The Ford Anglia 105E was the Genesis of Ford's British Success 

When I was a veterinary student at Liverpool University in the early sixties myself and a friend used to persuade local dealers to let us road test cars and publish our findings in the faculty student magazine appropriately called « Rumen ». We did the Anglia 105E , the HA Viva and finally la pièce de résistance the Rover 2000. When I got my first job in 1966 I was offered the choice of either the Ford or the Vauxhall to thrash around country lanes and farm tracks. I chose the Viva which had the optional extra of a heater fitted ! I never got to have a Rover 2000 unfortunately but did own a Land Crab followed by two Citroën GS Breaks before settling for a series of Saabs. Nowadays in what is probably my third mid life crisis I bought one of the last Guiliettas in 2018.

My dad had a1964 one , and I had a 1966 estate as my first car in 1975. I can still remember the huge but skinny steering wheel, and long but very precise gear lever. All cars of that era rusted prematurely, but my God if rusting were an Olympic sport ,the Anglia ( along with Viva HA ) would be gold medalists 😢.

I had a 105e when going to university and whilst there went on holiday with my girlfriend and a vey full boot of camping gear and food. We crossed on the hovercraft and drove to Athens, A truly memorable car and holiday.

This is the best video I’ve ever seen of the 105E. They were very popular here in New Zealand, and would have been assembled here from knock down kits supplied from Britain. I’ve never owned a British Ford, but I can totally understand why their simple “good enough” philosophy was so popular.

In 1965 I bought a 1962 105E - 507GTM. Thrashed it mercilessly for two years, including a trip four-up to what was then Yugoslavia, reaching Zagreb. Never let me down. Only sold it when I emigrated to Canada. I still miss it - many happy memories.

I worked at Dagenham when the 105E was launched, as management trainee, and spent a week or two in the foundry. They were very proud of the fact that due to the short stroke of the Kent engine, which was seriously over-square, they were able to cast the crankshaft, as the crank throws were very short, and the pistons correspondinlgly wide. This was much cheaper than the more traditional forged crank-shaft, which I believe was the norm for every other vehicle then on the market. The cast crank was also lighter, as it was hollow.

Ah, the Anglia 105e. My grandfather had one for many years - it was grey when he bought it. He brush painted it pale blue with cellulose - I think you could buy DIY kits in those days? A lovely, lovely little car, full of character. I’ve come to be really fond of this era of ‘Ford Of Britain’. The Classic and Capri are both lovely, if rather unsuccessful in their day. But the 105e is a little jewel of a thing. I’d love to own one!

Excellent video! Young man you are with out doubt the best classic car presenter on RU-vid !! Well done !! 👍

My first two cars were 123Es, same car but a 1200cc engine. Most 123Es were Anglia Supers, which is a higher standard of trim. Lovely cars, very reliable.

Had three Anglias, one of my all time favourite cars, personally i never found it underpowered, but yes in did rust quickly, so i learnt to weld, many happy memories of this lovely car.

The 105E was the first car I bought in 1980 when I was 18 for £90 in two tone grey, great little car and they seem so small today but that was the norm back then :-)

I learned to drive in one of these in 1966. Wonderful little car, would have owned one in a heartbeat.

Imagine a car that weighs 739kg now…at least three times that for a crappy electric thing…

The dashboard with the instrument binnacle on one side and the shape mirrored on the other side was a simple way to allow for the left hand drive European versions, with no major build changes. Mine was a blue one with white roof, think Harry Potter, bought for £15 in 1974, the insurance for a year was also £15. Loved it, looking for a left hand drive one now.

Loved this, my first car was a 105E, followed by another one! Great car to work on, plenty space and few tools necessary., essential for the impecunious. Being young and daft, I did a few "performance tweaks". Eventually ending up with the 123E, the 'luxury' model, the flexibility of Ford engines and gearboxes meant that 123E eventually ended up with a twin cam Lotus Ford engine, detuned slightly , disc brakes and modified rear suspension.

