FPV Falcon GS Review & Road Test
October 21, 2009 by Matt Brogan
Be a Grand Sport all over again
Model Tested:
- 2009 FPV FG Falcon GS; 5.4-litre, V8, petrol; six-speed automatic; sedan – $56,950*
Options Available:
- Metallic Paint $400; XR Leather Upholstery $2100; Satellite Navigation $2290; Premium Brakes $4900; Reverse Sensing System $500; Reverse Camera $500; Alarm $500; FPV Floor Mats $230
Pricing point; powerful V8 engine; smooth six-speed auto; limited-edition series
Requires premium unleaded; no centre headrest; no adjustment on rear headrests
CarAdvice Rating: 
Twelve slotters, pin stripes, hood pins and a vinyl roof. Chances are that if you know what I’m talking about then the FPV Falcon GS is bound to appeal to your sense of sentimentality.
The GS (Grand Sport) Rally Pack was first seen in the dying days of the XW Falcon, and according to the press release of the day, was as an “economical, build-it-yourself, everyman’s GT”.
Designed as an option pack that was available across the Falcon, Futura and Fairmont range, the GS was dubbed “an option with impact”, and is considered the forerunner to the ‘S’ pack models, still common until the XR nomenclature revival of the late 1990s.
The GS nameplate was eventually dropped with the XB series in the mid-1970s.
The GS Rally Pack – the latest option package by Ford – provided the base for an economical build-it-yourself “everyman’s GT”.
Designed for all new Faclon, the Futura or the Fairmont, the GS – Grand Sport – Rally Pack is an instant conversion of the family car into a sports sedan.
The option pack consists of side rally stripes with a GS emblem; fully chromes rally wheel covers; a padded three-spoke wood-rimmed sports steering wheel with full circle rim-squeeze horn and the full cockpit-type instrumentation which is standard equipment on the Falcon GT.
Ford believes the GS Rally Pack and complimentary options will make a very popular combination, selling into the youth and performance minded market.
Ford News Release, Friday, June 20, 1969.
The newly released FPV GS sedan and ute models (limited in number to 250 and 75 respectively) aim to recapture fondly the enthusiasm of that era by blending the combination of GT-based 302kW V8 engine, FPV chassis enhancements, bespoke GS graphics and FPV driver comfort features at a very competitive price point set to draw new comers and collectors alike to this limited-edition range.
Of course with progress being what it is, the modern day GS offers much more in the way of creature comforts with a generous level of standard equipment that includes dusk sensing headlamps, front foglamps, ‘premium sound’ six CD tuner with iPod connectivity and steering wheel mounted audio controls, power mirrors and windows, cruise control, tilt/slide leather wrapped steering wheel, dual-zone climate control and Bluetooth mobile phone connectivity.
Optional equipment includes FPV-spec four-piston Brembo brake upgrade, leather upholstery and satellite-navigation.
The FPV GS Series also features 19-inch Graphite rims and a choice of six exterior colour/stripe combinations, unique GS striping graphics, charcoal cloth interior, FPV GT instrumentation, gear knob, starter button and badging. There’s also ‘302′ graphics on the GS sedan’s rear spoiler.
At the heart of the beast FPV’s engineers have given the GS Series’ 5-4-litre ‘Boss’ V8 engine the same twin throttle bodies and intake system found on the GT.
A recalibrated ECU, GT headers and dual exhaust sees the new GS Series develop 302kW of power and 551Nm of torque, or enough to conquer standstill to 100km/h in 6.5 seconds.
Our test car this week was mated to Ford’s sterling ZF six-speed automatic transmission which has been recalibrated specifically for the GS. The box is decisive, and very accurate making for a rewarding drive to the rear wheels both in touring or through inner-city traffic.
For the more traditional among us, a six-speed manual gearbox is also available.
Fuel economy returns this week were 15.2L/100km combined, just one-litre more than that of the official ADR result. It’s not a bad result given the amount of performance on tap, but its worth remembering the Boss V8 does require 98RON premium unleaded.
The GS Series offers a drive not dissimilar to that of the flagship GT, and although the power rating might be down some 13kW (torque figures remain unchanged), it’s not so dramatic that you’d notice, and given the $12,000 price difference, unlikely to phase none beside the purist.
Steering is just as well sorted as any car in the current FPV range with a well-weighted wheel providing the driver with accurate and tactile road feel.
Underfoot the GS Series is sure and settled delivering a ride and handling combination that is easily on par with many more expensive European rivals – and given it is tuned specifically for Australian roads you might say this is an even greater compliment.
Braking is super confident thanks to strong Brembo calipers grabbing large diametre cross-drilled discs and is fitted as standard with the added security of ABS, EBA and EBD.
Other standard safety equipment includes front, side and curtain airbags plus ESC with Traction Control.
With a generously proportioned cabin the GS Series offers ample accommodation for five adults though I would hesitate to utilise the rear-centre seat given the omission of a headrest. Similarly the outboard seats’ headrests are not adjustable in height which is a concern for taller passengers in the prevention of whiplash during rear impact.
Up back the GS Series boasts 504-litres of cargo space which can be expanded thanks to 60:40 split fold rear seats. Braked towing capacity is rated at 1200kg.
With the manual model available for only $54,950 – only $5000 more than an automatic XR8 – the FPV GS Series is the best way to get yourself in to not only one of Australia’s top performance marques, but also a future classic.
Original examples of Ford’s GS are now only second in terms of collectibility to that of the legendary GT, so you can be sure an investment here is worth the coin.
And even if I’m wrong, it’s a bloody good way to blow 55-grand.
Ratings:
CarAdvice Overall Rating:
How does it Drive: 
How does it Look:
How does it Go:
Road Test the Rivals:
*Pricing is a guide as recommended to us by the manufacturer.
Specifications:
- Engine: 5408cc DOHC V8 (32 valve)
- Power: 302kW @ 6500rpm
- Torque: 551Nm @ 4750rpm
- Induction: Multi-point
- Transmission: Six-speed manual/auomatic
- Driven Wheels: Rear
- Brakes: Discs with ABS, EBA & EBD
- Top Speed: Not Tested
- 0-100km/h: 6.5 seconds
- CO2 Emissions: 340g/km (Approx.)
- Fuel Consumption: 14.2L/100km (ADR)
- Fuel Consumption: 15.2L/100km (As Tested)
- Fuel Tank Capacity: 68L
- Fuel Type: 98RON Unleaded
- ANCAP Rating: Five-star
- Airbags: Front, Side & Curtain
- Safety: ESC with Traction Control
- Spare Wheel: Full-size Alloy
- Suspension: Wishbone (F) / Multi-link (R)
- Cargo Capacity: 504L
- Tow Capacity: 1200kg (Braked)
- Turning Circle: 11.0m
- Warranty: Three Year / 100,000km
- Weight: 1855kg (Tare)
- Wheels: Alloy 19 x 8.0-inch
i really like this. seems really good value; but in reality it would be bloody hard to pry my money away from a turbo-6 falcon.
Caradvice gave this car a 4.5 star rating though, higher than many German cars they test, so I’d be still be very happy with the V8.
6.5 seconds 0-100?
That seems a bit slow for a FPV, a $47,000 XR6T or XR8 would be atleast 1 second faster
I think you’ll find that the XR8 would be as fast if not slower.
I agree Matson. Wheels posted a 0-100km/h time for the XR6 Turbo of 5.1 seconds! And this is 15 grand more and is 1.4 seconds slower!
Yeah its no secret that the I6T motor will spank any equivalent V8, we’ve known that since ford proved that to us in 2004.
I still dont know why many people must keep stating the obvious.
The V8 models are about driving a “V8″.
They are bought for sound and cred nowdays and I can respect that.
Why they keep stating the obvious? Maybe because they are RATIONAL.
