Ford Falcon 2008 News

Newly appointed Ford Australia president Bill Osborne brashly predicts that not only will the Falcon survive a threat to its existence, it will overtake the Holden Commodore as the family car leader. It's a big call as, aside from beating the Commodore by a few dozen sales in September 2003, the Falcon has not been a dominant force in the large-car segment for more than a decade.The FG Falcon arrives for duty in May, with the eighth-generation family car coming at a time when the segment has been decimated chiefly by those migrating to SUVs or downsizing in fuel economy and cabin space to medium and small cars.The market for large cars has dipped by as much as 20 per cent on year-to-date figures to the end of February. The Falcon is down 1288 while the Commodore has dropped 1495. Dark clouds continue to give the domestic family car bunch a gloomy future but Osborne remains optimistic the sales erosion will not continue.Ford says it has managed its run-out of the existing BF Falcon to the point where it will have a clean changeover with few run-out models remaining. Osborne doesn't expect the large car segment to rebound to a significant extent, although he says the FG will help rebuild Falcon sales.He says the FG will ultimately overtake the VE Commodore but won't nominate time frame or market-share figure.“I have no fear of comparing this product head-to-head with the Holden or the Toyota (Aurion) offering because I do believe it is world-class,” Osborne says.Ford's challenge is going to be spreading the message far and wide enough that people will come and drive the FG Falcon.“It's up to us to convince consumers we have the best product in that market and up to our dealers to get people in the vehicles and drive them head-to-head,” he says.“If you offer a product for a compelling and appealing price and tell enough people about it, eventually they will come.”However, Osborne says there is no silver bullet that will bring people back to large cars, saying that offering the best engineered sedan was crucial.“Our simple strategy is to offer the best-engineered and built sedan in the segment,” he says.“It's still an important segment for us and we plan to do well in the class.”In a year that heralds another milestone in the Falcon's history, the Falcon-based Territory faces its moment of truth. There is no upgrade for 2008 and the versatile wagon is now treading water in sales volume in a segment where business continues to soar, driven chiefly by Toyota's Kluger and solid Holden Captiva business. 

With fewer selling days this month because of Easter, and some dealers reporting a drop in buyer interest last weekend, March may be the first month to show that the brakes have been applied to car sales when the figures are released at the end of next week.This year began at the same hectic pace it finished 2007, with January and February both record months and growth still running hot at 7.2 per cent.“But Easter takes a bit of steam out of it,” said Tony Robinson of fleet risk management company Sureplan.“March and April will be a litmus test of what impact the interest rate increases have had on private buyers.”The Westpac-Melbourne Institute measure of consumer sentiment for March fell to its lowest in seven years and the time-to-buy-a-car index slumped by 22.5 per cent — its worst drop in more than a decade.Mr Robinson said segments already suffering would be hardest hit. “The large car is under siege and there's a slight drying up on the larger commercial vehicles, especially among fleets.”The Ford Falcon is in run-out mode ahead of the new FG model going on sale next month, and wagon sales are missing from the Holden Commodore figures as it waits for the VE Sportwagon to join the line-up.It is a mixed picture. With buyers shunning large sedans for SUVs, the category is running 23 per cent up year-to-date.Mr Robinson said most importers were reporting a strong start to the year, fleet orders were not drying up and it was too early to be writing off 2008.“We're still going to have a strong year, but we'll see some levelling off or even a marginal drop in sales.”BMW spokesman Toni Andreevski said Easter was typically quiet “but overall for March we'll be up on last year.” 