They make me smile even today. As a child I always thought that they were pulling a face at me.

I absolutely love these cars, both the 105E and the 100E that was it's predecessor. I've owned both and would love to find another one of either!

First and only car for my grandfather. After that used by my uncle, then by my cousin, later my father got it and restored it. It is '66 and has run 185.000 kms, it is out on the road every summer (actually the car my father drives most summertimes). We have a 100E, too, driven only 85.000 kms, but that's another story.

I has a couple of 105Es, went to Switzerland in one of them with a mate, it was the estate wagon body with a 997cc after a rebuild

In addition to my comment of yesterday, may I add that the 4-speed gearbox was really a 3-speed, with an overdrive 4th gear. Being such a short stoke one could ref the a..e off the Anglia in 3rd gear, which gave one about 75mph, slip into top, the speed remained at 75, but the revs dropped. I caned my Anglia when I was a sales rep, and it never let me down.

Ironic therefore, that Ford currently seem to be distancing themselves from the market that found them so much success - r.i.p. Fiestsa, Focus and Mondeo.

This must be one of the British cars that never made it to the US. I have only seen them in pictures. Thanks to Ed for his time and work.

I still own a 1967 105E Panel Van that I customized back in 1977. When I bought it I knew it would be difficult to get parts for it, especially since they were not imported or sold here in the USA. So I got a wrecked 1972 Ford Pinto and mounted the panel body on the Pinto chassis and running gear (4cyl 2000 CC 4 speed). The wheel bases were the same, I had to raise the steering column 5 inches. I also modified the body for the wider track and taller radiator. It would be interesting to know of anyone else who owns an Anglia 105E here in the States. Good Video.

I absolutely love your classic car reviews, cheers from Australia

Was a passenger in one of these involved in a crash. MG 1300 hit the side of the car as the MG shot through a red light. There were four in the rear and three in the front of the Anglia.... no deaths or injuries. The Anglia turned over twice.

Great review.. Passed my test in 74, using dad's 1200 super.. Fond fond memories, thank you.

My first car, in 1960, was a Ford Anglia 105E. primrose yellow with white top, and light grey interior. I lovely little car, with light steering, excellent gear change , lively engine, very good road holding and brakes. Faultless in fact, Moved up to a 1500 Cortina , 5 yrs later. another very good Ford.

My uncle had one. I think 63. He used it to go to ford Halewood. For about 23 years in It. We called it Fred. He only got rid when my cousin was changing his car and talked his dad into buying his. It was still mechanically sound and the body work was immaculate. Fond memories of Fred and my uncle

Remember my Dad getting a ford Anglia sit up and beg , as they called it , he used to travel up to Scotland in it for work that was about 1960 , i was 10 , but their was a family further up the street with a new Anglia just like the one your commenting on even the same colour, great little cars , further down the years i had a work mate with the Ford Classic in the maroon & grey 👍, , mini i had owned 3 in my time amongst many many other cars in my time . Great video 😊

Learned to drive in a Anglia. When I passed my test, I went out and foolishly bought a 105E. It was ‘65 year and was only 6 years old and was the biggest rust bucket you could ever wish for and became my own personal money pit and a welders dream with new rear spring hangers being eventually required and a rusted through boot floor and front wings that rusted above the front lights, despite treating the area several times it always came back as it did on the outside of the front wings, I also discover thick rust down the inside of the front wing in the footwell of both wings, behind the red interior card. Certainly not having any expertise in the family didn’t help me at the time when looking for my first car, but I certainly learnt from the experience as a 17 year old and finally parted company with my Grey Ford Anglia, HLE159C, with some relief…

I could listen to this lovely man ALL day folks,,I happily subscribed 👌👏👏👏👏🇬🇧

Right, off to make a coffee, and sit down to enjoy this, for it will be good! 🙂

I have been watching your videos for quite a time now and I've seen you get better and better. That was your best yet. There's only so much you can say about the car, it's the setting of the context and significance that was done so well in this. It takes talent to tell a story so well.