Why bother to rationalise it? If you cant understand the appeal of a V8 then maybe you’re on the wrong site. I love the F6 but a V8 has more appeal than just performance figures
Has to be said, its a bit embarrasing to be driving such a manly car making all that attention seeking big engine noise. Only to be beaten off the lights by a FWD 4Cyl Mazda 3 MPS! or even worse a BMW Diesel!!!
in this months Motor Mag they timed the GS Falcon 0-100 in 5.6 Secs which would be comparable to a SS / SSV i would think. so the 6.5 in test would have been caused by the conditions i would think (Different day/ Vehicle and Driver need to be taken in account when we look at 0-100 times).
I’d agree because 6.5 sec is about the same as a ‘01 AUIII XR8, and that only had 220kw and 435nm. Id say the road was damp. This falcon can definitely do much better than the reported 0-100.
Sorry, I just can’t get excited about any new ford with that engine in it and I don’t think you can call it a future classic. I know that’s how Ford is trying to position it as in the market but it’s basically an XR8 with a few options and different decals. The boss engine is one of the most disappointing Ford has ever produced (or sourced). I bet the old 60’s and 70’s version could go 0-100 in around 7 seconds too with about half the power of the new one. Boring boring boring. I’ll concede that it looks nice and I’m sure it sounds great, but it really is a total underachievement. I just couldn’t bring myself to buying any ford with the current inefficient V8 under the hood. I’m a Ford fan too.
Just wondering why you consider this motor dissapointing?? Given that the design cost of this motor barely made it into the million dollar mark, and it is essentially a parts bin special made because at the time there was no other motor in the catalog that satified the requirements for our market. Also it’s power output range of (in current versions) 295, 302 & 315 puts in well and truly within acceptable the oppositions 317kw with a motor that has nearly (according to GMUS figures) 20 million invested over the last 5 years. That makes this motor an absolute gem in my books. I’m certain that all other manufacturers would love to get that sort of performance out of such little money.
Sure it gets spanked by the turbo and gets beaten (just in a lot of contests) by the yank motor, but at least Ford give you the option. If you want stupidly quick buy the turbo, if you want heart and soul by the 8
Yeah I know where you’re coming from, and it is great that there is the option there for such a motor.… but I think it should have much better performance figures if it it producing that kind of power. In its defence, Ford knew it would take a back seat to the turbo six, so it is the ‘emotional’ appeal of it that makes people want one. It’s a subjective thing I guess, I know I’d want more bang for my buck if I could boast to my mates that I was driving a 302kW car around but in reality the standard XT which is half the price and with 107 less kW is almost as quick to get to 100. The head rules over the heart here for me.
The down side with these road test is that the Ford motors do need a few K’s under their belt to free up. Look at the times that can be gotten out of Boss motors with 10>15k km’s on the clock and they are quite impressive. Same as the G6E Turbo in CA’s Large car comparo is the first road test with one going under 5 sec’s but did have 11k on the clock…..
True true.
The XR8 is not any faster, the turbo 6 is ;-)
I maybe be in the manority, i love the FG’s styling and prefer it over the blocky VE.
What’s the manority? Is it minority or majority. Are we confused?
I think the strips on these looks better than the ones on the GT.
You’re complaining about headrests? Seriously> I guess this would indicate that the rest of the car is spot on then.
How about a flat floor in the boot?
And why is 0-100 so slow?
Seeing as the pictures look like it was raining, maybe the 0-100 was on wet grass.
MOTOR mag clocked an SV6 faster then this and a XR6 just a bit slower o.0.
That 13kw must make a difference considering GT’s have gone sub-6’s.
Are you serious? This thing is slower than the FWD TRD Aurion
Great review car advice, but I must ask, why the new layout? Separating each sentence into a paragraph and separating them with images ruins the fluidity of the piece. Please move back to the old format of simple paragraphs.
“……..unlikely to phase none beside the purist”.
Double negatives! Tsk tsk.
The XR nomenclature was not revived in the late 1990s, it was actually brought back in the early 90s by the 1993 EB Falcon S XR8, coincidentally the first V8 in a Falcon since the demise of the 351 in the mid 80s.
Thats true.
when they bought it back it didnt come with distinct headlights.
The Typical XR headlights were introduced in the ED series.
But yes, the name plate came in early 1990.
EBII Falcon SXR6/8 came out in April 1992 to be exact.
The 351 V8’s last high-performance role was under the nose of the XE Ford Fairmont Ghia ESP which was axed in late 1982. In mid 1991 the EB FALCON S XR8 saw the return of the V8.
A mid 90s Volkswagen Golf VR6 is almost as quick as this to 100km/h
And a better built car
Remove yourself from the gene pool, d*ckhead
sorry 1991 S-XR8 I know, I have one
This is alot of car for the money and perhaps an example of inspired marketing finally.
Am I correct in stating Caradvice verified the 6.5 seconds themselves, because manufacturers are notoriously… optimistic.
Still… I dont see the point?
Its like having a Focus XR2.5 because someone wanted a bit more than the Zetec and a little less than the XR5.
The XR8 and GT are close enough, must one bring it closer again?
Although less gear for less money for a limited edition is a novel idea =P Shame its not really staying true to the original idea… its supposed to be a boyracer add on to the Falcon range, not the FPV range.
And yes, that engine is a bit of a fail compared to the LS3, but I still object to that silly old-tech they use in the damn thing, but i’d buy an F6 anyway.
Most of the FPV’s are bought with V8’s still, which irritates me to no end (BUY A HSV IF YOU WANT A V8) so there’s certainly a large market out there.
FPV actually looks great. It may have some flaws and all…it’s still nice. Maybe it just depends on what type of car and specifications you’re looking for.
$55K for a glorified BF Falcon? No thanks…
And it looks cheap, at the end of the day it is only a glorified TAXI.
Pair of idiots.
Carry on, because everyone knows that there are precious few common components between the BF and the virtually new FG. Doesnt matter how often you repeat it the facts dont change, and you look more like a fool each time.
Yeah and BMWs and Mercedes are taxis too, do you have a point?
Pair of idiots is a bit of an understatement dont you think.
Actually I thought it was unnecessary. You proved them wrong easily, no need to be rude even if they are ignorant.
Love the racing stripes and spoiler – did it help the car reach its Corolla beating 0-100 time of 6.5 seconds?
Foolish people says:”Yeah and BMWs and Mercedes are taxis too, do you have a point?”
Yes, foolish people say that, don’t they?!
Too bad aussie taxies aren’t on par with german taxies!!
I’d gladly have a new e-class taxi thanks!!
Or a BW police porsche 911, thanks!!
Complete with vinyl (sorry MB Text) seats, stuffed diffs and plenty fo dashboard rattles… Throw someone from the subcontinent behind the wheel of these so called luxury cars and you could be in any taxi in any capitol city in Australia… try going overseas and catching one, no need for Europe you could go to the middle east, Singapore plenty of places…
I have been in them, when i have lived in Germany, and Austria…
Miles ahead of Falcadores…
Tomas, sorry you forgot to change ID back to “Jon” before you posted again.
Steve, Jon is another person, ask Car Advice to verify…
Steve, do you ever say anything on topic, apart from commenting on the posters??? Oh I forgot Bavarian Missile, who has been already busted today using multiple identities!!
Actually its usually you Tomas who has nothing relevant to say.
And what has BM got yo do with this?
Has she even posted today – haven’t seen it.
Yeah I would happily own a Euro Taxi too Tomas 79. By the way Steve we aren`t the same person, but we do share something in common we both hate Falcons and Commodores. So I guess that makes us, very wise men. Look we can`t help it if we aspire to quality luxuries in life, we can`t all grow up aspiring to owning a piece of budget motoring. Buying a Falcon or a Commodore is kind of like shopping at one of those $2 shops, you think your getting a bargain but the product doesn`t last and isn`t well built.
What are you going on about Tomas…………seriously I would have thought you would do more on days off !
Steve is right, I havent been on here today or yesterday,sorry but you must stop lusting for me babe :)
Upside for all you Check fans ,antispam word…………SKODA !
Jon
I would love to see things from your perspective but my neck isn’t long enough to get my head up my Rs.
