Should Ford bring the Australian Falcon here?

[57JagXKSS]

A video of a Ford Falcon XR8

http://www.strategicqld.com.au/files/burnbabyburn.mpg

Ford of Australia even has a performance line, FPV which stands for Ford Performance Vehicles.

check out

http://fpv.com.au/

Ford FPV backs their cars in the V8 Supercar Series

http://fpv.com.au/fpr/index.asp

http://www.v8supercar.com.au/

[Thunda Downunda]

If 'bring it here' means export Falcon to the US, and have Aussies endure the moronic whining that befell Monaro/GTO ... please, don't do it!

I can almost hear them now ...

"Too plain, not 'retro' enough (ie not a style regurgitation of supposedly magnificent '62 Falcon). No scoops. No live axle option so internet blowhards can't boast of cutting those absolutely crucial 0~30ft ETs. Too heavy (ie too strong) and probably accuse it of being a Taurus or Tempo clone as well - despite unique platform & RWD design etc. And while they're at it they'll probably insist the boot (trunk) space be cut in half, to withstand 'typical everyday impacts' from forty ton trucks doing 70mph"

Falcon deserves a better fate than that

[57JagXKSS]

The Pontiac GTO is bashed for being bland, but I like it. It looks far better than the new BMWs, imo.

I think the new Ford Falcon looks great. It is understated just like a high-performance sedan should be.

I've heard Australians like their cars understated. Is that true?

This 2004 Pontiac GTO Ram Air 6 show car looks nice.

http://seriouswheels.com/top-2004-Po...-Ram-Air-6.htm

[porscheguy9999]

I like the GTO too. and the Falcon should be broiught to the US. The Taurus is too bland. We need a sedan thats got a Ford badge and is fun to drive. The 500 is too underpowered.

[Thunda Downunda]

Ironic isn't it that 'prestige' manufacturers like Mercedes etc can offer both high & low-end product which are of a markedly similar corporate style-theme (eg budget C Class & luxo S Class, or previous-gen BMWs) without negative public reaction? Yet others like GM etc apparently cannot (eg 'Crapalier' & GTO). Public perception is a fickle concept, eh?

For my I agree with you, re BMW's Bangalised Bungles. 6 series is at least individual, as is Z4. But 5, 7 and especially the hideous new 1 shapes strike me as both unsympathetic & distinctive in the worst way (overstyled)

Yes in general the AU market leans toward understated, less overt styling. So with our comparitively tiny market and small product range, manufacturers are less inclined to risk the outré. and from both OE & owner-modified, the traditional 'high perfomance look' here is less "look at ME!" and more accented towards 'Q Ship' stealth. More mimics our production-racers, less street-custom as in Ram Air 6. But I guess it's personal perception as to which is more subtle, in reality.

For mine, HRT's 427 from a few years ago holds more appeal that Ram Air 6
http://carpoint.ninemsn.com.au/carco...2HRT42706b.jpg
http://carpoint.ninemsn.com.au/carco...2HRT42703b.jpg

There was a brief time in the early '70s when things went mental (bolt-on flares, huge scoops & stripes, lairy paint-outs) but alas those days are long gone

Now 'it' is more exemplified by cars such as (XR8-based) DJR 320, below


To atone for previous sardonic post, for your interest here's some superficial FPV reviews

[57JagXKSS]

I can't stand the new BMWs.

This E34 M5 (second generation M5) was built by hand at the BMW M factory unlike the 99-03 E39 M5 and the new M5. The new M5 has a cheap interior and doesn't even have a manual transmission.



The new BMW 5 series almost looks like a cross between a Pontiac and Kia Rio.

[Thunda Downunda]

Haha doesn't your 5-series/GTP exemplify the style disaster that has befallen once proud & dignified BMW. And thanks for your thoughtful inclusion of AU icon Dame Edna!

I once saw Dame Edna being interviewed by the feminist 'Jet Set' magazine 'the first women's magazine with balls'. Asked by the Editor if she's ever balled a chick, Edna replied with a crooked smile .. “I may be old fashioned, young lady, but lesbianism has always left a nasty taste in my mouth”.

E34 M5s are an attractive unit, but not overly rapid. For trivia I saw a factory-entered M5 race at the Easter 1992 Bathurst 12 Hour enduro, for showroom-stock cars. Despite being piloted by Alan Jones (ex F1 champ) would you believe it was almost 3 seconds a lap slower than another showroom-stock vehicle (virtually identical to Holden pic-link below) which btw was 205hp 304cid with 6" rims & almost 7" of ground clearance?

No I'm not kidding

[57JagXKSS]

Hmm..

David Donohue won the 1994 IMSA Bridgestone Supercar Championship in a production-based M5. E34 M5s don't have much low-end torque. I like the performance of the new M5, but I can't stand its exterior styling and interior. The flat dash is nasty. The new M5 has lost all of the taste and class of the old M5s. Now it is just a rich man's Subaru Impreza WRX. Not that I don't like the Subaru Impreza WRX, but it is more of a rally car than a big super saloon.



