Best & Worst Falcons

[roddy1960]

Some of the comments about the AU here are bewildering for me...I have owned one for 15 years 15/17ths of it's life , over 88% .Complete joy to do so .

At the time , and even since in some regards they were the best engineered Falcon of all time I suggest..Compared to many models the failure rates are quite low , they are generally cheap to maintain and the term ' bulletproof' is way frequently used and especially by those who own them .

For the insistent doubters , visit a very comprehensive thread called " Your thoughts of the AU over time " and you'll read an overwhelmingly positive outcome for the AU models. Most are thoughts of those owning them .

Most of the dislike is purely based on perceived and subjective physical looks opinions , not on the dynamics and maybe a few of us should refrain from commenting too much other than on the personal opinion .

The oldest are 20 years old and the youngest 16 years old now and I doubt that any previous or following Falcon is as common still on our roads . Kind of says it all really ..

I won't and cant say the AU Falcon is the best but I can absolutely assure everybody it's certainly NOT the worst , not by a long shot .

[au350hp]

Well said roddy1960. You've pretty much covered it all. The AU is a great car & one of the last Ford's built from mostly local product. As a dyed in the wool Ford fan, I was impressed that Tickford insisted on local manufacturers for the XR range instead of going o/s. Worth remembering each model's design is at least 5 years old by the time production starts, and marketing spends up big establishing public's perception on new shapes etc. When I read the 'Ford Australia, the cars & the people that built them' book, I had a new found respect for the amount of work that goes in to a new model. The politics & relationships between Ford Oz & Ford USA were often tested & many times Ford Australia were forced to compromise just to stay on course and that's where the brilliant engineers did a great job meeting standards on a shoestring budget. That Ford Oz has built some memorable Falcon's over the years that are still great reliable cars is a tribute to our country, keeping in mind our small population and that every sedan built is expected to cope with some of the most challenging roads & climates in the world & when serviced correctly, most do.

[GT1533]

That’s a very good point Roostercam. To get the AU Falcon approved by Ford US, Ford Australia had to do many things it wouldn’t otherwise have done. Importing the Taurus as a test case and selling the plastics plant were a couple of obvious examples, but the toughest objective was the cost and investment constraints imposed on the program. The Hyundai Sonata was the cost benchmark. That’s probably why there were some less than ideal outcomes I.e. low cost Forte grilles. Given these constraints, I think the engineers did an outstanding job.

[JIm260]

Best


XY GT For obvious reasons
AU II III Most underated falcon ever

BA XR8, FPV Love the front end, just looks mean!!!



Worst


EA Also for obvious reasons
XF I have never had so much go wrong with a motor vehicle!!!!!
XK An american car that didnt work on Australian roads.


Cheers
Jim

[FTE217]

I'm sorry to stir the pot in advance but hello, were all Falcon enthusiasts/devotees not kids right ? well thats another topic I guess .
The AU ignorance is just as towards FGX.
Sheep follow sheep ooooops did I say that lol.....
The fact of the matter is both these models may not suit the majority pallet (not everything does) therefore most haven't owned one most likely ? (yes there are exceptions I suppose) and judge purely based on the cover yet miss out what a decent Falcon they actually were especially from S2 on, imo they were just as good as previous models that hit the spot and grew the legend but even better due to their longevity that proves it, you hardly see a BA/BF on the road already in the areas I frequent for eg....
Oh, I wrote to GP passing on my displeasure of the new model, ffs give us a break, you want a medal, you legend, seriously I suppose you tell mates GP knew you lol......
So BSeries revived the window shoppers hallelujah even though the sales were not much to right about compared to Commodore but all could see how cheap it was inside for starters (don't bring up that rubbish blade suspension, my Sprint feels like it would fall apart with minor wheel spin), the XR's were vanilla, absolute vanilla compared to a Tickford XR for starters let alone what a XT or whatever they called it after to revive it.
JIm260, sorry mate not pointed at you, your right, that buldge made that front end no two ways about it, thank goodness for the boss needing the room.

[roKWiz]

Best or worst, it makes no difference as everyone has their opinions.

