FPV Reviews

But the Boss may not have the ultimate power any more.The other member of what Ford calls Performance Inc., the F6 Typhoon, is on the loose and is creating quite a few waves.They say there is no replacement for displacement, but the six-cylinder Typhoon might just water down that claim &#!50; for some anyway.The Typhoon is the Ford Performance Vehicle's version of the stunningly successful XR6 turbo. It runs a beefed-up version of its four-litre in-line six with .64 bar boost being developed from the Garrett turbo. The premium for arming yourself with the Typhoon over the garden variety Ford blown six is $12,600 which makes the FPV a $58,950 spend.So what do you get over and above the stock standard turbo and is it worth it?Try enhanced suspension with stiffer rear springs, bigger and better tyres, bigger and better brakes, specially developed six-speed Tremec gearbox, AP Racing twin plate clutch, more power and the most torque produced for any Australian production car.The difference is a lot of coin, but the extra spend seems to be worth it.For starters you know you're on to something when you are, well, almost quicker than The Boss. At least from standstill to 100km/h the Typhoon creates a storm by nailing the dash in 6.3sec. The GT armed with the Boss 290kW V8 engine covers the same exercise in roughly the same time, but the tests were done on a back road and not in the controlled environment of a racetack so they are only a guide.The 270kW and 550Nm of the Typhoon is a whirlwind of excitement and aggression complete with the audible waste-gate flutter that gives the hyper six a consuming character like the deep rumble of the GT.What is so impressive about the Typhoon is that all this extra power and torque is useable because the work done underneath on the suspension took a similar direction as the GT, but with the aforementioned stiffer rear springs. Also the brakes, 325x32mm twin-grooved and ventilated up front and 303x16mm twin-grooved solid rear rotors with twin-pot calipers appear to be up to matching the Typhoon's fury.For almost $6000 more, you can order the optional Brembos but there is probably no need unless you are going to be driving like you stole it every time you press the dash-mounted starter button borrowed from the GT. The ride is surprisingly compliant considering the stiffening needed to cope with the extra power and torque.It fires into corners with confidence, turning in quicker than the GT because there is less weight hanging about underneath the bonnet. There seems to be a reasonable grip threshold before the traction control, which you can deactivate, kicks in. The high performance 18-inch Dunlop SP9000s take a while to howl and squeal in protest, offering ample sticking quality in both wet and dry conditions. There is a blissfully horizontal torque curve with the 550Nm accessed from as low as 2000rpm through to 4250rpm. Linked to the four-litre straight six is the Tremec six-speed which Holden uses in its V8s. The Tremec in the Typhoon has been reworked with short travel changes and the six gears are easy to navigate and engage.There is virtually no lag and the boost comes in big meaty dollops, rather than the delay-before-neck-snapping jolt of some smaller imported turbos.In short, the Typhoon goes, steers and stops like it is $12,600 more than the standard turbo.But don't expect too much pampering in the cabin. There is no leather, with unique cloth sports seats supporting the occupants.Dual gauges are mounted on the dash that display oil pressure and turbo boost, dual-zone air-con and large command centre display screen.The sound system packs a 150-watt amp, subwoofer and in-dash six-stack CD.Fuel consumption is probably not much of a consideration for most buyers of these force-fed guzzlers but it is worth pointing out that the Typhoon was getting just under 400km a tank on this predominantly open highway test.Harder running and driving in stop/start bursts around busy roads will reduce that figure even further.* FPV engineers have addressed a problem with the twin-plate clutch which could not cope with the load after some drivers persisted with flat-changing.

