1 Oct 1984
Third facelift of XD arrived with an all-new front-end styling and a complete cabin makeover.
New seats, a colour-coded dash and more electronics debuted.
The base 90kW/240Nm 3.3L I6 employed improved engine efficiency, although mandatory unleaded fuel (ULP) changes dropped its power output to 88kW from January ‘86.
A three-speed column-shift manual was standard with the 3.3L. Side indicators found in the front bumpers identify these.
Ford couldn’t believe its corporate luck when Holden discontinued the WB series in December ’85 (the old Holden ‘six’ couldn’t be successfully adapted to use ULP), handing over the Blue Oval a big ‘6’ ute monopoly.
Engine options: 103kW/316Nm 4.1L I6 (until Jan ’86), 97.5kW 4.1L ULP I6 (after Jan ’86).
