The 2553 cc, single-carburettor, six-cylinder engine was improved internally to increase the power output to 109 bhp and a new four-speed all synchromesh transmission with column change was fitted. The brakes, servo assisted, use discs at the front and drum at the rear. A Mk III saloon tested by The Motor in 1962 had a top speed of and could accelerate from 0- in 13.4 seconds. A touring fuel consumption of was recorded. The test car cost £1070 including taxes on the UK market. Ford New Zealand initially built the Zephyr 4 and 6, as well as the Zodiac, locally from CKD kits, offering only the bench front seat option finished in vinyl. Automatic transmission, introduced late in the life of the Mk II, were again available, but were a rare factory option, as most buyers chose manual. As well as the Zephyr 6, Ford NZ built a six-cylinder Zephyr Special (which replaced the 4) with a lower equipment level and deletion of the central vertical grille bar, boot lid trim strip, and other exterior brightwork, which was sold to fleet operators such as the government. The big Fords were unusual in having four-speed manual gearboxes when rivals, including Ford's own Falcon, had only three-speed ones. Building the top luxury Zodiac model locally also gave Ford a supply advantage over key rivals such as GM's Vauxhall, whose upmarket Cresta was not assembled locally after 1960, and once available only as a fully imported model, was much harder to obtain than the locally assembled Velox. Mark IV Zephyr Mark IV Models 3008 / 3010E In 1961, Ford began a complete redesign on the Zephyr, under the title of "Project Panda". As the car used the new V-series engines, the then traditional long bonnet concept created a problem until design engineer Harley Copp required that the car was both larger and had more internal space, and came up with the idea of placing the spare wheel ahead of the radiator on an angle. The result was a vehicle of similar dimensions to the North American Ford Fairlane. The Mk IV range was launched, not at an October motor show, but in early 1966 with new V-format engines, the 4 having a V4 and the V6 unit. The independent suspension was aided by servo-assisted disc brakes on all wheels. Criticism of the handling of early examples in the UK led to the fitting