Some observations of what I see parked in the main street of many country towns I frequent.
Just yesterday in Euroa, the most spotted Fords I saw were AU's, 7 actually, all were well looked after sedans. There is always quite a few
XE-H series Falcon utes and B series trays around here as well with the occasional van.
Most late model Falcons are spotted on weekends sporting (footy custom) plates and Melbourne dealership stickers.

[roKWiz]

Originally Posted by Bevsta007

is that a KW Badge is sporting?

I think you know where my interests lie.

[98TLS]

Originally Posted by roKWiz

Best or worst, it makes no difference as everyone has their opinions.

Some observations of what I see parked in the main street of many country towns I frequent.
Just yesterday in Euroa, the most spotted Fords I saw were AU's, 7 actually, all were well looked after sedans. There is always quite a few
XE-H series Falcon utes and B series trays around here as well with the occasional van.
Most late model Falcons are spotted on weekends sporting (footy custom) plates and Melbourne dealership stickers.

Live in a country town over the ditch theres plenty of AUs still doing daily service here "droopy corners etc" and all,thing is there still doing it,cant fathom why anyone would put them at the top of the worst list,bet the air cons still working in most of them and of the blokes i know driving one not one of them has had to replace the hoodlining nor did they have to do timing chain tensioners at 90k The AU etc wasnt to everyones liking to look at but the thread wasnt titled "best&worst looking" Falcons.

[98TLS]

One thing i can say for sure is in my time here ive heard much positive/negative about the AU if there was a thread titled "What Falcon promotes the most key tapping" the AU wins hands down.

[cro142]

Originally Posted by roddy1960

Some of the comments about the AU here are bewildering for me...I have owned one for 15 years 15/17ths of it's life , over 88% .Complete joy to do so .

At the time , and even since in some regards they were the best engineered Falcon of all time I suggest..Compared to many models the failure rates are quite low , they are generally cheap to maintain and the term ' bulletproof' is way frequently used and especially by those who own them .

For the insistent doubters , visit a very comprehensive thread called " Your thoughts of the AU over time " and you'll read an overwhelmingly positive outcome for the AU models. Most are thoughts of those owning them .

Most of the dislike is purely based on perceived and subjective physical looks opinions , not on the dynamics and maybe a few of us should refrain from commenting too much other than on the personal opinion".


The oldest are 20 years old and the youngest 16 years old now and I doubt that any previous or following Falcon is as common still on our roads . Kind of says it all really ..

I won't and cant say the AU Falcon is the best but I can absolutely assure everybody it's certainly NOT the worst , not by a long shot .

Yes I agree that the AU has certainly gained that "bullet proof" reputation over the years. I don't think that even in early days of AU there was any criticism of the engineering.

But it was the styling that caused all the trouble.

[arronm]

Originally Posted by roddy1960

Some of the comments about the AU here are bewildering for me...I have owned one for 15 years 15/17ths of it's life , over 88% .Complete joy to do so .

At the time , and even since in some regards they were the best engineered Falcon of all time I suggest..Compared to many models the failure rates are quite low , they are generally cheap to maintain and the term ' bulletproof' is way frequently used and especially by those who own them .

For the insistent doubters , visit a very comprehensive thread called " Your thoughts of the AU over time " and you'll read an overwhelmingly positive outcome for the AU models. Most are thoughts of those owning them .

Most of the dislike is purely based on perceived and subjective physical looks opinions , not on the dynamics and maybe a few of us should refrain from commenting too much other than on the personal opinion .

The oldest are 20 years old and the youngest 16 years old now and I doubt that any previous or following Falcon is as common still on our roads . Kind of says it all really ..

I won't and cant say the AU Falcon is the best but I can absolutely assure everybody it's certainly NOT the worst , not by a long shot .

Hey, you cant see the UGLY from the drivers seat. Bought my daughter one. Great car , seats and dash like my EF but drives a bit like BA.

I could drive one as a daily hack.