Interesting how you and Will think the Skoda does in Europe……….could you imagine how well the Falcon would do there if it nails the Skoda in Australia ?
Jon says: “…we do share something in common we both hate Falcons and Commodores. So I guess that makes us, very wise men.”
Funny thing is a lot of other ignorant arrogant people like to think of themselves as being wise too Jon… when the fact is they aren’t.
Self praise is no recommendation
Oh look its the 3 stooges, or are they the same person? Damn trailer park trash with their BOGAN pride.
Come on now Tomas/jon.
First you claim that you only use one ID (which we all know is not true anyway) then go and repeat the exact same words under different users – busted yet again!
I got it wrong this morning you aren`t the 3 stooges your Dumb, Dumber and Dumbest. Steve, Wheelnut, BM or who ever you are, I`m sorry to Disappoint you but I`m not Tomas.
C/A please delete and ban this jon/Tomas twit
Go read Jon’s latest effort on the Mustang article, I don’t think even Tomas79 would stoop that low.
Bavarian Missile says:”Interesting how you and Will think the Skoda does in Europe……….could you imagine how well the Falcon would do there if it nails the Skoda in Australia ?”
The falcon doesn’t nail the Skoda at all!! all it has is a price/power advantage!
In Europe, It would flop, thats why Ford Australia never brought it there in the first place!! The woeful build quality and aesthetics combined a thirsty petrol motor, and 90’s era styling forceses the people in the know at Ford australia never to attempt it!! While in 2008 Ford Australia once again made $ 274 million dollar loss on pushing their wares, in the market it was designed for. While during the same time year Skoda Auto made a US$990million dollar profit!!
But didn’t you pay 130k for a glorified 318i???
No, I paid over $200K for an M5.
It’s a little embarassing that an eight year old E39 M5 is faster, better built, better specced, better looking, and around the same price as this BF sorry FG Falcon.
Ahh BMW the MAsters of making every model look totally different. They have never had anything that remotely looks similar to their previous models have they??? Hang is that an M5.. nah it’s just a 520d…. Damn looks so much like an M5 and look it can do the highway speed…..
I was thinking about painting my car orange or bright green, with big 373 badges all and stripes all over it…
The M5 is great car. Last week i traded my E60 M5 for an C63 and i already miss it.
55 grand is a bargain for a beautiful, rear wheel drive, 5,4 litre V8, ZF 6 speed auto large sedan with outstanding ride, handling and features.
Can you please remove yourself from the gene pool? Prefearbly by getting crushed to death in a
garbage compactor, by getting your face cut to ribbons with a
pocketknife, your head cracked open with a baseball bat, your stomach
sliced open and your entrails spilled out, and your eyeballs ripped
out of their sockets.
I really hope that you get curb-stomped. It’d be hilarious to see you
begging for help, and then someone stomps on the back of your head,
leaving you to die in horrible, agonizing pain.
STFU, before you get your face bashed in and cut
to ribbons, and your throat slit.
G6E Turbo (Auto) does 0 – 100 in 4.97 seconds (according to Large car comparison).
So 6.5 seconds 0 – 100 for a v8 is slow (even if its an auto)
Yeah! And they recalibrated the perfect ZF-transmission.
Why would ya!!
They want $2100 for that leather? Serious?
Would you prefer they harvest the leather hide right off your mommas backside instead? Maybe that would be of suitable grade for an ‘Elitist’ such as yourself!
its a very nice looking car but i just don’t think the v8 can ever replace the turbo 6 i think also the problem for the 0-100 in all the ford range is a lack of traction the f6 and turbo 0-100 is the same, i think someone has to test to show that it is traction issues same car 2 sets of stock rims stock tyres vs a high grade tyre i bet the f6 will b running in the high 4’s mark 0-100
i know im flogging a dead horse hear but a lot of the ford v8 lovers have to realize that the v8 is slow and stop saying that it will beat a xr6t its been proven by stats that they are slower
No one is saying that. Its just that V8’s are awesome.
This car looks awesome, I would love one.
Motor (or Wheels?) actually proved on a Dyno that both the Power output and Delivery of the Boss Trumped the HSV equivelent in every way. Holden’s measurements are different to Ford. They sound bigger than the actual figure. As for the GS and every other V8 Powered FG…. Two Problems…they need Wider wheels with Sticky tyres on the back…all that power needs to go somewhere. Heavy Engine. Triton is Iron at its heart I recall. Weight cut down over the front axle would help. Between those two, I reckon you could shave the 0-100 time by .8 to 1 Second.If all this conjecture is true about Cyote, That Supercharged Small block will bring it :)
I thought Coyote was set to be twin turbocharged?
Now why on earth are you trying to prove the Ford V8 trumps the GM, sorry, Holden V8 when (apparently almost) every piece of data and every review has proved otherwise.
The stats can say one thing, but the road tests prove the same thing.
The Falcon V8 is totally inferior to the LS3…. but the Ford straight-six still kicks Holdens silly SIDI vacuum cleaner in the pants ;)
Doesn’t the LS3 come in 6.2 and 7 L capacities?
Hardly surprising it is stronger than the Boss. It would be like comparing a 4 cylinder 2L against a 2.5L. You’d naturally expect more from the larger capacity.
apart from at idle.
the rough idle of the GM motor is quite noticeable, but being a V8 it could probably be excused as being a bit of character……
Actually there’s a few reviews floating around from non “mass-market mcdonalds publications” like wheels or motor, that have pitted FG GT’s against HSV R8’s with suprising results. After being run in properly, say 10,000kms on the clock the FG’s reworked BOSS engine frees up quite a bit and manages to not only outgun the LS3 in raw kw/torque on the dyno, but also in 0-100km/h times, (usually by around 0.15 secs). The two key factors in getting those times are making sure the engine has been run in first, and a careful launch technique. Its no secret that these FPV’s tyres are nowhere near adequate enough or sticky enough to put all that power to the ground without wasting valuable time frying rubber. Obviously HSV’s have an advantage as they all come with much wider/stickier 275 rears. Having driven a well run in FG GTP I can tell you that this engine really does feel like a whole new animal and now actually likes to rev freely, easily matching the LS3. If only someone could convince Ford to at least offer an optional fatter, stickier tyre package.
The Dunlops are crap..Best thing i’ve done was replacing them with Kumho KU36.
Tyre noise halved and dsc light stoped flashing at me from standstill of rolling start in the dry at least…
Even the I6 seems to take 10,000ks to free up.
Apparently they limit them from out of the box and start putting it back on after the first service.
Ive noticed the bottom end in my I6 was still good out of the box, but not like the I6 should be. After about 10,000 its all sweet
“The GS nameplate was eventually dropped with the XB series in the mid-1970s.”..
Actually the first car I purchased was a bright yellow XC Falcon with the GS Rally Pack. I loved that car and it’s “sports instrumentation” but as was typical the spanish dancer got it eventually. It is great to see the name plate revived
This is what happens when you give the slob masses a choice.
I hate A-Fords and I hate Commondores.
Only Ford EU tries to do decent things.
That’s a very elitist comment.
Clearly no one will buy every, or even most brands. But I’d rather have a wide variety to choose from. This way I don’t need to drive what you are driving and competition forces prices down.
Wow, you’re really living up to your name there, Elitist.
Have you ever driven an FG XR6 Turbo? Or even an SS Commodore?
Really?? And what car woudl you prefer? Something for the Slob masses in Germany like a VW/AUDI BMW or MB? Perhaps Something for the slob masses French like Puegeot, Citroen or Renault? Maybe for the slob masses Japanese/ american like Toyota Mazda Nissan Honda Subaru?? All of those somehow better brands are built for and driven by the same socio economic groups you try to run down in your childish derrisions… very elitist very!!! (wandering away Chuckling and shaking head at some peoples lack of intelligence)
Yet another non-relevant machine in the modern world of performance. No wonder Ford is up to its’ neck in debt. It is however a feather in the marketing hat that they can still convince the occasional moron to part with money or go into to debt to buy one of these dinosaurs.
