the tooling for the pressed-steel bodywork had during the war remained in berlin with the us owned body builders ambi budd, and after lengthy negotiations with the soviet military authorities was eventually released. due to lack of available space at ford's cologne plant, production of the first 1948 cars was subcontracted to volkswagen in wolfsburg and karmann in osnabrück, but in november 1948 the entire production process was taken in house by ford. at this stage, as in 1942, only a single body style was available. the 1948 ford taunus was a small fast-back saloon with two rear hinged doors, and available only in “night shadow grey”, presumably reflecting paint availability in the aftermath of war.