[davenl5l]

Facebook group AU FAlcons doing incredible thigs......hilarious

[Falcon SXR8]

Originally Posted by davenl5l

Facebook group AU FAlcons doing incredible thigs......hilarious

Was gunna mention that, amazing how many members it has

[au350hp]

Originally Posted by Falcon SXR8

Was gunna mention that, amazing how many members it has

The guy at the Waste Depot with all the palm fronds in his wagon reminded me of those NZ hwy patrol shows where these two Maori guys had been pulled over whilst driving on the freeway. They had removed the windscreen from the s/wagon they were driving so the roll of carpet they were carrying didn't drag on the road as it was as long as the car...

[roddy1960]

Originally Posted by davenl5l

Facebook group AU FAlcons doing incredible thigs......hilarious

Just spent an incredibly enjoyable 20 minutes scrolling through so many great stories and comments of the AU ..Very cool ..

[DJM83]

Depends on what people look for in a car i guess.
Ive only owned 2 AU Falcons and an FG and if i was to compare the 2 both excel and are rubbish in different areas.
AU excels in build quality and the way it drove.
FG excels purely for whats under the bonnet, build quality is rubbish IMO but thats only based on my current car.

For me the AU was and still in the best falcon overall. Was good mates with an old Ford Service manager and echoed whats said here by far the most reliable falcon.

[Sar4890]

The AU was certainly a polarising car either you love them or detest them based on their looks.I guess the EA falls in the same boat for reliability.

[roddy1960]

Originally Posted by Sar4890

The AU was certainly a polarising car either you love them or detest them based on their looks.I guess the EA falls in the same boat for reliability.

Polarising certainly by those who haven't owned them BECAUSE it's basically all about how the car looks to them . Couldn't agree more .

For those who have owned them though it goes way beyond looks and the key indices of features decide way more than superficial opinion .

I have read numerous times in various places how keen Holden fans bought or had need to use AU's for differing reasons and found out how good a car it was/is . One bloke I recall on a car website said that he had no interest in Fords , proudly owned a couple of nice Commodores as well , came across an AU for a work hack at a cheap price and fell in love with how well it drove and how well built it was .

When the very last AU Falcon is taken off the road in the distant future the model 1998-2002 Falcon over 3 series will be remembered overwhelmingly fondly .

Best or worst is hard to quantify over nearly six decades but the ol' AU will be right up there as one of the best for many . The T Series and XR's also will be some of the more desirable to get hold of as time goes by too .

[vixf6]

To be the best it also has to look the best and it’s the fg 2 in GTF. Followed by GT 335 then F6. Only own a series one ‘11 but Jesus it still belts you you up 6 years after they built it. It’s like Daniel Craig James Bond smooth talking then rips your head off.

[Swordie]

The best in terms of memorable driving experience was EB XR6. I remember driving one when new. It went hard and handled very well. It out gunned the V8 in it's time.

The best in terms of what did for Ford was BA. It took them to number one and they made a profit. It spawned so many variants such as wagon, ute, sedan, V8, 6, turbo 6, FPV and LWB. The BA was the golden years of Ford. Ford sixes were word class. The turbo six is very reliable, smooth and powerful.

[EBSXR6]

Originally Posted by Swordie

The best in terms of memorable driving experience was EB XR6. I remember driving one when new. It went hard and handled very well. It out gunned the V8 in it's time.

My EB XR6 was the best Ford I have ever owned brought it new Feb 93.

[Swordie]

Originally Posted by EBSXR6

My EB XR6 was the best Ford I have ever owned brought it new Feb 93.

It was a big game changer in it's time.

[Geeseman]

Originally Posted by arronm

Best was XA coupe
Worst, FGX, was a 2016 car made in 2008.

True but the FGX is still the best one ford made.

Just not as good as the commodore. Still even at 2016 the commodore was dated somewhat as it was a 2013 build.

[Junkyard-Dog]

My BA had the most incredible air-conditioning out of any car I've ever driven. On that basis alone, I'm putting the BA up near the top.

[BENT_8]

Originally Posted by Swordie

It was a big game changer in it's time.

I believe it was in 96 at the final Adelaide GP race and someone asked DJ which one of all the Falcons he'd driven would he like to travel back to QLD in and he said the EB was at that time the best car he had ever driven.

[cro142]

Speaking of game-changers ....

