Ford’s iconic GT Falcon will be the first casualty of the blue oval’s decision to shut down its local manufacturing operations.
According to indie information, Ford Performance Vehicles (FPV) – Ford Australia’s official performance division – will be closed down in 2014 when the final model of the Falcon is launched.
Ford’s performance division currently produces five Falcon performance variants in Australia: the GT, GT-P, GS, F6 Turbo and GS ute.
FPV has been an integral part of Ford’s Australian race bred operations ever since 2002, with the performance DNA going back to 1991, when English engineering company Tickford began partnership with Ford Australia to produce the high performance Falcons.
The closure of FPV will not result in any job losses, as after acquiring full ownership of FPV last year, Ford made 32 workers redundant by taking FPV’s infrastructure to their Broadmeadows operations.
Fast Fords fans will still be serviced until the Falcon is phased out in 2016, but the factory will not be producing new and unique FPV vehicles. The company will however recall the XR8 badge utilising the GT’s high-performance components with the 335kW supercharged V8 engine, big brakes and sports suspension.
The decision to close FPV early has eliminated the possibility of the factory building one last super-quick Falcon GT-HO, leaving the latest 430kW Supercharged HSV GTS as the fastest and most powerful production car ever built in Australia.
Ford is committed to replacing the outgoing Falcon performance vehicle with a global product from 2016, which includes two variants of a new Mustang coupe (based on the Evos concept car) currently under development.
The entry-level muscle car may be powered by a twin-turbo V6, while the flagship will be a normally aspirated V8 coupe. The next generation Mustang or V8 coupe will not be supercharged – so the possibility of a future Shelby Cobra type supercar is out of the question.
Further to Ford’s manufacturing departure from Australia, the factory is expected to also replace the Falcon family sedan with the US-built mid-size Ford Taurus sedan, (which as a 1996 import to Australia failed miserably) but has markedly improved in recent years.
The Ford Territory, which is exclusively manufactured here in Australia, will be replaced by the similarly equipped larger American Ford Explorer, while the Falcon Ute will be replaced by the US built Ranger.