The Royal Edsel
In case you've never seen an Edsel—here's a royal one.
Remember the Edsel? Of course, you don’t. You’re too young to remember the Edsel. But I remember the Edsel.
It was one of the Ford Motor Company’s biggest failures—probably its biggest. And the core of the problem was not the car, but the marketing.
The car first came off the production line in 1958 and was meant to complement the upmarket Mercury. The early models weren’t completely reliable, but that was soon overcome. A recession hit the US in 1957, which made it hard for the car to compete with other established names in its class. Some studies showed that consumers associated the name (after Henry Ford’s son) with the word weasel.
Only 118,000 Edsels were ever built and one of them survives in the garage at the Royal Palace in Luang Prabang, Laos. It was a cherished possession of Crown Prince Savang Vatthana.
I’m guessing that Ford gave it to the prince as a present, and the prince was delighted with this Yank Tank.
I got scolded for taking a picture of this Edsel, so I offered apologies and tried to show some remorse for not seeing the ‘no cameras’ sign. Honestly, I saw the ‘no videos’ sign, but I never saw anything about cameras.
As an aside, I’ve known two other Edsels—cars not people—one in my childhood and another in Rangoon, Burma. Burma is filled with cars that would make a collector swoon. cars can’t be shipped out of the country so they just sit there.
Where to next? 
Hi Peggy,
It’s very big and I imagine it would be quite pricey to fill; and hard to park! But it does have a certain elegance about it even given the world’s predilection now for small cars. Did your parents have an Edsel or did you see them around when you were younger?
Louise
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You all better??? Susan
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I only ever remember seeing/riding in one Edsel as a child and I have no idea who owned it.
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Hee hee! I’ve snuck a few photos in my time, too. 🙂 And it’s great to be able to post back to yoU! How are you and Poor John holding up?
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Oh Jean, we’re doing great. Canberra (population 330,000) has had only one new case over the last eight days, so we feel quite confident. Not willing to be silly, but reason to look forward. Hope you can stay well, stay safe and stay sane.
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That’s awesome news! I’m praying some logic’s put into a good plan round here. Praying summer school can at least move forward so kids can see friends and maybe learn a thing or three. We’re taking it one day at a time xxxxxx
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I worry a lot about the USA. Hope Wisconsin stays sensible. One day at a time is the only way.
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