In February 2002 I did a tour of the Ford factory at Broadmeadows with my car club. Part of the day was a Q&A session in the auditorium with some of the engineers. While most of the talk was about V8's, I put up my hand and meekly asked if there was going to be anything of interest to the "6 cylinder brigade" in the near future.

Gordon XXX answered me and said "I think you will be pleasantly surprised with what's happening with the six". Big grin on his face, but no more information.

What an understatement - in October 2002 we got the XR6 turbo. What a revolution! Gordon XXX turned out to be the development engineer for the turbo engine, so he must have hardly been able to control himself on that earlier day.

I finished up owning 5 XR6T's across BA and BF models.
Absolutely loved them.

[Ford17]

Originally Posted by BENT_8

I believe it was in 96 at the final Adelaide GP race and someone asked DJ which one of all the Falcons he'd driven would he like to travel back to QLD in and he said the EB was at that time the best car he had ever driven.

On the way back home from Bathurst in the 90's, I was overtaken at lightening speed by a red DJR EB XR6 ute (technically an XG based on the XF bodyshell, but still EB-ised).

Assumed it was the crew driving, but you never know.

[radler]

For me, And in the 4.0 litre category for falcons i have owned :

Best :
Fgx xr6 manual (n/a)

Wish I had never traded my ed classic with lsd

Worst for me,
Bf series 2 turbo auto

[roddy1960]

G'day guys . Yesterday we had our Annual Cranks and Tinkerers StMarys Car and Bike Show with over 300 cars from Lamborghini's to little half restored Morris Majors in attendance . Plenty of great Fords , a few Mustangs included , several HSV's , lots and lots of bikes .

Fellow AFF member Ghiaman and a good friend of his attended . Absolute pleasure to meet with them and he kindly took me for a quick ride in his 2015 FGX XR8 before he headed back to Hobart.

What a beaut car . It's the manual and genuinely shocked me with the acceleration . Believe it or not this is the first time I've had a ride in any FGX although I've obviously seen a few around.

Ghiaman's FGX is a very nice Falcon , driven and enjoyed with no issues and it may well be remembered as one of Ford's best Falcon and that brief ride ,after previously enjoying a few late model XR6T's , one heavily modded one with 340 rwkw dyno'd one , confirmed that the 5.0 SC V8 is a great engine to sit in a Falcon . Even better with the manual .. lovely experience .

Also met with a true Ford fanatic with the following , Three BA GT's , a victory Gold FGX XR8 , a AU Tickford TE50 , 2016 Ranger Wildttrack and one other 7 litre Ford truck I forget the name of . Also a few cars to restore .

The one he brought yesterday was the really rare 2003 Congo Green BA GT . He took it to Bathurst too for the 56 years of Falcon celebration a little while back as well .. Beautiful car .

Great day again but the quick trip in the FGX XR8 was testimony for me that the last Falcon is a bloody nice car , one of the best I reckon .

Thanks Ghiaman ..Keep enjoying your beaut blue XR8. I would although while we talked we scanned through the Carsales prices and they were generally $39- 50K still with a few with selling prices well in excess of 50 K , a bit out of my league I'm afraid .

[Sprintey]

Best: XW GS, EBII S-XR6, AU XR and Ghia. Honourary mention: SYII Territory. (I like the everyman drivers' cars)

Worst: it's hard to say specific models, maybe more specific ailments: XK balljoints, XA rust, EA-L head gaskets, BA control blade, BA-on milkshaking, SX balljoints. BA and SX rust.


Slight off topic: best and worst Commodores?

I rate VY as best (been driving a mint <100,000km one lately) - last of reliable, indestructible iron block pushrod ecotec V6. Before Holden shot themselves in the foot with alloytec and later version of their 6. Ecotec not as good as a Ford drivetrain of similar vintage, but torquey (compare to a modern medium SUV) and smooth. Good economy too. VY also has a really nice ride around town. Every time taken into GM-H service, they would say "keep it, it's the best model," and these days the family gets offers for the car when taken into service or out and about.

I know there are some Holden guys on these forums, would love to hear their view. Nissan 6 doesn't count