Now add a durable six-speed close-ratio gearbox, a stronger clutch to take the torque strain, and get a veteran V8 Supercar driving legend to tweak the suspension. Now you're talking!On a rainy day in Melbourne last week as SES crews cleaned up after an unseasonal typhoon-like storm, Ford's performance arm, FPV, launched the turbo-charged performance Typhoon to the motoring media.The turbo Typhoon joins the MkII GT and GT-P and Pursuit ute in the Ford Performance Vehicles stable, with a manual only ute version, called Tornado, blowing into a town near you in January.The big story, though, is the Typhoon's (and Tornado's) flat torque curve. From just 1000rpm, there is 400Nm, enough to make any grown man weak at the knees. But that's just the start of it.From there, it climbs to a whopping 550Nm another 1000 revs up the dial. And there it stays until 4250rpm, where it rolls off gently back to 400Nm as the audible limit alert sounds at 5700rpm and before the limiter cuts in at 6000rpm.It launches in a long first gear and slips second, then hits 100km/h. And there are still four gears left in the stick shift.The Typhoon and Tornado give FPV a new weapon to attack the performance market and attract buyers they hadn't appealed to before -- turbo fiends.Product planning manager Mark Behr said turbo and V8 owners were different.He said a snapshot of their V8 customers showed they were self-made people, usually tradespeople, who were interested in V8 Supercars racing and wanted people to notice them. They were typically aged 35-55 and 85 per cent were family men.By comparison, he said, turbo customers were more interested in technological aspects. They expected Typhoon and Tornado customers to be slightly younger, white collar workers, former Euro car buyers and more interested in following F1 than Supercars. He even expected to attract WRX owners who now had a family.FPV sales and marketing manager, Roger Gray, agreed that the two turbo models would attract new buyers."We don't see ourselves as restricted to V8 buyers," he said. "F6 appeals to a new type of buyer."He said they had sold 2565 vehicles in the past two years since taking over from Tickford and moving to separate headquarters around the corner from the Ford HQ in Broadmeadows.GT accounted for 1154 sales with 52 per cent manual and 58 per cent choosing stripes. The GT-P sold 1020, 38 per cent manual and 50 per cent stripes, while the Pursuit ute has sold 391, 56 per cent manual. Stripes are not available. But Gray says the new range opens up the choice of new colours and stripe combinations as part of its bid to broaden its appeal to new buyers.He said there was no competitor in the market for F6 on value and performance."It has the most torque produced in a locally developed production engine."That extra torque placed extra demands on other parts of the vehicle and former Lotus engineer Alastair Bacon was brought in as program manager to ensure the vehicle met those requirements."The engine's increased torque required a transmission with increased torque capacity and durability," Bacon said.It also had to be made from available transmissions to keep costs down, with selectable gear ratios and had to fit in Falcon's floorplan.Their choice was a six-speed close-ratio Tremec T56 transmission, the same as used in the new Holden."But this is not an off-the-shelf gearbox," Bacon said.It has been engineered on FPV's new 3600sq m site which also houses the Ford Performance Racing team, a machine shop where they can design and mill their own parts, a panel fabrication area, two dynos and a dustproof engine building area.He said the transmission had shift precision without any increase in effort, good gear spacing without jumps or loss of revs, linear bearings on the shift rail to make shifts smooth and crisp, direct linkage shifter for better feel, reverse gear synchro and double synchro in all forward gears for fast shifting.A test through the typhoon-drenched Yarra Valley last week proved most of his claims.With a tall first gear, it launches strongly and hits the magic 100km/h mark well within second gear yet has a usable overdrive ratio within legal road speeds.

It surges forward as though a gale has erupted under the bonnet: You've unleashed a whirlwind, a storm on four wheels.Ford – or to be more precise, its Ford Performance Vehicles offshoot – has turned a six-cylinder Falcon into a turbocharged supercar, claimed to have the most torque, or pulling power, ever produced by an Australian production car.Drive the FPV F6 Typhoon and you believe it. It has been developed from the Falcon XR6 Turbo, itself a potent sports sedan, but given a dose of steroids – higher turbo boost, better breathing, more cooling, stronger engine parts, bigger brakes, bigger wheels, more aggressive-looking shape – to create the Typhoon, all $58,950 of it.The first cars have just left the factory (they go down the Ford production line, then are fitted with the special bits by FPV) and are on their way to dealerships. Eager buyers have placed orders already, and FPV expects to build about 60 a month.The "F6" part of the name refers to its forced-induction (meaning turbocharged) six-cylinder engine. The Typhoon part becomes self-explanatory when you put your foot down."Any gear, any time, any day, you can stick your boot in and get the full load," Typhoon program manager Alastair Bacon said.However FPV, wary of appearing too aggressive, will not reveal the Typhoon's acceleration figures.But since the XR6 Turbo is capable of the 0-100km/h sprint under 6sec and the Typhoon has considerably more power, torque and a new gearbox full of ratios designed to suit, it should produce times which will make Ford enthusiasts smile.Happily, the "hoon" word which lurks ominously in the second half of the Typhoon name doesn't apply here.It is mighty quick, sure, but not anti-social.Nor, in spite of its mega performance, is the Typhoon any hardship to drive. It stays reasonably quiet, even during full acceleration, and the ride is surprisingly comfortably and supple.Yet there is a sporty tautness about it, gripping the road with sureness, answering every movement of the wheel instantly, precisely.A key part of the package is a new six-speed gearbox which FPV also uses in the V8-powered Falcon GT. (No Typhoon with automatic transmission at this stage because Ford doesn't have one able to handle the turbo engine's output).The gearshift requires a firm push, but everything engages easily, happily and the clutch is not heavy enough to be a chore. Stop-start driving, surprisingly for a car with such muscle, turns out to be no worry.On a long run in the country, as the Typhoon romped on a preview drive, it trotted along with lazy ease, far from stressed. It felt, well, normal, which is a compliment for a car capable of such extreme performance.Yet after driving the Typhoon, even the awesome Falcon GT seems almost restrained because it takes a few moments to build up power, compared with the lighter six-cylinder car's right-here, right-now style of delivery. It responds with the eagerness of a light switch.Let rip in a full-bore takeoff – strictly for research purposes, you understand – and the Typhoon catapults forward, first gear seeming to last for just an instant before a beeper warns you've reached 5700rpm and it is time to grab second.Feels like it has enough force to tear furrows in the bitumen and that's what torque is all about. The more the merrier: this is the stuff which brings response when you touch the accelerator, which delivers acceleration, punch for overtaking and effortless hill-climbing ability.This is the stuff which the Typhoon has in such abundance that it is in exclusive territory. A scan of the performance-car lists shows that the next car which out-muscles it, with 553Nm to the Typhoon's 550Nm, is the Jaguar S-Type R at $162,500.However, FPV expects most buyers will be moving up from machines like Subaru's iconic WRX, drivers who love turbocharged engines but want a bigger car. The theory is that few GT owners will migrate to the Typhoon, because they're hooked on V8-style noise and character.To show that its performance isn't to be taken lightly, every buyer gets a one-day advanced driving course. Excellent idea.