This was the first car I bought, it had a lazy starter especially in winter, put a van battery in it and never had an issue again.

Watching this channel is like watching a young James May with the information and presentation style. Love it. Really enjoyable channel and I'm so glad I found it.

My first father in law worked at dagenham where the 105 was produced. His job was final inspection of paint, fit, finish etc.. he oft told a story of a visit from the USA of “the big wigs” and it just so happened that they were standing at his station the last of the process before the car rolled out of the factory door. They were looking at this 105 and this miraculous new car as it was starting to spit off the assembly line.. as they walked around this car they knew something was wrong but they could not put their finger on it. James “my father in law” eventually worked out what it was and began giggling.. you see as a ford car run down the assembly tracks the crews working on each side of the car never crossed the line, and they worked off a postcard that was handed back and fourth over the roof of the car going down the line. The car outline was a fixed silhouette but if 2 door had two lines through it, if a four door had three lines dashed through it. In the case of this car the last line was a bit faint.so it went down the line as a two door car on one side and a four door on the other.. yes, it was a unique 3 door ford anglia 105e. It was crushed of course. But what amuses me more was many years later.. ford actually, on purpose made a Ford Fiesta that had one door on the drivers side, and two on the passengers side. I think it was a sales flop, but it was supposed to be a safety feature, to discourage peapole getting out of the car into traffic.

Learnt to drive in one of these back in '87..

Great video as always brings back some good memories of our family ford Anglia which was purchased after trading in our mini. Dad told me the salesman said my Dad and done him over as under the mini boot carpet the floor was rotten to be honest my Dad probably never knew the state of the mini.We than had a ford escort estate 1968 followed by a saloon 1975. I always wanted the Mexico but could only afford a 1100cc drum brakes all round. Safer than my motorcycle which I traded to buy the escort. Now at 65 years old I am back on a motorcycle and have the Toyota 86 which I love Manuel of course !

Had one of these (used) in the 60's. As a young Engineer I couldn't help but feel it was underpowered and fitted a Twin Cam Lotus. A car I remember best despite such competition as owning a Jaguar XK150S

My Grandfather bought one of these new in the UK after a short stint with the dreadful side valve Anglia. The first thing he did was to strip the car and thoroughly rustproof it. He did the same with the Escort that replaced it. Both cars remained in the family for several years without rusting.

In 1971 winter was coming fast in Toronto, Canada and I heard of a dealer who traded motorcycles for cars and went there to see. I saw a perfect, low mileage 1965 Anglia, white with the red stripe and nice smelling leather interior and traded my 68' Yamaha 305 for it even. That car was simply the best I ever had for reliability and low maintanence and it was fast for the time. My friend's mother always got a new VW beetle every year and when she got one with a 1,600 engine when mine was a 1,200, my friend and I had to have a drag race. We went from a stoplight and for the 1st gear he got ahead and I figured I was beaten but a quick shift into second brought me up beside him and once i got it into third, he was a goner. A few guys saw the race and after that many changed their view on my little "foreign" car. :)

I remember travelling around New Zealand in the middle of the back seat of an Anglia back in the 1960s.

Another Fantastic Video Ed, as a Ford Enthusiast this really appealed to me, i was never a fan of the Anglia but really appreciate the car for what it did for Ford.

That was a brilliant video. My dad had an Anglia so i have many happy memories of growing up with this car.

My father had one of those cars, the Ford Anglia, colour green. Bought in 1967. Beautiful car. Unfortunatelly, he had to sell it in 1984, and it had a lot of rust in the bottom. I remeber the licence plate of the car HC-72-75 (Portugal, Oporto). It's part of my childhhood memories.

Passed my driving test in one of these.