Newly appointed Ford Australia president Bill Osborne brashly predicts that not only will the Falcon survive a threat to its existence but it will overtake the Holden Commodore as the family car leader.It's a big call as, apart from beating the Commodore by a few dozen sales for the month of September 2003, the Falcon has not been a dominant force in the large car segment for more than a decade.The FG Falcon arrives for duty in May with the eighth-generation family car coming at a time when the segment has been decimated chiefly by those either migrating to SUVs or by downsizing in both fuel economy and cabin space to medium and small cars.The market for large cars has dipped by as much as 20 per cent on year-to-date figures to the end of February. The Falcon is down 1288 while the Commodore has dropped 1495.Dark clouds continue to give the domestic family car bunch a gloomy future but Osborne remains optimistic that the sales erosion will not continue at such a rapid rate.Ford says it has managed its run-out of the existing BF Falcon to the point where it will have a clean changeover with few run-out models remaining.Osborne warns that he does not expect the large car segment to rebound to any significant extent although he says the FG will help rebuild Falcon sales.He says the FG will ultimately overtake Holden's VE Commodore but did not nominate a time frame or specify a market share figure."I won't give you market share predictions at this point but I do believe it (Falcon) will ultimately attain market leadership," Osborne said."It's something that's not going to be accomplished overnight."But I think it is head and shoulders above our principle competitors in the market and I say that without apology."I have no fear of comparing this product head to head with the Holden or the Toyota (Aurion) offering because I do believe it is world-class."Ford's challenge is going to be spreading the message far enough and wide enough so that people will come and drive the FG Falcon."It's up to us to convince consumers we have the best product in that market and up to our dealers to get people in the vehicles and drive them head to head."If you offer a product for a compelling and appealing price and tell enough people about it, eventually they will come."However, Osborne says there is no silver bullet that will bring people back to large cars, saying that offering the best engineered sedan was crucial."Our simple strategy is to offer the best engineered and built sedan in the segment. It's still an important segment for us and we plan to do well in the class."In a year which heralds another milestone in the Falcon's history, the Falcon-based Territory faces its moment of truth.There is no upgrade for 2008 and the versatile wagon is treading water in sales volume in a segment where business continues to soar.It is chiefly driven by Toyota's Kluger and solid Holden Captiva business, while Mazda's stylish and functional CX-9 seven-seater has provided incremental growth."I wish we had a freshened (up) Territory," Osborne said."We will be examining how we go to market with Territory for the rest of the year."It continues to be a very important vehicle for us and I would describe it now as holding its own."Ford has learnt valuable lessons in take-up rates following its failure to detect potential demand for the diesel variant of the new Mondeo medium car. The mix is up to 40 per cent for the diesel, a figure Ford undersold by 100 per cent, which has constrained sales performance."We are working to fix that. We undercalled the diesel mix at introduction and did not have enough diesel stock at the launch," Osborne said."I don't think we will make that mistake again." 

As interest rates bite and with it consumer belt-tightening, some analysts predict a slowdown this year.But the first two months of the year showed strong gains over the same period last year.Light-car sales rose 2236, or 22.5 per cent, and the small-car segment rose 1645, or 8.6 per cent, over February last year, according to the latest VFACTs industry sales figures.The off-roader, or SUV market, grew by 3365 vehicles, or 22.6 per cent.These gains were partially countered by declines in the large-car segment, down 2488 or 19.9 per cent, and medium-car segment, down 383 or 5.1 per cent.Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries chief executive Andrew McKeller says the runout of key models has affected volumes in the large and medium segments.The arrival of the new FG Falcon in May and expanding Holden Commodore line-up with its Sportwagon will help turn around sales figures in coming months, he says.Toyota was the top-selling brand in February with 20,703 sales, or 23 per cent of the market, ahead of Holden with 12,386 sales, 13.8 per cent, and Ford with 9405 sales, 10.5 per cent.For the year so far, Toyota leads Holden by 15,916 sales and remains market leader with a 22.4 per cent market share.Holden has a 13.1 per cent overall market share and Ford is third at 9.9 per cent.Among the light and small-car stars were the Suzuki Swift, Hyundai Getz, Mazda3, Toyota Corolla and Yaris, Honda Civic and Mitsubishi Lancer.Holden was large-car leader, selling 4313 VE Commodores, followed by Ford with 2520 Falcons and Toyota with 1855 Aurions.The announcement of the end of Mitsubishi 380 production affected February sales, the company sold only 471 380 V6s.Melbourne-based industry analyst Tony Robinson, of SurePlan, believes new-car demand will soften late in the year.There is usually a six to nine-month lag between spiking interest rates and its impact on buyer patterns, he says.But he is confident the market will still go close to one million sales this year. What's sellingTop 10 makes1 Toyota 20,7032 Holden 12,2363 Ford 94054 Mazda 70225 Honda 48006 Mitsubishi 54237 Nissan 51008 Subaru 33719 Hyundai 401010 Volkswagen 2883 Top 10 models 1 Holden Commodore 43132 Toyota Corolla 41913 Toyota HiLux 33254 Mazda3 28255 Ford Falcon 25206 Toyota Yaris 22807 Toyota Aurion 18558 Toyota Camry 17239 Mitsubishi Lancer 168210 Honda Civic 1665 

