Ford Australia Cut V8 Option After Engine Production Ends

[JoeT]

Ford Axes Falcon V8 & Full-Size Spare Tyre

James Stanford
10 August 2007
www.goauto.com.au

Ford Australia has killed off its optional V8 engine after the Canadian plant that produced it was closed.

The company has also announced today that it will follow the lead of Holden and its VE Commodore by switching from full-size to space-saver spare wheels in its Falcon this year.

The V8 decision affects the three-valve overhead-camshaft 5.4-litre engine that was optional for the Fairlane and Falcon sedan, wagon and ute, and standard fitment for the G8 Fairlane and LTD. Ford Australia will continue to offer the partly locally assembled four-valve DOHC version of the same V8 in its Falcon XR8 and FPV GT models.

The soon-to-be-deceased V8 was introduced as a base-model option for the BA Falcon model in 2002, replacing the ancient 5.0-litre Windsor pushrod V8. It was known as the Barra 220 or Barra 230, depending on the application, with the numbers referring to the maximum power output of the engine in kiloWatts.

In announcing the demise of the optional V8 engine, Ford Australia president Tom Gorman revealed how poor the sales of the powerplant have been in the last few months.

“We were down to about 10 a month, so it is not going to be a major impact on the business,” he said.

Ford’s Essex plant in Windsor, Ontario, had produced the 24-valve V8 which also powered the F-Series truck since the plant was expanded as part of a $900 million investment in 2002.

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Ford To The Letter

CarPoint Editor
10 August 2007
www.carpoint.com.au

Owners of recent Ford models will have received a letter direct from Tom Gorman, President of Ford Australia spelling out the facts behind recent announcements, many of which were distorted by the media.

The final point of the letter ends with the assurance: "Importantly for you, as we have always done, we will continue to support parts and accessories for all our vehicles."

Sadly, this has a similar ring to it when Mitsubishi was forced into a similar stance following inaccurate media speculation. The Ford letter is in effect a historical marker for the most fundamental change facing local Australian manufacturers since the first Holden went into production in 1948. It also serves as a warning to all commentators that all the old rules, certainties and prejudices no longer apply when it won't be the last from a local manufacturer.

One of the biggest obstacles for Ford in getting its message across has been the ill-informed speculation by some national media that Ford Australia was about to assemble the Ford Focus (or derivative). As a result, some have been then less than forthright about clarifying what is really happening.

The company is in fact going to manufacture the next Focus here with the same local content as any Commodore or Falcon with guaranteed export markets on a separate, purpose-built assembly line that will employ an additional 300 workers. Because it will draw major components from the same Geelong stamping plant as the Falcon and Territory then join these larger models on a new combined final assembly line, Ford's large family cars are protected against further market shifts. Ford's assurance in its latest letter about continuing to employ 5000 Australians is backed by substance.

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GMI's 2008 Ford Falcon News & Spy Pictures Thread
Ford Confirms 2010 Closer For It's Australian Engine Plant

[igor]

thanks for posting these .. the V8 will not be missed - 4V DOHC is a much better engine

Igor

[FunkyPig]

I think a V8 option for normal Falcons will return when a suitable imported replacement is found, this is temporary.

A great idea would be to offer the turbo 6 as an option on all models as a 'replacement'.

[IROCNROL1]

Not overly knowledgable, but looks like one more step back.

[TDi]

Originally Posted by IROCNROL1

Not overly knowledgable, but looks like one more step back.

And how do you figure that?

[igor]

OK - Lets highlight this IMPORTANT piece:

the Falcons will still have a V8 option - a DOHC 4V V8 assembled in Australia with some 350hp .. they simply cancelled the regular 3v SOHC version they imported from Canada - you know the run of the mill 300hp 5.4l from F150 etc.

V8 option will be preserved -they just cancelled one of the V8 engines - the mediocre one.

Igor

[Richard1098]

Originally Posted by igor

thanks for posting these .. the V8 will not be missed - 4V DOHC is a much better engine

Igor

True. The three valve didn't make much sence given the I6 Turbo.

[MN12Fan]

And if turbocharged sixes are going to be prolific in Ford's future (e.g. TwinForce) as performance options, then any V8s built by the company will have to be fairly powerful in order to be justified.

[Patto1]

Originally Posted by JoeT

Ford Axes Falcon V8 & Full-Size Spare Tyre

James Stanford
10 August 2007
www.goauto.com.au

The V8 decision affects the three-valve overhead-camshaft 5.4-litre engine that was optional for the Fairlane and Falcon sedan, wagon and ute, and standard fitment for the G8 Fairlane and LTD. Ford Australia will continue to offer the partly locally assembled four-valve DOHC version of the same V8 in its Falcon XR8 and FPV GT models.

NO V8 FALCON UTE

[JoeT]

The XR8 Ute will still be around.

[Hunter]

The last of the V8 interceptors

[Butz]

Lame!

[nota]

4V DOHC is a much better engine

True. The three valve didn't make much sence given the I6 Turbo.

The I6 turbo is clearly Falcon's best performance engine. So in terms other than pure marketing its arguable that the quadcam makes even less sense than the sohc V8, given the turbo 6

And Ford's shortsighted downgrade to a temporary spare wheel is cheap $100 nail in Falcon's withering reputation

[bluecon]

The 3v Falcon engine was unique to the Falcon and not the same as the F-150 engine. It had an aluminum intake and special exhaust manifolds. Ford in there infinite wisdom has been building only that engine in very limited numbers on the V8 engine line in the Essex engine plant. Every once in awhile people take the plastic covers off the engines and bump the run ahead a ways down the line and then recover with plastic until they return a week or whatever down the road. Quality is Job 1.

[IROCNROL1]

Originally Posted by TDi

And how do you figure that?

I figure one less engine option equals one less choice and one more reason to buy something else.