The good thing about US iron is its boldness. But it can be an acquired taste – like peanut butter and jelly (jam) sandwiches, orange “cheese” from a squeeze bottle and the crunchy “goodness” hidden in the frying of grits.

This example is different. Well, a bit different, because it has strong links to Australia. The Ford Falcon Futura Sprint is the home body to Australia’s Falcon XM and XP Hardtop coupes and a lot less life-threatening than some US food.

It has all the goodness of US automobiles – and a few of the downsides – with a cabin with glasshouse ambience thanks to thin roof pillars, frameless doors and a lack of head restraints.

It has wide and comfortable seats with a spacious rear bench, slivers of chrome and painted metal on the dashboard, a strip speedometer, and a proud dash-top tachometer that was clearly an afterthought.

This example is a bit more special than others of the same name. The Ford Falcon Future Sprint had an almost unknown victory by crushing many rally-spec European cars in its first outing at the 1963 Monte Carlo Rally.

It was destined for fame until its was unceremoniously dumped from the race calendar by its new sister, the Mustang.

This is an example of the eight Sprints that Ford of the US audaciously sent to Europe’s 1964 Monte Carlo Rally to campaign against the continent’s best cars, finest drivers and most experienced teams.

In the vein of taking to Le Mans to fight Ferrari, Ford had similar delusions of grandeur in rallying on the European mainland.

It wasn’t the first bid at the rally events. In 1963 it did the same with a half-baked attempt on the Monte Carlo and scored wins in all the six special stages. But it didn’t win. In fact, it came 43rd.

But 1964 was to be different. Think about this: A huge two-door coupe weighing almost 1400kg and measuring 4.6m long on cross-ply tyres taking on the snow-covered twisting, altitude-defying roads around Monte Carlo while fighting off more mountain-adept cars including the Mini Cooper S, Saab 96 and Alpine A108.

Despite the weight and size penalty that it shared with rivals including the Citroen ID19 and Mercedes-Benz 300, the Falcon Sprint of Swedish driver Bo Ljungfeld won four special stages and was equal first in the fifth, eventually finishing second overall to Paddy Hopkirk’s Mini Cooper S. It finished ahead of the 1962 and 1963 Monte Carlo Rally winner, Erik Carlsson in a Saab 96.

Less than a year later, the Sprint was sidelined as Ford presented its latest sports car, the Mustang. The Mustang never repeated the Sprint’s success at Monte Carlo, with the teams retiring in 1965 (with Bo at the wheel of one) and 1967 and finishing 11th in 1966, though the new pony-car did win the Tour de France Automobile in late 1964.

The Sprint today is still a big car. The threatening 4.3-litre (289cu.inch) V8 sounds as menacing as it would have around the Monte Carlo circuit which, incidentally, it clean swept the opposition in 1964.

The four-speed manual is crisp, the clutch surprisingly light and positive, and the steering is pretty close to awful with a wide turning circle, tiresomely numerous turns lock to lock, and a wheel rim so thin my wrapped fingers bite uncomfortably into my palms. Thankfully, my palms are sweating incessantly.

The suspension has been tied down so it doesn’t have the blanc mange floaty feel of the more pedestrian Falcon, and the nine-inch limited-slip differential (borrowed from the Ford Galaxie) is positive in its traction so the rear-end rarely feels light or wanderlust.

Seat comfort and visibility are excellent, though it takes time to form a relationship with the inaccuracies of the strip speedo and its miles-per-hour numerals, twist-pull dash buttons for lights and wipers, and the hint of unreliability of the rear drum brakes.

But it is a sensory machine, full of noise and smells, of vibration and restrained motion. Australian racer Jim Richards has one he uses for Touring Car Masters events.

The Sprint is a lot quicker than cars of its era and potentially will hold off rivals through a corner if the driver could hold the thin steering wheel. How eight crews wrestled this through the snow mountains of Europe is testament to driving skill and a lot of determination.

Specifications

Make: Ford
Model: Falcon Futura Sprint
Model code: n/a
Year: 1964
Price new ($A): n/a

• Engine: 4.3-litre V8
• Valves: OHV, 16-valve
• Bore/stroke: 96.52 mm x 72.9 mm
• Comp. ratio: 8.7:1
• Aspiration: natural
• Power: 122 kW @ 4400 rpm
• Torque: 350 Nm @ 2200 rpm
• Power-to-weight: 68 kW/tonne
• Fuel: 1 x Holley 2bbl carburettor
• Fuel tank: 51 litres (std)
• Fuel thirst: 16.3 litres/100 km
• Transmission: 4-speed manual
• Drive: Rear
• 0-100km/h: 10.3 sec
• Top speed: 172 km/h

Dimensions:

• Length: 4613 mm
• Width: 1819 mm
• Height: 1351 mm
• Wheelbase: 2781 mm
• Track (ft/rr): 1412 mm/1422 mm
• Weight: 1342 kg

Chassis:

• Suspension (ft/rr): lower A-arms, struts, coils/live axle, leaf springs
• Brakes: (ft/rr): disc (Monte Carlo)/drum
• Steering:  Recirculating ball
• Wheels: 13-inch steel
• Tyres: 7.00×13