24q Ford Vedette 49 (1950-1954)

Jan O, thanks for the pictures and sorry about the dark blue Vedette. The line up of Fords outside the Ford Automobiel Fabriek is interesting. Were the Anglia and Prefect on the left end also made in Holland, or were they imports? It looks like they are both right-hand drive so I'm guessing imports. Were they offered at the same time and do you know how popular they were? My second car was that model of Prefect, basically a pre-war car. Regards John

Hi John. The Anglia and the Prefect with the steering wheel on the left were made in Amsterdam as far as I can tell. Dutch advertisement of the very early Anglia and PrefectFrom 1945 to 1964 German, English and sporadic American Fords were assembled in Amsterdam for the Dutch market, including the Ford Anglia, the Ford Corsair, the Ford Cortina and the Ford Taunus.The car brands after WWII were diverse in the region where I come from (Groningen - Northern Netherlands). It depended on the presence of Auto dealers. In the 50's the Ford Anglia, Consul, Zephyr, Zodiac and Cortina were popular. My father had always Fords: USA Ford Forder 1947, Ford Zephyr Six, Ford Zodiac and Ford Anglia 105E.9 km from my birthplace Bierum was in Appingedam a Ford dealer Dinkla. Ford dealer Hero E. Dinkla ca 1925 Appingedam Ford Zephyr Six of my father. Dutch assembled Ford Anglia 105E to Auto Rai 1963 Amsterdam Ford Amsterdam is proud that Holland has been chosen to undertake the assembly of the Mustang for the European Market in the plant Amsterdam. 26 April 1965. Ford Mustang assembling in Ford factory Amsterdam. Ford Mustang on the test track Amsterdam -1966Ford dealer Dinkla was also dealer of tractors and there were many farmers in my region. The Ford tractors also played an important role in the agricultural mechanization and the labor of horses and workers were replaced by machines.Kind regards,Jan Oldenhuis, 18-1-2018

Jan O, that's a very comprehensive reply to my query and I thank you. I was prompted to ask by the juxtaposition of the old-fashioned British Fords with the much more modern looking Vedette. After the war we in the UK were desperate for foreign exchange and our motor industries were very much geared to export but I couldn't help thinking how old-fashioned the Anglia and Prefect looked by comparison to the sleek-looking French car. Regards John