Ford Falcon 2014 Review
Blue Oval's final Falcon fleet special gets a classy new look, crisper chassis, more efficiency and new infotainment for a lower priceFord FG X Falcon 4.0, EcoBoost and EcoLPi sedan
Wodonga, Victoria
After 55 years of production, the Ford Motor Company's oldest surviving nameplate is just two years away from retirement. In October 2016 the last of Blue Oval's quintessential big Aussie sedan will roll off Ford local production line.
With Holden's homegrown Commodore set to follow it into the sunset soon after, it's the end of an era for not only Australia's once-proud car manufacturing industry, but for large rear-wheel drive cars designed and built exclusively for our unique local conditions.
Thanks to the global trend towards downsizing and SUVs, relatively high labour costs and a fragmented, unprotected new-car market, we'll no longer have access to future generations of what in recent years have become some of the world's best-value touring and performance cars.
The good news is that, like Holden, Ford has saved the best for last and delivered far more than we expected for its relatively paltry final investment of $103.5 million, including $34m from you the Australian tax-payer.
First there's the new exterior, which looks far more handsome in the metal than in pictures. It's fresh save for the roof, doors, glazing and rear quarter panels. Ford's big new signature trapezoidal upper grille and two slimline Mustang-style wrap-around headlights give the last Falcon a distinctive 'face'.
Change is less extensive inside, where there's a new (light grey instead of beige) upper cabin colour, revised interior highlights, instrument cluster graphics and, most significantly, the addition of an 8.0-inch high-resolution colour touch-screen.
Apart from being the centrepiece of Falcon's interior makeover, the latter brings together the car's entertainment, audio and climate systems, which can now be controlled via voice, touch or push-buttons. All of this is part of Ford's latest SYNC2 infotainment system, which is fitted as standard to all Falcons and also brings automatic Emergency Assistance, DAB+ digital radio, Wi-Fi hot spot capability, two USB ports and an SD card slot.
The latter is used to support satellite-navigation, but (unlike Holden's entry-level Evoke) that's not available in the base Falcon. A compass replaces the SYNC2 screen's navigation quadrant instead.
SYNC2's hands-free voice-recognition functionality is a genuinely useful addition to the Falcon (not only in terms of safety and convenience, but for keeping within the law) and recognises thousands of handy voice commands, including advanced shortcuts like 'I'm hungry' or 'find an ATM'.
The Commodore's similar system lacks this functionality as well as Emergency Assist (which automatically contacts emergency services if the car's airbags are activated), but it does offer embedded apps like Pandora, Sticher and SmartRadio.
Matching Commodore, Falcon now boasts a reversing camera with dynamic guidelines and front parking sensors in addition to rears, and while neither base model comes with driver safety aids like autonomous emergency braking or blind-spot monitoring.
The Falcon also misses out on the gimmicky automated parking function fitted as standard in all Commodores. Indeed, the big Ford sedan's steering remains an unadulterated hydraulic power-assisted system that continues to offer more feel than the Commodore's electric system -- especially around centre.
The Falcon's steering is also more responsive, a result of the suspension upgrade gifted from the discontinued G6. The entry Falcon is firmer without any reduction in ride quality, which remains plush on all surfaces and makes this car as well suited to broken city street as bumpy country roads. At the same time, the tauter suspension tune brings greater body control and agility, making the base Falcon feel sportier and more fun to drive.
We didn't notice any reduction in grip from the new low rolling resistance Michelin tyres or any of the extra 'slippage' from the Falcon's new Chinese-made ZF 6HP21 transmission, which is 10kg lighter than the German-made six-speed auto it replaces and has a lower torque converter lock-up speed.
Together with front, rear and side underbody panelling from the previous Falcon XT EcoBoost, the new tyres and tranny are claimed to reduce the 4.0-litre petrol Falcon's combined fuel consumption from 9.9 to just 9.0L/100km, matching the smaller and less powerful 3.6-litre petrol V6 in Commodores upstream of the Evoke.
The FG X Falcon EcoBoost and EcoLPi, meantime, are only marginally more efficient than before, at 8.0L/100km and 11.7L/100km respectively, but continue to undercut the Commodore Evoke's 3.0-litre V6 petrol and 3.6-litre LPG engines. They also bring the same advantages of the 'smart' new auto, which is more responsive than the Commodore's six-speed self-shifter.
While the dedicated gas Falcon EcoLPi continues to offer even more power and torque than the lusty petrol-six Falcon (see specs below) and deserves to impress more than just taxi drivers, the 2.0-litre turbo-four is still our pick.
The turbocharged four has a more interesting engine note and revs even more freely (to 6500rpm -- 500rpm higher than both sixes). And while its 176kW power output might fall slightly short of the 3.0-litre Evoke, it delivers shed-loads more torque – as do both the Falcon's petrol and LPG sixes.
Very clearly, all three base Falcon engines feel punchier than their Commodore counterparts.
Yes, this is the most efficient, most dynamic and smartest base Falcon ever, even if the urethane steering wheel now feels by far the cheapest part and the driving position may still prove awkward for some.
With this much space, technology, performance and value, the only real shame is it will all be consigned to history in just two years.
2014 Ford Falcon 4.0, EcoBoost and EcoLPi pricing and specifications:
Price: $35,900, $35,900, $38,400 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 4.0-litre six-cylinder petrol, turbo-petrol and LPG
Output: 195kW/391Nm, 176kW/340Nm and 198kW/409Nm
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Fuel: 9.0L/100km, 8.0L/100km, 11.7L/100km (ADR combined)
CO2: 213g/km, 189g/km, 189g/km (ADR combined)
Safety rating: Five-star ANCAP
| What we liked: | Not so much: |
| >> Lower pricing and new look | >> No nav or advanced safety aids |
| >> Improved efficiency and dynamics | >> Same old steering wheel and seat position |
| >> Infotainment and equipment upgrades | >> It's gone forever in just two years |
Also consider:
>> Holden Commodore Evoke
>> Toyota Aurion AT-X
>> Skoda Superb 118TSI
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