My first car in 1978. FRL 787D. It even had the original tax disc holder from the dealer in Truro. Loved it, it was a deluxe in velvet blue. My next car was a signal yellow RS2000! Bloody hell

Fondly remember those brutally widened and lowered and with twin DCOE Webers, and early BBS rims in Swedish track racing , and with fiberglass flip fronts !!! Great Lookers !!!

My father owned an Anglia Deluxe (which looked almost identical to the Harry Potter car) from 1961 to 1985, and I learned to drive in our old dependable Anglia!

Hi Ed. So well researched and so brilliantly presented. Fantastic stuff...many thanks.

I'm a 69yr old Brit ex mechanic lived within the smell of Dagenham and Langley, We at any Ford dealer I worked at got them factory fresh(one with no brake fluid Delivery driver used the handbrake all the way across London(Langley to Bexley) Kudos bro

Excellent presentation. Your enthusiasm for cars shines through every time. You have found a hobby you really enjoy. Bravo!

The 105E was very popular here in Australia. Great little cars, simple to work on and quite reliable.

I remember getting a lift to the train station for a school trip in one of these ( the de luxe ) in the 1970s. It was managing 10mph going uphill, with cars passing.

The ford Anglia and the Citroen Ami 6 are my favorite small economy cars of that era, they had style,and practicality. Great video.

In 1982, at the tender age of ten, I started a new school. (You'll know the place, Ed - Scarisbrick Hall.) Now that entailed a 30-minute coach journey each way, but one highlight was when the coach went down Liverpool Road South in Burscough, for on that road was a house with an Anglia - in these colours - parked outside. I loved that car, and dreamt of the day when I would drive one myself. Needless to say, that never happened. 😢

Had two of these. Bought one with my inheritance from my Grand Aunt in Morecambe ... 300 quid.. Total rot boxes. Now in Wisconsin, l love my 2017 Toyota Camry SE 2.5.... It is like new.

Victoria Police (Australia) had some Anglia in a light blue colour. Remember 1964 on the Kerford Road Pier when cops drove one half way down, got out to walk to the end where boys were playing up and fighting. When they turned to come back, the Anglia was gone. Some boys had 'bounced' it of the pier into the water. No railing to stop it.

Excellent video! My Dad had a 105E, in light blue, I think. I was about five years old at the time. Your comments about the business case is spot on as well.

Oh hell this brings back memories, my dad had one of these black in the 70s. I’ve always had a soft spot for the mk3 cortina’s as my first car I was given by an uncle back in 1986 and I had the estate ghia 2.0 black vinyl roof in what I’d describe in metallic racing green and I can still remember the reg which was WNL741T I ran that car for years and loved it that much that when it had got to the point it was going to cost more than it was worth to get it through its mot it was sadly time to let it go. Then five years later I found another but in saloon in metallic brown and we went on honeymoon in it. But then I had an accident at work which severely damaged my spine and I was taken off the road and was forced to sell it as I needed the money and now I wish I’d survived on bread and milk knowing what I know now and the condition it was in but we can’t turn back the clock. But I’m still driving fords today with the focus st. So maybe in years to come my st will be worth something but it doesn’t give me the smile as my cortina’s did.

I saw, along with a MG Midget, a MG saloon with huge holes in the floor, an Anglia in Havana, Cuba WITH wide wheels and spats. This was in the early 2000s.

My grandfather owned a 105e in that exact colour and trim, and my happiest memories are going out with him in it. It really was fantastic for its day, and you can see the cues for the mk1 cortina in it. It was also a damn good club track car! Just compare the 105e with the old ford pop it replaced to see the huge leap forward for ford it was

Well done on this video, I learned to drive on one of these and later drove the van version for the job I was doing. Fabulous little vehicle and rarely seen now but have very fond memories of these vehicles. The Ford Consul Mk I a model from 1956 was my very first car and loved it so much, my driving instructor took me out in it once I was proficient, and I actually took and passed my driving test in it. Thanks for this, great entertainment.

My father was a Ford & Morris dealer in Sussex at this time ... Anglia, Cortina, Corsair, Consul Classic, Consul Capri were all often at home and at weekends extensively tested ... Just a great era when cars could still be maintained, no electronics etc.