A bit jealous there Will.
Dont worry someone will come into your showroom to buy one of the Skodas you are trying to flog……eventually.
People like you, with financial vested interests should be more honest with their comments – sorry “honesty” and “car salesman” in the same thought there for a moment. hahaha
Steve,
Thank you for mentioning Skoda. Yes, Skoda are doing quite well for a new brand entering the market in depressed times. Good strategy there. Skoda are currently selling more cars than Alfa Romeo and Fiat in the Australian market. Well done!
Grasping at straws there Will.
Still doesn’t excuse your dodgey business practices of artificially pumping up Skoda on internet blogs, whilst slandering your opposition, does it?
And BTW Fiat last month outsold Skoda by 36%
How do they expect to survive with selling an average of just 5 cars a month for each dealer? Clearly the Skoda brand is not paying the bills for those dealers and they are survuving on their sales of other brands.
Steve
Don’t know where you get your figures from,
August; 145 Skodas, 133 Fiats.
September; 102 Skodas, 100 Alfas.
To September this year Skoda has consistently sold more units than Fiat. Skoda is clearly an established brand, and the Volkswagen Group infinitely more liquid than Ford.
One of the conundrums a discerning person would have to confront when buying a Ford is who will honour the obligations associated with the warranty in two years time.
VERY seletive figure there Will.
Why not quote the latest Skoda/Fiat figures (like you did for Alfa)?
Skoda 102, Fiat 139 36% more sales for Fiat.
BTW Alfa only fell 2 units short as well with 100 sales.
“…who will honour the obligations associated with the warranty in two years time (for Ford)”
- Easy Ford Australia, who will be aroung as a corporate entity for many decades to come.
In reallity the question is “who will honour the obligations associated with the warranty in two years time (for Skoda).
- Difficult question because it certainly wont be any of the bankrupt deallers and Skoda Australia are unlikely to be here. Maybe VW “might” pick up the tab.
its comments like the ones from The Realist, Will, et al. Which makes me come less and less to this site. Its kind of depressing seeing people with such bias and cultural cringe paying out outstanding cars. Also are there legal issues for slandering companies and the like on a public forum?
I agree I think the reason people like the Realist Will Tom=as79 etc make such unfounded uninformed biased derogatory comments about Holden and Ford is because deep down part of them feels threatened by how good the local cars are or how much they’ve improved over the years etc..
They don’t make similar comments against any other cars which are competing against their beloved Toyotas BMWs or Skodas..
why is it just Holden and Ford that gets them so riled up?
Its almost an unhealthy obsession that they have
Its actually a form of narcissism [control freaks] – Where you put others down in order to make yourself feel better or make yourself appear to be more intelligent..
As shown by when they try to pass their opinions off as fact..
Yet the fact that they [Particularly Tmas79] are often the first to resort to personal attacks when someone dares to counteract their claims.. shows that they aren’t any better than the rest of us – if not worse
They believe the best form of defence is attack – but if you don’t attack anyone you don’t have any need to defend yourself do you>
So Wheelnut, using your theory, you must feel threatened by Toyota and Lexus as you continually make unfounded, uninformed, biased and derogatory comments about them.
No SteveH I am merely stating an opinion – whereas Tomas79 and Co try to pass their opinions off as fact. They often start their statements with things like.
“Everybody knows that Holden and Ford are….”
“[Manipulated] Surveys show that Holden and Ford are….”
Not to mention that when I [or anyone else on here] refers to a particular magazine or website; if the article says something negative about Toyota – Tomas and Co says that they have no credibility..
Yet when they refer to the same magazine or website to back up their “story” – somehow the magazine or websites credibility is somehow restored.
Wheelnut, I have seen plenty of times when you have tried to pass off your opinion as fact. I think it is plainly obvious on this site that people don’t like one brand for one reason or another. Therefore when I read something they have written about the brand they hate, I take it with a pinch of salt.
No Wheelnut, It’s you thats passing your opinion off as facts!!
Seriosuly Wheelnut, the character count on your idiotic essays wont give you any more cred!!
Wheelnut says:“[Manipulated] Surveys show that Holden and Ford are….”
And calling a survey/study to be manipulated is not OPINION?!!
Please provide some hard facts?!
Seriously, for a self acclaimed car enthusiast, you seem to spend a way too much time at home, typing up BS essays!!
Quote [You know who]:and calling a survey/study to be manipulated is not OPINION?!!
No Tomas; it is my OPINION that surveys are manipulated. They are subjective not objective
I mean a Survey usually comprises of a series of Questions inorder to ascertain various peoples OPINIONS.
In My OPINION You can’t rally claim that the results of a survey to be factual because if you asked the same questions to a different group you would get a greatly different result.
It is also my OPINION that Surveys are very subjective – as they depend on how the questions are worded; how they are asked how when and where the survey is conducted; the size of the group of people asked; the way the respondents interpret the questions and the way the surveyors interpret the answers
Particularly considering that Surveys are often done for marketing purposes – marketing experts are hired to convey a more positive image of their clients products aren’t they?
http://zgeek.com/
Click on “saving ZGeek” and read about a guy suing a website owner about what people have posted in their forums.
This is currently being tested before the courts. The outcomes will potentially be devastating for CA if the Plaintiff wins.
BMW’s are European taxis, but here in Australia people think they are so “classy” for driving one. At the end of the day they paid twice as much for their European taxi as we do for our Australian Taxi, unfortunatley for them, they don’t get twice the car.
Actually, there are far more Mercs that are taxis in Germany than any other car. Infact the E class is the prefered taxi along with B class, V class and C class. Also out of interest I googled BMW taxis and most of the references are to the M5 Taxi at the Nurburgring.
Only have to look around the streets here to see what the Falcon is used for predominantly ( Taxi’s and rep mobiles)
I don’t mind Ford, but hey, I had to say something to protect BMW’s good name.
My god…the crap that comes out in these comments is simply stunning.
If falcon and commodore are outdated, inefficient, that makes many other vehicles for example the toyota rav-4 a complete DOG.
Thinking eludes many in here!
Splatcat,
Bravo!!!
Adam/Splatcat;
A person like JC., many of whom think is totally experienced and takes on the totem suggested by his acronym in car world would be of the opinion that with real world restrictions and conditions you would get more fun from a performance machine like a 500 Abarth.
If you want a performance Ford, go with the RS Focus rather than this ’30’s inspired bucket of bolts.
I went for an FG XR6 Turbo, wouldn’t swap it for the world. I am just making the point that even though Falcons/Commodores are taxis in Australia and wannabe Europeans turn their noses up at them, BMW’s are a taxi all the same, albeit in a different continent.
Will,
Why the focus?
At the end of the day it will cost more to own and offer less practicality.
The FG falcon is no worse than any other vehicle on sale.
misconception rather than true reality is predominant in this commemts section.
will,
Also do you know what it cost Ford Oz to develop the Fg and what profits they turn??
I suspect not.
Has nothing to do with Ford’s global debt, argue with some non assuming comments.
Profits? Do our unproductive manufacturers even know what that word means??
When can the Australian tax payer turn off the tap bud? Next year? Five years? Never??
And just what magical industry are you in that doesn’t benefit from government handouts or concessions??
Consulting to the minerals, processing and O&G industries.
Gee whiz, there’s a lot of effort needed; dig up resources and export them.. What do you suggest happens when we’ve exhausted our supplies? Or is that too far down the track to consider?
But then if you’re able to earn a great income from a profitable industry, who cares about the thousands who rely on the manufacturing industry to get by..
And the massive tax concessions afforded those industries mean that taxpayers support you probably more than manufacturing.
The Truth, if no support (protection?) is provided to local manufacturing, then the idea of manufacturing in this country goes down the gurgler as our labour costs will always be higher than some other country.
Having people gainfully employed has profound social and economic effects. I struggle to understand what alternatives people will have if they lose their jobs in these industries – suggestions? Move to WA in mining perhaps?
My point is that we make some great cars in this country produced by some great people, so I think we should appreciate them!
fxh555,
I think you’ll find that you and “The Truth” are on the same page.
