Falcon & FPV - The Heritage

[ford man xf]

I used to like reading the articles on the FPV site years ago, then they changed the layout and removed a lot of the good content, I went back and found they had removed the "The Heritage" section, which had heaps of articles of the Fords in Australia over the years, then I remembered the WayBack machine which archives a lot of pages, luckily they did archive the FPV site, so if anyone enjoys a good read:

http://web.archive.org/web/200601311....asp?link_id=4

My favourite one is the XR GT:

1967 XR Falcon GT

This was the car that started the Australian Falcon GT legend! Developed from the special Police Interceptor Pack Falcon, the GT was the brainchild of dynamic Ford Australia Managing Director, Bill Bourke. The experts told Ford that a GT came only with 2 doors but Ford went ahead anyway with the definitive Aussie 4-door GT based on the XR series, resplendent in its own exclusive colour GT Gold. Its unique charcoal interior featured the sportier ZA Fairlane bucket seats, wood-grained steering wheel, dash and matching gear knob and special Stewart-Warner full instrumentation. Appointments were a cut above the XR Fairmont.
The new GT was also the first full-size Australian family car variation to offer a Total Performance and appearance package with extra safety including the Mustang 289 V8 with Australia's first four barrel carburettor, 4-speed manual gearbox, sports suspension with radial tyres on 5.5 inch rims and steering wheel impact pad, all standard.

Its GT stripes down the sides and across the boot, distinctive GT medallions and grille blackouts caused a sensation when the first GT was released in May 1967 as a limited edition model late in the XR series. In October, the real reason for its creation became apparent as the new GT Falcon took the "King of the Mountain" title at Bathurst thereby establishing the foundations for V8 Supercars into the 21st Century.

Specifications

Engine
289 cubic inch (4.7-litre) V8, OHV, 4-barrel carburettor, 9.8:1 compression, special camshaft and exhaust manifold, 225 bhp (168kW) @4800rpm, 305lb-ft (414Nm) @ 3200rpm (gross).

Transmission
4-speed manual, floor shift, all synchro. Ratios - 1st 2.78:1 2nd 1.93:1 3rd 1.36:1 4th 1.00:1 Reverse 2.78:1

Rear Axle
2.93:1

Suspension
Front: Independent, upper and lower wishbones, coil spring over strut type dampers and anti-roll bar.
Rear: Live axle, semi-elliptic springs, telescopic shock absorbers.


Brakes
Front: 11" (270mm) discs
Rear: 10" (254mm) drums, servo assistance

Wheels
Steel 5.50 x 14" with polished full wheel covers,185SR14 radial tyres.

Performance
0-100 km/h: 9.7 seconds. Standing 400m: 16.5 seconds