Will Davison grew up dreaming of Formula One and hearing about the successes of his grandfather Lex, who won the Australian Grand Prix in the 1950s.The third-generation racer never made it to F1, but it didn't seem to matter a bit when he broke through for his first V8 Supercar win at Eastern Creek yesterday.Davison led Dick Johnson's team back from the edge with a racy, mature and professional performance as he racked up a win, a second and a sixth to take top spot in his Jim Beam Falcon from Mark Winterbottom and Garth Tander.He made the big breakthrough when he won the second of three heats, but then had to battle immense pressure and a hobbled car to take the DJR team's first win since 2001.“I didn't cry but I was completely stunned inside when I went over the line,” Davison said. “The last race was tough. I was just hanging on. To beat these guys is just fantastic.”He admitted he still owes a bundle from his failed attempt on Formula One — believed to be more than $500,000 — but was not thinking about the past as he looked to a bright future.Winterbottom should have been closer at Eastern Creek, but blundered in qualifying and did not have quite enough to challenge for the overall win.“We didn't do enough on Saturday and we paid for it,” he said. “But I'm still on the podium.”Defending champion Garth Tander also made it to the podium after a mixed weekend, which netted pole position and a win, before a major setback.“We made some changes for the second heat and the car was not that flash,” Tander said.“We also saved our best tyres for the last race and that hurt us."“We had to fight through.”Even so, he rebounded from a disaster at the season opener in Adelaide to move up to eighth in the championship standings.The series is still led by Jamie Whincup, who was fifth in Sydney after a clean sweep at the Clipsal 500 with his Vodafone Falcon.The top 10 in Sydney included Rick Kelly, who stayed out of trouble on the way to fourth, and old sparring partners Craig Lowndes and Mark Skaife.The next event for V8 Supercar teams is the AGP, when they will race three times, before the championship resumes at Hamilton in New Zealand from April 18-20.The top ten Championship points (after two of 14 championship rounds)1. Jamie Whincup (Ford)...........5402. Rick Kelly (Holden)................4323. Lee Holdsworth (Holden).....4264. Mark Winterbottom (Ford).3825. Will Davison (Ford).................3566. Craig Lowndes (Ford)...........3397. Greg Murphy (Holden)..........3308. Garth Tander (Holden).........3269. Mark Skaife (Holden)............32210. Todd Kelly (Holden).............308 

It is not the first time cars have been treated as art.

Though Holden has been threatening to upstage Ford at the Melbourne International Motor Show with a wagon and a surprise reveal, it was the Blue Oval that took opening day start honours

The thoroughbred Holden and Ford tourers will run on E85 ethanol fuel in a move driven to push the environmental message.Team owners Larry Perkins and Ross Stone will head a sub-committee on the move, which offers some technical challenges in terms of fuel lines and bladders and associated components as well as safety revisions.Saab is the only car company, which sells a new car capable of running E85 fuel in this country, and there are only limited amounts of dedicated E85 bowsers in Australia.It is doubtful whether the majority of the massive V8 fan base in Australia will give the move a second thought.Recent surveys suggest that what is on the priority list for fans is that the formula remains purely Holden and Ford and for the rear-wheel-drive V8 powertrains to be continued.V8 Supercars chairman Tony Cochrane admits the move may have little relevance to the paying V8 public but the underlying message is for the sport to be seen to be socially responsible.“It may take 10 or 15 years for E85 pumps to be available everywhere but we've got to start somewhere,” Cochrane said.“We want to try to get on pole position in this argument.“We want to be seen as a community leader.”Full investigations into the move to E85 will be undertaken over the next 10 months when the project will be fully evaluated.“In the hands of Larry (Perkins) and Ross (Stone) I'm sure that everything will be looked at and investigated,” Cochrane said.The plan follows the V8 Supercars Racing Green tree planting program, which was implemented last year to offset the carbon footprint of the sport.“We see it as a highly responsible way forward and the ethanol industry is really starting to crank up in this country,” Cochrane said.An ethanol plant is close to completion at Dalby, west of Toowoomba.Cochrane says governments, particularly Queensland, are pushing the ethanol message.“The government is keen to see ethanol gain a foothold and we want to be seen as a community leader,” he said.“As for the future I can assure you that every (V8 Supercar) board will look at what we can do to be more community responsible whether it be the environment or whatever it may be.”Indy Cars from the Indy Racing League in the United States, which reunited with Champ Car last week after a 13-year split, run on 100 per cent ethanol.The Champ Cars continued to use methanol but it is likely that under the new unified front for 2008, the American open wheelers will run on ethanol. 