And I agree, there are precious few industries in Australia that don’t benefit from some government assisstance. Manufacturing id vital to Australia, just as agriculture mining and technology are. If you don’t have diversity of industry then everything is more tenious.
Oops, sorry about that The Truth & thanks for that Steve. I was a coffee short of interpreting some things correctly so early in the morning :-)
I just feel passionately that we make some great products in this country and it dismays me that sometimes some of us are our own worst critics. I’ve been leasing Magnas, Falcons and Commodores over the last 14 years and think they’ve all been great cars!
Wow – the lack of knowledge and intelligence on these forums is staggering. It’s bleeding hearts on these blogs.
It’s not only labour costs – productivity is a major benchmark, and we are behind the rest of the developed world, and much of the developing world. Yet our wages are obscene.
Tax concessions in the resources industry actually allow the industry to become more efficient and robust, and hence even more profitable. Whereas no amount of tax concessions seem to help the automotive industry. Could any one of you advise when the car manufacturers will make any money?? I bet not.
I look forward to 1st January 2010 with great anticipation…
The Realist says:October 24, 2009 at 3:20 pm
Wow – the lack of knowledge and intelligence on these forums is staggering.
That’s just so Ironic coming from you Realist..
You don’t work in the Automotive industry yet you claim to have in-depth knowledge as to exactly how Ford and Holden operate not to mention why the local car industry is [as you claim] under productive and lagging behind other countries..
You have repeatedly gone on about [what you believe] the problems with the Local Automotive industry are
However; you haven’t actually made any logical reasonable viable solutions as to how these problems can be rectified so that the local auto industry can become profitable again people can retain their jobs and the economy benefits/develops etc.. which is one thing a Consultant is supposed to be able to do isn’t it?
If you can try to be a bit more positive with a bit more foresight and think a bit more laterally
The Realist, it’s the lack of empathy in these forums I find staggering. As I said, you’re in the fortunate position that there’s a market for your product (i.e oil & gas, iron etc) and good for you.
I can’t answer when these companies will turn profit as I don’t know. I presume these companies have set targets?
Applying the same logic, would you support outsourcing consulting roles in resources overseas if it improved company productivity and profit? Where does the line get drawn?
The Realist says:”
Consulting to the minerals, processing and O&G industries.”
Excellent, so you just like myself actually contribute to the inflow of foreign capital to this country! And they dare to call us an Anti-Australian!!
I also work for an Engineering Consultation firm, on international projects, therefore I actually represent Australian Engineering expertise overseas. And yet these muppets insist that I’m againts Australian Engineering!!
To ad to this, Bogan Missile repeatedly tells us how the company she works for, manufactures toys in China! HOW ANTI-AUSTRALIAN is that?!!
A She is a Very Hypocritical Bleeding Heart if you ask me!!Q
That’s the beauty of the internet; you can claim to be anyone; do anything; have whatever job you want; own so many cars; visited so many places etc and no-one can say otherwise.. those who do are merely making assumptions – isn’t that right Tom-assumes?
Tomas, it’s great that you work in a field that contributes towards the Australian economy. I too am an engineer (in telecommunications) and so know how great it is to design something and see it put together.
So why begrudge fellow engineers, designers, production workers the opportunity to work in an Australian automotive industry? It’s your choice on whether you choose to buy local or imported, but do try and understand the other side of the equation.
It helps Australia all the more of an interesting country to live in!
Well I`m going to stop poo stirring for a minute [ gee some people here bite, hook line and sinker]and get serious. The bottom line is our cars aren`t as good as the likes of BMW, Merc, Audi or lexus, just to name the big ones. And in Europe they are on par with what we pay here for our cars. But like I have said previously, I`m not saying we couldn`t build a quality car but we don`t and likely never will. The reason I believe GM and Ford don`t, is their culture. The Germans and the Japanese aim for perfection in everything thing they do, the Americans have the bigger is better attitude and we have the that will do attitude. America and Australia need to change their philosophy when it comes to building cars and they may just produce a world class car. Lets look at the entry level Falcons and Commodores, I mean if your starting point for a car is so low how do you think that by adding extras that you are going to get any sort of quality in your upper spec cars, well you don`t. Build something decent from the word go, I know alot of the entry models are sold as fleet but eventually they end in the hands of people who care about them. Look if you get your entry level right, when you do add all the bells and whistles the car ends up being something world class and then I might consider buying an Australian built car again. But until then I will keep spending my hard earned dollars, that I have paid tax on, on decent quality cars.
The SS Commodore isn’t in the same price range as an Audi or Merc nor are they aimed at the same demographic – HSVs are a different matter.
yet As I have said before there are a number of international motoring journalists [who have driven more cars than the people who bag Ford and Holden on here ever have or ever will] who are really impressed about how much fun they had behind the wheel of the HSV.
As Richard Hammond said about the Maloo “If this car doesn’t move you; that’s your problem – not the cars”
So that says something about how good our cars are doesn’t it?
Spot on Jon!!
fxh555 says:”So why begrudge fellow engineers”
I don’t begrudge fellow engineers, but neither do i get blinded by national pride (like others on here) to claim that the locals on par with
European products!!
Wheelnut, I too get moved when i see a trabant, but that doesn’t make it a good car!
Don’t forget what Jeremy Clarkson said! He said the VXR8 was moronic, and he wouldn’t have one!!
Australian Cars have the same rep as American cars in Europe, Cheap, Large and Powerfull, But with woefull interior, build quality and thirsty..
Tomas: “Don’t forget what Jeremy Clarkson said! He said the VX-R8 was moronic, and he wouldn’t have one!!”
That may be so However; after test driving an AMG Merc-Benz he bought one; then found it to be an absolute dog to live with as a daily driver – and sold it a couple of months later..
As they say – you can’t judge a book by its cover.
Tomas – “Australian Cars have the same rep as American cars in Europe….”
If that is so.. it just shows how ignorant arrogant and prejudicial people from Europe [such as yourself] can be – if they have formed such a negative opinion of a car that they have never even driven.
Wheelnut says:” it just shows how ignorant arrogant and prejudicial people from Europe [such as yourself] can be – if they have formed such a negative opinion of a car that they have never even driven.”
What an extremely stupid, ignorant, and arrogant comment you just have made!! Do you think people would write up a review, without driving up a car???!! Only an Idiot would think that!!
Mr Czechoslovakia, sorry Wheelnut, I’d gladly perform a productivity analysis for Holden, but somehow I know they won’t call me or my colleagues because they know exactly what I’ll tell them. Recently I told BlueScope Steel senior management in Port Kembla they could operate at the same capacity with a manning reduction of 33%, but they baulked citing community concerns. They’ve been haemorrhaging costs for a while now.
Tell your friends in the Labor party that overhauling TQM and Manufacturing Processes will mean short term job loss, but long term productivity (and job opportunities) – but all they care about are keeping their constituents happy in safe seats in SA and VIC. With such a mindset we will never advance.
fxh555, it’s a tough world out there – and empathy will get you no where. You need to be resilient to survive and the ability to make hard decisions is a key. We are fortunate in Australia that we do have people willing to sacrifice time, energy and effort to provide the consulting service and quality we want. As such I don’t have to source people from overseas – the Aussies we employ work very hard. I would not have a hesitation in calling the people I work amongst the best in the world. If a candidate can’t work at least 80 hours a week in my company don’t bother joining. The motto “work hard and play hard” is apt where I work.
Tomas says: “Wheelnut says:” it just shows how ignorant arrogant and prejudicial people from Europe [such as yourself] can be – if they have formed such a negative opinion of a car that they have never even driven.”
What an extremely stupid, ignorant, and arrogant comment you just have made!! Do you think people would write up a review, without driving up a car???!!
Not really – because you said that the Australian made cars have a similar reputation in Europe to the American made cars as if you speak for the 800 million odd people in Europe
What you should have said is that a number of European journalists who don’t like the Aussie made cars
However; that wouldn’t be all that convincing as there are just as many international journalists who do like them
But then again that’s only their Opinion isn’t it..
