Ford Falcon V8 dead?

Sometimes it's the things not said that speak volumes. Amidst the euphoria of Ford's decision to add EcoBoost, liquid injection LPG and turbodiesel engine options, the future of the company's 5.4-litre Boss V8 engine is far less certain.

The current 290kW unit does not meet EuroIV emission standards set for introduction on July 1 next year. Despite speculation that the new 5.0-litre V8, codenamed 'Coyote', will find its way into the XR8, Ford Australia president Marin Burela didn't reveal any details at today's announcement.

Interestingly though, when asked about the future of the V8 locally, Burela made no mention of Ford and XR8 at all and instead focused his response on Ford Performance Vehicles.

"There are customers in the landscape that want V8s. We have a great offering through FPV that meets the needs of those consumers," Burela said. "You know, quite frankly, even with our performance vehicles the demand has been growing over recent months.

"The team over there, in conjunction with [Ford Australia sales and marketing manager] Beth Donovan and her sales and marketing team we are making good progress.

"But today is not about V8s; today is about a great four-cylinder engine for the Falcon, a diesel for the Territory and liquid injection technologies for the Falcon. What a great day it is. We are talking about a change in the automotive landscape of Australia and the Ford Motor Company is leading that change."

Indeed, the Australian motoring landscape could change dramatically if Ford decided not to include a new V8 -- Coyote or otherwise -- in the Falcon line-up from July next year. It would leave Ford free to promote the Falcon on its economical and environmental strengths and give FPV free reign to chase the V8 audience.

Watch this space...

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