Ford Australia's president Bill Osborne suggests export could be on the agenda in the near future.
Ford is looking at potential export markets for its new Falcon.
President Bill Osborne would not confirm which markets, but says “we will be studying exports as some point.”
“I can't guarantee you what will happen but I can tell you it's under study.
“I think it's a vehicle that has application around the world in a number of markets."
“Yes, quite frankly I am disappointed we don't have a left-hand-drive market.”
Osborne, who has just taken the reins from previous boss Tom Gorman, says he was surprised by the car when he drove it."
“I did not realise it would be so good,” he says.
“We tend to compare ourselves with domestic competition and when I drove the vehicle I told our engineering team we really need to compare it with some of the best sedans in the world, not just our domestic competition."
“It's really that good.”
The FG has not been engineered for left-hand-drive markets, but Ford has sold the Falcon in New Zealand and other right-hand-drive markets.
Of the local manufacturers, Ford is the only company that does not have a left-hand-drive program in place.
On the question of turbodiesel engines, Osborne says the company is “studying diesel for the future.”
The existing 4.0-litre in-line six-cylinder petrol engine will be replaced by a Ford US-sourced V6 engine in 2010.
A diesel is expected to arrive about the same time.
Click here for more on our extensive coverage of the Falcon Launch.
