In defence of the Zephyr, we traded a perfectly good three year old wagon in for a new XL Falcon Deluxe wagon. The only problems we had with the Zephyr was the baulk ring in second gear, which was replaced by Ford anyway, and a tendency for the front wheels to get out of balance on bush roads. My parents cruised not much above 50 mph on indifferent bitumen roads or outright dirt. My brother also had a Zephyr ute, bought very used, but I don't remember him having any problems with it at all. The Falcon didn't take to rough roads at all, with the front suspension not standing up, and also it was impossible to keep decent shock absorbers up to it. My mum, being a farmer's wife, did most of the driving, which entailed a long trip to town once a week for supplies, and after about 4 or 5 years almost broke down about trying to keep it on the road. Almost six turns lock to lock didn't help. In its defence, the body and drive train stood up to it - no trouble with that 144 cu in engine in over 100,000 miles, and it still looked fantastic in its Merino White with bright red Squire seats. It was a good paddock car, with plenty of torque to manage grassy slopes and cross creeks. Two things sold it over the EJ which we tried - the trade in and the ease of opening and closing the tail-gate. We often wondered if we should have waited until the XM, or certainly the XP by when the Falcon got the development it deserved.