A small group of cars are Aussie icons. They set the heartbeat for local motoring.The born-again Falcon GT clears the bar with a handy margin and so does the HSV Senator. Both pump up the local action and raise the pulse for people who want the best of the best with a local badge.The fast new Ford scored a perfect five-star rating when we tested it earlier this year, so now we've balanced the scales with a long, hard look at the Senator Signature.It's a late look because Holden has just updated the VY Commodore with Series II models, but it will be a while before the HSV cars get their new tweaks, so we decided it was time for some hot Holden action.The Signature got the nod because of its icon status, confirmed by its mechanical package and luxury gear that lifts its price above $80,000.It's also the car of choice for Holden motorsport hero Mark The Boss Skaife.The Senator Signature costs a lot for a home-grown car, even a muscle car from HSV, and we wanted to know if it did the job. The short answer: yes.It has a 260kW engine that grunts and goes, specially set suspension that combines grip with comfort, and the sort of luxury and little surprises you'd expect more in the Audi-BMW-Benz price range.Even the people at HSV have a bit of trouble citing the differences between the $74,650 Senator and the $80,140 Senator Signature.But they confirm the dearer car with the extra name has better seats, premium brakes and 19-inch alloy wheels with Pirelli P-Zero tyres.The ventilated and cross-drilled brakes alone should be worth the extra to serious drivers.But it's the Signature badge that will do just as much convincing for people who want to go all the way.The Signature isn't the quickest or the costliest car in the HSV range, but it is the sort of car that a lot of locals would rate against the mid-level European luxury contenders.It has size as well as a proven brand name, but it's the depth of the action that makes the real case.The Senator comes with an engine that got a 5kW kick in the change to the VY and could easily get another tickle for VYII.It has everything from electric leather seats and monster alloy wheels to cruise control, automatic airconditioning and an eight-speaker sound system with a six-stack CD.But we were most impressed by the little things. The Senator has a pair of extra instruments stacked on top of the dash in a neat little housing, the steering wheel is a bit different from other hot Holdens, the dashboard dials have been given a special HSV look with white faces and different graphics, and the pedals have drilled alloy plates.The Senator has to get by with the same four-speed auto that holds back the whole Holden range. Most premium performance cars are moving to five-speed autos and Mercedes has just developed a seven-speeder for its S-Class. But otherwise you get all the fruit.On the roadIf you want to cut to the star rating, the Senator Signature gets four.It's very, very good and terrific value, even with an $80K bottom line, though it's not as balanced or complete as the GT.The fast Falcon gets a bull's-eye for every one of Ford's targets while the Senator just misses the mark in several areas.It's not by much, but a car has to be best-in-show to get the five stars we've given to the GT and Honda's latest Euro Accord this year.But there are lot of good things to say about the Signature star. We really like the way it drives and the comfort.The dials in the centre of the dash are a great touch, even for people who don't need to know about volts and oil pressure.The seats, too, are great. It took a while to get them set right, with sliding upper-body support similar to a Qantas business-class chair, but they are terrifically supportive.The sound system is fantastic, the final finishing work is very good, and we liked everything from the airconditioning to the alloy wheels.The body bits on the Signature are also matched well to its price, pushing the point without shouting. It's muscular, but not boy-racer silly.Turn the key and you remember what HSV is all about. The Senator has a meaty exhaust note and takes only a tickle to get hot and heavy.Our test car was an automatic and was great for city running. It really cracked away from the lights and the kick-down response was instant and brutal, though it needs an extra gear to provide the sort of driving enjoyment possible with a Euro car.The suspension is set surprisingly soft, but the brakes are brilliant. They easily match the power and make the car reassuring to push along quickly, despite its 1700kg.We liked the Senator Signature a lot and can see plenty of reasons to put one in the garage.It's a solid four-star performer that's another reflection of the classy work being down by local carmakers, especially at the muscle car end of the business.