteration of the fourth generation of this Australian-made model and also included the Ford Fairmont (XE)—the luxury-oriented version of the Falcon.

History

Introduced on 11 March 1982, the XE was a revised version of the XD Falcon, which it replaced. Its external differences were restricted to a new nose, new rear bumper, and taillights. The biggest technical change was the introduction of a four link suspension system incorporating rear coil springs on the sedans. Wagons, utes and vans retained the rear semi-elliptical leaf springs as used on XD models. Up until 1991, the XE was Ford Australia's last V8-powered Falcon.

Powertrains

The XE-series was introduced with a choice of five engines.

The 5.8 L (351 cu in) engine availability was restricted during the XE-series to only the Falcon GL and Fairmont Ghia ESP sedans, but stock remained available for assembly within F-series and Bronco vehicles through to August 1985. Ford Australia also built a quantity of 4-bolt 5.8 litre engines — similar to those used in NASCAR at the time — for race purposes in Australia. When the engine's local racing career ended at the end of 1984, the surplus stock was shipped and sold in the United States for use in DeTomaso Panteras as Detroit did not offer the 351 Cleveland engine anymore. The last Australian manufactured Cleveland V8-powered Ford Falcon passenger car was a silver 4.9 L (302 cu in) Ford Fairmont (XE) Ghia ESP sedan, VIN # JG32AR33633K, in November 1982 (although Ford promoted this car as the "Last V8" there were a number of V8 XE Falcons produced after this build number).

Ray Alder

Ray Alder (born as Ray Balderrama on August 20, 1967) has been the lead vocalist of the progressive metal band Fates Warning since their 1988 release No Exit.

He has released two albums Engine in 1999 and Superholic in 2002 with Engine.

He also sang on Redemption's albums The Origins of Ruin, The Fullness of Time, Snowfall on Judgment Day and This Mortal Coil, having produced their debut self-titled release in 2002.

He has recently worked with underground emcee/producer Necro for his album entitled Death Rap.

Ray Alder was featured at a show with the band Dream Theater at Los Angeles, California on May 18, 1998.

On March 16, 2010, Fates Warning released a deluxe edition of their 1991 album, Parallels. This edition has been fully re-mastered and contains over three hours of music and live footage. Parallels was one of Fates Warning's most successful releases due to the commercial success of the singles Eye To Eye, Point Of View and We Only Say Goodbye. According to Metal Blade records (2010) Parallels has proven to be one of the most influential albums in the prog and metal genres, despite its hotly debated status among fans as a "commercial" sounding album. Commenting on the album, Ray Alder is quoted on the "Metal Blade Records Website".  as follows, "I think it's one of the best albums we ever put out and I'm happy that fans have the chance to take a second look at this important record. The lineup, the songs and the cover art all came together to make a great package when originally recorded and the bonus DVD really adds a fresh perspective to the album."

Engine (TV series)

Engine (エンジン, Enjin) is a Japanese television drama series from Fuji Television, first shown in Japan from 18 April to 27 June 2005.

Plot

Kanzaki Jiro (Takuya Kimura) (who used to be a star driver back in Japan) is a backup F3000 driver in Europe. During a practice run, he accidentally crashes into his first driver and loses his job. No other club in Europe would hire him as he is deemed too old for the sports. He has no choice but to return to Japan to his previous racing team. Unfortunately, the team now has a better and younger driver, and feels Jiro has nothing more to contribute to the team, and do not want him back.

He goes back to stay with his foster father and sister, and finds out his foster father has converted their home into an orphanage for unfortunate children whose parents are unable to take care of them. Tomomi Sensei (Koyuki), is a newly hired caregiver at the orphanage. She is not popular with the children as she does not seem to understand their feelings and makes misguided attempts to help them. Jiro, on the other hand, was an orphan himself, and being a big kid at heart is able to click with the children.

Ford (crossing)

A ford is a shallow place with good footing where a river or stream may be crossed by wading or inside a vehicle. A ford is mostly a natural phenomenon, in contrast to a low water crossing, which is an artificial bridge that allows crossing a river or stream when water is low.

Description

A ford is a much cheaper form of river crossing than a bridge, but it may become impassable after heavy rain or during flood conditions. A ford is therefore normally only suitable for very minor roads (and for paths intended for walkers and horse riders etc.). Most modern fords are usually shallow enough to be crossed by cars and other wheeled or tracked vehicles (a process known as "fording").

In New Zealand, however, fords are a normal part of major roads, including, until 2010, along State Highway 1 on the South Island's east coast. As most inter-city domestic passengers travel by air and as much cargo goes by sea, long distance road traffic is low and fords are thus a practical necessity for crossing seasonal rivers. In dry weather, drivers become aware of a ford by crunching across outwash detritus on the roadway. A Bailey bridge may be built off the main line of the road to carry emergency traffic during high water.

Ford Model 48

The Model 48 was an update on Ford's V8-powered Model 40A, the company's main product. Introduced in 1935, the Model 48 was given a cosmetic refresh annually, begetting the 1937 Ford before being thoroughly redesigned for 1941. The 1935 Ford's combination of price, practicality, and looks vaulted the company ahead of rival Chevrolet for the sales crown that year, with 820,000 sold.

1935

The 1935 Ford was a thorough refresh on the popular V8-powered Ford. The four-cylinder Model A engine was no longer offered, leaving just the 221 CID (3.6 L) V8 to power every Ford car and truck. The transverse leaf spring suspension remained, but the front spring was relocated ahead of the axle to allow more interior volume. The body was lowered and new "Center-Poise" seating improved comfort.

Visually, the 1935 Ford was much more modern with the grille pushed forward and made more prominent by de-emphasized and more-integrated fenders. A major advance was a true integrated trunk on "trunkback" sedans, though the traditional "flatback" was also offered. Outdated body styles like the Victoria were also deleted for the year.

1941 Ford

The Ford car was thoroughly updated in 1941, in preparation for a time of unpredictability surrounding World War II. The 1941 design would continue in an aborted 1942 model year and would be restarted in 1946 and produced until the more modern 1949 Fords were ready. During the initial year of this car, it evolved considerably. The front fenders came in three pieces, the theory being that small damage could be replaced easily. During the year, it evolved into two pieces with the lower front and back sections being joined. The hood risers changed, the early ones being the same as 1940 Fords, changing during the year to the better later version. The 1941 Convertible had no rear side windows, the only side windows being in the doors; in 1942, quarter windows were added so the rear occupants could see out. Five different coil/distributor arrangements were used during 1941, causing confusion for mechanics. Other variations were: two different positions for the generator, and three for the cooling fan — front of the crankshaft, front of the generator (rare) and on a bracket. This is thought to be the first Ford to offer an oil filter. The two interior heaters were a "Southwind" gasoline burner, which had the advantage of keeping one warm in winter at drive-in movies (provided a small electric fuel pump was used), and a more ordinary hot-water type. Both had window defrosters. It had an excellent radio, which could consume the battery in about two hours. Electric windshield wipers were available in addition to the vacuum-powered wipers. Three different convertible power top mechanisms (vacuum, electric screw, and hydraulic) and two different header bar latching systems were used. Rear suspensions sometimes had a sway bar, most did not. It had excellent brakes for the time, and the best handling of an ordinary car at the time. It was a very transitional car.