BTW – I notice that you haven’t named your references yetyou are always demanding people name theirs
Guys don’t be mislead into thinking that Tomas is sime sort of Engineer. All he does is clean the loos and change the oil in a few vehicles for a mining company.
Steve that sounds like a job for you, if you were deemed able to care for yourself!!
Wheelnut, some quick references for you…
http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/c.....turbo.html
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/t.....388209.ece
Some highlights:
“not the most agile or dynamic of cars, the Ford has a thrilling rawness that Europe’s manufacturers are often all too keen to engineer out”
“Don’t expect refinement”
“The Falcon lacks the build strength of European Fords, so while the dashboard is attractive and well finished, some plastics on the door trims and switches are poor”
Give me some other european languages apart from english you can speak, and I’ll give you some more reviews…
Trying to deny it now Tomas after trying for years to convince people?
Ever “regular” knows that you are just a lowley grease monkey working for a contractor who does work for a mining company. You contribute no more to Australias trade figures than the girl who makes the sandwiches in the canteen.
D!ngo/Tomas making out to be some sort of engineering genious pfft!
You are deluded, how about having the balls to use a single nick for once, Bavarian Missile??!!
Wrong AGAIN
buying a souped up falcon is like hooking up with a fat chick.
every feels right until your mates find out and you can’t hide the shame!
WOW, give this kid a lollie-pop, he managed to put together a sentence (albeit a nonsensical one) all by himself, not a bad effort for such a young child.
If all your mates are fairys.
uhuh…so clever…fark some of you have boring lives…
mate buy one and see how it works out. I know you will find that like any falcon, once its not new it starts to loose its lustre and look and feel like a taxi.
What a load of BS and obviously you treat your cars like crap.
You may as well change your ID now as this one allready has NO credability.
Boy, Ford really had problems in 1969 with their spelling judging by the number of typos in their press release – or perhaps it was a more recent set of errors?
Steve,
Australia can be a little slow to catch on, for example Australian disciples of the Henry will praise the GS as being a performance machine and overlook the Focus RS as a far more relevant an better engineered performance machine. Sad, but even sadder is you overlooking that Ford is leveraged to the hilt.
Steve, Skodas are a revelation in sales throughout the world and even the average punter knows the Skoda is a product of Volkswagen Group interplay. Steve, Skoda will be around a lot longer than Ford Australia.
Will says:
“Skoda will be around a lot longer than Ford Australia”
You may be right, but I suspect that neihter of us will still be alive to see it if Ford Australia ever shut up shop.
The real question is will Skoda Australia last this decade? Answer “Maybe”
Will Skoda Australia last longer than Ford Australia? NO. NEVER.
I dont think it will be too much longer before Skoda AUSTRALIA realise they are wasting their time here and decide to pull the pin and shut up shop.
Will you are correct in what you say with the debt. However as per most anti Ford dupes, you also only chose to tell half the story. Ford has been and is still YTD the most progessive Auto company (globally) to read and respond the troubles that we are now beset. Lets face it, whilst GM, Toyota & VWAG (the three main leaders in the auto world for the past 2 decades) sat around spending and continuing down their merry ways, in 2006 Ford Motor Company and it’s board looked to the Horizon and saw what many did, thus refinancing raising capitol and taking the necessary actions to avoid bankruptcy and major upsets to it’s opperations. Given that the cost of employing workers in Detroit was no less than twice that of employess from the “State Protected Union Free” Factories down south, the average person can see Ford has been extremely responsive. Alternatively GM Toyota & VWAG suffered massive downturns and recieved billions of dollars in Government funding off of their respective countries.
AS to Skoda and longevity, you may well be too young, but I can remember when manufacturers like Skoda, Fiat, Renault, Alfa & Lancia were last here on our shores, they came in as lower cost European alternatives however the financial market shifted (late 70’s early 80’s) the exchange rate went into free fall and those companies bolted… Skoda owners were left to their own accord with no back up… wont happen to VW owned Skoda?? Ask SEAT owners from the mid nineties??
Couldn’t agree with you more on the SEAT comment Safety First.
A neighbour tried to trade in his 95 Seat Cordoba on a new car he said the dealership were really reluctant to except and only offered $250 despite having low Kms thats how bad they didn’t want it. He tried selling privatly and got no offers in the end he sold it to a Euro wreckers for $200.
Just a little lesson in badges if I may. GS stands for “Grand Sport” eg a vehicle that is designed to offer both Grand (comfort) and Sport (sporting) attributes. RS is “Rallye Sport” eg Rallye (performance race type drive) Sport (sporting) now how do you figure that the RS is better than the GS if being bought by their respective market?? Secondly, if we were able to get the RS out here it would be on the wrong side of $80,000.00 and as such woulf then be fair competition to the F6 NOT the GS…
The avaerage punter knows Skoda is a part of VW?????
The average punter would need to have heard of Skoda first.
Do a survey in the street and see how many blank looks you get to the name Skoda…….
Skoda??? Skoda??? That’s some kind of new ice cream soda from MacDonalds or KFC isn’t it???? :p lol
Skoda isn’t aimed at dumb @rse bogans, so yeah, you probably never heard of one, nor can afford one!
Yes Skoda’s are aimed at Tomas79 types, ie a great poonce who just goes whar whar whar, wharety wharety whar
No its aimed at poor Audi drivers with no pulse…………flat line anyone ? Cant afford one…..pfffffffffttttttt
Oh yes the poor audi drivers with no pulse, very clever, very highbrow. Id say your talking out of your date
Andrew, badge familiarity is increasing with the ongoing of time.
Safety Frist, yes I remember. Skoda was purchased by VG in 1991. SEAT did not have advanced diesel technology, quality of build or DSG, oh and I forgot to mention the the lack of these qualities in Falcon line up.
Safety Frist, re the badging – don’t get too bogged down in semantics, the average Falcon patron just won’t understand…DOH!
Leon, not very bright and very wishful thinking indeed.
Will says:
“Skoda spin spin spin spin spin spin”
Talk about not very bright comments, its already happened once before, wishful thinking indeed. History does and most certainly will repeat, just give it some time. I get that you ‘try’ and sell these things for a living, but geez mate, get a grip on reality will ya?
["Safety Frist, yes I remember. Skoda was purchased by VG in 1991. SEAT did not have advanced diesel technology, quality of build or DSG, oh and I forgot to mention the the lack of these qualities in Falcon line up.']
Hmmm neither did VW in those days… but VWAG did advertise the hell out of SEAT compared to what they are doing with SKODA at present…. Skoda sell well in Europe because they are priced well under their counterparts… Also they are not competing in a market that has so readily accepted the Korean offerings…
It is refreshing to hear someone so caught up in the hype of the vehicle they are selling, but come next year when you change yards you words will all but remain the same, only the brand will change…. Although I will concede that with the growing number of EX Skoda dealerships it is good to see that they can keep up with the other huge number Euro’s….
Safety Frist = ‘EX Skoda dealerships’…now you are reduced to the writing of fiction, the sad gets sadder.
Now for a more informed and intelligent prediction; ‘Falcon, the old Taurus’. The only caveat that I would ride is that Ford is still exists post 2012, which is the date that Fords own execs have guaranteed Falcon production to.
Fiction (lol) tell me who is the Skoda dealer on the Norht side of Brisbane these days?? Who is carrying them on the sunshine coast these days?? What about Perth how many are still there???
Scary fiction writting hey?? :p
Hmm Funny that the I6 has been Guaranteed till 2015 then isn’t it???? Why would they be doing that? Why would they have made it Euro 4 Compliant??
Where has VWAG given you written Guarantee that Skoda will be here at that point??? What manufacturer has given that sort of assurance??
Wow I love how imaginative you are with your retorts…. :p
On a seriuos note are you truthfully in Skoda Sales?
If I bought a Skoda,I would remove the badges and put VW one’s on.