It is awesome that Holden and Ford of Australia back their cars in racing (the V8 Supercar Series) unlike BMW.

Are these Ford Falcons only sold in New Zealand and Australia? How many were sold last year?

[57JagXKSS]

I really like this Ford FPV GT-P.

[porscheguy9999]

Nice pics. I never thought of the Grand AM looking like the E60... The GT-P is pretty cool.

[Thunda Downunda]

Holden V-Car in its many variants are exported to every continent (bar Antarctica) with most sales to the Middle East. But apart from New Zealand, Falcon exports are few & far between. Last I heard there was a smattering into South Africa, where high fuel prices limit sales, and in past years the occasional large batch to Hong Kong for taxi use. Almost all Oz taxis are Falcons. Btw they are not yet engineered, nor have ever been built in L/H/D form by Ford-AU

http://www.ford.com.au/inside_ford/p...ile=foa305.htm

In 1994, 72,914 Falcons were sold, last year the Falcon tallied 65,384 sales. Commodore sales are only about the same level as they were a decade ago. In 1995 80,452 Commodores were sold. Last year there were 79,170.

Holden says exports and a broad range of cars are the key to the Commodore's survival. Last year, with an export tally of 52,372 sedans and coupes eclipsing the record set in 1973 by the HQ Kingswood, Holden's exports increased 45 percent over 2003.

Ford AU CEO Tom Gorman says that is why the Territory recreational vehicle was so crucial to the Falcon's survival. "We make five vehicles off the Falcon platform, including the (AWD) Territory, and that gives us the economies of scale to continue making all these products."

For an enthusiast-oriented Falcon IMO it's hard to pick between your GT-P and another great FPV product the F6 Typhoon
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WRX has been on sale here since '91, and immediately enlivened the brand. The earlier models were quite restrained - no huge whale tail or flashy gold rims - and WRXs were often seen driven by rural doctors, mature-age country commuters etc. At one stage WRX appeared in our national top-ten (by model) sales results, and was easily Subaru's best-selling model here. Then, as WRX styling add-ons became ever bigger, the rot set in as the 'youth market' discovered the car. WRX became the ram-raider of choice, joyriders, stolen-and-rebirthed etc. Even carjacking, a phenomenon previously unknown here. I recall one year the theft rates became so astronomical within Sydney that, on average, every Sydney metro area WRX was stolen about 1.3 times! It soon quite literally became uninsurable, and Subaru itself had to offer insurance to keep the model viable. Sales of WRX have much diminished in recent years, as few want the hassle of owning such a conspicuous target (for thieves as well as cops)
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Australia used to have almost a national obsession with production-car racing (especially endurance racing) which I much prefer to an artifical, equalised & meaningless formula like V8 Supercars. Nascar here we come. Nowdays the V8 Supercars boast 20+ cars separated by less than a second in quailfying, but on race day the only way they can make some sort of a race out of it is by 'manufacturing' it in the pits

To close, pardon my off-topic rave within our friendly chat. But your mention of super saloons reminds me of our original supercars, before they were infamously outlawed here by Government in 1972. Chevy-engined Monaros, Ford's awesome GT-HO 'Phase' cars, Hemi Chargers with OE triple Webers. Fantastic overpowered monsters sliding around on razorblade wheels, exhausts bellowing, with smoke pouring off the mandated street radials. 100% stock Series-Production racecars that actually leaned when cornering, not some giant point-and-squirt slotcar like what impersonates tintop racing today

Falcon GT-HO Phase III, locally manufactured 351 Cleveland 4V, 380hp, 160+mph, 6" rims, 164 litre tank

Hope you like this 1971 pic!

[57JagXKSS]

Originally Posted by porscheguy9999

Nice pics. I never thought of the Grand AM looking like the E60... The GT-P is pretty cool.

Nah. The E60's front end just looks too much like a Pontiac.

[57JagXKSS]

That is an awesome picture!

Did that happen at every corner on race day?

Why did the gov't outlaw those muscle cars in 1972?

The Trans-Am Series used to be really production based here in the U.S., but it isn't like that now. There are some rule changes for 2005 which shoud help, but I wish the Big Three would start making some modern muscle cars. That way, the Trans-Am Series would be more exciting.

By the way, what do you and other Australian's think of the new Ford Mustang?

check here for pictures

http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbul...d.php?t=379139

[Ford FPV GT-P]

hi all
i am from australia and i think ford are realy nice lookin cars

[oldschool muscle]

Ha ha, the new mustang is alright, but I prefer the previous model, actually a couple of models ago probably now. I don't know much about the new mustangs but the 2002/2003 models were the best ones. The Mustang Cobra SVT and that of them years.