Figures also show that of these, 3340 were V8 powered. And, em, whoops, we seem to have run out of V8’s.įigures show that Ford registered 66,849 Falcon/Fairmonts in 1982. Okay, we’re shutting down the line for other things, but we will have plenty of the old donks left to tide us through.Īnd then, magically, and unexpectedly, the economy got better, the oil crisis passed, and Australians started liking their big old Falcons again, and maybe, just maybe, Ford could be Number One in sales.
XCE ESP UPGRADE
Giving the XD Falcon - which Ford themselves had given a Euro style as opposed to the US style of the XA-XC’s - an aerodynamic makeover a sophisticated, engineering upgrade to its suspension and dynamics and, most importantly, a modernised and fuel injected version of its solid straight six, seemed the logical step.įord had the first two improvements in place for the introduction of the XE Falcon in March, 1982, but the third, the efficient and more powerful six, was still some months away. The competition had downsized with the European derived Commodore, a nimble, classy looking car alongside the broad shouldered, blocky Falcon and its siblings. Large cars, like the Falcon was, with large engines, like the Cleveland V8’s were, seemed like anti social dinosaurs. As the 1980’s arrived, the world was suffering its second oil crisis, and many countries were still in recession. However, what can be said was that in November, 1982, after an eleven year production run, and some 250,000 examples, we saw the last fitting of an Australian cast and assembled Cleveland style V8 in a Falcon.įord’s rationale in cancelling the V8 was impeccable.
Plus, there is even some doubt that the featured ‘last Falcon V8’, the above mentioned ESP, was actually the “last” one at all.
XCE ESP MANUAL
It would seem a strange thing to ‘advertise’, that your car company was abandoning producing V8 powered cars after fifty years and three months, and yet there were the management and workers pictured ‘celebrating’ the last of the V8’s as a Silver over Charcoal 4.9 litre, manual transmission equipped Fairmont Ghia ESP rolled off the line.Įxcept, of course, as we know now it wasn’t the last Falcon V8, as the V8 re-appeared in the EB Falcon less than ten years later. At least, that is what the Ford publicity machine at the time said. And the XE ESP is the poster-child for that phenomenon.25 th November, 1982 marked the date of the last production V8 powered Falcon. The third effect of all this boardroom buffoonery was to create a couple of Fords that have attained collectible status cars which, had the V8 continued on its merry way, may have been forgotten. Of course, it wasn’t the fault of fuel-injection technology, because when it comes to 4.1 litres against 5.8, Blind Freddy could see it was like taking a knife to a gun-fight.
XCE ESP CRACKED
But the efi six-pot just never cut it, leading to a suspicion that injection wasn’t all that it had been cracked up to be. See, the replacement (Ford’s word, not ours) for the V8 was an injected version of the 4.1-litre pushrod six. Secondly, the axing of the Ford V8 put the cause of fuel-injection back several years. Yep, where young blokes interested in cars gather, there will be a plague of Commodores and often not a single Henry to be seen. And the proof of that is in every TAFE car-park in the country. First, it handed Holden (and the Commodore) the yoof market on a double-overhead-chrome platter. This short-sightedness had several outcomes. Weird thing is, it was only Ford itself that couldn’t see the folly of dumping the very thing that set it apart from imported cars and gave it some street cred among the people who were most likely to grow up and buy a Ford of their own sometime down the track. Yep, Ford’s decision to ditch the V8 was a real thigh-slapper. This feature was originally published in MOTOR’s August 2012 issue "We don’t need no stinkin’ V8." (Ford Oz product planning department, 1982.) "Can I buy you a drink?" (Tiger woods, 2009.) "It’s a nice day, let’s take the convertible." (JFK, 1963.)