Ford Skyliner
Encyclopedia
- See also Ford Crestline Skyliner for the 1954 Ford and Ford Fairlane Crown Victoria Skyliner for the 1955–1956 Ford Fairlane Crown Victoria, both with an acrylic glassAcrylic glassPoly is a transparent thermoplastic, often used as a light or shatter-resistant alternative to glass. It is sometimes called acrylic glass. Chemically, it is the synthetic polymer of methyl methacrylate...
roof panel.
The Ford Fairlane 500 Skyliner is a full-size two door automobile
Automobile
An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
with a retractable hardtop which was produced by the Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
for the model years 1957, 1958 and 1959. Part of the Ford Fairlane
Ford Fairlane (North American)
The Ford Fairlane was an automobile model sold between 1955 and 1970 by the Ford Motor Company in North America. The name was taken from Henry Ford's estate, Fair Lane, near Dearborn, Michigan....
range, the Skyliner had a complex mechanism which folded the front of the roof and retracted it under the rear decklid. It had three roof drive motors driving four lift jacks, four door lock motors, ten solenoids, four locking mechanisms for the roof, and a total of 610 ft (185.9 m) of wiring. The large top took up vast amounts of trunk space, limiting the car's sales(however, unlike most people believe, the mechanism had decent reliability). Production totaled 20,766 units in 1957, declining to 14,713 in 1958 and to 12,915 in 1959. An electric clock was standard. Fuel consumption was around 14 mpg overall. The fuel tank was placed behind the front seat, which, accidentally, added safety in rear collisions.
The wheelbase
Wheelbase
In both road and rail vehicles, the wheelbase is the distance between the centers of the front and rear wheels.- Road :In automobiles, the wheelbase is the horizontal distance between the center of the front wheel and the center of the rear wheel...
of the Skyliner was 118 in (2,997.2 mm) and the overall length was 210.8 in (5,354.3 mm).
During the 1959 model year the Galaxie
Ford Galaxie
The Ford Galaxie was a full-size car built in the United States by the Ford Motor Company for model years 1959 through 1974. The name was used for the top models in Ford’s full-size range from 1959 until 1961, in a marketing attempt to appeal to the excitement surrounding the Space Race...
series was added to Ford’s full-size range and the Skyliner model was absorbed into that series. Although the ’59 Galaxie was designated as a separate series, Galaxies carried both “Fairlane 500” and “Galaxie” badging, on the rear and sides respectively. It came with the standard with the 292CID 2bbl. 200hp V8.
At the time of its introduction, the Skyliner was the only true hardtop convertible in the world. Today, it has become a very valuable collectible car, with high-point restored specimens costing upwards of $50,000 (2006).
Engines and transmssions
The following engines, all V8s, were available on the Failane 500 Skyliner.| Size | Horsepower | Model Years |
| 272 cid | 190 hp | 1957 |
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| 292 cid | 200 hp 205 hp 212 hp | 1957, 1958 & 1959 |
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| 312 cid | 245 hp | 1957 |
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| 332 cid | 225 hp 240 hp 265 hp | 1958 & 1959 |
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| 352 cid | 300 hp | 1958 & 1959 |
Two manual transmissions, a three-speed and three speed with overdrive, plus three-speed Ford-O-Matic
Cruise-O-Matic
Ford-O-Matic was the first automatic transmission used by Ford Motor Company, designed by Borg Warner Corporation. Introduced in 1950, the three-speed Ford-O-Matic evolved into the Cruise-O-Matic in 1958 and the FMX in 1968. This line continued in production until 1980, when the AOD was introduced...
automatic transmission, were available.
Crestline Skyliner & Fairlane Crown Victoria Skyliner
The Skyliner name had been used by Ford on earlier models, namely the Crestline Skyliner of 1954 and the Fairlane Crown Victoria Skyliners of 1955 and 1956. These models have a two-door hardtop body style with a clear acrylic glassAcrylic glass
Poly is a transparent thermoplastic, often used as a light or shatter-resistant alternative to glass. It is sometimes called acrylic glass. Chemically, it is the synthetic polymer of methyl methacrylate...
roof panel over the front seats.