First drive: Ford’s tough Falcon RTV ute
BY MARTON PETTENDY | 30th Sep 2003
Meet the Falcon RTV Ute, the Blue Oval’s response to what it calls unsatisfied demand for a passenger car-derived, Australian-built utility with high ground clearance and a rear differential lock.
Appearing in concept form at this year’s Melbourne motor show, "Rugged Terrain Vehicle" was the title selected by Ford in a naming contest launched at the same time.
RTV is the spiritual successor to popular previous Falcon ute derivatives such as Outback and Longreach, but is aimed in no uncertain terms at buyers of imported Japanese light trucks and goes a number of steps further.
Beginning life back in the BA Falcon Ute development stage and produced at a development cost of $2.5 million, RTV is available with standard six-cylinder, dedicated LPG or V8 engines, and can be specified as a five-speed manual, floor-shift four-speed sequential auto or column-shift auto.
In cab-chassis guise, RTV comes at a $4500 premium over its respective donor ute, while the Styleside Box RTV costs around another $5000 – a premium Ford expects some 2000 buyers a year to shell out for, with 40 per cent of those tipped to come from existing Falcon Ute customers and a similar number to come from local councils and other fleet purchasers.
So what do you get for the extra money, a premium that’s more than what Mitsubishi asks for a complete all-wheel drivetrain in its Magna/Verada AWD range?First, there’s a generous 80mm of extra rear ride height, plus 67.5mm more clearance up front, giving RTV an aggressive nose-down stance (the rear-end is 12.5mm higher), an impressive total of 215mm ground clearance (from the sump – at the diff it’s 190mm) and increased departure angles of 22.1 degrees front (up from 16.4 degrees on XL Ute) and 26.2 degrees rear (up from 20 degrees).
Ford says the standard one-tonne suspension will sit completely flat under a full load, but the other major suspension revision is a 30mm wider wheel track at each end, which required longer tie-rods.
Other improvements include flipped balljoints and the addition of “anti-tramp” rods to reduce the longer-travel suspension’s tendency to bounce during sudden launches.
The other part of RTV’s off-road package is a new locally developed Differential Locking System (DLS) that boasts a number of firsts. Adapted from Ford Courier models sold in other markets and supplied by Falcon IRS manufacturer Dana/Spicer, DLS employs a vacuum operated, in-diff yoke to lock both sides of the rear axle together, but it’s the first time this has been controlled (from an on-dash button) via the Powertrain Control Module.
It is also the first time DLS has been used in Falcon’s heavy-duty M86 diff, which is reserved for use with V8s only while Falcon sixes employ a regular M78 unit. Switchable via a dash-mounted button below 40km/h, DLS automatically unlocks at 70km/h and will automatically relock when speed drops back below 40km/h, unless DLS is cancelled. A green instrument warning light illuminates when the system is active.
As part of RTV’s development, which included 870,000km of real world testing (100,000km on unsealed roads) by the same small group of engineers who developed the AU ute, Ford spent much time reinforcing the Falcon Ute underbody.
The biggest new feature is a ribbed, 6mm-thick glass-fibre composite bash plate that extends from the front bumper to the rear of the transmission.
Unlike steel plate, the one-piece guard is said to pop back into place and underwent rigid off-road testing.
Further off-road durability comes from stronger graphite iron rear shock mounting plates, 2mm-thick welded steel stone shields for the rear shocks, front brake calliper stone deflectors and high density polyethylene sleeves for the brake lines.
A larger radiator is also fitted, along with taller, 215/65-section tyres, 16-inch one-tonne-rated alloys and flared wheelarches to complement the wider track. The only exception to RTV’s "form follows function" theme is a new grille and badging.
Standard on all RTVs is ABS with EBD, power windows and mirrors, a power driver’s seat (not with column shift auto), CD player, driver’s airbag and BA Falcon’s Interior Command Centre, but air-conditioning costs extra.