I bought a 123E around 2 months ago, it was fitted with the Cortina 1500GT engine in period and keeps up with modern traffic. I also have a 1300 Beetle and depending on my mood, one always sees its way out of the garage on a weekly basis. Thanks for the review.

Two reasons i love the first Ka. The Kent block, and they reused the lines from the Anglia on the side indicators.

Just look at those lines, the shape, a car oozing character, which was a trait of cars of that era. All were individual, distinctive, didn't look the same, or like each other, you could tell them all apart. Modern cars have come a long way but in the process we sadly lost that something.

This was the first car that I bought learned to drive and passed my test in traveled over Scotland and England so reliable car i still have fond memories of it.❤

What another well presented documentary, I've always been a Ford fan they had clever marketing with models designed for everyone. They also were very generous to the media by supplying cars a very clever idea for marketing and I think most people would identify a Ford car with well known TV series. The Anglia was a good looking car and many of us had these for our first car

A terrific video, of a very important Ford! Top work, the research and archive materials were excellent.

My Dad had one of these back in 1964, really stood out in the looks department, but the downside was it's reliability issues, the main problem was the electrical system which used to be very susceptible to the damp, which meant it wouldn't start during the winter mornings, often meant yours truly ended up pushing the dam thing down a hill to jump start it !

I had one for three years. One of its best features was visibility, a lost art in todays designs. You could see all four corners of the car, making driving and parking a dream. DIY maintenance was simplicity itself, engine removal a snip, brakes easy....but it was a rust bucket underneath, I discovered to my cost once!

The best UK motoring content anywhere. Thank you so much for your time and effort into this, thanks to you I now have a new respect for the 105e and I never ever expected that. I will say this though, as good as the 105e was those 1.3 million cars disappeared from UK roads extremely fast, I remember as a kid in the 60s seeing an abandoned rusting 105e in a garage block next to our home, it had been there rusting as far back as I can remember. When I started to learn to drive and take an interest in cars at the end of the 70s I cannot remember seeing any 105e for sale and they had long since disappeared from the roads. Of course this was not unique to the Anglia. I remember in the 70s my neighbor had to get new wings (fenders) on his Vauxhall viva to pass it’s 1st MOT at 3 years old and it was a rust bucket by the time it was 6 years old.

A friend's mother, Eunice, was a sales lady for, I think Avon.She was based in Leeds and won best sales! The award was a brand new Anglia 105e! Smashing car and just what we needed to ferry two teenagers about!

My Granddad bought a Ford Prefect in that same dark red/ burgundy of the Anglia. He picked it up in about 1971 for 50 quid from a dealer on the Bath Road. My sister and I would get run home to Wimbledon from Hounslow (he didn't travel far to buy it). I remember it was a three speed, a little noisy and bouncy but seemed a really good fifty quid.

Back then, FORD made beautiful and iconic cars, like the Anglia, Escort, Cortina, Capri...

Terrific video, Ed, so well researched and presented. I got a 105E in 1972, it was one of the last made in 1968. It was my pride and joy, but it rusted like there was no tomorrow. The front wings decayed because Ford had put sponge packing that held water. An outer sill fell off one night as I was driving along! Finally, a leaf spring at the rear broke through the boot floor. I became an expert at changing the starter bendix, even buying a special tool for this. My neighbours would come out in the morning to help me and my wife push start it. It died in 1975, but I still think of it fondly.

Your example has probably the best color combo offered.

I had 2 x 105E's and they were great cars. Yes they rotted like all cars did back then (late 60's early 70'. Would love one now. Good video!

Ahhh - memories of my first car in 1963. The 105E was practical and reliable.

Didn't know they were still making 'em. That one looks like it rolled off the production line yesterday. Well, almost. 😆 Lovely example.