Doesn’t surprise me,
Have you also re-badged your bombadore ute, with chevy stickers?
Bombadore,now thats original,hey don’t you know that Skodas are just EuroBogan cars,not even good enough for taxis.Ha Ha LONG LIVE AUSTRALIAN MUSCLE CARS,HATERS PLEASE LEAVE.
My Cars Called T-Rex says:”ot even good enough for taxis”
http://img.netcarshow.com/Skod.....per_01.jpg
http://www.ukemergency.co.uk/police/dscd0818.jpg
Please, calm down on those drugs before posting!
so tommo I’ll ask you your opinion,is its good for a car to be used as a taxi or not??By the way,whichever answer you give you will be contradicting yourself.
If ANY of the website moderators read this, could you please just remove this whole thread, it is simply trolling and detracting from the article.
In reference to the article -
“And even if I’m wrong, it’s a bloody good way to blow 55-grand.”
Truer words have not been said.
“And even if I’m wrong, it’s a bloody good way to blow 55-grand.”
I’ll take a 2003 E39 M5 thanks.
I was seriosuly looking at e39 M5s about 2 months back when I was looking to buy a car.
There are a couple of issues with them though, back when i was looking at them, there was not a SINGLE e39 M5 below 100,000 kms. The engine also has serious issues if not maintained. They tend to explode even if you have been taking care of them. The number of M5s on their second engine is crazy.
And this is just the engines, the brakes are anemic, and suspension components are quite worn, especially the stabiliser bars which tend to break, but generally all the bushes are worn and need replacing too.
At the end of the day, that range of e39s are now almost 10 years old.
I would have loved to own one, but at the end of the day, they’re not covered under warranty, they cost quite a fair bit to maintain, and you need to pray religously to make sure that nothing serious goes wrong, parts are god damned costly.
The real cost of owning an old M5 is significantly greater than 55 grand.
all engines have serious issues if not maintained.
The real cost of owning a rep mobile is also greater than 55 grand. And I’m not speaking from a monetary perspective either.
A fool and his money are soon parted.How true with that comment Realist
The average punter knows that Skoda is part of VW??? You must be kidding… no one knows who Skoda is let alone who they are part of.
Will – For Skoda to be in Australia Longer than Ford they will have to be here until at least 2080 [and thats if Ford-Oz were to close immediately] …. somehow I can’t see that happening
What I want to know is…who will honor the warranty claims of Skodas in 5 years when they have gone from the Australian market?
You’d be a brave buyer plunking down any $$ on a Skoda.
I was looking at getting a 2009 BMW M5, but couldn’t justify paying over a $100,000 for what is essentially, a taxi. So I went and got a FG G6E Turbo for less then half price. For less then half the price I got twice the car. Sure Falcons are used as taxi’s, but for what they cost and what you get, best value for money. It smokes nearly everything at the lights, yet has the refinement and class of the European cars. The new falcon wins the battle of the taxi’s hands down, BMW, ha, overpriced, overrated.
Love my Falcons and BMs but you cant categorise them in the same group,sorry !
FPV is great bang for your buck,but BMW is pure engineering genius!
I would and have owned both any day !
I do like the Z4 Roadster, a lot.
Note however that Stavros Yallouridis has stated just a few weeks ago that diesel is the future. In this context I would still run with the TT TDI DSG.
Totally different cars, different engineering theory and history behind them. If you dont like the car, dont flame the poor thing.
I’d buy an FPV F6 Typhoon over an M5 because thats what I like. Some people would look at the compromise and decide the M5 was worth it.
And about Skoda.
FOR GOD SAKE.
I absolutely love them, I would buy a diesel or an vRS if I had the money, but despite the massive advertising campaign… they failed. In New Zealand they seem well enough, but over here ive seen TWO since they came out -and I notice every car that goes by-. Both white base models.
Different car…
Plus maintaining a Skoda would be more expensive than a Ford. Aussie cars have a much more well established parts network in Australia. And people that call them Fix Or Repair Daily, try the same problem with most BMW’s (for example)… only, you have to wait ten times as long for parts at ten times the price.
And why are we talking about Skoda again?
Theres enough articles on Skoda to talk about it there.
(Course i just put up a big Skoda thing… so I cant really talk, but it was REACTIVE, not PROACTIVE =P)
Tom,
When in Auckland about four weeks ago I lingered around the inner city for a few days. There were far more Skodas than there were Falcons, in the latter were limited to a ‘few’ taxis.
Exactly my point aye mate. There’s quite a number in NZ.
*to the tune of the original batman theme song*
Nanananana Bommadore… bommadore…. Here comes bogan down the block, driving in his bommadore… bommadore… nanananana bommadore
The GS fits a price point yes, but the standard brakes are not the brembo’s as reported, the brembo’s are a $4,900 option, (correctly reported). I would suggest if the review had been conducted with the regular Ford “Performance ” brakes, commentry on the brakes wouldn’t have been nearly as positive.
Anyone who’s owned one of these sort of puppies knows the Brembo’s ARE a necessary ITEM if your going to drive the car in the way its intended. Unfortunatly this inclusion pushes the price north of $60K which must beg the question of why not just buY the regular GT instead and get the full 315KW for not much more money, (the embarassment of driving the poverty pack anyone ?).
Better still the F6 which is a serious kick ar#e machine, 0-100 4.82 seconds, Autocar N.Z. October 2008, 375KW Jaguar XFR 0-100 4.90 seconds Autocar N.Z. November 2009, need I say more…..oh yes, I nearly forgot, the Jag costs three times as much.
P.S. Will – Skoda’s are absolute complete and utter rubbish, I wouldn’t be seen dead in one.
Buck, still pushing the snake oil. So what club events do you venture out on to exercise your machine? Do yourself a favour, buy a Skoda RS TDI DSG, wagon if you like so you can throw the family dog (no, not the typhoon) in the back.
Oh, by the way, typhoons are crap. Remember to check you hoses and joints. I wouldn’t be seen dead in one.
The slanderous comments continue from the Skoda salesman.
Haven’t you herd of ETHICS over at Skoda land?
I would never buy a Skoda based purely on the unethical behaviour of their employees on sites like this.
If they are prepared to blatently lie on a web blog, what would they do to your face to get that desperately needed sale.
ETHICS????? Not from Skoda salespeople.
Couldn’t agree more. Its disgusting that an employee of any brand be such a poor representative. I think Will, if you read your employment contract, you’d find you’re not qualified nor charged to represent skoda in a public forum. you’re damaging the brand.
Man this guy is one of the biggest douches I have ever come across on a forum like this.. No wonder Skoda cant sell a car to save their life with scumbags like this trying to sleaze them off to unsuspecting buyers… utterly disgraceful. Get a life mate and go post your garbage on a SKODA forum, if you can even find one!
Steve and Monty; same old … same old …
Your low bar guys and I doubt short of winning a lottery would be able to purchase any Volkswagen Group RS spec., or being Fordites a Focus RS, that being a far superior machine to the GS.
You should know that many a salesman has lost good sales by prejudging customers incorrectly. YOU don’t seem to be too bright though. Someone even half clever would be more ethical when representing Skoda.
Anyway your unethical behaviour and poor personal judgement is Skodas loss isn’t it.
Steve and Monty are spot on. Dill, opps sorry Will, you are an absolute disgrace as any sort of representative for the Skoda brand.
Grow a second brain cell and STFU. No one is interested in your third rate rubbish and you’ll just keep getting your ar#e kicked over and over again saying Australian performance cars are rubbish on a forum like this.
You would have to be the blogger with the most limited intelligence that has ever “graced” these forums. Do us all a favour and spare us your desperate attempts to whore your junk on here.
The 0-100 of 6.5 must be a typo (5.5 ? – as the GT is 5.4) or conducted in the wet & therefore invalid. This would nmake it AT LEAST 0.5 sec slower than the FG XR8 !
Agree this car should be doing more than 6.5, heck my ex-aurion would give it a run for its money, and my current PoloGTI (not stock) would spank it. 5.5 sounds more reasonable as Steve said..
