Aussie Muscle!
- Thread starter DFB
- Start date
DFB
Well-known member
- Aug 12, 2019
- 5,136
- 3,482
- Thread starter
- #142
My time growing up with cars was during the early to late 2000's, as such the older stuff I doesn't always interest me. However, those pioneering 60's and 70's muscle cars paved the way for the modern era.
This 2003 TV commercial shows the 1971 XY Falcon GTHO being driven around Bathurst with the then current BA Falcon FPV GT.
The GTHO in top Phase III spec was always touted as the fastest four door sedan in the world, a record that stood for many years. These cars were a touring car homologation special, mostly to make sure Ford was a strong outright contender at the Bathurst 500. While they looked similar to regular Falcon GT, the GTHO Phase I, Phase II and Phase III got a range race car parts to make them faster, more durable and handle better. The Phase III being the ultimate evolution, the planned Phase IV was cancelled due to the government stepping in and suggesting that race cars for the road was not ethical, and if the Ford, Holden and Chrysler continued to make them, then all government vehicle orders would be cancelled. Guess what they chose.
Check the speedo and tachometer in this shot, which was taken on the Hume Highway with a Wheels Magazine journalist at the wheel. Speed limits were imposed a few years later.
The Phase I and Phase II were powered by a high performance 351 Windsor V8, which was swapped for a 351 Cleveland V8 mid-way through the Phase II production run. The Windsor's were probably the better performance car engine due to the excessive heft of the Cleveland. Where the Windsor had a mellow V8 tone, the Clevo had a very distinctive hard-edged howl, which most Ford guys here prefer.
The Phase I and II were based on the XW Falcon and identical looking, the Phase III was based on the XY Falcon and are easily picked over the previous versions by that classic shaker intake poking through the hood. Watching the shaker move as you drove was and is highly appealing, to the point where some would put them on modern Falcons.
For the record, the HO in GTHO was officially termed "Handling Option" by Ford. I think this was to avoid using "High Output" and curb insurance costs associated with high performance cars.
The Holden counterparts were based on the smaller Torana, which made them more nimble through corners and across the top of the mountain at Bathurst. But come the straights and the big Falc would blow past them. These Torana's are obviously just as collectable and respected, but the Phase III GTHO is arguably the most coveted muscle car of its era, in fact it's performance was only bettered decades later.
I've been lucky enough to bag a ride in a Clevland powered GTHO Phase II, which were noticeably rawer than the Phase III due to the wild camshaft they used on this model. And RAW is most certainly how you would describe that car! When given a boot full, the big Falc squats down on the rear and points the nose to sky, then assaults you with an epic wall of vibration and sound. And being a car from the 70's with little to no noise insulation, you hear every single beat from that engine.
Respect your elders!
This 2003 TV commercial shows the 1971 XY Falcon GTHO being driven around Bathurst with the then current BA Falcon FPV GT.
The GTHO in top Phase III spec was always touted as the fastest four door sedan in the world, a record that stood for many years. These cars were a touring car homologation special, mostly to make sure Ford was a strong outright contender at the Bathurst 500. While they looked similar to regular Falcon GT, the GTHO Phase I, Phase II and Phase III got a range race car parts to make them faster, more durable and handle better. The Phase III being the ultimate evolution, the planned Phase IV was cancelled due to the government stepping in and suggesting that race cars for the road was not ethical, and if the Ford, Holden and Chrysler continued to make them, then all government vehicle orders would be cancelled. Guess what they chose.
Check the speedo and tachometer in this shot, which was taken on the Hume Highway with a Wheels Magazine journalist at the wheel. Speed limits were imposed a few years later.
The Phase I and Phase II were powered by a high performance 351 Windsor V8, which was swapped for a 351 Cleveland V8 mid-way through the Phase II production run. The Windsor's were probably the better performance car engine due to the excessive heft of the Cleveland. Where the Windsor had a mellow V8 tone, the Clevo had a very distinctive hard-edged howl, which most Ford guys here prefer.
The Phase I and II were based on the XW Falcon and identical looking, the Phase III was based on the XY Falcon and are easily picked over the previous versions by that classic shaker intake poking through the hood. Watching the shaker move as you drove was and is highly appealing, to the point where some would put them on modern Falcons.
For the record, the HO in GTHO was officially termed "Handling Option" by Ford. I think this was to avoid using "High Output" and curb insurance costs associated with high performance cars.
