Our behind-the-wheel verdict is in, and the news is that Ford’s FG Falcon is good on the road. Surprisingly good.
After driving a solid cross section of the FG range through rural Victoria today, we’re prepared to say that the new Falcon exceeds expectations. And the 450km drive was on roads ranging from twisting blacktop, to loose, gravely dirt and even a burst of freeway driving.
We’ve so far driven the base model XT, entry-level G Series G6, XR6 Turbo, and XR8 in both standard and option pack form. They’ve all been autos: the XT and G6 getting the new five-speeder; the others with the newly-calibrated version of the impressive six-speed ZF.
Manuals are in short supply in the press car line-up, but we’ll land one, together with the XR6, G6E and G6E Turbo we haven’t yet driven, in today’s last leg. We’re especially keen to try the manual in the XR8, as Ford’s engineers say they’ve dropped the car’s axle ratio to deliver more immediacy through the gears. And it has a new launch control function...
But what we can tell you after driving over plenty of challenging roads is that Ford’s work on the car has proved measurably good. The new, lighter aluminium front suspension, Bishop-based variable rack steering, monotube dampers, and refinements to the crossblade independent rear suspension that was in the BF and still in the Territory all contribute to levels of balance and agility that we weren’t expecting. Across the range, the cars feel agile and responsive, the steering accurate and nicely weighted.
Body control is especially impressive, and the 2.6 turns lock-to-lock variable ratio steering feels responsive in your hands, without any discernible firming-up as you point into corners. The car generally points-in without fuss. The only downside to the equation is the hint of rattle rack that was heard, rather than felt at the wheel, in tight, hard cornering.
The other surprise in terms of the car’s steering and balance was the fact that, obviously combined with the new suspension work and monotube shocks, the standard XR8 on its Dunlop SP Sport Maxx 245/40 R18s felt light and agile through a long and twisty downhill section. The combination of improved steering, body control and dedicated tyres belied the obvious extra weight. And there was ample power and torque from the new Boss 290 V8.
The V8’s probably quieter than you’d expect when you plant your foot – producing a distant growl, rather than a throaty roar – but Ford’s engineers have equipped the car’s muffler with a SAM valve, which progressively opens to deliver more noise from around 3200rpm.
Ride is sporty without being harsh, and on the roads we drove it over the car felt controlled and balanced – the rear squatting into corners until acceleration – rather than buckboard flat. And, in our opinion, you’d have to be doing something fairly silly to throw the car off the road.
The one disappointment from the XR8 was the optioned-up version. It brought mainly leather trim ($2100) and 19-inch alloys ($2400). Where the standard car turns-in so precisely on its standard 18, it ironically loses some of that precision when you step up to the 19s. Given similar steering input from the driver, the car takes marginally longer to react and at first feels as if it’s going to understeer in hard downhill cornering. Of course, there’s plenty of response from the throttle to help you adjust its attitude, but let’s just say that the car doesn’t feel as easy to drive on the larger wheel and tyre combination.
The three new tyres developed with Goodyear and its Dunlop stablemate specifically for the FG – the 19s on the option pack XR8 are carry-over – are impressive, too. Grip levels are well matched to the ride afforded by the four states of suspension tune, which start with XT, step up for G6 and G6E, then XR6 (plus XR6 Turbo) and XR8, with G6-E Turbo getting its own tune.
In the base model XT with its new five-speed auto and on 215/60 R16s and steel wheels, the ride is softer but in no way sloppy. Again, the car points in to corners with surprisingly good steering feel and little complaint from its Goodyears. Though not as refined as the recalibrated ZF that’s in the other FGs, the five-speeder gets the job done with surprising smoothness in the type of country road driving we tried. In fact, the car feels as if it’s happy to lope along and cruise at country road pace all day.
And, at the end of a 50-odd km stretch of that sort of driving, the car’s onboard fuel consumption reading showed 9.3 L/100km. No complaints.
For our money, the G6 delivers an impressive amount of refinement and drivability for its $39,990. Essentially a replacement for the Futura specification, its suspension tune, 235/50 R17s on 7-spoke alloys and the new five-speed auto its shares with the XT is a combination that’s discernibly a step up from the base car but with even better balance and sharper handling. Again, the car feels light and agile. Where the XT feels as if it wants to cruise on country roads all day, the G6 steps up to offer even sharper cornering ability and general drivability.
If you want to know why the XR6 Turbo and XR8 versions of the FG are priced identically -- $45,490 for the manual, and $46,990 for the auto – the answer comes when you get behind the wheel. The cars share the same suspension tune and tyre combination and, let’s just say, have similar amounts of urgency on tap.
The big difference, of course, is that the turbocharged six-cylinder version delivers its 270kW and 533Nm (vs the XR8’s 290kW and 520Nm) with a strong turbo rush. And the turbo car’s plentiful torque is there from 2000rpm through to 4750rpm.
From our drive of the Turbo – part of it over a 13km loose gravel section with visibility problems in the red dust kicked up by the cars in front – it was obvious that this is the car that delivers the type of urgency performance drivers will go for. Yes, we left the ESP on in the dirt; visibility was too bad for heroics, and the ESP is so unobtrusively-good, anyway.
On fast bitumen, the XR6 Turbo is, well, fast. And with even better balance from the lighter engine weight over its front axle, the car delivers real punch out of corners and a rush between them. Again, body control is impressive, and even left to its own devices, the ZF is well up to the task. Sure, the brakes smelled after the car had been punted on twisting bitumen, but they were still there when we needed them.
Wheels will have a lot more to say about Ford’s new FG Falcon range after its extensive drive of the cars (
Wheels’ May, on-sale April 23, video coming soon).
But first impressions of the cars are decidedly positive.