FG Falcon: back in the family way?

Ford has learned from history. When Commodore was outselling Ford's XD Falcon in 1980, the company introduced the alloy-head engine that provided an immediate 10 per cent improvement in fuel efficiency and the sales followed.

Fuel efficiency gains for the new FG model are not quite that dramatic, but the improvements over the BF MkII are significant and at least one FG variant (with the optional ZF six-speeder) is threatening to drop beneath 10L/100km on ADR81/01 combined cycle testing. Not a bad figure for anything displacing 4.0 litres.

But making the Falcon more appealing to family car buyers in 2008 will take more than just reducing the fuel-related running costs.

As we've outlined in our launch coverage, Ford has repositioned variants and levels of trim within the FG range, to lure back buyers other than the usual fleet professionals and the XR revheads.

The model mix of the FG Falcon range is more divergent than has been the case with Falcons previously. Ford has explicitly stated that the new Falcon is a model of "three faces" (XT, XR and G Series) -- apart from an initial flush at the start of AU, AUII, the BAs and the BFs comprised just two sub-lines, comfort (XT, Futura, Fairmont, Ghia) or sport (XR).

Ford's strategy for the new Falcon therefore hinges on the ability to make the G Series models more appealing to those who might have seen the previous Futuras, Fairmonts and Ghias as Falcons with delusions of grandeur.

Car boss, Vice President Product Development Trevor Worthington says the move away from the F-cars draws a line in the sand.

"Those names have been around for a long period of time and they carry with them great history and great memories but they also carry with them all the things we've done in our past," Worthington told the Carsales Network.

"Our view was that moving on to the G6 really signified externally that we really have created a unique level of luxury cars that are very separate from what we've done in our past. It's not that we're not proud of what Fairmont Ghia's been before.

"Everybody has a memory or a vision of what Fairmont Ghia stands for and it was really time to draw a line in the sand with this all-new FG and say we've gone to a new place... It's more luxury, it's more European and it's not like the Futura or Fairmont you remember..." he opined.

If you look at the FG range, the model variants that have undergone the fewest changes are the XR models. Ford has raised the XR6 Turbo specification to the same level as the XR8's, but that's about it. Clearly in Ford's view, the XR range was in little need of change.

By contrast, the G6 and the G6E and G6E Turbo are now being billed by Ford as 'sports luxury' models -- models that offer appearance, comfort and dynamics upgrades without being unduly conspicuous. They offer more visual distinction than the XT model, but are not as in-your-face as the XR models.

Newly installed President of Ford Australia, Bill Osborne, believes that the core attributes of the new model, and the more private customer focus of the G Series cars, will reacquire buyers who had deserted Ford's large car in the aftermath of higher fuel prices.

When asked what will bring families back to Falcon, Osborne said simply: "The vehicle."

"It is a fantastic vehicle... It's full of features. It's got fantastic value and it's got very very important improvements in fuel economy," Osbourne continued.

"What we've done is create a new range of vehicles that allow customers to express themselves.

"We have customers who really enjoy luxury appointments -- the new G Series will be really promoted as a separate sub-brand. It has fantastic appointments, wonderful driving dynamics.

"We still have our iconic XR range... [which] will be more of an overt sports segment. But we also have our value offering, which is the XT."

"So I think that the fact that we've opened ourselves up to a whole new range of customer will allow people to migrate back to large vehicles," he said.

NEW FALCON: The FG model range - including photo galleries (more here)
NEW FALCON: Engineering boss says FG is all-new (more here)
NEW FALCON: more on Engines (more here)
NEW FALCON: more on Packaging (more here)
NEW FALCON: more on Refinement (more here)
NEW FALCON: more on Dynamics (more here)
NEW FALCON: more on Controls (more here)

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