FPV GT-P Reviews

The big Aussie V8 is an endangered species, with just a few examples left before their eventual extinction.

We turn the spotlight on the car world's newest and brightest stars as we ask the questions to which you want the answers. But there's only one question that really needs answering  would you buy one?What is it?This is the ultimate Ford Performance Vehicle currently available in Australia, soon to be supplanted by the HO version allegedly with 375kW (500hp).How much?Gulp! $81,540 plus on roads.What are the competitors?HSV GTS and Chrysler 300C SRT8, the latter soon to get more cubes and power.What's under the bonnet?A supercharged, 5.0-litre, DOHC, V8 petrol engine cranking out a claimed 335kW/570Nm through a choice (no additional cost) of six-speed manual or six- speed auto to the rear wheels.How does it go?Whooshdah - quick and fast though the hugely overgeared top cogs in the manual drive car were useless for anything other than lazy cruising.Is it economical?Not really, driven carefully you might see 12s, driven with verve you'll see 30s.Is it green?Not really, especially consuming that much juice. There's gonna be plenty of gas coming out the quad exhaust pipes.Is it safe?Gets a five star crash rating in line with garden variety Falcon - a distant relative.Is it comfortable?Surprisingly so, infact, possibly too comfortable at the expense of sporty dynamics. The softish suspension lets the big, weighty GT-P porpoise about on undulating roads when driven moderately quickly. Needs two modes - comfort and sport. Adjustable seats are great and there's oodles of kit inside to make you happy.What's it like to drive?Disappointing because of the soft suspension and weight. It's a big porker and the boundaries are clearly established as soon as you press a tad too hard. Though "bi-modal" the exhaust note isn't stirring like, say, a Benz C63AMG but the whirring supercharger is pretty cool. Brakes and steering are OK, needs wider tyres to cope with the weight and engine output. We'd go for the auto because the top two cogs wouldn't be as useless as they are on the manual.Is it value for money?Not really, none of this type of car is. FPV crams it full of luxury goodies to try and cover the price but it needs to be a sharper scalpel, not a big axe with a dumb ignition key AND push button starter.Would we buy one?We'd go for the FPV F6 turbo, something sporty from Europe or a turbo rice burner.Ford FPV GT-POVERALL RATING

Sermon on the MountCometh October and verily did the pilgrims converge upon the sacred Mount where on was preached the sermon of the bent eights. Congregate did the disciples of the Blue Oval and Red Lion sects at this holy place; there to cast empty drink vessels at the unbelievers and to light pyres of sacrificial chariots. And at day's end, when one tribe's champion had smote mightily the other, the believers and philistines all did trail away in a long mournful procession across the western plain ...SO MIGHT read some scrap of scroll unearthed by a future archaeologist recounting the annual secular rite that is the Bathurst 1000. This weekend's edition might be one of the last to feature only the the clans of Ford and Holden, as the end of the two-make contest is nigh. The need for new blood is widely recognised - not least by incoming V8 Supercars commissioner Mark Skaife, even in the form of marques from distant lands that your flat-earth Aussie V8 believer can scarcely envisage.That though, like the day of reckoning, is a prospect best not dwelt upon. Today's our day for making a pilgrimage to the Mount in two of the best V8s from the Holden and Ford stables. In sales terms, the fight between the Cruze and the Focus shapes as far more meaningful, but the muscle cars chosen for our excursion show this perpetual heavyweight title fight is far from decided.Ford Performance Vehicles is represented by its GT-P, essentially a life support system for the stunning new supercharged all-alloy Boss 5.0-litre V8. The fruit of an estimated $40 million investment, it obliges by returning 335kW at 5750rpm and a gut-punching 570Nm from 2200-5500rpm.That overwhelming (literally as it turns out) off-the-line performance is underwritten by superb Brembo brakes. Visually - despite its sober, deeply dark blue paint, silver accents and grey stripes - it's as subtle as a copping a half-full can of VB  on the scone, with a vast spoiler rising from the rear deck and a mountainous protruding bulge on the bonnet.The visual cues of Holden Special Vehicle's Clubsport R8 Black Edition emphasise that, although this is a close competitor, the respective cars are about as different as two similar things can be. Ours is luminous white with matt-black accents, even the HSV badges, suggesting nothing so much as a Star Wars stormtrooper helmet. (Lord of the Fully Sith, anyone?) On its V8, FPV has downsized and used forced induction while the Clubbie is all about capacity and