FPV GT News

Joni Mitchell was right; you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone.It's been a big year for Australian-made cars selling for big dollars - a pair of HSV GTSR W1 Maloos have sold for a combined $2.2 million - but that's only the tip of the iceberg.

Ford says factories will make it to October 2016 end date as it unveils last ever Falcon GT.

The 59-year-old, one of the last senior executives from the tumultuous Jacques Nasser era, started as Ford's vice president of design in 1997 after working with BMW, Audi and Volkswagen.

Married with a daughter (who is also a Ford fan), Mr Watson currently has an FPV GT 335 sedan, the latest in a long line of Ford products."We have had around 20 Fords - various models, not just Falcons - after some Holdens. We have had many Fords, one has followed the other ever since and we have no plans to change camps," he says.Mr Watson looks at the red versus blue rivalry as something that is now generational. "When it started it was Moffat versus Brock and has grown since then to have people either red or blue, now we're talking second and third generation fans as children follow their parents," he says.The family has had an FPV GT since April - the supercharged 335kW version - and now wouldn't have anything else. "I absolutely love it, the supercharged V8 has plenty of power - we use it for normal road work, not track days, we don't push it that hard, but it has plenty of poke for overtaking," he says."We're also restoring an old XB Falcon - a full bare-metal restoration - with 393 stroker V8, that will sit proudly next to the new GT," he says.A big shed and a tolerant wife are two key ingredients to Daryl Leaker's impressive stable of Holden product. The 1998 HSV Senator Signature 220i shares garage space with a number of Holden, HSV and HDT machines."I've got a very big shed for them all, I've always liked Holdens because my father was a Holden salesman so it is in the blood I guess," he says.Mr Leaker hasn't always just owned Holdens - a Mitsubishi Pajero replaced a Ford Territory recently, but there balance of power has always been to the General, harking back to his formative years with a Holden salesman for a father."It was great when Dad was selling Holdens, I got to drive GTR XU-1s and 327 Monaros when they were brand new," he says. "When I turned 21 I bought myself an HQ GTS coupe and got some discount through my father, I wish I still had that car as well."The HSV shares shed space with a VN SS Group A and an HSV Statesman, as well as a HDT VK Brock Commodore SS in silver and an HJ Monaro four-door."I'll always be a Holden fan - I think I'd die of shock if the missus came home in an FPV GT," he says.

More than 20 years after he hung up his helmet - although he never 'officially' retired - he is now the elder statesman on the test team at Ford Performance Vehicles.  Moffat's advice and tweaks are part of the development program for every new FPV model these days, which is why he is caught by a Carsguide reader during a drive yesterday in a thumping FPV GT.There is more to new-model development than straight-out track time, which is why the Moffat run is happening on public roads close to the FPV base at Broadmeadows and why the bonnet is up for investigation work in one of the pictures.Moffat has only come back into the official Ford family this year despite his many successes for the blue oval brand at Bathurst and in the Australian touring car championship.  His final season as a driver, in 1989, was spent driving a turbocharged Ford Sierra and he won his very last start - sharing the car with Klaus Niedzwiedz for victory in the Fuji 500 in Japan.Although the GT is a regular production car, FPV is now into final development of the upcoming Coyote-powered V8 models which pick up the latest engine developments from the USA.

Ford Performance Vehicles is introducing an ‘entry’ level V8, to be known as the GS. However, buyers should be quick as 50 have already been snapped up ahead of this week's showroom launch. FPV will build just 250 sedans and 75 utes, priced at $54,950 for the four-door and $49,950 for the ute.Images of the GS were leaked on a dealer website several weeks ago, forcing FPV into damage control. But FPV boss, Rod Barrett, was all smiles as he rolled out his new baby.He says the GS is designed to bridge the price gap between the XR8 and the FPV GT. "There is a huge price difference between the two, in excess of $20,000," he says.However to differentiate it from the XR8, the GS gets more equipment so it can wear the FPV badge. "We feel that in this economic climate we wanted to offer people a chance to get into the FPV family without going all the way to a GT," Barrett says. "We believe this car offers the pricepoint, content and power that does that."The GS runs a recalibrated 5.4-litre V8 GT engine from the FG that produces 302kW at 6000 revs and 551Nm at 4750 revs. The detuned engine shares its twin throttle bodies and intake system from the GT, headers, dual exhausts and a recalibrated engine control unit with the GT.Buyers have a choice of a standard six-speed manual transmission or six-speed sequential automatic. Barrett says the 302 is a perfect entry point into FPV, which steps up to the turbocharged F6 at 310kW and the full GT-spec V8 at 316kW.The special edition GS gets GT-spec suspension, brakes and dual exhausts, unique GS striping, 19-inch graphite alloys on the sedan, charcoal cloth interior, GT instrumentation, gearknob, starter button and badging, a premium stereo with iPod and Bluetooth and dual zone climate control.Externally there are GS and 302 graphics on the car. Each car will also get exclusive build plates. Barrett says the GS was well received by prospective buyers. "This is the best focus group that we've ever done for a car," he says.However, despite its popularlity Barrett says it is unlikely the GS will become a permanent part of the FPV lineup. However, he says he will consider another special GS series when the new FPV Falcons are launched on July 1 next year. It will all depend on discussions being held now between Ford and FPV on a V8 engine strategy across both companies.

The last time FPV brought out a limited edition model - this time last year- it looked back to the late seventies and revived the Cobra badge for a limited run of 500 striped sedans and utes.

Imported cars are hardest hit by the new LCT threshold but some of our homegrown brands also suffer.

A Ford GT confiscated by police is claimed by its owner to be worth at least $200,000 after he painstakingly restored it with a gleaming blue spray job and faultless interior.

Holden's performance arm is upgrading its engines this month, weeks before rival Ford Performance Vehicles releases its new range. HSV is updating the current 307kW LS2 to the LS3 V8, which pumps out 317kW.The upgrade should see HSV maintain its power advantage because FPV is reportedly set to offer a 315kW V8. HSV says the timing simply coincides with its supply of the LS2 running out.“Our customers want the latest and greatest technology in their cars,” HSV managing director Scott Grant says. “The General Motors LS3 engine continues the HSV tradition of scouring the world for technological advancements to enhance the driving experience.”At the unveiling of the new FPV range in February, company boss Rod Barrett said the Blue Oval performance brand would not engage in a power war with its Holden rival.FPV will rely on an upgraded version of the 5.4-litre Boss V8 for the short term, but promises more upgrades, including a reborn GT-HO.The new HSV engine comes at a price. The ClubSport R8 now starts at $64,550, up $1660, the Maloo R8 goes from $59,990 to $61,550, the GTS is up $1000 to $76,990 and the Senator Signature cops a $1200 increase to take it to $79,190.The Grange has been bumped up $1700 to start at $84,690. The LS3 unit is 6.2-litres and produces 550Nm of torque at 4600rpm, the same as the LS2. It is built in North America by General Motors Powertrains.Despite the size increase, HSV is reporting a slight drop in fuel economy for the new models.As well as the local line-up, the engine will feature in HSV's export models, the Vauxhall VXR8 sold in Britain and the Middle East-bound CSV R8. The same engine is fitted to the Chevrolet Corvette in the US.HSV says that automatic gearboxes will also get an oil cooler as standard. As an option for ClubSport, Senator and Grange buyers, new 20-inch alloy wheels will be available at $2500.