Ford drivers turned on each other at the Clipsal 500 yesterday, but Jamie Whincup steered his Falcon clear of the carnage to win the prestigious V8 season-opener in Adelaide.Ford's leading contenders Craig Lowndes, James Courtney and Mark Winterbottom were involved in a dramatic crash that rubbed all three out of the race on lap 56 of 78.Courtney blamed Lowndes, while Lowndes refrained from criticising anyone.Winterbottom was frustrated with driving standards, and believed he was taken out by Whincup in Saturday's opener.Courtney and Lowndes were battling for second place when Lowndes moved past on the outside only for Courtney to make slight contact, forcing the pair to spin into the wall going into the next turn.The Falcon of Winterbottom was also taken out as a consequence.“We could have easily have avoided it had (Lowndes) given me some room but he cut me off and we ended up on the wall,” Courtney said.Lowndes said he expected the incident to be investigated.“I'm sure they'll have a look at it. We think we're in the right but James probably thinks the same.”Whincup eventually beat home the Holdens of Lee Holdsworth and Cameron McConville, who capitalised on Ford's mistakes to finish a respective second and third.Reigning Holden champion Garth Tander struggled again, following up his 23rd on Saturday with 19th before unleashing at Courtney.“The way Courtney was going I wasn't surprised to see him in a huge shunt at the end.“He was out of control all race,” Tander said.“I clipped Steven Johnson and while I was waiting for him to gather it up, Courtney pushed his way through and ripped the front off my car.“Somebody obviously forgot to tell him it was 78 laps, not seven or eight.”McConville was emotional on the podium, saying the result was a huge relief after a couple of difficult years.“How the hell did that happen? How did I get second in the queue,” McConville said.The highly successful event attracted a record crowd of 291,400 over the four days but it was overshadowed by a high speed crash in the second-tier Fujitsu series.Ashley Cooper, 27, remains on life support in Royal Adelaide hospital last night after he slammed into a concrete barrier on the driver's side of the vehicle travelling at about 200km/h on Saturday.The father of two from Ulladulla on the NSW south coast was left with severe head trauma, brain swelling and serious internal injuries.There was also a heavy crash in the V8 Ute series yesterday, with three divers admitted to Royal Adelaide hospital.Twenty-three-year-old Matt Kingsley remained in intensive care in a stable condition, while Colin Corkery, 23, and Craig Dontas, 28, were released after being examined. 

If it gains five stars it will have massive repercussions and give Ford the opportunity to tell a magic marketing story.Click here for more of the latest news on the new Ford Falcon.A maximum five-star rating will see it outdo the Holden Commodore and Toyota Aurion which both carry four stars.No one at Ford Australia, despite persistent questioning, would say whether they expect the FG Falcon to return a five-star result.That would be akin to digging themselves a very large hole.Trevor Worthington, vice-president of engineering at Ford Australia, proudly says the FG Falcon is “the safest car, by a significant margin, we have ever made.”But he was careful in commenting about what to expect from the independent crash test."It's not up for me to decide and I can't say what Australian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) will award it but we have improved this car not just in passive safety, body structure and airbags but safety related to trying to avoid accidents in the first place.”While it does not affect ANCAP's findings, there was some concern shown over the rear-seat headrests.The headrests are part of the seat back and are not adjustable and they offer questionable support against whiplash on people of average height (170cm).There is no centre rear headrest. However, Ford says that based on legal requirements and customer feedback they have exceeded all the safety standards.“'We're good to go with what we've got,” Worthington said.“In terms of customer and legal requirements the backseat exceeds those standards.”Worthington admitted that to replace the rear seat and incorporate higher adjustable headrests would add some complexity but stopped short on talking about how much it would cost.