Look, this Skoda salesman seems to be a real Douche… but a lot of you are being tools as well.
Rise above and just ignore him.
He’s right, Ford’s have quality and reliability problems.
As far as I know, Skoda are pretty damn good for European cars.
But its european.
And they have reliability and maintenance cost issues.
But honestly Buck, absolute rubbish are they? Are you an engineer?
I’d bet a million bucks the Octavia and Superb are overall, a superior design to the basic Falcon design.
Go for what you want. No one’s going to be tossing up between a top model Skoda and a FPV GS or an FPV F6. Different size, performance, price bracket, target market, EVERYTHING. This STUPID argument is entirely inappropriate for this thread -seems pointless anywhere-.
I agree, the 6.5 is fishy…
Kaiser……i totally agree. There is nothing around that realy gives you the best of all worlds other than the FG G6E Turbo. Performance looks luxury very good economy for a powerful engine……oh that engine!! it has to be almost the best engine in the world and coupled to that fantastic auto is a dream to drive. GM really has no answer to this engine and if more people went for a drive of one they would not even consider a V8 …..GM or Ford.(the Coyote V8 will also spank anything from Obama GM when it arrives). G6E Turbo or the F6, F6E are easily the best performance, luxury cars on the market…….unless you want to pay $200000 …….and that doesnt mean its better ……..its alot for a european Taxi!
There we go, its been said.
The new Falcon range hits FAR beyond its price point. They still need to price the base model a little lower… but its just a brilliant all round product no matter which model you choose (well, except for that stupid current V8)
Classism and car enthusiasts. They just don’t go together.
QUOTE “To ad to this, Bogan Missile repeatedly tells us how the company she works for, manufactures toys in China! HOW ANTI-AUSTRALIAN is that?!!
A She is a Very Hypocritical Bleeding Heart if you ask me!!Q”
Tomas,you need to get a life on your days off!!!!!!!!!!!!! Stop talking about people and refer to the cars………..
Oh and I dont work for the Company……I AM, the Company and one of only 4 manufacturers in the World doing the product… If we could do the product in Australia we would ………..Any wonder I spend less and less time on this site cause of idiots like you!
Is there only 4 companies around the world manufacturing plastic turds and fake vomit?!!
Haha, and those glow sticks.
Your telling me to stop talking about the people…. or is that Tomas79?
and what was that entire post about, and many of your posts?
At least I keep a limit on how rude and generalised my posts are…
Can we try and get back to the Falcon GS then, as Bavarian Missile suggested.
Does anyone know exactly WHY FPV did this. It doesn’t seem to be a profit exercise, but its not really harking back to the old days -being a stand alone model- and its not missing out on that much.
I would like to see this as a base model GT, and you can add the bits-and-pieces to make it groovier and quicker.
P.S. They should also expand the F6 Typhoon range, though ‘F6-P’ doesn’t have much ring to it does it…
Offering it with a couple different levels of boost would be cool.
I for one would like to try one with the boost lifted to the heavens. I know it’d destroy the engine after a while =S, but myself and my family (oddly it seems) actually adore Turbo-lag.
lol I saw a GS yesterday, middle aged couple, wife was wearing the Paris Hilton Goggles on and a sunhat…
What, from your school playground on a Saturday?
Further to my previous reference of an obvious error / typo on the 0-100Kph of the quoted 6.5 sec – the November MOTOR reportedely has the following results:
FPV GS: 0-100 = 5.59 secs. 0-400m = 14.2 secs @ 169.26km/h.
Chances are this was conducted with only 1-3,000klms on the clock, and as the 5.4 BOSS motor takes at least 9-10,000 klms to free-up (unlike most other engines) – it would be nowhere near reaching its full potential performance even at 5.59 sec. And yes, I do know from personal experience.
What, has your dad and mum got one?
Have you clowns actually ever owned or driven a well run in current Gen BOSS? All I see is a lot of idiots laughing at this review’s cr@ppy performance figures with no concept of what these cars can do AFTER theyve been well run in. Low 5’s is entirely achievable and thats nothing to laugh at.
LOL I thought Stevefreestyle was trying to flame himself for a moment there =P
If your going to make inflammatory comments, at least put something else in the post to make it worth reading.
They should have mentioned what conditions the 6.5 was subjected to, and how it stacked up to the way other acceleration tests have been conducted. Its like wetting half the track and then having a drag off =P
Someone up the top did say though, if you wanted speed, go for the F6. People buy the Ford V8’s for that glorious sound, history and reputation these days. It doesn’t have to be all that fast with those in mind.
Course… the new Coyote V8 should be an absolute ripper of an engine ;)
Bang for buck this is seriously good.
The people who buy these cars are usually not city slickers who get around in there fwd, 4cyl, euro cars.
They are people who have mates that like leg room, have room for there luggage, hate torque steer, have boats that need to be towed and so on…
Sure it may not be as quick as an XR6T on paper, but on a 45 deg day im sure the NA v8 would be quicker.
Hourse’s for course’s people
If Matt would be willing to lend me 55 grand, I’d more than willing to blow it for him!
What a relief after re-reding your post Adam. On first read I thought you said that you would be “more than willing to blow him for it”.
As Dank said – horses for courses. Not that there is anything right with that!
Dank, I reakon a XR6T would kill this V8 even on a 45 degree day. It may lose a little boost through the intercooler but the hotter air would most definately also result in less air density on the NA intake cycles. Whereas the turbo can still increase the air density allbeit at a lesser efficiency.
True in a way simon but not really correct.
On a hot day the already hot air is compressed and heated further then the air to air intercooler is less efficient….That means that pre ignition is increased and the ecu knocks the ignition advance back to compensate which obviously results in less kw.
actually, both BOSS302 and 315 are mechanically identical 100%, its all in the ECU firmware/drivers or software if you wish;)
i meant the BF 302 kW and the FG 302kW and 315kW = one engine.
and for your information an XR6 Turbo acts very sluggish in hot summer days, especially those with a stock XT 4 speed auto , earlier models prior to BF or BF models with optioned 4 speed auto.
they were in fact slower than an N/A Taxi, due to the heat.
A stock 2003 XR8 BOSS260 and early Barra220 Falcons own XR6 Turbo cars anywhere between 120-250km/h.
i did a roll start in a 2003 XR8 4 speed auto with a 2007 XR6 Turbo 6 speed ZF , from 120km/h to 200km/h and i got away from that BFII by 4 car lengths.
Think about ;) …. think harder , a V8 is a V8, and worst of all, a 2005 BF GT was there too, he got away from me by 1 car length and it was a 6 speed ZF slightly worked with full exhaust and ECU tune making 340 flywheel kW vs my stock 260kW with 198000ks on clock.
recently after supercharging my old beast to 460flywheel kW, it got away 6 car lengths away from a FG F6 which was boosted to 400 rwkw. Think about it.
roll start of course, 100-180.
V8 always rules.
How much torque does each car have Sass, cause Torque is more closley associated with acceleration than KW’s. Kilowatts is just the power generated by the force or Torque.
why does my cousins 5.4L BA XT keep up with my GS 302 when we both floor it at 100km/h.
that old 2002 XT 5.4 just sits next to me till like 170km/h?
why? and i got 82kW more and 69Nm more? , plus his is 4 speed auto i am 6 speed auto?
frustrated!
hey you the real car fanatic …. torque is what matters too……
power is there just to make one thing which is at point A to reach the point B in a given amount of time.
in order to move the “thing” from point A to B you need motion , motion is caused by TORQUE , which is as we all know derived from Force x Distance ….
hence , why the power is not important.
a car making 240kW with 650Nm will always beat a car making 325kW and with 550Nm.
This is a fact.
I remember a guy who had 2004 XR6 Turbo 240kW/450Nm …. purpose tuned with a massive inter cooler and throttle body , it was tuned in a such way that the power was kept the same at 240kW, YET the torque was increased to 650Nm….
power did not increase as torque increased because of timing/tune/cam timing spark timing etc …..