natural aspiration in the form of that resonant 6.2-litre V8. For all its size, its output is less than the FPV's - 317kW at 6000rpm and 550Nm at a higher 4600rpm.The ClubSport's brakes are equally impressive for their progression through the pedal and the assertive bite. There's also an HSV-bespoke limited-slip differential to keep it in shape. With this and the wider rubber around the 19-inch alloys at the rear, the electronic safety measures are less frequently aroused.Escaping Sydney's ever-expanding sprawl, our 16-cylinder procession abandons the (not so) Great Western Highway, cutting across country via Hampton, Oberon and O'Connell to Bathurst, soaking up the spring rain, sleet, hail and single-digit temperature with which the NSW central west is apt to bushwhack the unwary.The FPV soon reveals its twitchy, manic manner. This is the one you'd reckon on winning any traffic light derby, or would be if acceleration off the line and out of corners didn't need a sensitive foot. Punch it too hard in any conditions, especially wet ones, and a superb engine - one you'd be happy to find in a top-end Jaguar - is too much for the chassis to handle and the stability program to rein in.Initial discomfort isn't helped by the most awkward driving position since the old Alfa Romeos. As ever in Falcons, you're perched as though on an orange crate and anyone taller than 185cm has the wheel in his or her lap.But ... Suck all this up, breathe out and what a weapon you wield. You might undercook your corner entry speed, yet if you pick your moment you'll power out with supreme authority accompanied by the charger's whine. For all the modernity of what's under the bonnet, the character of this package feels more like an older-school muscle car, one that requires your best to get its best.The Clubsport, by contrast, is more, well clubbable, as in a club to which you have to be elected. More linear than the FPV in almost all respects - acceleration, steering and handling - it fills the grand touring remit with luxuriant ease, barely touching 2000rpm at the legal limit in sixth gear.A manual gear shifter (which initially brings to mind a piece of gym equipment in its action) feels almost buttery after exposure to the tight-gate rigidity of the FPV's stick.The HSV's seats are not nearly so supportive as the Ford's big, ribbed sports pews but they are more comfortable over distance, while enhancing the impression that the Clubbie shrinks around the driver as you push through the curves. And it's an interior that at least approximates the spend - hardly lush, it is recognisably that of a luxury car with a standard features list that's as full as its rival's is spartan. And, at 80 big ones, the FPV's innards are too like that of a Falcon of half that price.The current HSV series is the one that most convincingly answer that age-old question, "Is it worth the extra spend over an SS?" with an emphatic "bloody oath". It also speaks to the man of means who wants to celebrate his success, not with the obvious German device, but a bulging bicep of Australiana that he (or, yes, possibly she) can drive comfortably every day.None of this is to write off the GT-P. It's an engine in search of a more deservingly contemporary and capable car, yet it provides a rousing contrast, something perhaps for the driver who retains more fire in his expanding belly. What you prefer not to imagine is some ambitious and ability-shy youth getting hold of a well-worn example a decade from now.And as we end our sermon from freezing, darkening Skyline at Mount Panorama days before the great race, both cars prove that Blue Oval/Red Lion rivalry is as alive on the road as on the track.HSV R8 CLUBSPORT BLACK EDITION4.5/5 starsPrice: $71,990Warranty: 3 years/100,000kmResale: 58 per centSafety: 5 starsEngine: 6.2-litre V8, 317kW/550NmBody: 4-door sedanWeight: 1812kgTransmission: 6-speed manual, rear-wheel driveThirst: 13.5L/100km (98 RON)"A grand tourer par excellence; the everyday muscle car"FPV GT-P4/5 starsPrice: $81,540Warranty: 3 years/100,00kmResale: 76 per centSafety: five starEngine: 5.0-litre supercharged V8, 335kW/575NmBody: 4-door sedanWeight: 1800kg (est)Transmission: 6-speed manual, rear-wheel driveThirst: 13.7L/100km (PULP)"Fast and just a bit infuriating"

