Great article. I had a ZA, ZD, and a 73 LTD. I have pics of the LTD (Same as the blue one, was even that colour - I still have those horrendous wheel trims somewhere :-) ); but no pics of either of the Fairlanes. The ZD was a 302, same bronze as in your pic. My ZA was a "Custom" - but they weren't badged as such. Mine just had "Fairlane" without the "500". It was in block letters; ZB's had script badges. Mine was a mish mash, in that it had front discs with a booster (that didn't work - hard work stopping!!), bucket (well, individual, but not bench) seats, and a 289 V8 - but NO power steering. So either someone got a custom and optioned it - or added the V8 later. Given the no power steer, I think someone added it. It was a great car (design wise - apart from the lightweight front ends they all had); but mine was really worn out; it had had a hard life. I had it for about 8 months in 1977 - so was only ten years old - but was as worn out as a 30 year old car. The ZD was a car I helped my Dad buy. He really wanted one, so we found a very good one. He "got sick of it" and I bought it off him. Had it for about a year. Strangely, it also had no power steering, but apart from that was pretty standard 302 ZD. I had the LTD from 1980 to about 88. I bought it back with a blown motor and blown clutch a year later, fixed it and sold it. I put a top loader manual in it and an 11 inch F100 clutch. I used it to tow a huge heavy old wooden boat, and the rear brakes really made a difference in that role, never ever had any brake fade, even with a couple of ton of boat behind. I thought Ford failed to learn from their own experience with Fairlanes, in that their entire appeal was that they looked "apart" from the Falcon - and that is exactly what that market segment wants. So - from XD on - they DIDN'T look "apart". They looked like a "specced up Falcon". That is what the earlier ones WERE - but they didn't look it. Anyway, like all cars, had their pro's and cons. I am not one of the "decide on brand - devote to it no matter what". If I like a car and what it offers, I buy it. At the time, these suited me.