The Holden counterparts were based on the smaller Torana, which made them more nimble through corners and across the top of the mountain at Bathurst. But come the straights and the big Falc would blow past them. These Torana's are obviously just as collectable and respected, but the Phase III GTHO is arguably the most coveted muscle car of its era, in fact it's performance was only bettered decades later.
I've been lucky enough to bag a ride in a Clevland powered GTHO Phase II, which were noticeably rawer than the Phase III due to the wild camshaft they used on this model. And RAW is most certainly how you would describe that car! When given a boot full, the big Falc squats down on the rear and points the nose to sky, then assaults you with an epic wall of vibration and sound. And being a car from the 70's with little to no noise insulation, you hear every single beat from that engine.
Respect your elders!
DFB
Well-known member
- Aug 12, 2019
- 5,136
- 3,482
- Thread starter
- #143
This video is from Shannon's Insurance, think Hagerty in the USA and you'll understand what they do. This series covers a variety of vehicle design deep-dives, in this case Ford during the 90's and 2000's. You may recognise some of the names being mentioned. Did you know Aussies were having a go at designing the next Mustang, however after management discovered what they were doing, it was bluntly shut down by Jac Nassar because "there will never be a Mustang designed outside of the US". And fair enough I suppose.
I've always loved backstories behind vehicle design. In addition to variety of Ford's, Graham Wadsworth was heavily involved with the AU Falcon.
I get quite animated when it comes to the AU Falcon. While I actually like the design, most didn't and I totally understood why. The travesty here being that Ford were being told through customer clinics and extensive research that customers, women in particular, wanted something fresh. Keep in mind, this was during the Jelly-Bean era of car design, basically a series of egg-shaped vehicles that all looked the same. This led Ford's designers to do just that, taking those rounded egg shapes and splicing them with sharper lines. During the design phase, the various proposals were put to customer clinics and clearly indicated what they liked. Customers were asking for something fresh, something different, Ford delivered.
.png)
.png)
.png)
However, when the car was unveiled and put into production, suddenly those who asked for this newness didn't want to PAY money to look different. Sales tanked, Ford lost a lot money, then had to rush a restyle into action. Ford did what they thought customers wanted, what customers TOLD them they wanted. In effect, Ford was led up the garden path. The rounded edges and egg-shape design was considered ugly. And yet, the Holden at the time was actually softer and more rounded, ultimately lacking the Falcon's crisp panel surfacing.
The most telling tidbit in this video is how Mercedes arrived at the original CLS coupe/sedan, which was basically a further refined AU Falcon design. Even the chief designer of the CLS was Australian.
.png)
The full backlog of this series can be found here -
I also highly recommend watching the GM-Holden video featuring Richard Ferlazzo, the man behind the majority of Holden's modern era vehicles. He also designed the award winning Efijy show car, basically a modern hot-rod interpretation of the original Holden's from the late 1940's. Not favorite of mine, but having seen it in person, the Efijy certainly had presence.
The original for reference..............................
I've always loved backstories behind vehicle design. In addition to variety of Ford's, Graham Wadsworth was heavily involved with the AU Falcon.
I get quite animated when it comes to the AU Falcon. While I actually like the design, most didn't and I totally understood why. The travesty here being that Ford were being told through customer clinics and extensive research that customers, women in particular, wanted something fresh. Keep in mind, this was during the Jelly-Bean era of car design, basically a series of egg-shaped vehicles that all looked the same. This led Ford's designers to do just that, taking those rounded egg shapes and splicing them with sharper lines. During the design phase, the various proposals were put to customer clinics and clearly indicated what they liked. Customers were asking for something fresh, something different, Ford delivered.
However, when the car was unveiled and put into production, suddenly those who asked for this newness didn't want to PAY money to look different. Sales tanked, Ford lost a lot money, then had to rush a restyle into action. Ford did what they thought customers wanted, what customers TOLD them they wanted. In effect, Ford was led up the garden path. The rounded edges and egg-shape design was considered ugly. And yet, the Holden at the time was actually softer and more rounded, ultimately lacking the Falcon's crisp panel surfacing.
The most telling tidbit in this video is how Mercedes arrived at the original CLS coupe/sedan, which was basically a further refined AU Falcon design. Even the chief designer of the CLS was Australian.
The full backlog of this series can be found here -
I also highly recommend watching the GM-Holden video featuring Richard Ferlazzo, the man behind the majority of Holden's modern era vehicles. He also designed the award winning Efijy show car, basically a modern hot-rod interpretation of the original Holden's from the late 1940's. Not favorite of mine, but having seen it in person, the Efijy certainly had presence.
The original for reference..............................