Vicious. Not feral, but furious, potent and unrelenting.It might have been called a Coyote when it first arrived, but the supercharged V8 now rumbling beneath the bulging hood of the FPV GT-P is more panther or lion - sorry, Holden and Peugeot.It is, says Ford, the most powerful GT in the history of the company's most famous Australian-made model and it sounds like it.VALUEThe GT-P is second to the GT-E for price by $1000, starting from $81,540 - some say it's a lot of money for a Falcon, others look at the performance and think its a decent features list.It includes dual zone climate control, full iPod integration for the 6CD subwoofer-equipped sound system, Bluetooth phone link, parking sensors, rear camera, power-adjustable driver's seat, carpet floor mats, alloy-covered pedals, power windows, power mirrors and anti-dazzle mirrors - but satellite navigation is on the options list - a bit rich on an $80,000 car.TECHNOLOGYThe already-potent V8 makes the trip from the US but once here gets plenty of extra treatment - it's worth every cent of the $40-million spend on the development program.The Coyote Ford V8 - first seen in the new Mustang - is an all-aluminium double overhead cams 32-valve unit, which meets Euro IV emissions regulations and is 47kg lighter than the outgoing 5.4 litre V8.The Eaton supercharger bumps the outputs up to 335kW and 570Nm - increases of 20kW and 19Nm over the outgoing GT-P powerplant - braying through an active quad-pipe exhaust.The test car had the muscular but clean-shifting six-speed manual, but there's a six-speed automatic on offer as a no-cost option.DESIGNNew stickers boasting the upgraded power output are the main styling change (although I think it would have looked better if they joined up with the bonnet stripes) for the updated FPV - reminiscent of Ford Boss Mustang musclecars of yesteryear.The power bulge - perhaps more required now than ever with the supercharger - and the overt sports bodykit remain unchanged, leaving other road users in no doubt about the GT-P's intentions and potential.The interior is dark and brooding, with sports leather seats with GT-P embroidery and suede-covered bolsters, a sports leather-wrapped steering wheel and gearshift.SAFETYThe Falcon donor is a five-star ANCAP car and the GT-P gets the full compliment of safety bits - airbags (dual front, side and full-length curtain), stability and traction control and anti-lock brakes - as well as rear parking sensors and a rear camera.DRIVINGFollowing our first spin in the supercharged FPV, a drive on local roads was much anticipated and the GT-P has not disappointed.The big muscly sedan is planted on the road as if the low-profile Dunlops are woven into the road, but the ride is pretty good given the 35-profile of the tyres and the bias towards handling.Burble through an underground carpark and the bass from the V8 is quiet; wind it up towards 6000rpm and the V8 bellow and supercharger whine becomes more obvious but never intrusive.The six-speed manual needs to be shifted with purpose - on more than a couple of occasions the first-second shifts were crunched as the action wasn't completed with conviction.Day to day dawdling is a short-shifting affair - first gear is largely redundant unless you're pointed up hill, fourth and fifth can be selected quite early and just above idle is all that's required to maintain forward momentum.A blast along a favoured piece of tarmac soon shows a glimpse of what the GT-P is capable of doing - dispatching with straights at a rapid rate, wiping off speed in short order using the solid Brembo stoppers and turning confidently into corners.Sometimes the GT-P chooses to remind you it's a two-tonne machine, pushing the nose a little wide if you've really overdone it, but it's coming out of a bend where some judicious use of the right foot is required.The feel from behind the wheel suggests the claimed 0-100km/h time under five seconds is achievable.The launch would need to be perfect, as the considerable outputs will turn the rear tyres into scrap without delay, but the GT-P leaps forward with menace.Leaving the stability control on is the better option for public roads, as a break in traction that would be considered "hoon" behaviour is very easy to achieve; however, a track day could easily chew out a set of rear tyres.VERDICTThe dollars laid out of supercharging the engine is money well-spent and FPV has the firepower to take HSV on head-to-head, even if the (more-expensive) GTS has more gizmos and gadgets. The appeal of the supercharged V8 offsets some of the cabin quirks and if you're looking for an extroverted V8 muscle car then this absolutely should be on your shopping list ... near the top.SCORE: 84/100WE LIKE Supercharged V8 outputs and soundtrack, ride/handling balance, Brembo brakes.WE DON'T LIKE Low-set wheel & high-set seat, no satnav, fiddly trip computer switches, small fuel tank, supercharger boost gauge.FPV GT-P sedanPrice: from $81,540.Engine: five-litre 32-valve supercharged all-alloy V8.Transmission: six-speed manual, limited slip diff, rear-wheel drive.Power: 335kW @ 5750rpm.Torque: 570Nm between 2200 & 5500rpm.Performance: 0-100km/h 4.9 seconds.Fuel consumption: 13.6litres/100km, on test XX.X, tank 68litres.Emissions: 324g/km.Suspension: double wishbones (front); Control blade (rear).Brakes: four-wheel ventilated and cross-drilled discs, six-piston front and four-piston rear calipers.Dimensions: length 4970mm, width 1868mm, height 1453mm, wheelbase 2838mm, track fr/rr 1583/1598mmCargo Volume: 535litresWeight: 1855kg.Wheels: 19in alloys, 245/35 Dunlop tyresIn its class:HSV GTS, from $84,900.

