Ford enthusiasts rally to final Falcon GT

FORD Australia says it has been taken aback by early demand for the final FPV-badged Falcon model, sight unseen, which does not go on-sale for more than a month.

Only 550 units of the limited-edition GT F sedan – the lone “F” at the end of the name stands for “final” – will be produced, with 50 earmarked for New Zealand and the rest for Australia. Ford will also make 120 GT F Pursuit utes.

Despite being announced just three weeks ago, Ford says it has already taken 200 customer build number requests on the final GT. Many customers, most of them avid GT collectors, are choosy about the build number.

According to Ford, one collector with a stable of Falcon GTs and anniversary GTs – all build number 40 – has requested build 40 of the GT F sedan. Another customer owns an XY Falcon GT with the build number 75 and has requested the corresponding number for the GT F.

Another collector has bought a brand new GT of every model since the EB Falcon and has one as his daily driver. He currently has 10 GTs, with most having build number 22.

As we know, from the end of 2014, Ford will cull the brand and replace it with a last-gasp revival of the Falcon XR8 badge before that car, and all Ford’s Australian-made models, die in 2016. This XR8 will be based on the updated model being worked-on at Broadmeadows.

FPV dealers across the country and in New Zealand have already been taking deposit cheques and responding to daily inquiries for both manual and automatic models.

Several of Ford’s 78 FPV dealers have already pre-sold out of their allocations with diehard FPV customers putting down deposits to secure a car, the company says.

One dealer has sold out of its GT F allocation of 12 vehicles and has already turned away six prospective customers since.

“We knew the FPV GT F sedan and the Pursuit ute were going to be important celebration vehicles for us but more importantly our loyal FPV customers,” said Ford Australia president and CEO Bob Graziano.

“But the response has even amazed our dealers.”

Due for release later this year, just ahead of the facelifted final Falcon, the GT F is expected to feature a higher-output version of the 335kW/550Nm supercharged Boss 5.0-litre V8, with pundits predicting a power upgrade to 351kW in celebration of the famous 351 cubic-inch capacity of Bathurst-winning Falcons dating back to the 1970s.

The GT F will also feature the handling package from the 2012 GT R-Spec limited edition, including a launch control system, a host of front and rear suspension modifications, and wide nine-inch rear wheels with 275/35 R19 Dunlop Sports Maxx tyres.

The car-maker says GT-sourced six-piston Brembo callipers will be fitted to the front brakes, with four-piston callipers at the rear.

“Visually the Ford design team, led by Nick Eterovic, Ford Australia design manager, has delivered a bold and expressive GT F that can trace some of its visual cues to past Australian Ford GTs,” the car-maker said in a statement announcing the F-badged model.

Ford said the team had developed a “stealth” stripe design package evocative of the blacked-out highlights from Ford muscle cars of the 1970s, complemented with distinctive GT F badging.

The GT F, available in a range of colours, will feature either standard matte black, white, metallic gold or silver stripes.

Ford said the GT F’s interior ambience was updated to emphasise richer, darker tones and more lustrous finishes appropriate for the GT F.