Yup, Dad had one, complete with ‘flag’ indicators, which as a child I loved! The car itself was (and still is) a great looking car! Great video as always! Thanks for posting.

I had an all-white 1960 when I was in High School. Being a teenager, I beat the hell out of the car, but it kept on running. I sold it when I enlisted in the U.S.A.F.

Ah, the venerable Ford Anglia. My dads workout routine for cold & frosty mornings. I have enduring memories of him, shirt sleeves rolled up & tie thrown over one shoulder (in case the antique autobot should seek revenge), cursing & cussing the wee beastie whilst valiantly attempting to hand crank some life into its comatose form... 🤣😂🤣 He owned three of them in all, one being an estate/station wagon model. The latter had porous rear hatch hinges which would turn the load bed into a passable paddling pool whenever it rained... ⛈️

My first car was an “Angle-box” - in 1972, a 64 model. Bought it from my brother in Scotland (a proverbial second hand car dealer) for £75 complete with a new MOT and drove it to London overnight. It got a bit tired and hot climbing Shap on the M6 but otherwise fine, if rather long and not too comfortable, drive - it really wasn’t made for 400 mile journeys. The really great thing about those kinds of cars, especially Fords, was that if you were hard up and had to fix them yourself, you could - as my brother said at the time - “buy all the parts in a corner shop and do most of the work with an adjustable wrench, a screwdriver and a spark plug spanner”

Outstanding presentation!

One of my earliest memories as a kid was helping to push my parents Anglia that looked identical to that as it kept breaking down sometime in the early 70s

My favorite Anglia story (is it weird to have one of those ?? ...) Is after one racing season Colin Chapman sends Jim Clark home to Scotland and has him drive an Anglia that was sitting at the Lotus works, Jim is shocked by the car's speed and after overtaking a Jaguar at over 100mph, pulls over to pop the hood. Underneath he sees a very early Lotus Twincam prototype, this Anglia was one of Colin's rolling testbeds for developing the new engine/head.

It was the first car I ever drove on a small Country road at the age of 14 , I am now 65 !

Thanks for a fascinating documentary. Loved it. Keep up these great vids.

Thank you. An excellent video and discussion - much appreciated. Cheers.

My first car, the 105E built in Dagenham in 1963 and I bought it in 1968 from the Ford Dealer in Staines, but just the marron body colour (same roof colour). Oh the memories!

I passed my driving test in an Anglia December 1969. Bought a Triumph Herald a week later and often borrowed my dad's MKI Cortina. The rest is history ...

My first car was 1965 Anglia 105E in 1978 but passed my test in a 123E 1200 in 1979.

Great Video Ed, my dads first car was a Anglia 105E, I have a great pic of my late grandparents siting in the back of it

Growing up here in the States, I've always liked GM and haven't really cared for Ford. But looking at what was available in the UK. I probably would've been a Ford fan too. That being said, I do really love the Opels and Vauxhalls. I wish I could afford to get one here

As a diver and owner this was a understated car the 1200 was quite a fast motor for it's time and gave lots of fun

My first car was a 1967 Anglia 123E Super, the Anglia with a 1200cc engine and a dash pad but otherwise a 105E. This was in 1981. Was a wonderfully reliable car but the tin worm crawled all over it like flies around a cowpat. It was eventually replaced with a Mk2 Esacort 1300 Popular Plus, a logical successor to the Anglia Super and a car that took me on my honeymoon touring the Scottish highlands and islands with a tent in the boot. Ah. Those were the days. 👍

The Ford Anglia was my very fist car I can still remember the reg number AMR 758B

I had a 107e which was a 100e body with 105e running gear. Speedo packed up at one stage and because of the ongoing fight with rust the side of the front wing would start to flap at about 40 mph so had some idea how fast we were going, moved on to a 105e and it broke a rear leaf spring, bought another from a scrap yard and when replacing it found the rear shackles were rusting badly so had them replaced. That was the last ford I have ever owned but my dad had a 61 Zephyr 6 for a few years that was a nice motor