But this is the 21st century and things have changed. Today, even the born-again Falcon GT is better as an automatic. Yes, truly.We have driven the latest car from Ford Performance Vehicles and we would choose the six-speed automatic ahead of the traditional manual.Even Ferrari has moved away from old-style manual shifts to the latest generation of Formula One-inspired manu-matics.Volkswagen's Golf GTi, with its breakthrough Double Shaft Gearbox, shows what can be done when you apply technology and automatic programming to a manual gearbox.Ford has made a similar switch with its latest ZF automatic gearbox, which is about as good as it gets in the self-shifting world.The imported gearbox has just been fitted across the BF Falcon range, right up to the king of the hill, the GT-P.It comes with the promise of silky shifts and the chance to still go manual with a touch-change mode. This means a forward push for a downshift and a slight backwards tug to move up a gear.There is a lot more than the self-shifting six-speed to the BF upgrade at FPV, but the gearbox is the star.FPV spent a lot of time, money and effort on the upgrade. Much effort was concentrated on the new-age turbo twins, the F6 Typhoon and the Tornado, but the GT and the GT-P also came in for significant makeovers.Each has a new look with a fresh, more aggressive front, upgraded brakes, 19-inch alloy wheels, twin-outlet exhaust, extra engine electronics and even a wider selection of new-look stripes along the sides.It's easy to see the changes and the GT and GT-P really stand out.The timing is good because Holden is winding down its Monaro program. There will still be HSV coupes next year, but the muscle-car pacesetter is going.FPV managing director David Flint says: "The BF FPV range represents a significant step forward in performance, safety, efficiency and, most importantly, the fun of driving."These cars are fabulous and continue to deliver on our brand promise of providing great-value, high-performance vehicles."Those are big promises, but the GT has been a favourite of ours since it returned to the Ford catalogue, and we were keen to get into the '05 update car.WE WERE so impressed when we first drove the GT that we gave it a score of 19/20.And there is still a lot to like in the latest FPV GT-P.The engine is eager and has more than enough go for any job, the ride is sublime, and the new look makes a suitable impact.It is a great car to hustle down through a favourite set of curves, and the brakes — now with six-piston Brembo calipers from Italy inside the front alloys — are great.The gearbox is just plain fantastic. It means you don't have to suffer a series of leg-press exercises on the clutch in traffic or fight with a heavy manual shift.Yet it still has six well-spread ratios and the chance to take full manual control. Sweet.It should be the first choice with every Falcon buyer, from the XT right through to the GT-P. But . . .The GT-P was a disappointment in several areas and the car has slipped back on our ratings scale, despite the latest improvements.How can that be, particularly when it has so much good stuff?First, the GT-P test car had totally unacceptable tyre noise. At first we thought the boot was open, because there was so much drumming, but it seems to be a reaction between the grippy Dunlop rubber and coarse-chip country roads.John Bowe, who has done a lot of development driving for FPV, believes that earlier harsh treatment — which would have "feathered" the edges of the tread blocks in the tyres — could have caused the problem.We also found the driver's seat was set far too high, even on the lowest setting.FP-V says this is a problem, and believes it could be down to the six electric motors used for seat adjustment in the GT-P, which has a noticeably higher seat position than the GT.We also missed the raunchy rocking at idle, which has been tuned out of the quad-cam V8 to meet new emission regulations, and found the fuel consumption was far too easy to push beyond 17 litres/100km with keen driving.Still, the GT-P is a very good car and the six-speed auto makes it more enjoyable for more of the time.But we came to the hot Falcon at the same time that one of the last Monaro coupes was running through the test garage — and the Ford did not match the Holden for feedback and seat-of-the-pants driving enjoyment.It is a sublimely enjoyable muscle car, and never better as an automatic, but it just didn't ring our bells.

Although, don't be surprised if it makes a song and dance about having a couple of extra ratios in hand without needing to operate a clutch pedal.The BF FPV range is now blessed with the six-speed automatic transmission and has mated it nicely to the two powerplants in its range, the 5.4-litre V8 and turbo six.We're getting to know the range-topping sedan, the V8 six-speed auto GT-P, with plenty of grunt and a full load of equipment.The heart of the matter is a 5.4-litre quad-cam 32-valve V8 that produces one of the most delicious V8 burbles delivered by a road-going vehicle.The silken, creamy V8 rumble turns into a sensational wail without hesitation, with the new top end of the Ford bent-eight helping it to breathe deeply and deliver.When driven in isolation – without the awesome 550Nm of the Ford Typhoon to put it to shame – the V8's 520Nm of torque gives the GT-P an easy gait and pulls high gears up long inclines without fuss. But the peak of 4500rpm doesn't help it deliver the low-down shove of the 550Nm Typhoon or the HSV LS2's 530Nm.What the GT-P does do is put the outputs to good use with the new automatic transmission. While the manual and auto gearboxes in both the old Ford and current Holden V8 products are far from slick to use, this auto delivers the best of both worlds – so much so that this committed manual gearbox fan would be opting for the $1250 six-speeder behind either FPV powerplant.In "D", it's a smooth, quick-changing transmission that makes the best use of the outputs, with a flick to the left upping the ante and bringing PERF (performance) up on the gear-indicator LCD display.That doesn't degrade the shift quality but it does make the shift pattern markedly more aggressive, changing down under braking and holding gears longer as required.Manual shifts are performed in the direction of the inertia of the vehicle – down-changes are performed by pushing the lever forward (the weight-shift direction under brakes) with the upshifts complete by pulling back (under acceleration), the right direction.Changing gears in the manual mode won't be overridden by the gearbox unless the throttle is pushed through the detente at the end of its travel – Ford has deemed this an emergency override feature.The ability to hold gearshifts and not be overridden prevents unsettling upshifts mid-corner, something BMW, Mercedes-Benz and a few others should realise.For a car that weighs 1855kg, the GT-P is light on its feet. It still feels a little heavy in some of the tighter corners, but bowling along a windy, flowing country road has the GT-P in its element.It stops sharply again and again, thanks to the big Brembo calipers and ventilated discs, turning in crisply without too much body roll and faithfully following the instructed line.Grip is considerable and the rear end (with the traction control switched off) is difficult (but not impossible) to shake loose.It can cruise comfortably as well, with a decent ride quality, but it's far more enjoyable with the V8's hackles up.The cabin trim may not be to all tastes but it is a comfortable interior for occupants, with drivers below 180cm tall able to use the electrically adjustable seats, the reach'n'rake adjustable steering and the adjustable pedals to get comfortable. At 191cm, I adopted a stooped driving posture, which was required to get decent forward vision – the seats are mounted too high, due to the extra electric seat motors. If you're tall, spend less and option up a GT.The extroverts can spend $595 for orange stripes, combining with the "Menace" purple paintwork to great effect. The high-quality premium sound system – complete with subwoofer – also makes sure the GT-P is noticed, being louder than the paintwork and stripes The only niggles were the optional satellite navigation system that sporadically wouldn't read the mapping DVD and the lack of a footrest for the left foot.Committed V8 fans will happily forgo the Typhoon's torque for the sake of the power bulge in the bonnet and the burble beneath it – and it's easy to see why – but I'd be opting for two fewer cylinders and a turbo.